Christ's Coming: Distinguishing True from False Manifestations

Matthew 24:23–26 warns against deception in the final days. Christ teaches that false messiahs will arise, claiming "Lo, here is Christ" or "There!" yet believers possess sufficient tests to unmask pretenders.

The Victorian commentator Joseph S. Exell (1887) identifies the paradox of Christ's advent: it is not restricted to a single moment. Some argue Christ came in judgment when the Roman legions surrounded Jerusalem—"Lo! Christ was there" in the fulfillment of His Word. Others recognize His coming in the descent of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost, by which Spirit He abides within His Church perpetually, "even unto the end of the world."

Yet Christ comes still—in spiritual reformation, in revival of faith, in social reformation toward holier desires. He comes to each soul at baptism, at conversion, in Holy Communion. He enters "the secret closet of prayer and meditation" and meets "every open heart."

The believer's defense against deception is threefold: First, settle what you truly want in life, and you may safely reject false counselors. Second, know the true Christ intimately through Scripture, and false Christs cannot lead you astray. Third, give yourself to earnest, practical living rather than gaping after signs and wonders.

The coming of Christ will be self-evident, preceded by delusive rumors, accomplished "with power and great glory" for the salvation of the elect.