Purpose of Christ's Second Coming
Text: 1 Corinthians 15:23-24
Series: Restoration Sermons
Date:
Speaker: Ed Rangel
Location: Waupaca Church of Christ
Bible Version: NASB 1995
Sermon Type: Expository
Learning Objectives
By the close of this lesson the hearer should be able to:
- See that the real division over the second coming concerns its purpose, not its timing.
- State what Scripture says Christ will actually do when He comes.
- Live in light of the fact that His coming closes the day of salvation.
Thesis
The decisive question about the second coming is not when but why — and Scripture answers plainly: Christ comes not to set up an earthly kingdom but to complete the church, end every agency of salvation, close the church's ordinances and His own intercession, raise and transform His people, and raise and judge the wicked, all at once.
Burden
Most arguments about the second coming fight over the calendar — when will He come? But this outline puts its finger on the deeper division: it is not about when but why. What is Christ coming to do? Answer that wrongly and you will spend your hope on the wrong thing entirely — waiting for an earthly throne while the Bible points to a finished church and a final judgment. And there is a sobering edge to the right answer: His coming does not open a new era of opportunity; it closes the only one we are given. Every means of grace ends that day. The burden of this lesson is to fix our eyes on what Christ will really do when He comes — and to act now, because His coming ends the time for acting.
Introduction
We know why Jesus came the first time. Do the Scriptures as clearly teach the purpose of the second coming? The Bible is our only source of instruction here — and the question it presses is not when but why will He come; what will He do when He comes? This outline answers in two movements: the theories men hold about the purpose, and the Bible's own teaching about what happens at the end of the "church age."
I. The Theories About the Purpose (1 Corinthians 15:23-24)
- The fundamental difference is not over "imminence" but over purpose — not the "when" but the "why." No party has a monopoly on those who "love His appearing" (2 Tim. 4:8); the disagreement is over what that appearing is for.
- One theory: Christ comes to set up a new form of government — an earthly, fleshly kingdom in Jerusalem, where He reigns in person on David's throne for a thousand years, then delivers the kingdom to God. (This is the premillennial scheme.)
- Another theory: that He will "spiritualize the earth," so that heaven is established here.
Both theories miss what Scripture actually assigns to the second coming, which is not the establishment of a kingdom but the consummation of all things.
II. What the Bible Says Christ Will Do (1 Corinthians 15:23-24)
- The church will be complete at His coming.
- He will receive all His people — "those who are Christ's at His coming" (1 Cor. 15:23-24).
- He will present a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle (Eph. 5:25-27).
- He will be glorified in His saints (2 Thess. 1:10).
- Every agency of salvation ends then.
- His coming exhausts the purpose of the Scriptures with respect to the saints (Luke 19:13; Phil. 3:20; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 4:8; Jas. 5:7; 1 Pet. 1:13; 2 Pet. 1:19).
- And with respect to sinners (Luke 12:39-40; 17:26-30; 2 Thess. 1:7-10; 2 Pet. 3:10).
- The church's ordinances will cease.
- Baptism is for "the end of the age" (Matt. 28:18-20).
- The Lord's Supper is observed "until He comes" (1 Cor. 11:26) — and not beyond.
- The gospel has done its work when the Lord appears.
- The intercession of Christ and the Holy Spirit will cease.
- Christ as Mediator stands between the two advents (Heb. 7:25); His priestly intercession belongs to this age, not the next.
- The Spirit's work through Christ likewise belongs to now (John 7:38-39; 14:26; 15:26; 16:7, 14; Acts 2:33; Titus 3:5-6; Rev. 3:1).
- The church will be "made alive" at once.
- The dead in Christ by resurrection (John 6:39-40; 1 Thess. 4:16).
- The living by transformation — "we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye" (1 Cor. 15:51-52; 1 Thess. 4:17).
- The wicked will be raised then too.
- The wicked and the righteous together at His coming (Dan. 12:2; Matt. 25:31-46; John 5:28-29).
- Then comes the vision of the great white throne (Rev. 20:11-15).
