1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you.  For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.  While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.  But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief.  For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.  So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober.  For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night.  But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.  For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him.  Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

 

Eschatology, the study of future things, is one of the most polemic subjects of theology.  I find it interesting that even though Paul only spent three weeks in the city of Thessalonica, he had clearly taught them about eschatology.  It appears that Timothy informs Paul that the church is somewhat confused about this subject.  I believe if Timothy were to visit any of our churches today, he might give the same report.  The main confusion seems to revolve around the day of the Lord.  The key to understanding this passage is understanding what the day of the Lord is.  Is it the rapture of the church?  Is it the second coming of Christ, or what I prefer to call the revelation?  Is it the reign of Christ on the earth?  There is a sense in which the day of the Lord includes the rapture, revelation, and reign, but I don’t believe that is how Paul is using it here.  It seems in context that Paul is referring to the retribution or wrath of Christ.  God is, in His essence, gracious.  However, we must never forget that His predominant attribute is not grace, mercy, or even love.  His predominant attribute is holiness.  That being the case, the sins of men must be judged.  He must demonstrate His wrath of the sinfulness of man.  That wrath was evident on the cross where the wrath of God was poured out upon the sinless Son of God to provide a just means of salvation for all who believe.  However, those who reject Christ and refuse to place their faith in His sacrifice for our sin remain under the wrath of God.  Because God is also gracious, merciful, and loving, He is patiently waiting to judge until mankind has been given the opportunity to understand the Gospel and repent of their sin and believe in Christ. There is a time coming when God will pour out His wrath on this earth in judgment to demonstrate His hatred of sin.  I believe this will occur in what we call the Tribulation.  A time when Satan’s rule on the earth will be an affront to the holiness of God.  God will respond in judgment so people will clearly know of His wrath and have yet another opportunity to trust Christ.  This time of wrath called the Tribulation begins what I believe the text calls the day of the Lord.

 

THE DAY OF THE LORD WILL BE SURPRISING:  We do not know when the day of the Lord will come.  I believe that the next major event on the calendar of eschatological history is the rapture of the church.  That event is imminent which means it could happen at any moment.  The rapture is followed by what is called the Tribulation that will be a time of judgment through war, famine, plagues, and suffering.  The Tribulation will culminate in the Revelation of Christ where He will return to earth and judge unbelievers and then establish His kingdom in which there will be peace, prosperity, and justice.  This millennial kingdom will come to an end with yet another time of rebellion that will be squelched and then there will be the final judgment followed by the coming of the new heavens and the new earth which we typically call Heaven.  Clearly there are other ways to understand eschatology, but this is my understanding of Scripture.  But no matter what one’s position on eschatology might be, it is vital to understand that God will judge sin.  The day of the Lord can refer to all these events or focus more specifically on one aspect of these events.  What Paul wants the church to understand is that the coming of these events will be surprising.  Like a thief, there will not be warning that God’s judgment of sin is about to take place.  It could begin at any moment.

 

THE DAY OF THE LORD SHOULD BE SOBERING: No matter what one’s understanding of eschatology might be, the fact that God will judge sin both on this earth and for eternity should be sobering.  We must not live under the impression that there are no consequences for sin.  Christ has died for sin and offers salvation from sin to all who believe.  But for all who reject Christ and refuse to believe there will be horrendous judgment.  This truth should impact the way we live.  We must warn the world of the wrath that God will bring upon this world because of sin.  We must clearly and boldly proclaim the Gospel of salvation from sin through faith in Christ.  God’s judgment is not a light matter.  These truths should stir our hearts and minds to action and help us live in light of eternity. 

 

THE DAY OF THE LORD CAN BE SAVING: As sobering as God’s judgment of sin should be, believers can take comfort because we have been saved from sin and all it’s consequences.  We are no longer under God’s wrath because all His wrath was poured out upon Christ on our behalf.  All our sin has been washed away and we inherit the righteousness of Christ.  We will be completely and permanently saved from sin in every way.  We will enjoy His presence forever and be totally free from any kind of sinful action, though, motivation, and attitude.  The purpose of the day of the Lord is to judge sin.  Those of us who place their faith completely and exclusively on Christ have already had their sin judged on the cross so we will be saved from wrath and be eternally free of sin.  Those who reject Christ will suffer under God’s wrath and will never be saved from sin or its consequences.

 

APPLICATION: We need to be constantly prepared for the coming of Christ.  We must never try to set or guess a date but must live as if the day of the Lord could begin at any moment.  We must do all we can to share the message of salvation with as many as possible.  Frivolity and immaturity should have no place in our lives.  God’s judgment of sin should make us sober.  Rejoice in our salvation from sin and share the message of salvation, hope, and forgiveness in Christ with all people everywhere.