Looking Forward to
the Second Coming of the Messiah!
July 14, 2013 AM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
I.
Introduction – The Return
of the King!
A.
Jesus was King of the Jews (Matt
2:1,2) – the promised Messiah
B.
Yet, not many people really
believed that Jesus of Nazareth could have been THE Messiah!
C.
Jesus was even mocked as he was
dying on the cross, as the pitiful King of the Jews (Mt 27:29, 37)
D.
Yet, that is exactly what Jesus
was!
E.
It was just His first coming.
F.
He IS coming again!
II.
An Example (1Sam 16:1-13)
A.
David was chosen to be the king
of
B.
So also the Lord Jesus Christ had
been chosen to take over the kingdoms of this world and rule as God's "KING OF
KINGS" (Rev. 11:15; 19:16). He is not quite welcome. But one day soon, it will
happen! The King will return!
III.
Message
A.
What the Biblical Messiah Had
to Accomplish – a Tall Order!
1.
Every Jew knew this list! That is
why they examined Jesus and His disciples. They knew what to expect of the
Messiah.
2.
He had to be a second Moses – and
establish even better laws than Moses did
Deut 18:15 The LORD thy God will
raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto
me; unto him ye shall hearken;
3.
He had to be a second David – and
rule a greater kingdom than David had
4.
He had to be a second Melchizedek
– a perfect priest, better than Aaron, and established a better covenant – the
New Testament
Heb 7:11 If therefore perfection
were by the Levitical priesthood, … what further need was there that another
priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec…?
5.
He had to be a Teacher both of
the Jewish people AND of the Gentiles
a.
Isa 11:10
And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for
an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek
b.
Isa 42:1
Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul
delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the
Gentiles.
c.
Isa 42:6
I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine
hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a
light of the Gentiles;
6.
He had to come in power ‘with
clouds’
Dan 7:13 I saw in the night
visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven,
and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
7.
He had to be able to do all kinds
miracles – 8 different impossible miracles (Isa 35:5-6)
8.
He had to restore the earth to
9.
He had to bring world-wide peace
– no more war
Isa 2:4 And he shall judge among
the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into
plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword
against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
10.
He had to come in weakness ‘on a
donkey’
11.
He had to be a Rejected Messiah
12.
He had to be a Betrayed Messiah
13.
He had to be a
killed-and-resurrected king
14.
He had to be a ‘stone of
stumbling’, upsetting everyone’s expectations
15.
He had to be a Suffering Servant
16.
He had to be Ruler of All Nations
(and destroyer of all wicked, so there could be peace in the world)
17.
He had to be the Sacrifice for
the sins of all
18.
He had to Release
19.
He had to Save all those who only
believed in Him from the coming wrath to come!
B.
What Jesus Accomplished the
First Time – Quite a bit! And He accomplished only this part, on purpose!
1.
He established even better laws
than expected – the entire New Testament
2.
He rules a greater kingdom – one
that was not only Jewish!
3.
He is a perfect priest – better
than Aaron, and established a better covenant – the New Covenant
Jer 31:31,32 Behold, the days
come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel,
and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with
their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the
land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake
4.
He was the greatest Teacher both
of the Jewish people AND of the Gentiles
5.
He was able to do all miracles –
most of which had never been done before (Mt 15:31):
a.
The mute speaking
b.
The crippled made well
c.
The lame walking
d.
And the blind seeing
e.
These were never healed in the
Old Testament!
6.
He came in weakness - in a
manger, in poverty, and ‘on a donkey’
7.
He was a Rejected Messiah (Isa
53)
8.
He was a Betrayed Messiah (Psalm
41)
9.
He was God’s Suffering Servant
(Isa 53)
10.
He was killed-and-resurrected
(Jonah, Mt 12:40)
11.
He had to be Sacrifice for the
sins of
12.
He is to this day a ‘stone of
stumbling’, upsetting everyone’s expectations
Isa 8:14 And he shall be for a
sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the
houses of
13.
He Saves all those who only
believe in Him
Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
C.
But What About the Rest?
1.
It is easy to see that He came
first to be our High priest – as mediator for sins!
a.
As the Suffering Messiah, the Son
of Joseph
b.
And to die so that we could be
made clean and righteous!
2.
But what about the remaining
things that have been left undone?
3.
He is simply coming again!
a.
as the Sovereign Messiah, the Son
of King David
b.
To destroy all enemies, so that
even the earth itself can be pure and righteous!
4.
Very Confusing if there are
not Two Comings of the Same Messiah
D.
Comparison
He came the
first time
He comes the second time
a.
As the step-son of Joseph
As the direct son of King David
b.
Silently at night
Like lightning (Mt 24:27)
c.
Only to shepherds
Every eye shall see Him (Rev 1:7)
d.
In weakness and frailty
With power and great glory (Mt 24:30)
e.
In chains, condemned
Sitting on the right hand of power (Mt 26:64)
f.
To die for the world
To rule the world
g.
To set up the
2.
Since this great Kingdom wasn't
established at the First Coming of Christ, it must still be established at His
Second Coming.
a.
God knew that the Jews would
reject His Son; so He meant that Christ's shed Blood on
b.
So the First Coming was one of
suffering and shame, but the Second Coming will be one of glory, honour, and
praise (1 Pet 1:10-12).
c.
The first time Jesus received a
crown of thorns, but when He comes again He will have MANY crowns (Rev 19:12).
d.
He was the "lamb of God" when He
came the first time, but He will be the "lion of the tribe of
e.
The First Coming gave Jesus
Christ to the world, but the Second Coming will give the world to Jesus Christ!
E.
Are you ready for His
Second Coming?
1.
It’s NOT a pipe-dream; Not a
fairy tale. But the only hope for all people!
2.
The Second Coming is all about
God's righteous King returning to this earth and taking what rightfully belongs
to Him. Christians should be rejoicing!
3.
The Lord Jesus Christ, the
Captain of your Salvation (if you're saved), will soon return to this earth and
set things in order and YOU can be on the winning side!
4.
Yet so many can ignore (and will
ignore) the first coming of Jesus of Nazareth – to their own ruin!
IV.
Conclusion – Don’t wait
too long!
A.
Don’t Wait for all of that to
Happen before You believe (2Cor 6:2) – Because it will be too late!
B.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved (Acts 16:30,31)!
Peter on the day of Pentecost preached to a crowd of 70-80,000 people who were
terrified of the prospect that Jesus was coming back in their lifetime!
Don’t put off the decision to follow Jesus!
C.
Be Patient (James 5:7,8) – He is
coming!
1.
Don’t get discouraged
2.
Be like a farmer, who has
planted, and watered and fertilised his crops – and now must wait for the
harvest!
3.
The world is changing and rocking
to and fro – and we need to anchor our hearts so that we don’t get tossed to and
from with society
D.
Be Watchful - Expectant (2Tim
4:8) “love his soon appearing” – special reward!
E.
Be Holy (Tit 2:11-13) “live
soberly, righteously, and godly” – don’t throw away your life
F.
Be Faithful (Mat 24:42-47) – so
few are even trying to stay faithful!