Kingdom Disciples

The saints will be assembled before Jesus on the Last Day, and the wicked will be collected for judgment and cast from his presence . On the Last Day, the righteous and the unrighteous will be “ gathered ” before Jesus, the former for vindication and salvation, and the latter for judgment and condemnation. This event is linked in the New Testament to Christ’s “ arrival ” at the end of the age when he will resurrect the dead, judge the dead and living, terminate the “ Last Enemy, Death ,” and consummate the Kingdom of God.

The arrival of Jesus will be an event of great victory and finality that will result in the resurrection and the New Creation . The return of Jesus at the “ end of the age ” will be a singular event of utter finality. His “ arrival ” or ‘ Parousia ’ will be accompanied by celestial and terrestrial upheaval, the installation of the New Creation, the resurrection of the dead, the judgment of the godly and the ungodly, the “ gathering of Christ’s elect ,” and the end of Death. Decay and mortality will be replaced by immortality. Nothing will ever be the same again!

Jesus will arrive and gather his people on the Day of the Lord, and in the New Testament, this event becomes the Day of Christ . In his second letter to the Thessalonians, Paul refutes claims that the “ Day of the Lord ” is imminent. That day will not arrive until the “ Apostasy ” and the “ revelation of the Man of Lawlessness, the Son of Destruction .” Jesus will destroy this Master Deceiver at his “ Arrival ” or ‘ Parousia ’, an event the Apostle links to this final great day.

Rumors about the Day of the Lord caused alarm and confusion in the Thessalonian congregation  – 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2. The Apostle Paul addressed rumors and false claims about the “ Day of the Lord " in his second letter to the Thessalonians. Incorrect information concerning Christ’s return had disrupted the congregation. The disinformation was attributed either to a “ spirit ,” word (' logos ' ), or a letter “ as if from ” Paul and his coworkers.

Jesus will arrive on the Day of the Lord at which time the dead will be raised, the wicked judged, and death will cease forever . The coming of Jesus is an important major part of Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. He touches on several aspects of the event, including its identification as the “Day of the Lord,” the consummation of God’s kingdom, the resurrection of the righteous dead, the judgment of the wicked, and the cessation of death.

In the opening thanksgiving of his Letter to the Philippians , Paul prepares his readers for one of its key themes: Going on to perfection in Jesus . The bodily resurrection of the believer is necessary for the consummation of this process, and its goal. It is an integral part of the salvation that believers will receive when Jesus appears, and a glorious hope as the past resurrection of Jesus demonstrates.

Paul warned of the coming Apostasy and linked it to the unveiling of the Man of Anarchy when he seats himself in the Assembly . Paul responded to false reports about the “ Day of the Lord ” by pointing to the expected Apostasy and the “ Man of Lawlessness .” Jesus will not “ arrive ” until the “ Apostasy ” occurs and the “ Lawless One ” is revealed. Rumors claiming that the “ Day of the Lord had set in ” were circulating in Thessalonica, disrupting the Assembly – (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12).

The proclamation of the Gospel reveals two forces at work in the world - “ righteousness ” and “ wrath ,” and they will produce two very different results - “ salvation ” for some, and “ destruction ” for others. In the end, “ righteousness ” will produce salvation, resurrection, and New Creation for those who embrace the Gospel, but the coming “ Day of Wrath and God’s righteous judgments ” will mean condemnation and destruction for the men and women who reject the “ Good News ” announced by Jesus and his Apostles.

Many saints will apostatize when the Lawless Man, the Son of Destruction, seats himself in the Sanctuary of God . As the Apostle Paul explained, the “ Day of the Lord ” will not come until the “ Apostasy ” occurs and the “ Man of Lawlessness, the Son of Destruction ” is unveiled as he seats himself “ in the Sanctuary of God .” He will appear only after the “ Mystery of Lawlessness ” has run its full course, and he will be destroyed when Jesus arrives on that final day – (2 Thessalonians 2:3-9).

Revelation moves inexorably from the death of Jesus to the final day when God judges the wicked and vindicates the righteous . At the conclusion of his ‘ Olivet Discourse ,’ Jesus gave his parable of the Sheep and the Goats. On the day when the “ Son of Man arrives in glory ,” his angels will gather all nations before him for judgment, and he will divide them into two groups. One will receive “ everlasting destruction ,” and the other, “ everlasting life .”

According to the Apostle Paul, the “ Revelation ” of Jesus “ from Heaven ” will result in vindication and reward for his faithful followers, but it will also bring about everlasting loss for all men and women who reject the Gospel, especially for the persecutors of the Body of Christ. The same event will generate the dispensing of “ just judgment ” for the righteous and the wicked.

Several Greek terms are used in the New Testament for the return of Jesus at the end of the present age. These include  Parousia  (“ arrival ”),  erchomai  (“ coming ”), and  epiphaneia  (“ appearance ”). Regardless of which one is used, in each case, it is always singular in number, referring to only one future “ coming .” The term  Parousia  is applied to his return most often in the letters of Paul, though not exclusively so. It denotes an “arrival” rather than the process of someone or something “coming.”

The arrival of Jesus will mark the end of the present order, the resurrection of the dead, and the start of the New Creation . Jesus will return from Heaven on a day punctuated by power and glory. Christ’s “ arrival ” or ‘ Parousia ’ will mean the consummation of God’s Kingdom, the judgment of the ungodly, the vindication and resurrection of the faithful, the unveiling of the New Creation, and the termination of death - The reversal of Death’s sentence on humanity. The coming of the “ Son of Man on the Clouds ” will be a glorious event of absolute finality.

In his second epistle, Peter addresses the growing weariness of some believers due to the apparent delay in or even the failure of the “ arrival ” of Jesus to materialize, an open door for false teachers and outside critics to exploit. Instead of the predicted terrestrial and cosmic upheaval, daily life was continuing as it always had. The Apostle’s explanation is as relevant today as it was two thousand years ago.

Paul instructed the congregation of Philippi concerning going on to “ completion ” in Jesus. Bodily resurrection must take place for the consummation of this process and the completion of our salvation. This will occur when Jesus appears “ on the clouds of Heaven .” God will continue to perform what He began with our conversion until “ the Day of Christ .”

Two events must occur before the Day of the Lord begins - The Apostasy and the unveiling of the Man of Lawlessness in God’s House . Men spreading rumors in the church of Thessalonica were raising false expectations about the imminence of the “ Day of the Lord ” and the “ arrival ” of Jesus. The Apostle Paul warned the Thessalonians not to be alarmed or deceived by such rumors since two key events must occur before that day comes.

The Day of the Lord will mean salvation for the Sons of Light, believers who remain vigilant while awaiting its sudden arrival – 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11. Paul provided the Assembly of Thessalonica with instructions on how believers must live in anticipation of the “ Day of the Lord .” It will not overtake them since they “ are not in darkness .” They are the “ Sons of Light ” and the “ Sons of the Day .” Unlike the unrighteous of this fallen age, the watchful believer who lives in the light of the Gospel will not be caught off guard by that Day’s sudden arrival.

In Chapter 5 of  1 Thessalonians , Paul continues his discussion about the “ coming ” or ‘ parousia ’ of Jesus. But now, he addresses the question of its timing, as well as the different ways it will impact believers and nonbelievers. But rather than provide chronological information, he reminds the Thessalonians that the “ DAY OF THE LORD ” will come like a “ THIEF IN THE NIGHT .” No one except God knows its timing, therefore, believers must remain ever vigilant and prepared for its sudden and unexpected arrival.