1 Thessalonians 5:4-11 - Live Sober

4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. 8 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. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

Target Date: Sunday, 26 March 2023

NOTES:

Word Study/ Translation Notes:

Darkness - σκότος skŏtŏs – darkness

Greek epistemology starts with the process of illumination, i.e., the movement from darkness to light. Darkness has no great conceptual significance; it serves only as a foil to light. There is no direct line from what is said about illumination to later dualism.

The darkness is vacuous, even an absence of light. It is NOT material or the “opposite” of light – a duality. It is where light has not invaded or conquered.

Darkness is empty, devoid of light.

The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them. – Isaiah 9:2

The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. – John 1:5

This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. – John 3:19

While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world. – John 9:5

He then answered, “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” – John 9:25

being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; - Ephesians 4:18

Surprise - καταλαμβάνω katalambanō – literally “to take down”, to seize, to overcome, to overtake, overpower.

Of a demon possessing a child: and whenever it seizes him - Mark 9:18

Of the supremacy of light: the darkness has not overcome it. - John 1:5

Of a woman overtaken in the act of adultery: the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery - John 8:3

Thief – same as in prior passage.

Children - υἱός huiŏs – literally “sons”, although in this usage, it indicates “sons and daughters”.

Light

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. – Matthew 5:14-16

For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” – John 3:20-21

“For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. 36 While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.” – John 12:35-36

so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world - Philippians 2:15

Day - ἡμέρα hēmĕra – the same word used for “Day of the Lord”

Night

Sleep – different from the word in chapter 4. The former verb had the idea of falling asleep. This one is the picture of deep slumber, insensate to the events happening around.

Others

Awake - γρηγορεύω grēgŏrĕuō – be vigilant, watchful

From the idea to shake yourself awake, gather your faculties.

Drunk

They were not sensible of their danger, therefore they slept; they were not sensible of their duty, therefore they were drunk: but it ill becomes Christians to do thus.

Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap; 35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth. 36 But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” – Luke 21:34-36

Sober - νήφω nēphō – literally – un-drunk. Used in this place to mean discreet, serious – another aspect of watchful.

The thought behind nḗphō is a negative one, i.e., the opposite of intoxication.

When the word is used figuratively the subject is a person or the human logismós and what is meant is the opposite of every kind of fuzziness. Sober judgment is highly valued in both individual and public life.

Breastplate

Helmet

Hope of Salvation

Thoughts on the Passage:

In Romans, Paul makes essentially the same case there as in this passage:

The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts. – Romans 13:12-14

The exhortations in this passage also give understanding to v.11 here: encourage one another and build one another up.

4 – In Darkness/ 5 – of the darkness

This noun for “darkness” is in the dative case, indicating it is the state or location of the subject. Thus, in darkness indicates the state the believer is NOT in – that the believer in Jesus Christ is not IN darkness, contained in it, dwelling in it.

In verse 5, however, the case is genitive, indicating the NATURE or ORIGIN of the subject. Thus he is saying we do not PROCEED out of night or darkness in our nature, that we do not belong to darkness.

The difference is between someone who is circumstantially in a state and one who is nativ to that state.

To belong to darkness is more than to be in darkness.

4 – That day – speaking specifically of the Day of the Lord due to the definite article “that” or “the”.

It is an interpretive question whether the remaining uses of the word “day” (v.5, 8) are likewise pointing to the Day of the Lord or to “day” in general.

In v.5, there is no article there to indicate a specific day, but leaves the interpretation as “children of day”.

Likewise, in v.8, there is no article, leading to the same conclusion.

