Behold He Comes is a sermon teaching us the promise of the Lord’s return has been prophesied for thousands of years. Is He really going to come again? He said so, and God’s word is infallible. But what proof is there?

Rev 1:7-8:

Revelation 1:7: “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.”

Revelation 1:8: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”

The Promise of the Return

We don’t know if 2021 is the year in which the Lord will come. We know the Lord will come because He said so. That promise is reiterated in both the New Testament and the Old Testament. There’s no question about that. But He didn’t say when he would come.

Scripture tells us that in the last days, people will say, “Where is the promise of His coming? Since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were.” That is true. Generations have come and gone since Jesus was here and He said He would return, and He hasn’t returned yet, so people think it is never going to happen. The year 2020 has taught us that things happen that have never happened before. If the Lord hasn’t come in 2,000 years, it doesn’t mean it won’t happen or can’t happen.

The first promise of a Redeemer is given in Genesis 3:15. From that first promise until the time that Jesus came the first time, 4,000 years had passed. If God is on the same schedule, and there’s nothing in the bible that says He is on the same schedule, then we have another 2,000 years to wait. But we don’t know when He will come, it could be this year. When it does happen, we’re going to see some tremendous things, a few of which we’ll touch on today.

The Lord Jesus promised to come, and He did and has promised to come again and He will. There are many great proofs of the truth of the bible as being the Word of God, the revelation of God. Luke says at the beginning of Acts in the first chapter that Jesus, after His passion, His suffering, showed Himself alive by many infallible proofs. There are many infallible proofs that the bible is God’s Word.

The Resurrection

Out of many, there are two that are the greatest infallible truths. #1 is the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

I Corinthians 15:11-20:

I Corinthians 15:1: “1Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.”

I Corinthians 15:12: “Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?”

I Corinthians 15:13: “But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:”

I Corinthians 15:14: “And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.”

I Corinthians 15:15: “Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.”

I Corinthians 15:16: “For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:”

I Corinthians 15:17: “And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.”

Paul writes that our faith is vain and empty and is nothing. And there is no forgiveness.

I Corinthians 15:18: “Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.”

Those loved ones who have gone before us, those who have passed away, they are just gone. You’ll never see them again. They’ll never exist again. There is no hope if Christ be not raised.

I Corinthians 15:19: “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.”

If we have faith in Jesus and follow Jesus, but it is only good for this life, then there is nothing after this life, no eternity, no resurrection. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are among men most miserable. Paul says that because we believed a lie. There is no resurrection. Secondly, Paul and the others suffered tremendously for the faith as people do today. Persecution and torture still go on today and is escalating.

I Corinthians 15:20: “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.”

The resurrection of Christ proves that everything He taught and did is true. It proves that the bible is true. It sets Jesus apart from every and any so-called religious leaders of the world and of world history. Did Buddha rise from the dead? He did not. Did Muhammed rise from the dead? He did not. Did any of the Hindu teachers arise from the dead? No, they did not. Others, when they die, they stay dead. But Jesus came back from the dead. Jesus says this:

Revelation 1:18: “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.”

Paul tells us in I Corinthians 15, and by the way, be encouraged to read I Corinthians 15. That whole chapter is about the resurrection. It is about Jesus’ resurrection, your resurrection, and of others. That whole chapter about the resurrection is worth reading repeatedly and study and understand. The resurrection is one of the greatest proofs that the bible is true, and that the story of Jesus is true, and the gospel we preach is true.

What is the Gospel? I Corinthians 15 is where Paul declares what the Gospel is. He says, “I declare unto you the gospel, where also I receive, and wherein you stand, which I preached unto you, in which you believed I preached unto you, Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. He was buried and rose again on the third day according to the scriptures.” Christ came and died for our sins at the cross. He died and was buried and arose, proving everything, He said was true and giving us the guarantee of everlasting life. Within that same context, He said He would come again.

Fulfilling Prophecy

The #2 great proof that the bible is the Word of God, the Revelation of God to mankind, is the fulfillment of prophecy. There are many proofs in both the New Testament and Old Testament. Here are three that seemed interesting. The first source said that Jesus would fulfill 200 to 300 prophecies when He came and lived on this earth. The second source said that He fulfilled at least 300. Yet another source said that he fulfilled over 400 prophecies. That is 200 to 400 prophecies fulfilled by Jesus Christ when He came to this earth. That cannot be a coincidence. It cannot be contrived, it would be too intricate for any person or group of persons to contrive.

Here are a few examples.

The prophecy of Jesus coming as the Messiah, the Sent One, the Savior of Israel:

Daniel 9:25: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.”

Daniel wrote this scripture from Babylon. He is a captive there and lived out his life there. He had been a prince in Jerusalem. He or one of his siblings would have been king. But the Babylonians came down and captured Jerusalem and destroyed it. They took the people of Jerusalem and Judah as captives into Babylon, present-day Iraq, for 70 years. During that time, Daniel was inspired by God to write this prophecy. But Jerusalem is destroyed. Daniel does not live to see Jerusalem rebuilt. The Bible books of Ezra and Nehemiah are the books that tell us about the rebuilding. That was after the Persians, present-day Iran, had overthrown the Babylonians. In modern terms, the people of Iran overthrew the people of Iraq.

