This devotional is Day 20 of the 25-Day Advent Series “The Wonders of His Love.” Follow along with us as we grow in grace through the Christmas story by subscribing or bookmaking the home page above!
Scripture: Daniel 7:13-14
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At Christmas time, it’s easy to think so much about what God has done in the past that we forget to look toward the future. As wonderful as it was, Jesus’s first coming will pale in comparison to His second.
Daniel 7:13-14 give us a glimpse of what that will look like. Read what it says:
“I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.” (NASB)
3 Ways His Second Coming Will Be Like the First
When Jesus returns in all his glory, one thing will not have changed. He will still be the Son of Man. He might be full of power and authority, but he is still the same God who is called Emmanuel, the Word made flesh, the one who walked among us.
Even John recognized that fact when he wrote Revelation 1:13-16, which says:
“in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters. In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.” (NASB)
Christ was changed, but John still recognized him.
When He returns we will too.
The second similarity of the second coming of Christ to the first is simply the fact that He will come.
It’s been more than 2,000 years since His feet walked this earth, but He has never failed to fulfill His promises. He said he would return, and you can fully believe he will.
He is not a God who keeps His distance. He came to live among us once; He will return to take us to live with Him as well. That’s what Daniel was writing about; it’s also what Jesus himself said in John 14:2-3, which we looked at yesterday:
“In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.” (NASB)
And when He does return, He will again be worshipped.
This time, however, instead of a just a handful of shepherds and a few wise men, “every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:10 NASB)
3 Ways His Second Coming Will Be Different From The First
When Jesus was born, He left the throne room of heaven and took on flesh to walk among us like one of us. He became a “son of man” and was born with all the frailty of every babe who has ever been swaddled.
When Christ first came, He came in weakness. When He returns, He will come in power.
He will arrive not on the earth, but in the clouds, with all the authority and glory that have always been His. There will be no humble lodgings or parents fleeing in fear from jealous kings.
He will not come like a child but as the King He is, absolutely ready to reign.
The Emmanuel who walked with us, serving others and washing their feet, will return and be served by all nations and peoples.
His second coming will not be an event witnessed only by a few people and some barnyard animals. Revelation 1:7 says, “every eye will see him.”
The busy people of Bethlehem may have missed the first coming, but they won’t miss the second.
And, unlike His first coming, there will be no end to His second. He won’t walk among us for 33 years then head back to heaven this time. His kingdom will have come, and it will last forever.
That thought breathes hope into our holidays and life into our bones, just like it did for John who fell “as though dead” at Jesus’ feet in Revelation Chapter 1.
Jesus told him, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.” (Revelation 1:17-18 NASB)
That’s what Christmas is really about. Yes, we celebrate the fact that Jesus came, but we also rejoice in the fact that He is coming again.
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About the Author
Charlie White is the mother of four behind MississippiMom.com, where she hopes to share a cup of encouragement from her home to yours. Grab a cup of coffee and join her for Encouraging Word Wednesday, a link-up for faith-filled posts, and look around her site to find easy ideas for recipes, crafts and parenting hacks.
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