17. We're going to read verse 20 down to verse 37. The scene, uh, you have some Pharisees who are asking Jesus a question here about the kingdom of God. And so in verse 20, it says, being asked by the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them. The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, nor will they say, look, here it is or there for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you. And he said to the disciples, the days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the son of man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, look there or look here, do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the son of man be in his day. But first, he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation, just as it was in the days of Noah. So will it be in the days of the Son of Man." Now, just as an aside, if you're not familiar with the Scripture, Jesus is referring to himself as the Son of Man, okay? Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot, they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all, so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, let the one who was on the housetop with his goods in the house not come down to take them away. And likewise, let the one who was in the field not turn back. Remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life will keep it. I tell you, in that night, there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. There'll be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left. And they said to him, where, Lord? He said to them, where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. We're not going to explain this whole passage this morning, but we will in the coming weeks. As I said in this passage, the Pharisees, who are some of the religious elites of the day, are asking Jesus about the kingdom of God. Specifically, they want to know when it's going to come. When will the kingdom come? This was the long-awaited hope of the Jews. They were expecting the Jewish Messiah would arrive and that he would set up a kingdom. The kingdom would be one of peace and righteousness and justice. Righteousness would rule. The Jewish enemies would be conquered and Jewish faith and devotion would be vindicated. This is what they're looking forward to. So they're asking, when? If you are the Messiah, Now, we don't know necessarily the motivation for the question as far as whether they're being ironic or sarcastic, or whether they're just viewing Jesus as a prophet, or whether they're actually viewing Him as the Messiah, because the Pharisees are kind of a mixed bag. And for the most part, they were rejecters of Jesus. And so Jesus responds and says, the kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed. Nor will they say, look, here it is or there. And what does He say? Why? Because the kingdom is in the midst of you. He's saying the kingdom's already here to the Pharisees of the day. What does he mean by this? He is telling the Pharisees that in a certain sense, the kingdom of God has already arrived. In what way? The earthly ministry of Jesus. Jesus is the king of the kingdom. He is God incarnate, God in flesh, the fullness of the Godhead bodily. That's Jesus. When he entered into and stepped into his own creation, he brought a foretaste of that kingdom to bear upon earth. He was as the Messiah, the king of the kingdom again. And so what did he do? He taught a kingdom ethic. He brought kingdom authority to bear upon the earth. And so, with that authority, he could command the wind and the waves, peace be still, and they obeyed him. He could cast out demons, exercising authority over the demonic realm. He could heal people, exercising authority over sickness and disease. He could forgive sins, exercising authority over... spiritual life, and he could even determine who entered the kingdom and who did not enter the kingdom. And so he brought kingdom authority to bear during the three years of his earthly ministry. And so in Luke 11, verse 19, when Jesus was being accused of casting out demons by the power of Satan, he said, but if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. saying this is the kingdom, you're experiencing the kingdom when you see me cast out demons. You're experiencing the kingdom when you see me healing diseases and so on. And so with Jesus' earthly ministry came a phase of the kingdom, an initial phase. A foretaste of the kingdom was in their midst. This foretaste of the kingdom and the fact that it already had come in a certain sense, however, did not mean that there was not yet a future kingdom that would come in its fullness. And we know that because of Acts 1, verse 1. This is really Luke part 2. Dr. Luke wrote the Gospel of Luke, and he wrote the book of Acts. And so he says in the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach. until the day that he was taken up after he had given command through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during 40 days and doing what? Speaking about the kingdom of God. After Jesus died on the cross, He was buried, and three days later, He rose again. After His resurrection, He appeared alive to His disciples for 40 days. And in those 40 days, He instructed them and taught them. And part of the topic of conversation was the Kingdom of God. And you say, well, that doesn't prove anything about the future sense, or whether the current sense of the Kingdom. Well, if you keep reading in Acts 1, verse 6, it says, And when they had come together, they asked Him, Lord, Will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? Oh, wait