When Will Jesus Come Again?

We say every Sunday in the Nicene Creed: “He will come again in glory
 to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.”  Our faith tells us that the Risen Jesus will return to earth at the end of the world with great power, and on that day the Kingdom of God will be fulfilled.  The description of this day can be frightening, and it was prophesied even before Jesus was born. 

The prophet Daniel describes this day in the first reading: “It shall be a time unsurpassed in distress” and “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake; some shall live forever; others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace.   But the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament…they shall be like the stars forever.”

Jesus answered the question asked by his apostles “When?” by saying “No one knows except the Father.”  How could Jesus, the Son of God with infinite knowledge, not know?  St. John Chrysostom wrote that he believed Jesus said this so that every generation would think it would be during their lifetime…and thus prepare!  

Some theologians believe that Christianity is still in its infancy.  Jesus rose from the dead 2,000 years ago and yet, only 2.4 billion people out of 8 billion believe in him and follow him.  Christians are only 31% of the world’s population.  We have work to do.  From that perspective, we don’t want Jesus to come again soon!   And yet, we do want Him to come, because we love Him, and we want the Kingdom of God to be fulfilled.  This Last Coming will put an end to all suffering, evil and death, and of course we desire that!

And speaking for the dead, they want their bodies back.  A human person is made with a body and a soul, and until Jesus comes again in glory, the souls in Heaven are without their bodies.  At the Lord’s command on that day, our bodies shall rise beautiful, magnificent, shining and immortal; and body and soul will be back together forever.  They can never suffer or die again.  For their sake, we want Jesus to come again soon!

November is the month when we meditate on the four Last Things, and the Last Judgment, or the Last Coming, or the General Resurrection (all names describing the same cataclysmic event) marks the end of the age.  We will all be judged again, but not individually.  We will have already received that judgment, and our destiny will not change.  The entire human race: every person who ever lived, including the souls in hell, will be present on that day.  And everyone will acknowledge the absolute, infinite justice of God…and His infinite mercy!

Thank you for praying for the Last Judgment.  Yes, you pray for it every time you say the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy Kingdom come!”  I agree with St. John Chrysostom: Jesus wanted us all to think He would be coming in our own lifetime, and thus, we have work to do!

"But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."  (Mark 13)

Fr. Brett Brannen

Pastor