15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Thessalonians 4:15 (ESV)
Continuing this study, I Thessalonians 4:13-5:11 addresses the doctrine of eschatology; the doctrine of the last things. The word eschatology comes from a combination of Greek words meaning “the study of last things.” This study includes physical death, the intermediate state, the afterlife, judgment, the millennium, heaven, and hell. Eschatology also refers to the time of Jesus’ second coming.
During His earthly ministry, Jesus often spoke about His return, or second coming. Here are some selected Scripture references.
Matthew 24:44 (ESV) – “44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
John 14:1–3 (ESV) – “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
Acts 1:10–11 (ESV) – “10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
1 Thessalonians 4:16 (ESV) – “16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.”
Hebrews 9:27–28 (ESV) – “27And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.”
James 5:8 (ESV) – “You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”
2 Peter 3:10 (ESV) – “10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.”
1 John 3:1–3 (ESV) – “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.”
Revelation 22:12 (ESV) – “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done.”
Revelation 22:20 (ESV) – “He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! “
“This theme is frequently mentioned throughout the New Testament. It is the dominant hope of the New Testament church,” affirms Dr. Wayne Grudem.
The Apostle Paul, Silas and Timothy declared this truth of the Lord’s return when they wrote to the Thessalonians “…by a word from the Lord.” They affirmed the verbal, plenary inspiration and biblical revelation (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21).
Paul then said, “we who are alive.” This referred to believers in Christ who are presently alive and living on the Earth. “Who are left until the coming of the Lord,” restated the same truth but added these are they who are alive at the moment of Christ’s return. “Will not precede those who have fallen asleep,” referred to the dead in Christ going to be with the Lord prior to those physically alive in Christ. Paul spoke of a specific orderliness to Christ’s return and the homegoing to heaven for believers in Christ. Dr. William Hendriksen provides some valuable insight into the historical context of this verse.
“This passage comes closer than any other in suggesting the nature of the difficulty in Thessalonica regarding the doctrine of the second coming. But even this states the problem only in a general way. So much is clear, namely, that the readers wondered whether, in some way or other, at the Parousia, the believers who had departed from this life would be at a disadvantage in comparison with those still living on earth.”
“Did they believe that for those that had been previously translated to heaven there would be no rapture in any sense? Did they suppose (at least, were they in danger of supposing) that though the souls of these departed ones would be in glory, yet their bodies would remain buried, and is that why Paul in verse 13 compares their attitude (or their fear) to that of the heathen (who also had no hope with respect to the body)? Did they suppose that while both as to soul and body all believers (departed and survivors) would share in the glory of Christ’s Return, yet in the rapture the already departed saints would receive a lesser degree of glory or would have to follow the others in going forth to meet the Lord in the air? Or were they thinking of some other disadvantage for those who had fallen asleep? Scripture does not reveal the answer.”
“It is enough to know that Paul, by a word of the Lord (whether directly to Paul or through oral tradition, but not by means of any passage recorded in the Gospels), assures the readers that they can dismiss their fears. At Christ’s coming the most absolute impartiality will be shown. One group of believers will have no advantage over another.”
More to come next time in studying I Thessalonians 4:16. May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here. Have a blessed day in the Lord.
Soli deo Gloria!
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