The Second Coming (The Creed)

As I emphasized in my last post, our faith is not dead or stagnant. It is effective and alive. Christianity did not end with the Resurrection any more than it ends with the Passion. After Christ revealed Himself to His disciples on multiple occasions, He ascended into Heaven. Unlike the false prophets of paganism or even the Jewish prophets appointed by God, Jesus did not succumb to the decay of a final death. Instead, he rose into the Heavens after rising from the grave. God-made-Man returned to the bosom of His Heavenly Father.

This must have been difficult for the disciples. They were scattered and in hiding when they saw the proofs of the Resurrection. And now Jesus was gone again. Many men might have simply returned to the comfort of the shadows and anonymity. The Roman sword still hung over their heads and the Pharisees wanted to tear them apart. I think that it would have been understandable if, even with the hope of the Resurrection, the disciples had gone back into hiding and spread the message of the Gospel in secret to a chosen and trusted few.

But this is not what happened. In fact, the disciples did quite the opposite. They went out among the throng of Jerusalem. They did not speak in whispers. "Peter standing up with the Eleven, lifted up his voice and spoke to them: 'Ye men of Judea, and all you that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known to you and with your ears receive my words" (Acts 2:14). These are not the words of a fearful man. These are the words filled with the courage and strength of the Lord.

And yet let us remember who this is that speaks so boldly. This is Peter, the same disciple who during the Last Supper rashly proclaimed that "although I should die together with thee, I will not deny thee" (Mark 14:31), only to deny the Lord not once, not twice, but three times on Good Friday. The question we must ask ourselves is what changed? What happened to the disciples so that instead of running away, they proclaimed the Gospel to the nations?

There are two answers to this question. The first is the descent of the Holy Spirit which is the subject of my next post. The other reason for their courage is found in the promise that came with the Ascension. After Jesus was raised up into the clouds, two angels appeared to the disciples and said to them "Ye men of Galilee, why stand you looking up to heaven? This Jesus who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come as you have seen him going into heaven" (Acts 1:11). Shall so come as you have seen him going into heaven. The disciples received the promise of the Second Coming of Christ.

The Ascension was not Jesus' last farewell to Earth. He is coming back.

We read extensively of this promise in the New Testament. In the Gospels, Jesus warns us of the tribulation and confusion that will abound in the end times, for truly the Second Coming represents the end of the world as we know it. In those times, "many false prophets will rise and shall seduce many" (Matthew 24:11). The Ancient Fathers of the Church long believed this to mean that the antichrist would present himself, the great deceiver and servant of Satan. It is said that he will "make war with the saints" and "all that dwell upon the earth adored him, whose names are not written in the book of life" (Revelation 13:7-8).

True believers and followers of the word "shall be hated by all for my name's sake" (Matthew 24:9). "And you shall be betrayed by your parents and brethren and kinsmen and friends, and some of you they will put to death" (Luke 21:16). In the book of Revelation, we read of the "great harlot" of idolatry "with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication," and that she is "drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus" (Revelation 17:1-2,6).

Truly these will not be tame times. These will be days marked by chaos and persecution.

It is important to remember, however, that it is vain to try to predict when the last days will come. Christ tells us that "of that day and hour no one knoweth: no, not the angels in heaven, but the Father alone" (Matthew 24:36).

These signs and predictions might seem disheartening. Why did it fill the apostles with such strength?

It is because of what follows these sufferings which are merely "the sign of thy coming and the consummation of the world" (Matthew 24:3). The Enemy will not prevail. He has already been defeated. Our ultimate victory is in the Cross. These times will merely be the last "hurrah," the vain though potent charge of Satan's Light Brigade. There is no question about the outcome. When these slight afflictions pass away, "then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven" (Matthew 24:30), "then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds, with great power and glory" (Mark 13:26). Christ shall return from His Heavenly throne to establish His new Kingdom. He "shall judge the living and the dead, by his coming and his kingdom" (2 Timothy 4:1). And though the beast should rise from the abyss to devour true Christians, "the Lamb shall overcome them because he is the Lord of lords and King of kings" (Revelation 17:14).

All of this around you, all of the kingdoms of the earth, the laws of men, the institutions of sin, all of this shall pass away and be forgotten. "Vanities of vanity, and all is vanity" (Ecclesiastes 1:2). "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer" (Revelation 2:10) for they will be washed away in the blood of the Lamb.

This is why the apostles were able to disregard the threat of death at the hands of the Jews and the Romans. They stood before the crowds of Jerusalem and proclaimed the glory of the Resurrection and message of the Gospel. The apostles suffered torture and martyrdom in the expectation and hope of the Second Coming in Christ, knowing that "he that shall endure unto the end, he shall be saved" (Mark 13:13), "he that shall overcome shall not be hurt by the second death" (Revelation 2:11).

We must try to live in the hope of the Second Coming. Christians must toil upon the earth so that when He comes, the Lord might say to us "well done, good and faithful servant.... Enter thou into the joy of thy lord" (Matthew 25:21). The Lord amply rewards those who follow his word: "be thou faithful unto death: and I will give thee the crown of life" (Revelation 2:10). It is impossible for us even to imagine a fraction of the joy that is waiting for us in heaven. Therefore, live with the love of God as the disciples so that when you meet the Lord, whether in death or in His coming, "your redemption is at hand" (Luke 21:28).

"Take ye heed, watch and pray. For ye know not when the time is" (Mark 13:13).


DEUS VULT!