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John 16:5-6  THE SOON RETURN OF JESUS

Introduction:

	The title of this message may have caused you to expect
that this text speaks about the second coming of Jesus to
the earth.  It doesn't.  Rather it speaks about His return
to heaven following His first coming to earth.  He was about
to be crucified.  After the crucifixion He would arise from
the grave.  Soon thereafter He would return to heaven from
which He had come.
	The disciples were very sad at the news of His
departure, but He would return to heaven anyway.  This was
what God the Father had planned for Him to do.

I.  The soon return of Jesus to heaven

	In our text even before His crucifixion Jesus tells His
disciples that He would go to the One who had sent Him to
the earth.  V. 5, "But now I go my way to him that sent
me..."  After His resurrection from the grave, Jesus would
make several appearances to His disciples before He would
leave and return to heaven.  But one day He would lead them
out to the Mt. of Olives and, as His disciples watched, He
would arise up in the clouds and go away to heaven.
	(V. 5), "...and none of you asketh me, Whither goest
thou?"  This is to be understood to mean that none of them
gave consideration to what joys and honors would come to
Jesus as a result of Him going back to heaven.  The reason I
say this is because back in chapter 13:36 the Apostle Peter
did ask Jesus where He would be going.  But none of them,
not even the Apostle Peter considered His departure from His
vantage point.  They were all looking at the matter from
their own point of view.  They were thinking about Jesus not
being with them they could hardly stand to think about that.
The news of His departure had already brought sorrow to
their hearts and they did not look forward at all to His
departure.  V. 6, "But because I have said these things unto
you, sorrow hath filled your heart."

II.  Looking at His departure from His vantage point

	But I want you to try to see His return from His view
point.  His return to heaven would be a re-union.  It would
be a re-union with someone He dearly loved.  It would be
are-union with the Father.  It was God the Father who had
sent Him into the world.  He would be re-uniting with God
the Father.  He was with the Father in all eternity prior to
coming to the earth.  He had now been on the earth for a
period of thirty-three and a half years.  That was a long
time for Him to be away from the Father.  It would be a
joyous occasion for Him to re-join the Father.  There is no
way for us to understand just how much joy it would be for
Him.  There is no way for us to understand how much joy it
would be for both Him and the Father.  If those disciples
had understood this, they would have been happy for Him to
get to return and less concerned for themselves hat He was
leaving.
	It would be a re-union with the angelic hosts of heaven.
The angels of heaven would rejoice to see God the Son return
to heaven.  He, in turn, would rejoice to see them.
	His return to heaven would not only be a re-union, but
it would be a restoration.  It would be a restoration to the
throne of heaven.  He had shared the throne with God the
Father before the world was created.  He had shared the
throne up until the time that He was conceived in Mary's
womb.  He would share that throne with the Father once
again.  I am quite confident that one of the first things
that the Father had the Son to do upon His return to heaven
was to take His rightful place upon the throne.  If the
disciples could understand just how much joy this would be
for the Son of God, they would have rejoiced for Him instead
of moaning and groaning for themselves.
	As the Second Person of the Godhead, Jesus has the right
to sit upon the throne that governs heaven and earth.  After
the crucifixion and resurrection Jesus would give The Great
Commission to the church.  In giving that commission He
would say to them, "All power is given me in heaven and in
earth," Mat. 28:18.  The Greek word in that verse which is
translated "power" literally means "authority."  To Jesus is
given all authority in heaven and in earth.  That means that
He does have the right to sit upon the throne of heaven.
His return to heaven would mean a restoration to that
throne.  If the disciples could understand just how much joy
this would be for the Son of God, they would have rejoiced
for Him instead of moaning and groaning for themselves.
	His return to heaven would be a celebration.  It would
be a celebration of a great victory.  He had left heaven to
come to earth on a great mission.  His mission was to live a
sinlessly perfect life in human flesh.  He had accomplished
that part of His mission.  He was victorious.
	His mission was to die upon the cross and be the Lamb of
God that takes away the sin of the world.  It was His
mission to provide a way of salvation whereby every human
being on earth would have opportunity to be saved.  He had
accomplished that mission.  He was victorious.
	His mission to earth was to arise from the grave after
His death  so that He would forever be a living Savior.
Because He would live He would be able to save unto the
uttermost all who come unto God by Him.  That was His
mission.  He would accomplish that mission.  He would arise
from the grave.  He would be victorious.
	His mission to earth was to establish the New Testament
system of worship.  It was to organize a local New Testament
church, which would do mission work in all the world and
spread churches of like faith and order throughout the
world.  He would accomplish that mission.  He would
establish a New Testament church and leave it at Jerusalem.
He would leave instructions for it to do mission work in all
the world and organize churches throughout the world.  He
would be victorious.
	When Jesus would arrive in heaven, there would be a
great celebration.  He and God the Father and all the hosts
of heaven would celebrate His great victory.  It would be a
greater celebration than any celebration that Alexander the
Great or Julius Caesar ever had after his military
victories.
	The return of Jesus to heaven would be a great
exaltation.  Jesus would be highly exalted by God His Father
and He would be highly exalted by all the holy angels of
heaven.  The name of Jesus would be lifted up in a greater
way than it had ever been.  .  It would receive the greatest
praise.  He would be worshipped and adored as never before
in all of history.  He had paid the price of man's
redemption with His own blood.  All the holy angels would
adore Him and praise Him.
	His return to heaven would be to take up a new place of
responsibility.  He would take His place on the throne of
heaven, not just as a seat of honor, but to perform a new
responsibility.  As the God-man He would take up His role as
the Mediator between God and man.  The Bible says that there
is but one Mediator between God and man and that person is
"the man Christ Jesus."
	As God, He can see to it that all of God's requirements
for justice are fully met.  As God, He can approach God the
Father on the throne and appeal to the Father on behalf of
sinful man.  Also as God, He can represent the fulness of
the Godhead to man.
	On the other hand, as  man He can sympathize with weak
and sinful man, even though He himself was not and is not
sinful.  As man, He can plead the case for sinful man and
can obtain grace and mercy for the sinner at the throne of
God.
	As the God-man who paid the sin-debt for lost sinners He
can show the nail scars in His hands in testimony that
sufficient suffering has already been done to cover the
penalty of the sinner's sin.
	Jesus is not just a Mediator between God and men, but He
is the One and only Mediator between God and men.  When
Jesus returned to heaven and resumed His seat on the throne
of God, he immediately took up His new responsibilities as
the Mediator between God and man.
	If His disciples had understood all these things, they
would have rejoiced for Him instead of moaning for
themselves.

