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LIKE A THIEF

Paul’s First Letter, Part 6

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

February 11, 2007

Pastor Graig Flach 

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. 9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

“ESCHATOLOGY”

The return of the Lord was clearly on the minds of the Thessalonians. Paul refers to it in every chapter of this first letter to them. It was one of the topics about which he had taught while in Thessalonica.

In theology circles, when the discussion turns to the second coming of Christ or the final judgment, there is a special term used: “eschatology,” which means “the study of the end.” Last week Bob spoke about the concern of the Thessalonians that they might die before the Lord returned. What would happen to them? Would they miss the Lord? Today’s message complements last week’s sermon; we will see the beginning of Paul’s argument that our certainty of the Lord’s future coming is cause for us to think about how we live in the present.

A couple things before we continue:

When does Mom get back?

First let’s deal with a common misunderstanding of how Christians think and behave in light of not knowing when the Lord is returning. You see, some folks think it means we should behave as if “the boss might be back at any moment,” always looking over our shoulders, never relaxing. That’s not what Paul is trying to communicate. I was reminded of this when I looked at our family calendar a few days ago and saw that my wife, Laura, is going to be away for the LGPC women’s retreat in a couple weeks. That means three days of single parenting for me, and I don’t do nearly as much of that as Laura does. This is true for a number of you with younger children. This illustration can be understood by anyone, really, who has shared a residence with someone and enjoyed that space while the person was away for awhile. You know, while they’re away, you give it a quaint, “lived-in” quality after a couple days, and now you have to make sure it is returned to its tidy state before the person who shares the space with you gets back. This illustration is not gender specific, but let me speak to the men for a moment. Guys, the women’s retreat is two weeks away. It’s best if you actually have a plan! I’ve learned over the last couple years that on that Sunday afternoon, my wife’s return sneaks up on me. After I have spent a wonderful, fun-filled weekend with my two beautiful pre-teenage daughters, I suddenly become aware that Laura will be home in a couple hours, and I need to get intentional about the house. It’s the third day Laura’s been away, and I confess that although our house has not exactly been “crucified,” by Sunday, the third day, my household is in need of “resurrection.” So I put on the breastplate of cleanliness and the helmet of Hoover (the vacuum!), and I kick it into high gear.

Now here’s where the illustration applies: last year I didn’t quite make it. Laura came back unexpectedly early, like a thief, and we were not done! Fortunately Laura is very gracious. She didn’t say a thing. I noticed her noticing a few out-of-place items, but she did not complain or chide. Does anyone know what I’m talking about? Well, let me be clear: that kind of “uh-oh-she-could-be-back-at-any-moment-so-I’d-better-get-things-in-order” mentality is not what the Bible teaches us, as I hope we’ll see. And of course, being ready for an unexpected thief is not a perfect analogy. We want our wives to come home, right, guys? And all of us in Christ, although we understand the Lord will come unexpectedly, want Him to return. Come, Lord Jesus![1]

Back to the Future

As we consider eschatology and the coming of the Lord at the end of history, and before we look more carefully at the text, let me share a perspective that may be enlightening for some of you, as it has been for me.

We tend to conceive of time in linear terms, with a beginning and an end and a process in the middle. For many of us, that line even runs left-to-right because that’s how we read. Of course, since Einstein we know that time is much more than a measuring line. Still, I have always tended to think of myself as being on tiny portion of history that extends almost infinitely back to the creation and will continue infinitely into the future. God created the heavens and the earth and everything and everyone in it and has a plan toward which God is guiding it. Maybe we imagine history as being like a river that has a source (God’s creation) and flows a long way until it finally empties into the sea (God’s kingdom). Along the way, God is “hovering” somewhere sustaining creation as it proceeds toward a future we cannot envision.

But what if this is not an accurate way to think about the chronology of holy history? Some modern theologians suggest we look at it differently. Since God transcends time and is not tied to the kind of cause-and-effect sequence of events on our linear time line, God can be simultaneously present now as well as in the past and future. What if the impetus for human history lies not in the past and present, pushing us toward an unknown future? What if our “time transcending” God is already in the so-called future and waiting for us, gently drawing us toward the pre-existent reality of the Kingdom of Heaven?

This perspective “reverses the commonsense understanding of cause and effect. Instead of viewing the (past and) present as determining the future, we ought to view the present as an effect of the future. The future, not the present or even the past, is the source and power of being.”[2]   Heady stuff! What has it got to do with the message at hand? Just this: If God’s future kingdom is the most real and eternal thing there is, and is not dependent on what has happened in the past or is happening now… and if God and God’s kingdom comprise the foundational reality toward which I am moving and which determines who I am becoming, more than my past and upbringing… my perspective changes on things. It means, for one thing, that I am not a prisoner of my past. In fact, if I posit that kingdom as the source and prerequisite for my existence, it means that since I am here, my prerequisite source must already exist, too. And I must get back to the kingdom, “back to the future.”

