Glory to God! Hallelujah! As we begin a new week in our life (05/11-17/2025) and focus on a fresh Scripture passage for our SftW meditation, let us give thanks to Lord God Almighty for the love and compassion He has shown toward us as well as the boundless blessings that He has showered upon our life during the past week. God does His best to bless everyone who waits upon Him without showing any partiality towards anyone, as prophet Isaiah prophesied: Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:4; also refer to Job 34:19; Acts 10:34; Romans 2:9-11), which Apostle Paul quoted while he was writing to the believers in Corinth: What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived – the things God has prepared for those who love him (1 Corinthians 2:9). God’s love and compassion for us is beyond anything anyone can fathom and it is hard to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ [God] has for us (Ephesians 3:18). Since, God is an Omnipresent Being, His presence is available all across the universe, as king David professed:

Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you (Psalm 139:7-12)

This uncovers the fact that there is no place in the universe where the heavenly signal of God’s love and compassion does not reach. Similarly, as God’s goodness extends beyond any time and space limit, there would not be any living beings or nonliving things in the entire universe that does not experience God’s love and compassion in their lives as they continue to exist under His mercy. We ourselves experience and enjoy God’s love and compassion in our day-to-day life. Everyone who follows Him faithfully needs to be wise enough to display the love and compassion that we experience from God by our good life and share the same with our fellow-human beings and the rest of God’s creation, as James, the brother of Jesus, noted: Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom (James 3:13). According to the author of the Book of Proverbs, the wisdom the Lord God gives us will help us to live a good life and will protect our lives from harm and danger: For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk with integrity to guard the paths of justice and protect the way of His saints (Proverbs 2:6-8).

The Lord has blessed us with a very promising Scripture passage for our SftW meditation this week that is taken from 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (mentioned above). The main focus of this passage revolves around the coming of Jesus Christ in glory and power to judge the world and to take the saints to be with Him, so that they also may be where He is. As we know from our own experiences and through studying the Holy Scriptures that Jesus Christ is the embodiment of God’s love and compassion (John 1:1-2, 14; Philippians 2:6; Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3), who came down to this lowly earth in the form of a human being; led an exemplary life before God and man to set an example for godly/righteous living; accomplished everything possible to reconcile the sinful humanity with the holy God and to redeem them for a greater purpose; suffered, died, buried, and resurrected from the dead (Matthew 27:1-28:10; Mark 14:43-16:8; Luke 22:47-24:12; John 18:1-20:10); fulfilled the purpose of God in and through His life; and returned to heaven to reinstate His former glory (Matthew 17:2; Mark 9:2b-3; Luke 9:29; John 1:14; 17:5; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Philippians 2:9-11) and to be seated at the right hand of God and intercede for His people who are on earth (Acts 2:33; 7:56; Romans 8:34; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1b; Hebrews 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; 1 Peter 3:22). Several times during His earthly ministry as well as at His ascension to heaven, He promised that He will return to take His people to be with Him that they also may be where He is (John 14:3; 17:24;  Acts 1:11).

Although there are numerous Scripture passages that directly or indirectly speak about the Lord’s return, we will not be able to go through all those passages due to very limited time and space. However, we will go through a few of those verses to bring awareness among ourselves and our readers about Christ’s promise that He will return for sure. It’s not only the New Testament writers mentioned about the second coming of Jesus Christ, but several of the Old Testament saints also hinted about the Lord’s return. For instance, Job, one of the Old Testament saints who was blameless and upright, a man who feared God and shunned evil, believed that his redeemer lives and in the end He will stand on the earth, as he prophesied: I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another (Job 19:25-27). Prophet Isaiah longed for the coming down of the Lord, as he exclaimed!

Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you! As when fire sets twigs ablaze and causes water to boil, come down to make your name known to your enemies and cause the nations to quake before you! For when you did awesome things that we did not expect, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you. Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:1-4).

Prophet Daniel stated that:

In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed (Daniel 7:13-14).

Prophet Zechariah also prophesied about Christ’s return, as he stated the revelation he received that And I [Jesus] will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son (Zechariah 12:10; also refer to: Psalm 22;16; Isaiah 53:5; Matthew 27:29; Mark 15:17; Luke 23:11; John 19:2-3, 34, 37). Zechariah continued his prophetical utterances regarding the return of Christ that On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south (Zechariah 14:4).

Some of the New Testament writers also very specifically indicated about Christ’s coming in great glory that would take place at an unexpected time and as sudden as a flash of lightening. Apostle Matthew stated: For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:27). Luke, the author of the Gospel According to Luke, stated about the return of Christ and the sudden appearing of Him like a lightening:

For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other … Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other (Luke 17:24, 30-31).

Luke 21:25-28 states that

There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.

Apostle John quoted Jesus’ promise to His disciples that He will come back to take them to be with Him that they also may be where He is, as Jesus said: I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am (John 14:3). Again, Apostle John received a revelation through a vision while he was exiled to the Island of Patmos due to his faith in Jesus Christ that Jesus is coming with the clouds: Look, he is coming with the clouds, and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him,” and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen! “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:7-8).

Several decades after Jesus’ earthly life and ministry, which includes His suffering, death, burial, resurrection and ascension to heaven, Apostle Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, received a revelation regarding the return of Christ, which he described while he was writing to the believers in Thessalonica:

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)

As per the Scripture passages that we have discussed above regarding the return of Christ, we can understand without any doubt that Jesus will return for sure but what we do not know is when He will return (meaning, the day/date/time of His return). The Scripture does not say an exact time of Christ’s return, except saying that He will return at an unexpected time (Matthew 24:36, 44; 25:13; Mark 13:32-33; Luke 12:40; Acts 1:7; Revelation 16:15) or at the end of the age or in the fulness of time (Matthew 24:36). Although, there is no indication of the exact time of Christ’s return, the Scripture gives us some hints about how and where Jesus would return. Let us examine a few of such Scripture passages for our information. First of all, let us see how would Christ’s return be? The Scripture clearly states that the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God … (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Again, Apostle Paul stated that in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed (1 Corinthians 15:52). Apostle Matthew noted:

Immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken. Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory (Matthew 24:29-30)

Apostle John stated: Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all peoples on earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be, Amen (Revelation 1:7; also refer to Isaiah 26:19; 27:13; Daniel 7:13; Zechariah 9:14).

Regarding the place of Christ’s return, the two men dressed in white (perhaps they were the angels who ministered Jesus while He was in anguish) told the apostles that He will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven, as Evangelist Luke Stated: After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight … two men dressed in white said to them … this same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven … Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city (Acts 1:9-12). Prophet Zechariah also prophesied that On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south (Zechariah 14:4; also refer to 2 Samuel 15:30a; Nehemiah 8:15; Ezekiel 11:23). From the prophecies of the two men dressed in white as Jesus was taken up to heaven (Acts 1:9-12) and prophet Zechariah (14:4), we can assume that when Jesus returns to earth, He would first come to the Mount of the Olives. The Mount of Olives that is situated east of Jerusalem (Ezekiel 10:19b; 11:23) holds an important place in biblical history in connection with God’s redemptive plan. For instance, several Scripture passages indicate that Jesus used to visit the Mountain of Olives very often either for spending time alone to commune with His Father in heaven (prayer) or spending time with His disciples to teach/instruct and counsel them (Matthew 21:1; 24:3; 26:30, 36-44; Mark 11;1; 13:3; 14:26; Luke 19:29, 37; 21:37; 22:39; John 8:1; Acts 1:9-12). In the light of the above discussions, we can assume that during the literal return of the glorified Christ, the place where His feet will touch the world the very first-time would be on the Mount of Olives.

From our discussions above, we are one hundred percent (100%) confident that the Lord God Jesus Christ will return for sure. As God the Father sent His Son to this world in the fulness of time [when the time has fully come] (John 1:14; Galatians 4:4), He will let His Son return at the appointed time, which only God the Father knows (Matthew 24:36, 44; 25:13; Mark 13:32-33; Luke 12:40; Acts 1:7; Revelation 16:15). As the heaven prepares for His return, and we prepare ourselves to welcome Him, and the church-at-large prepares the world for His coming, let us read again the Scripture passage we chose for our meditation this week (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18) in order to understand and analyze and study God’s Word and grow spiritually:

• • The Lord himself will come down from heaven (4:16a)
  • The Lord will return with a loud command (4:16b)
  • The Lord will return with the voice of the archangel (4:16c)
  • The Lord will return with the trumpet call of God (4:16d)
  • The dead in Christ will rise first at His coming (4:16e)
  • All those who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (4:17a)
  • The saints of God will be with the Lord forever (4:17b)
  • Let us encourage one another with the promising words of the Lord God (4:18).

Dear friends in the Lord, as the Lord’s coming is approaching fast, let us prepare ourselves and others to welcome Him and to be caught up together with the Lord and His angels and with all those who have risen from the dead in Christ in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and to be with the Lord forever and ever (1 Thessalonians 4:17). Therefore … 

• • Let us be aware of the tactics and trickeries of the evil one that deceive the saints
  • Let us keep away from the deception of the godless people
  • Let us safeguard ourselves from all kinds of lawless or self-willed false teachings that diverts us from the truth of the gospel our Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles preached
  • Let us fully commit to the word and way of the Lord God and His anointed ones
  • Let us pursue godliness and Christ-likeness
  • Let us hold on to the faith that is entrusted to us even in the face of severe sufferings or persecutions
  • Let us be faithful and loyal to the Lord God in our word and deed.

As the devout followers of Christ, let us submit to the Will of God for our life and pray to Him to enable us to live a life worthy of His calling. May the Lord God bless us all! Amen!