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Content

• PREFACE
• INTRODUCTION
• IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE ARE MANY MANSIONS
• I GO TO PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU
• I WILL COME AGAIN, AND RECEIVE YOU UNTO MYSELF
• HE SHALL APPEAR THE SECOND TIME UNTO SALVATION
• ANOTHER COMFORTER: YET THE SAME LORD
• FROM “WITH YOU” TO “IN YOU”
• I WILL COME TO YOU
• AT THAT DAY: YE IN ME, AND I IN YOU
• WE WILL COME UNTO HIM, AND MAKE OUR ABODE WITH HIM
• PENTECOST: THE PROMISE FULFILLED
• CONCLUSION: THE PERSON HAS COME

Important Points

• COGMA does not claim to be infallible or the authority.
• Infallibility and authority belong only to God and His Word.

COGMA therefore strongly advises that you prayerfully study the content of each Study Guide with the heart of a Berean (Acts 17:10–12).

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PREFACE

The coming of Jesus Christ is one of the most widely taught subjects in Christianity, yet it is also one of the subjects most strongly shaped by inherited interpretation. Many sincere believers have been taught to expect a future physical return of Jesus from the sky, often connected with a rapture, worldwide judgement and a future earthly kingdom. Because these teachings are familiar, they must still be tested carefully by the Word of God.

This Study Guide will establish from Scripture that the promised second coming of Jesus Christ was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost in A.D. 31, when He came as the Holy Spirit to dwell within His people. This conclusion will not be built upon one isolated verse. It will be established from the words of Jesus, the fulfilment recorded in Acts and the continuing New Covenant reality explained in the Epistles.

Jesus said in John 14:18:

“I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

Those words provide the central direction of this Study Guide. Jesus did not leave His disciples to determine the meaning of His coming from later religious tradition. He explained His promise within the same teaching in which He spoke of His Father's house, many mansions, a prepared place, the Comforter, the Spirit dwelling within His people and God making His abode with the believer.

We will therefore allow Scripture to interpret Scripture. The words of Jesus will be examined within their immediate setting, related verses will be compared carefully, and the fulfilment will be identified from the biblical record rather than from assumptions added to the verses.

This Study Guide will also distinguish subjects that belong to later studies in this module. Detailed teaching concerning Matthew 24, the expression “caught up” in 1 Thessalonians 4, and the present Kingdom of God will be examined separately. Here the central purpose is to establish what Jesus meant when He promised, “I will come to you,” and to identify when and how that promise was fulfilled.

Correct doctrine is important because it reveals Jesus Christ correctly. The purpose of this study is therefore greater than correcting an inherited interpretation. It is to see more clearly the completed work of Jesus Christ and the New Covenant reality He established for His people.

Christianity is the life of Jesus Christ within the born-again believer. The truth concerning His coming leads directly to that reality. Jesus Christ is not absent from His people while they wait for Him to return. He has come, He dwells within those who are born again, and His life within them is the continuing reality of the New Covenant.

The Person has come. Jesus Christ now dwells within His people by His Spirit.

INTRODUCTION

To understand Jesus' promise, “I will come again,” we must first hear those words as His disciples heard them. John 14 did not begin as an isolated teaching about events thousands of years in the future. It continued a conversation in which Jesus was preparing His disciples for His approaching departure.

During the evening before His crucifixion, Jesus told the disciples that He would soon leave them. They had followed Him, travelled with Him and listened to Him teach. Their relationship with Him had been experienced through His bodily presence among them, so the announcement that He was going away caused understandable concern.

Jesus said in John 13:33:

“Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you.”

Peter immediately questioned Him about where He was going. The disciples were not considering a distant prophetic timetable. They were responding to the immediate announcement that Jesus, who was presently with them, was going somewhere they could not then follow.

Jesus answered Peter in John 13:36:

“Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards.”

This is the setting in which John 14 begins. Jesus knew that His words had troubled them, and He began to comfort them by explaining that His departure would not end their relationship with Him.

Jesus said in John 14:1-3:

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

These words must be understood within the conversation in which they were spoken. Jesus had just told the disciples that He was going away. Now He assured them that His going had a purpose and that separation would not be the final condition of their relationship.

The expressions “my Father's house,” “many mansions,” “prepare a place,” “I will come again,” and “receive you unto myself” therefore belong together. We should not take one expression from the conversation, give it an inherited meaning and then allow that meaning to control everything else Jesus said. We must allow the whole of His teaching to explain itself.

As John 14 continues, Jesus explains the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, the movement from “with you” to “in you,” His promise “I will come to you,” and the relationship described by the words “ye in me, and I in you.” These later statements help us understand what He introduced at the beginning of the chapter.

Before examining those later words, however, we must begin where Jesus began. What is “my Father's house”? What are the “many mansions” within that house, and what do those expressions tell us about the place Jesus was preparing for His people?

Those questions lead directly into our first study.

IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE ARE MANY MANSIONS

Jesus had just told His disciples that He was going away. They were troubled because the One who had walked with them, taught them and cared for them was preparing to leave them in bodily presence. Jesus therefore began John 14 by comforting them and directing their attention to His Father's house.

Jesus said in John 14:1-2:

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.”

The meaning of “my Father's house” is fundamental to everything that follows. If we begin by assuming that Jesus was speaking of a physical building in heaven containing separate residences, that assumption will control how we understand the rest of His words. We must therefore allow Scripture itself to identify the house of God.

What Is the Father's House?

The Greek word translated “house” in John 14:2 is OIKIA. It can refer to a house, dwelling or household. The Greek word gives us the idea of a dwelling, but the word by itself does not tell us the full spiritual meaning Jesus intended.

We must therefore compare Scripture with Scripture. The New Testament repeatedly uses the language of a house to describe God's people and His dwelling among them. This allows the meaning of the Father's house to be established from the wider testimony of God's Word rather than from a modern picture attached to the English word.

The Father's house must also be understood within the New Covenant setting. Jesus was preparing His disciples for His death, resurrection, departure and return to them in a new manner. The house He spoke about belongs to the spiritual reality that He was about to establish through His completed work.

The House of God Is the Church

Paul gives one of the clearest identifications in the New Testament.

Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 3:15:

“But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”

Paul does not leave the expression “house of God” undefined. He identifies it directly as “the church of the living God.” The Greek word translated “house” here is OIKOS, which belongs to the same family of words as OIKIA and carries the thought of a house or household.

The Greek connection is helpful, but the doctrine does not depend upon a similarity between two Greek words. The decisive statement is Paul's own explanation: “the house of God, which is the church of the living God.” Scripture itself identifies God's house with His Church.

This does not mean that every occurrence of the word house in the Bible automatically means the Church. Context must always determine meaning. However, when Jesus speaks of “my Father's house,” we cannot ignore the New Testament revelation that God's people themselves are His spiritual house.

The Church is not a physical building or human religious organisation. It is the spiritual body composed of those who are born again, within whom Jesus Christ dwells by His Spirit. The Father's house is therefore understood through people in whom God lives, not through physical architecture.

Whose House Are We?

Other New Testament Scriptures confirm this understanding. The writer of Hebrews speaks directly of believers as Christ's house.

The writer of Hebrews wrote in Hebrews 3:6:

“But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.”

Notice the words “whose house are we.” The house is described in terms of people. Christ is over His house, and those who belong to Him are identified with that house.

Peter uses similar language in 1 Peter 2:5:

“Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”

The stones in this house are living people. Peter calls believers “lively stones” and says they are built into “a spiritual house.” This is not the language of a physical residence waiting somewhere beyond the earth. It describes God's people joined together spiritually in Jesus Christ.

Paul develops the same truth further in Ephesians 2:19-22:

“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”

The language is unmistakably spiritual. Believers are “of the household of God,” they are joined together in a building whose chief corner stone is Jesus Christ, and they become “an habitation of God through the Spirit.”

The purpose of the house is therefore dwelling. God lives within His people by His Spirit. The New Covenant house is not defined by walls and rooms but by the indwelling presence of God within those who belong to Jesus Christ.