It is that the day of the Lord divides humanity into two distinct camps—those who are ready and destined for salvation and those who are not ready and are destined for wrath

5 – Children of Light

Includes everyone: you are ALL children of light…

Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous. – Psalm 112:4

Come, house of Jacob, and let us walk in the light of the Lord. – Isaiah 2:5

No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; But you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, And your God for your glory. 20 “Your sun will no longer set, Nor will your moon wane; For you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, And the days of your mourning will be over. – Isaiah 60:19-20

Children of light are true children of God. They have undergone a transformation that makes a new life (a life in the light) inevitable, not just preferable. Godliness for true sons of the light is not just a matter of appropriate actions; it is an outgrowth of their essential nature, their relationship to God

5 – Children of the day

To be a “son of the day” is to be one who awaits with expectancy the day of the Lord

5 – of the night, of darkness

These all have one point in common. They depict people who are blind. They cannot or will not see clearly and are therefore unprepared for what lies ahead

Those in darkness would include those who are corrupt, who have actively rejected God’s offer of salvation.

Those would be the ones who loved the darkness over the light because their deeds were evil.

It would also be those who grope in darkness, unable to find their way to God.

you will grope at noon, as the blind man gropes in darkness, and you will not prosper in your ways; but you shall only be oppressed and robbed continually, with none to save you. – Deuteronomy 28:29

This is not a separate group, but a separate understanding of some people in these groups.

To be totally corrupt does not mean we are as bad as we can be – only that we can in no way reach God’s holy standard.

This would also include that group upon God will have mercy and enlighten them to His grace.

Those who God rescues: For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. – Colossians 1:13-14

I am the Lord, I have called You in righteousness, I will also hold You by the hand and watch over You, And I will appoint You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the nations, 7 To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon And those who dwell in darkness from the prison. – Isaiah 42:6-7

Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. – 1 Corinthians 6:11

While it is impossible for the day of the Lord to catch Christians unprepared, it is possible for them to adopt the same life style as those who will be caught unawares. Paul urges his readers not to let this happen

I am not so sure if I agree with this or not, at least with the terms undefined. Those who will be caught unawares, whether they name the name of Christ or not, could be seen to be those who did not persevere until the end, those who cry Lord, Lord, but did not do the things He commanded.

Certainly the grace of God is independent of our worthiness, but the Scriptures declare that it is correlated to our conduct.

Good fruit comes from a good tree.

The one who loves Jesus will keep His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.

Otherwise, what is to distinguish between the persevering believer and the false one who sprouts quickly, but has no root and withers with the application of heat and trial?

7 – sleep and drunk – these may well have been sins the Thessalonians were particularly tempted toward. In the parallel Romans 13:12ff, several more sin types are listed there. The narrowness of the sin list to the Thessalonians should not be seen as a failure to be comprehensive, but Paul pastorally addressing the most pressing sins of the congregation.

It could also be mercy that he mentioned only those sins that were causing the most struggle in the church, leaving to their current pastors to make other corrections the apostles felt would be in their strength.

In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. – Hebrews 12:4

Sermon Text:

We come again this morning to look at this great summary of doctrinal application written by the apostles for our understanding and practice.

Much of the time, when we think of biblical applications, we are looking for the writer, or even the preacher, to give us specific behaviors to begin or quit.

And often the preacher will oblige with some examples of times when the application may be applied to real life.

In fact, I will often suggest those things as examples in our Sunday sermons, hoping to challenge sins we hold too closely.

But there is a danger in being too specific with applications: the very person who needs to hear and apply the Scripture to their own life may stop listening because they think they are not subject to the specific sin used in the application.

For instance, last week, I used as an illustration of loving the pleasures of this world the diversions of football and NASCAR.

Everyone here, I think, realizes that those are not the only two things we might consider pleasant enough in this world to draw us from the craving for the Return of Jesus Christ.

Any hobby or entertainment, indeed, any job, can have the same detrimental effect on our anticipation of our Lord’s return if we pursue it more diligently than we ought.

Those who love neither football or NASCAR, then, are not excused from the lesson of the passage:

They must find their OWN application in being watchful over the sins that entice them.

Just to make the point as clear as possible: when we read or study Scripture, we must ALWAYS seek good and godly application of those truths we find in Scripture.

