The Distant
Trumpet
When I referred to the future that God is planning, a student at the University of Hawaii asked me: "Isn't this a form of escapism?" I said: "In a sense, yes; and before the devil gets through with this world, we are all going to be looking for the exit signs."
C. S. Lewis, in his remarkable little book Christian Behavior, said: "Hope is one of the theological virtues. This means that a continual looking forward to the eternal world is not, as some modern people think, a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you will get neither."
In the midst of the pessimism, gloom, and frustration of this present hour, there is one bright beacon light of hope, and that is the promise of Jesus Christ: "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again" (John 14:3).
During the years of the Second World War, the words of General Douglas MacArthur echoed in the ears of the people of the Philippine Islands while they were under enemy occupation. He had promised, "I shall return," and he kept that promise. Jesus Christ has also promised, "I shall return," and He will keep that promise.
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The whole nature of individual salvation rests squarely on the person and work of Jesus Christ. "For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8, 9). "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:5-7).
Likewise, the salvation of society in the reordering of man's social institutions, consistent with the abolition of social injustice, war, poverty, and disease, will be taken out of man's hands. It will not be achieved by education, evolution, politics, technology, military power, or science. Nor will it be achieved by a universal church that can influence legislation in the parliaments and congresses of nations, so as to produce such benevolent acts of men that all hate, evil, and sin will be abolished.
The salvation of society will come about by the powers and forces released by the apocalyptic return of Jesus Christ. It will be instrumented through the Kingdom of God in its principles of righteousness. It will be the prophesied fulfillment of redemption applied to every phase of human life and national existence. The second coming of Christ will be so revolutionary that it will change every aspect of life on this planet. Christ will reign in righteousness. Disease will be arrested. Death will be modified. War will be abolished. Nature will be changed. Man will live as it was originally intended he should live.
There is nothing on today's horizon or in contemporary thought that offers an alternate hope that is better. Someone has said: "No arrangement of bad eggs will give you a good omelet." These successive civilizations of the past have been different arrangements of human institutions, but we have
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never had a lasting, satisfactory, peaceful social order. It is impossible to build a peaceful world on the cracked foundation of human nature.
Jesus Christ Will Return
The importance of this hope of Christ's return is established by the frequency, extent, and intensity of its mention in the Bible. It is mentioned in all but four books of the New Testament. Christ constantly referred to His return, not only to His disciples, but to others as well. He said to the high priest, "Hereafter shall you see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven" (Matthew 26:64). One out of every thirty verses in the Bible mentions this subject. There are 318 references to it in 216 chapters in the New Testament. One-twentieth of the entire New Testament deals with this subject.
It was predicted by most of the Old Testament writers: by Moses (Deut. 33:2); by Job (19:25); by David (Psalm 102:16); by Isaiah (Isaiah 59:20); by Jeremiah (Jer. 23:5); by Daniel (Daniel 7:13); by Zechariah (Zech. 14:4); and by many others. It was promised by Christ Himself: "Let not your heart be troubled: you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there you may be also" (John 14:1-3).
The fact of the coming again of Christ was proclaimed by all the Apostles in their preaching — by Peter (Acts 3:20, 21; 1 Peter 1:7, 13); by Paul (Romans 8:23; 1 Thess. 4:15-17); by John (1 John 2:28; 3:2); by James (James 5:7-9); by Jude (Jude 14-15).
The hope of the second coming is found in the church's
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great creeds, such as the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. The Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England say: "Christ did truly rise again from death and took again His body, with flesh, bones and all things appertaining to the perfection of man's nature, wherewith He ascended into Heaven, and there sitteth until He return to Judge all men at the last day" (Article 4). Article 17 of the Augsburg Confession deals at length with "Christ's return to judgment." The Apostles' Creed, repeated in many churches every Sunday says: "From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead."
The Bible teaches it. The Apostles preached it. The church creeds affirm it.
However, the greatest and most telling testimony is from the lips of Jesus Himself. He said: "The Son of man shall come" (Matthew 25:31); "They shall see the Son of man coming" (Matthew 24:30); "Your Lord doth come" (Matthew 24:42); ". . . when he cometh in the glory of his Father" (Mark 8:38); "You will say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" (Luke 13:35); "And you now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice: (John 16:22); "Hereafter you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of Heaven" (Matthew 26:64, RSV).
Certainly a projected event that was the subject of such universal and frequent attention and such great promise is a worthy object for modern man's concern.
There are three Greek words used in the New Testament to describe the coming again of Christ. The first one is parousia, which carries with it the idea of the personal presence of Christ. In other words, when Christ returns, He will come in person.
