He is Coming! 1 Thessalonians 5

Intro

we are wrapping up 1 Thessalonians

by way of recap, I’m going to show a little clip from something called the Bible Project

this is available to you through Faithlife TV, one of the many resources you have access to through your faithlife account

they have book summaries, character highlights, theme highlights

great stuff, just a small portion of the amazing resources everyone has access to on faithlife

show video

On to Chapter 5

with that, let’s dive into chapter 5

1 Thessalonians 5:1–11 ESV

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. 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. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

Thief in the Night

if you don’t know the thief is coming, you don’t change anything

if you know the thief is coming, everything changes that night

stay up, waiting with a shot gun

you don’t have to know the day or hour; just knowing he could return soon should make you live differently

Jesus has another analogy; faithful servant vs wicked servant

Paul so desperately wants the church to be ready and aware, he even uses the language of a soldier, something Paul does often. A soldier puts on his armor so he’s ready for anything. In the same way, put on faith, hope and love like pieces of armor

On to Paul’s list

1 Thessalonians 5:12–22 ESV

We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.

So Many Points, So Little Time

Respect your leadership who work hard to encourage you in the things of faith

Be at peace; peacemakers will be called children of God

admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, and help the weak PATIENTLY

seek to do good to everyone

rejoice always, pray always, give thanks always; no matter what

for this is the will of God for you. Second time we’ve heard that

don’t be quick to disregard the work of the Spirit and prophecy, but don’t just blindly believe it either

abstain from evil. The list is full of things to be doing, with one mention of things to not do

Admonish the Idle

Remember last week, and continuing this week. Holiness has just as much to do with doing the right things as it is to avoid doing the wrong thing

This list is long with the right things we should be doing

in fact, if we follow the list, we are probably too busy to get into trouble

on the flip side when we are idle, we are prone to getting into trouble

so church, the time of rest is coming to a close, and it is time to get off the bench and into the game. The harvest is great, the work is great, and we need more workers to bring it in

it is time to get back to the work of the ministry

Paul’s closing prayer

1 Thessalonians 5:23–24 ESV

Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

A Summary of the Book

God of peace

sanctify you completely

whole spirit, soul and body kept blameless

coming of the Lord Jesus

God is faithful; it is God who sanctifies you and me, and though we may drop the ball, God never fails, he never stops, and he will finish the good work in you

Let’s Pray