Christ's Second Appearing, the Complement of His First: Part 3

From: Bible Treasury: Volume 17

Christ's Second Appearing, the Complement of His First: 3

From: Christ's Second Appearing, the Complement of His First

Hebrews 9:27‑28 • 13 min. read • grade level: 9

II. But it is time to turn to another part of this subject. If the church is taken away at the coming of the Lord Jesus, what bearing will this coming have upon the world at large, that is, upon Jews and Gentiles? We have seen that towards the church (viz., believers now) its aspect is nothing but blessing. It will be the end of their suffering state, and the beginning of their glorified one. But what will it be to the world? This brings us to a division of the subject.

There have been three great displays, or systems, set under God in the world, which have all failed: viz., the Jews, the Gentiles, and the church of God, (as to the testimony committed to it); and a short history of their failure, and of God's future intentions toward them, is needful. When God pronounced “Lo-Ammi” (not-My-people) on the Jews, He delivered power into the hands of the Gentiles, in the person of Nebuchadnezzar and his successors, and it has continued ever since. When the Jews and Gentiles (the fourth monarchy, or Roman empire, at that moment appearing in universal dominion) agreed in rejecting the Messiah, God brought in the church, a heavenly people, not to take to itself earthly dominion, but down here to be a witness to Christ as set at the right hand of God. Now the scripture represents all these as failing, Jews, Gentiles, and Christendom as such.

With regard to the Jews (at present Lo-Ammi, or, not-My-people) it is necessary to see that their failure arose from their disobedience to a law, which they had promised to observe. But they will be restored to the land of Canaan, owing to the free mercy of God, on account of His promises to Abraham, notwithstanding their failure, for which they have been and will yet have to be punished. In Gen. 13:15¹⁵For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. (Genesis 13:15) we find the land of Canaan given to Abraham and to his seed forever; and in Gen. 15:13, 14¹³And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; ¹⁴And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. (Genesis 15:13‑14) the prophetic announcement of the captivity in Egypt, and of the recovery thence, and the gift of the land is again made to his seed by an unconditional covenant of God. See also Gen. 17:7, 8⁷And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. ⁸And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. (Genesis 17:7‑8). We know that the former part of this took place; that is, the children of Israel were delivered from Egypt, and brought to Mount Sinai where the law was given. God's dealings with them up to that point had been simply in grace. Then it was (Ex. 19:8⁸And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord. (Exodus 19:8)) that they put themselves, of their own will, under the law. “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do.” But they failed under this law, as the sin of the golden calf, Ex. 32 witnessed.

This, however, did not touch the promises to Abraham. The intercession of Moses (ver. 13) is grounded on these promises, and on the oath of God; and it was owing to these that they came into the land at all. So in all God's after dealings with them. Though He chastised them whilst in the land, owing to their broken engagements, and at length cast them out, yet the promises made to Abraham still remain certain to them. See Lev. 26; Mic. 7:20²⁰Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old. (Micah 7:20).

There are two great principles connected with their final restoration, which seem to distinguish it from all previous dealings, however gracious, with them. First, they will be planted in the land, under the new covenant (Jer. 32:37-40³⁷Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: ³⁸And they shall be my people, and I will be their God: ³⁹And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them: ⁴⁰And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. (Jeremiah 32:37‑40)). Secondly, they will have the presence of the Messiah (Ezek. 34:23, 24; 37:21-28²³And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. ²⁴And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it. (Ezekiel 34:23‑24)
²¹And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: ²²And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: ²³Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. ²⁴And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. ²⁵And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children's children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. ²⁶Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. ²⁷My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ²⁸And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore. (Ezekiel 37:21‑28); Jer. 33:14-26¹⁴Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. ¹⁵In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. ¹⁶In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The Lord our righteousness. ¹⁷For thus saith the Lord; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel; ¹⁸Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually. ¹⁹And the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah, saying, ²⁰Thus saith the Lord; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; ²¹Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers. ²²As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me. ²³Moreover the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁴Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the Lord hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them. ²⁵Thus saith the Lord; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth; ²⁶Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them. (Jeremiah 33:14‑26)). When Messiah first came, they rejected Him; but even that, while it filled up the measure of their guilt, did not touch the promises given without condition. Many of those in Isaiah, that in 2 Sam. 7, and those in Amos 9:11- 15¹¹In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: ¹²That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the Lord that doeth this. ¹³Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. ¹⁴And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. ¹⁵And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God. (Amos 9:11‑15), remain still unaccomplished.

With regard to the Gentile power, it was not only to end in sin, but in open rebellion against God; but in this the professing Christian world was to have a large and leading share.1 It had, as was before stated, its origin in Nebuchadnezzar; it was afterward continued in the Persian, Grecian, and Roman monarchies. The latter was in existence at the time of Christ, and, instigated by the Jews, used the power originally given by God in putting to death His own Son (Acts 4:25-27²⁵Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? ²⁶The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. ²⁷For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, (Acts 4:25‑27)). This power will continue until “the stone cut out of the mountain without hands shall break in pieces and consume these kingdoms” in their last form, viz., under the ten kings who give their power to the beast (Dan. 2:40-44⁴⁰And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. ⁴¹And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. ⁴²And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. ⁴³And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. ⁴⁴And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. (Daniel 2:40‑44); Rev. 17:11-14¹¹And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. ¹²And 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. ¹³These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. ¹⁴These 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. (Revelation 17:11‑14)).