What Are the Many Mansions?

Jesus said that within His Father’s house were “many mansions.” The word translated “mansions” is the Greek word MONĒ.

The English word mansion today often suggests a large, luxurious private residence. That modern meaning can easily create a picture that Jesus’ words do not require. MONĒ carries the thought of an abiding place, dwelling place or abode.

The Literal Translation of the Holy Bible (LITV) renders John 14:2:

“In My Father's house are many dwelling places. But if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you!”

The expression “many dwelling places” helps us understand the assurance Jesus was giving. There is room in God’s household for all who hear the Gospel, believe and are born again. They become part of His spiritual house, the Church in whom He dwells.

Jesus was therefore speaking about dwelling places within His Father’s house. The important question is not what kind of physical houses these might be, but how Jesus Himself uses the same word later in the chapter. John 14 contains its own explanation.

Mansions and Abode: The Same Dwelling

Later in the same teaching, Jesus used the same Greek word MONĒ again. This time the King James Version translates it “abode.”

Jesus said in John 14:23:

“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

The connection is important. In John 14:2 Jesus speaks of “many mansions,” and in John 14:23 He speaks of God coming to the believer and making His “abode” with him. MONĒ is used in both places.

Jesus therefore begins the chapter with dwelling language and later explains that dwelling in terms of God coming to make His abode with His people. The chapter moves towards indwelling, not towards a description of physical residences.

We must still be careful not to make the Greek word prove more than it does. MONĒ establishes the idea of dwelling or abiding. The full meaning comes from the harmony of Scripture: God's house is the Church, believers are His house, they are built into a spiritual house, and they are made an habitation of God through the Spirit.

The Father's house is therefore the spiritual house of God, His Church. The many dwelling places belong within that spiritual reality of God making His home among and within His people.

This truth also keeps Jesus Christ at the centre. A person does not become part of the Father's house by joining a denomination, entering a religious building or having a name placed upon a membership roll. A person enters the Church of God through the new birth and possesses the Spirit of Christ.

John 14 is beginning to reveal something far greater than the promise of a future physical residence. Jesus was preparing His disciples for the New Covenant reality in which God would dwell within His people.

That prepares us for His next words: “I go to prepare a place for you.”

I GO TO PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU

After speaking of His Father's house and the many dwelling places within it, Jesus immediately explained that He was going away for a purpose. His departure was not an interruption in God's plan. It was necessary for the New Covenant reality He had promised to be established.

Jesus said in John 14:2:

“In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.”

The words “I go” and “prepare a place” belong together. Jesus was preparing His disciples for His death, resurrection and departure from their bodily sight. What He was about to accomplish would open the way for His people to be brought into a relationship with God that had not yet been experienced under the former covenant.

What Did Jesus Go to Prepare?

The common picture of John 14 is that Jesus went to heaven to construct physical homes for believers. The verse itself does not say that He went to build houses. Jesus said that He was going to “prepare a place” for His people.

The previous teaching has already established that the Father's house is God's spiritual house, the Church. The place Jesus prepared must therefore be understood in harmony with that New Covenant setting. He was preparing the way for people to be brought into Himself, joined together as His body and made a dwelling place of God through the Spirit.

The preparation required more than instruction. Sin had to be dealt with, redemption had to be accomplished and the way into the New Covenant relationship with God had to be opened through Jesus Christ.

The writer of Hebrews wrote in Hebrews 10:19-20:

“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;”

The way was opened “by the blood of Jesus.” The writer calls it “a new and living way.” Jesus' going therefore cannot be separated from the redemptive work He was about to complete through His death.

His death was not defeat, and His departure was not abandonment. Through His sacrifice and resurrection, Jesus Christ accomplished the work necessary for His people to enter the New Covenant reality He was preparing.

His Cross Made the New Covenant Place Possible

Paul explains what the death of Christ accomplished for those who had previously been separated. His words connect the blood of Christ, reconciliation, one body, access to the Father and the Spirit.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:13-18:

“But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”

Notice the movement in these verses. Those who were far off are made near “by the blood of Christ.” Jew and Gentile are made one, reconciled “in one body by the cross,” and given access “by one Spirit unto the Father.”

This is the New Covenant place Jesus prepared. It is “in Christ Jesus.” It is one body. It is a reconciled people who have access to the Father through Jesus Christ and by one Spirit.

Paul does not describe salvation as people being assigned separate physical residences. He describes people being brought near, made one and reconciled in Christ. The preparation accomplished through the cross made this spiritual relationship possible.

The Prepared Place Is in Christ

The New Testament identifies the Church as the body of Christ. This helps us understand where the believer's spiritual place is found.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:22-23:

“And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”

The Church is “his body.” Jesus Christ is its Head, and those who are born again are brought by the Spirit into this one spiritual body. The prepared place is therefore inseparable from being in Christ.

This also explains why the language of John 14 becomes increasingly inward. Jesus will later speak of the Spirit being “in you,” of “ye in me, and I in you,” and of God coming to make His abode with the believer. The prepared place and the indwelling presence belong to the same New Covenant reality.

The Christian does not wait for a future event to gain a spiritual place in Christ. At the new birth, the believer is brought into union with Jesus Christ and becomes part of His spiritual body. The Person who prepared the place is also the life of those who enter it.

A religious organisation cannot produce this relationship. Human membership cannot place anyone into Christ. The prepared place is entered through the saving work of God when a person is born again and receives the Spirit of Christ.

Pentecost Brought the Prepared Reality Into Experience

When Jesus spoke the words of John 14, the work was not yet complete. He had not yet died, risen from the dead or come to His disciples as the Holy Spirit. He was explaining beforehand what His going would accomplish.

His death and resurrection completed the redemptive work. Then, on the Day of Pentecost, the promised Spirit came and His people entered the New Covenant reality He had prepared. The Church stood forth as the spiritual body in which Christ dwells by His Spirit, and from that day the Lord added the saved to His Church.

Pentecost did not complete an unfinished sacrifice. The sacrifice had already been completed. Pentecost brought the promised indwelling presence of Christ and the prepared New Covenant relationship into experience.

This distinction is important. Jesus prepared the place through His completed redemptive work, and He came to bring His people into the reality He had prepared. The place is not a future physical residence awaiting construction. It is the spiritual place of God's people in Jesus Christ, His body, the Church.

Jesus' words therefore form a clear sequence:

“I go”: His departure and completed redemptive work.

“Prepare a place for you”: The New Covenant place of His people in Himself.

The next words then carry the promise forward:

“I will come again, and receive you unto myself.”

The place was prepared so that His people could be brought into Him. Jesus would not prepare the place and then remain absent. He promised to come again.

I WILL COME AGAIN, AND RECEIVE YOU UNTO MYSELF

Jesus did not stop after saying that He would prepare a place for His disciples. He immediately told them what would happen after the preparation was complete. He would come again and receive them unto Himself.

Jesus said in John 14:3:

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

These words contain a clear sequence. Jesus would go, He would prepare a place, He would come again, and He would receive His disciples unto Himself. The object of the promise is not simply a location. Jesus said, “receive you unto myself.”

Receive You Unto Myself

It is common to read John 14:3 as though Jesus were describing a future physical journey from earth to heaven. However, the wording deserves careful attention. Jesus did not say, “I will come again and take you to your mansions.” He said, “I will come again, and receive you unto myself.”

The emphasis is upon relationship with Him. The place He prepared was in the New Covenant reality established through His completed work, and the people He received were to be brought into Himself.

This agrees with the language used throughout the New Testament. Salvation is repeatedly described in terms of being in Christ, belonging to His body and sharing His life. The believer's spiritual standing is not defined by physical location but by union with Jesus Christ.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:17:

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

Notice the expression “in Christ.” The new birth brings the believer into a new spiritual relationship. The person becomes a new creature in Jesus Christ.

To be received unto Christ is therefore not simply to be moved from one physical place to another. It is to be brought into the spiritual reality of life in Him.

