The Church should eagerly long for His return. Others should fear it

We continue our study of the return of Jesus. One thing we find is that though the church should eagerly long for the return of Christ, non believers don't have an expctation of this being a good thing.

The first time Jesus came for salvation (but the second time it will be to judge the nations)
Hebrews 9:28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
Matthew 25:32,41 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: 41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

2 Peter 3:6-7 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. NIV

Jude 14,15 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

Revelation 19:15,16 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

A. To believers this promise offers hope
Titus 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Phil 3:2020 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ

1 Cor 16:22 If anyone does not love the Lord-a curse be on him. Come, O Lord!

2 Peter 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

1 John 3:2,3 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

Our response should be the same as John’s: to eagerly long for the Lord’s return. The more Christians are caught up in this life, and the more they neglect personal fellowship with Jesus, the less they will long for His return. But those who are older, or being persecuted, or suffering or whose daily walk is deep, will have a more intense yearning for His return.

B. To the unsaved, however, it will be a time of great fear and disaster
Amos 5:18-19 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. 19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

Luke 21:26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Revelation 6:12-17And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Revelation 9:6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

On the above most evangelicals agree: That Christ will return bodily, that the final result of His return will be the judgment of unbelievers and the final reward of believers, and that eventually believers will live with Christ in a new heaven and earth for eternity.

But that said, there is disagreement over the specific details leading up to and following Christ's return. Specifically they differ over the nature of the millenium, the sequence of Christ’s return, the great tribulation period that will come upon the earth, and the salvation of the Jewish people.

It is important to note that evangelicals who all hold the Bible as inerrant, all can hold differing interpretations of various passages. These are items of secondary importance and should not be divisive to the body of Christ. Nevertheless, it is worth our time to study some of these questions in more detail.