a second. Jesus lives His earthly life for three years. He's talking about the kingdom of God, and He even makes the statement, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you. And then even after His death and resurrection, He's talking to His disciples about the kingdom of God. Whatever He was talking about, or whatever He said about the kingdom to His disciples after His resurrection, obviously what He didn't say was, the kingdom's not coming. He didn't say the kingdom in its fullness is already here, because even immediately before His ascension to the Father, what is their question? Will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? And He didn't respond saying, well, you completely missed the point. You completely missed the point that the kingdom has already come. That's not what He said. His response was, it's not for you to know the times or the seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority. It's not your business to know the timing. And so his answer was not one to correct their understanding of a future literal kingdom. His response was simply to say, it's not for you to know the timing. That's God's purview. But you'll receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. You're going to be given power to be busy while you await the kingdom. Also in 2 Timothy 4 and verse 1, Paul, speaking to Timothy, says, I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom, preach the word, and so on. And so he's telling Timothy, be busy. Why? Because His kingdom's coming. That's future. That's future. And so Christ's kingdom is here? Yes. Christ's kingdom here is experienced every time somebody puts their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Every time somebody repents of their sin and receives Christ as Savior and Lord and they're made new, they're granted the Holy Spirit and they're saved, the kingdom of God is witnessed. Every time a believer who has the Spirit in him is growing in the faith and becoming more like Christ, the kingdom of God is witnessed. Every time the Word of God is proclaimed and the kingdom of God is preached, the kingdom is here, in that sense. The kingdom is here, but Christ's kingdom is also yet to come. the already and the not yet. This has always been the hope of the church, and so last week we saw that. Last week we said that the second coming of Christ, that He is going to return, breeds anticipation in every genuine believer. Remember the Thessalonians? The Bible says they turned from their dead idols to serve the living and true God, and to what? Wait for His Son from heaven. Every genuine believer is waiting with anticipation for the coming of Christ. Why? Because when He comes, He brings commendation and reward. He also brings completion. That is, our salvation will be completed. Nobody, no believer, believes that they are perfect. No believer believes that they have arrived. We all understand, though saved, we still have a sinful nature that causes us problems. We look forward to the final salvation that comes at His return. And so, He brings commendation, He brings completion. So, the reality of the Second Coming produces anticipation. It also produces endurance. We can handle suffering in this life, because we know that in the end, Christ is coming back. We can continue to serve Him with endurance, because we know it's not in vain, because He's going to return. And also it motivates us to live holy lives. We certainly don't want to be found participating in those very things that Christ is coming back to judge. And so we are encouraged to live holy lives. All of this a product of our understanding of His second coming. So this longing for Christ should what? And you probably experienced this, maybe, especially you who are maybe a little bit older, or we could say a little bit more experienced. If you're a believer and you've been a believer for a while, you've seen a change in yourself and in your affections. Whereas the world maybe had a little bit more allure when you were younger, as you watch the culture and you see it change and you see it going in a certain direction, you see it rebelling against God, you see the depravity, the allure is not there like it used to be. As you've spent more and more years reading the Word of God and reading about Christ and reading about who God is and what He's done for you, there's become a deep sense of appreciation and even a sense of a debt of gratitude towards God. And you've gotten to the point where instead of feeling like, I just want to experience everything I can experience in this life, a change has happened. So now you're more likely to long for Christ's return. And Jesus understands this, and so when He gave the model prayer, what did He say? You want to know how to pray? Well, Jesus taught us how to pray in Luke 11 and Matthew 6. And He says to them, when you pray, say, Father, hallowed be your name, and then what? Your kingdom come. That's the theme of prayer of every genuine believer. Lord, bring your kingdom. And it ought to be genuine. We want Christ to come. Jesus knew the heart of every genuine disciple. He knew that the days would come, especially difficult days. similar to the days that we're experiencing now, but maybe to a lesser degree than what's to come. The day would come when Jesus' disciples long for his coming. Jesus, come. Let your kingdom come. Now's the time. Come on. You know, things are getting worse and worse. Come. And so look what he says in verse 22 of our passage. He says to his disciples, the days are coming when you