Raised Together in Christ

Paul gives an especially important explanation in Ephesians. He describes what God has already accomplished for those who have been saved.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:5-6:

“Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:”

Paul uses completed language. God “hath quickened us,” “hath raised us up together,” and “made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” He was writing to believers who were still physically alive on earth, yet he described them as already raised and seated in heavenly places.

This helps us understand the spiritual nature of the promise in John 14. A believer does not have to leave the earth physically in order to be brought into a heavenly spiritual position in Christ. God accomplishes that spiritual raising through salvation.

Those who were dead in sins are made alive with Christ. They are raised into a new spiritual life and brought into a relationship that Paul describes as being “in Christ Jesus.” The language does not describe an incomplete salvation waiting for a future event. It describes what God has already accomplished in the believer.

By One Spirit Into One Body

The New Testament also explains how believers are brought into the body of Christ.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 12:13:

“For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”

The believer is brought “by one Spirit” into “one body.” That body is the body of Christ, the Church. This is the spiritual work of God at the new birth.

No outward religious act can produce this union. A person is not received into Christ through church registration, water baptism or human acceptance. God Himself brings the believer into Christ by His Spirit.

This is why the prepared place cannot be separated from Jesus Christ Himself. The Father's house is His spiritual Church, and believers are brought into that house by being brought into Christ.

The promise “receive you unto myself” therefore reaches beyond the idea of being near Jesus. It speaks of belonging to Him, being joined to His body and possessing His life within.

The Promise Was to Those Disciples

We must also remember the immediate audience. Jesus was speaking directly to His disciples. They were troubled because He had told them that He was leaving, and His answer was intended to comfort them.

His promise was not that they would lose Him and that countless generations would pass before the relationship could be restored. He assured them that He would come again and receive them unto Himself.

This does not mean that the promise was limited to those first disciples. The New Covenant reality established through Jesus Christ continues for every person who is born again. However, the immediate promise was spoken to people who were then listening to Him and who would personally experience the change He was describing.

The later words of John 14 make this even clearer. Jesus speaks of the Spirit being “in you,” He says “I will come to you,” and He tells them that “at that day” they would know “ye in me, and I in you.” These statements explain more fully what it meant for Him to receive them unto Himself.

The Promise Centres in Jesus Christ

John 14:3 is therefore not primarily about obtaining a future residence. It is about being brought to Jesus Christ and into the spiritual relationship He prepared through His completed work.

The believer is made alive with Christ, raised with Christ, seated in heavenly places in Christ, and brought by one Spirit into His body. The centre of every expression is Jesus Christ Himself.

This is Christianity as life in Christ. Salvation does not simply give the believer a destination. Salvation gives the believer the Person. Jesus Christ comes to dwell within those who are born again, and His life becomes their spiritual life.

The words of Jesus can therefore be allowed to stand in their own order:

“I go and prepare a place for you.”

Then:

“I will come again.”

And then:

“receive you unto myself.”

The next question follows directly. If Jesus promised that He would “come again,” what did Scripture mean by His second appearing?

The writer of Hebrews uses the words: “he shall appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

HE SHALL APPEAR THE SECOND TIME UNTO SALVATION

Jesus promised His disciples, “I will come again.” The writer of Hebrews gives us another important statement because he specifically speaks of Christ appearing “the second time.” This brings the promise of His coming into direct connection with salvation.

The writer of Hebrews wrote in Hebrews 9:26-28:

“For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

The writer places two appearings before us. The first is connected with Christ putting away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. The second is described differently: “he shall appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

His First Appearing Was Connected With Sacrifice

Hebrews first says that Christ “hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” This directs us to His coming in genuine human flesh and to the sacrifice He made for sin.

John wrote in John 1:14:

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

Jesus Christ truly came in flesh. His humanity was complete and genuine. He lived among people, suffered, died and offered Himself for sin.

Hebrews emphasises that His sacrifice was once for all. Christ did not need to repeat it.

The writer of Hebrews wrote in Hebrews 9:12:

“Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.”

Notice the completed expression “having obtained eternal redemption.” His redemptive work was not left unfinished. Jesus Christ accomplished what the sacrifices of the former covenant could never accomplish.

His first appearing was therefore connected directly with His sacrifice for sin. He appeared, offered Himself and obtained eternal redemption.

The Second Appearing Was Unto Salvation

Hebrews then makes the distinction clear. Christ “was once offered to bear the sins of many,” but He would “appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

The words “without sin” do not suggest that Jesus had previously possessed sin. Jesus Christ was without sin. The contrast concerns the purpose of the appearing.

At His first appearing, He came in connection with bearing sin and offering Himself as the sacrifice. At His second appearing, He did not come to offer Himself for sin again. That work had already been completed.

His second appearing was “unto salvation.” Those words belong together.

The verse does not separate the second appearing from salvation. It does not place the appearing in one age and the salvation connected with it in another. Christ would “appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

This gives us an important Scriptural test. If the second appearing of Hebrews 9:28 is still entirely future, then the salvation directly connected with that appearing must also still be future. But Scripture tells us that salvation is present now.

Now Is the Day of Salvation

Paul states this plainly.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 6:2:

“(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)”

Paul does not place salvation thousands of years into the future. He says, “now is the day of salvation.”

A person can be born again now. A person can receive Jesus Christ now. A person can receive the Spirit of Christ now.

A person can be brought into the body of Christ now and become part of the Church of God now. The salvation of Jesus Christ is a present Gospel-Day reality.

That has an unavoidable consequence for Hebrews 9:28. If the salvation has come, then the appearing “unto salvation” has also come. We cannot bring the salvation into the present while leaving the appearing directly connected with that salvation thousands of years in the future.

To do so separates what Scripture joins together.

Pentecost Brought Salvation Into New Covenant Reality

The book of Acts shows this salvation being experienced when the Gospel Day began.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:41:

“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”

People were receiving the Word of God and being added to the Church.

Luke then wrote in Acts 2:47:

“Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”

The words are direct: “the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” People were being saved, and the Lord was adding the saved to His Church.

Salvation was no longer waiting for another age. Salvation had become a present New Covenant reality. This agrees exactly with Paul's later declaration: “now is the day of salvation.”

The connection is therefore clear. Hebrews says Christ would “appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” Acts shows salvation becoming the present reality of the Gospel Day, and Paul says “now is the day of salvation.”

The second appearing cannot be pushed into a future age while the salvation connected with that appearing is already being experienced.

Jesus Explained How He Would Appear

The next question is not whether the second appearing has occurred. The salvation connected with that appearing is already here.

The question is:

How did Jesus Christ appear the second time unto salvation?

Jesus had already explained this to His disciples before His crucifixion. He had said, “I will come again.”

He then spoke of the Comforter and said, “he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” Jesus then made the promise unmistakably personal: “I will come to you.”

The One who had been with them in genuine human life would come to dwell within them by His Spirit. That promise was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost.

The Holy Ghost came, the disciples were filled with the Spirit, people were saved, and the Lord began adding the saved to His Church. The second appearing “unto salvation” had come.

The First Appearing and the Second Appearing

The distinction in Hebrews 9 is therefore clear. The first appearing was connected with Christ coming in genuine human flesh and offering Himself for sin. The second appearing was not another sacrifice. It was “without sin unto salvation.”

The first appearing accomplished redemption. The second appearing brought that salvation into New Covenant experience through the coming of Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit.

His first coming was Christ with His people in genuine human life. His second coming was Christ within His people as Spirit.

The sacrifice had been completed. Eternal redemption had been obtained. The Comforter came, salvation became the present reality of the Gospel Day, and the Lord began adding the saved to His Church.

Hebrews 9:28 is therefore speaking of the actual second coming of Jesus Christ, fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost in A.D. 31.

If the salvation has come, the appearing “unto salvation” has come.

The Person has come. Jesus Himself told His disciples exactly how He would come: “I will come to you.”

