The Second Coming of Christ

There will be no more rebellion.

There will be no more community chaos. But Dr. Tony Evans says when Jesus returns, there will be judgment for those who haven't accepted His gift. God is offering people salvation. And He is saying during this day, I want to be your Savior.

I do not want to be your judge. Celebrating 40 years of faithfulness, this is The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, author, speaker, senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, Texas, and president of The Urban Alternative. It's easy for modern life and the constant onslaught of social media and cultural concerns to distract us from paying attention to God. But today Dr. Evans talks about a time coming when ignoring Jesus simply won't be an option.

Let's join him as he explains. If he can rise from the dead, he can certainly come back. And the event that will set the stage for the return of Christ is an event you've heard about, talked about, seen on television and in movies, and it is called the Battle of Armageddon. Or to put it in everyday language, World War III. There will be a World War, which shouldn't be a surprise. We've had World War I and World War II. This will basically be World War III, and wars are called World War because of the scope of them.

They involve the major powers. Such will be World War III or the Battle of Armageddon. To understand this battle that is going to lead to this war, and it's really not one battle, it's a campaign of battles over the last three and a half years of the tribulation.

So let's review. The tribulation is the seven year period after the rapture. Christians are raptured up to meet the Lord in the air.

That's not the second coming. That's the rapture. Then there will be seven years of tribulation. The Antichrist will make a covenant with Israel and will appear to bring about the answer to the Middle East crisis. He will come on the scene as a peacemaker to begin the seven year tribulation. This man, the Antichrist, will come out of Europe because it says in Daniel IV and Daniel VII, he will be over the ten toes, that is the Roman Empire split up, which is Europe, and today you have that European Union. And he will arise out of Europe and become the answer to the Middle East crisis and seize power. When he does this, something is going to occur, because he's going to become such a big figure. He is going to be like Hitler when Hitler said, today Europe, tomorrow the world.

He will come up and he will head Europe, but he's going after world domination. So that's the Antichrist seeking world domination. The Scripture says that in order to resist the world domination, some nations are going to come up against him in the middle of the tribulation. That's described for you in Daniel 11, verses 40 and 45.

So let me highlight a few Scriptures, there's so many that talk about this tribulation period, but let me give you this one in Daniel 11, verse 40. It says, at the end time, this last section of the tribulation, the king of the south will collide with him, with the Antichrist. And the king of the north will storm against him, the Antichrist, with chariots, with horsemen, and with many ships. And he will enter countries, overthrow them, and pass through them. He, the Antichrist, will enter the beautiful land, Israel, and many countries will fall, but these will be rescued out of his hand. Verse 42, then he, the Antichrist, will stretch out his hand against other countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape, but he will gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver and over the precious things of Egypt. Verse 44, but rumors from the east and from the north will disturb him. And he will go forth with great wrath to destroy and annihilate many. And he will pitch tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful holy mountain, Israel and the Mediterranean Sea. He will come to his end and no one will help him.

All right, let me summarize this, and I know it can get a little confusing, so I'm going to try to lay it out as clearly as I can so you can get a feel for what's going to happen. The Antichrist comes on the scene and he appears to be the peacemaker. The king of the north sees that this guy is after the whole world and does not accept that. The king of the north is Russia and the communist bloc. It says the king of the north is going to join the king of the south.

The south is Egypt and the Islamic nations. The Antichrist is going to come over to the beautiful land, Israel. He's going to position himself in Israel, which will be the centerpiece of all of this, and I'll explain why in a moment, as they come against him. He is going to defeat the king of the north and the king of the south.

The king of the east, that's the Orient, that's China. When he sees that the Antichrist has defeated the king of the north and the king of the south, and he does not want to be defeated too, will invade the Antichrist too. So now you've got, the Bible says there will be 200 million fighters, gives a number, in this three and a half year period of time that will descend to defeat the Antichrist.

In Zechariah chapter 14, we find out that there is another player in this episode, Armageddon. Verse 2 says, For I will gather all the nations, God is speaking, against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravaged, and half the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city. Then the Lord will go forth and fight against these nations as when He fights on the day of battle. We've got the nations coming against the Antichrist. We've got Satan drawing the nations to the Antichrist, and we've got God bringing the nations to confront the Antichrist.

