“I Believe He Will Come Again to Judge the Living and the Dead” John In the Apostles’ Creed we affirm that we believe “He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” These simple words consist of two complementary truths: 1) Jesus is coming again. 2) Jesus is coming again to judge the living and the dead. The New Testament refers to the second coming of Christ in over 300 verses. That means one of every 13 verses deals with some aspect of our Lord’s return to the earth. It is so central to the New Testament that Christians everywhere have always believed that Jesus will return someday. Though we differ (and argue!) over the details, Christians of all varieties unite in believing that Christ himself will return to the earth. Jesus said in John Personal (It will be Jesus and not some substitute) Literal (Not a vision or a dream) Visible (“Every eye will see him”) Sudden (Not a gradual return) Unexpected (Like a thief in the night). Acts If plain English can have any meaning at all, those words teach us that Jesus is coming back personally, literally, visibly and bodily. We might also add that his coming will be sudden and unexpected. Luke