there is actually 2 separate returns talked about in the bible.
the first is described as his presence. the greek word used was pa-rou-sía which literally means ¨being alongside¨ or ¨presence¨. this meaning
includes ¨arrival¨ or ¨coming¨, but the word places emphasis on the presence after arrival. so the translation of ¨coming¨ is not completely
wrong, just it places the emphasis on the wrong meaning.
matt 24:3 [3] And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what
shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
the word here is translated coming, but the literal translation would be ¨what shall be the sign of thy arrival and presence¨
[4] And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
[5] For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
jesus is saying that during his ¨presence¨ there will be false christs. its interesting to note that this implies that his presence wouldnt be
particularly obvious. after all, why would the disciples ask for a ¨sign¨ if his coming and presence was obvious?
so jesus gives them ¨signs¨
[6] And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
[7] For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers
places.
[8] All these are the beginning of sorrows.
so wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes. these all happen often throughout history however never to together and never the same intense degree we
have experienced them from the early 1900´s to today.
[9] Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.
[10] And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
[11] And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
[12] And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
[13] But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
god´s people would be disdained. false doctrines would abound perpetuated by ¨prophets¨ who claim to love the flock, but instead fleece them for
personal gain. again, something that has happened before, but never with the intensity it does today.
[14] And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
the preaching of the gospel would be accomplished during his presence. this one struck me as odd because if jesus was literally to return to earth,
then we wouldnt need this as a sign, he´d probably be heading the work himself. yet, here it is. if you cross reference with matt 28:19,20 they you
would see that christ IS with them, but its possible he means that in an invisible way. supporting from heaven.
[15] When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him
understand
[16] Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
[17] Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
[18] Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
[19] And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
[20] But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
no idea how this applies today. it applied to the christians right before the fall of jerusalem in 70 ad. and its possible it has a second
furfillment. but i dont know what it is. i only have theories.
[21] For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
[22] And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
so all these thing culminate to the great trib.
[23] Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
[24] For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall
deceive the very elect.
[25] Behold, I have told you before.
[26] Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
[27] For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
false messiahs
this is christ´s invisible ¨presence¨. if you look at the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse in rev 6. the first rider is on a white horse and described
as
[2] And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to
conquer.
jesus would be given a kingdom, and would eventually go conquering. he´s also on a white horse, symbolic for purity and righteousness.
notice the next horseman that follow coincide with the ¨signs¨mentioned in matt 24.
- war
- famine
- pestilence followed by hell, or the grave.
so clearly christs presence is invisible and would require a sign. it would span a long time for these ¨signs¨ to occur. he would be ¨followed¨by
these signs.
however i mentioned a second coming. this one i still believe to be heavenly since he is accompanied by angels, ever its more visible. back to matt
24.
[29] Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from
heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
[30] And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
[31] And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other.
so immediately after the great tribulation, we see the ¨sign of the son of man in heaven¨ and the tribes shall mourn. whether or not this coming is
a literal, like we literally see jesus in heaven or figurative, like we see some celestial phenomenon, one thing is certain, the tribes of the earth
WILL know its jesus.
why after the great tribulation?
rev 16:[14] For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to
the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
[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.
[16] And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
rev 17:[12] And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the
beast.
[13] These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
[14] These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are
called, and chosen, and faithful.
rev 19:[11] And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth
judge and make war.
[12] His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
[13] And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
[14] And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
[15] And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth
the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
[16] And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
[17] And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather
yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
[18] That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on
them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
[19] And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against
his army.
[20] And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark
of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
[21] And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled
with their flesh.
the war of Armageddon happens after the great tribulation. it is a war between satan and his demons and jesus and his angelic host. notice rev 19:14
states the armies which were in heaven.
even though this war is a spiritual one between spiritual beings, satan gathers the nations on earth for war. it is likely that he makes an all out
attack on god´s people. likely christ´s presence will then be felt as he will be protecting those ones.