Daniel writes that the prophecy would be fulfilled in 69 weeks. These are not seven-day weeks. These are weeks of years. Daniel says that when the royal command was given by Persia to rebuild Jerusalem. From that day until Messiah came, the prophesy says the exact year that Jesus would come. What year did Jesus come? That precise year according to the Jewish calendar. Daniel told us the exact year that the Messiah would be born.

Daniel 9:25: “And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

Daniel tells us exactly when the Messiah would die for the people. He tells us after 62 weeks, the Messiah would be cut off, or die for the people. Messiah dies not for anything He did wrong but for the people. Christ died for our sins.

Being Born of a Virgin

We are told that He would be born of a virgin:

Isaiah 7:14: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

Matthew tells us that “Immanuel” means “God with us.”

Matthew 1:23: “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”

This child that is going to be born of a virgin is God with us. We know the year he’s going to be born and we know He is going to be born of a virgin and know that He was going to be born in Bethlehem.

Micah 5:2: “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

This scripture speaks of a ruler who has lived from the everlasting. Who is He? Emmanuel, God with Us.

The Death of Jesus

The death of Christ was also foretold. Daniel has told us. But the writer of Psalm 22 gives us more insight:

Psalms 22:1: “(To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David.) My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?”

Jesus speaks the very words “My God, my God, why hast though forsaken me?”

Psalms 22:7: “All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,“

We are told the people standing around the cross would mock Jesus and they did.

Psalms 22:18: “They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.”

Then the people would gamble at foot of the cross and they did. All of that was written centuries before Jesus came.

Psalms 16:10: “For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.”

This verse prophesied this Savior would resurrect.

Matthew 24:2: “And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

Here, Jesus made a prophecy of His own. He prophesied the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. And that not one stone will be left one on another. That was 33 AD in our calendar and 37 years later in 70 AD, the Romans destroyed the Temple, taking it apart block by block just as Jesus said it would happen.

Jesus also prophesied that one of his disciples would betray Him and Judas Iscariot did. Jesus also prophesied that He will return. Now, if all of these other prophesies were fulfilled, and that is just a sampling. They say between 200 and 400 prophesies fulfilled during the first coming of Jesus, not even mentioning about His second coming which scholars tell us about 1,000 prophecies. One-third of the bible talks about the return of Christ.

Christ’s Return

But back to the book of Revelation:

Revelation 1:7: “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.”

The word “behold” means look and see, don’t be sleeping, don’t be distracting, look, and observe. He is coming. John is calling us to look and see that He is coming. He comes with clouds. Clouds have significance in scripture. Use a concordance and look up clouds and read the importance clouds play in scripture. There was the pillar of cloud that led the people out of Egypt and as a pillar of fire at night. There is more to the significance of the cloud:

Mark 13:26: “And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.”

Mark 14:61: “But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”

When Jesus stood before the high priest, they queried Him and asked if He was the Son of God.

Mark 14:62: “And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”

Jesus gave a direct answer and said he was. He goes on to say that they would see Him sit on the right hand of God and that they will see Him coming in the clouds of Heaven.

Acts 1:9-11:

Acts 1:9: “And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.”

Acts 1:10: “And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;”

Acts 1:11: “Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”

Jesus who lived on earth for about 33 and a half years, having preached for about 3 and a half years, having been crucified and risen again, and spent 40 days on earth after the resurrection showing Himself alive, now He is going to ascend back into Heaven. As those who were there stared into Heaven, two men asked them why they were gazing up and said that Jesus went up with a cloud and would come back the same way. That’s why it’s important.

And There’s More

What else is going to happen when He comes back?

I Thessalonians 4:16-17:

I Thessalonians 4:16: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:”

The Lord Himself will come with a shout, not someone else. Those who have died with their faith in Jesus are going to rise. Their bodies will be resurrected just like His body is resurrected.

I Thessalonians 4:17: “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

Those of us who are alive when all of this happens will be caught up and meet the Lord in the air.

Here’s what going to happen. Those who have died have their spirits in Heaven now and will be brought back and reunited. They will be brought back again, alive forevermore, a bodily resurrection. It will not be like a zombie apocalypse. When Jesus arose, His body was changed.

I Corinthians 15:51-58 tells us our bodies are going to be changed:

I Corinthians 15:51: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,”

I Corinthians 15:52: “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”

I Corinthians 15:53: “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.”

I Corinthians 15:54: “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”

I Corinthians 15:55: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?”

I Corinthians 15:56: “The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.”

I Corinthians 15:57: “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

I Corinthians 15:58: “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”

Philippians 3 tells us how we are going to be changed at the resurrection. It will be changed like His resurrected body. We meet the Lord in the air with those who have been resurrected. And every eye, as Revelation 11:7 says, shall see Him.

