Christ is Intimately Involved with Human History, and His Second Coming is Victorious

Zechariah 12-14 speaks of Christ’s victorious second coming, which will be with power and authority; as the centrality and universality of God’s economy, Christ is intimately involved with human history.

This is why we need to read the Bible and especially get into the prophecies in the Old Testament with a vision of God’s eternal economy.

It is easy to read the Bible and get what we want, to understand what we desire, and to focus on what causes us to feel happy.

But we need to come to God’s word and open to the Lord so that He would shine on us and infuse us with what is in His heart.

We need to see God’s eternal economy in the holy word of God, and we need to realize that God’s history in man’s history is for the fulfilment of His economy.

In the Old Testament, we have the book of Zechariah, a prophet who lived during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah.

In his prophecies, Zechariah spoke concerning Christ in His first and second coming. All the things that he prophesied concerning the Lord’s first coming were fulfilled.

The Lord’s first coming was not in majesty and with splendour; rather, He had a lowly first coming, which was humble and intimate.

When He came the first time, only a few people knew or even noticed that He was born.

Similarly throughout His life and work on earth, not many knew Him, and His work and living were restricted to the country of Israel.

He came in a righteous way with salvation for God’s people as a King, but He was a lowly King, even a humiliated King.

He didn’t come to gain glory outwardly; one of the main things He accomplished was redemption, and for this, He died for us.

He entered Jerusalem for the last time riding on a colt, the foal of a donkey, and many welcomed Him.

However, He was attacked and rejected, detested and even betrayed by one of His disciples, and He was put on the cross.

Christ was the Fellow of Jehovah, sharing in His enterprise and interest, and He was the God-sent Shepherd, but He was smitten and His disciples were scattered.

It seemed that all His work and words were finished when He was put on the cross and then buried in a tomb, but this was not the end of it.

Hallelujah, on the cross Christ was pierced and out of His pierced side came forth blood for redemption and water for the impartation of life! Praise the Lord!

Now there is a fountain opened in Christ, and all the sinners can come to Him and be cleansed of their sins and iniquities!

In His resurrection, as seen in the New Testament, Crist became a life-giving Spirit, and as the Spirit, He flows into man to fill man and cause man to be transformed into the image of Christ.

When we believe into the Lord, we are washed and cleansed by His shed blood, we are reconciled to God, our sins are forgiven, and we receive the divine life.

Our Christian life is a life of enjoying the Lord, eating Him, drinking Him, growing in Him, digesting and assimilating Him, and being built up to be His corporate expression on earth. What a wonderful economy!

We who were sinners and enemies of God are now not only reconciled to God and cleansed from our iniquities but even more, we’re becoming part of His masterpiece, the New Jerusalem as the consummation of God’s building to express and represent Him for eternity! Praise the Lord!

As the Centrality and Universality of God’s Economy, Christ is Intimately Involved with Human History

The entire Bible reveals Christ; both the Old and the New Testaments speak of Christ, for He is the centrality and universality of God’s economy.

In the Old Testament, we see types and figures, prophecies and pictures, concerning this wonderful One.

In the New Testament, we see the fulfilment of what the Old Testament speaks concerning Christ, and we see the reality of Christ.

However, in this age, the age of grace, everything related to Christ is hidden, mysterious, spiritual, and inward.

When we receive Christ into our spirit, nothing outwardly spectacular may happen, but we are regenerated with the divine life to become God-men. Praise the Lord!

In the book of Zechariah, chapters 9 through 11, we see the prophecy concerning Christ in His first coming, which was humble and intimate.

This Christ unveiled in Zechariah, the One who was pierced and with whom is the open fountain for sin and impurity, Christ is intimately involved with human history.

Christ is the centrality and universality of God’s economy, and as such a One, Christ is intimately involved with human history.

God didn’t just land as “special forces” in a certain place to accomplish the “great work of redemption” after which He left as He came, untainted and unaffected by what man does.