will desire. The word for desire there is the idea of an intense longing. You will. desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, look there, look here, do not go out and follow them. He's saying, the days are going to come where you're longing intently for My return and My establishment of My kingdom, and people are going to capitalize upon your longing by lying and saying, oh, look, He's over here, look, He's over there. He says, don't follow them. You may experience this kind of intense longing if you've been a believer for any amount of time. You ever experience the frustration or impatience with the fact that everything's still presently by faith, right? By faith. I mean, it's a solid faith. It's not just a hope-so faith. There's incredible evidence and support and revelation for our faith, but it's still by faith. And you try to share the gospel with others and they don't believe. Others look at you and say, well, why do you behave the way that you do? Why do you believe what you believe? And you seek to explain it, but it just doesn't click. It can be frustrating. It can be disappointing. You wish for the day where your faith could be vindicated. You wish for the day where Christ would receive all the glory that's due His name. You wish for the day where you could be free from your own sin. You wish for the day where justice is actually had. You look into the world and see all the wrongs that are not righted. You see all the injustices that don't seem to be taken care of. And it produces in us a longing. Christ, will you come back? Will you establish your kingdom? Will you rule with righteousness and with peace and justice? And so Jesus says, don't fall prey to this. Understand that's not how it's going to happen when I come back. It's not going to be a matter of saying, oh, Jesus is here. He's over there down by the river. And there's been a multitude of people since the ascension of Christ who have claimed to be Christ incarnate. But after telling them what not to fall prey to, He then turns to give them some evidence or some things that they can look for. that indicate His coming is near. And that's what we're going to look at. And so, first of all, He tells His disciples, I'm not gonna be coming in some room. I'm not gonna be coming where somebody says, oh, He's over there, He's over here. What He tells them is that when I come, it's going to be a global spectacle. It's going to be a global spectacle. Look at verse 24. It says, for as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in His day. not over here, over there. Nobody's gonna have to tell you that I've come. Nobody's gonna have to suggest to you. It's not gonna be rumors spreading and speculation. It will be a global spectacle where everybody can see his return. Now, his first coming was what? An unknown young woman who was told that she would give birth to a child, and this would be a very special child. This is God incarnate, and this woman that really had no reputation whatsoever, really an unknown woman from an unknown town, travels with her unknown husband, and she gives birth in what? A cave. where they would house animals because there was no place for them to stay. And she places the child in a feeding trough. That was the birth of the Messiah. And who were the first to know? Some shepherds, the unclean, right? I mean, those who really had no religious standing whatsoever. And they were the first to witness the birth of Christ. That was his first coming. And really, his coming was only known by a rumor and speculation. That's not going to be the second coming. His second coming will be public, unmistakable. And it's going to be in a glorious event. One which will really leave no doubt in the minds of the inhabitants of earth as to who Christ is or the power that He possesses. Matthew 24, verse 26 says, So if they say to you, Look, He's in the wilderness, do not go out. If they say, Look, He's in the inner rooms, do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." A global spectacle. When He comes, you'll know it. Everyone will know it. It'll be unmistakable. There'll be no question about His coming. It'll be apparent to all. So a question for you. Do you get frustrated as you watch the news? You get to the point where you just want to turn it off. I know sometimes I listen to the radio, and certain news stories come on, or certain people are talking, and I just flick that thing off. Nobody needs that kind of negativity. Turn off the news, you stop scrolling through social media, because you're just done with it. You're frustrated. You're saying, this world is going in a direction that's not good or healthy, and you can't imagine where it's going to be 10, 15 years from now. You dream of a day when all justice is set right, You dream of a day when rebellion against God is finally put to rest. You dream of a day when your faith will be made plain. You dream of a day when all that you know that is true is shown to be true. That day's coming. Matthew chapter 24 and verse 30 says, then will appear in the heaven, the sign of the son of man. But now listen, then it says, then all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And then in Revelation 1, verse 7, it says, Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him, even so, amen. It's going to be a global spectacle. Everybody's going to see Him. And for us as believers, that's a joy. We long for that. But these two passages I just read indicate something else. Some who see Him will mourn. Some who see Him will wail on account of Him. even those who pierced