6 – When they met together, they asked Him, ?Lord, are You at this time going to restore the kingdom of Israel??
7 – He said to them: ?It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority.
8 – But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.?
9 – After He said this, He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight.
10 – They were looking intently up into the sky as He was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.
11 – ?Men of Galilee,? they said, ?why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, Who has been taken from you into Heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into Heaven.?
Back in my youth ministry days one of our most popular events was a hike to the top of Old Rag mountain. In spite of the rain that plagued our first ascent we had so much fun that we went again and again. The views from the top of that peak are spectacular?especially in the Fall. By the way, I remember making my first ever cell phone call from the top of that particular mountain. Sandy Forrer wanted to make sure her then teen-aged son, Mark, got to the top okay?so she loaned me her new-fangled phone. We rigged a special stretcher and a couple teens carried it. We called her from the summit to let her know we had made it. I remember being amazed that I could talk to someone on the phone from the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere!
Here?s a shot of ?Old Rag.? It?s called that because it?s the only summit on the Skyline Drive that has a ?ragged? top in that it?s covered with rocks and boulders instead of trees. Now?the climb up is quite challenging. The trail is eight miles long and you gain about half a mile in elevation so it involves a lot of huffing and puffing! The hike begins with a snake trail that winds back and forth up the increasingly steep mountain side. As you climb you deal with the inevitable muscle strain by looking up at the summit from time to time. You can just make it out through the trees and you tell yourself, ?That?s the end. I just have to hang in here until I get up there! When I reach that peak I can rest and enjoy the view while I eat my lunch.?
But?when you round the last corner and finally get to that peak you can see what you couldn?t see before. You realize that what you thought was the top isn?t. It?s just the first of TWO peaks. The final one?Old Rag itself?is still several hundred feet in elevation above you. You have a couple more miles of trail along a ridge line that runs between both peaks. In other words?it?s still quite a while before lunch time! You can see these two peaks in this picture.
I share my climbing story because the view from the first peak is similar to the perspective that many Old Testament prophets had when it came to the coming of Jesus. In their minds the coming of the long-awaited Messiah would represent the loftiest point in human history. That would be the peak?the summit?of God?s great work. But as Dr. Jeremiah puts it, when Jesus came?when mankind reached the ?summit? of His birth?God?s prophets, ?…realized that what they had thought was one great peak was actually two of them?with a great valley in between. In other words, the Messiah would appear among His people not ONCE, but TWICE and our era of history is the valley that lies between the two comings.?
I like that ?word picture? because it highlights the fact that Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah, and the others who foretold Jesus? coming?well, they knew there would be a Messiah and they gathered SOME of the details but I don?t think they realized the Messiah would come TWICE. On the other hand, the prophets who served God after Jesus came?Matthew and John and Peter, for example?well, they had a closer vantage point. After all, Jesus?s FIRST followers heard Him say repeatedly that He would leave and then make one more visit at some time in the future…at which time He would fulfill the remaining prophecies?the ones about a triumphant Conqueror, coming to right all wrongs and usher in a perfect kingdom. As they stood on one mountain peak?the Mt. of Olives?where He ascended to Heaven the angel reminded them of what they had heard?there would be a second summit in the future when Jesus would return to earth.
You and I?we have the benefit of their clear perspective because the prophecy that Jesus will indeed come AGAIN is all over our New Testament. I mean, just as the Old Testament abounds with prophecies of Jesus? first coming, so does the New Testament overflow with promises of His return?over 300 of them! And because of that we can see both ?peaks!?
Think of it this way, the FIRST appearance of Jesus was a mission of humility and sacrifice. As I said last week, Jesus came the way He did the FIRST time to deal with the problem of our sin once and for all. His SECOND appearance will have a different mission. It will be one of triumph and transformation.
And?not only will his MISSION be different?His COMING will be very different as well. The first time, Jesus entered our world in a stable in an obscure village with only a handful of witnesses but when He comes back all mankind will see it. It will be a VISIBLY TRIUMPHANT return. In Matthew 24 Jesus said,?…all the nations of the earth…will SEE the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with POWER and GREAT GLORY.? (Vs.30) Revelation 1:7 says,?…every eye will SEE Him, even those who pierced Him.? 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 says,?For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God…?
