Why is the second coming important in Christianity?

Because it is supposed to mark the End of the World and Judgment Day. After that, there will be no more Earth, and all souls will either be in heaven or hell.

We all get to leave earth for Heaven, basically. Leaving nonbelievers to a hell on earth as the bible says in Revelation

Very good question, I hope you are open to learning the truth. I will touch on it briefly because I have no time to break it down the way it really needs to be. However, the aforementioned theories are not quite accurate. Believers will be taken from the Earth for a time, heaven and Earth will be renewed, back to a state similar or better than when turned over to Adam. The Second Coming is important because that is the completion where those who believed will be rewarded for how well they implemented the duties to the Kingdom they were entrusted with. Some believers will just make it in as one escaping from the flames and some who thought they were believers will find they were chasing a folly and missed the boat. If there were no Second Coming then Christ died for nothing or worse was not even the Christ. Nonbelievers will not be just left here to their own devices, they will be judge by their works and if not good enough to atone for their sins, they will pay what their flesh lead them to do, it is not God that did anything to them, they did it to themselves, basically. The rest you will have to check back for, out of time.

@Hypocrisy_Central –
My memory from a childhood of bible study remembers Ephesians 2:8–9
”For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is a gift of god – not of works, lest any man should boast.”
We were always taught that good deeds alone weren’t enough to get one through the pearly gates, you had to have faith in Jesus as the messiah. Perhaps there are other verses that state otherwise, but your claim that non-believers who’ve done good works might get a pass contradicts the interpretation that I was taught.

They put that verse to a melody at some bible camp I attended; and like many hymns and bible songs, it is in the deepest parts of my memory. I do not have much knowledge of the bible beyond those deep-seated melodies and lyrics.

Because life still sucks for most people. Unfinished work until all are happy and free.

I’ve been wondering about this too.

@Hc Good job! You surprise me on a regular basis.

Good works alone will not get you into heaven.

Were it to happen, it would give proof to what is currently a set of beliefs.

A devout Christian family member said to me once, of the second coming, “When that day comes, you’ll see that we (Christians) were right”.

@chyna I have never understood that part.
You can be a good person, do all the right things as laid out but if you are not also an asskisser you cannot get into the club?
Is that really what Jesus taught or is this Pauls (and subsequently the churches) interpretation of how things work?

From this website: “Another issue must be considered when contemplating a theology of salvation based solely on belief and nothing else. Belief requires exposure. One cannot have belief in something that one has never been exposed to. So what about those who were supposedly created by a God who is both just and merciful, but lived in a time or place when there would be absolutely no possible chance of ever being exposed to Jesus? Imagine an innocent child born in India, China or Africa 800 years before Jesus was born (or even 800 years afterward, for that matter). There would be absolutely no chance this child could ever be exposed to the opportunity of believing in Jesus or accepting him as personal savior. Again, Paul’s theology consigns such innocent children to hell, while (as noted previously) Jesus taught that of such is the kingdom of heaven (Matt 18:4–5; 19:14; Mark 9:36–37; 10:14–15; Luke 18:15–17). Is Paul’s doctrine of salvation only by faith, and consigning all others to eternal damnation, from the God of justice or mercy?”

@chyna Faith without works is dead. And ” I will show you my faith by my works.”

@Hypocrisy_Central essentially gave us the Jehovah’s Witness viewpoint.

Here it is in the words of Jesus, who tells us it is those who care for those who need help that shall see salvation, and it has nothing to do with a belief or knowing Jesus:

But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. 34Then the King will tell those on his right hand, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35for I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in. 36I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.’
37“Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? 38When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?’
40“The King will answer them, ‘Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ 41Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; 42for I was hungry, and you didn’t give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; 43I was a stranger, and you didn’t take me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
44“Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’
45“Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to me.’ 46These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Historically, it is a strong connection to Judaism. Jesus is believed to be the messiah referenced in the Old Testament. It is an open question as to whether Jesus believed this. The problem with the messiah theory is that all the things that were supposed to happen when the messiah arrived, like Israel being a Jewish homeland, did not occur. The creative solution to this was to talk about Jesus coming a second time. Israel owes much of its U.S. support from the belief that having a Jewish state of Israel is a necessary pre-requisite for the Second Coming. There is, of course, the matter of the conversion of the Jews, which fortunately nobody seems too insistent on bringing about.

No one can resist the opportunity to say “I told you so,”

WItnessing is our job, as is good works. In our minds, we are trying to help you, not annoy you. ;)

@hearkat My memory from a childhood of bible study remembers Ephesians 2:8–9
”For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is a gift of god – not of works, lest any man should boast.”
We were always taught that good deeds alone weren’t enough to get one through the pearly gates, you had to have faith in Jesus as the messiah.
Yes, you are correct in that.

but your claim that non-believers who’ve done good works might get a pass contradicts the interpretation that I was taught.
Maybe somehow I wasn’t clear, no works anyone can do is good enough to atone for their sin, it can only be by the grace of God and that can only be by believing in Christ Jesus. He paid the price of sin for us, no singular person could do it because no singular person lived a perfect life but Christ; perfect animals could not cover the sins of man, only a perfect man could cover mankind. Those who do not believe in Christ Jesus have only their acts (let’s put it that way) to stand on, and those acts will be measured by the Law, and if you have broken one part of it, you have broken it all (and everyone has). You can’t work your way to heaven with no belief in God, how would you even believe there was a heaven to work to if there is no God and you do not believe in Him?

Matthew 7:22, 23
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

Those who do “good deeds” thinking it will earn them points in the afterlife, if they did not do it for the glory of God, it will not be recognized and their sins will not be covered, or excused by the blood of Christ, hopefully that is more clear.