The second Greek word is epipheaneia, which carries with it the idea of appearing. It is the appearance out of darkness
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of a star that has been there all day, hidden from view, and suddenly appearing at night.
The third Greek word is apokalupsis, which carries with it the idea of unveiling. It is the unveiling of one who has been hidden. Today the person of Christ is hidden from view though His presence through the Holy Spirit is in our hearts. Today is the day of faith. In that day He will be revealed. In that day of His coming it will no longer be faith, but sight.
His first appearing was quiet — the shepherds, the star, and the manger. His second appearing will be with His dazzling warriors from heaven, able to cope with any situation and to defeat the enemies of God until He has subdued the entire earth.
Thus, no Christian has the right to go around wringing his hands, wondering what we are to do in the face of the present world situation. The Scripture says that in the midst of persecution, confusion, wars, and rumors of wars, we are to comfort one another with the knowledge that Jesus Christ is coming back in triumph, glory, and majesty.
Many times when I go to bed at night I think that before I awaken Christ may come. Sometimes when I get up and look at the dawn I think that perhaps this is the day He will come.
He Will Come Unexpectedly
The Bible teaches that the coming again of Jesus Christ will be sudden, unexpected, and dramatic. It will come as a surprise and take most people unawares. "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night" (1 Thess. 5:2).
When former President Eisenhower was vacationing in Denver a number of years ago, his attention was called to
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an open letter in a local newspaper, which told how six-year-old Paul Haley, dying of incurable cancer, had expressed a wish to see the President of the United States. Spontaneously, in one of those gracious gestures remembered long after a man's most carefully prepared speeches are forgotten, the President decided to grant the boy's request.
So one Sunday morning in August, a big limousine pulled up outside the Haley home and out stepped the President. He walked up to the door and knocked.
Mr. Donald Haley opened the door, wearing blue jeans, an old shirt, and a day's growth of beard. Behind him was his little son, Paul. Their amazement at finding President Eisenhower on their doorstep can be imagined.
"Paul," said the President to the little boy, "I understand you want to see me. Glad to see you." Then he shook hands with the six-year-old, and took him out to see the presidential limousine, shook hands again and left.
The Haleys and their neighbors, and a lot of other people, will probably talk about this kind and thoughtful deed of a busy President for a long time to come. Only one person was not entirely happy about it — that was Mr. Haley. He can never forget how he was dressed when he opened the door. "Those jeans, the old shirt, the unshaven face — what a way to meet the President of the United States," he said.
Of course the visit was unannounced, and under the circumstances it wasn't to be expected that he would be all dressed up in his best clothes. But all his life he will wish he had gotten up a bit earlier that day, shaved a little sooner, and at least put on a clean shirt before the President arrived. Readiness and watchfulness are all urged upon Christians, lest Christ's coming take us by surprise or find us unprepared.
The second coming of Jesus Christ will be a series of events transpiring over a rather long period. There will be the rapture, the catching up of the believers to meet Him in
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the air (1 Thess. 4:16-17). This is the next event on God's calendar, and it will involve the first resurrection when all the believers of all the ages will be raised from the dead and gathered together with the living believers. There is to be the marriage supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7), which is the moment of the coronation of Jesus Christ as Lord of lords and King of kings. There will be the great tribulation that Jesus referred to in Matthew 24:21 and 29. There is to be the rise of Anti-Christ (2 Thess. 3:8-10; Rev. 13; 1 John 2:18). There will be many other events that space does not permit me to discuss here. Some of these are clearly outlined in the Scriptures, and others are mysterious events about which we can only speculate.
When He Comes
However, some of the ultimate results of the coming of Christ are clearly outlined in the Bible:
Peace
First, peace will be established on the earth
When Karl Barth, the Swiss theologian, visited the United Nations he said: "The international organization could be an earthly parable of the heavenly kingdom, but real peace will not be made here although it might seem as an approach. Peace will be made by God Himself at the end of all things."
Louis Mumford has said: "War is a specific product of civilization." It seems to be a characteristic that distinguishes man from beast, for man preys on his fellowman in a way not true of the beast.
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Now with powers of total destruction that ancient man dared impute only to his gods, and with the practice of investing ever increasing quantities of intelligence and energy in the building of even more dangerous absolute weapons, man has created the conditions that prepare for the return of Christ. The only solution to this problem of war is Christ's return and war's abolition. With all our military power and with political alliances and military structures to preserve peace, we are coming at last to the end of the road. Our modern hopes for peace cannot rest on the practice of creating more war.
Pacifism will fail, for the pacifist acts as if all men are regenerate and can be appealed to through persuasion and goodwill. The pacifist also refuses to recognize the role of power in the preservation of justice, alongside the role of love. While disarmament might be desirable, unilateral disarmament would be folly in our present world. We must first disarm men's passions and change their hearts. War must be removed from men's hearts before it can be removed from the world's battlefields.
