Jesus Will Return – Post SWO26 Bible Study

John 14:1–3

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Acts 1:10–11

And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Hebrews 9:27–28

And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Revelation 21:22–27

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

What’s The Point?

Jesus is coming back! Jesus will return for his Church! We have a hope that is greater than any persecution or tribulation or struggle or temptation. We have a promise, repeated over and over throughout the Bible, that Jesus will return victoriously to dwell with us forever. We can trust the Lord with this because all of his other promises have come true. As we look at each of these passages remember the main point is our future hope of glory—that God will dwell with us.

Jesus himself promised he would return saying, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (John 14:3). Think about that promise. Right now, Jesus is preparing a place for us in heaven, and he will dwell with us there. I wonder how many times the disciples thought of this promise. We should think about it often. God is making a place for us to dwell with him forever. This should give us hope and confidence to face anything the world might throw at us.

Angels also promised that Christ would return in Acts 1. As the disciples were watching Jesus being taken up into heaven the angels asked them what they were staring at. To be fair, I think we would all be staring and dumbfounded if we watched Jesus be taken into heaven by some clouds. But the next thing the angels say is that he is going to come back in the same way—they proclaimed his return.

Hebrews 9:27-28 tells us what will be accomplished at Jesus’ second coming. He is not going to deal with sin because he already dealt with it on the cross; this is why he cried out, “It is finished!” Sin has been fully paid for. So why is Jesus coming back? “To save those who are eagerly waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:28). Jesus is coming back for us!

The question that should challenge us from this text is are we eagerly awaiting his return? Am I satisfied with this life, or do I long for Jesus? Do I love this world, or do I want Jesus to come back? Am I eager for the Lord to return, or am I content with the life I have now? We must put our hope in Christ, his return, and his redemption of all things; nothing else will provide eternal hope or satisfaction.

Lastly, the passage above from Revelation pictures what it will be like when we aren’t just living in the promise of God with us but in the reality of it. There will not be a temple in heaven because there are no sacrifices that need to be paid or sin that needs to be forgiven. There won’t be a sun because the glory of God will be so near to us that it will be our source of light.

Revelation 21 also tells us that the gates of the city won’t be shut—this tells us two things. First, God’s dwelling place is a place that all who come acknowledging Jesus as Lord are welcome. There will be people from every tribe, tongue, and nation (Revelation 7:9) because God’s kindness and grace know no boundaries. Second, the open gates tell us that the city is safe; there is no threat of invasion or danger. When we dwell with God we will be perfectly secure, perfectly holy, and perfectly content. We will finally dwell with God, our Creator, as he intended from the very beginning.

Let’s do a quick recap. Jesus proclaimed that he would return; angels also said he was coming back, and other apostles and authors of Scripture claimed the same thing. We are promised that when he comes to rescue us he will dwell with us, and we are encouraged to be looking forward to that day, eagerly awaiting it. When we are finally with Jesus in glory there will be no sin, suffering, danger, hunger, pain, or need. We will lack nothing because God will dwell with us at last. He will provide for all our needs and wants, and in him we will be satisfied completely.

Scripture Memorization

Jeremiah 32:38

[38] And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

Prayer

Lord, I trust your promise that you will return for your people. Help me eagerly and faithfully wait for your return. Don’t allow me to be stagnant in my relationship with Jesus, but grow in me a desire to grow in holiness so that I might be better prepared for heaven. Make me excited to dwell with God day by day in this life and ultimately dwell with him in glory. Create in me an eternal mindset and help the things that distract me from the Lord fade away. I long for your return.

Reflection + Discussion

1. Why should the promise of Jesus returning give Christians hope during hard times?
2. Jesus said he is preparing a place for believers in heaven (John 14:3). What does that teach us about God’s desire to be with us?
3. What does it look like for you to “eagerly wait for Jesus?”
4. What are some things in this world that can distract people from longing for Christ’s return?
5. If someone asked you why you are excited about Jesus coming back, how would you answer them?