Him. The Jews, those who rejected Him, the ancestors of those who rejected Him, are going to see Him, and they're going to wail on account of Him. Why? Because He comes with power and judgment. Those who mourn and wail are those who are not prepared for His coming. Understand this. Human history is what? It's linear. Human history had a starting point. God created Adam, human history begins. Human history has an ending point. It's linear. All of human history is moving towards one event, which is the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. When He comes, some will be prepared and some will not be prepared. When He comes, some will glory in His glory, and others will mourn and will wail. The Bible says, "...as appointed unto man once to die, and after this to judgment." There is not a second chance. There is not a do-over. There's not a, hey, let's try that again. All human history is moving to one point. It's the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Some will be prepared and some will not. And so some mourn and some weep, it says. In Mark 14, verse 61, the high priests asked Jesus plainly, Are you the Christ, the Son of the blessed? Are you the Son of God? And Jesus says, I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven. He's coming with power and authority. Again, in a way that every eye will see Him, a global spectacle. So question, how is it that when Jesus comes, every eye is going to see Him? Now we understand with technology today, it's no problem for everybody to see something happening on some side of the planet. That's not a problem. But God's going to be doing some things on earth at the time to set the stage for Christ. God is going to miraculously bring some events about so that every eye is waving in anticipation, not necessarily for Christ, but they want answers. Like, what is going on with the world? And so there's going to be a heightened sense of expectation and even fear on the earth immediately prior to the coming of Christ, so that every eye is trained upon the heavens. How so? First and foremost, God is going to bring about, in human history, leading to the return of Christ, an increase in earthly war and unrest. An increase in earthly war and unrest. Matthew 24, verse 4, Jesus answered them, See that no one leads you astray. Again, a parallel passage to our passage. For many will come in my name, saying, I am the Christ, and they will lead many astray. and you will hear of wars and rumors of wars, see that you're not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places." So up to that point, what is he saying? Don't be alarmed when you hear about wars and rumors of wars. Don't be alarmed. when you see these things, nation rising against nation, even famines and earthquakes. Don't be alarmed when you see those. Sadly, that's a sad aspect of just human history in general. There's gonna be wars, there's gonna be famines, there's gonna be earthquakes. Don't, every time you see this, think, oh, His coming's around the corner, which... Frankly, some believers do that, right? They have headline hysteria. Every new event that happens, any dramatic event around the globe, they think, well, this is it. Well, Jesus says, don't think that that means that my coming is around the corner. But then he says something in verse eight of Matthew 24. He says, all these are but the beginning of birth pains. What does he mean by that? For you men, let me know, let me tell you, for you men, you ladies already know. If a woman is in labor, what happens? Contractions. And what's the general process with these contractions? They start out somewhat mild and they are somewhat infrequent. But, as the coming of the child grows closer, the contractions become what? They become more intense, and they become closer together. And so, increasingly, more intense, closer together, more intense, closer together, more intense, closer together, until birth of a child. Jesus is saying, there's going to be contractions, there's going to be famines, there's going to be earthquakes, there's going to be wars, sure. don't worry and so sometimes you ladies you've been utterly disappointed because you're at nine months and you're ready to go and You think now's the time and you start having contractions and you think this is it not not right now Justina So you think this is it? And so you call the doctor and the doctor he says you know, it's not the time And you're disappointed, right? We had that happen to us once, my wife and I. And so we decided to like go to Walmart and we're just going to walk around Walmart because it was close to the hospital. And we're like, I know they said no, but just in case. And I was the type of person was like, as soon as she had one contraction, we're in the car. I've seen the horror stories. I'm not delivering a baby in the backseat of my car, right? So I'm going to go circle the hospital, right? But the time's not yet. Jesus is saying these contractions are going to come, but it's not yet. But when you see an increase in intensity and you see an increase in frequency, now you've got something. Now you've got something. It means His coming is near, just like the coming of the baby would be near. Revelation 6-4 says, speaking of this increasing intensity of war and unrest upon the earth, it says, peace will be taken from the earth. Peace will be taken from the earth. And so God is beginning to set the stage for the coming of Christ. How? With increasing earthly war and unrest. Next of all, he sets the stage by pouring out divine judgment through the escalation of