Excitement for Jesus' Return, Pt. 2

What did Jesus mean when He said He was coming quickly? It seems He didn't mean "very soon" but rather, when He comes, it will be swiftly or suddenly.

Excitement for Jesus' Return, Pt. 2

"Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book."

(Revelation 22:7)

What did Jesus mean when He said He was coming quickly? In addition to today's passage (Revelation 22:7), Jesus said two other times that He is coming quickly. Revelation 22:12 states, "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work." And in Revelation 22:20, "He who testifies to these things says, 'Surely I am coming quickly.' Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!" It has been 2,000 years since Jesus said He is coming quickly. We have to conclude that He did not mean "quickly" as a short duration of time. Charles Stanley said the word "quickly" does not refer to coming very soon, but when it happens, it happens very swiftly or suddenly. Ever since the resurrection of Jesus, everyone on earth has been living in the last days. When referring to 2 Peter 3:8, "But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day," Stanley said Jesus has been gone only two days!

Look at the promises related to Jesus' return: Matthew 24:30 states, "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory."

John 14:3 says, "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." I love the clear and powerful promise Jesus makes when He said, "I will come again." Not that perhaps He may come back; rather, He stated with authority that He would return to earth.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 states, "For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words."

Praise God for the clear promises of Scripture that one day, perhaps in our lifetime, Jesus will come back!