Coming: The Return of Christ

The Jewish people before Christ was born anticipated the birth of their Messiah. The word “coming” (“erchomai” in Greek) is the word used for the arrival of the Messiah, both in His first coming and when He comes again. With regard to His first coming Jesus Himself said in Luke 19:10, For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. Jesus came from heaven to earth for a purpose. He came to do the Father’s will and save all that the Father gave to Him (John 6:37-39). With regard to His Second Coming, He said in Matthew 24:30, Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. The word is used more frequently in this future sense to signify Christ’s return (John 14:3, 2 Thessalonians 1:10; Revelation 1:7).

The Word Coming in the Bible

While the word “erchomai” is the most generic one in Greek for “coming,” there is a more specific word that is used almost exclusively for the Second Coming of Christ, the Greek word “parousia.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1 uses this word, Brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him. This word is used 22 times in the New Testament and is always translated “coming.” Of the 22 uses of this word, 17 of them refer to the coming of Christ at His return and always in singular form with the Greek definite article, making it “the parousia.” The word means “presence, being present, coming to a place, or arrival.” The word can refer to either the Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17) or the Second Coming (Matthew 24:27), which is determined by the context.

The Second Coming of Christ

Christ is coming, that is what we need to know. He came the first time 2,000 years ago when He was born in Bethlehem and He will come again just as certain as He did the first time. There is no question about it, Christ will return to set the world straight. God has allowed the world to run amuck for thousands of years, since He judged it with the Flood in the days of Noah. But God has appointed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness when His Son blasts through the clouds to render judgment (Acts 17:31). God must intervene in history. He must right all the wrongs. This goes to His justice. He will not allow Satan to control the world forever, nor will He allow man to mock and blaspheme His name without recompense. There is a time reserved in the future when Jesus will remove His church and unleash utter devastation upon the world in order to subdue all of His enemies and deliver a remnant of Jewish people who will finally turn to their Messiah (Romans 11:26). We should be comforted, and we long for that day to meet our Lord, and thus we will always be with our Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:18).