And here I must stop to remark upon a great error which prevails, viz., that the “little stone” was the setting up of Christ's kingdom at the day of Pentecost, and that it has been growing into a great mountain ever since; or, in other words, that the preaching of the gospel in the present dispensation is that which is to convert the world. Now let it be observed, that the stone does not begin to grow until it has broken in pieces the great image. After this, it becomes a great mountain and fills the whole earth. It is not a diffusive principle winch insinuates itself into the system of the image, and changes its moral character and condition; but its operation is destructive of the whole system of the image, which becomes as the chaff of the summer threshing-floor, before the stone begins to grow into a mountain. The scripture does not speak of the universal prevalence of Christianity while the image subsists; it says that the stone must destroy the whole being of their empires, by the distraction of the last, then to become itself the center of a new system. The “little stone” is really typical of Christ coming to judgment, and His kingdom will be established after this; when indeed “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:9⁹They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11:9)).

But again, in Rev. 16 we are told that three unclean spirits are to go forth, as the spirits of demons, working miracles, “unto the kings [of the earth, and] of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Is this the gospel bringing the whole world under subjection to Christ? Whatever interpretation of this passage we may give as to details, it is manifestly the wide extended exercise of Satan's corrupting and malignant influence, gathering together the powers of this world in the last times, to conflict with, and consequent judgment by, Almighty God (Zeph. 3:8, 9⁸Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy. ⁹For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent. (Zephaniah 3:8‑9)).

But what of the professing church? Scripture is not silent here; the end is failure and rain, as everything has been that has ever been entrusted to man. First, there is a positive revelation in Matt. 13 of tares in the field, where the Son of man had sown. This was not common heathenism, nor unconverted sinners, as men; but evil entering into the place where good was sown. The question was asked whether they were to be rooted up; and the answer was, No. It is not the work of the present dispensation to root out, but to sow. We may preach the gospel, but the evil must go on where the good seed was sown, till the harvest of judgment. But secondly, the days of the Son of man (Luke 17) are likened to the days of Noah and Lot. “Even thus,” is the portentous conclusion, “shall it be when the Son of man is revealed.” Again, so far from blessed days coming, scripture reveals that “in the last days perilous times shall come” (2 Tim. 3:1¹This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. (2 Timothy 3:1)). And then follows, almost word for word, the same character of the professing church as is given of the heathen, as under the sentence of a reprobate mind (comp. 2 Tim. 3:2-5²For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, ⁴Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; ⁵Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:2‑5) with Rom. 1:28-32²⁸And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; ²⁹Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, ³⁰Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, ³¹Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: ³²Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them. (Romans 1:28‑32)). Yes, the revealed end of the professing church is that of iniquity, like the heathen. At the same time a form of godliness, something (it may be) very beautiful to attract the eye, but rottenness and dead men's bones within.

Again, the mark of the close of the church is revealed in 1 John 2:18¹⁸Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. (1 John 2:18), “Little children, it is the last time; and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists, whereby we know that it is the last time.” This was the characteristic of the last time, not in-coming and out-flowing blessing, but antichrists who sprang from the church, precursors of the antichrist whom Christ is to destroy, and not of general blessing before the judgment. Again, in 2 Thess. 2 we have evil traced through its course, from the apostles' time to Christ's appearing, leaving no room for intervening universal blessing. “The mystery of iniquity doth already work (says Paul): only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way; and then shall that wicked [one] be revealed whom the Lord Jesus shall consume,” &c. It had began in the apostles' time, and would go on until Christ came. But in Jude the declension and falling away is still more palpable. He gave (ver. 1) “all diligence to write onto them of the common salvation;” that is, it was his wish to have enlarged on this common blessing. But he was hindered, and was obliged to exhort them to contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints. So far from there being an extension of good, he found the time already come to contend against evil: evil men having crept in unawares, ungodly men, “turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” That is, they specially denied the Lordship of Christ, first morally and then in open rebellion. Here is the character of Antichrist. He denies the Father, and the Son, he denies that Jesus is the Christ (1 John 2:22²²Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. (1 John 2:22)), and he denies Jesus Christ come in the flesh (1 John 4:3 John 7⁷Because that for his name's sake they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles. (3 John 7)). But did Jude contemplate a bettering of such a state? No. His words are, “Enoch prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment upon all,” &c. (ver. 14, 15). These very men that had crept in forced him to say that these are the men that have been already prophesied about. He refers them in ver. 11 into three classes, a kind of triple character of the apostacy, showing also the progress which the evil in man makes. 1st, Cain: natural evil, hatred. 2nd, Balaam: ecclesiastical corruption, preaching for reward. 3rd, Core: independence against God, standing up against His supremacy, denying Christ in His lordship and priesthood.2 And in this open rebellion, or gainsaying, they perish.