Christ in 1 Thessalonians -- He Is Coming Again!

As I read again the short book of 1 Thessalonians, I was struck by how many times Paul referred to the fact that Jesus is will one day return to gather His church to Himself – he mentions it in every chapter of this book.  We call this “The Rapture.”  We can trust that this was a fact that was important to Paul and to the members of the church in Thessalonica:

And they speak of how you are looking forward to the coming of God’s Son from heaven—Jesus, whom God raised from the dead (1 Thessalonians 1:10a).

After all, what gives us hope and joy, and what will be our proud reward and crown as we stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns? It is you (1 Thessalonians 2:19)!

May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people (1 Thessalonians 3:13).

And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17).

Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again (1 Thessalonians 5:23).

As a matter of fact, I think that the Christians of Paul’s day were so sure of Christ’s return, that they expected that it was eminent, that it would surely happen within their own lifetimes.  It was good then, and it is good, even today, for Christians to wait expectantly and excitedly for Christ’s return.  But we need to remember that only God knows when that day will be.  Do not trust anyone who tries to predict the date, even the year that Jesus will return.

“Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. See, I have warned you about this ahead of time (Matthew 24:23-25).”

“And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven (Matthew 24:31).”

“However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows (Matthew 24:36).”

But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night (1 Thessalonians 5:2).

However, apparently the Thessalonians were so sure that Christ’s return was eminent that they quit working and were becoming a burden on society.  This reminds me of people today who quit their jobs to carry a placard on the street-corner that reads, “The End is Near,” as they beg for donations.  At least some had also fallen into a sinful life-style, perhaps thinking since time was short, they would just live it up, disregarding all that Paul had previously taught them.  The fourth and fifth chapters of Paul’s letter included practical instructions about how to live while we wait for Christ’s return:

Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to live in a way that pleases God, as we have taught you (1 Thessalonians 4:1a).

God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin (1 Thessalonians 4:3).

But we don’t need to write to you about the importance of loving each other, for God himself has taught you to love one another. Indeed, you already show your love for all the believers throughout Macedonia. Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you to love them even more (1 Thessalonians 4:9-10).

Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before. Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12).

So encourage each other with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:18).

So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded (1 Thessalonians 5:6).

Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance (1 Thessalonians 5:12).

Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone (1 Thessalonians 5:14).

See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people (1 Thessalonians 5:15).

Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

And finally, Paul warns that we need to study prophecy, but that we must always allow the Holy Spirit to direct us.  Many times, throughout the scriptures, we are warned that false prophets will come, trying to deceive and divert us from the truth.  So we need to test what we hear by the Word of God and by the Holy Spirit, holding on to what is good, and staying away from what is evil:

Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil (1 Thessalonians 5:19-22).

We live in a very exciting time.  Every day we live, we are one day closer to Jesus’ return.  So we, like the Thessalonians, should live in anxious anticipation of that day, being lights in a dark world, working until He calls us home.  My prayer for you and for me this week is based on Paul’s prayer for the church in Thessalonica that we can read in 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 –

Dear Heavenly Father,
Make (our) hearts strong, blameless, and holy as (we) stand before (You), God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen.

All scripture references are from the New Living Translation.