1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

All Saints Sunday

The Coming of the Lord

Verse 16-18: “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.” 

This is a portion of one of the many letters written by Paul. "The Journey" bible states that this one was written to believers who were "faithfully living Christ-centered lives in the midst of incredible cultural pressure to do otherwise." Does that sound familiar or what?!

This bible also states the central ideas in 1st and 2nd Thessalonians:

-Christ's spirit helps believers to remain strong in the midst of cultural opposition.

-Paul gives his readers guidelines for living Christ-centered lives.

-Christ will one day return to earth.

-If we trust in Christ, we will live with Him forever. 

This reading reminds us once again, of the promise of our God. A promise that is unimaginably large, and too spectacular to forego, yet is missed out on every day because the guaranteed pleasure of today is more satisfying than what tomorrow might bring. 

As we imagine that glorious day when our God returns, we envision where our place will be in the grand scheme of things and hope to be near our loved ones. We must also remember those who have gone before us and what this day will mean for them.

All Saints Day is a universal Christian Feast that honors and remembers all Christian Saints, known and unknown. I love that statement, because who is it that truly proclaims one a saint? There have to be multitudes of God’s warriors here on this earth over time, who humbly earned the status of saint, yet went completely unnoticed by man. To all of you we sincerely say; Thank You. Rise triumphant, in bright array! 

Read/Listen to 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18

1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11

1 Thessalonians 4:14 (NIV)
  We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 

This is one of the most comforting verses in the Bible.  When a loved one struggles with illness or a tragic accident takes a life there is such grief, but there is also hope. When my husband's illness was diagnosed as terminal, he and I had numerous conversations around this promise.  We both drew comfort from the fact we may have to say goodbye in this world but we would be reunited again.

You might think these empty words but many Believers who have lost someone will tell you they are mighty big words to them.  One of the reasons to read from our Bible's every day is to grab hold of God's promises and cling to them when times are hurtful and puzzling.  Every day God speaks through His Word.

Just this morning I was reading from Psalm 37 and sensed God's presence.  "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him and he will do this."

What words spoke to your heart this day?

Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11

Listen 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11