John 8:1-2 Jesus went unto
the Mount of Olives.
2 And early in the morning He
came again into the temple, and all the people came unto Him; and He sat down,
and taught them.
If you only look at this historically, all you could say is that Jesus came down off the Mount of Olives, went into the temple, and sat down to teach the people. Looking at it prophetically presents an entirely different picture. He is spiritually entering the temple of His people. His presence is coming forth in them, for they are “the temple of the living God” (II Corinthians 6:16). This coming of the Lord takes place early in the morning. The morning speaks of a new day. The presence of the Lord coming forth in His people begins a new spiritual day – it is the day of the Parousia.
Matthew 24:27 speaks of the coming (parousia) of the Lord as “the lightning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west.” However, we know lightning flashes in no particular direction. More often than not it would probably flash up and down, which is north and south. The Greek word translated “lightning” here is astrape, which literally means “bright shining.” What kind of “bright shining” goes from east to west? The sun! The parousia of the Lord is as the coming of a new day. He comes in the morning into His temple, and from there He teaches His people (Isaiah 2:3).
John 8:2a And early in the morning He came again into the temple…
“He came again,” meaning this is a second coming – “first the natural and then the spiritual” (I Corinthians 15:46). His first coming was in the natural as Jesus the Nazarene. Now He is coming forth spiritually in a people; Christ is becoming a many-membered Body. The ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, as He brings forth His Kingdom, is through this many-membered Body of Christ. He will be glorified and admired in them (II Thessalonians 1:10). Christ in you is the hope of glory; Christ ministering through you is the glory (Colossians 1:27). If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink…out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water (John 7:37-38). You drink of Him and then out of your most inner being flows His presence.
The Prophet Hosea speaks of this early morning coming of the Lord as the third day. Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us; He hath smitten, and He will bind us up. After two days will He revive us: in the third day He will raise us up, and we shall live in His sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: His going forth is prepared as the morning; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth. Hosea 6:1-3.
Days in the realm of Spirit are not like earthly days. In the natural a day lasts for 24-hours. That day happens once for everyone. Once it is past it is past for everyone; it can’t be brought back and another day begins. A spiritual day, on the other hand, is not in the realm of time and every day in the Lord is eternal. When you move into a new day of the Lord, the previous day still exists and there are still Christians living in that day. Your spiritual growth determines the spiritual day you are in. There are many days, or many abiding places, in the Lord (John 14:2). There are some experiencing the early morning of the Parousia, and others that are not. Every day, or every level, in the realm of Spirit is existent. The early morning day of the Parousia is not a day in the future. It already has its existence in the realm of Spirit. So it is not how soon will the early morning day of the Parousia come, but how soon will you rise up in it?
Copyright © 2003 by Henry DuBose