ANOTHER COMFORTER: YET THE SAME LORD

Jesus had promised His disciples that He would come again. As He continued speaking in John 14, He explained the manner of that coming by speaking of the Comforter. His words show that the coming of the Comforter was not the arrival of a different divine Person while Jesus remained absent. It was Jesus Christ coming to dwell within His people as Spirit.

Jesus said in John 14:16-18:

“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

These verses form one connected statement. Jesus speaks of “another Comforter,” says that His disciples already knew Him, says that He was dwelling with them and would be in them, and then declares, “I will come to you.” These statements must remain together because Jesus was explaining His own coming.

Another of the Same Kind

The Greek word translated “another” in John 14:16 is ALLOS. ALLOS generally carries the meaning of another of the same kind rather than another of a different kind. That meaning agrees with the rest of Jesus' words because He was not introducing an entirely different divine presence from the One His disciples already knew.

Jesus said “ye know him,” “he dwelleth with you,” “shall be in you,” and finally, “I will come to you.” The disciples already knew the One who would come as the Comforter because Jesus Christ was already with them. They had walked with Him, heard Him teach, received His correction, experienced His care and watched Him reveal God before them.

The same Lord who had been with them in genuine human life would come to dwell within them by His Spirit. ALLOS therefore agrees with the entire teaching. The Comforter would be another manifestation of the same divine presence, not another divine Person replacing Jesus Christ.

The Comforter Is the Holy Ghost

Jesus later identifies the Comforter directly.

Jesus said in John 14:26:

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

The Comforter is the Holy Ghost, but Jesus had already said concerning the coming of the Comforter, “I will come to you.” Therefore, when the Holy Ghost came, Jesus Christ came to His people as He had promised. The Holy Ghost is not a divine Person separate from Jesus Christ, but the Spirit of Christ through whom Jesus Christ personally dwells within His people.

To establish this clearly, we must now identify who Scripture calls “the Lord.” This identification is given repeatedly in the New Testament and prepares us to understand Paul's declaration that “the Lord is that Spirit.”

That Same Jesus Is Lord

Peter gives the identification plainly on the Day of Pentecost.

Peter said in Acts 2:36:

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Peter does not leave the identity of the Lord uncertain. He says that “that same Jesus” whom they had crucified is “both Lord and Christ.” The One who had been crucified is the One Peter identifies as Lord. The Lord is Jesus Christ.

There Is One Lord Jesus Christ

Paul gives the same identification.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 8:6:

“But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.”

Paul says there is “one Lord Jesus Christ.” There is not one Lord called Jesus Christ and another Lord who is the Spirit. There is one Lord, and Paul identifies that Lord as Jesus Christ.

This becomes especially important when we come to Paul's later statement, “the Lord is that Spirit.” The same apostle who says “one Lord Jesus Christ” also says “the Lord is that Spirit.” He is not introducing another Lord. He is identifying the one Lord Jesus Christ with the Spirit.

Every Tongue Shall Confess That Jesus Christ Is Lord

Paul confirms the same truth again.

Paul wrote in Philippians 2:9-11:

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Every tongue is to confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord.” There is no uncertainty concerning the identity. Acts says “that same Jesus” is Lord, First Corinthians says “one Lord Jesus Christ,” and Philippians says “Jesus Christ is Lord.”

These Scriptures establish the identity of the Lord before we come to Paul's words in 2 Corinthians. We are therefore not required to guess whom Paul means when he speaks of “the Lord.” Scripture has already identified Him.

The Lord Is That Spirit

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 3:16-18:

“Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away. Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

Paul first says “turn to the Lord.” He then tells us “the Lord is that Spirit,” and immediately speaks of “the Spirit of the Lord.” The identity of that Lord has already been established by the Scriptures we have examined.

That same Jesus is Lord and Christ. There is “one Lord Jesus Christ,” and every tongue is to confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Therefore, when Paul says “the Lord is that Spirit,” the Lord he is speaking of is Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is that Spirit. This is not an assumption added to Paul's words. It is the conclusion established by allowing the words of Scripture to stand together.

The Spirit of God Is the Spirit of Christ

Paul gives another line of evidence in Romans.

Paul wrote in Romans 8:9-10:

“But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”

Follow Paul's words carefully. He begins with “the Spirit of God dwell in you,” then speaks of “the Spirit of Christ,” and then says “Christ be in you.” Paul does not change from one indwelling divine Person to another.

The Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ. When the Spirit of Christ is within the believer, Paul describes that reality as “Christ be in you.” This agrees directly with his statement, “the Lord is that Spirit.”

The Lord is Jesus Christ, and the Lord is that Spirit. Therefore, Jesus Christ dwells within His people as Spirit. The New Testament expressions agree with one another and describe the same indwelling reality.

Christ Lives Within the Believer

Paul describes the same reality personally.

Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20:

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Paul does not say that one divine Person called the Holy Spirit lives within him while Jesus Christ remains elsewhere. He says plainly, “Christ liveth in me.” That agrees with Romans, where he says “Christ be in you,” and with 2 Corinthians, where he says “the Lord is that Spirit.”

It also agrees with the words of Jesus Himself: “I will come to you.” The testimony is consistent from one Scripture to the next. Jesus Christ promised to come to His people, and the apostles describe the indwelling Spirit as Christ Himself dwelling within the believer.

The Promise and the Fulfilment Agree

We can now bring the evidence together. Jesus promised “another Comforter,” and ALLOS speaks of another of the same kind. The disciples already knew Him, He was dwelling with them, He would be in them, and Jesus said concerning this coming, “I will come to you.”

The Comforter is the Holy Ghost. Peter identifies “that same Jesus” as “Lord and Christ,” while Paul says there is “one Lord Jesus Christ” and declares that “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Paul then says of that Lord, “the Lord is that Spirit.”

Romans identifies the indwelling Spirit as both “the Spirit of God” and “the Spirit of Christ,” and Paul then describes that indwelling reality with the words “Christ be in you.” In Galatians he says again, “Christ liveth in me.” Line upon line, these Scriptures establish the same truth.

The Comforter is the Holy Ghost, and the Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Christ. Jesus Christ is the Lord, and “the Lord is that Spirit.” Therefore, the coming of the Comforter was Jesus Christ Himself coming to dwell within His people as Spirit.

The One who had been with them would now be in them. This was the change Jesus was preparing His disciples to understand, and it is exactly what He promised when He said, “he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”

FROM “WITH YOU” TO “IN YOU”

Jesus had already identified the Comforter as the Holy Ghost. Scripture has also established that Jesus Christ is the Lord, that “the Lord is that Spirit,” and that the Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ. We can therefore follow the words of Jesus in John 14 with a clear understanding of who was with the disciples and who would come to dwell within them.

Jesus said in John 14:17:

“Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”

Jesus describes two conditions in this verse. First, “he dwelleth with you,” and then, “shall be in you.” The movement is direct: with you becomes in you. This change is central to understanding the second coming of Jesus Christ.

Who Was With Them?

Jesus told the disciples, “ye know him,” and immediately explained why: “for he dwelleth with you.” The disciples knew Jesus Christ because He was physically present with them. They had walked beside Him, heard His words, watched His works and lived in His presence.

John had already identified Jesus as the truth.

Jesus said in John 14:6:

“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

Jesus is “the truth,” and then He speaks of the Comforter as “the Spirit of truth.” The Spirit of truth was not unknown to the disciples because Jesus said, “ye know him” and “he dwelleth with you.” The One who was with them was Jesus Christ, and the Spirit of truth is the Spirit of Christ.

His Bodily Presence Was About to Change

The disciples had known Jesus through His visible human presence. He stood beside them in genuine human life, but He repeatedly told them that this outward relationship was about to change. Jesus was going away, and He explained why His departure was necessary.

Jesus said in John 16:7:

“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.”

Jesus said, “It is expedient for you that I go away.” His departure was therefore necessary for the greater New Covenant relationship to come. The disciples already had Jesus beside them physically, yet He said it was better for them that He go away.

