Walking With Jesus: An 8-Day Exploration Through Holy WeekSample

Day 3 | Future Glory

As Jesus’s time on earth draws to a close, it’s fitting that He would use His final week to look to His future glory when He would once again enter Jerusalem to reign in triumph.

Given that it’s been more than 2,000 years since Jesus first described the events that will take place during His Second Coming, it can be easy to think that His future triumphal entry is still far in the way distant future. It is good to remember, though, that God’s measure of time is decidedly different from our own. “But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day” (2 Peter 3:8). That’s a truth we can relate to in our own lives as we wait on God’s timing.

Of course, no one knows everything that will happen when Jesus comes again. Even the book of Revelation with all its end times details leaves many questions unanswered. But as Jesus is teaching His closest followers in His final days before the cross, He chooses to give a glimpse into the many things that will come to pass when He at last comes in glory. As this little group sat with their Teacher on the Mount of Olives, overlooking the Temple, He first told them that a day would come when not a single stone of their beloved worship center would be left standing. It was such a shocking revelation, that they insisted Jesus tell them when such a thing would occur. And more importantly, they asked, “What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?” (Matthew 24:3)

Not telling them when, but how, Jesus explained, “‘And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather His chosen ones from all over the world—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven’” (Matthew 24:30-31).

Though these are powerful, and sometimes scary, words from Jesus on what it will look like when He comes back, Jesus chose not to fully convey what it will be like when He returns to claim His chosen Bride. The disciples sitting with Him on the Mount of Olives were awed and enthralled as Jesus spoke, He concluded by reminding them that before His glory, “the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified” (Matthew 26:2).

Everything Jesus told them that day was equal parts shocking and inspiring, but when He wrapped up and they all went down the mountain, no doubt the disciples were quickly consumed with matters at hand. Crowds were waiting. Enemies were plotting. They had their hands full with present circumstances. The trials and triumphs Jesus spoke of faded into the background.

The same preoccupations can be all too true of us. We can read these words and think they’re powerful, yet not be impacted. That’s an issue for another day. That won’t happen in my lifetime. But cool, Jesus will come back someday. Keyword: “Someday.” But someday doesn’t affect me today. I’ve got more immediate issues to deal with.

Yet here is something Jesus said to remember about “someday: “But no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son Himself. Only the Father knows” (Matthew 24:36).

Those living at the time of Holy Week didn’t think a carpenter from Nazareth could ever be the Messiah they had been praying for, and yet, He was. Their “someday” arrived and they were not ready. Those who followed Jesus didn’t understand His promise that He would destroy the Temple and rebuild it in just three days, yet (spoiler alert!), He did just that when He (the true Temple) rose from the dead after three days.

We don’t know when Jesus will return, but, most assuredly, He will! And He used precious time during Holy Week to ensure that all those who would follow Him would look for that day.

We will all meet Jesus one day, whether that’s on our last day on earth, or on the first day of our King’s return to earth. The timing is for the Father alone to know, but the reality of these events is what Jesus wanted us to grasp. Jesus will come again, and it falls on us to be ready.

Reflection Question: Do you ponder Jesus's Second Coming? Why do you suppose He dedicated a considerable portion of His final days on earth to discussing this future occurrence?

How does the anticipation of Jesus returning to rule as King bring you hope in the present?

Additionally, what steps can you take to ready your heart today for encountering Jesus—whether it be at the end of your life's journey or at the beginning of His reign on earth?