III.  The soon return of Jesus to earth

	Even though in our text Jesus was not talking about His
second coming to earth, yet the very wording of the text
does suggest to us the thought of His return.  The Bible
does teach that He will return.  I believe it to teach that
He will soon return.
	On another occasion Jesus gave His disciples certain
signs of His return to earth.  Then He said that when you
see these things come to pass, you can know that My coming
is near at hand.  He said, "You can know that it is so near
that it is even at the door."  I believe that the signs all
indicate that the return of Jesus to this earth is near ---
even at the door!
	When He does return it, too, will be a time of re-union.
Just as His return to heaven was a re-union with God the
Father, whom He had left behind, even so His return to earth
will be a re-union with mankind, whom He has now left
behind.  He will again live among men right here on earth.
	Also, when He returns to earth it will be a time of
restoration.  It will not be so much a time of restoration
for Himself.  Rather it will be a time of restoration for
the earth.  For one thing peace will be restored on earth.
Peace will be restored on earth for the first time since
Adam's sin in the Garden of Eden.
	Furthermore, when He returns righteous rule will be
restored.  Justice in all the courts of the world will be
restored.  Righteous living will be restored.  Productivity
will be restored.  The earth will be much more fruitful.
Especially the Holy land will enjoy its most abundant
fruitfulness of all time.
	The throne of King David will be restored.  Jesus, who
is a descendant of King David will be the rightful heir to
David's throne and He will sit upon that throne.
	The nation of Israel will be restored.  It will be
restored to its full blessings as the covenant nation of
God.  Israel will be blessed and will reach it greatest
potential of power and influence in the world.
	When Jesus returns it will be to celebrate a great
victory.  When He arrives on the scene the world will be in
its most devastating and destructive periods of history.
The Great Tribulation will be in full swing and without the
arrival of Jesus so as to shorten this period of time no
flesh would survive.  But Jesus will arrive and will defeat
the Anti-christ who will be at his peak of power.  Jesus
will defeat the Anti-christ and his False Prophet.  He will
slay their armies and cast the Anti-Christ and the False
Prophet alive into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone.  He will
even cast That Old Serpent, the Devil, into the Bottomless
Pit for a thousand years.
	This will bring a great victory and will call for a
great celebration.  It will be the greatest celebration this
world has ever seen.
	When Jesus returns to earth it will be to take up a new
responsibility.  He will sit upon the throne of David.  He
will rule.  He will not only rule the nation of Israel, but
He will rule the world.  He will be the King of Kings and
the Lord of Lords.
	The disciples were sorrowful because of the news that
Jesus was going to leave them and return to heaven.  If they
had only understood the full significance of His return  to
heaven they would have rejoiced.  They would have rejoiced
that He and the Father would be re-united.  They would have
rejoiced that He would be restored to the throne in heaven
and that He would be exalted and praised as never before.
They would have rejoiced because He would begin His new work
as Mediator between God and man.
	There are a lot of people on earth right now who are
made sad at the news that Jesus will soon return to earth.
To them the second coming of Christ is something to dread.
But if they only knew, it is not the return of Jesus which
men ought to dread.  It is that which takes place prior to
His coming that men ought to dread.  The Great Tribulation
is most certainly to be dreaded.  But the return of Jesus to
earth is to be looked forward to with great joy.  At least
for the saved, it is to be looked forward to with great joy.
	It is also that which the unsaved will face after death
that they ought to dread.  If men could only understand who
great that suffering will be, they would cry out for the
mercy of God and the salvation of their soul.

Conclusion:

	I am quite confident that the most of you are already
saved and that you look forward to the return of Jesus
Christ to earth.  But if any of you are not saved, then now
is the time when that matter ought to be taken care of.  Now
is the time when you need to repent of your sin and call
upon Jesus Christ and ask Him to save your soul.  Now is the
time when you ought to get right with God by trusting Jesus
Christ as your Savior.
	The truth of the matter is that you should have called
on Jesus Christ long ago and trusted Him for salvation, but
you didn't and that opportunity is gone forever.  What you
need to make sure of is that the opportunity you have right
now does not slip away from you to be gone forever.  You
need to come this morning and trust Jesus Christ and be
saved.  Who will come?
	There may be some saved person here this morning who
should have already come long ago to unite with this church,
but you have not done so.  Please do not let your
opportunity to come and unite with this church to slip
through your fingers.  Come today!