These are the original teaching notes from this passage.
I Thessalonians 5:1-11
Review…
- In the first 3 chapters of the Book – we are given INFORMATION about the church…
- Chapter 4 started the second section of the book – APPLICATION for the church
- Paul URGED them to WALK in a way that PLEASED God by giving them COMMANDS…
- The first three we looked – WALK in purity / WALK in love / WALK properly!
- The fourth command came last week as Paul answered a question from the church…
- Paul did not want them to SORROW as those who have NO hope…
- Those who are asleep in the Lord – died in FAITH – are in heaven – II Corinthians 5:8
- And they will come WITH Jesus when he returns for us – RAPTURE of the church!
- We will be caught up and be ALWAYS with the Lord – COMFORT one another with these words!
THE Day of the Lord… (4 things)
- 1st – Times and seasons… vs. 1
- 1st – Times – chronos / Seasons – kairos…
- Both words carry the idea of KNOWING what will happen…
- When we want to KNOW when to wake up / eat / work / sleep – we check the TIME…
- When we want to KNOW if we should be in school / married / retired – check the SEASON…
- TIMES and SEASONS are how we will KNOW what to EXPECT will happen next!
- 2nd – This phrase is ONLY used twice in NT – here and Acts 1:7
- Both times the emphasis is on KNOWING when Jesus will return to establish His Kingdom!
- Paul having taught about the HOPE of those who died – and the RAPTURE…
- Now is going to go on and talk about the what happens after the RAPTURE of the church!
- 1st – Times – chronos / Seasons – kairos…
- 2nd – THE Day of the Lord… vs. 1-3
- Apparently – Paul had ALREADY taught them about THE Day of the Lord…
- We have NO NEED to write to you – you yourselves PERFECTLY (accurately) KNOW (see)!
- The phrase THE Day of the Lord – is used 32 times in the Bible…
- Used 27 times in the Old Testament / 5 times in the New Testament…
- The companion term that precedes THE Day of the Lord is the LAST DAYS…
- Peter uses both terms on Pentecost in Acts 2:17-21 in reference to the birth of the church!
- The LAST DAYS began with Pentecost – and will end with the RAPTURE of the church…
- THE Day of the Lord – not a LITERAL day – begins with the RAPTURE of the church!
- 1st – THE Day of the Lord – begins like a THEIF in the NIGHT… vs. 2
- The RAPTURE – from the Latin translation of the Greek word – Harpazo…
- No one knows the exact day / hour – only the Father – Mark 13:32
- Paul tells us here that it will happen as a THEIF in the night!
- If someone told us tomorrow at 3am – a thief would break into our house…
- We would be ready for him – and nothing would be stolen!
- But no one knows when a thief will come – that is why they are able to steal!
- While we may not know when a thief will come – we can be prepared…
- In the same way we may not know when Jesus will come – but we can be ready…
- Spending time with Jesus through His Word – and through prayer…
- Preparing ourselves for the day when we will see Him face to face!
- 2nd – THE Day of the Lord – will bring the illusion (they will say) PEACE and SAFETY… vs. 3
- PEACE – used 92x in NT – there will be PEACE in the Middle East…
- Once the rapture happens – concluding the time of the gentiles / church – Romans 11:25
- And God begins to work again through the nation of Israel – 70th week – Daniel 9:27
- In the aftermath of the RAPTURE (1 billion people disappear) …
- And the Magog invasion (God destroys armies of Russia and the Arabs) – Ezekiel 38
- The world will be in chaos – one man will step up offering PEACE and SAFETY!
- But it will be an ILLUSION – because there is neither PEACE nor SAFETY…
- It begins what is known as the time of Jacob’s trouble – Jeremiah 30:7
- The 7 years of Tribulation laid out in Revelation 6-18…
- When the Antichrist – the son of perdition will be revealed – II Thessalonians 2:3
- There is a good chance that this man is alive today – waiting for the right time…
- Because he cannot be revealed until the church is removed – the RAPTURE…
- If he revealed himself now – we would all know who he is – II Thessalonians 2:7
- Daniel 9:27 – the antichrist will confirm a PEACE treaty with Israel for 7 years…
- This man has more than 30 titles in the Bible – the Man of Sin / the Son of Perdition…
- The big mouth – Daniel 7:8 / we most often refer to him as the Antichrist – I John 2:18
- He will be a leader who will rise out of Europe – the little horn – Daniel 7:8…
- He will make PEACE by offering to rebuild the 3rd Temple for Israel…
- North of the Dome of the Rock (monument) – in a place called the Dome of the Spirit…
- He will rebuild the Temple – as proof he is the messiah – and Jews will embrace him!