natural disaster. Divine judgment through the escalation of natural disaster. Revelation 6, verse 12. Now the judgments here that God is pouring out upon the earth are presented to us in the form of seals being broken and bowls being poured out and trumpets being blown. So just understand that terminology. Verse 12, when he opened the sixth seal, I looked and behold, there was a great earthquake and the sun became black as sackcloth. The full moon became like blood and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit. when shaken by a gale. The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Just an increase in natural disasters the globe over." How could the sun be darkened? I don't exactly know how this is going to happen, but I mean, you know, even from past history, that if you have volcanic activity the globe over, and you're pouring volcanic ash into the sky, well, you have darkness upon the earth. That's not a problem. to understand. There's great earthquakes, the sun becomes black, the full moon became like blood, the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale, the sky vanished like a scroll, and so on. Verse 15 says, the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful and everyone slave and free hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling on the mountains and the rocks, fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who is seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?" This is global. God is setting the stage. Earthly war and unrest, but then what? From the wrath of man taking place upon earth, the wrath of God is poured out upon earth in the form of natural disasters. And every nation recognizes that this is the wrath of the Lamb. The great day of their wrath, it says, has come, and who can stand? God here is setting the stage. And if you read the book of Revelation 6-19, you get to see more. Just to summarize, we see the revelation or the revealing of the Antichrist. We see escalating wars, famine, plague, earthquake, various astronomical phenomena, hail and fire which causes the destruction of plant life. We have the account of a large meteor hitting the ocean and killing much of the sea life. We see the poisoning of fresh water. The sun and moon darkened. We see a plague of locusts. We see demonic army which kills a third of mankind. We see painful sores upon humanity. We see the death of every living thing in the sea. We see fresh water turned to blood. We see the sun's heat increased until it scorches. We see the darkness upon the earth. We see an earthquake of the magnitude of what has never been seen before. We see that accompanied by enormous hailstones. All of this happening with an increasing frequency and intensity, working to the coming of Christ. So during this time, the world will experience unrest, natural disasters like never experienced before. Revelation 9, verse 6 says, And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them. Matthew 24, 21 says, For then there will be great tribulations, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now. will ever be. You think this will get the intention of the world? There'll be signs, Luke 21-25 says, there'll be signs in the sun and the moon and the stars and on the earth, distress of the nations in perplexity. Distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves. In other words, people are saying, what's going on? What's going on? I mean, every nation I mean, you see this kind of apocalyptic language today, even those who are kind of on the climate change bandwagon, and they're talking about how all this destruction is around the corner and the earth is going to overheat and the melting of the ice caps and so on, which is going to cause a devastating flooding and so on. I'm not trying to say whether that's true or false, but I'm saying that it's very recognized that even within the natural processes that we already have on earth is the power for this type of destruction. It's all held in store. Everything that we know is stable and secure is going to be shaken. So Matthew 20 or Luke 21 26 says people will be fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. All of that's happening on earth. And then what? Luke 21 27. And then they will see the son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. The stage has been set. It's a global spectacle. Every eye is trained upon the sky, trying to figure out what's happening. There's questions the world over as to what all of this means. And just as all of mankind is asking themselves these questions, the Son of Man comes in the cloud with power and great glory. When He comes a second time, He's not coming as the meek Messiah. He's coming as the conquering King. It will be a global spectacle. And so, it also says in Matthew 24 that God's going to create a day like no other. Of course, the sun being darkened and the moon being darkened, the lights are going to go out. And just think about this imagery. The other day, the power went out, I think last night or the night before. The power went out in our area. I don't know if it went out in your area or not. Very interesting, though, because as soon as the power went out, I ran to the window to see whether it was just us, because if the power just goes out in your house, there may be a big problem, right? So you look outside to see if it went out for everybody else as well. So I look out the window, and it's all dark. No lights in any of the neighbors' houses. All the street lights are out. It's such a strange situation. We're not used to that, just total darkness in