On that day His feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.
Zechariah 14:4 (ESV)
Is the world falling apart, or is it falling into place for the Second Advent of Jesus Christ? Did you know:
- There are over 300 references to the Second Coming of Christ in the New Testament.
- One out of every 25 verses in the New Testament refers to the Second Coming of Christ.
- Every New Testament writer refers to the Second Coming of Christ.
At the first Christmas, Jesus came to earth as a baby in a manger in Bethlehem, just as prophesied. He fulfilled many more prophecies of the Messiah during His birth, life, ministry, death, and resurrection. It was from the Mount of Olives after his thirty-year pilgrimage that Jesus ascended into heaven with the promise that He would return.
Some prophecies regarding the Messiah have not been fulfilled, however. A second “Christmas” will signal His return to accomplish the remaining prophecies as literally as His first Christmas! At His First Advent, Jesus was the suffering Servant. At His Second Coming, Jesus will be the conquering King. At His First Advent, Jesus arrived in the most humble of circumstances. At His Second Coming, Jesus will arrive with the armies of heaven at His side!
The Mount of Olives is a ridge twenty-one miles long, running north to south, on the east side of Jerusalem. While the major fault line in the Jordan Valley runs north to south, there is a hairline fault running east and west through the Mount of Olives. When our Lord returns, the Mount of Olives will split apart and our Lord will appear in this newly formed valley along with His holy ones—those who will be with Him when He returns to earth with infinite power and great glory!
Paul reminds us in Titus 2:13, that we are to be eagerly looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus. The second “Christmas” is the hope of believers everywhere that God is in control of all things and that He will remain faithful to all the prophecies in His marvelous Word. Merry Christmas!