“Another Christmas”
At His first coming Christ entered the world in a remote, stinky stable in Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-7). At His second coming He will come “in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matt. 24:30).
The witnesses at His first coming were shepherds, Anna, Simeon, and wise men (Luke 2:8-17, 25-38; Matt. 2:1–12). The witnesses of His second coming will be all people everywhere at once (Isa. 40:5; Rev. 1:7).
The signs of His first coming were: a prophesied lineage and birthplace (Mic. 5:2), a star in the heavens (Matt. 2:1-2), and being born to a virgin (Matt. 1:18). The signs of His second coming will be: apostasy and restoration (2 Thess. 2:1-3; Acts 3:21), the Gospel being preached throughout the earth (Matt. 24:14), tumultuous times (Matt. 24:6-11), and signs in heaven and on earth (Rev. 6:12-14).
At His first coming Christ came as a LAMB. When John the Baptist first saw Jesus coming to him to be baptized, he said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29)! Jesus came to live a sinless life in order that He might make Himself an offering pleasing to the Father, to take upon Himself the wrath we deserved. As if confirming his initial statement, John repeated it the very next day: “And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, ‘Behold the Lamb of God’” (John 1:36)!
Thousands of years before His birth, the prophet Isaiah foretold that the Messiah would be “like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth” (Isa. 53:7). Yet Jesus came voluntarily and He willingly gave His life, for no one really took it (John 10:17-18). Before Christ could be glorified He would first be rejected and crucified in fulfillment of the Scriptures.1
At His second coming Christ will come as a LION. Jesus came into the world as the spotless Lamb of God, but will return as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and will rule the nations with a rod of iron (Rev 2:27, 12:5, 19:15).
The table below summarizes some of the differences between Jesus’ first and second coming.
| First Coming | Second Coming |
|---|---|
| Past (John 1:14) | Future (Acts 1:11) |
| Savior of the world (Matt. 1:21) | King of kings (Rev. 19:16) |
| Baby (Luke 2:7) | Conquering warrior (Rev. 19:11-16) |
| Riding on a donkey (John 12:14-15) | Riding on a white horse (Rev. 19:11) |
| Peace to the human heart (Eph. 2:14-16) | Peace to the whole world (Isa. 9:6-7) |
| Government in human hands (Luke 2:1-2) | Government in His hands (Isa. 9:7) |
| Killed by His enemies (Acts 2:23) | Will kill His enemies (2 Thess. 1:7-10) |
| Rejected by the Jews (John 1:11) | Received by the Jews (Rom. 11:25-27) |
On this Christmas we celebrate Jesus’ birth with family and friends. At the final Christmas we will have a reunion with family, friends, and a heavenly host which no man can number…
9After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” … 16On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
—Rev. 7:9-10, 19:16
We look forward to celebrating the birth of Christ, yet with much greater anticipation to His second coming! We will see you here or in the air (1 Thess. 4:17)! Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus (Rev. 22:20)!
Soli Deo Gloria,
Reuben & Carmen Sequeira
1 Luke 24:27; see also https://www.jesusfilm.org/blog-and-stories/old-testament-prophecies.html