When may He come? Perhaps today, perhaps as your eyes are scanning these lines. The Old Testament long centuries ago prophesied His first coming, and He came as promised. The same Scriptures prophesy His second coming. As surely as He came the first time, so surely will He come the second time.
Why did He come the first time? He came to be the Saviour. “The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world” (1 John 4:14). He died an atoning death on Calvary’s cross in order that salvation and forgiveness of sins might be offered to all mankind.
The first time our Lord came in lowly grace. The second time He will come “in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess. 1:8).
When this poor old world is in great trouble the question asked by multitudes is, Why does God not intervene? The answer is, He has intervened. How, you ask? By sending His Son to be the Saviour. Our Lord spoke a parable when on earth. He spoke of a vineyard being let out to husbandmen. When he sent his servants at the time when he should receive the fruits of his vineyard the husbandmen beat one, killed another, stoned another. What would you do in such a ease? You would naturally say that the bad husbandmen should be given notice to quit, and severely punished for their wicked conduct, in not only refusing to give the owner the fruits of the vineyard, but adding to it the evil conduct in maltreating and even slaying the messengers sent.
But this is a parable to illustrate how GOD approaches this world. So we read, “But last of all he sent to them his son, saying, They will reverence my son” (Matt. 21:37).
God sent His only begotten Son. Yes, and He foreknew how man would treat Him before He sent Him. And in spite of that foreknowledge He still sent Him. And further, God took occasion of man’s sin in crucifying the Lord Jesus to make the cross more than the emblem of man’s sin, blindness and folly. He made it the occasion for the display of His wonderful mercy. That is to say Jesus took the guilty sinner’s place, God pouring upon His Son the judgment that was due to the sinner. This He was bound to do in righteousness. If a righteous God is to forgive a guilty sinner there must be a Substitute able to satisfy God, and set Him free righteously to be gracious. So we read, “He was wounded for OUR transgressions, He was bruised for OUR iniquities; the chastisement of OUR peace was upon Him; and with His stripes WE are healed” (Isa. 53:5). But it is clear that only those who have accepted the Saviour’s death as being on their behalf can take this language on their lips.
Now the next time God intervenes it must be in judgment. He will not only intervene in the great evils of the world, but He will deal with every individual. He will deal with you and me, if we are found refusing the Saviour and God’s most wonderful offer of pardon and forgiveness. The fact that God is not intervening at this moment is the proof that His offers of pardon and mercy still stand good.
But when He does intervene, when the Lord does come the second time, His coming will take form in two parts. First He will catch all His own blood-bought people from earth to heaven, as we read in Scripture, “The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ [that is all true believers in the Lord, who have died] shall rise first; then we [believers in the Lord] which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall be ever with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:16-17). Then the second part of the coming will take place when our Lord shall come to earth to put down all opposition and set up His kingdom of righteousness and peace.
If the Lord were to come today, would you be one of the blood-bought, caught-up ones, or would you be left for judgment? Be ready for the second coming, by accepting the first coming, by trusting the blessed Lord as your personal Saviour. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).