The "Parousia" of the Lord as the Manifestation of His End-time Presence

Photo courtesy of Taavi Lehtimaki

In studying 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (the so called "rapture" passage), I was helped by G. K. Beale's insight on how the resurrection of believers and the "parousia" of Christ are going to take place at the last day (see the parallel passage in 1 Cor. 15:51-52).

Beale says that the Lord Jesus "'will come' and first resurrect the believing dead and then raise up Christians still living. Even living Christians will experience a 'resurrection' in the sense that their old bodies will be transformed and renewed in the same manner as those bodies lying in the grave. All those resurrected 'will be with the Lord forever' (4:17)" (Beale, "1-2 Thessalonians," p. 136). These are the encouraging words that Paul wants his readers to "comfort one another" with (v. 18).

In this post, however, I want to focus on the coming of Christ. Beale admits that "[t]here is some question about whether or not Jesus literally 'will come down from heaven' (4:16)." He then adds that the "description of a descent from heaven here has been referred to in 4:15 as 'the coming of the Lord'" (ibid., p. 138).

Beale also explains that the word for "parousia" in verse 15 ordinarily means either "presence" or "coming." He then argues that the former meaning appears best in this context. "Comparing other descriptions of Christ's coming," he continues, "it is apparent that 'motion' from heaven down to earth may not be the precise way in which Christ manifests his end-time presence. Revelation 6:14 refers to the end of the present cosmos in terms of 'a scroll that has been split and each of the two halves then rolled up'...If John were living today, he might use the analogy of a stage curtain with pictures on it, which is drawn from both sides to reveal the actors behind it. In short, the present physical reality will in some way disappear and the formerly hidden heavenly dimension, where Christ and God dwell, will be revealed (see further Rev. 11:19; 19:11; 21:1-3)" (ibid.).

He further argues that "Paul is using the same imagery in 4:15-17. What has been traditionally understood as the second coming of Christ is best conceived as a revelation of his formerly hidden, heavenly 'presence.' The old-world reality will be ripped away, and the dimension of the new, eternal reality will appear along with Christ's 'presence.' The references to 'parousia' in 2:19, 3:13 and 5:23 also carry the same connotation" (ibid.).

This description of the "parousia" of Christ is more exegetically plausible for me than the "rapture" theory. The hidden and heavenly "presence" of Christ that Beale is talking about is always here with us. I tend to believe that in the "parousia" of the Lord, we shall simply see Him with our newly opened eyes as He's always been with us in the spiritual sense. For at His "parousia" we will no longer operate by faith but by sight.

Parallel to this, I was thinking of the experience of Elisha's servant in 2 Kings 6:15-23. Elisha understood (maybe he even saw) the unseen dimension around him while his servant did not. So when he prayed that the Lord would open the eyes of his servant that he might see the real but hidden presence of God, and the Lord answered Elisha's prayer, the servant saw "the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire" (v. 17) surrounding Elisha.

I think the coming of Christ will be similar to this. Once we have trained our spiritual eyes to the heavenly, though right now hidden, reality of Christ's presence around us, we shall not be moved or terrified when things around us are getting worse or become frightening. We need the Spirit of God and the mind of Christ always to be spiritually alert and awake. That way we will not be caught unaware and unprepared of the appearing (another word for the return) of the Lord.

The unfolding of the new creation, however, does not necessarily rule out the literal coming of the Lord Jesus to the earth. This is in keeping with the promise spoken by the two men dressed in white to the disciples regarding the return of the Lord in Acts 1:11. Acts 1:9 says that Christ was taken out of sight from the disciples by a cloud as He was being lifted up. The two men then appeared before the disciples who were gazing into heaven and said, "This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).

Beale was not contradicting this idea. He is simply saying that the "parousia" in 1 Thessalonians 4 context is better interpreted as "presence" rather than "coming." Either way, Christ's return is a great comfort for us because in His return we shall see Him and all the believers who went ahead of us in death. The saints who died will not be forgotten. They, too, will be gathered with us in the presence of the Lord and together we shall be with Him always and forever (1 Thess. 4:17).

How will Christ be seen by all in His second coming

I had the privilege of sharing a message of comfort to my wife's relatives on the occasion of her uncle's death. I shared from 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 that talks about the future of those who have died in Christ and the comfort it gives to the grieving loved ones. Although some would focus on the 'rapture' in this passage, that is not the message of the text. The point of the passage is that God will not forget those who have died in their faith in Christ but He "will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him" (v.14).

In His return, Christ will bring with Him those believers who have gone ahead of us in glory. We who are alive at the time of His return, however, will be changed as the apostle Paul also said in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52,

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.

That’s the reason why Paul could conclude the 1 Thessalonians passage with an exhortation, "Therefore encourage one another with these words" (v.18). We should not think that our believing loved ones who died will be forgotten. Christ will bring them with Him when He returns again in glory.

In His coming (or presence, from Greek "parousia"), Christ will 'come down from heaven' with spectacular phenomena: "...with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God" (v.16). Definitely everyone alive at that time will see and hear these sounds.

But how will the second coming of Christ be visible and audible to all? Dr. Greg Beale has a beautiful description of this descent of Christ in His 'parousia.' In his commentary on 1-2 Thessalonians (p.138) he said,

Comparing other descriptions of Christ's coming, it is apparent that 'motion' from heaven down to earth may not be the precise way in which Christ manifests his end-time presence [parousia]. Revelation 6:14 refers to the end of the present cosmos in terms of 'a scroll that has been split and each of the two halves then rolled up'. If John were living today, he might use an analogy of a stage curtain with pictures on it, which is drawn from both sides to reveal the actors behind it. In short, the present physical reality will in some way disappear and the formerly hidden heavenly dimension, where Christ and God dwell, will be revealed (see further Rev. 11:19; 19:11; 21:1-3).

In other words, when our Lord Jesus Christ returns, "he will not descend from the sky over Boston or London or New York City or Hongkong [or Davao City] or any other localized area. When he appears, the present dimension will be ripped away, and Christ will be manifest to all eyes throughout the earth (see Mt 24:27). Just as one can lay flat a map of the whole world and see it all at one glance, so Christ will appear and be able to behold humanity at one glance and they him" (Beale, p.138-139).

How will this happen "in literal geographical terms is certainly unclear, but the answer lies in recalling that a new dimension will break into the old physical dimension, and the possibilities of new kinds of perception and of existence beyond present understanding will then be realized" (Beale, p.139).