One Event, Two Phases

The Lord’s coming is one event but will occur in two phases. Phase one, the Lord will come and take His people out of this world before the 7-year tribulation period begins. Phase two, at the end of that 7-year tribulation period, the Lord will come and establish His kingdom on earth and be a king and judge upon the earth for 1,000 years, before what is actually going to be the end of this world as we know it. Notice something else in verse 7:

Revelation 1:7: “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.”

Everybody is going to see Him. That shouldn’t be so hard to believe using today’s technology to broadcast all around the world, even on your mobile phone. Man can live stream using today’s technology, what do you suppose God can do? Is it hard to believe when Jesus comes every eye will see Him? It isn’t, is it? Not hard at all.

It says here that the people who crucified Jesus will see Him. Even though they are long dead, they will see Him, they will be called up. Read Psalm 22, mentioned earlier, and then Isaiah 53, and you will read precise prophecies of the crucifixion of Christ.

Psalm 22:16: “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.”

Psalm 22:17: “I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me.”

Psalm 22:18: “They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.”

The prophet Zachariah wrote 487 years before Jesus came, and 90 years after that, John wrote the book of Revelation.

Zechariah 12:10: “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.”

Revelation 1:7: “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.”

Those Who Crucified Him

Those who crucified Jesus will be called up before Him when He comes.

John 20:25-27:

John 20:25: “The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

Thomas had been told that Jesus has risen from the dead. It was the night of the resurrection that morning. Thomas said he didn’t’ believe it. He probably didn’t believe it because he had seen Jesus die as well as other people crucified. Nobody survives that. Nobody comes back from that. He would believe if he saw the wounds. He could not understand how anyone could come back from that.

The next two verses take place eight days later, the next Sunday evening when Jesus invites Thomas to touch His wounds. Thomas said, “My Lord and My God.”:

John 20:26:” And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.”

John 20:27: “Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.”

Those who crucified Jesus will be called out before Him when He is the judge. All the kindred of the earth will wail because of Him when they see He is real, when they see the one they rejected is the Creator and King of the universe, when they see that Jesus Christ of Nazareth is their eternal judge, when they see the one they denied even existed, the one they blasphemed with their mouths, the one they rebelled against with their lies, is coming. They shall wail because of Him.

The Beginning and the End

John says, “Even so, Amen. Be it ever so.” Then Jesus speaks and says:

Revelation 1:8: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”

Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet and Omega is the last letter. It is like saying I’m the A to Z, the beginning and the ending. If you have the beginning and the end, then you have a completed circle. We live in time and God lives in eternity. In time, everything has a beginning and an ending like a straight line. But eternity is like a circle without a beginning or ending, it goes on continuously. That is what the Lord is saying here when He says, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,” He’s saying He’s the Eternal One. He is now, He was forever in the past, and He is to come forever in the future, the Almighty, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. That is who’s coming.

Revelation 3:11: “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.”

How will Jesus come? Quickly, which means suddenly without warning. That’s how He’s coming. Don’t look for signs that He is coming, just look for Him to come.

Revelation 16:15: “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.”

Jesus reiterates that idea. He comes as unexpected as a thief. Blessed is he who is on guard.

Revelation 22:7: “Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.”

We are to learn from this book. Learn and live by this book. Be ready when He comes.

Revelation 22:12: “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.”

Revelation 22:13: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.”

Just Rewards

Jesus says He will come suddenly, but when He comes, He will reward everybody. Revelation teaches us that there is the judgment seat of Christ where all believers will stand and be rewarded according to how they lived. There is later going to be a great white throne judgment where all unbelievers will stand and be rewarded according to how they lived. Everyone at the judgment seat of Christ is going to Heaven. What that judgment seat is for is to reward us for eternity as to how we live. Everybody at the great white throne is lost for all eternity. Just as there are degrees of rewards for Heaven, there are degrees of punishment in Hell. An old woman who never believed in Jesus may not get the same punishment as a murderer. But the least degree will still be Hell, wouldn’t it?

So, the Lord says He is coming. The last revelation in the bible:

Revelation 22:20: “He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”

Look at the last prayer in the bible in verse 20. “Even so, come Lord Jesus.” John is saying we are ready.

Jesus came to be our Savior. Jesus finished the work upon the earth He came to do. He came and paid our sins on the cross. He was buried and rose again the third day. He offers salvation to all and any who will believe in Him. He returned to Heaven but He is coming again. He’s coming again first to take those of us who believe home. Home to be with Him forever. He’s coming to take us out of this world before His judgment falls upon this world. Secondly, He is going to come to judge the world and establish His kingdom on earth and He tells us to be watching, to be ready. How are you going to be ready?

Revelation 3:20: “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”

Jesus says He’s standing and knocking on your heart’s door and asks to be invited in.

John 1:11-12:

John 1:11 “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”

John 1:12: “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:”

Friend, will you be ready when Jesus comes?

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