“I’ll be back” is a catchphrase associated with Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Terminator film series,
though has been used in subsequent films by him.
The catchphrase’s origin though is in the Bible…
We, as Gentile Christians, want to hear those words spoken by Jesus
We want to be assured that He is coming back for us, His church.
We want to know without a shadow of a doubt…
Yet seem to be left guessing, looking for an answer that doesn’t appear to be there.
And yet, that is exactly what Jesus did do…
“He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 11:15)
We, as Gentile Christians, must remember that Jesus was and is a Jew
And as such taught things without saying anything…
People today argue that tithing is not meant for us since Jesus never taught about it
And yet, as a Jew He would have tithed and given in other ways, as the Law would have demanded
For we know that He came to fulfil the Law
So on that first Easter Sunday morning
What was it that Jesus did that told us He was coming back?
We know that through His ministry He kept mentioning His rising on the third day
Somehow or other, the disciples forgot this fact
But the chief priests and Pharisees did not (Matthew 27:62 – 66)
They had a guard set at the tomb and ensured the stone was sealed in place
But on that first day of the week He did something that is recorded in the Gospel of John
An insignificant act which has been overlooked by many
A detail which many do not understand
But is OBVIOUS to a Jew or a Jewish slave / servant
When serving at table – how do you know that the guests have finished?
In our culture, we place our knife and fork together on the plate
Or we set our spoon in a way that indicates we have finished
In Jesus’ day, when the Master arose from the table
He would walk away from the table and throw down his napkin
Indicating that he had finished
But if he placed his folded napkin on the table
It meant that he was NOT finished
But was coming back
John 20:6 – 7 talks about the handkerchief which had been around His head
Not with the other pieces of linen but set in another place – folded
Peter is recorded as having seen this
And Peter would not have missed the point:
Jesus was saying…”I’ll be back”.