The reason becomes clear through the words He had already spoken. Their relationship with Him was about to move beyond Christ standing beside them in bodily presence. The Comforter would come, and the Spirit who was with them would be in them. The New Covenant would bring the indwelling Christ.

The New Covenant Relationship Is Christ Within

Jesus did not promise simply to restore the same outward relationship the disciples had already experienced. They already knew what it was to have Jesus physically beside them. He promised something greater when He said that the Spirit “shall be in you.”

The apostolic writings show that this promise became the defining reality of the Gospel Day.

Paul wrote in Colossians 1:26-27:

“Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:”

Notice the movement from what had been hidden to what was now revealed. Paul says that the mystery “now is made manifest,” and identifies that revealed mystery as “Christ in you.” Jesus had promised “shall be in you,” and Paul describes the New Covenant reality as “Christ in you.”

The promise and the fulfilment agree exactly. The One who had been with them was now in them. The relationship Jesus had promised had become the continuing reality of His people.

Christ Liveth in Me

Paul makes the same truth personal in his own testimony.

Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20:

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Paul says, “Christ liveth in me.” This is not simply belief about Jesus, remembering Jesus or attempting to copy Jesus from the outside. It is the life of Jesus Christ within the believer.

Jesus had promised “shall be in you,” and Paul testifies “Christ liveth in me.” The New Covenant reality is therefore inward. Christianity is the life of Jesus Christ within the born-again believer.

Christ Dwells in the Heart

Paul gives the same testimony again when writing to the Ephesians.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:16-17:

“That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,”

Notice how Paul joins the Spirit and Christ within. He speaks first of being strengthened “by his Spirit in the inner man,” and then immediately says, “That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith.” The Spirit within and Christ within are not two different divine presences.

Christ dwells within His people by His Spirit. This is exactly what Jesus had prepared His disciples to understand when He said, “he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” What had been an outward presence with them would become an inward presence within them.

We No Longer Know Christ After the Flesh

Paul also explains that the Gospel-Day relationship with Jesus Christ is no longer based upon the outward physical relationship the disciples had known before His departure.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:16:

“Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.”

Paul is not denying the genuine humanity of Jesus Christ. Jesus truly came in flesh, truly suffered, truly died and truly rose again. The point concerns how Christ is now known by His people.

The disciples had once known Jesus according to His bodily presence beside them. They had seen Him with their eyes, heard His physical voice and walked with Him from place to place. The New Covenant relationship would not be a continuation of Jesus physically walking beside His people.

Christ would dwell within them. The relationship had moved from outward presence to inward indwelling, and from Christ with them to Christ in them. His people would now know His continuing presence through His Spirit within.

Pentecost Fulfilled the Change

Jesus had promised that the Spirit who was dwelling with them would be in them. On the Day of Pentecost, the promised change took place. The One who had been with them in genuine human life came to dwell within them as Spirit.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:1-4:

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Before Pentecost Jesus had said “shall be in you.” At Pentecost, “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Christ, the Lord is that Spirit, and Jesus Christ is that Lord.

The One who had been with them in genuine human life had now come to dwell within them as Spirit. The movement Jesus promised had been fulfilled. With you had become in you.

The Person Is Within

The continuing New Covenant testimony is consistent. Jesus said “shall be in you,” Paul says “Christ in you,” Paul says “Christ liveth in me,” and Paul speaks of Christ dwelling in the heart. Each expression points to the same indwelling reality.

The Person has come, and Jesus Christ is present within His people. Every born-again believer possesses the Spirit of Christ and therefore possesses the Person. Christianity is the life of Jesus Christ within the born-again believer.

The New Covenant reality is not Christ standing beside His people in bodily presence. It is Jesus Christ living within His people by His Spirit. Jesus Himself explains this transition in the words that follow when He says, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

I WILL COME TO YOU

Jesus had told His disciples that the Spirit of truth was “with you” and would “be in you.” He then removed every uncertainty about whose presence they would receive. His words are direct and personal: “I will come to you.”

Jesus said in John 14:18:

“I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

Jesus did not say that He would leave and that someone else would come in His place. He did not tell His disciples that His own presence would be replaced by another divine Person. He said that He Himself would come. This statement is one of the clearest explanations Jesus gave concerning His promised return.

Jesus Himself Said, “I Will Come”

The speaker in John 14 is Jesus Christ. Therefore, when He says “I will come to you,” the “I” is Jesus. This simple point must not be overlooked because Jesus Himself identifies the Person who would come.

Jesus had already told His disciples, “I go to prepare a place for you,” and then, “I will come again.” Later He said, “I will come to you.” These are not separate promises concerning different persons. The same Jesus who said “I go” is the Jesus who said “I will come again,” and the same Jesus then said “I will come to you.”

The promise is personal. Jesus Christ was going away from His disciples in bodily presence, but He would not remain absent from them. Jesus Christ Himself would come to them again.

The Coming Is Connected With the Comforter

The words “I will come to you” do not stand alone. They immediately follow Jesus' teaching concerning the Comforter. The coming of Jesus must therefore be understood together with what He had just said about the Spirit of truth.

Jesus said in John 14:16-18:

“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

Follow the order carefully. Jesus promises the Comforter, identifies Him as “the Spirit of truth,” says “ye know him,” and explains that “he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” He then completes the explanation with the words “I will come to you.”

The coming of Jesus and the coming of the Comforter are therefore the same promised event. The Comforter would not arrive while Jesus remained absent. The coming of the Comforter would be Jesus Christ coming to His disciples as Spirit.

The Comforter Is the Holy Ghost

Jesus identifies the Comforter later in the same chapter.

Jesus said in John 14:26:

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

The Comforter is the Holy Ghost. Jesus had already said concerning the coming of the Comforter, “I will come to you.” When these statements are placed together, the meaning is clear: Jesus Christ would come to His disciples as the Holy Ghost.

That conclusion is confirmed by the apostolic writings. Scripture identifies Jesus Christ as the Lord and then tells us that “the Lord is that Spirit.” We can therefore follow the biblical testimony from the identity of Jesus Christ as Lord to His presence within His people as Spirit.

Jesus Christ Is the Lord

Peter identified Jesus Christ as Lord on the Day of Pentecost.

Peter said in Acts 2:36:

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Peter identifies “that same Jesus” whom they had crucified as “both Lord and Christ.” The identity is direct. Jesus Christ is the Lord.

Paul gives the same identification in 1 Corinthians 8:6:

“But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.”

Paul says there is “one Lord Jesus Christ.” He does not identify one Lord as Jesus Christ and another Lord as the Spirit. There is one Lord, and that Lord is Jesus Christ.

Paul states the same truth again in Philippians 2:11:

“And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Acts says “that same Jesus” is Lord and Christ. First Corinthians says there is “one Lord Jesus Christ,” and Philippians says “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Scripture has therefore established the identity of the Lord before we come to Paul's words in 2 Corinthians.

The Lord Is That Spirit

Having established who the Lord is, we can now read Paul's words without uncertainty.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 3:17:

“Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”

The Lord has already been identified as Jesus Christ. Acts calls “that same Jesus” Lord, First Corinthians says “one Lord Jesus Christ,” and Philippians says “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Paul then declares concerning that Lord, “the Lord is that Spirit.”

The conclusion follows from the Scriptures standing together. Jesus Christ is Lord, and “the Lord is that Spirit.” Therefore, Jesus Christ is present to His people as Spirit.

This agrees exactly with His promise in John 14. Jesus did not tell His disciples that another divine Person would replace Him. He told them plainly, “I will come to you.”

The Spirit of God Is the Spirit of Christ

Paul gives another confirmation in Romans.

Paul wrote in Romans 8:9-10:

“But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”

Notice the progression in Paul's words. He begins with “the Spirit of God dwell in you,” then speaks of “the Spirit of Christ,” and finally says “Christ be in you.” Paul is describing the same indwelling reality.

The Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ, and when the Spirit of Christ dwells within the believer, Christ Himself is within. Jesus said “I will come to you,” and Paul says “Christ be in you.” The promise and the apostolic explanation agree.