In short, there will be no doubt on the minds of anyone on this planet as to what has happened when the King of Kings RE-appears. It will not be a quiet coming like the first. There will be no modern-day equivalent of King Herod asking modern-day versions of the wise men to help him find the Messiah. No?when Jesus returns it will be in triumph for ALL to see. There will be no doubt in anyone?s mind that the Lord of Lords has come back to earth. The Bible also says that when Jesus comes back the second time, He?ll do so SUDDENLY. 1st Corinthians 15:52 says,?All will be changed in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye.? That Greek word for ?moment? is ?atmos,? from which we get our word, ?atom.? It?s an indivisible moment of time, not the batting of an eye, but the time it take for light to flash?TWINKLE?across the eye.
And?when Paul says ?all will be changed? he?s saying that those believers who are alive when Jesus comes back the second time will INSTANTLY receive a body fitted for eternity…just like those in graves who were raised from decay. This new ?imperishable body? will never contract a disease, never suffer injury, never sin, never experience sorrow, never wear down or die. When Christ returns finally, ?…death will have been swallowed up in victory.? (1st Corinthians 15:54) What a day that will be! Never again will I have to say good-bye to a dear friend by doing their funeral!
You know when I was a kid?at Christmas I tended to look BACK and focus on Jesus? FIRST coming. But the older I get?the more I look FORWARD?the older I get the more I strain to see that SECOND mountain peak in the distance! These days I long for the day when Jesus comes back. Recently I read about an incident in the life of Bud Wood, the founder of what has become one of the finest homes for mentally challenged children and adults. It?s called Shepherd?s Home and its in Union Grove, Wisconsin. In that facility, they care for and minister to many children with Down Syndrome. This is a picture of one of their main buildings along with one of a worker reading to some of the first residents. The staff at Shepherd?s Home makes a concentrated effort to present the gospel to the children. As a result many have come to faith in Jesus. They have learned how deeply Jesus loves them and that He wants to make them whole and be with them forever. They have learned that He has prepared a place for them in His home in Heaven and could return from the sky at any moment to take them there. On a tour of the home with a friend, Bud Wood happened to remark that one of the greatest daily maintenance problems the staff faces is smudged windows.?Smudged windows?? his friend asked.?Why is that?? Bud smiled and said, ?You can walk through Shepherd?s Home any time of day, and you will see some of these children standing with their hands, noses, and faces pressed to the glass.? Looking over at his perplexed friend, Bud added, ?They?re watching for Jesus. They keep checking to see if Christ is coming back yet?to take them to Heaven.?
Well, I can identify with the simple hearts and minds of my brothers and sisters who live at Shepherd?s Rest. I too long for that day! Let me put it this way: When I was little I smudged the windows of my parent?s home looking for Santa and his sleigh. These days I smudge it to see Jesus returning. I know, that as Jesus told His first followers, it?s not for me to know the day He?s coming back. But if I did know it?I?d mark it on my calendar and eagerly count the days until He comes again!
Well, that wonderful day is the focus of our study this morning. Specifically we?re looking to God?s Word for answers to this Advent question, ?Why must Jesus come again? Why not take care of business in ONE visit? Why must we smudge our windows as we wait? Why must Jesus come a second time?? I want to cite three reasons. Here?s the first.
(1) Jesus left to come again some time in the future to give people a chance to RESPOND to His first coming.
As I said last week, Jesus was born?He came the FIRST time to die for our sins?and then, after His resurrection, He left to give His followers time to share that good news with a lost world. You see, God wants all people to have a chance to accept His indescribable Christmas Gift as they hear the Gospel and respond. So, as 1st Peter 3:9 says,?The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.?