Examining things that are deeply personal to US.

Removing things that are troublesome to us.

Please understand what I am saying here:

The interpretation of Scripture is not personal, but the application of Scripture is deeply personal,

Dividing joint and marrow in our lives.

At no time should we ever allow ourselves to think that Scripture means what YOU want it to mean;

Nor should we relegate the truth of Scripture to the mere matter of opinion.

But the application of Scripture to our lives is fiercely intimate,

Speaking to sins and motives that no one knows except God.

Correcting sins and desires that no one else would ever know.

And in that vein, we look at the second part of that great application Paul and Silas are giving to the Thessalonian believers: watching.

We began looking at this discipline last week when we looked at the command in verse 6: keep awake.

Today I would like to complete our study of that compound command by finishing the verse: and be sober.

Both these things – staying awake and being sober – are things we would expect of someone entrusted to be on guard duty – someone assigned to a watch.

Even the metaphor the apostles use here is a military one, speaking of armor in the rest of the passage.

And consider the commands in the context of that illustration:

What are the two ways a person on guard duty could fail in their charge?

1. To fall asleep

Or 2. To be unfit for duty, perhaps to be intoxicated..

And that is literally what the word they are using means: to be sober is to not be drunk.

We all understand why that could be deadly for those who was supposed to be watching and for the things they are supposed to guard.

For the believer in the watch over his soul, conduct, and habits, the danger is just as grave.

And so, when they speak of being sober, they mean much more than simply not being intoxicated on alcohol – although that would be sinful.

When they say “be sober”, they mean to be serious, or, as one commentator put it, to not be “fuzzy”.

Be SERIOUS about your life in Christ!

There is perhaps no graver threat to the professing believer as to not be serious about your life in Christ.

it is perilous to allow yourself to be drawn away by the influences of this world, engaging in them, practicing them, and loving them at the expense of your duty to our Lord.

To live your life in a manner little different from the corrupt world around you.

Setting your goals by the world’s standards.

Setting your heart on the things around you.

It is not being different from the world for the sake of being different, like we are making some kind of spiritual statement to the world in our behavior.

We do and we should, as lights in the world, declare His glory in our lives.

But the world is NOT our primary audience.

They are not the ones we seek to impress.

They are not the ones whose applause we long to hear.

And it is not even their derision that guarantees we are on the right path.

Being sober, being serious about living for our Lord, means all our efforts are directed to hear our Master say “Well done, my faithful servant.”

To hear His confirmation that we have done His work in His way.

Not simply to the best of our ability.

Or to the best of our understanding.

But we have done His work in the way HE ordained and directed through His Spirit.

That is so crucial: we can become intoxicated by beautiful music or artful speech or emotional appeals that appear to come from Scripture.

But these methods, in the hands of many, are still worldly, carnal weapons, incapable of bringing every thought into the captivity of Christ.

Being sober means we will not be carried away by these emotions and artifice, longing for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation - 1 Peter 2:2

And just so everyone here knows: when you are working for our Master’s praise, you will be different from the world around you.

And many who notice the change will not like it.

People who are in open rebellion against our Lord will discourage you from being so different.

Even people who attend church on a regular basis, who even name the name of Christ, will accuse you of “going too far” in your devotion to our Lord.

Brothers and sisters, the kingdom of God is made up of those who did not love their life even when faced with death. – Revelation 12:11

Dare to be serious about following Christ!

Reexamine everything in your life in the light of His return and your answer to Him when He calls you to account.

What is there in this life – what possession or treasure, talent or accomplishment – that you will hold up in that moment to explain to your Master why you sought after the things of this world?

Our Lord has already told us how to prepare for that day:

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay every man according to his deeds. – Matthew 16:26-27

Being sober, being serious in watching until His Return, means we aren’t simply playing around about being a follower of Jesus Christ – it is life and death.

We are not simply called to an intellectual understanding, a heartfelt belief that Jesus Christ lived and died and rose again.