Pentecost Fulfilled the Promise

The disciples did not have to wait thousands of years for Jesus to fulfil His words. He had told them that He would come to them, that the Spirit would be in them and that the Comforter was the Holy Ghost. The Day of Pentecost brought the fulfilment of those promises.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:1-4:

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Before Pentecost Jesus had promised “shall be in you.” At Pentecost, “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” The Comforter had come, and the One who had promised “I will come to you” had fulfilled His word.

The Holy Ghost is the Comforter. Jesus Christ is the Lord, and “the Lord is that Spirit.” The Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ, and when that Spirit dwells within the believer, Christ is within.

The evidence stands together without contradiction. Jesus kept His promise and came to His disciples on the Day of Pentecost as the Holy Ghost to dwell within them.

The Person Has Come

The second coming of Jesus Christ was not the arrival of another divine Person or the replacement of Jesus by someone else. It was Jesus Christ Himself coming to His people as Spirit. He had said “I will come again,” “shall be in you,” and “I will come to you.”

At Pentecost the disciples were “filled with the Holy Ghost.” The Lord is that Spirit, the Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ, and Christ is in His people. The Person has come.

Jesus then continued His explanation and told His disciples what they would know “at that day.” His next words describe the New Covenant relationship that His coming would establish: “ye in me, and I in you.”

AT THAT DAY: YE IN ME, AND I IN YOU

Jesus had told His disciples that He would come to them. He had explained that the relationship would change from the Spirit dwelling with them to dwelling in them. He then continued by telling them exactly what they would know when that promised day arrived.

Jesus said in John 14:19-20:

“Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.”

These words explain the nature of His coming even further. Jesus speaks of “that day” and tells His disciples what would become known to them on that day: “ye in me, and I in you.” The day of His coming would therefore be known by the indwelling relationship established between Jesus Christ and His people.

The World Would See Him No More

Jesus first said, “Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more.” His visible earthly ministry was coming to an end. The world had seen Jesus walking openly among the people, teaching, healing, travelling through cities and villages, entering the Temple and speaking publicly. Jesus now told His disciples that this visible relationship with the world was about to cease.

He did not say that the world would cease to see Him for a short time and then see Him again in the same manner. He said, “the world seeth me no more.” The outward bodily manifestation of Jesus Christ to the world was not the relationship He was promising to restore.

This does not deny His genuine humanity. Jesus Christ truly came in flesh, truly suffered, truly died and truly rose again. The point is that His New Covenant presence with His people would not be a return to the former outward relationship of Jesus physically walking among them. Something greater was coming.

“But Ye See Me”

After saying “the world seeth me no more,” Jesus immediately said to His disciples, “but ye see me.” The world would not see Him, yet His disciples would know His presence. Jesus then explained how they would know Him.

He said, “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” They would no longer depend upon seeing Jesus standing physically before them. They would know Him through the inward spiritual relationship He was about to establish.

His presence would not be less real because it was inward. The relationship would be greater because Christ would be in them. The One who had walked beside them would become their indwelling life.

“At That Day”

Jesus did not leave the promised day undefined. He attached a specific spiritual reality to it when He said, “At that day ye shall know.” These words were spoken directly to His disciples, who were being prepared for something they themselves would experience.

Jesus did not tell them that people thousands of years later would be the ones to know this reality. He said to those disciples, “ye shall know.” He then identified what they would know: “ye in me, and I in you.”

The day Jesus was describing was therefore the day when His disciples would enter the New Covenant experience of Christ dwelling within them. The identifying evidence of that day would not be Jesus once again standing beside them in visible human life. It would be the reality expressed in His words, “I in you.”

The Promise Was “I in You”

We can now follow the words of Jesus in their own order. Concerning the Spirit of truth, He first said “he dwelleth with you,” and then “shall be in you.” He followed that promise with “I will come to you,” and then explained the result as “I in you.”

These statements explain one another. The One who was with them would be in them, and Jesus Himself would come. At that day they would know the reality of “I in you.”

The second coming of Jesus Christ was therefore not designed to restore the outward relationship His disciples had already known. His promised coming would establish something greater: the indwelling Christ. The relationship would move from His bodily presence beside them to His life within them by His Spirit.

Pentecost Was “That Day”

The disciples were later told to wait for the promised Holy Ghost. Then, on the Day of Pentecost, the promise became their experience. What Jesus had described beforehand was now fulfilled in those who had waited for His promise.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:1-4:

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Jesus had said “shall be in you,” and at Pentecost “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” Jesus had said “I will come to you,” and the Holy Ghost came. He had said, “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you,” and at Pentecost the disciples received the indwelling Spirit of Christ.

The promised day had arrived, and the change Jesus described had taken place. The One who had been with them had come to dwell within them. With them had become in them.

The Apostles Describe the Fulfilled Reality

The Epistles then describe the same reality that Jesus had promised. What Jesus described before Pentecost became the continuing testimony of the apostles after Pentecost. Their teaching repeatedly centres upon Jesus Christ dwelling within His people.

Paul wrote in Colossians 1:26-27:

“Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:”

Jesus had said “I in you,” and Paul says “Christ in you.” There is no difference between the promise and the fulfilled New Covenant reality. Jesus promised the indwelling Christ, and Paul describes that same reality as “Christ in you.”

Notice also Paul's words “but now is made manifest.” The mystery was not still waiting for another future age. It had been revealed, and the mystery was “Christ in you.” What Jesus had promised was now the present life of His people.

“Christ Liveth in Me”

Paul makes the same truth personal in his own testimony.

Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20:

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Jesus had promised “I in you,” and Paul testifies “Christ liveth in me.” The life of Christianity is therefore the life of Jesus Christ within the believer. It is not an outward attempt to follow Christ from a distance, but Christ Himself living within.

The believer does not wait for Christ to arrive in some future age before possessing His life. Christ lives within those who are born again now. The Person has come, and His life is the life of the believer.

“Because I Live, Ye Shall Live Also”

Jesus also said, “because I live, ye shall live also.” Their life would be connected with His life. The New Covenant gives spiritual life through Jesus Christ, and that life is inseparable from the Person who dwells within.

Paul expressed the same truth in Philippians 1:21:

“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Paul's words are direct: “to me to live is Christ.” The Christian life is not independent life trying to follow Jesus from a distance. Jesus Christ lives within His people, and they live through His life.

This is the reality Jesus was preparing His disciples to receive. He lives, and because He lives, His people live also. Christianity is the life of Jesus Christ within the born-again believer.

The Day Is Identified by the Indwelling Christ

Jesus Himself gave the identifying truth of the promised day when He said, “At that day ye shall know.” He then explained what they would know: “ye in me, and I in you.” Pentecost brought that relationship into their experience when the Holy Ghost came and the disciples were filled.

The apostolic testimony then became “Christ in you” and “Christ liveth in me.” The Spirit of Christ dwelt within His people, and the Lord was that Spirit. The One who had been with them had come to dwell within them.

The day of Christ's promised coming was the day when the One who had been with His people came to live within His people. Jesus Christ came on the Day of Pentecost, and His indwelling presence became the continuing reality of the New Covenant.

Jesus' next words show that this coming would not be temporary. He would come to His people and make His abode with them.

WE WILL COME UNTO HIM, AND MAKE OUR ABODE WITH HIM

Jesus had already told His disciples that the Spirit of truth would be in them. He had promised, “I will come to you,” and He had explained that “at that day” they would know, “ye in me, and I in you.” He then continued the same teaching by describing His coming as an abiding presence within the believer.

Jesus said in John 14:23:

“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

Two expressions stand together in this verse: “we will come unto him” and “make our abode with him.” Jesus was not describing a brief appearance followed by another departure. He was describing God coming to dwell within His people. The promised coming would be an abiding coming.

The Same Word as “Mansions”

Earlier in John 14 Jesus had said, “In my Father's house are many mansions.” The Greek word translated “mansions” in John 14:2 is MONĒ, which carries the thought of an abiding place or dwelling place. When Jesus later says “make our abode with him,” the word translated “abode” is the same Greek noun, MONĒ.