So you've got all this happening at one time. Now, the devil has a plan. He's got to destroy Israel. He must destroy Israel, because the only hope that the devil has for having victory over God is making God's promises not come true. God created Israel to be the repository of His written and living Word.

The Word of God written would come through Israel, and the Christ would come through Israel. So the devil, in addition to wanting world domination, brings everybody to the Middle East with the goal of destroying Israel. Because if he destroys Israel, Christ can't come back. Because the promise of God was Christ would only come back when Israel got saved and accepted Him as their Messiah. So until Israel accepts Christ as their Messiah, Jesus Christ won't come back. So Satan wants to destroy Israel so that Christ can't come back, proving God to be a liar. And once God is proved to be a liar, then Satan has victory because God no longer has integrity as God. So that is the context, that is the circumstance in which the return of Christ comes. The battle of Armageddon, this whole world comes about.

Let me just give you one other feature. The Antichrist, in the middle of the tribulation, Daniel 9.27 says, will break covenant with Israel, the abomination of desolation. He's going to set himself up in Israel's temple, which the Jews are waiting to rebuild their temple right now because there's a Muslim mosque on the site. All they have left is the Western Wall, which is where you see them praying all the time. So they want that temple back. They're going to get that temple back. And when they get that temple back, in the middle of the tribulation, the Antichrist is going to set his image there, supported by the false prophet as God, which is holy hell for Israel, to set yourself up in God's temple and proclaim you as God.

But he will be doing these miracles in order to fool the people and to trick them that he is in fact God. He's going to break covenant with Israel, and he will now have world domination because he was defeated the kingdom of the north, he's defeated the kingdom of the south, and now the kingdom of the east is coming at him, but he will set himself up as world domination. Now, when that happens and the whole world is focused on the Middle East, it's showtime.

And I don't mean at the Apollo. It's now showtime. Matthew 24, verse 39, it says, But immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken, and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. And he will send forth his angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather together his elect from the four winds and from one end of the sky to the other.

Okay, watch this now. Everything's going to start getting dark, because it's showtime. The nations have gathered in the Middle East, and then it says, and then the Son of Man will appear, and every eye will see him. Revelation chapter 1, verse 7 says, Verse 11, And I saw heaven open, and behold, a white horse.

Can I talk about this horse? If you would have read that in biblical days, you would have known what that meant. See, when a Roman general went out to fight, and the Romans conquered the whole then known world, and then they conquered a people group that they were out fighting, you would always see the general come back on the white horse, because the white horse meant victory.

It meant we defeated the enemy, and they lost. So the white horse was always a sign of victory. So when the Bible says that when Jesus returns on a white horse, it's a declaration of victory. The Bible says that when he comes, he who is faithful and true, his eyes have fire. On his head are many crowns.

He has a name written on him that no one knows. He is clothed with a robe dripped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. You and I get to relate to Jesus in one of two ways. We can relate to him by means of the cross, where he becomes your Savior, or you can relate to him by means of the throne, where he becomes your judge. Trust me, you don't want the judge side, not in his second coming.

You want the cross side, where he weeps over you. Dr. Evans will tell us more about how to make sure you're on the right side when he comes back with more of our message. First though, don't miss your chance to get a copy of his current series entitled Prophecy and Our World.

It's a look at God's prophetic plan for our planet, focusing on the difference it makes in our lives today. Along with the 12 full-length CDs or digital downloads included in this two-volume collection, we'll also send you the luxury edition of Tony's book, Prayers for Victory in Spiritual Warfare, packed with principles about productive prayer and real-life examples of how to connect with God when you need his power and protection the most. You know, over 100,000 people have been helped by this powerful resource, and we want to offer that same help to you. Just make a contribution toward Tony's ministry, and we'll send you the CDs and book as our thank-you gift. Again, that's TonyEvans.org. Or call us at 1-800-800-3222, where our friendly resource team members are standing by 24-7 to help you. That's 1-800-800-3222. I'll repeat that contact information for you after part two of today's message. Here's Dr. Evans.