the city. You can understand that when the lights go out, when the sun is darkened, and the moon is darkened, and the stars cannot be seen, and every eye is looking at heaven, which is total darkness. And then in Luke 17, 24, it says, as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side or the other, so will the Son of Man be in His day. Total darkness gives away to total light, from darkness to light. God has perfectly set the stage for the coming of His Son. The coming of Christ will be a global spectacle. Every eye will see Him. It will not be a secret return. It will not be a quiet return. A stage set through world events, natural disasters, supernatural judgments. Every eye is trained on the sky, seeing the darkness, and in the midst of that, sudden light. Revelation 19.11 says, Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written that no one knows but Himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is the Word of God. And the armies of heaven are red and fine linen, white and pure were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords." That's Christ. And by the way, at His coming, something else happens, right? At His coming in 1 Thessalonians 4.14, Paul says, for since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep, those who have died, who are believers. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep, for the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, and with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so will we always be with the Lord. The picture being that Christ appears, all this brightness in the midst of darkness, all these eyes trained upon heaven, there's Christ in power and authority and glory, but it's not just Christ. He brings with Him those who have died and had been united with Christ previously, but also at that time, those who are believers on earth, something happens. Those who are believers on earth at His coming, the Holy Spirit in them is going to glorify their bodies, and they're going to be caught up with Christ in the air. What a show, as the whole world has driven to a place of absolute rebellion against God and Christ, as they understand that much of this is the wrath of the Lamb being poured out. At a time when Christians are going to be the castoffs of society, there's going to be mass persecution at that time. For those whom society has oppressed and discarded and persecuted, those who believe in Christ, these are going to be caught up together to be associated with Christ who has come in glory. This is going to be a global spectacle, and it's going to be a glorious unveiling. When Christ came the first time, according to Matthew 12, verse 19, it says of Him that He will not quarrel or cry aloud or nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench until he brings justice to victory." He's saying he's going to be meek. He's not going to come with tremendous fanfare. Isaiah 53, verse 7, says, "...he was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. Like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth." That's Christ being led to the cross, the crucifixion. "...by oppression and judgment He was taken away. And as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of My people?" Who would have thought that He was killed for our transgressions? And they made His grave with the wicked, and with the rich man in his death. Although He had done no violence, and there was no deceit in His mouth, He died unjustly, and He died unjustly for us. But His meekness, not a word, silently to His accusers. That's His first coming. Not so at His second. Matthew 25, 31 says, When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. Matthew 16, 27 says, for the son of man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his father, and then he will repay each person according to what he's done. Silent no more. Matthew 26, 63 says, but Jesus remained silent and the high priest said to him, I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the son of God. And he said, you have said so, but I tell you from now on, you will see the son of man seated on the right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven. This is an answer to the prayer of Christ. John 17, he prays that God would reveal His glory to His people. His desire is that those who are His will see Him, not in His meek, incarnated, humble form, but they would see the glory that was veiled. So he prays that way. This day is an answer to that prayer. What is the glory of Christ? Colossians 1, verse 15 says that Christ is the image of the invisible God. The Creator God, ultimate reality, is a personal God. The invisible God is a personal God. That's how He has revealed Himself to us in Scripture, as a God who loves, so much so that it can be said that God is love. He is the image of the invisible God. So the image of the invisible God, that is, He was God incarnate, the firstborn of all creation, that is, preeminence over all of creation. Why? For by Him all things were created. This is speaking of Christ. For by Him all things are created on heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. For the thrones, or dominions, or rulers, or authorities, all things are created through Him and for Him. One God who is both Creator and Sustainer and ultimately, we'll see, Destroyer. All things are created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And there He is as Sustainer. He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead. And in everything, that in everything, He might be preeminence. For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. And through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross. The glory of Christ is the glory of God. He's the fullness of the Godhead bodily. He's not a created being. He is not inferior to God. He is God in the flesh, God in unity and triunity. And he is creator and he is sustainer and he will be destroyer and he will be recreator. His second coming is the glorious fulfillment of his prayer that his glory will be revealed. There'll be no more speculation as to whether he's just a good teacher, whether or not he was just a prophet, or whether or not he was just a moral instructor. It'll be clear that he is the glorious God. His glory will be revealed. 