Jesus Christ's Return and Coming Reign

We believe in the personal, visible, premillennial return of the Lord Jesus Christ to rule the nations on earth as King of Kings and to continue His priestly office as Lord of Lords. At that time, He will sit upon the throne of David. During His 1,000-year reign on the earth, He will restore all things and establish the Kingdom of God forever (Matthew 24:30And 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.
See All..., 44; Revelation 1:7Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
See All...; 11:15; 19:16; 20:4-6; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-16 [13] But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
[14] For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
[15] For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
[16] For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

See All...; John 14:3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
See All...; Isaiah 9:7Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
See All...; 40:10-12; Hebrews 7:24But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.
See All...; Jeremiah 23:5Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
See All...; Luke 1:32-33 [32] He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
[33] And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

See All...; Acts 1:11Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
See All...; 3:21; 15:16; Daniel 7:14And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
See All..., 18, 27

Jesus Christ came to the earth around 2,000 years ago to bear the sins of many, "and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him" (Hebrews 9:28So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
See All..., NIV). At that time His reign over all nations will commence with the awesome announcement, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever" (Revelation 11:15And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
See All..., NASB).

The future coming of the Messiah, the Christ, as King of Kings and Lord of Lords is a truth frequently attested to in the Bible. It is promised in the Old Testament (Isaiah 40:10Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.
See All...; Daniel 2:44And 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.
See All...; Micah 1:3For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth.
See All...) and reaffirmed in the New Testament (Matthew 24:30And 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.
See All...; John 14:3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
See All...; Acts 1:11Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
See All...; Revelation 1:7Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
See All...; 19:16).

Trusting in Scripture as God's Word, then, we fully believe in the personal, visible, premillennial return of the Lord Jesus Christ (that is, immediately preceding or at the commencement of His prophesied 1,000-year reign).

His return will not happen in secret, for everyone alive will see Him (Matthew 24:30And 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.
See All...; Revelation 1:7Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
See All...). Great supernatural sounds will accompany that event: "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God" (1 Thessalonians 4:16For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
See All...). Kings of the earth will attempt to make war against Him, but He will swiftly overcome them (Revelation 17:14These 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.
See All...) to at last bring peace.

Leading up to this event will be the worst period of calamity ever. Jesus said there would be "great tribulation, such as has not been seen since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Matthew 24:21For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
See All...). Jeremiah 30:7Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.
See All... says it will fall hard on the descendants of Jacob or Israel: "Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it"—that is, after enduring it.

The earth itself will then be rocked with cataclysmic upheaval during the period of God's judgment on all mankind referred to in many scriptural passages as "the day of the Lord." It will culminate with Christ's return and reign.

The prophet Zechariah proclaims God's message in this regard: "Behold, the day of the Lord is coming . . . For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem . . . Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as He fights in the day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east . . . Thus the Lord my God will come, and all the saints with You . . . And the Lord shall be King over all the earth" (Zechariah 14:1-5 [1] Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
[2] For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
[3] Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
[4] And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
[5] And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

See All..., 9).

Jesus Christ, the One the Israelites knew as God in the Old Testament (see John 8:58Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.
See All...; 1 Corinthians 10:4And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
See All...), will fulfill this prophecy. 

In submission to the will of God the Father, Jesus will sit on the throne of His human ancestor King David in ruling from Jerusalem over Israel and the gentile nations (Isaiah 9:7Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
See All...; Jeremiah 3:17At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.
See All...; 23:5; Luke 1:32He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
See All...; Romans 15:12And again, Esaias saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust.
See All...), establishing the Kingdom of God as a literal global government—"a kingdom which shall never be destroyed . . . and it shall stand forever" (Daniel 2:44And 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.
See All...).

During the first 1,000 years of this reign, Christ will inaugurate "times of refreshing . . . the times of restoration of all things" (Acts 3:19Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
See All..., 21). This age to come, the wonderful world tomorrow, will be a time of peace, righteousness, justice and abundance (Amos 9:13-14 [13] Behold, 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.
[14] And 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.

See All...; Isaiah 2:2-4 [2] And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
[3] And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
[4] And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

See All...; 11:1-9; Micah 4:1-5 [1] But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.
[2] And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
[3] And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
[4] But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it.
[5] For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.

See All...). The enemy of God and mankind, Satan the devil, will be banished during that time (Revelation 20:1-3 [1] And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
[2] And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
[3] And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

See All...). 

Jesus will be assisted in His reign by the saints—His faithful followers from all of human history—who will be resurrected as He returns. They will then become immortal children of God (1 Corinthians 15:50-53 [50] Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
[51] Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
[52] In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
[53] For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

See All...), rise to meet Christ in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
See All...) and join Him in conquering the earth's rebellious nations and in establishing the Kingdom of God (Psalm 149:5-9 [5] Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds.
[6] Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand;
[7] To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people;
[8] To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;
[9] To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints. Praise ye the LORD.

See All...; Revelation 5:10And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
See All...; 20:6). We are assured that under Christ "the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever" (Daniel 7:18But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.
See All...).

The Millennium will be followed by a brief release of Satan, as an important lesson to mankind, and then by his permanent removal (Revelation 20:7-10 [7] And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
[8] And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
[9] And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
[10] And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

See All...). On the heels of that will come another resurrection through which all who have ever lived will be given the opportunity to be saved and receive eternal life (verses 5, 11-12). And after this will come the permanent destruction of the incorrigibly wicked, those who ultimately refuse to repent, in the lake of fire (verses 13-15; 21:8). 

Finally, the earthly environment will be transformed into "a new heaven and a new earth" (Revelation 21:1And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
See All...) and the glorious city of New Jerusalem will descend from heaven to the earth along with God the Father, who will at last dwell in the midst of His children, now immortal (verses 2-3). "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things [will] have passed away" (verse 4).

This is the culmination of God's plan of salvation, when Christ "delivers the kingdom to God the Father . . . For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death" (1 Corinthians 15:24-26 [24] Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
[25] For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
[26] The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

See All...). The immortal children of God, submitted to Christ and the Father, will then inherit "all things" (Revelation 21:7He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
See All...)—the entire universe. And "of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end" (Isaiah 9:7Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
See All...).

This is the awesome salvation for which we wait—to commence at the glorious return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. "For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry" (Hebrews 10:37For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
See All...). As He declares in the Bible's last chapter: "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work" (Revelation 22:12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
See All...). Yes, Jesus Christ is returning. The King is coming—soon! So in the words of Hebrews 10:23Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
See All..., "let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful."