(Matthew 24:29-31)
At the very end of these days those left on the earth will witness the second coming of the Lord. There will be signs in the sun and the moon for they will both be darkened and will not give their light upon the earth. This is sometimes attributed to pollution or the outcome of the release of clouds of smoke from a great war in the last days. Whether that is true or not, I do not know. I do not necessarily believe those things to be so, but without alternatives you cannot discount anything. This will be a “wait and see” proposal for me.
When the Lord does return, the peoples of the earth will then know the truth of the Lord and of God. There will be the sign of the Son of God appear in the heavens as he approaches. Nobody knows what that will be, but it will be evident to all. The peoples of the earth will mourn and cry for they will know they are in the wrong. They will know that there will be no opportunity to turn from their evil at this point…time will have run out.
But for those who do follow Jesus and have taken his teachings to heart, this will be a time of rejoicing. This will be the time of what is commonly known as the Rapture. Jesus says that he will send out his angels into the whole earth to gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other (verse 31). This is described further in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18.
16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first;
17 then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord.
18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
This is a time for rejoicing for those in the Lord. The end of evil on this world is at hand. The time of Judgement is soon to come and the reward for seeking and living according to the truth of the gospel is soon to be ours. Jesus has come again to rule and reign over this earth and to drive out all forms of sin. This is in preparation for the ultimate reward still to come, which is the establishment of the New Jerusalem and the beginning of the eternal age when God the Father makes his home with men.
Hi! I’m John, the owner, author, and editor of this site. Over the past 50+ years as a Christian I have been teaching, preaching and writing about the Bible to help Christians gain a deeper insight into the scriptures that are easily understood. I also answer specific Bible related questions, so feel free to contact me.