Let's review. There's the rapture of the church during the tribulation on earth. You and I are at the judgment seat of Christ where God hands out rewards. Then he comes for the second coming, which is not the rapture that's seven years later when he comes to earth, not just in the air.

He comes to the earth and the armies of the saints who have now been dressed with their new bodies, dressed with their new life, and that you and I come with him, which is his millennial reign. We come with him with our assignments. The assignments will vary. Those who have been faithful to the Lord will get high-level assignments.

Those who were unfaithful to the Lord while they lived on earth will get low-level assignments. Some will be mayors. Some will be governors. Some will be presidents of nations. Some may be even assigned other planets. That's when I get into the eternal state, okay?

But people will be assigned different. Some will be street sweepers, because you never had time for the Lord. You never witnessed for the Lord. You never had anything to say for the Lord. You accepted Christ, but God couldn't use you. Now, you're going to be singing while you sweep, because you were redeemed, so you still get to sing and hum and all that, but it will be clear you were not one of the faithful ones.

You were not one of the committed ones. But yet, you come back in victory because you did belong to him, and so he comes back with his army. This fight between Jesus and the nations that are left is short. Once he comes back, this is like a knockout in the first 15 seconds of the first round, because the Bible says he will slay them with the word from his mouth. Many of you remember the movie The Birds with Alfred Hitchcock. When the birds were coming in, well, guess what? This is the sequel, but it's bigger, because the angel cries out in verse 17 to all the birds in the heavens, Come assemble yourself for the great supper of God. And so God, through his angelic host, will call all the angels worldwide and everybody who has received the mark of the beast on their forehead and on their hands will be attacked after God speaks his word out of his mouth to come eat your dinner. And everybody with the mark of the beast worldwide will be slain by the word of his mouth and be dinner for the eagles and for the crows and for every manner of bird. They will be overwhelmed because they refuse to repent. This is the throne of the judge now. You can think this is a joke if you want to.

You can think this is sci-fi if you want to. You can think that this is just something made up, but the question is, did Jesus rise from the dead? Because if Jesus rose from the dead, you better not play with him on this one. And Jesus Christ, according to Zechariah chapter 14 verses 3 and 4, will descend to the Mount of Olives, which was the place he left from. And the Bible says, and when he steps on the Mount of Olives in the center of Jerusalem, the mountain will split down the middle all the way to the Dead Sea, and Jesus Christ will set himself up as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. In other words, he will come and rule, and he will bring about the one thing history has been waiting for, and that is a righteous dictator.

For it says he will rule with a rod of iron. In other words, there will be no more rebellion. There will be no more community chaos. There will be no more police fighting citizens and citizens fighting police because he's going to rule this thing and what he says goes. And it will be worldwide. We live in a day when there's a king of everything, there's a lion king, there's a king of soul, there's a king of pop, king of the beast, there's just kingness and king that, but he will declare, I am king of kings and Lord of lords.

That means anybody who thinks they're in charge will have to answer to me. So he will judge all mankind who has accepted the mark of the beast, and they will die. Everybody who accepted the mark of the beast will be judged, and you see what he says in verses 20 and 21. He says that the beast was seized, the antichrist, with him the false prophet who performed all the signs, and they were put into the lake of fire. And the rest were killed with the sword from him who from his mouth who sat on the horse, and the birds were filled with their flesh. This will be carnage like you've never seen before. Chapter 14 verse 20 says that the blood of that day will reach to the bridle of the horse and the horse's mouth.

It will splatter that high. During this day of man, this age of grace, this cross age, God is offering people salvation. And He is saying during this day, I want to be your Savior.

I do not want to be your judge. But in that day, the day of the Lord, it's a different ballgame. Look, I got this watch, and you have a watch on. There are a whole lot of parts in here, a whole lot of parts. I don't understand all those parts in there. You asked me, explain how the watch works with all those idiosyncratic elements that make it up, and I can't explain all that. What I can do is tell you what time it is.

I can do that much. Now, if you're trying to say, explain it all to me, and tell me how all the parts work, and tell me all about—it's too much. I was sitting down trying to prepare this sermon, and I was getting an excedrin headache because this is so much stuff, and the book of Revelation is so much stuff, and Daniel 4, and Daniel 7, and Daniel 11, and Ezekiel 38, and Ezekiel 39, and it's got all these pieces, and it only got 45 and 50 minutes.

