John 14:3

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

And if I go ... is not a statement of uncertainty but an argument that, as certainly as the Lord shall go, that certainly will he return and receive his own.

I come again ... The second coming of Jesus is dogmatically affirmed here and throughout the New Testament. As Dorris said:

Some refer this to the resurrection of Christ, others to the death of a believer as in the case of Stephen, and still others to the coming of the Holy Spirit. We think these positions inadmissible. The reference is not to Christ's return from the grave, but to his return from heaven, the second coming of the Lord, which is a part of the Christian faith.[3]

THE SECOND ADVENT

Not only here but in Acts 1:11; 3:21; 2 Thessalonians 4:13-17, etc., the doctrine of the second coming of Christ is emphatically taught, the same being one of the foundational teachings of Christianity.

I. What Christ will not do upon his return. A. He will not offer himself a second time for the sins of the world (Hebrews 9:26-28). B. He will not restore any phase of fleshly or national Israel. The Scripture makes it absolutely clear that race is nothing with God (Galatians 3:27). C. He will not set up a kingdom, having already done that, the church being his kingdom. It has existed continuously since the first Pentecost after the resurrection, and wherever the Lord's Supper is, there is the kingdom (Luke 22:30). D. He will not extend a second chance for unbelievers to repent (Hebrews 9:27).

II. What Christ will do upon his return. A. All the dead shall be raised to life (John 5:24-29). B. The judgment will occur (John 5:24-29; Matthew 25:31-36). C. The wicked shall be destroyed and the righteous rewarded (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10). D. The crown of life shall be given to the faithful (2 Timothy 4:7,8). E. Christ will stop reigning, delivering up the kingdom to God (1 Corinthians 15:28).

III. What Christ is now doing. A. He is reigning until all of his enemies have been put under foot (1 Corinthians 15:25f). B. He is interceding for the redeemed (Hebrews 7:25). D. He is administering all authority in heaven and upon earth (Matthew 28:18-20). E. He is providentially overseeing the fortunes of his church on earth (Matthew 28:19,20). F. He is preparing a home for the faithful (John 14:3).