- John 5:43 – “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.”
- SAFETY – asphaleia – used 3x in NT – STABILITY
- He will bring STABILITY to governments / financial markets / and religion!
- He will rule the worlds political system – he will be the government…
- He will rule the worlds financial system – 666 – mark of the beast – Revelation 13:16-18
- He will present himself as the Messiah – god come to earth – Revelation 13:3-5
- But after 3 ½ years of the tribulation – he will enter the temple – into the Holiest of All…
- There he will claim he is god – the Abomination of Desolation – Matthew 24:15
- 3rd – THE Day of the Lord – will bring SUDDEN destruction…vs. 3
- SUDDEN – 2x in NT – here and in Luke 21:34 – meaning UNEXPECTED…
- Not UNEXPECTED in we do not know it is coming – UNEXPECTED as to WHEN it will come!
- Paul uses the additional illustration – like a woman who goes into labor…
- The labor itself is NOT a surprise – WHEN she will go into labor can be quite the SHOCK!
- And once it begins – there is NO stopping it – the baby is coming…
- In the same way – once the destruction begins – there is NO ESCAPE (to run away)!
- God will pour out His wrath and judgment on a God rejecting world!
- Laid out in the Book of Revelation – 21 judgments in what we call the Tribulation!
- They are broken up into 3 sets of 7 judgments – Seal / Trumpet / and Bowl judgments…
- The terror will be so great – unless God limited it – no one would survive!
- Isaiah 13:6 – “The Day of the Lord is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty.”
- Many will be like the people in the days of Noah!
- Luke 17:26 – Men were eating / drinking / marrying – right up to the flood…
- Men were going on with their lives – assuming tomorrow would be like today!
- They were completely unprepared for the day when the judgement of God arrived!
- So many people today are just going about their daily lives – oblivious…
- They assume they have all the time in the world – tomorrow will be just like today…
- They do realize that Jesus is coming soon – judgment is right around the corner!
- 4th – THE Day of the Lord – is the return of Jesus Christ…
- At the end of the 7 years of Tribulation…
- The Antichrist will gather his army to the Valley of Megiddo – Revelation 19:11-21
- Then Jesus will come out of Heaven on a white horse – King of Kings / Lord of Lords…
- He will return with us – ten thousands of His saints – Jude 1:14
- With one word he will defeat the Antichrist and his army – II Thessalonians 2:8!
- And the Antichrist will be the first to be thrown into the Lake of Fire – Revelation 19:20!
- Then Jesus will return to the Mount of Olives – Zachariah 14:4…
- The mountain will split in two – water will come out – giving life to the Dead Sea…
- 30 days after the Return of Jesus – 1290 days after the Abomination – Daniel 12:11…
- Jesus will judge the nations – those who survived the Tribulation – Matthew 25:31-46
- Then Jesus will establish His Millennial Kingdom – Revelation 20:1-4!
- Then we – the church – will rule and reign with Him for 1000 years – I Corinthians 6:2-3
- At the end of the 1000 year reign – the 2nd Magog invasion …
- Satan – who was chained in the bottomless pit – Revelation 20:3 – is released…
- He will deceive the nations into one final rebellion against God – Revelation 20:7-8
- But God will devour them by fire – and satan will be cast into the Lake of Fire!
- Then all will stand before the throne of God to be judged for the works of their lives…
- Revelation 20:11-12 – “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it… And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God…”
- There will be two sets of books opened – the books and the Book of Life…
- If your name is not found written in the Book of Life – the Books are opened…
- Then you are then judged according to your works – written in The Books…
- Everything you do – every word you say – every thought you think…
- Not to see if you will go to heaven or hell – but to show you why you go to hell!