This connection is important because John 14 begins with “many mansions” and later speaks of God coming to “make our abode with him.” The same chapter uses the same word in both places. Jesus was not describing one subject in verse 2 and then introducing an unrelated subject in verse 23.

The language of dwelling runs through the whole chapter. The Father's house contains dwelling places, and later Jesus explains that God would come and make His dwelling with the believer. John 14 therefore provides its own continuing explanation of this dwelling language.

The Father's House Is a Dwelling Place of God

We have already established from Scripture that the Father's house is the Church of God. Paul gives the identification directly when he speaks of “the house of God, which is the church of the living God.” The Father's house is therefore understood through God's spiritual people rather than through a physical structure.

Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 3:15:

“But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”

Paul also explains how God dwells within that house. The Church is not simply called God's house. It is a spiritual habitation in which God dwells through His Spirit.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:21-22:

“In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”

The Church is “an habitation of God through the Spirit.” This agrees directly with Jesus' words, “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” God's house is made up of people in whom God dwells by His Spirit. The dwelling places of John 14 are therefore connected with the indwelling presence of God in His people.

God Dwells Within His People

Paul gives the same truth to the Corinthians. He describes believers as the temple of God and immediately explains why that description applies to them. God Himself dwells within His people by His Spirit.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 3:16:

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”

Believers are “the temple of God” because “the Spirit of God dwelleth in you.” The New Covenant dwelling place of God is therefore not a physical structure made by human hands. God dwells within His people, exactly as Jesus had promised when He said, “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

The words agree from one Scripture to another. The Church is God's house, believers are His temple, and together they are an habitation of God through the Spirit. The emphasis throughout is upon God's presence dwelling within His people.

Who Is the Father Who Comes?

Jesus said, “my Father will love him, and we will come unto him.” To understand these words, we must remember what Jesus had already revealed concerning the Father. Earlier in the same chapter He had explained the relationship between Himself and the Father to Philip.

Jesus said in John 14:9-10:

“Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.”

Jesus said, “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father,” and then explained, “the Father that dwelleth in me.” The Father is not another visible divine Person standing beside Jesus Christ. The Father is the eternal Spirit who dwelt within and was revealed through the genuine human life of Jesus Christ.

Jesus had already told the woman of Samaria what God is.

Jesus said in John 4:24:

“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”

God is Spirit, and the Father is that eternal Spirit. Therefore, when Jesus says “we will come unto him,” He is not teaching that two separate divine beings will enter the believer. The one God who was revealed through Jesus Christ would come to dwell within His people by His Spirit.

The Spirit of God Is the Spirit of Christ

Paul confirms how this indwelling takes place. In one connected statement he speaks of the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ and Christ within the believer. These expressions describe the same indwelling presence.

Paul wrote in Romans 8:9-10:

“But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”

Paul begins with “the Spirit of God dwell in you,” then speaks of “the Spirit of Christ,” and immediately continues with “Christ be in you.” The Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ. When the Spirit of Christ dwells within the believer, Christ Himself dwells within.

This is the fulfilment of Jesus' promise, “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” The indwelling presence of God is not separated from the indwelling Christ. Jesus Christ dwells within His people by His Spirit.

He Would Abide With Them For Ever

The word “abode” also agrees with another promise Jesus had already made concerning the Comforter. He had explained that the Comforter would not come for a short period and then depart. His presence would continue with God's people.

Jesus said in John 14:16:

“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;”

Jesus says that the Comforter would “abide with you for ever.” The coming of the Comforter was therefore not a temporary appearance. Jesus was describing a continuing and abiding presence within His people.

The statements throughout John 14 stand together. Jesus says “I will come to you,” then “I in you,” and later “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” Each statement points towards the same permanent indwelling reality. The promised second coming was an abiding coming.

From Mansion to Abode

We can now follow the teaching of John 14 from beginning to end. Jesus begins with “In my Father's house are many mansions,” and the word translated “mansions” is MONĒ, referring to dwelling places. He then says “I go to prepare a place for you,” followed by “I will come again” and “receive you unto myself.”

As the chapter continues, Jesus explains that the Spirit “shall be in you.” He then says “I will come to you” and describes the resulting relationship as “I in you.” Finally, He says “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

The same word MONĒ that appears as “mansions” at the beginning of the chapter appears again as “abode.” The teaching has come full circle. The Father's house is God's spiritual house, the dwelling places belong within that house, and God comes to dwell within His people by His Spirit.

The New Covenant Reality Is an Indwelling Person

Christianity is not centred upon waiting for Jesus Christ to become present at some future physical appearing. Jesus Christ has come to dwell within His people. The believer is the temple of God because the Spirit of God dwells within, and the Church is an habitation of God through the Spirit.

The Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ, and Christ is in the believer. The Person has come. The promise was not simply that Jesus would visit His people, but that He would come and make His abode with them.

Jesus Christ came to remain. His promised presence is an abiding presence within those who are born again. The New Covenant reality is Jesus Christ dwelling within His people by His Spirit.

The next step is to see exactly when the disciples received this promised indwelling presence. Acts records the beginning of that fulfilment with the words, “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come”.

PENTECOST: THE PROMISE FULFILLED

Jesus had told His disciples what He was going to do. He would go away, prepare a place for them, come again and receive them unto Himself. He told them that the Spirit of truth who was with them would be in them, and He made the promise personal when He said, “I will come to you.”

Jesus then said that “at that day” they would know “ye in me, and I in you.” The question is therefore no longer what Jesus promised because His words are clear. The question is: When was the promise fulfilled? The book of Acts gives the answer.

They Were Told to Wait for the Promise

Before His departure from their visible presence, Jesus instructed His disciples to remain in Jerusalem until the promised Spirit came. They were not left to wonder whether the promise would be fulfilled during their lifetime. Jesus gave them a direct command to wait because the fulfilment was approaching.

Jesus said in Luke 24:49:

“And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”

Jesus called what was about to happen “the promise of my Father.” The disciples were not told to wait indefinitely or to expect the fulfilment in some distant generation. They were told to remain in Jerusalem because the promised event was near.

Luke records the same instruction at the beginning of Acts.

Luke wrote in Acts 1:4–5:

“And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.”

Notice the words “which, saith he, ye have heard of me.” Jesus connected the coming Holy Ghost with a promise the disciples had already heard from Him. He had spoken of the Comforter, said “shall be in you,” and promised “I will come to you.”

Now He told those same disciples to wait for “the promise of the Father” and identified what was about to happen: “ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.” The promise of John 14 was moving directly towards fulfilment. What Jesus had explained before His crucifixion was now only days away from becoming their experience.

Baptised in the Holy Spirit

The Literal Translation of the Holy Bible (LITV) renders Acts 1:5:

“for John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days after.”

In Acts 1:5, the Greek preposition EN appears in the expression concerning the Holy Spirit. EN can be translated “in”, “with” or “by”, depending on context. The LITV makes “in the Holy Spirit” explicit; the KJV’s “with” does not mean that the Spirit remains outside the believer.

In John 1:33, EN is used with both water and the Holy Spirit: EN HYDATI means “in water”, and EN PNEUMATI HAGIŌ means “in the Holy Spirit”. John administered baptism in water, but Jesus Christ gives the spiritual baptism.

Being in the Spirit and having the Spirit within are not opposite ideas. Jesus described a relationship in which His children would be in Him and He would be in them.

Jesus said in John 14:20:

“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.”

At the new birth, the believer is brought into Christ, and Christ comes to dwell within the believer. This is baptism in the Holy Spirit, not a later experience required to complete salvation.

“Not Many Days Hence”

Jesus gave His disciples a clear expectation when He said “not many days hence.” He did not tell them to wait for an event thousands of years in the future. The coming of the Holy Ghost was imminent, and the same disciples who had heard “I will come to you” were now told that the promised Holy Ghost would come within days.

