Question
How can we be sure that we haven’t seen Jesus on the street at one time or another?
Answer
We can't be sure of that to our shame. All of this was predicted: “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8)
It hints that His coming may not be recognized, even by those who claim to await Him. Jesus may have already come many times yet found no faith, no recognition. Just to give you a sense of the pattern:
- Genesis 18: God visits Abraham as three travellers.
- Matthew 25: “I was hungry, and you gave me no food… As you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.”
- Luke 24: The risen Christ walks with the disciples on the road to Emmaus — yet “their eyes were kept from recognizing Him.”
This pattern suggests that divine visitations are continuous — not confined to a single cosmic event — and that the true test of faith lies in recognition of Christ’s hidden presence, not in the spectacle of His arrival. The official Second Coming, then, might not be a first-time arrival at all, but a first-time recognition of what has always been here: “The Kingdom of God is among you.” (Luke 17:21)
- Many prophecies in the Hebrew Bible were fulfilled in ways that didn’t match the popular expectation: The Messiah was supposed to be a conqueror — yet He arrived as a suffering servant.
- Elijah was supposed to return before the great Day — Jesus says John the Baptist was “Elijah” if people were willing to accept it (Matt. 11:14).
I think the Gospel is clear. Do not look up to the skies, mountains and people in high positions as you will never meet Jesus Christ there. Look down: to the poor, to the little, to the frail ones extending their hand towards you. Try to feed the hungry, give something to drink to the thirsty, give clothes to naked, help the traveler, visit those ailing and imprisoned. It is so simple actually. Please understand that all these depictions of clouds and glory are to be understood from the perspective of the Kingdom of Heavens were rulers are the little ones and those serving others. Their understanding of glory does not really correlate with ours.