God loves all people so He?s commissioned Christians like you and me to spend these centuries between Jesus? first and second coming going to all people and telling them about His love?telling them about all Jesus did for them on the cross?giving them an opportunity to accept the forgiveness of sin that Jesus alone has made possible. As Jesus Himself said,?This Gospel of the Kingdom must be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations?then the end will come.? (Matthew 24:14)
And it may shock you but even in this day and age when the world seems to have shrunk thanks to 24-hour news networks and cell-phones and satellites, there are people who haven?t heard.
There are still people who don?t know why Jesus came. And I?m not just referring to people in countries where the Gospel message hasn?t yet penetrated. There are people right here in America who still don?t understand Who Jesus is?people who still don?t grasp the basic message of Christmas.
Last week I visited with the Aune?s at John?s Hopkins. As we talked I remembered that Greg worked there for a couple of years when he was doing a fellowship as part of his medical studies. I asked him if he?d seen the huge marble statue of Jesus in the foyer of the old hospital and he said he had?that in fact he had often taken people on tours and that was one of the main stops.
He said, ?Mark, once a Jewish med student was on one of my tours and when we got to this statue of Jesus she asked me, ?Dr. Aune, Who is that??? You?d think it would be obvious. As you can see Jesus? is standing with His nail-pierced hands open wide. His side bears the wound of the spear. This ten and a half foot high statue looks very ?Jesus-like.? The inscription at the bottom is a quote of Matthew 11:28 where Jesus said, ?Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.? I thought EVERYONE had heard that invitation?but not everyone has. I?m SURE you have neighbors and co-workers who still don?t fully understand the good news that we celebrate each Christmas. I know I have neighbors like that.
Well, Jesus left to give us time to tell these people. And listen, we don?t know when He will come back?but the day for His return has already been set and that mean?s we have a limited amount of years?or even days?to fulfill this Great commission. I mean, Jesus made it clear the date of His 2nd coming is none of our business….but we do know this. There is less time to share the Gospel today than there has ever been before?and I say that to remind us all that there should be a sense of URGENCY in our evangelistic endeavors. We should not be lackadaisical when it comes to personal evangelism. We have an critical task to complete before Jesus returns….and the clock is ticking. We get closer and closer to the second ?mountain peak? of Jesus? return?every day. So as Jesus said in John 9,?We must do the work of Him Who sent Me while it is day. Night is coming, when no one can work.? There IS an urgency here! In a very real sense we are on a sinking ship, so we must use every possible opportunity to share the good news of God?s love.
In 2nd Timothy 4:2 Paul says that we are to share our faith ?in season and out of season?…when it is convenient and when it is not. Evangelism must be a priority in the life of every Christian! Is it one in yours? Are you burdened for friends and co-workers who don?t know Jesus? Do you look for?and take advantage of every opportunity God gives you to share the reason for the hope that is in you?
I for one think that God provides us with more opportunities to share our faith at Christmas than at any other time.
During this season, the fields are indeed ripe for harvest and we need to get to work. We need to be always tuned in to hear God?s prompting us to share our faith with the people in our realm of influence. And, listen?when the day Christ returns finally DOES dawn?when we get to that second mountain peak we will NEVER look back down the trail…and regret those times we attempted to share our faith with someone. In fact, just the opposite is true. When we get to Heaven, we?ll agonize over those times we DIDN?T do that?the times we were silent when we could have spoken up. We?ll all wish we had been more PASSIONATE…about pointing people to God.
Thanks to Steven Spielberg most of us have heard of this man, Oscar Schindler. During WWII this brave German businessman used his factory as a haven for 1100 Jews?people he saved from Hitler?s gas chambers. At the end of the Spielberg?s film there is a scene in which Schindler prepares to leave his factory…running from the advancing armies of the allies. And…as he leaves, the Jewish factory workers line both sides of the road to thank him. One presents him with a letter signed by each person, documenting his deed. Another gives him a ring, formed out of the gold extracted from a worker?s tooth. On it is carved a verse from the Talmud, ?He who saves a single life saves the world entire.? When they presented him with this gift he showed emotion for the first time in the film. As he leaned toward Isaac Stern, the factory foreman, and said with a low voice, ?I could have done more.? Pointing toward his car he says, ?I could have sold it. That would have released ten prisoners.? He realizes that the gold pin on his lapel would have bribed an official to release two more. I mean, in that moment, Schindler?s life is reduced to one value. This businessman forgets monetary profit. His factory doesn?t matter. No?on that day, only one thing counts to him: People…only people.