1 Peter 4, 12 says, beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you as though something strange has happened to you. When trials come, don't think it's strange, but rejoice in so far as you share Christ's suffering that you may also rejoice and be glad when, when His glory is revealed. And we're going to share in that glory. 1 John 3, 2 says that when He comes, we will be like Him because we shall see Him as He is. Colossians 3, 4 says, When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Christ is coming in power and glory, leaving no doubt as to the power He possesses. It's going to be clear. It's going to be undeniable to all, including all of His enemies. It's going to be clear that He's the image of God, possessing all divine power. And from that point forward, Christ's glory will be veiled no more. So that in Revelation 21, it says of the eternal city, "...the city has no need of sun or moon to shine in it, for the glory of God gives its light, and its lamp is the Lamb." That's Christ. So let me conclude with just a quote from a man named J.C. Ryle, speaking of prophecy. He says, "...let no man deceive us as to the leading facts of unfulfilled prophecy by telling us that they are impossible, or as to the manner in which they will be brought to pass by telling us it is improbable and contrary to past experience." But no man deceive us as to the time when unfulfilled prophecies will be accomplished, either by fixing dates on the one hand, or bidding us wait for the conversion of the whole world on the other. On all these points, let the plain meaning of Scripture be our only guide, and not the traditional interpretations of men. Let us not be ashamed to say that we expect a literal fulfillment of unfulfilled prophecy. Let us frankly allow that there are many things we do not understand, but still hold our ground tenaciously, believe much, and wait long, and not doubt that all will one day be made clear. Above all, let us remember that the first coming of the Messiah to suffer was the most improbable event that could have ever been conceived. And let us not doubt that as He literally came in person to suffer, He will literally come again in person to reign. Let's pray. Dear Father, we thank you that you have appointed the Lord Jesus Christ as ruler of all. You have entrusted to him power and authority over all of creation. And Lord, you are bringing all things under his feet as redeemer and reconciler. All of human history is going to be culminated in the rule and the reign of the Lord Jesus Christ as all things are subdued under him. We thank you for your wise design. We also recognize that by virtue of your entrusting to Christ all power and authority, what you require of us is submission to the Lord Jesus Christ, to bow our knee before him and to confess with our mouth that he is Lord to your glory. And so Lord, help us as those who claim to be believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, help us to live as if he is Lord. We thank you that although he's coming power with judgment and authority. We understand that through your salvation plan, we have made peace with you. We know that your wrath has been turned away from us. We know that when Christ comes for us, it's not going to be a matter of condemnation or judgment, but it's going to be reunion. We're going to share in the glory that Christ has. We thank you. for your tender love for us and that you've ushered us into relationship with yourself through Christ so that your wrath could be turned away from us so that we can look to the coming kingdom with anticipation and not fear. So help us to live as if it's true. Help us to live in pursuit of holy lives as if we are preparing for that great day so that when he comes, we can feel as if we can have confidence at his coming. And then this morning, Lord, we pray for any this morning who are not yet believers, who have not yet received Christ as Savior and Lord. I pray they'd come to that place where they would understand who He is. They'd understand their need to trust in Him as Savior, trusting in His death upon the cross as the only means of relationship with you, the only means of forgiveness of sin, the only means of securing eternity. And with that, they'd understand Christ's character, that He's Lord, and that he also seeks to exercise that authority in our lives, not only as our Savior, but as our Lord. So I pray for these who are not yet believers that they would receive Christ, trusting in him alone as Savior and Lord. And if any come to you in faith, believing in Christ this way, I pray that they'd quickly follow with baptism, making a public profession of their faith to others. Lord, we thank you for this day, or we thank you for this, and we pray that you'll hasten the day, the coming of Christ, and help us by your grace to be prepared for it. It's in his name that we ask it. Amen.