That is a good start.

But the Christian life, the REAL life of a believer in Jesus Christ, is marked by a serious devotion to living God’s way in this corrupt world.

Too many believers, perhaps you, live like they believe that people CAN live by bread alone.

That simply by believing the story of Jesus, even the reality of His life, is enough to make all their worldly efforts holy.

That by being on His “side”, on His “team”, he will look past all the corrupting influences we continue to bring into our life.

“It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’ ” – Matthew 4:4

You remember that Jesus quoted this passage when Satan tempted Him to turn some stones to bread after Jesus had fasted forty days.

He was hungry.

And at other times we see him eating bread.

But not then – not there – in the midst of temptation.

He is not condemning bread – He is saying we cannot live on that ALONE.

The necessary things of this world, in their right time and in their right measure, are necessary for life.

But our greatest need AT ALL TIMES is the guidance of the word of God.

The greatest human need of OUR LORD at that moment was not a loaf of bread, but the word of God.

How serious are you in following our Lord?

Perhaps you are wondering how to begin.

What more can we do to be more committed to the service of the Lord?

Perhaps you know inside you have been striving for the things of this world.

Trying to get ahead, to place your trust in the things you can accumulate, things you can touch and feel.

Perhaps you have even told yourself that once you are in a comfortable position, THEN you will do things for God.

If you are in this position, the desire to commit yourself even more to our Lord, I will pass along this fine list from the Puritan Richard Rogers.

To make time and opportunity in each day to:

1. Awake with God.

Awake in the humility of our dependence and debt to Him.

Considering the temptations that might lie in store for the day, and reminding yourself of God’s law in those matters.

2. Begin the day with prayer.

M’Cheyne wrote down his personal confession in this way:

I ought to pray before seeing anyone. Often when I sleep long, or meet with others early…it is eleven or twelve o’clock before I begin secret prayer. This is a wretched system…I can do no good to those who come to seek from me. My conscience feels guilty, the souls unfed, the lamp not trimmed.

Each day, this will arm us strongly against evil and sin, for we fear most of all to offend God.

3. Be about your calling, working as to the Lord.

Out of our fear and love for Him, finding our joy in Him more than any other thing, we work to please Him in all our duties.

4. Be holy in our meetings with others.

That our conversation with others should be seasoned and grace-full.

That our love for the brothers and for those who are lost would constrain our personal bent.

That we would deny ourselves for the sake of others.

5. Behave rightly in our aloneness and solitude.

How many a person can rise in a crowd but wither in a closet?

The clearest test of our integrity, particularly as we are able to measure it, is what we do in our loneliness and solitude.

How do we spend our aloneness?

Many grave sins will attack us then, when we feel we are hidden from the judgment of other people.

Especially in those times, we must remember the judgment of our Lord.

These are the times where we must be vigilantly watching and praying.

6. Use our prosperity well.

Do you have excess?

We must always be seeking God for the purpose he has trusted us with it.

It will NEVER be so that we may spend it on our worldly desires, although we often act as if that were so.

7. Bear afflictions rightly every day they come.

Not every day will have great affliction, but bear even the inconveniences of life in the joy of the Lord, gratefully knowing He is making you more holy.

And if we learn to handle these daily inconveniences aright, we shall find ourselves prepared when true trouble comes so that we can bear them in God’s grace.

8. Gather daily as a family for religious “exercise”.

This may be catechism, instruction, prayer, Bible reading, or other religious instruction.

The key is that it is planned, regular, and not often cancelled.

9. Review the day, soberly assessing our obedience and disobedience.

This will help us to follow the command in Ephesians 5:15-16:

be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil.

The picture when he says “be careful how you walk” is to walk “looking around”, watching constantly for traps and pitfalls.

We might consider the sins we need to confess that went unconfessed at the time.

We might consider the demands of tomorrow and pray that God will prepare us through the night to face them rightly.

We ought always to remember those we encountered that day, praying for them.