THE LORD'S SECOND PRESENCE

IX. THE LORD'S SECOND PRESENCE - Dual Plan

Christianity, within its frame of dogmatic doctrines, embraces the opinion that Christ will return sometime and be visible in the sky. That is about as far as most of the Christian denominations have come as yet. When the question, How shall Christ come the second time? is raised, the general answer is that he will appear in the sky, crowned as a king, robed in a kingly splendor and surrounded by his angels.

When we read the testimony given by the angels who ap­peared before the disciples at the time Christ ascended from the mount of Olivet, we find a contradiction to the general belief. They declared:

"Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up Into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come, in like manner, as ye have seen him go into heaven." (Acts 1; 11.)

He was not crowned as a king when he went up, nor was he robed with a glittering kingly robe. Ile was as natural to the disciples as they had ever known him. Thus, in like manner as they saw him go up, so shall he return again. At the beginning of the remaining part of the week of the covenant, he will return in precisely the same manner as he left the earth. Then he will carry on his kingly work until it is complete, and then, consequently, he will be crowned as the King of kings.

The second advent of Christ comprises two special manifestations which the Scripture clearly reveals, and therein lies the secret of the Lord's second advent to the earth. These manifestations may be called the invisible, when certain signs indicate his presence, and the visible, when he appears in person in the sight of all then living.

1. The invisible manifestation. The disciples asked the Lord, "What shall be the sign of thy "presence", and of the consummation of the age?" (Emph. Diaglott.) The word "coming" in the Bible is translated from the Greek word "parousia," which means presence. "By what, sign shall we know that thou art then present?" was their inquiry. Instead of having been instructed, as we have been, to look for the appearance of the Messiah in the sky in all his kingly glory without any confidential revelation to his friends, the disciples were instructed to look for a "sign" of his "presence."

Christ, in answering their question, did not remove from their minds that view of his return but established it. He said:

"There shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth; behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not." (Matt. 24: 24-26.)

Why did he warn the disciples against the arising of false Christs and prophets, who by wonderful signs would impress the world that Christ had returned and was in the "desert" or in the ''secret chambers,' if the event of his presence should not take place prior to his appearance in the sky? If the return of Christ only consists of his visible appearance in the sky, then the believers who follow his teachings, would be in no danger of deception by the false Christs and prophets. But just because those false representatives imitate the sign of his presence, the very elect will be in constant danger of becoming deceived.

What did Christ say would be the sign of his presence? "For as the lightning emerges from the east and shines to the west: so will be the presence of the Son of man." The sign of his presence resembles the lightning that flashes over the earth. How can we comprehend that ? If we look back to the presence of Christ between his resurrection and ascension, we will find an explana­tion there.

The first day after his resurrection he accompanied two of the disciples on their way to Emmaus; he talked and reasoned with them about himself, but they looked upon him as a stranger, until "he sat at meat with them." Then "their eyes were opened and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight." (Luke 24: 13-31) . Like a flash of lightning he appeared and vanished and ceased to be seen. At another occasion, when the disciples were gathered together within shut doors for "fear of the Jews," Jesus appeared in the midst of them, showing them his hands and his side, marked with the cuts of the nails and the sword. How did he get in there? His presence with them was like the light­ning—he could reveal or conceal himself at any time. As a con­trast to this, he refers the disciples to the false Christs, who should say of him, "Behold, he is in the desert or in the secret chambers." They can produce wonders, but cannot conceal themselves; they can be found by anyone in the places where they carry on their lying schemes. They are localized—but Christ is not.

We notice that in regard to time, the second advent of Christ is presented, first under certain "days," and again, after "those days" have passed. Peter, in referring to Christ's presence as a prophet like Moses, says, "Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of those days." (Acts 3: 24). Christ himself marks

"those days" as the time when his presence shall be known by a lightning sign. He says, "For the elect's sake those days shall be, shortened." After he has pointed out the same days as the most dangerous time, he adds, "Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened," etc. "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven." Then the time of deception has passed, and all eyes shall see the King in his glory, as he appears in the sky.

