The Return of Christ the King

[Steve Myers] What do you do when an alarm sounds? Well, that depends. If a tornado siren goes off on a calm, sunny afternoon, you might notice it, but you might not feel much urgency. Might get your attention, but probably doesn't move you to act. After all, it's a beautiful day. But if that same siren sounds when the sky is dark, the wind is roaring, and the storm is crashing all around you, that's definitely different. You move right away. Because an alarm is meant to do more than just get your attention. It's meant to move you to action. And that's exactly what the Feast of Trumpets is all about. Because when God sounds the alarm, don't ignore the warning.

This festival points to a time when God will sound an alarm, and the whole world will hear. Not just a a little signal, not not a local warning, but this will be a world-shaking announcement, a moment so powerful that human history will never be the same. The Feast of Trumpets pictures the fourth step in God's plan of salvation. The first three festivals show how God works with us personally.

Passover reveals the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. The Feast of Unleavened Bread teaches us to put sin out of our lives. And Pentecost reveals the gift of God's Holy Spirit, the power that makes real spiritual change possible.

Those festivals show what God is doing in us now. But Trumpets, that points forward. It points to the return of Jesus Christ.

Throughout the Bible, trumpets are used to warn, to announce, and to gather people. A trumpet means something major is happening. It means pay attention. It means get ready. And the trumpet connected with Christ's return will be unlike anything this world has ever known. Jesus Christ is coming back to this earth. He's coming to intervene in a world filled with instability, conflict, fear and confusion, and failed human leadership. He's coming to stop it. Stop the chaos. Stop human rule and replace it with the righteous government of God.

When you look at this world, that message should mean something to us. Because everywhere you look, you see division. You see suffering. You see injustice. You see moral confusion. You see human beings trying to solve spiritual problems with human solutions. And that never works. Why? Because this world desperately needs the return of Jesus Christ. And that's the message of the Feast of Trumpets. It reminds us that God is not absent. He's not uninvolved. He has a plan. And that plan includes a specific moment when Jesus Christ himself will step into history and take over the governments of this world. And when that happens, another extraordinary event takes place.

The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 that the dead in Christ will rise first. You see those faithful servants of God who died in the faith will be resurrected. Then those who are alive and faithful will be changed and gathered together with them to meet the Lord. At the sound of that divine trumpet, the faithful will be transformed. I mean, what an incredible promise and what an incredible future.

The Feast of Trumpets is not just about warning. It's also about hope. It tells us this broken world will not go on forever. It tells us that war, corruption, pain, and human failure will not have the last word. Jesus Christ will. And under His rule, this world will finally know true peace, true justice, true righteousness, and true stability.

The Feast of Trumpets also asks each of us a very personal question. When God sounds the alarm, will you be ready? You see, it's possible to know about prophecy without being changed by it. You see, that's why Jesus Christ said, "Watch, therefore." Matthew 24:42. Stay spiritually awake. Stay alert. Stay close to God. Don't let the routine of life dull your sense of urgency. Don't let the noise of this world drown out the truth of what's coming. You see, when God sounds the alarm, don't ignore the warning.

The Feast of Trumpets is a wake-up call. It tells us that Christ's return is absolutely certain, and this world is heading toward a dramatic turning point, and that the time to prepare isn't sometime in the future. It's now. Now's the time to seek God. Now is the time to repent. Now's the time to respond to God's calling. Now is the time to live with his coming kingdom clearly fixed in your mind.

You know, the same God who warns us is also the God who gives us time to prepare.

So, draw closer to Him. Take His truth seriously. Live with watchfulness. Live with purpose. Live with the Kingdom of God in your view. Because the alarm will sound. And the time to be ready is now.

If you'd like to learn more about the meaning of the Feast of Trumpets, the return of Christ, and the prophetic events that are still ahead, check out our Bible study aid, You Can Understand Bible Prophecy. Because when God sounds the alarm, don't ignore the warning.