Although often associated with horror-movie scenarios, in the Bible the end of the world is linked to the Second Coming of Christ—a glorious event that will mark the start of a new era. However, two millennia have passed since the birth and crucifixion of Christ. The so-called delay of Jesus’s return is a source of irony for atheists and causes turmoil in the souls of devout Christians.
In 2011, Irish clairvoyant Joe Coleman claimed that the eruption of the Icelandic volcano, which covered the European sky with ash and paralysed air traffic, was directly linked to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. What Coleman did not take into account, however, was that Jesus had supposedly already returned in the form of José Luis de Jesús Miranda in Florida.[1] He is the leader of a sect with 100,000 followers worldwide, from Argentina to Australia.
After believing for a time that he was the apostle Paul, José Miranda “realised” that he was actually Jesus. Remarkably, he has a significant impact on people. His disciples call him “Lord,” and when he appears at public meetings of the group he leads, they shout, “Let us welcome Jesus Christ the Man!” Miranda drives luxury cars, wears expensive suits, and is covered in jewellery from head to toe. He is constantly accompanied by bodyguards who are more or less as almighty as he is. His bank accounts arouse envy.
However, Miranda is not the only individual of this kind. There are other messiahs who have won over the crowds, and their existence suggests an enduring interest in Jesus’s old promise: “I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:2–3).
2050—the year of Christ’s return?
In many places across the globe, Jesus Christ and His second coming are a regular feature of publications, bookstore shelves, and commentators’ discussions. However, opinions are divided. A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center[2] showed that 41% of Americans believe Jesus will return to Earth by 2050. Of these, 18% believe that His return is “probable,” while 23% say that Jesus will “definitely” return.
Conversely, 46% of respondents said that Jesus’s return will not take place within the next 40 years. The study suggests that Americans with lower levels of education are more likely to believe in the possibility of His return, while those who have received long-term education are more sceptical. This, of course, fuels discussions about the idea that religion is the preserve of the less educated, as well as the thesis that modern education leads people towards atheism and anti-religious rationalism.
Late—but according to whose clock?
Like non-believers, Christians are often overwhelmed by life’s problems to the point where they feel pressured to respond to an acute crisis—the “delay” of Jesus. “Where is the Christ you are waiting for?” ask the representatives of the new atheism. “How can you still wait, after two thousand years, for the fulfilment of the prophecy about His second coming?” In search of answers, some have tried to identify clues in the Bible to help them determine the date of Jesus’s return. The history of Christianity is littered with failed predictions of the date of Jesus’s second coming, and numerous dates on which it was supposed to take place. Each failure was followed by moments of disappointment. However, the promise of Jesus Christ’s return is written in the Bible and cannot be overlooked.
Every economic or political crisis, every earthquake or missile launched at enemy territory revives discussions, hopes, and predictions about the end of the world and the Second Coming. Even serious publications try to grab people’s attention with sensationalist headlines such as “Ten Scenarios for the End of the World,” containing articles filled with meteorites, cataclysms, nuclear wars, and solar flares. As in the story of the boy who cried wolf, repeated announcements of the end of the world, without the predictions coming true, provoke the opposite reaction to that expected. Uncertainty arises and the imminent end seems increasingly implausible.
Disbelief in the reality of the Second Coming is not a new phenomenon, but has been an issue since the time of the early Christians. The Apostle Peter wrote that “in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this “coming” He promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation’… But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief… But in keeping with His promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:3–13).
“The feeling of delay arises out of a purely human reaction to human expectations,” writes theology professor Sakae Kubo. We make plans for Christ’s return, and then we become depressed and discouraged when He does not meet the deadline we have set for Him.[3] However, a careful reading of the Bible reveals that God did not announce the date of Jesus’s arrival or the establishment of His Kingdom. In this case, therefore, there can be no question of a delay. Before Jesus ascended, the apostles asked Him when He would establish the Kingdom. He told them that it was not their duty to know the times or seasons determined by God, but rather to preach the Gospel to the world (see Acts 1:6–8). Even more surprisingly, prior to His death on the cross, Jesus said the following: “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32).
Although human curiosity is from God, “the primary purpose of prophecy is not to satisfy our curiosity about the future, but to teach us how to live today,” writes theologian Jon Paulien.[4] Without dwelling too much on the timing of the Second Coming, Jesus repeatedly referred to how Christians should prepare for this event, while also outlining the socio-political circumstances that will precede His return. Wars, earthquakes, famine, and hatred among people are some of the pieces of the eschatological puzzle.
The list is completed by the Apostle Paul, who writes that, in the last days, “people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power” (2 Timothy 3:2–5). However, Christ explains that the end will not come with these things, but when the gospel “will be preached in the whole world” (Matthew 24:14). Therefore, waiting for Jesus’s return requires us to intensify missionary activities rather than draw up prophetic maps of the end of the world.
The presence of false Christs is another sign marking the period before the return. Jesus is very clear on this point: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near'” (Luke 21:8). From Jesús Miranda in Latin America to Sergei Anatolyevich Torop in distant Siberia, humanity has no shortage of self-proclaimed Messiahs.
