The Second Coming of Jesus

Today I want to talk about heaven. I want to talk about the second coming of Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 will be our text.

Jesus talked about heaven and he talked about coming back some day. Perhaps the clearest and best known passage about his coming back is John 14

John 14:1–3 (NIV) — 1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

He says I’m leaving but I will be back and we will be together again. But he doesn’t give a lot of details. Because of that there has been a lot of speculation on when he will come back, what will happen when he comes back, what heaven will be like. You’ve no doubt heard or read about the second coming of Jesus. Terms like rapture, the millennium, the anti-Christ are terms we hear quite often and there is no shortage of different opinions and in many cases confusion. What’s going to happen? We are confused. I am confused!

We are not the first generation to have questions. In fact, these questions started no too long after Jesus ascended to heaven. And one church in particular seemed to be really bothered by these questions. They had a lot of anxiety about when Jesu will come back and especially what happens to people who die before he comes back. That church is in Thessalonica – a city that Paul visited. You can read about in Acts.

When you study the book of 1 Thessalonians the second coming of Christ is one of the primary themes. In just about every introduction to the book there will be a note referencing this topic. If you have a Bible with introductory notes, I bet the second coming is in there.

Reading the letters of Paul is like listening into a conversation. You only hear what Paul is saying but in many cases he is responding to questions or concerns the church has. So, when we read the letters we try to figure out what are those questions and concerns they have. What is going on in the church?

Here are some things that seem to be going on in Thessalonica concerning the second coming of Jesus:

(1) The return of Christ was thought to be imminent.

they thought when he said he was coming back he meant soon. Like maybe weeks or months. But now years had passed. Waiting is not fun. Waiting makes you wonder if it’s ever going to happen, Waiting can even make you mad at the person you are waiting for. I remember waiting for my mom to pick me up from school. It was cold. I was mad. Did she forget me? Does she care about me? These believers may have been feeling these feelings.

(2) They seemed worried about the believers who had died while waiting.

Will they be included in the second coming? Do they have the hope of heaven? Are they missing out on what will happen? They were concerned about the fate of those who had died.

That brings us to today’s Parishioner’s Pick – 1 Thessalonians 4:13- 18. I will read through the whole section and then spend time digging in phrase by phrase:

1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 (NIV) — 13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Now let’s dig a little deeper.

1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 (NIV)

13 Brothers and sisters,

19 times in 1 Thessalonians

Church is a family – a common term to identify believers

Paul is correcting a misunderstanding but doing it in love

we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death,

They lack some understanding or have some false information that seems to be troubling them.

The heart of the issue is what about people who have died and will not be here when Christ returns

He uses the term sleep (also in vv 14, 15) – not uncommon in the ancient world to use this euphemism but many see this term also as a way to underscore that death is only temporary. Death is a sleep from which we will waken.

Note – we get the word cemetery from this Greek word for sleep.

so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.

Here’s where the Christian view of death differs from non-believer. We have hope.

These Christians may have lost hope for those who had died but Paul reminds them that there is hope even for those who have fallen asleep.

And that hope changes the way we grieve. Note that Paul doesn’t say we don’t grieve. We do and an abuse of this passage is to rebuke believers who grieve. Jesus grieved at the death of Lazarus. The early Christians grieved at the death of Tabitha in Acts 9.

Our grief is not despair – we have hope.

14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

What is the basis of this hope? Nothing but the resurrection of Jesus.

Paul speaks of it as an historical event. Jesus died. He doesn’t use the term sleep here maybe to avoid any theories that Jesus just fainted on the cross. No, he really died. And he rose again.

Since we believe that, we have this hope that those believers who died are still alive. They are with Jesus and when He comes back they’re coming back with him.

They will participate in this second coming. They will not miss out!

15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.

This is what Jesus said. No direct reference we can go to. This may have been one of the teachings of Jesus not recorded in the gospels. Nonetheless, Paul says this is not my idea, this is what Jesus has taught.

Those who are still alive really don’t have any advantage. Those you have been worrying about aren’t going to have a secondary role in this second coming.

16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

Here are some limited details about the second coming. You might see the word Parousia (Greek word for arrival sometimes used in Greek to describe the arrival of a victorious king) used in reference to this event.

It will be quite the event – a loud command, archangel (Michael is the only archangel mentioned in the Bible), and a trumpet call. You will not be able to miss this. Later in 1 Thessalonians there seemed to be some people who said it already happened.

We get to a confusing issue in this verse. Those who were dead seem to be coming with the Lord but here they are spoken of as rising. This has led to some speculation. When we die are we disembodied and then reunited with our bodies on the day of the second coming? These are unanswered questions, but one thing seems sure we will have a body – a transformed body, but a body nonetheless. And that seems to imply that we will be recognizable as we are now. And that would be reassuring to these believers.

17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Here we get to the heart of the worries. We who are still alive will be reunited with those who have fallen asleep. And those two groups will meet the Lord in the air.

A note here – the word caught up is where we get the term Rapture from. Actually the English term rapture comes from the Latin translation of the Greek word. So, if someone were to ask me if I believe in the Rapture I would say, “Sure.” However, Paul gives us no more details than this.

And then the most encouraging words – we, all the faithful, will be with the Lord forever. Paul envisions a great unending reunion on the day of the second coming of Jesus.

18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

He ends this section saying this teaching should not produce worry but should be encouraging.

So, let’s be encouraged.

Human history is moving towards a glorious conclusion

We have not been forgotten.

Those who have died have not been forgotten.

Jesus said he will come back and he will. It’s going to happen. When, I can’t tell you but I can tell you that He will come back and when he comes back it will be an event like none other.

I used to be scared about the second coming and I must admit it still have a little but of that fear. But we shouldn’t be. It is going to be glorious.

We have something wonderful to look forward to and that expectation should reflect on our lives. We should be full of joy knowing what is coming.

Philippians 3:20–21 (NIV) — 20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

We are going home. We will have a new body.

Christian, you have something to look forward to and that should give us hope even in the darkest days. That hope also brings us focus and endurance for the hardships of this life, especially those that are associated with our faith.

Do not give up your faith. Do not be led astray. Stay on the path you will be glad!

Are you encouraged by that?

Those who have died in faith we will see again

Are you thinking of somebody? I am.

2 Samuel 12:13–23 (NIV) — 22 He answered, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let the child live.’ 23 But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”

David knew that he would see that child again and we can know the same. We will be reunited with those we love.

When we all get to heaven what a day of rejoicing that will be!

Are you encouraged by that?

We will be with the Lord forever

As Paul describes heaven he doesn’t give details we would expect. We want to know what we will be doing. What it will look like. What the temperature will be. If there will be lakes or mountains or oceans.

He simply describes it as being with the Lord and Paul longed for that.

Philippians 1:21–24 (NLT) — 21 For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better. 22 But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don’t know which is better. 23 I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me. 24 But for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live.

I am fortunate to be loved. By my parents. My sisters. Friends along the way. My children. My wife. By all of you. To be loved and to be with those who love me and who I love is one of the greatest joys of life.

But think of this. One day we will be in the presence of one who loves us more than we can comprehend. For Paul he doesn’t care about all the details about heaven. For him being with the Lord is all that matters.

Heaven is being in the presence of love. Pure love. Unending love. Unconditional love. Absolute love. That’s what we have to look forward to.

Are you encouraged by that?

Heaven is real and we are going.