In the 17th chapter of Luke, he calls "those days" the "days of the Son of man," and compares them with the days of Noah. "And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man." The "days of Noah" we understand to be the days in which Noah prepared the ark, and not the days when it rained. In the days of Noah, the people, although they had a convincing sign that a flood was to come, did not regard that sign; therefore Christ compares the days of his presence with that time and says, "So shall it be also in the days of the Son of man." But farther down in the same chapter he refers to his appearance in the sky: he speaks then of one day only, and compares it with the day when it rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and adds, "Even thus shall it be in the days when the Son of man is revealed." He is not revealed generally in "the days of the Son of man," but the sign of his presence reveals that he is on the earth among his people as he was with his disciples this side of his resurrection.

In the same chapter (Luke 17: 22), referring to the same days, he says to his disciples, "The days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, and ye shall not see it." It is very evident that he does not mean the day of his general revelation, for that takes place after the first resurrection when even the disciples will be present to see him. (Compare Matt. 19: 28, with 1 Thess. 4: 13-17.) But he means the days when he, "like a thief in the night," will be present among men. Like a thief is hidden by darkness, so will the Son of man be hidden by his power of concealment. His lightning sign will be a source of strength to his followers in "those days" of fearful danger.

The lightning sign is referred to in connection with the two witnesses of Jesus—fire will proceed out of their mouths to destroy such as intend to injure them. No human being can cause that, hence it is the sign of the presence of the Messiah.

Peter says that heaven must retain Christ "till the times of restoration of all things." (Acts 3: 21.) When those times come, he will descend to the earth. Paul presents that descension in three special acts. He says:

"The Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout, with an archangel's voice, and with God's trumpet." (1 Thes. 4: 16.) The Lord shall come down.

15.With a shout." What kind of a shout? That is speci­fied in the answer to the apostolic question, ''What shall be the sign of thy presence?" In connection with the parable illus­trating the movements of the kingdom of heaven at that time, the Lord says, "At midnight (the second act) a cry was raised: Be­hold the Bridegroom!" It is the shouting of the people in the camp of Israel when they realize the descension of their King in the power of the sanctuary. The foreshadow is seen in the camp of the tribes at war with the Philistines and Canaanites. Those that read the Scriptures as if they were the words of men, believe that the Lord will make the shout as he appears in the sky. It is the spiritual Israel that will shout, because they realize the pres­ence of their King.

16."With an archangel's voice." The archangel represents the commander-in-chief in the camp of Elohim's army. The voice of the Lord shall be heard among his people. "Every soul which. will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people." (Acts 3: 23.) Will they see the Lord? No! If they did there wouldn't be a soul to disobey that voice. How will he sound his voice then? Through his ambassadors. John heard the messenger, with the little opened book in his hand, cry with a "loud voice as a lion roars." That means a supernatural voice in a human being.

17."With God's trumpet." What trumpet is that? It is the last trumpet of the seven that John describes. In 1 Cor. 15: 52, Paul calls it "the last trumpet," and connects its sounding with the translation of the saints. The trumpet of God signifies the war that Heaven carries on against the wicked nations at the time the kingdoms of the world become the kingdom of our Lord. His descension in connection with that trumpet, means the increase of his kingly power on the earth as he reveals himself by means of an unlimited might, against which the angry nations cannot stand.

2. The visible manifestation. That manifestation takes place after the days of the tribulation referred to by Christ in Matt. 24: 29, 30. The event that occurs at the close of the week of the covenant, at which time the sun and the moon become darkened, makes an end of the international war against Christ, his people and his army. The nations become convinced then that they have fought against the King of heaven and that they with a murderous work have opposed his kingly movement on the earth. It is at that time that he really becomes the King of kings and the Lord of lords, because they are subjugated under the kingly power then. Just then he will appear as the crowned and robed King in the sky to his people's great joy, but to his enemies' terrible conster­nation.