1 Thessalonians 4. One day, heaven’s risen and reigning king will return – suddenly, physically, triumphantly – to the earth he made. All things will be made new. This is what Christians have always hoped and believed – Christ will return to earth a second time as the triumphant king. The second coming of Christ is addressed 1 Thessalonians 4:13 – 5:11 for several important reasons.

One side note first. This letter from the Apostle Paul was not designed to be a timeline of the return of Christ so that we could plot out a linear progression of events and know what is happening next. Historically there has been a great deal of disagreement about the order of events surrounding the return of Christ. I would like to argue that timelines are the wrong emphasis. (I often jokingly say I am “pan-millennial” because I believe it will all pan out in the end, LOL.) We know that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night (1 Thes 5:2) and that no one knows the day nor the hour of the return of Christ (Matthew 24:36).

In this section of 1 Thessalonians, Paul simply reminds the church that Jesus Christ promised to return as the ruling king. It has not happened yet; the church has not missed the event (apparently the Thessalonians were worried about that). Do not grow impatient. Jesus’ return is to be a source of hope, comfort, and motivation for our present walk with Jesus.

Jesus’ return gives us comfort because we do not grieve as those who have no hope. When you lose someone whom you love to death; grief is natural. But the grief of a Christian is always tempered by the hope and belief that we will one day be reunited with our loved ones in resurrection. We are to encourage one another with these words and remind each other that one day we will be reunited with all those who have gone before us. This makes our grief a bit easier to carry – comforting us and giving us hope.

Jesus’ return also serves as motivation for our present way of life. We ought not be lazy or thinking that the master is not coming back simply because he is taking a really long time. We are to keep awake and be sober. We are to continue is a life of holiness, not impurity. (More on those instructions tomorrow.) As a Christian community we are to encourage one another and build one another up, as we all await the return of Jesus.

Have you given much thought to the return of Jesus? Have you lost anyone close to you to death, and if so, how does the thought of being reunited with them in resurrection affect your thinking? What if you believed Jesus was returning next week, or next year? How would that change the way you live?

What stood out to you in 1 Thessalonians 4?