The promise belonged directly to them, and the fulfilment was near. Jesus had also explained what would happen when the Holy Ghost came. The disciples themselves would receive what He had promised and become witnesses of Jesus Christ.

Luke wrote in Acts 1:8:

“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

Again, the promise is placed directly before those disciples. Jesus said “ye shall receive power” and “the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” Everything was pointing towards an event that they themselves were about to experience.

The Day of Pentecost Came

Then the promised day arrived. The disciples had remained in Jerusalem as Jesus commanded, and the time of waiting came to an end. What Jesus had promised in John 14 and again before His departure was now fulfilled.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:1-4:

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Compare what Jesus had promised with what Luke records. Jesus had said “shall be in you,” and Luke says “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” Jesus had said “I will come to you,” and the Holy Ghost came.

Jesus had also said, “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” At Pentecost the disciples were filled with the Holy Ghost, and the promise became their experience.

The One who had been with them had come to dwell within them. With you had become in you.

“This Is That”

Peter did not describe Pentecost as an unexplained spiritual event. He stood before the people and declared that what they were witnessing was the fulfilment of what God had promised. The time of expectation had given way to fulfilment.

Peter said in Acts 2:16-18:

“But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:”

Peter's words are definite: “this is that.” God had promised “I will pour out of my Spirit,” and at Pentecost “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” The promise had become fulfilment.

The time of waiting had ended because the promised Spirit had come. Peter did not point the people towards another age for the fulfilment of what Joel had spoken. He declared that what they were witnessing was the promised outpouring.

“This Jesus” Shed Forth the Holy Ghost

Peter then connects what had happened at Pentecost directly with Jesus Christ. The outpouring of the Holy Ghost was not separated from Jesus or presented as the work of another divine Person acting while Jesus remained absent. Peter directs attention to “This Jesus.”

Peter said in Acts 2:32-33:

“This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.”

The same Jesus who had been crucified had been raised and exalted. Peter then says that He “hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.” The Holy Ghost outpouring at Pentecost is therefore directly connected with Jesus Christ.

This agrees with His earlier promise, “I will come to you.” Jesus did not promise to remain absent while another divine Person came to take His place. The Holy Ghost came as Jesus Christ fulfilled His promise to dwell within His people as Spirit.

“That Same Jesus” Is Lord

Peter continues and identifies the exalted Jesus without uncertainty. The Jesus who had been crucified, raised and exalted is the same Jesus Peter declares to be Lord and Christ. His identity does not change.

Peter said in Acts 2:36:

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Peter tells the house of Israel to “know assuredly” that “that same Jesus” is “both Lord and Christ.” The apostolic testimony continues with the same identification: there is “one Lord Jesus Christ,” and every tongue shall confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Paul then declares concerning that Lord, “the Lord is that Spirit.”

The Lord who came to dwell within His people as Spirit is Jesus Christ. Peter identifies “that same Jesus” as Lord, and Paul identifies the Lord as that Spirit. Line upon line, the testimony stands together.

The Second Appearing Was Unto Salvation

Hebrews had said that Christ “shall appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” At Pentecost, salvation became the present New Covenant reality. The Gospel was preached, people responded, and the Lord began adding the saved to His Church.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:41:

“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”

People were receiving the Word of God and being added to the Church. The promised New Covenant salvation was now being experienced. Luke then describes this continuing work of the Lord.

Luke wrote in Acts 2:47:

“Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”

The Lord was adding “such as should be saved.” Hebrews had described the second appearing as “unto salvation,” and now people were being saved and added by the Lord to His Church. The salvation connected with the second appearing had come, and therefore the appearing “unto salvation” had come.

Pentecost was the fulfilment. The sacrifice had already been completed, and eternal redemption had been obtained. Now the salvation accomplished through Jesus Christ had become the present New Covenant reality.

The Promise and Fulfilment Stand Together

The whole Scriptural chain can now be followed without a break. Jesus said “I will come again,” “shall be in you,” “I will come to you,” and “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” He also said “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

Jesus then told His disciples to “wait for the promise of the Father” and said that the Holy Ghost would come “not many days hence.” When “the day of Pentecost was fully come,” the disciples “were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” The promise Jesus had given them was fulfilled.

Peter then declared “this is that,” identified “This Jesus” as the One who “hath shed forth this,” and proclaimed “that same Jesus” as “both Lord and Christ.” Paul later declared “the Lord is that Spirit,” and the continuing New Covenant testimony became “Christ in you.” The Scriptures agree from the promise through to the continuing reality.

Jesus Christ Came at Pentecost

Pentecost was not preparation for the second coming. Pentecost was the fulfilment of the promised coming of Jesus Christ to His people as Spirit. His first appearing was connected with His sacrifice for sin, while His second appearing was “without sin unto salvation.”

At Pentecost the Holy Ghost came, the disciples received the promised indwelling presence, and salvation became the present Gospel-Day reality. The Lord began adding the saved to His Church. The One who had been with His disciples came to dwell within them.

Jesus Christ kept His promise when He said “I will come to you.” He came, and the Person has come. From Pentecost onward, the continuing New Covenant reality is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

CONCLUSION: THE PERSON HAS COME

The promise of the second coming of Jesus Christ becomes clear when the Scriptures are followed line upon line. Jesus did not leave His disciples uncertain about how He would come. He explained His coming, described the relationship it would establish, told them to wait for the promise, and then fulfilled His words on the Day of Pentecost.

Jesus first spoke of His Father's house. Scripture identifies the house of God as “the church of the living God,” and believers are described as a spiritual house and an habitation of God through the Spirit. The many MONĒ of John 14:2 are dwelling places, and the same Greek word appears later when Jesus says that God would come and make His “abode” with the believer.

Jesus then said, “I go to prepare a place for you.” Through His death and resurrection, He completed the redemptive work necessary for the New Covenant relationship. He prepared the way for His people to be brought into Himself and into His body, the Church.

Jesus then promised, “I will come again, and receive you unto myself.” Hebrews describes His first appearing in connection with His sacrifice for sin and then declares that He would “appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” His first appearing accomplished the redemptive work, while His second appearing was connected directly with salvation.

That second appearing cannot be separated from the salvation connected with it. Scripture declares that “now is the day of salvation,” and Acts records that the Lord was adding to His Church those who were being saved. The salvation connected with the second appearing had come.

Jesus also explained how He would come. He promised “another Comforter,” and the Greek word ALLOS speaks of another of the same kind. Jesus said that His disciples already knew Him because He was dwelling with them and would be in them.

Jesus then made the promise unmistakably personal when He said, “I will come to you.” The Comforter is the Holy Ghost, and Scripture identifies Jesus Christ as the Lord. Peter declared concerning Him, “that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ,” while Paul wrote “one Lord Jesus Christ” and “Jesus Christ is Lord.”

Paul then declared, “the Lord is that Spirit.” Scripture has already identified Jesus Christ as the Lord, and Paul identifies the Lord as that Spirit. Therefore, Jesus Christ came to His people as Spirit.

Paul confirms the same truth in Romans by speaking of “the Spirit of God,” “the Spirit of Christ,” and “Christ be in you.” The indwelling Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus Christ. When the Spirit of Christ dwells within the believer, Christ Himself dwells within.

Jesus had already described this change when He said, “he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” He then explained what His disciples would know when that promised day arrived: “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” The promised day would therefore bring the indwelling Christ.

At Pentecost, that promise was fulfilled. Jesus had told the disciples to wait for the promise of the Father and said that the Holy Ghost would come “not many days hence.” When the Day of Pentecost arrived, “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,” and Peter declared, “this is that.”

The promise had become fulfilment. Jesus Christ kept His word. His first appearing was connected with His sacrifice for sin, while His second appearing was “unto salvation.” He came on the Day of Pentecost in A.D. 31 as the Holy Spirit to dwell within His people.

Paul later described the continuing New Covenant reality in Colossians 1:27:

“To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:”

That is the fulfilled reality: Christ in you. The Church is not waiting for the Person to arrive because Jesus Christ now dwells within every born-again believer by His Spirit. The Person has come.

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