- All will be judged (Matt. 25:31).
The purpose of the coming, then, is not to begin an earthly reign but to finish: to complete the church, close the day of grace, raise and change His people, raise the wicked, and judge the world.
Application
If Christ is coming to finish rather than to begin, two things follow with great force. First, do not pin your hope on an earthly kingdom He is not coming to build; pin it on the glorious, completed church He is coming to receive — and make sure you are in it. Second, and more urgently: His coming closes the day of salvation. When He appears, baptism is over, the Lord's Supper is over, the gospel's work is done, and His intercession as your Mediator ends. There is no second chance offered on the far side of that day, no millennium of further opportunity. Everything you will ever do about your soul, you must do before He comes. That is why the "why" matters more than the "when": you cannot know the when, but the why tells you the door will shut. Come in while it stands open.
Conclusion
The argument over the second coming is settled not by guessing the date but by reading the purpose. Christ comes to complete His church, to end every means of grace, to close His intercession, to raise and transform His people, to raise the wicked, and to judge all mankind at once. He comes to finish — and that is precisely why now, not then, is the time to be ready.
Invitation
His coming will end the day of salvation; this hour is still within it. Do now what cannot be done when He appears: believe on the Lord Jesus, repent of your sins, confess His name, and be baptized for the remission of your sins (Acts 2:38), so that you are among "those who are Christ's at His coming" (1 Cor. 15:23). The door is open today. It will not always be. Come while we sing.
Word Study
| English Term | Greek Term | Basic Meaning | Usage in This Sermon | Sermon Significance | Key Texts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At His coming | parousia | the royal arrival or presence of a king | Christ's parousia gathers His own and consummates the age | Christ's parousia gathers His own and consummates the age; it is the harvest, not the planting | 1 Cor. 15:23 |
| Until He comes | achri hou elthē | the Lord's Supper has a built-in expiration | it proclaims His death only up to the moment of His return, marking the second coming as the boundary of the church's ordinances | it proclaims His death only up to the moment of His return, marking the second coming as the boundary of the church's ordinances | 1 Cor. 11:26 |
Scripture Interlock Table
| Theme | Boles' Outline | Supporting Scripture |
|---|---|---|
| The real issue is purpose, not timing | I | 2 Tim. 4:8 |
| Christ receives His people | II | 1 Cor. 15:23-24 |
| A glorious, completed church | II | Eph. 5:25-27; 2 Thess. 1:10 |
| Agencies of salvation end (saints) | II | Luke 19:13; Phil. 3:20; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 4:8; Jas. 5:7; 1 Pet. 1:13; 2 Pet. 1:19 |
| Agencies end (sinners) | II | Luke 12:39-40; 17:26-30; 2 Thess. 1:7-10; 2 Pet. 3:10 |
| Ordinances cease | II | Matt. 28:18-20; 1 Cor. 11:26 |
| Intercession ceases | II | Heb. 7:25; John 14:26; 15:26; 16:7-14; Acts 2:33; Titus 3:5-6 |
| Dead raised, living transformed | II | John 6:39-40; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; 1 Cor. 15:51-52 |
| Wicked raised and all judged | II | Dan. 12:2; Matt. 25:31-46; John 5:28-29; Rev. 20:11-15 |
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Converted from H. Leo Boles, Outline 40. Doctrinal audit: core-framework — the purpose of the second coming is consummation, NOT the establishment of an earthly millennial kingdom; at His coming the church is completed, all means of grace and Christ's mediatorial intercession cease, the dead are raised and the living transformed, the wicked are raised, and all are judged together. Explicitly refutes premillennialism and "spiritualize-the-earth" views. Fully consistent with the framework; no correction. Style audit: OCR cleanup; "John 15:36" corrected to John 15:26 (John 15 has 27 verses; 15:26 = the Spirit testifying of Christ). Source note: no primary-text line; 1 Cor. 15:23-24 (cited at II.1.a) supplied as text and flagged. All other citations are Boles' own, verified and retained.
