When Jesus came to earth the first time he came as a humble messenger of grace. He spoke often of judgement but his goal was to save people from it. The Jews were expecting a more exalted Messiah who would come to win a decisive battle against the forces of evil on the earth. But instead of a king on a mighty warhorse they got a humble servant riding on a donkey. The expectation of an exalted Messiah with judgement in hand was not wrong however. It was just not yet. Finally, in Revelation 19:11 we see Jesus return; the second coming. He doesn’t come on a donkey but on a warhorse; he comes in judgement to “weed out of his Kingdom everything that does evil” (Matthew 13:41). The beast and his hordes try to resist him, but they are destroyed at once without the least bit of skirmish, and the beast is captured and thrown into the lake of fire. And that’s it! The great war is over in an instant. So, what is Jesus waiting for? Why doesn’t he come now? Why didn’t he do this 2000 years ago? The answer is given in Matthew 24:14: “This gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Jesus wants people to receive him as the donkey rider before he comes on the warhorse. He wants grace for people, not judgement. When his message of grace is taken to all the earth then he will return. So maybe he’s waiting for us to do our job.
Pray for those who are yet to receive God’s grace in Jesus Christ.
Read Revelation 19:11-21
