MESSAGE 6 - 1 THESSALONIANS CHAPTER 5 – PAUL ANSWERS MATTERS OF ESCHATOLOGY ASKED OF HIM – PART 1 (Verses 1-8)
PART 1. PAUL ADDRESSES TEACHING ON THE DAY OF THE LORD
{{1Thessalonians 5:1 “Now as to the times (stretches of times) and the epochs (particular times), brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you
1Thess 5:2 for you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.
1Thess 5:3 While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child and they shall not escape.”}}
You must note that this opening verse begins with “Now” in the NASB and the NIV, but the Greek is “But”. It is essential that we note carefully in the scriptures, the order and the progression of words and thoughts and themes. There were no chapter or verse divisions when written. The word “but” links us with the latter part of chapter 4 and the Rapture. Last time we saw Paul answer their concerning question about those who had died, and their loved ones thought they had missed out on the Rapture. However, after the Rapture, what then? They also had asked him other questions about the signs of the times. All these matters belong to the subject called eschatology. That word simply means the study of the last things, and biblically, it means all the fulfillment of prophecy for the future.
We must clarify VERSE 2. In speaking about the Day of the LORD, Paul says the Thessalonians know full well that that event is like a thief coming in the night. A thief in the night is sinister and destructive. There are a lot of people who use this expression to refer to the Lord’s coming for His Church, the Rapture, but it is very wrong because the Lord won’t be a thief and He won’t act as one prowling the night when He comes to take His beloved Bride to Himself. As well, we are not children of the night, but of the day as Paul mentions in verse 5. Jesus spoke about the thief when He said in {{John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy. I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly.”}} The thief is not what our Lord will do for His loved ones, so that verse 2 is in no way related to the Lord Jesus coming to catch up His Bride. Therefore the Day of the LORD is NOT – NOT - NOT in any way connected with the Rapture but must happen after that event.
It is always good to compare scripture with scripture, so we need to look at Peter – {{2Peter 3:10-11 “But the day of the LORD will come LIKE A THIEF, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness.”}} (That passage looks at Armageddon and a general view of the last times). John also takes up the “thief coming” (only 3 of these references in the New Testament) – {{Revelation 16:15-16 (“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his garments, lest he walk about naked and men see his shame.”) and they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.”}} The ones said to be blessed by staying awake and keeping ready, are the saints in the Great Tribulation. The Church has already been in heaven for almost 7 years.
Now, what is the Day of the LORD? The Day of the LORD relates very strongly to Israel but also to all the nations. It is the time when God will stand in the events of the world and His power will be unleashed in wrath against sin. The Old Testament has much to say about it and the descriptions are often accompanied with darkness, clouds, fear, great judgements, and cosmic signs – moon and sun, and signs in the heavens and earthquakes and the earth trembling. It is a fearsome time. The Day begins after the Rapture of the Church and covers all the events of the Great Tribulation and the Second Coming at Armageddon, the setting up of the Millennial kingdom over which Messiah reigns, the great white throne judgement and the new heavens and the new earth. I say again, the Day of the LORD is NOT for the Christian age because the Lord will take His Bride before that happens.
The prophets of the Old Testament (Isaiah to Malachi) say much about the Day of the LORD, and the events are covered in Revelation chapters 6 to 20.
VERSE 3. “Peace and safety”. (This could well be the cries of today, moments before the birth pangs even, because the Day of the LORD begins at, or just after the Rapture, so what happens just before the Rapture is much the same as what exists at the start of the Day of the Lord.). Much of this world is festering in the pain of war and hunger and poverty and disease, and the stupidity of WOKE agenda, but the world generally thinks itself at peace apart from localised battles of war in many places.
When the Church departs, there will be open chaos and a breakdown in society. When the Christians depart, so does the Holy Spirit. We know from Revelation chapter 6 that the very first thing to happen after the Rapture is the appearance of the world leader/ruler that is called the Antichrist. That is the first seal, the white horse. It is the first event in the Day of the LORD. Then immediately after that, there is a breakdown of peace and there will be wars all over, for peace will be taken from the earth, and men will slay one another. Revelation mentions a great sword. Civil and national wars will break out. That is the second seal, the red horse, and the rider holds the great sword.
While we are looking at this section of God’s word, there is a supreme passage that helps lock all this together. It was spoken by our Lord and is this, called the Olivet Discourse - Matthew 24:3-8 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?” Matt 24:4 Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you, Matt 24:5 for many will come in My name saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. (The rider on the white horse) [the next part] ? Matt 24:6 You will be hearing of wars and rumours of wars. See that you are not frightened for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end, Matt 24:7 for nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes, (the rider on the second horse red) Matt 24:8 but all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. (Speak on each of these verses). Won’t include that in this transcript.
PART 2 – THE CHILDREN OF LIGHT MUST WEAR THE BREASTPLATE AND THE HELMET.
We return to Thessalonians. {{1Thessalonians 5:4 but you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief.”}}
Paul assures his readers that that terrible day (the Day of the LORD), will not break upon them like a marauding thief, and he tells them why. They do not belong to the darkness. That is so definite. We are sons of light, not of darkness. Light has nothing to do with darkness. The thief belongs to the night. Then we come to the next 4 verses which make the distinction of light and darkness even stronger. Paul has just said that the day of the Lord will not overtake us as a thief, and continues –
{{1Thessalonians 5:5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of (the) night nor of darkness, 1Thess 5:6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober 1Thess 5:7 for those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night, 1Thess 5:8 but since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.”}}
Light and darkness, is one of the great themes of the Bible and represents good and evil; Christ and Satan; right and wrong. In Genesis 1 v 1 God created the whole universe, and it would have been in glorious light, but in the next verse we find the earth was in darkness, having entered that state almost certainly through a judgement. Darkness never represents good or God. We were all children of darkness once but God called us out of darkness into light through His new creation of redemption.
