Friday / He Will Come Again
Read: Hebrews 9:27–28; Matthew 24:30–31; John 14:1–3
SOAP: John 14:1–3
“Do not let your hearts be distressed. You believe in God; believe also in me. There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house. Otherwise, I would have told you, because I am going away to make ready a place for you. And if I go and make ready a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that where I am you may be too.
Into the Text
God made many promises concerning the Messiah—and He kept every single one. Jesus is the embodiment of God’s promise, the physical manifestation of the Word of God. He came and fulfilled all of God’s promises about the Messiah. Everything God promised was fulfilled in Christ.
God promised a messenger would come to prepare the people for the Messiah, and He sent John the Baptist. God promised the Messiah would be of the house and line of David, and Jesus’ ancestry can be traced directly to David. God said the Messiah would be born of a virgin, and Mary was a virgin engaged to be married. God let His people know they would recognize the Messiah by His name, and Jesus’ name means “God is salvation.”
This promised Messiah would also suffer because of our sin. He would be forsaken by His own people, abandoned and mocked. Jesus experienced pain and took on the sins of the world. He experienced suffering and death so we would be saved. Jesus’ sacrifice is the eternal, lasting sacrifice we need to be set free from the penalty of sin. He defeated death, the final enemy, by rising from the grave, displaying His power and victory.
This Good Shepherd, this promised King, this gift to all nations, the One who descended to conquer death and grave and ascended to the throne of God, gave us a promise. He promised to return. And, because we know God always keeps His promises, we know that the promise Jesus made to return will be fulfilled. His promise is sure. He has ascended before us in order to prepare a place for us. He promises not only to return but, if we have placed our faith in Him, to take us to be with Him forever.