King of kings and Lord of lords

The return of Jesus Christ to earth — how, when, and where it will happen — is a topic that confuses most people. What does the Bible say about the coming of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? 

The book of Revelation reveals to us twice that Jesus Christ will return to earth as "King of Kings" and "Lord of Lords" (Revelation 17:14; 19:16); Christ will come a second time to become Ruler of the Kingdom of God on earth. However, the details of the return of Jesus Christ to assume this role are quite confusing for many people.

One of the problems that we will possibly encounter when studying the subject of Christ's return to earth are the different opinions regarding the moment in which this event will take place. Will Christ come before or after the millennium?

We probably also run into the popular belief that Jesus Christ will come secretly to snatch away the saints before visibly returning to the rest of humanity. And even those who believe in this "rapture" have divergent ideas as to when it will supposedly occur; some believe that it will be before the Tribulation, others that it will be during the Tribulation, and others that they will be taken away when the Tribulation is over.

There is so much confusion! But what does Scripture say about this?

First, we must keep in mind that one of the fundamental teachings of the Bible is that Jesus Christ came in the flesh to die for our sins (1 Corinthians 15: 3; 1 Peter 2:24), and that “it will appear a second time, without relationship with sin, to save ”(Hebrews 9:28, emphasis added).

The Scriptures clearly confirm that Jesus will come to earth a second time. But the Bible nowhere mentions a third or fourth coming of our Savior to take care of the world or some other matter.

There will be no secret return

Although biblical prophecies reveal that several different events will occur when Jesus returns, they are all related to the same event, the only return of Christ to earth. However, some people postulate the theory of a “secret rapture” of the saints to heaven, before the true return of Christ, based on 1 Thessalonians 4:17, where we read: “Then we who are living, who are left, we will be caught up together with them [the dead in Christ who will be raised (v. 15)] in the clouds to receive the Lord in the air, and thus we will always be with the Lord. ”

But, if we analyze this passage in the context of the previous verse, we will realize that it does not refer to a secret event, since “the Lord Himself with the voice of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, will descend from the sky; and the dead in Christ will rise first ”(v.16).

Furthermore, speaking about the resurrection of the dead in Christ and the transformation of the faithful saints who will remain when He returns, 1 Corinthians 15: 51-52 tells us that “not all of us will sleep; but we will all be transformed, in a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the final trumpet; for the trumpet will be blown, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be transformed. "

This trumpet, which will sound at the return of Jesus Christ, will be the signal to gather the saints — both living and dead — and everyone will witness this event! There is no secret here! If you want to know more details on this topic, we invite you to read our article “The Rapture: Will there be a secret rapture?”.

Let us now examine what Scripture says about how, when, and where Christ will return to earth.

How will the King of Kings and Lord of Lords return?

As the Bible repeatedly shows us, Jesus Christ will not return to earth in secret or in private, but visibly for the entire world. The book of Revelation — which is “the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave [to John], to manifest his servants” (Revelation 1: 1), tells us that Christ “comes with the clouds, and every eye will see him , and those who pierced him; and all the lineages of the earth will lament for him. Yes, amen ”(v. 7).

And before this, in the Sermon on the Mount (recorded in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21), Jesus Christ Himself had revealed to His disciples how He would return to the earth: “like the lightning that comes out of the east and shows itself even to the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be ”(Matthew 24:27). Then adding that “then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven; and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory ”(v. 30, emphasis added).

The Bible also explains to us that Jesus Christ will return in a similar way to the way he left the earth. After his resurrection, Jesus spent 40 days appearing to his disciples (Acts 1: 3) and, on one occasion, "to more than five hundred brothers" (1 Corinthians 15: 6). And then he ascended to heaven:

"And having said these things, when they saw him, he was lifted up, and a cloud received him, which concealed him from his eyes. And while they were with their eyes fixed on heaven, while he was leaving, behold, two men in white robes stood next to them, and they also said to them: Galilean men, why are you looking at heaven? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you to heaven, will come as you have seen him go to heaven ”(Acts 1: 9-11).