John could say – {{John 1:4-5 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it, and Jesus was the true light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.”}} The Word became flesh and His light was seen in grace and truth. {{The true light had come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light for their deeds were evil,}} so they shunned the light as do cockroaches, and hated the light. {{Everyone who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light lest his deeds should be exposed.”}}
Jesus told the people, {{“I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.”}} The Apostle John is very clear in his letters about the light and darkness, and delivers this truth for us – {{1John 1:5-7 “This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not practise the truth, but if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”}}
One thing I see in the Bible is that we can not walk in a grey area. The word is so clear that only two states exist – light and darkness. We belong to one or the other. And we walk according to one or the other. There is no blend. If you think so, go and read all John’s writings. It is essential to understand this clear line of demarkation that exists between these two states. Now back to 1Thessalonians 5 verses 5 and 6 – Paul confirms they are all sons of the light and of the day, and they do not belong to the night or to the darkness. That is the state they are in, because they belong to the One who is the Light of the World, BUT then he talks about the state of their walk, and sadly Christians can walk in darkness. It is a dishonourable thing to do, but too many walk in darkness. It is betraying the Lord, but worldly Christians walk according to their own desires, not those of the Lord. Paul makes another contrast of sleep and alertness and sobriety. We are to be on our guard and awake in the word of God, sober in our walk because our Saviour died for us. Verse 7 relates the sleeping when on duty as a Christian, with the activity of the night which is associated with darkness; and the drunkards are drunk at night (though in our culture we have drunks day and night), but drunkenness is a sin, and associated with darkness.
Look at verse 8. It begins with a “but” and your version should have that. What Paul has just written in the previous verses, belongs to the night and what he now writes, belongs to the day. We are of the day, and therefore we must be sober. We shall look at this word “sober” from the original Greek. The word is ??f? and it means to act properly; to be sober (not drunk); not intoxicated with unreality - (figuratively) free from illusion, i.e. from the intoxicating influences of sin (like the impact of selfish passion, greed, self-importance, etc.); calm and circumspect; having presence of mind (clear judgment); enabling someone to be temperate (self-controlled); uninfluenced by intoxicants; to have "one's wits (faculties) about him or her," which is the opposite of being irrational.
Paul then abruptly moves to the image of a soldier. He selects two pieces of equipment and three godly qualities given to a Christian. The two items are the breastplate and the helmet. In Ephesians where this armour is more fully developed, the armour is offensive and defensive but here it is only defensive. It is all about the good soldier being sober, that is, being watchful and alert. The breastplate protects his heart, the centre of life and spring of the body’s forces and the helmet protects his head. The fitness of this metaphor lies in the place of the helmet as the crown of the soldier’s armour, its brightest and most conspicuous feature, covering the head, the part of his person that most invites attack from enemies.
The breastplate protects the whole chest but the heart was most vulnerable. In ancient cultures the heart was considered the vitality of the person and the organ that controlled the emotions, and the life. There are so many hymns and songs, Christian and secular, that feature the emotions of the heart, especially love. We have all heard of the words, “Receive the Lord Jesus into your heart”. We know what it means but those words are sometimes used. Paul follows this theme, where in verse 8, he connects the breastplate with faith and hope. These are vital words in our Christian faith and need the protection of the breastplate. The heart is under attack from forces that would weaken and destroy our love. The evil world would turn our devotion away from Christ. Our love might grow cold and we renounce the faith or become ritualistic or useless. The heart needs protection. So too does faith. Faith can easily be attacked and destroyed. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Our breastplate is the word of God. Christian faith and love need protecting by the breastplate of the word, but they in turn will become our breastplate to protect us from all that comes against us. Study to show yourself approved by God, a workman that needs not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Take and hold the breastplate tightly.
Then we have the helmet. That affords protection for the head. All our thoughts and ideas, and plans and strategies need the protection of the helmet. Our thoughts must be reigned in under the control of the Lord. {{1Corinthians 2:12 “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, 1Cor 2:13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”}} {{2Corinthians 10:5 “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.”}}
You will notice that Paul talks of the helmet as the hope of salvation. That is so vital because it is hope that sustains us, and salvation that marks us out. Specifically, the hope of salvation is the settled assurance that we saved, and one day, we shall be saved from the very presence of sin. We have that as a certainty but it needs protection. Paul could say in {{Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”}} In 1 Corinthians Paul links all three characters of our essential Christianity, those elements that need the protection of the breastplate and the helmet – {{1Corinthians 13:13 “But now abide faith, hope, love, these three, but the greatest of these is love.”}}
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THE CHRISTIAN’S LIFE THE CHRISTIAN’S HOPE
Lord, we are members of Your Church,
Waiting here for Your return.
While those outside, Your Name besmirch,
We disciples wish to learn.
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Teach us more of your mighty love;
More of Your wonderful grace.
Transport our souls to You above;
Let us see Your lovely face.
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Just a short time will pass until
He calls us to His presence.
Then our souls and spirits will fill
With His glory so immense.
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Now I wait in expectation,
Of that glory that’s ahead.
There, the fullness of salvation,
In the Lamb by whom I’m led.
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I love You, Lord; I truly do,
For all the things You have done.
It’s only in You, I can construe.
The victory Calvary won.
8 May 2022 R E Ferguson Metre = 8-7 throughout ABAB
ronaldf@aapt.net.au
