Early into the pandemic I was asked the question, ‘is Christ coming back soon?’ It’s a legitimate question that is often asked when there are significant, catastrophic events – whether man made (wars, anarchy, genocide, widespread human depravity, global economic recessions) or “acts of God” – (earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, floods, drought, blood moons, and yes, pandemics). What struck me was the word tacked on at the end of the question, ‘soon’. Not just ‘is Christ coming back?’ but ‘is Christ coming back soon?’ In the final book of the Bible, in the final chapter, Jesus spoke these words:
“And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” Revelation 22:7
When Jesus spoke these words and whenever the topic of His second coming came up, the Lord and the Scripture writers emphasized how we ought to live in light of the reality of His coming, not the timing of His coming. For example, the word translated soon could mean quickly or swiftly, but it can also mean without delay and undoubtably this is what Jesus meant since it’s been over 2,000 years since He spoke these words. His coming will be without unnecessary delay and in the perfect timing of the Lord.
Questions can reveal a lot about what is on a person’s mind, what is important to them, or what fuels their motivations. The question, “Is Jesus coming soon?” could reveal that a person wants to know if they should start getting serious about their relationship with the Lord. If He is coming soon then there would be added motivation to get their spiritual life in order and start doing what God says they should be doing. If He’s not coming soon, then presumably, there’s no urgency and we can take it easy and do our own thing. Pastors, preachers, and evangelists have at times used the imminent return of Christ as the torch to ignite the fires of lukewarm Christians.
But Jesus resisted doing this. While Jesus gave us some indications of what life will be like as we get closer to the end of history, He also redirects us from fruitless speculation on timing and pointed us toward fruitful living where we are ready at all times for the Lord’s return. Twice the Scriptures recount the flood that destroyed the world as a warning for those who live as if the Lord’s return will not actually happen (Matthew 24:36-39; 2 Peter 3:3-7). Christ’s return, no matter when it happens, provides us with the assurance that Satan will ultimately be vanquished. There will be a dawn after this present darkness. Satan does not have the last word, and we stand with the Lord of Hosts and victory is ours. Knowing this, we can live courageously even in the face of temporary setbacks.
The overriding emphasis related to Jesus’ second coming is for us to be ready. When Jesus was asked by His disciples when He would restore the kingdom to Israel, He told them flat out that it wasn’t their business to know about the timing of when this would happen. Instead, they were to be His witnesses throughout the world (Act 1:6-8). There’s no doubt that we are living in dark times and Paul’s description of the last days seems to accurately reflect what we see every day in our headlines:
1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. 2 Timothy 3:1-5
Yet our responsibility isn’t to judge the world or condemn the world but to bear witness of Christ through our gracious words and our loving actions. Is there a place for standing up for righteousness? Yes! Paul’s instruction to the Corinthians is crucial.
9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10 not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. 1 Corinthians 5:9-11
When it comes to people entrapped by sin, it makes a big difference if they are fellow believers or not. If they are, then the sin needs to be dealt with in a gentle and straightforward way. If it gets to the point where the believer refuses to repent, then disassociating with the person can be the most loving thing to do. But if the person is an unbeliever, we don’t disassociate with them, we get close to them, love them, share with them, and minister to them! Christians seem to get this backwards. We fail to deal with our sins but are quick to point out the sins of the world. It’s no wonder how we’ve earned our reputation of being judgmental hypocrites!
Christians often feel compelled to uphold God’s holiness by condemning the sins of the world. Yet when Jesus had an adulterous woman brought before Him, He chose not to condemn her. He wasn’t stating that adultery was acceptable He was simply showing the power of mercy triumphing over judgment. Christ is coming again, let’s ready ourselves by being salt in a world that is decaying, and light in a world that is plunging into darkness. Let’s go and make disciples.
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