- 5th – THE Day of the Lord – is the end… vs. 11
- The conclusion of THE Day of the Lord – is the destruction of the earth…
- The heaven and earth will pass away with a great noise…
- The elements will MELT with FERVENT HEAT – II Peter 3:10
- Jesus will let go – Colossians 1:16 – and the universe will erupt in a nuclear inferno!
- Then God will create a – prefect – sinless – NEW heaven / NEW earth – Revelation 21-22
- Where those who believe in Jesus will live with Him forever!
- Everything in this life is destined to burn – we cannot take any of it with us…
- People strive their whole lives to find success – but what is success worth apart from God…
- We might end up rich – but all we really get is a lot of NICE FIREWOOD!
- Therefore – do not miss the purpose of life by devoting time to something that is doomed…
- How much better to invest our time and efforts into a Kingdom that will never fade!
- Invest is something that we can take with us to heaven – people we share Jesus with!
- 3rd – Light and darkness… vs. 4-5 (2 points)
- 1st – We are NOT in darkness… vs. 4
- BRETHREN (those who know Jesus) – we are NOT in darkness (indicative)…
- John 8:12 – “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life…”
- As a result – THIS day (Day of the LORD) MIGHT not OVERTAKE us as a THIEF!
- OVERTAKE (subjunctive) – to find / capture – we SHOULD NOT be found unprepared…
- Because we have Jesus – we are in the LIGHT – we KNOW the TIMES and SEASONS!
- We tend to look at the TIMES and SEAONS – and think we still have TIME…
- But we are in the last days – THE Day of the Lord could be today – right now!
- Are we ready – if Jesus came back like a THIEF – would we be READY…
- Jesus is coming VERY soon – we need to be constantly prepared – so we are not OVERTAKEN!
- 2nd – We are sons of light… vs. 5
- We are (indicative) the children of the day and light…
- We are NOT (indicative) the children of the dark and night!
- Paul emphasizing there are ONLY two families that we can belong to…
- We are either the Children of God – or the children of this world (satan) – John 8:44
- Once we are born again – children of LIGHT – we have been delivered from DARKNESS!
- We no longer belong to this world – we have changed our citizenship!
- Ephesians 5:8 – “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. WALK as children of light…”
- 1st – We are NOT in darkness… vs. 4
- 4th – Wake up…. vs. 6-10 (4 points)
- 1st – THEREFORE – since we are sons of LIGHT… vs. 6
- DO NOT sleep – (ou me SUBJUNCTIVE) – the most powerful negation in Greek!
- SLEEP – used 4x in our passage – not the same word as from chapter 4 (death)…
- It speaks of an apathy or indifference to the TIMES and SEASONS!
- We NEED to make sure that we do NOT SLEEP – NOT caught off guard – as OTHERS do…
- Instead we are to are to WATCH and be SOBER…
- WATCH (subjunctive) – 23x in NT from a root word that means to WAKE UP!
- SOBER (subjunctive) – nepho – 6x in NT – to be calm and aware / observant!
- Why – because we have an ENEMY who would love for us to be caught off guard…
- I Peter 5:8 – “Be sober, be vigilant [same words]; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
- Satan would love to keep us distracted – not thinking about the return of Jesus!
- If he can get us CAUGHT up in this life – he might be able to get us CAUGHT off guard!
- 2nd – THEREFORE – do NOT get drunk… vs. 7
- Those who sleep at NIGHT / also drink – get drunk at NIGHT…
- In other words – those who are NOT watching and NOT sober are of the NIGHT!
- They are in DARKNESS (night) – and do NOT know the Lord is coming soon!
- Romans 13:11 – “Knowing the time, that now it is high time to WAKE UP out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed…”
- Because they are in DARKNESS – they get DRUNK…
- DRUNK – only 3x in NT – to be intoxicated with alcohol…
- In other words – they choose to live for this life – rather than look for Jesus Christ…
- They make the mistake of thinking that Jesus is NOT coming soon – so they can get drunk!
- Luke 12:45 – “That servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins… [to] drink and be drunk [same word].”
