he died in our place

Posted on November 28, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

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he died in our place

1 Thessalonians 5:9-11 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 5:9 You see, God has not appointed us for wrath, but for acquiring rescue through our Lord Jesus Christ,
1 Thessalonians 5:10 who died in our place, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.
1 Thessalonians 5:11 For this reason, encourage one another and build each other up as you are already doing.

he died in our place

Paul is still addressing the issue of believers who have fallen asleep — that is — died and await the return of Christ for a resurrection. He now links that question (which would be categorized as individual eschatology) to the question of cosmic eschatology — what is the final state of the saved. His argument: Christ died huper hēmōn — in our place. Since these believers have died, it is obvious that Christ’s death did not result in their immortality — yet. Instead. Christ’s death resulted in the promise that believers (whether alive or dead now) will not suffer wrath. And what is this wrath? It has to be the penalty that Christ took for them. He died in our place. The wrath of which Paul is speaking is the second death.

Because he died in our place, we can live together with him when he returns.

Lord, thank you for dying in our place.

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staying awake

Posted on November 27, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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staying awake

1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 5:6 So then, let us not be sleeping, like the rest, but let us be staying awake and be self-controlled
1 Thessalonians 5:7 because those who are sleeping, sleep at night, and those who are getting drunk, get drunk at night.
1 Thessalonians 5:8 But since we belong to the day, we should be self-controlled and putting on the armor of faith and care, and a helmet of the hope of rescue.

staying awake

Paul had been talking about the second coming, and explaining what it will entail for believers, whether they are alive or dead — sleeping in Christ. Now he shifts the subject to a comparison of what the second coming will entail for those sleeping in unbelief, compared to those who are staying awake and self-controlled in faith.

Both sleep and intoxication are states where people are under an influence that makes them vulnerable. By staying awake and sober, people can focus on their mission, and protect themselves from harm.

Both Christians and unbelievers will experience the second coming of Christ. For Unbelievers, his return will mean the wrath of God. But for those who are awake, self-controlled and protected by the armor of faith and care, his return will mean rescue, and permanent life.

Lord, enable us to stay awake, prepared for your rescue.

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children of the day

Posted on November 26, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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children of the day

1 Thessalonians 5:4-5 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 5:4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in the dark, causing this day to surprise you like a thief
1 Thessalonians 5:5 because you are all children of light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness.

children of the day

At night there is darkness all around us, so we close ourselves in and curtail our activities, to be safe. We don’t know what’s out there, so we limit our activity.

But children of the day are not limited. They are busy, and in control, and will not be surprised by a thief. They are always ready for him.

Lord, show us how to stay busy doing what you have called us to do, so that we are always ready for your return.

 

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quick destruction

Posted on November 25, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

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quick destruction

1 Thessalonians 5:1-3 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 5:1 About the times and the seasons: Brothers and sisters, you do not need anything to be written to you
1 Thessalonians 5:2 because you yourselves know quite well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.
1 Thessalonians 5:3 When they are saying, “Peace and security,” then quick destruction will come on them, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

quick destruction

Paul had been encouraging the Thessalonians who had lost loved ones by reminding them of the hope of Christ’s return. He will come suddenly and violently back to this planet, with booming shouts and loud trumpet blasts. His coming is certain and swift, but nobody knows when.

This same truth which is a comfort for the believer should send shivers down the unbeliever’s spine. This swift resurrection and reunion for the saint also means swift retribution for the reprobate. The Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night, like labor pains on a pregnant woman. The result will be quick destruction, from which there is no escape.

Lord, your coming will be awesome for us, but awful for the unbelievers all around us. Show us how to rescue them from the quick destruction that awaits them.

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with the Lord

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

 

 

with the Lord

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 4:16 because the Lord himself will descend from the sky with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
1 Thessalonians 4:17 Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
1 Thessalonians 4:18 Encourage one another with these words, then.

with the Lord

Lots of folk talk about going to be with the Lord, but they seem to think it will happen when they die. Paul could have said that the believing dead were with the Lord, and that would have settled it for the curious Thessalonians. But he didn’t say that. In fact, he said that the dead were asleep (verses 13 and 15), and that they would not rise until Jesus descended.

When we face our own death, or the death of loved ones, we need encouragement. But our encouragement should be in line with what the Bible actually says. The second coming is the blessed hope.

Lord, thank you for the promise of a resurrection and reunion at your return.

 

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in the same way

Posted on November 23, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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1 Thessalonians 4:13-15 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 4:13 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, concerning those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who have no hope
1 Thessalonians 4:14 because if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, in the same way, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
1 Thessalonians 4:15 You see, we say this to you by a word from the Lord: We who are still alive at the Lord’s coming will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep

in the same way

Paul wanted the Thessalonian Christians to know that their dead would not be abandoned. They were presently asleep, but their sleep was not to be an eternal one. Christ was raised from the dead, and they would have victory over death in the same way.

Now, there are those who teach that believers have victory over death in a different way. They follow a long-standing tradition that teaches that death is not really death, but a crossing the Jordon to eternal life immediately after death. That was not how Jesus got victory over death. He stayed in that tomb until he was raised from it.

