Part 3 Jesus the Coming King
The events that surround the rapture of the church are: a falling away, a departing from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, many having a form of godliness but denying the power of God, and wickedness shall abound, perils times shall be. The signs of the times from Christ our Coming King can be seen in these verses.
2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for [that day shall not come], except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
1Ti 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
2Ti 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
This week we are looking why we are saved from the tribulation period and a defense on the pre-millennial coming of Christ.
We shall be saved from the wrath of God for He has not appointed us to wrath, but we are saved from wrath through Him. “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 KJV). This is a picture of Christ coming to save His saints from the tribulation period. He is not coming down for His millennial reign as depicted in Revelation 19:11-16 and 20:1-6. The difference being in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17; Jesus comes in the clouds to rapture the believers and in the book of Revelation He comes down to earth and He will rule and reign at that time for a thousand years.
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Romans 5:9 KJV)
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, (1 Thessalonians 5:9 KJV)
There is still another event that surrounds the rapture of the church and precedes the Millennial reign of Christ. It is the tribulation period spoken of in Daniel which also includes the abomination of desolation (Danial 2:36-45; 9:24-27 and 12; Revelation 11). These scriptures tell us about the empires or kingdoms decay from Babylon till the present day structure of mixed clay and iron (fragile kingdoms ready to crumble). The events are the signing of the covenant which happens before the seven years of tribulation. The next event happens in the midst of the seven years of tribulation which is called the abominations of desolation (the anti-christ sitting on the throne in temple of God).
Defend the Pre-Millennial Coming of Christ
And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:1-6 KJV)
Kingship defined when He comes to rule and reign for a thousand years, but Jesus is exemplified as King in:
Psalms 2 declares Jesus as King, “Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.” (Psalms 2:6-7 KJV) The Magi in Matthew 2:2 declares the child Jesus as king. “Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.” When Jesus rode into Jerusalem the multitudes greeted Him as a king by spreading out palm branches and their clothes on the ground, and when Pontus Pilate nailed the sign on the cross it read “This is the king of the Jews.” These all point to Jesus as our King. At His first coming, He was a suffering Servant as described in Isaiah 53. So, when will His Kingship be revealed?
The Kingdom of God comes without observation. One may say that the Kingdom of God is the church because the Spirit of God; the Spirit of Christ or the Holy Spirit dwells in every believer. But the physical manifestation of Christ is spoken of because Jesus tells us to “Watch”. We are to watch for He comes as a thief in the night (1 Thessalonians 5:2, 2 Peter 3:10 and He comes quickly in Rev 22:12; Mat 24:36; 25:13). Therefore, Jesus will return in a personal and visible state to rule and reign as King. We can see in Revelation 20:1-6 that Jesus binds and casts Satan into a bottomless pit and sets a seal on it for a thousand years while He rules and reigns. This is all after the tribulation period and the pre-tribulation rapture of those who believe in Christ as our Saviour and coming King.
A time line from the ascension of Jesus in Acts 1:8 until the physical coming of Jesus Christ and His Millennial reign looks like this:
- The preaching to all the nations, (Matthew 24:14)
- The time of the gentiles and God’s grace, (Luke 21:24; Romans 11:25)
- The pretribulation rapture, (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:52)
- 1.1 Our glorified bodies, (Romans 8:18; 1 John 3:2; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Colossians 3:4)
- 1.2 Judgement of the believer, (Romans 14:10-12; 1 Corinthians 3:11-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10)
- 1.3 Marriage super of the Lamb, (Revelations 19:7-10)
- The seven years of tribulation, (Daniel 9:26,27; 12; Revelation 6-11, 13-18)
- The 75 days after the tribulation period, (Daniel 12:11-13)
- Our Coming King Jesus Christ with His saints, (Revelation 19:11)
- Satan bound for a thousand years
- The Millennial Reign of Christ, (Revelation 20:1-6)
Christ’s coming is not the invisible spirit kingdom where He lives and abides in our hearts but the actual visual coming Revelation 1:7 says, “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they [also] which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.” Every eye shall see Him which is a physical manifestation. In 1 John 3:2 it says “When He shall appear;” this is another physical sighting and proclamation of the physical coming of Jesus Christ.
Let us remember these truths and while we are watching for the blessed hope, the return of Jesus Christ, let us also be diligent to be well pleasing in word thought and deed to God the Father.
Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. (Titus 2:12-14 KJV)
In Christ,
Greg