And when Christ returns we will feel the same. We won?t wish we had attended more meetings.
We won?t regret that we didn?t own a bigger house or drove a nicer car or got a bigger promotion at work. All that will matter on that day is people. We?ll wish we had witnessed to more people. We?ll wish we had worked harder to lead more individuals to make that decision that makes anyone READY for Christ?s return. This is the reason Jesus left after His first coming. He left to give Christians like you and me time to share the reason for His first coming. We are to use this time to ?…go and tell it on the mountain, over the hills and every where…? THAT Jesus is born?and what He was born to do.
This evangelistic urgency leads me to mention a second reason Jesus is coming again.
(2) He will come again to JUDGE the earth.
2nd Peter 3:3-7 says,?Scoffers will come in the last days, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ?Where is the coming He promised? Ever since our fathers died everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.? But they deliberately forget that long ago by God?s Word the heavens existed and the earth was formed. By the same Word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.?
This and other texts tell us that when Jesus comes JUDGEMENT will come with Him. In fact, before He left Jesus said His second coming will be like it was in the days of Noah. Do you remember His words from Matthew 24:38-39? ?In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving their children to be married, until the day Noah entered the boat. They knew nothing about what was happening until the flood came and destroyed them. It will be the same when the Son of man comes.?
In his book, When Christ Comes, Max Lucado lists the parallels Jesus was referring to with this comparison.
- People didn?t listen in Noah?s day. Some refuse to listen in our day.
- Noah was sent to save the faithful. Christ will do the same.
- Noah built a safe place out of wood. Jesus made a safe place with the wood of the cross.
- Those who believed hid in the ark. Those who believe are hidden in Christ.
- A message of judgement was proclaimed when the flood came. It will be the same when Christ returns.
I like that comparison?and it should remind us that when Christ comes judgement is indeed coming for EVERYONE. Matthew 25:32 says,?Before Him (the Son of Man) will be gathered ALL the nations.? In 2nd Corinthians 5:10, Paul writes,?…for we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ that each one may receive what is due him…for the things done while in the body whether good or bad.? Ecclesiastes 12:14 says,?God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.? Matthew 12:36 ?On the day of judgement, men will render account for every careless word they utter.? Romans 14:10, 12 says,?For we will ALL stand before God?s judgement seat.?
But, as Christians we need not fear this coming day of judgement. As Romans 8:1 says,?There is not no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.? When our sins are brought to light on Judgement Day they will be revealed as FORGIVEN sins. Our transgressions will be announced as PARDONED transgressions.
Lucado tells the story of a couple who resorted to do-it?yourself marriage counseling. They decided to make a list of each other?s faults and then read them aloud. She made hers and he made his. The wife gave her list of complaints to her husband and he read them aloud. ?You snore, you eat in bed, you get home too late and up too early.? After finishing the husband gave her his list. But when she looked at the paper, she began to smile. You see, he too, had written his grievances, but next to each one he had written, ?I forgive this.? The result was a husband?s tabulated list of grace.
Well, if you are a Christian, then like me, you?ll receive a list similar to that on judgment day. The instant we stand before God and see the list of our sins we?ll feel God?s grace more genuinely than ever before. It might sound like this:
- Disrespect of parents at age 13?PARDONED
- Shaded the truth at 15?PARDONED
- Divorced at 25?PARDONED
- Gossiped at age 28?PARDONED
- Lusted at 30?PARDONED
- Gave into fear instead of trusting God at 32?PARDONED
- Disregarded the leading of the Spirit at 40?PARDONED
- Disobeyed God?s Word at 55?PARDONED
In the presence of our Holy God, as forgiven sinners, whose sins where covered by the blood of the Lamb, for the first time we will each understand the depth of God?s love and forgiveness. We will stand in awe as our sins are proclaimed then pardoned. Lucado writes, ?The devil will shrink back in defeat. The angels will step forward in awe, and we saints will stand tall in God?s grace.?