More important than the belief that Jesus’s return is imminent is how Christians should await their Lord. The Gospel of Matthew records the “Parable of the Ten Virgins,” in which the virgins were waiting for the bridegroom to arrive. Five of them neglected to prepare for His arrival and were left outside (Matthew 25:1–12). The conclusion is obvious: it is the warning of Jesus himself. “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour” [when the Son of Man is coming] (Matthew 25:13). This message is similar to that of another parable told by Jesus in which a dishonest servant takes advantage of his master’s absence to indulge his desires, assuming that his master is delayed (Matthew 24:45–51). Calls for vigilance are frequently found in the Gospels. Christians who live in hope of Jesus’s return set their priorities accordingly and understand that eschatological expectations encourage their interest in ethics, so that they may live a life that pleases God.
Biblical details about the second coming of Christ
The second coming of Christ will be personal: He said, “I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:3). The apostle Paul also wrote to the Thessalonians that “the Lord himself… will come down from heaven” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). This fact was also confirmed by the angels who appeared to the apostles immediately after the Lord’s ascension. “‘Men of Galilee’, they said, ‘why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven'” (Acts 1:11). Therefore, His return will be as personal as His ascension.
The Second Coming of Christ will be physical in nature. It is true that He said, “surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). Based on this verse, some argue that Jesus is already present among people in a spiritual sense. At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the members of the early Church (Acts 2), but He is merely a substitute for Jesus (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit should not be confused with the Son. Christ promised that He Himself would return. Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that Jesus has been on Earth in an invisible form since 1914. However, according to the Bible, people will “see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30). Jesus even told His judges that they would see the Son of Man “coming on the clouds of heaven” (Mark 14:62).
The second coming of Christ will be unexpected. It will surprise not only unbelievers, but also those waiting for Him. “Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night,” writes the Apostle Paul (1 Thessalonians 5:1–2).
In stark contrast to the first coming, the Second Coming will be triumphant. Christ will not come as a humble infant hidden from the world’s gaze, but as a victorious king. “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His glorious throne,” writes the evangelist Matthew (Matthew 25:31). He will come as Judge. “The irony of this situation is that He who was judged at the end of His stay on earth will be the judge over all at His second coming.” (See Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, Grand Rapids, Mich., Baker Academic, 2013, pp. 1093 for more details.)
History is God’s workplace
Promises and biblical texts about the coming of Jesus and His Kingdom are considered by some—even those born into a Christian tradition—to be spiritual realities that should not be taken literally. However, theologian George Eldon Ladd contradicts this view, being convinced that God acts in history: “The powers of God’s Kingdom have invaded human history… Since this evil power is at work in human experience, the victory of God’s Kingdom over spiritual evil must take place on the level of human history.”[5] There must be a final and complete victory of good over evil, of Christ over Satan. Otherwise, His death on the cross would be an absurd noble gesture without results, and human history would be limited to the eternal search for a utopian ideal.
The Bible confirms that the plan of salvation for humanity will be completed through the Second Coming of Jesus. The Church’s “witness to God’s victory in the future is based on a victory already achieved in history.”[6] From its opening pages to its closing verses, the Bible is full of God’s promises about the establishment of His Kingdom. The authors of the New Testament—the evangelists, the apostles Peter and Paul, as well as James and Jude—refer to this anticipated event, none of them expressing any doubt about the return (which Paul refers to as “the blessed hope”—Titus 2:13).
Those who are critical of the Bible and of Christians frequently make ironic reference to the two millennia of anticipation that have elapsed without resolution. In reality, no Christian has waited that long. Human life is short. The apostle Paul lived with the hope that Jesus would return in his lifetime (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Ultimately, however, he accepted his death not with resignation, but with peace. He was convinced that Jesus would return on “that day” to give him “the crown of righteousness” and “to all who have longed for His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). “The Kingdom of God has not yet come in its fullness. We therefore look into the future, God’s future,” wrote theologian Emil Brunner. “What we already have is just the pledge of what is to come. But what will come is not ‘something’ but He Himself.”[7]
“The time has come when Thou must reappear to all of us and give a peremptory and unmistakable sign to this generation. Thou seest, Jesus, our need; Thou knowest how great it is, Thou canst not fail to recognize how imperative is our necessity, how heavy and real our anguish, our deprivation, our desperation. Thou knowest how much we have need of Thy intervention, how necessary is Thy return.”
(Excerpt from the prayer of Giovanni Papini, an Italian writer, published in Time Magazine on 5 November 1923.)
Christ is not a mere psychological counsellor who helps us to overcome life’s difficulties, but the Son of God who entered the world’s history, and who will intervene again according to a plan designed to free the Earth from the malignant presence of evil. Christians should not forget that they live “between the ages”—between history and eschatology—in a time marked by the spectre of evil, while confidently awaiting the coming of Jesus Christ and His kingdom. This is an event for which they fervently pray: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come…” (Matthew 6:9–10).
Announced at His first coming as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), Jesus Christ will return as the conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah (Revelation 5:5) and establish His kingdom. Without faith in this return, Christian identity remains merely cultural, reflecting a philosophy of life that helps us to be better people. By contrast, faith in Jesus’s return can be an anchor for Christians, fixed not in the depths of the sea but in the sky, where Christ will appear on the clouds at the appointed time.