In summary, the Scriptures reveal to us that the return of Jesus Christ will be visible to everyone. In fact, as we have read, it will be an event announced by the powerful sound of a trumpet. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords will not return to earth silently and secretly!

When will the King of Kings and Lord of Lords return?

In the Old Testament, God revealed through the prophet Joel that the return of Jesus Christ would be preceded by a series of cosmic signs; "The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and dreadful day of Jehovah comes" (Joel 2:31).

Referring to the same subject, Jesus explained that “immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its brightness, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven; and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory ”(Matthew 24: 29-30).

As these passages show us, Jesus Christ will return after these cosmic signs, which in turn will occur "immediately after the tribulation." Therefore, the return of Christ will take place when the Tribulation is over.

One of the reasons why Jesus Christ will come a second time is to establish the Kingdom of God on earth. And when this happens, faithful Christians — who will be transformed into spirit upon their return — will help him in his task as King of Kings and Lord of Lords over all the earth: they will become spiritual kings and priests who, under the authority of Jesus Christ, they will help humanity to follow the path of God (Revelation 1: 6; 5:10).

The book of Revelation, recounting the events of the end time, tells us about that moment when Jesus Christ will assume command of all the nations of the earth: “The seventh angel blew the trumpet, and there were great voices in heaven, saying : The kingdoms of the world have become of our Lord and his Christ; and he will reign for ever and ever ”(Revelation 11:15).

In fact, one of God's holy feasts, the Feast of Trumpets, is meant to remind us of the prophecies that will be fulfilled when Christ returns. On this day we celebrate the future return of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the saints, the transformation of faithful Christians who remain alive and the beginning of the government of Jesus Christ on earth, which will bring peace among the nations.

As we read in the New Testament, all of these events will occur with the sound of a trumpet, and therefore all are part of the return of Jesus Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And there is no doubt that these events are worthy of being announced by the powerful sound of this trumpet.

Since the Feast of Trumpets represents the second coming of Jesus Christ, some people have wondered if Jesus will return on that day specifically. But while this is possible, we must remember what Christ said regarding his coming in Matthew 24:36: "of the day and the hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but only my Father." Therefore, although the Feast of Trumpets represents the moment when Jesus Christ will return to earth, we cannot assure that it will come on that specific day.

For more information about the Feast of Trumpets, we invite you to read our article "The Feast of Trumpets: War Alarm, Declaration of Peace."

Where will the King of Kings and Lord of Lords return?

Sometimes there have been rumors that Jesus Christ returned in this or that part of the world, which some naive people might come to believe. However, the Bible is very clear regarding the specific place where Jesus will come to earth a second time.

Referring to this theme, Zechariah prophesied: “Behold, the day of Jehovah is coming, and your spoil will be divided among you. For I will gather all the nations to fight against Jerusalem; and the city will be taken, and the houses will be plundered, and the women raped; and half the city will go into captivity, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city.

“Then Jehovah will go forth and fight with those nations, as he did on the day of battle. And their feet will be established on that day on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem to the east; and the Mount of Olives will split in the middle, east and west, making a very large valley; and half the mountain will move north, and the other half south ”(Zechariah 14: 1-4).

Christ will return to the Mount of Olives, a mountain range east of the ancient city of Jerusalem that will split in two when He sets his feet on it. Therefore, no news that says something different can be true.

What will the King of Kings and Lord of Lords do when he returns?

While it is very interesting to study the details of the return of Jesus Christ, knowing what he will do when he has assumed the authority of this world is the most exciting thing of all.

As Isaiah prophesied of that wonderful moment, “It will come to pass in the last days, that the mount of the house of Jehovah will be established as the head of the mountains, and will be exalted on the hills, and all the nations will run to it.

“And many peoples will come, and they will say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk on his paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And he will judge among the nations, and will rebuke many peoples; and they will turn their swords into plowshares, and their spears into sickles; nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war any more ”(Isaiah 2: 2-4).

The Bible reveals to us that Jesus Christ will rule the earth for 1,000 years — a period known as "the Millennium." In his rule as King of Kings, all ills will be healed, there will be prosperity, world peace, and, most importantly, all of humanity will have the opportunity to receive forgiveness of sins and live according to God's way.