God has too many pieces. God said, just tell them the time. All I know is Russia has reasserted itself into the Middle East. What I know is that Iran, the Bible says, and Ezekiel 38 is going to be part of the end time. All I know is Iraq is supposed to be the center of the end times, and all I know is Europe has come up with a common currency, and they knitted them together in a commonwealth.

I can't give you all the elements. I can tell you what time it is. And based on my prophetic watch, based on the Word of God, the time is late. And the Bible says at that time, they will look on Him whom they pierced.

Zechariah 12 10. The Jews will look at Him after they've been gathered and after they see His return. They will look upon Him who they killed. Romans 11 verse 36 says, and all Israel will be saved. So on that day when Israel repents and comes back to Jesus Christ, God's promises will be fulfilled. Israel will bleed so that Jesus can come.

So God will use the activity of Satan to answer His requirement for Israel in order to fulfill His promise related to the return of Jesus Christ. They will look on Him in whom they have pierced. When you and I see Jesus, He will be unmistakable, not only because of His glory, but also because He will be the only scarred person in heaven. You will have no scars on you. You're going to get a new glorified body, and you will be perfect in every physical and spiritual detail.

Every scar that you've ever gotten for any reason that you've gotten it will be gone. You will be the perfect age, which was probably 33. I say that because that was Jesus' age, 33. Adam and Eve were created as adults in perfect adulthood.

So you will be at a perfect age, and you will have a perfect body. But there will be one person in eternity with imperfections. When Jesus Christ arose from the dead, Thomas said, I don't believe it. I don't believe it. He said, unless I put my finger in the nail prints in His hand, and unless I put my hand in the scar on His side, He says, I will not believe. Jesus, in His glorified body, came up to Thomas and showed him His hands, showed him His side. He said, Thomas, touch these hands.

Touch this side. So when you and I are in heaven, Jesus will be unmistakable, because through the millennial kingdom and for all eternity, He will carry the scars in His hand of the nail prints, the scar in His side of the sword, the scars in His feet of the nails. So there will be eternal reminder every time you and I cross Gold Street and Silver Boulevard, there will be an eternal reminder that our eternal destiny was purchased by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. And His scars will be an eternal reminder that our Savior is responsible for our eternal life, our new bodies, our eternal destiny, and our deliverance from the wrath that is to come.

So if there's no other reason to praise Him, there is one reason that you praise Him above all, and that is the nail prints in His hand, the scar in His side, the nail prints in His feet as an eternal reminder. He is your Savior. He is your Redeemer. And I don't know about you, but I know my Redeemer lives. I know my Redeemer has risen from the dead.

I know my Redeemer is coming back again. And I have placed my eternal destiny into His hands. And if you've done that, you're on the way to glory, so you ought to be living for Him in history. If you know that, you're on your way to heaven, so you shouldn't be ashamed of Him on earth. If you know that, you're on your way to glory, so you ought to glorify Him. You shouldn't need a worship leader to glorify Him. You shouldn't need a preacher to glorify Him.

You should glorify Him because of the nail prints in His hand and the scar in His side. And while you're there, remember to take advantage of that special double offer I mentioned earlier. It includes Tony's current two-volume series, Prophecy and Our World, which is a 12-lesson collection focusing on terms that everyone in the church hears but may not fully understand, subjects like the rapture, the tribulation, and more. And when you support Tony's ministry with a financial contribution, we'll send this collection of messages to you as our thank-you gift, along with the luxury edition of his powerful book, Prayers for Victory in Spiritual Warfare.

This special double offer won't be around for long, and we don't want you to miss out. So visit tonyevans.org and make the arrangements today. That's tonyevans.org. Or get some in-person help from our resource team by calling 1-800-800-3222 day or night.

That's 1-800-800-3222. People say life's too short to be religious. Well, next time, Dr. Evans will explain why eternity's too long not to be as he takes a look at what happens when we die. I hope you'll join us. The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans is brought to you by The Urban Alternative and is celebrating 40 years of faithfulness thanks to the generous contributions of listeners like you. 🎵