Isaiah the prophet, looking forward to that day of future peace, said, "His name shall be called . . . The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end" (Isaiah 9:6-7). Christ will establish permanent world peace.
Social Justice
Second, our social institutions will be reconstructed
The present social institutions, which seek the establishment of justice for all, the abolition of poverty, the reduction of crime, and the prosperity of all men, cannot adequately
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achieve these results as long as these institutions ignore the basic problem of human nature. We can never secure total social justice by law alone. The Christian social reformer makes the mistake of expecting the existing social order to live up to the Christian ethic. Man does not have the capacity to live up to the Christian ethic. Christianity cannot expect the world to live the truths of the Gospel until it has the life that the Gospel provides in Christ. We Christians ought to be light and salt in the society in which we live. Christians have changed society for the better, but the ultimate and total solutions remain beyond us because of man's sinful nature.
Communists teach that by revolution and violence the perfect society shall be established here on earth and thereafter all men shall be wholly happy. Communism offers its panacea by compulsion and a forceful redistribution of property. However, all of these schemes are destined to fail and to create other conditions that only the return of Christ can solve.
In Isaiah 2:19, the Lord says He will "shake the earth." I take this to include all social institutions.
Nature Restored
Third, Christ will restore nature to its original state
Today all nature is in the minor key. Nature lives by the fang and the claw. Anyone who has seen a film regarding habitats of animals knows that nature is engaged in the survival of the fittest. This will all be changed. The prophets foresaw a time when the wolf would dwell with the lamb and the desert would blossom as a rose, when disease and death would be almost nonexistent, when the
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knowledge of God "would cover the earth as the waters cover the sea," when sin and its evil deeds would be limited and restricted. This constituted the prophetic dream of a golden age, a dream that became the promise of the Kingdom of God on earth from the lips of Christ Himself. Nature itself is to be transformed. The thorns and thistles will be removed. The venom will be taken from the mouths of the serpents. All of nature will sing and shout to the glory of God.
International Righteousness
Fourth, Christ will make righteousness international
"Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2 Peter 3:13). Human nature will be totally and completely changed. Righteousness will spring from the hearts of men. Moral good never comes from coercion. You can protect others by restraining the criminal, but the criminal himself is not improved. Man is improved only from the inside out.
President Eisenhower talked often about peace with justice. Such a period is coming permanently to the world, but only under the leadership of Jesus Christ. Perfect justice and righteousness are missing in our world. Now and then for brief periods in the ages of highest social achievement, and particularly under the impact of Christian ideals, such an era has been approximated, but only in a limited area for a limited time and in a limited way. The totality of evil and depravity existing in men is having its normal fruitage in a social order so complicated, confused, and corrupted that only the return of Christ can save it.
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God's Will Done on Earth
Fifth, Christ will reproduce the will of God on earth
This will be the time when His prayer will be answered, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Heaven is heaven because God's will is its order. Earth will be heavenly when God's will is its order.
The Apostle John foresaw a time when a new heaven and a new earth will come into being. The chief characteristic of this new heaven and earth will be righteousness. The chief characteristic of our present earth will be righteousness. The chief characteristic of our present earth is sin; hence its disorders, evils, disasters, injustices, disease, and death. When the new order of righteousness prevails, a new order of life will prevail.
When Christ came the first time, He dealt with evil as individual and hereditary. When He comes again, Christ will deal with evil as a practice. He will change men and nature, and He will institute an age of such benevolence that evil cannot reign; and cruelty, oppression, and slavery will no longer exist. All of this will come to pass as a result of the personal reign of Christ following His return.
Marguerite Higgins, a war correspondent, received the much coveted Pulitzer prize for international reporting because of her coverage of the Korean struggle. She wrote an account of the Fifth Company of Marines, which originally numbered eighteen thousand, in their combat with more than a hundred thousand Chinese Communists:
"It was particularly cold — 42 degrees below zero — that morning when reporters were standing around. The weary soldiers, half frozen, stood by their dirty trucks eating from tin cans. A huge marine was eating cold beans with his trench knife.
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His clothes were as stiff as a board. His face, covered with heavy beard, was crusted with mud. A correspondent asked him, 'If I were God and could grant you anything you wished, what would you most like?' The man stood motionless for a moment. Then he raised his head and replied, 'Give me tomorrow.' "1
For the true believer in Jesus Christ, the future is assured. We await the distant trumpet announcing the coming of Christ. The Christian has tomorrow. It is the Kingdom of God on earth.
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1. G. Curtis Jones, What Are You Worth? (St. Louis: Bethany Press, 1954).