And that leads me to mention one final reason Jesus must come again.
(3) He must come again to take us HOME.
Do you remember His promise in John 14? Jesus said,?In My Father?s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also my be where I am.?
One of my favorite Christmas songs is Bing Crosby?s hit, ?I?ll be Home for Christmas.? I love that song because I can relate?and I?m sure you can as well. There?s something special about being HOME for the annual celebration of Jesus? first coming?and I?m not talking about the decorations or the gifts or the other wonderful Christmas traditions. I?m talking about the fact that Christmas brings families together after times of separation. When Sue and I were first married and lived in Louisville, we had a tradition those three years of seminary. We shared a car with another seminary couple from our area and after the choir I directed sang their Christmas cantata on Sunday night, the four of us would load up and drive east. We took turns driving through the night so that we could be HOME for Christmas. In our minds it was well worth driving all night long…because being TOGETHER with family and friends is part of what makes Christmas so wonderful! This is why we mark on our calendars when Sarah and Becca will be home from college. It?s why we plan a time?even if it can?t be on Christmas day?for Daniel and Ashley to join us. It?s why we make time?even in this BUSY season to get over to Delaware to be with our moms and siblings and nieces and nephews. We all long to BE HOME with our families at Christmas.
Well?when Jesus returns it will be the greatest Christmas EVER?as He takes us HOME to be reunited with husbands and wives and parents and grandparents and friends who have died. Does that promise make you want to go a smudge a window or what!? Jesus is coming to take us HOME someday! And when he does there?ll be no more separations….no more illnesses…no more fears…only JOY and peace!
Brennan Manning once shared a story of a woman named Yolanda who lived in the only leper colony in America. Brennan was deeply involved in this leper colony in Carville, LA?20 miles southwest of Baton Rouge. Listen to his story:
?On one of my trips, I was met by the head nurse who asked, ?Brennan, can you come quick and pray for Yolanda? She?s dying.? I went into her room, sat on the edge of her bed. Before the leprosy, Yolanda was a beautiful 32 year-old woman. Five years later, Yolanda?s mouth is severely contorted, both ears are distended. Her scarred face is hideous to many. She had no fingers on either hand. When she was diagnosed, Yolanda?s husband divorced her and forbade their two sons from ever visiting their mother. It had been years since she?d seen them. In short, Yolanda was a dying, abandoned, insignificant woman. Well, I anointed her with oil and prayed with her. Then, as I turned around to put the top back on the oil, the room was filled with a brilliant light. It had been raining when I came in. I didn?t even look up, but prayed, ?Thanks, Abba, for the sunshine. I bet that will cheer her up.? As I turned to look back at Yolanda?her face was like a sunburst over the mountains, like 1,000 sunbeams streaming out of her face, so bright I had to shield my face. I said, ?Yolanda, you appear to be very happy. Will you tell me why you are so happy?? ?Yes, the Abba of Jesus just told me that He would take me home today.? I asked her what the Abba said. Yolanda replied, ?Come now, my love. My lovely one, come. For you, the winter has passed, the snows are over and gone, the flowers appear in the land, the seasons of joyful songs has come. The cooing of the turtle dove is heard in our land. Come now, my love. My Yolanda, come. Let Me see your face. Let Me hear your voice. For your voice is sweet and your face is beautiful. Come now, My love, My lovely one, come.? Six hours later her little leprous body was swept up into the furious love of her Abba. Later that same day, I learned from the staff that Yolanda was illiterate. She had never read the Bible, or any book for that matter. I surely had never repeated those words to her in any of my visits. I was, as they say, ?a man undone.? You see, Yolanda had quoted the Song of Solomon, chapter 2, verses 10-14 verbatim. So, Yolanda was not alone, her Abba, her Father in heaven had come to be with her…come to take her home.?
Some day?some GLORIOUS day?Jesus will come again to take us there as well.
LET US PRAY