THE DAY OF THE LORD

For me, this perspective gives me another option for understanding and believing in my eternal destiny with God. It even strengthens my trust in God. And it is a fresh way to consider eschatology, because the end times are really the beginning[3] , not only of what happens after this life, but even what is happening now. Play with that one for awhile. At the very least it may confuse you to such a degree that you won’t be able to worry about when the Lord will return! And that is part of what Jesus and Paul have been telling us, right? They both say the return of the Lord, the “Day of the Lord,” will come unexpectedly, “like a thief” (Mt 24:43; 1 Thess 5:2). Not only will it come unexpectedly, but “it is not for us to know” (Acts 1:7). So the Bible tells us in several places that no one knows or can know when the Lord will return. Yet saints down through the ages have given in to the temptation to predict it and then experienced embarrassment when the date came and went and the Lord had not returned. But hang on: is the “Day of the Lord” the same as the day Jesus returns? Yes, but it is also more. We could spend a whole sermon on this topic, but not today. Let’s just say that the concept is in both Testaments of the Bible. In the Old Testament, it means the future consummation of the kingdom of God and the complete end of attacks on it. Attacks on God’s kingdom and God’s people would end because the godless would be destroyed. In the New Testament the day of Christ the Lord is the day when Jesus returns in glory – unexpectedly but also unmistakably – and it is a good day for God’s people, but a very bad day for those who do not respond positively to God,[4] because they undergo God’s judgment and wrath. Let’s look at that in verse 3.

SHOULD I BE WORRIED?

          Just when people say, “there is peace and security, everything’s OK,” the axe will drop. “Destruction” will come upon them, just as suddenly and unavoidably as labor pains. And once the process starts, like when a woman’s labor starts, it must then run its inevitable course, with all the related pain and intensity. Our translation uses the word “destruction,” but it could also be translated “corruption,” and we’ll say more about that in a moment. It’s important at this point that you understand that the “people” headed for destruction here are the unrepentant, unredeemed. This verse does not refer to those who trust in God. Because watch what comes next:

          5:4-5  –  “But you, beloved, need not worry… You are not in darkness, but in the light.” Paul uses the word “darkness” in two ways in this passage. In verse 4 he is talking about ignorance. “You have been told about the Lord’s return and about judgment. So you are not in the dark about it, and the Day of the Lord will not be a total surprise to you.” But then, from verse 5 on, he uses light and darkness, day and night, to talk about how we live, our lifestyles. We are to walk in light of the Lord’s leading rather than in the dark of our own self-centeredness. And those who walk with God in the light need not worry about judgment. Jesus already took care of that for us: the darkness He underwent put us in the light, and His death bought life for us.

Now track with me, please. This is important. Paul is drawing a line in the sand. Have you noticed that Paul is not particularly concerned about “political correctness” or the unrealistic, overly-tolerant inclusiveness it can engender? Paul is less concerned with hurting feelings than he is with teaching the truth, and he is not afraid to speak matter-of-factly about those who are “in” and those who are “out.” He calls God’s people “children of light” and those who are not God’s people are those “of the darkness.”

Now, let’s be careful! It is not your job or mine to worry about who is “in or out.” We leave that to God, and we can be sure that God is fair. God treats individuals individually and justly. Those who end up in darkness do so by their own choices. Remember what Bob said last week about our choices?:  “If I stubbornly refuse God’s offer of salvation and keep Jesus at arm’s length, then when death comes – guess what?  I get what I wanted.  I get to be apart from God in the life to come.  Death seals the choices I make today.  And that’s why it is a terrible thing to die unreconciled to God.”  Like Paul, Bob was speaking the truth with boldness, and the terrible thing about dying “unreconciled to God” is this: it means “destruction” or as other translations render it, “corruption.” Now destruction sounds quick, doesn’t it? Corruption sounds like it could take longer. Despite the popular (and Bible-inspired) images of eternal burning, fire and brimstone, we do not really know what form God’s judgment, God’s wrath, will take. But it is fair, perhaps to define it like this: it is what will happen for those who end up outside the controlled environment of God’s providence, outside God’s sustaining, healing influence.

