Stay Strapped or Get Clapped

Jan. 23

Read: 1 Thess. 5:1-11

Stay Strapped or Get Clapped

“For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night…But you are not in darkness, brothers and sisters, for that day to surprise you like a thief.” (v.2,4)

There are two types of people in this world according to 1 Thess. 5: people of the “day” and people of the “night”. Another it is described here is as people of the “light” and people of “darkness”. As children of God, we are to live as “day” people… as children of the “light”.

There is a certain type of person that will be surprised and taken off guard by the second coming of the Lord. These are people who will experience the coming of Christ “like a thief in the night”. These are the ones who live each day indifferent to the Lord. They have no relationship or communion with God. They are indifferent to spiritual matters and spend their time entranced by their own dreams of “peace and security” through earthly means. (v.3) For these people, it will not be a day of joy or excitement but rather of terror and dread. There is no escape from the day of judgement. (v.3) For those who are in Christ - we have no fear of this moment because the righteousness of Christ has been made our own; and yet our deeds and actions will still be factored and accounted for. (1 Cor. 3) The general sense is living life without regard to Christ our the idea that one day there is judgement and giving an account for what we have done with our lives. For those outside of Christ, what awaits is destruction…and by the time these sorts of people realize it… it is too late. “There is no escape”. Living this way ROBS a person, so it makes sense to liken the second coming to a thief for those who are unaware. For the believer, we are “robbed” of reward and blessing on the new earth, and for the non-believer they are robbed of resending to Christ and eternal life!

The unfortunate truth is some people are in this state because they are far from Christ… “dead in their trespasses and sins”… and yet others have been made alive in Christ and still live this way! These are children of the “light” that are “asleep”. (v.6) Some of us are going through life as if we are sleep walking… oblivious to the spiritual world around us, ignoring the Holy Spirit, not engaging our spiritual gifts or enjoying relationship with Jesus or the Father. These are ones who are “sleeping” through their life. Like a lazy person wasting the best part of the day to lay in bed and sleep until 3 in the afternoon, to live like this is missing out on the best parts of life made available to us in Christ.

So what is the call for us as children of God? WAKE UP. “But you are not in darkness, brothers and sisters, 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.” (v.4-6) Stop trying to live in the dark… hoping it will hide your covetousness, drunkenness, or indifference! We wake up and get dressed for the day… putting “on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.” (v.8) Our “chest” is protected by an assurance of what we hope for (the resurrection, the new earth, Christ’s righteousness as our own, our rewards and treasures in the heavenly realms) and the conviction of what we cannot see (God is working even when we don’t see it, and the spiritual realm is real and alive). We guard our hearts with the LOVE of the Lord. This is the “breastplate of faith and love”. We also need to protect our “head” with the “helmet of salvation”. We need to remind ourselves and dwell on the salvation brought to us in Christ! Like a helmet, this protects our “head” our minds from being corrupted by the things of this world.

In the end, all those who are God’s children will “dwell with him” whether they are “awake or asleep” now. (v.10) The real message is don’t get caught slippin’ in this life… stay awake… stay aware.. stay “frosty” (remain cool and calm). Armor up with the armor of the Lord and get out there! Don’t sleep your life away… don’t drift through life like a sleep walker… or some sort of zombie. Protect your head and heart with the truth of the Lord. Here is some VERY good news: “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (v.9) So we continue to encourage one another and fear not the “day of the Lord”… it is not going to catch US by surprise! Love you guys. - JDP