Rather, God came to be a man; He entered into man’s history.

First of all, He arranged certain things to happen so that His incarnation would take place.

The intrinsic significance of the historical books in the Old Testament is that God’s move in man’s history is for the preparation of the fulfilment of His economy that God would become man to make man God in life and in nature but not in the Godhead.

This is the amazing, wonderful, glorious economy of God, and we can be part of it.

For the fulfilment of this great and wonderful economy, Christ is the centrality and universality of God’s economy and He intimately involved Himself with human history.

In particular, Christ was involved with the Persian Empire, the Grecian Empire, and the Roman Empire.

Christ was born under the Roman Empire, He grew up and carried His ministry under the Roman Empire, and He was crucified, resurrected, and ascended under the Roman Empire.

He didn’t come to destroy this empire and create His own empire; rather, as the centrality and universality of God’s economy, Christ is intimately involved with human history (Eph. 1:10).

His death for the accomplishment of God’s eternal redemption was consummated under the Roman Empire.

The church as the Body of Christ, the continuation and duplication of Christ, was formed under the Roman Empire.

The Roman Empire was very helpful to Christ for His incarnation, work, and spreading.

Christ entered into human history to be God’s move in man’s history, and He used all the conveniences and situations around Him for the carrying out of God’s purpose.

The preaching of the gospel for the spreading of Christ in humanity takes place under the Roman Empire.

Today we are still in the continuation of the Roman Empire, and in the human history today God is moving inwardly, intrinsically, hiddenly, and spiritually to carry out His economy.

God’s intention is to make Christ the centrality and universality of His economy, and we as believers in Christ take the lead to accomplish God’s intention.

We are here for this. We are here for God to make Christ both the center and the universality of His economy not only in the church but also in our personal life and our personal universe.

After His death and resurrection, Christ did not leave us alone as orphans so that we “figure out” what to do to please God.

Christ is intimately involved with human history, and we as His continuation and duplication on earth are learning to take Christ as our life and everything so that He becomes the centrality and universality of God’s economy.

Lord Jesus, thank You for becoming a man to be intimately involved with human history. Hallelujah, God became a man in the Lord Jesus, and He is the centrality and universality of God’s economy! Praise You, Lord, for Your intention to make Christ the centrality and universality of God’s economy. Unveil us to see how Christ is intimately involved with human history not only outwardly but also in our daily life. Lord Jesus, we take You as our life and person. We want to enjoy and experience You to the extent that You become the centrality and universality of God’s economy in us. Amen, Lord, be the center and the circumference of our being, our living, our speaking, and our working. May Christ become the centrality and universality of God’s economy in and through the church today!

Zechariah 12-14 Speaks of Christ’s Victorious Second Coming, which will be with Power and Authority

In Zech. 12-14 we have his prophecy concerning Christ’s second coming; in His first coming, He came as a lowly, humiliated, loving, intimate king, but His second coming will be with power and authority. Hallelujah!

Christ’s victorious second coming will be with power and authority. He will come a second time, and this time He will be accompanied by His saints, the overcomers (Zech. 14:5; Joel 3:11; Jude 14).

Jehovah, our God, will come, and all the saints will come with Him.

The overcomers as the mighty ones will descend with Him.

When He returns, His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east (Zech. 14:4; Acts 1:9-12).

He ascended from the Mount of Olives and He will return on the same Mount.

During the great tribulation, Israel will be trampled underfoot by Antichrist and his army (Rev. 11:2), and many of the calamities of the tribulation will take place in that land (Matt. 24:16-22).

At the end, Antichrist will kill many of the Jews and will besiege them on the Mount of Olives. At that moment of peril, Christ will come on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory! Hallelujah!

All Israel will look upon the One whom they have pierced, and they will wail over Him and repent (v. 30; Zech. 12:10).

None of the Jews at that time have ever seen Christ, but they will recognize Him and will repent.