- The Bible does not say you cannot drink- it does say it is a sin to be drunk…
- When full of alcohol we will NOT be living a life that is LOOKING for Jesus…
- Instead of being filled with alcohol – much better to be filled with the Holy Spirit!
- Then we will act like children of LIGHT – and WATCH and be SOBER for the Lord!
- Ephesians 5:18 – “Do not be drunk [same word] with wine… but be filled with the Spirit.”
- 3rd – THEREFORE – prepare for WAR… vs. 8
- Let (subjunctive) us who are of the DAY be SOBER (subjunctive)…
- We can be SOBER by putting on the ARMOR of God – so we are ready for the battle…
- This is one of four places in the NT where we read about the armor of God…
- II Corinthians 6:7 – “The armor of righteousness on our right hand and on our left…”
- Ephesians 6:13 – “Therefore take up the whole armor of God…” (most complete list)
- Here we are told to put on the breastplate of FAITH and LOVE…
- And the HELMET of HOPE and SALVATION!
- But the best of all 4 verses is Romans 13:14 – put on the Armor of light – Jesus Christ!
- The idea of all these verses being we are going into BATTLE…
- Like any good soldier we need to prepare ourselves for the battle…
- NOT to get caught up in the CARES of this life so we get CAUGHT off guard!
- II Timothy 2:4 – “No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.”
- 4th – We are NOT appointed to WRATH… vs. 9-10
- APPOINTED – used 96x in NT – the place or to put down…
- It is not the desire or plan of God to place us in the WRATH that is to come…
- When God will pour out His wrath and judgment on a God rejecting world!
- Laid out in the Book of Revelation – 21 judgments in what we call the Tribulation!
- They are broken up into 3 sets of 7 judgments – Seal / Trumpet / and Bowl judgments…
- The terror will be so great – unless God limited it – no one would survive – Mark 13:20
- I Thessalonians 1:10 – “Jesus who rescues us from the wrath to come.”
- Instead His desire is we OBTAIN salvation through Jesus Christ who died for us…
- OBTAIN – only used 5x in NT – a word that means to preserve / or possess…
- That whether we WAKE or SLEEP we should (both subjunctive) live together with Him!
- God PURCHASED us through Jesus – there is no way He WANTS to pour His wrath on us!
- Whether we WAKE of SLEEP seems to suggest EITHER way we avoid the WRATH…
- But it more likely represents the CHOICE – to either be AWKAKE or ASLEEP…
- That we MIGHT (subjunctive) live together with Him – RAPTURE – if we are AWAKE!
- We NEED to make sure we are ready for His return – WATCHING / SOBER!
- 1st – THEREFORE – since we are sons of LIGHT… vs. 6
- 5th – The commands…. vs. 11 (2 points)
- 1st – Therefore COMFORT one another…1
- COMFORT (imperative) – parakaleō – to encourage or come along side…
- As we see the world around us going crazy – and we KNOW judgement is coming!
- Up is down / right is wrong – and the truth becomes spoken of as evil – Isaiah 5:20
- It is VERY encouraging to be reminded that we will NOT go through the WRATH to come!
- 2nd – EDIFY one another…
- EDIFY (imperative) – 39x in NT – to build a house – ESTABLISH…
- Matthew 25:1-13 – Jesus gave the parable of the 10 virgins…
- There were 10 women were waiting for THE Wedding – but the Groom was delayed…
- They expected the Lord to return soon – but He was taking longer than expected!
- Jesus is not slow in coming – He just desires many more come to salvation – II Peter 3:9
- If Jesus had come back 40/20/10/5 years ago – how many of us would have gone!
- The virgins fell asleep / some of their lights went out – excitement of Jesus coming wore off!
- Those who were not AWAKE / SOBER – had to leave to buy more oil for their lamps…
- When they returned they asked – Lord / Lord – open the door for us…
- He said – I do not know you- He knew who should come in because He found them waiting!
- It is easy to be excited when we hear Jesus is coming soon for His church…
- It is also easy to lose that excitement in the worries of life – care of this world…
- We NEED to EDIFY – establish each other – lest we forget Jesus is on His way!
- 1st – Therefore COMFORT one another…1