Today there will be another total eclipse of the sun. In our city it will not be total, but it will get quite dark. I’ve been asked about the connections between this, a naturally occurring eclipse, and the return of Christ, so I shall endeavor to list all the connections for you.
There. That’s about it.
The truth is the Lord Jesus will return at a time of his choosing. There are no events that must precede his return. People have long tried to “figure out” when the Lord will return but he told them they will know because it will be obvious to all when he returns. The timing of his return is unknown to us, but when he comes again, everyone will know. This is what Luke records for us:
Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
Luke 17:20–27 ESV
And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.”
Jesus does, in fact, list the “signs” of his return: people will eat and drink and get married. They will go to work and go to sleep. They will build houses and plant gardens. In short, ordinary life will be happening when Jesus returns. This means he could have come at any moment since his ascension since men and women have been eating, drinking, and getting married ever since.
The Lord Jesus suffered many things and then he rose from the dead. Fifty days later he ascended into heaven where he rules over the kingdom his Father has given him. At a time of God’s own choosing he will return to judge the living and the dead and he will re-create the world and God will dwell with his people forever. This is our hope. This is what we long for. Solar eclipses have nothing to do with this. If anything, they are included in Jesus’ examples of what will come before his return. Just as people will eat and drink, so there will be thunderstorms and solar eclipses and beautiful sunny days. Our hope is the Lord will return and finish the work of re-creation.
He is Lord and so he can come any time he wants. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!