When We See Jesus
By Mark Kemple
Do you think about what it will be like to see Jesus, to look on His face? What will that mean to you? We sing about it, e.g. “When we all see Jesus, we’ll sing and shout the victory”; “Face to face with Christ our Savior…”; “Just to be there and to look on His face will through the ages be glory for me.” Do we mean it?
Every person who has ever lived will one day look on the face of the Son of God (Revelation 1:7). Do you look forward to this? As disciples, we should, even though we cannot “save the date” on our calendars (1 Thessalonians 1:10; Titus 2:13; 1 Corinthians 1:7; 16:22; Philippians 3:20; 2 Peter 3:11-12; Jude 21; Revelation 22:20). It does not mean we quit our jobs, sit on our porches, and stare into the sky (Acts 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12), but it does mean we should live with a heightened sense of anticipation.
I write this fully recognizing that there are times when we struggle with this. There are times when trials create in us a longing for His return, e.g. the waves of grief, chronic health issues, financial problems, parenting woes, battling sin, church problems, etc. There are also times when we are doing well spiritually and want Jesus to come back right then. But there are other times when we’re not exactly “looking for and hastening” Jesus’ coming, either because of busy schedules or because we want more time for loved ones to become Christians.
And yet, all the verses we just read communicate very strongly that God wants us to live not just accepting that Jesus will come at some point, or might come at some point during our lifetimes, or even that it could be very soon, but looking forward to it with anticipation, desiring it in our hearts and praying for it in our prayers. He wanted this in the lives of first-century disciples; how much more, then does He want it in the lives of those who live 2,000 years closer to Jesus’ return?!
Consider six things about Jesus’ coming that should cause us to anticipate His return, to encourage us to keep serving Him, or if you are not a disciple, to begin serving Him.
When we see Jesus …
It will be the right time.
I’m sure we could come up with a long list of questions about God’s timing, e.g. why God chose to warn Noah when He did; why He sent Abram from his homeland at 75 years of age; why God allowed His people to languish for 400 years in Egypt; or even why God chose to send Jesus at the time He did. But one thing we don’t have to wonder about – God does what He does at the right time (Galatians 4:4; Romans 5:6).
When God sends Jesus to gather His own, judge mankind, and destroy the world, it will happen at the right time. Keep in mind who it is who will decide when Jesus comes (Isaiah 55:8-9). When you find yourself struggling with the prospect of loved ones running out of time to seek God’s forgiveness, pray about that. Pray that God will grant them more time. But pray also trusting that God knows our loved ones better than we do. He is the best one to make this decision. We need to be willing to trust Him. If He has promised to send Jesus, we should eagerly look forward to His purpose being accomplished – it is what’s best/right. Our greatest desire should be to see God glorified through the accomplishment of His purpose.
We will see Him in all His glory.
You may think you’ve seen and experienced some amazing things in this life, e.g. the birth of children, the Continental Divide in the Rockies, Pikes Peak, an F-14 flying overhead, riding a roller coaster, meeting famous people, etc., but none of us have seen anyone or anything like Jesus in all His heavenly glory. We know that because of what the Bible teaches; but we’ll really know that when we see Him.
John once caught a glimpse of Him in a vision and was overwhelmed (Revelation 1:14-17). This is the same John who spent over three years with Jesus on earth and saw Jesus transfigured (cf. Mark 9:2-3), but seeing the glorified Jesus was far greater than anything He had ever witnessed. We will see Him, too! (1 John 3:2; 2 Thessalonians 1:10). In heaven, it will be the bride who stares at the bridegroom!
For disciples of Jesus, the best is yet to come! That’s what Jesus believes! (John 17:24) He wants us to see His glory, and so we will, but not as we are (cf. 1 Timothy 6:16b). We must be equipped to see Him.
We will be clothed in immortal bodies.
Read 1 John 3:1-3 and ask, “Why will we be able to see Him ‘as He is’?” Because “we will be like Him.” The Bible speaks of us having a different body in eternity, one that is spiritual in nature (1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 50-53). What will that body be like? The Scripture doesn’t tell us much more, but John tells us this much: that our eternal bodies will be of such a nature that we will be able to behold Jesus in His glorified state.
This should comfort us. When I see Jesus, it means I will have an eternal body that will not grow old, get sick, break down, and perish. If your body is failing, you have something to look forward to! (Philippians 3:20-21) When we see Jesus, I will see Him in all His glory in my immortal body, and furthermore, …
We will realize just how much God loves us.
We know God loves us. We know Jesus loves us. We are taught that from a young age in song. The Scriptures bear witness to this (John 3:16; 1 John 3:1). There are some life experiences that reinforce this point in our hearts, e.g. becoming a parent. But when you and I get to heaven, one of our first thoughts will be, “Jesus gave up this… for me?” When we see Jesus, see His glory, see God on His throne, see the angelic hosts, and see the saved, we will understand even more fully just how great Christ’s sacrifice was.
I hope we know that God loves us. I hope we don’t think of His expectations of us as too intrusive or oppressive. They sure won’t seem that way when we see Jesus.
We will know it was worth it to follow Him.
We should already know that being a disciple of Jesus is the best choice we can make, but seeing Jesus and receiving our eternal reward will affirm this choice like nothing else (2 Timothy 1:12). When we see the face of the One in whom we have invested our faith and hope, we will be so thankful that we chose to serve Him. All of the difficulties that came from following Him will fade from our memory once and for all:
- We’ll forget the strange looks we received from co-workers for standing up for what’s right.
- We’ll forget the hurt of being ridiculed by friends or family for making godly choices.
- We’ll forget the anguish we experienced during trials, and we’ll be glad we didn’t quit.
- We’ll forget how painful it was to be reproved by another Christian, and we’ll be glad we listened.
When we see Jesus and get to heaven, we’ll know it was worth it to follow Him! We’ll be home with God where we belong, and we will shout and sing! (“When We Get To Heaven”) We will be victorious!
Sin will end forever.
When I was a boy, one of our elders would often refer to sin as “the soul-sickening disease.” That is such an appropriate description of what sin is. Sin makes our souls sick (Isaiah 1:5-6); in fact, it can bring a host of consequences, both spiritual and physical, to our lives (Psalms 38:3, 18; 1 Timothy 6:10). Sin entangles us (Hebrews 12:2). It hardens us (Hebrews 13:3). It promises lasting pleasure but cannot deliver (Hebrews 11:25). As another elder of that congregation said, “Sin takes you further than you want to go, keeps you longer than you want to stay, and costs you more than you want to pay.”
It is truly an “amazing” thing to have God’s grace; without it, we could not be saved. But how much greater it will be when sin ends and we no longer have to battle it on a daily basis! When Jesus comes, we won’t have to worry about sin and about temptation ever again (Revelation 21:4; 20:10). This world isn’t getting any better. It’s simply overwhelming to think ahead to my children getting older and to think of all the ways Satan will tempt them to sin. If Jesus comes back soon, that’s just fine with me!
Are you looking forward to seeing Jesus? Not every person who sees Jesus will be glad to see Him (Revelation 1:7). You face a moment of decision right now that will impact how you react when He comes back. You can choose to follow Jesus, or you can choose to forsake Him. Don’t be foolish! Follow Jesus, so you can have joy when He returns!