And that is the way that Paul says the Thessalonian Christians will find their victory. He told them that “the Lord himself will descend from the sky with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise…” (verse 16).

Lord, we thank you for the promise of a resurrection just like Jesus experienced, and an eternal victory over death like his.

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brotherly care in one direction

Posted on November 22, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

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brotherly care in one direction

1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 4:9 About brotherly caring: You don’t need me to write you because you yourselves are taught by God to care about one another.
1 Thessalonians 4:10 In fact, you are doing this toward all the brothers and sisters in the entire region of Macedonia. But we encourage you, brothers and sisters, to do this even more,
1 Thessalonians 4:11 to seek to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you,
1 Thessalonians 4:12 so that you may behave properly in the presence of outsiders and not be dependent on anyone.

brotherly care in one direction

Paul encouraged the Thessalonian Christians to keep on caring for one another, and keep finding ways to express their love, because that mutual love among the congregations would draw others to Christ.

But Paul warned against the temptation to take advantage of other peoples care — their desire to help and be generous. Instead, he told the Thessalonians to seek to live independent of other people’s charity. Depending on the financial help of others would make the outsiders (non-Christians) assume that people were joining churches just to receive support. So, it would act against the cause of Christ and the mission of the congregation.

Lord, give us the generosity to care for one another, and the independence to do so without bringing shame on the congregation, and turning people away from the gospel.

 

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invitation to consecration

Posted on November 21, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

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invitation to consecration

1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 4:7 For God has not invited us to impurity but to live in consecration.
1 Thessalonians 4:8 Consequently, anyone who rejects this does not reject a human, but God, who gives you his Sacred Breath.

invitation to consecration

Living the consecrated life in reference to our sexuality is a possibility for every Christian. God invites us to be consecrated to him in that way. We can still refuse his invitation, but if we do, we need to know that the choice is not without consequence. Paul calls it rejecting God.

As some point in our future, we will stand before the judgment, and all our choices will be evaluated. That is not the time to discover that promiscuity or homosexuality is wrong, after all.

Lord, help us to flee impurity and live lives consecrated to your preference.

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God’s sexual preference

Posted on November 20, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

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God’s sexual preference

1 Thessalonians 4:3-6 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 4:3 For this is God’s preference, your consecration: that you keep away from sexual immorality,
1 Thessalonians 4:4 that each of you knows how to control his own body in consecration and honor,
1 Thessalonians 4:5 not with lustful passions, like the Gentiles, who don’t know God.
1 Thessalonians 4:6 This means one must not transgress against and take advantage of a brother or sister in this manner, because the Lord is an avenger of all these offenses, as we also previously told and warned you.

God’s sexual preference

God has created each of us with a wonderful, powerful body, capable of two possible sexualities. Each of us has the preference to choose our own sexuality.

We can choose to allow our bodies to control us, becoming slaves to whatever lustful passions emerge from our depraved minds. If we make that choice, then we are choosing to act like the Gentiles. who have no knowledge of God. We are practicing practical atheism — dishonoring God as if his preference does not matter. Pornography or other forms of entertainment which encourage lustful passions only feed this practical atheism.

Also, it leads to a second sin of transgression, because our lusts will lead us to violate the bodies of other men and women, taking advantage of either their weakness or the mutual willingness of their depraved minds.

Thirdly, the choice to follow our lustful passions makes God our judge. He is obligated to avenge our transgressions. He does not want to do that, but he must because he is a just and fair God. He has to punish us for crossing the line.

As I said, God has created each of us with a wonderful, powerful body, capable of two possible sexualities. Each of us has the preference to choose our own sexuality. We can make the right choice. We can choose God’s sexual preference, which is consecration.

Consecration means remaining single if possible. But if they cannot remain single and stay in control, then a husband and wife must practice their sexuality within the confines of their marriage (1 Corinthians 7:2,8,11,32,34; Ephesians 5:28,33). That is the only choice that honors God, avoids transgression, and prevents punishment.

Lord, we consecrate ourselves to your preference.

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keep at it

Posted on November 19, 2021 by Jefferson Vann

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keep at it

1 Thessalonians 4:1-2 (JDV)

1 Thessalonians 4:1 Beyond this then, brothers and sisters, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus, because as you have accepted instruction from us on how you should live and please God – as you are doing – do this even more
1 Thessalonians 4:2 because you know what commands we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

keep at it

Having established that the Thessalonians are living by faith, care for each other, and hope (confident expectation of the Lord’s return), Paul assures them that they are living to please God, so they should keep it up. His marching orders for them are “keep at it.”

Christian, do you wonder if you measure up to God’s standard? Just keep doing what you know pleases Him each day. Do not allow fear or guilt to paralyze you. God has invested his Holy Spirit in you. He will accomplish what he wants in your life. Keep yielding to Him, and when he appears, he will be pleased.

Lord, we ask for your Holy Spirit to exhibit his fruit of perseverance in our lives. Help us to keep at it.

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