Proclaiming His Death Until He Comes

Yesterday on Things Unseen, I mentioned the church tradition that at the beginning of the Advent season, we look forward to the second advent, the return of the Lord Jesus in glory. And doing that reminds us that at His first coming, He inaugurated His kingdom, but only at His second coming will He consummate it. And that’s why we pray each day:

Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven. (Matt. 6:10)

One day, God’s will will be done perfectly on earth, as it is already in heaven when Jesus comes again to reign.

I suspect some of us get just a little nervous when we hear people speaking about the second coming, and there may be several reasons for that. One is, to be honest, that some Christians become so fixated on the second coming that the details of it almost become a test of orthodoxy as far as they’re concerned. And they can be obsessed with whether Jesus will come before the tribulation or after the tribulation, or will the rapture be secret or public? I think it’s really important for us to see there’s a big difference between convictions about the teaching of the whole of Scripture and a fixation on one particular element in it. I often say there’s no theology without psychology, and one way in which that manifests itself is when someone has an almost neurotic interest in one facet of truth but doesn’t commit the same emotional weight or energy to, for example, the biblical teaching on the humanity of the Lord Jesus or on the holiness of God. Their emotional commitment is out of proportion, disjointed, and for some reason that often happens in connection with the Lord’s second coming.

So, this week I’m not planning to stray beyond what the New Testament basically teaches are the fundamental elements of the doctrine of the second coming. Come to think of it, that’s a good litmus test of whether you and I really are balanced Christians, isn’t it? Does it overly disappoint you that I’m not going to talk about the rapture, for example? You might think that’s a cop-out, or even a compromise. But let me ask: Are you equally enthusiastic about the doctrine of the Lord’s Supper? Or about the nature of sanctification? Or about the knowledge of the holiness and grace of God? Or about the significance—the daily significance—of your baptism? It’s a good checklist for us to ask if we are really, really fixed on what is absolutely central in Scripture.

Well, one sign of such imbalance would be, “I love to talk more about the details, the chronology, even the geography of the second coming, than I love to talk about the Lord Jesus, who Himself is going to come.” It’s always possible to be taken up with the doctrines of grace more so than we are with the Christ who is the grace of those doctrines.

So, where’s a good place to begin? I wonder what you think of this suggestion that I personally think is helpful—helpful for us in our understanding of the second coming and helpful for us to long for the second coming of the Lord Jesus. The place to begin is the Lord’s Supper—yes, the Lord’s Supper.

It was celebrated frequently in the early churches, perhaps even weekly, perhaps even more often than weekly, and it reminded believers of the heart of the gospel. And every time it was celebrated, the believers remembered Jesus’ death until He comes. Their invitation to enjoy Communion with the Lord Jesus at the table always looked forward to the communion they would enjoy with Him at the final marriage supper of the Lamb, when He returns in glory and majesty. And yet, you know, I suspect that’s an element in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper that’s fairly often forgotten, but it’s meant to be a repeated reminder to us that while we live looking back to the incarnation and up to the presence of Christ, we also look forwards to His return.

And so, in the light of this, it’s worth asking: Do you fix your mind and fill your heart with the Lord Jesus, who is going to return? Do you focus on the fact that it’s the Lord Jesus Himself who is coming? And that’s far more important than the geography and the chronology. Do you remember Paul’s statement that the crown of righteousness is laid up for all those who love His appearing (2 Tim. 4:8)—that is, literally, who love the appearing of Jesus, His appearing. The emphasis here is on Jesus Himself. So, when you and I think of the second coming, let’s never allow ourselves to be diverted from the Lord Jesus Himself.