1 Thessalonians 5:8-Those Belonging to the Day Must Clothe Themselves with the Breastplate of Faith and Love and the Helmet of Salvation

1 Thessalonians 5:1 Now on the topic of times and seasons, brothers and sisters, you have no need for anything to be written to you. 5:2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come in the same way as a thief in the night. 5:3 Now when they are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction comes on them, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will surely not escape. 5:4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in the darkness for the day to overtake you like a thief would. 5:5 For you all are sons of the light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of the darkness. 5:6 So then we must not sleep as the rest but must stay alert and sober. 5:7 For those who sleep, sleep at night and those who get drunk are drunk at night. 5:8 But since we are of the day, we must stay sober by putting on the breastplate of faith and love and as a helmet our hope for salvation. (NET)

In 1 Thessalonians 5:8, Paul, Silvanus and Timothy exhort each member of the Thessalonian Christian community to join with them in continuing to be sober-minded in light of the imminent threat and danger of the prophetic events connected to the day of the Lord.

This verse then asserts that each of them were to continue to be sober-minded by clothing themselves with a breastplate which is faith as well as divine-love.

They were also to clothe themselves with a helmet which is a confident expectation of salvation.

The first statement stands in contrast with the second declarative statement in 1 Thessalonians 5:7.

The first declarative statement in verse 7 asserts that those who are asleep, sleep during the night.

The second corresponds to the first and asserts that those who are drunk, are drunk during the night.

Now, the first statement in 1 Thessalonians 5:8 has Paul, Silvanus and Timothy exhorting each member of the Thessalonian Christian community to join with them in continuing to be sober-minded because they belong to a particular group of individuals who are sons belonging to that which is characterized by the day.

The noun hemera, “the day” speaks of each member of Paul, Silvanus, Timothy and each member of the Thessalonian Christian community as belonging to the millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ in the sense that they will be His subjects when He reigns over the earth during His millennial reign.

“Let each one of us continue to be sober-minded” (nēphō) appeared in 1 Thessalonians 5:6.

1 Thessalonians 5:6 Indeed therefore, each and every one of us must continue to not be asleep as the rest. But rather, let each one of us continue to stay alert namely, let each one of us continue to be sober-minded. (My translation)

In each instance, the verb nēphō is figurative language for being influenced by the Spirit which is commanded of every church age believer in Ephesians 5:18.

It speaks of being sober spiritually as a result of experiencing fellowship with God which is accomplished by obeying the Spirit’s voice in the Word of God which constitutes obeying the commands to be influenced by the Spirit in Ephesians 5:18 and letting the Word of Christ richly dwell in one’s soul in Colossians 3:16.

It is expressing the idea is that Paul, Silvanus and Timothy as well as each member of the Thessalonian Christian community must continue to be sober-minded in light of the imminent threat of the prophetic events connected to the day of the Lord taking place.

It is expressing the idea that they must remain sober-minded by continuing to make it their habit of experiencing fellowship with God by obeying the Spirit inspired commands and prohibitions connected to the gospel as it is related to the child of God.

Therefore, the comparison between the two statements in verse 7 and the first one in verse 8 is between those who get drunk during the night and those who belong to a group of individuals who are sons belonging to that which is characterized by the day.

The former speaks of the non-Christian community who are spiritually drunk because they are deceived by Satan’s cosmic system.

The latter speaks of the Christian community who belong to Jesus Christ’s future millennial reign on the earth and are spiritually sober.

Therefore, the contrast is between the non-Christian community who are spiritually drunk because they belong to Satan’s kingdom and reign and the Christian community which belongs to Jesus Christ’s kingdom and reign who are spiritually sober.

As we noted earlier, Paul presents the means by which they were to respond to this exhortation to continue to be sober-minded.

He uses a participial clause to convey this which is defining or explaining the action of this exhortation.

Therefore, it is defining for the reader specifically how Paul, Silvanus and Timothy and each member of the Thessalonian Christian community must continue to be sober-minded.

Thus, this would indicate that Paul, Silvanus, Timothy and each member of the Thessalonian Christian community must continue to be sober-minded by clothing themselves with the breastplate of faith and love as well as the helmet which is a confident expectation of salvation.

The reference to the “the breastplate of faith and love” is a military analogy.

“Faith” (pistis) does not refer to justifying faith but rather the Thessalonian’s post-justification faith in the Word of God.

Specifically, it speaks of the child of God appropriating by faith one’s union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the Father’s right hand.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:8, “love” (agapē) does not refer to the function of human love.

But rather, the word pertains to the exercise of divine-love that is produced by the Holy Spirit through the believer who exercises faith in the Spirit inspired teaching of the gospel which results in obedience to the Lord’s Spirit inspired command to love another.

Here it is used of the Trinity’s attribute of love, which is manifested in the life of child of God who exercises faith in God’s love for them and which faith manifests itself in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ’s Spirit inspired to love one another.

So therefore, Paul is teaching the Thessalonians that just as the breastplate of the Roman soldier saved him from being mortally wounded, so the believer will be protected from being mortally wounded in spiritual combat with the kingdom of darkness by appropriating by faith their union and identification with Jesus Christ and obeying His command to love one another.

“A helmet our hope for salvation” is also another military analogy.

“Hope” (elpis) refers to the child of God receiving a resurrection body from the Lord Jesus Christ at the rapture of the church as well as rewards for faithful service from Him at the Bema Seat, which complete their salvation.

“Salvation” (sōtēria) speaks of the child of God’s deliverance from personal sins the sin nature, Satan, his cosmic system, condemnation from the Law, spiritual and physical death and of course eternal condemnation.

Specifically, it speaks of the third and final stage of the Christian’s salvation when they receive their resurrection body which completes their salvation.

As was the case in Romans 13:12, 6:11, 1 Thessalonians 5:8 is a military analogy.

Like these other passages, it is used here in 1 Thessalonians 5:8 of the child of God appropriating by faith their union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father since it is used in relation to faith.

It also speaks of clothing oneself with the love of God in the sense of obeying the command to love one another as Christ loves the child of God.

Lastly, it also speaks of the child of God possessing a confident expectation of receiving a resurrection body at the rapture or resurrection of the church which completes the third and final stage of their so great salvation.

So therefore, Paul is teaching in 1 Thessalonians 5:8 that the child of God stays sober-minded, i.e. influenced by the Holy Spirit in light of the imminent threat and danger of the prophetic events connected to the day of the Lord by appropriating by faith their union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.

He also teaches that the child of God stays sober-minded, i.e. influenced by the Spirit in light of the imminent threat and danger of the prophetic events connected to the day of the Lord by obeying the Lord Jesus Christ’s command to love one another as He has loved the child of God.

This obedience is the direct result of the child of God exercising faith in the Spirit’s teaching that God demonstrated His love for them at the cross when judging His Son on the cross for them.

This obedience is also the result of the child of God exercising faith in the Spirit’s teaching that God loved them at their justification when He raised them up and seated them with His Son at His right hand through the baptism of the Spirit (cf. Eph. 2:5-6).

Lastly, Paul teaches that the child of God stays sober-minded, i.e. influenced by the Spirit in light of the imminent threat and danger of the prophetic events connected to the day of the Lord by possessing a confident expectation of the completion of their salvation when they receive a resurrection body at the rapture or resurrection of the church.

This confident expectation is the direct result of exercising faith in Paul’s apostolic teaching that the Lord will give each member of the church a resurrection body at the rapture.