Journey Through The Bible
     Old Testament Reading: Zechariah 7-8
     New Testament Reading: Matthew 25

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:31-34).

Jesus concludes His teaching in the Olivet Discourse concerning His second coming with three parables. These parables encourage us to love His appearing, look for His appearing, and labor faithfully until He comes. We should wait, watch, and work. We may not be successful in the eyes of men, or even popular with others. But if we are faithful, we shall receive our reward.

Jesus first arrived as an infant in Bethlehem. When He returns, it will be the sudden, personal, visible, bodily return of Christ, and it will leave no one doubting His authority. We live today between these two advents. We celebrate Christmas, the first advent, to whet our appetites for the second as we long for the return of our Lord and Savior.

In the first advent, He came quietly in Bethlehem. In the second, He will return in glory with a shout. All who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out (John 5:28b-29a).

In Bethlehem, the just-born Jesus slept. When he returns, the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God (1Thes 4:16).

At his first coming, few noticed. At his second, all the nations will be gathered before him (Matt 25:32).

In Bethlehem, Joseph placed Jesus in a manger. At his return, Jesus will be seated on a throne: When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne (Matt 25: 31).

Based on his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness dwells (2Pet 3:13). History is not an endless succession of meaningless circles, but a directed movement toward a significant event. God has a timeline. As Christians, we refuse to believe that this present world is the sum total of human existence. We enjoy the fruit of the first coming, but anticipate the glory of the second.

Christmas should be a reminder that because God kept His promises about the birth of Christ, so also will He keep His promises about Him coming again. Christmas should be a time of great anticipation to see His face as we join Him on that glorious day when we meet Him in the clouds. Until then, we need to continuously prepare ourselves for Jesus’ return by reading the Bible, praying, and serving others.