They will wail over Him with wailing as for an only son and will cry bitterly over Him with bitter crying as a firstborn Son.

Christ is both the only begotten Son and the firstborn Son, and the people of Israel will wail and repent over Him as such a One.

Then Christ will descend onto the Mount of Olives to save Israel (14:4-5), and He will judge the nations.

After He judges the nations, He will send His angels with a loud trumpet, and they will gather together from the four winds, from all the corners of the earth, all the children of Israel to the good land.

He promised this land to Abraham, and now He will bring all the Jewish people from all over the earth to this land.

That will be the time of the restoration of the nation of Israel (Matt. 24:31), and it will usher in the restoration of all things (Acts 3:21).

Then, the kingdom age will begin. In His victorious second coming, Christ will no longer be hidden and spiritual but victorious and glorious outwardly.

He will be the King not only over Israel but also over all the peoples on the earth.

He will reign over the whole earth, and all the peoples of the earth will go up to Jerusalem from year to year to worship the King, Jehovah of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles (Zech. 14:9, 16).

People will dwell in Jerusalem, and Jerusalem will dwell securely (v. 11), for there will be no more curse.

There will be blessing with security. And all the nations that are left will worship the King and will keep the Feast of the Tabernacles.

Whoever does not go to Jerusalem to worship the King, Jehovah of hosts, upon him there will be no rain, and there will be the plague with which Jehovah strikes the nations; this will be their sin (vv. 17-19).

In this age, the age of grace, God sends rain on the unjust and the just alike, indiscriminately (Matt. 5:45).

But in the coming age of righteousness, those who don’t go up to Jerusalem to worship the King and to keep the Feast of the Tabernacles will not receive rain.

This is all prophesied in Zech. 12-14. He will be the King to reign and rule over all the nations. Jehovah will be King over all the earth, and He will be the one God and His name the one name (Zech. 14:9; Psa. 72:8; Rev. 11:15). Hallelujah!

In all these things, Christ is intimately involved with human history, and He is becoming the centrality and universality of God’s economy.

Lord, unveil us to see Christ’s victorious second coming, which will be with power and authority! Hallelujah, Christ will return accompanied by His mighty ones, the overcoming saints, to end this age and bring in the age of the kingdom! Amen, Lord, we want to be part of the overcoming ones who return with You to defeat the Antichrist and bring in the restoration of all things. Come, Lord Jesus, and fight for Your people, restore all things, and bring in the age of the kingdom! We yearn for Your return when You will be the King to reign and rule over the nations. Hallelujah, Jehovah will be King over all the earth! Praise the Lord, in that day Jehovah will be the one God and His name the one name!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Ed Marks in the message, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1990, vol. 3, “The Up-to-date Presentation of the God-ordained Way and the Signs concerning the Coming of Christ,” ch. 7, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-study of 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther (2022 winter training), week 1, entitled, God’s Move in Man’s History for the Carrying Out of His Eternal Economy.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – My King will soon come back again, / The sky be filled with Him; / The universe to be redeemed / Will see His light therein. / The Lord will soon fulfill His plan, / His footsteps now I hear; / His glorious frame I faintly see / Beginning to appear. (Hymns #960 stanza 1)
  – All the Christian overcomers / Shall with Christ in glory reign, / And the remnant saved of Israel / Then God’s priesthood shall obtain. / As God’s people shall the nations / ’Neath their rule and teaching be, / And a glorious restoration / All creation then shall see. (Hymns #946 stanza 4)
  – Lo, the kingdom of the world is now the kingdom of the Lord! / O what joy to all the saints does His eternal reign afford! / Let us swell the mighty chorus of His praise in one accord— / The victory is won!…“Praise our God now, all ye servants, small and great,” His voice constrains. / As the sound of many waters, we will thunder our refrains: / Hallelujah, hallelujah, for the Lord Almighty reigns! / The victory is won! (Hymns #1101 stanza 1 and 8)