YOU DON’T KNOW THAT “JESUS IS COMING SOON”
There is a phrase often spoken among believers, repeated so commonly that it has almost lost meaning: “Jesus is coming soon.” It is said with ease, passed along without thought, and sometimes used more as a habit of speech than a trembling confession of truth. Yet when we handle the promises of our Lord, we must do so with reverence, for careless words about holy things can dull the soul instead of awakening it.
Our Lord did indeed speak of things that would come quickly upon that generation. He warned of judgment, of tribulation, of the shaking of heaven and earth as it was then known. He declared with clarity that those days would not pass away until these things were fulfilled (Matthew 24:34). And history has shown us that Jerusalem fell, the temple was destroyed, and the old order gave way, just as He said. In this sense, His coming in judgment was near, and it did not delay. It came with certainty and with power.
But how often men take these words and stretch them beyond their place. They repeat “soon” as though it were a simple measure of time, as though the passing of centuries has no meaning, and as though the faithfulness of Christ must be defended by vague repetition. The promise of His coming is not a slogan to be used, but a truth to be understood. The apostle reminds us that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. What men call delay is often the patience of God, giving space for repentance (2 Peter 3:8-9).
There is danger here—not in believing that Christ will come, for that is our blessed hope—but in speaking of it in such a way that weakens its force. When every generation says “soon” without understanding, the world begins to mock. They ask where the promise of His coming is, and the careless believer has no answer, because he has not searched the Scriptures deeply (2 Peter 3:3-4). Truth must not be repeated in ignorance, but spoken with light and understanding.
The greater matter is not the timing, but the certainty and the readiness of the soul. Our Lord did not command His people to calculate dates, but to watch, to be faithful, to live as those who may meet Him at any moment (Matthew 24:42). The servant who is ready is not concerned with arguing about “soon,” but with being found doing his Master’s will. It is a poor exchange to speak often of His coming while living carelessly and without love in His absence.
And yet, let it be said with equal strength, Christ is indeed coming. The same Jesus who ascended will return in glory (Acts 1:9-11). This is not uncertain, nor symbolic only, but the great climax of all things. The hope of the church is not fading, nor has it been forgotten. It stands firm, anchored in the promise of God Himself.
So let us put away careless speech and take up careful faith. Let us not repeat words because they are familiar, but only what is true and understood. Let our hearts be stirred, not by empty phrases, but by the living reality that Christ reigns now. That He judges in righteousness, and will bring all things to their appointed end.
Better to say little and live ready than to say much and live unprepared. Better to speak with understanding than to repeat what we have not considered. For when He does come, whether sooner than we think or later than we expect, it will not be our words that matter, but our faithfulness.
BDD