APART FROM GOD

Maybe refrigerated food can help us understand the corruption that occurs when we are apart from God’s controlled environment. A lot of food requires refrigeration to stay relatively fresh. We all know what happens if we leave things from the refrigerator outside their controlled environment. They spoil; they are “corrupted.” At first they don’t look much different, but after a day or two you start to see the spoilage happening, and with more time the food breaks down, the mold comes, and ultimately, it is no longer good for anything but the garbage. I think that’s what happens to human beings who end up apart from the common grace of the controlled environment God provides. In this life it may happen gradually, almost imperceptibly, but when we die, or when the Day of the Lord comes, the destruction will become rapid. This destruction is ahead of those who do not avail themselves of God’s grace, for those who choose not to be with God.

Whatever “Hell” may really look like, whether it is eternal punishment or just eternal frustration in an existence of the chaos outside God’s sustaining power, or perhaps even obliteration, it certainly is not what I want for my loved ones who do not know the Lord, right? This is a major piece of our motivation to share the good news with those we care about, in wise and appropriate ways. Our prayer and our actions should include the desire that everyone – and realistically we will best pray for those we each care about -- enter the light of God’s presence to be in that controlled environment of divine love where they can survive and thrive.

WHAT ABOUT NOW?

In verses 5:6-8, Paul exhorts us “not to fall asleep,” not to live in constant comfort-mode or party-mode. We are to be “sober.” Now remember that Paul is not saying in this passage, “Since you don’t know when the Lord is returning, you’d better stick to the straight-and-narrow road just in case!” That word “sober” in verse 8 is not about alcohol, it is about being clear-headed and using healthy self-control, so that we can engage the task at hand, which Paul says is more like a battle than a party. So we put on armor, the armor of “faith and love and hope.” Remember those three words at the beginning of the letter? Paul opened the letter by telling the Thessalonians how he was praying for their “work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus” (v.3). Now he returns to these words, and makes them into powerful action words, in the form of equipment for the challenges of life. They are gifts and qualities inside us, and we use them in our battle against the darkness, because we are part of the Body of Christ, sharing His work in the world.  And we share it from a position of strength: Look at verses 9 and 10. Here’s the Christian Gospel in a nutshell: God doesn’t plan wrath for us, but wholeness – salvation through Jesus who died so that we can live with Him now and in the coming kingdom. We are secure on the solid rock, and our efforts are aided by the Lord of the universe.

Friends, this is something you want to understand and grab onto, if you haven’t already! It’s where you want to be. Amazingly, some refuse to respond. And just as amazingly, our God does not force us to respond. God is interested in creatures who have free will, and God loves them enough that they really get to choose freely. It is the ultimate respect. God lets us go if that’s what we want, even if it is not what God wants.

I know some of you are still wrestling with this. You can’t get off the fence. But it is a big deal. There is no less than eternal joy at stake here. So please find a way to get off the fence. You have heard us pastors say this before: Come talk with us if you have reservations about this. If you want to take that step of faith and step into God’s light with Jesus, come and we’ll pray with you. We’ll help you take the steps that seal this decision, that connect you with God who has an unbelievable future for you. If the Spirit is speaking to you now, telling you to take that step, please come tell me about it, and we will pray together.

And then finally, once we have joined God’s family, we get to encourage and build each other up (v. 11). These are action words. We will hear more about such actions next week. They are about our life together, how we help each other and strengthen each other on our mutual journeys of discipleship. We share our spiritual tools, our armor of faith and love and hope. We tell each other about our experience of God’s faithfulness with each other; we share what we are learning in God’s word, and all this in the midst of our mutual work together, our shared ministry. Together we build our faith. We listen to one another and feed back and share strategies and affirm one another toward greater godliness, in the context of real everyday life together: our jobs, hobbies, caring for family members, nurturing our friendships, all of which also shape the ministries God entrusts to us: no less than the work of Christ – the salvation of the world. We are not the saviors, we are the recipients and heralds and the Lord’s laborers, instruments of love and justice. We are ready for the return of Christ – whenever He may come – if we are living the life He gave us under His guidance, gladly doing the tasks we are given. If we are doing that, then we needn’t worry. We don’t know exactly what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future, and we know Who holds us, now and forevermore. Let’s press on toward God’s present future, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

[1] 1 Corinthians 16:22.

[2]   Ted Peters on the theology of Wolfhart Pannenberg, in A New Handbook of Christian Theologians, Abingdon 1996, p.369.

[3] This calls to mind what Bob said last week about the end of our earthly existence being the beginning of our true, eternal existence. Thus, for the redeemed person the end of  life is really the beginning.

[4] International Standard Bible Dictionary, Eerdmans, 1979.