Christmas Prepares Us For The Second Coming

You have probably heard people say “keep your head on a swivel.” It’s a picturesque way of saying you need to be alert and aware of what is going on all around you. That’s good advice for the Christian, not just in the daily grind, but also regarding the big picture of life and worldview. Christians are those who are constantly looking back and constantly looking forward. 1 Peter shows us this, and Christmas is there in the mix.

First, consider how the Christian is constantly looking backward. The power and character of God throughout history grounds us on the truth. The creation, the exodus, the conquest, the faithfulness of God, the incarnation, the cross, and more are the realities that our lives are built upon. We are constantly looking back at those.

1 Peter 1:20 tells us “For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you.” This appearance is Christmas. But certainly Peter was not only thinking about Jesus’ birth. Remember, Christmas only matters if there is an Easter. Therefore, Peter’s letter is also filled with passages about the cross.

Christians are those who are constantly looking at what God did in the past. However, Christians are also constantly looking forward. The rapture, the redemption of Israel, our resurrection, the coming of Christ, the millennial reign, the final judgment of all evil, and the eternal state should be a constant preoccupation for the Christian as well.

Peter hits on this forward looking feature of Christianity in a major way. 1 Peter is just 5 chapters long, but Peter speaks of the future revelation of Christ 6 different times.

1 Peter 1:5 …who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

1 Peter 1:7 …so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 4:13 …but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.

1 Peter 5:1 Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,

1 Peter 5:4 (NASB95) — 4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Isn’t that amazing? Peter is continually pointing backward and continually pointing forward. We are grounded in the glorious past, and we are filled with certain hope of the glorious future. I would say there is even an emphatic repetition in Peter’s writing about what is to be revealed. He is writing to suffering Christians, and suffering Christians need to know what is coming and why they need to hold on.

So keep your head on a swivel. At this time of the year we are thinking about the incarnation. That is good and Peter would want you to do that. But he would also want you to swivel back to the future. The incarnation happened because this king was promised to come and to conquer. The war was won on the cross, but the victory parade of the glorious king is yet to come. Constantly look for this as you also constantly look back.