The Lutheran Hour

"Until that Day"

#91-12
Presented on The Lutheran Hour on November 19, 2023
Guest Speaker: Rev. Dr. Anthony (Tony) Cook
Copyright 2025 Lutheran Hour Ministries

Text: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

You are in a bustling port city, alive with trade. Your senses overwhelmed with vibrant colors, stimulating sounds, and unfamiliar scents. This is Thessalonica—cosmopolitan, busy, the crossroads of diverse cultures and ancient philosophies. And against this exotic backdrop enter our missionaries, Paul and Silas. They’re on a mission from God. A mission to spread a message of hope about a crucified yet risen Savior—Jesus Christ. And unknown to the fishermen, philosophers, and the shop keeps, this message was about to turn their beloved Thessalonica, as well as the world itself, upside down.

Their visit to Thessalonica is recorded in the book of Acts where in chapter 17 we learn that for three Sabbaths after arriving, Paul engaged in discussions at the local synagogue. He clearly presented the message he had been given, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” His powerful teaching and reasoning were compelling. So compelling in fact that a significant number of Jewish listeners, God-fearing Greeks, and leading women in the community heard the Gospel for the very first time and believed.

For our missionaries Paul and Silas, it was a powerful sign that God was at work. But not everyone in Thessalonica was thrilled, including a segment of the Jewish community who were envious of the attention God’s powerful message was garnering. So, they took matters into their own hands, sending Paul and Silas a not-so-welcoming welcome committee, as recorded in Acts 17:5-9.

“But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring [Paul and Silas] out into the crowd. And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, ‘These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.’ And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.”

Now as Jason’s legal problems were unfolding and before the mob could pounce, Paul and Silas were warned by these new believers to flee the city by the cover of night and continue their evangelistic mission unscathed in Berea. And that is exactly what they did.

Now in less than a month’s time, Paul and Silas proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ, planted a church, and fled for their lives. And even though he longed to be with the new believers in Thessalonica, Paul was prevented from returning, so he did the next best thing: he sent his brother and co-worker in the Gospel, Timothy, to strength and support them in faith. And upon Timothy’s return, he reported to Paul that the church in Thessalonica had remained, but as expected, had suffered as well.

So to encourage them in their faith, Paul wrote them two letters to remind them that their persecution wouldn’t last forever, and that one day the Day of the Lord would finally arrive.

Now for many, the Day of the Lord can be a scary thought, but Paul wrote to the Thessalonians about the Day of the Lord, not to scare them into submission, but to invigorate their faith, to imbue their earthly struggles with heavenly purpose, and the same holds true for us today.

So, with that in mind, we turn our focus to 1Thessalonians 5:1-11. This is a short passage from a short letter written by Paul to his beloved church in Thessalonica. A letter which speaks about the need for vigilance, living as children of the light, and encouraging one another until the Day of the Lord arrives. Through Paul’s inspiring words, we will find wisdom and encouragement as relevant for us today as for the Thessalonian church nearly two millennia ago.

So, what does Paul teach about the Day of the Lord and what can we learn from this ancient letter? The first and most obvious insight is that there will be a Day of the Lord. In the verses preceding our text for today, Paul describes in great clarity what the future return of Jesus will be like and how the certainty of His return revolutionizes our understanding of life and death.

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep. 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. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, with the sound of the trumpet of God.”

While there are many good things that could be said at the graveside of a loved one, this one is a must. Even though our loved ones die, even though we mourn, our mourning is different, it is unlike others, because even though we grieve, our grief is wrapped in hope. This really is the endgame of the Christian faith. It’s not about our health and wealth in the world today. It’s not about doing enough good to balance the cosmic scale. It’s about Jesus’ victory over death; it’s about our reconciliation with God; it’s about our place in the new heaven and the new earth paid for by Jesus and being prepared for you today.

And when the preparation is complete, the Day will arrive. Jesus will appear; the dead will be raised; the saints will be gathered; and doors to the new Eden swung open wide for all who believe. So don’t lose hope regardless of whether your trials are in Thessalonica or somewhere closer to home, for Jesus will come again.

The second insight is the need for vigilance and preparedness as we await Christ’s return. Given the unpredictable timing of the Day of the Lord, Paul instructs believers to always be ready for the Day of the Lord to arrive. Like the Thessalonians, we are encouraged by Paul to trim our spiritual wicks and to keep our lamps burning as we await the Bridegroom’s return.

This is exactly what Jesus Himself taught His disciples on the Mount of Olives in Matthew 25:1-13.

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them. But the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. So the bridegroom was delayed; they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterward, the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

We live in certain uncertainty. We are certain Jesus will return, but his ETA is unknown. So, we wait, not passively twiddling our thumbs and looking skyward. No, Paul’s call to wait is a call to action, to live out our faith in a manner worthy of God’s calling. To be awake, sober, and shielded by the very armor of God. Listen to his words from 1 Thessalonians 5:1-8.

“Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, 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 darkness. So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who are drunk, are drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

Being prepared isn’t about looking for signs or decoding mysterious prophecies. It’s about living our lives today expecting Jesus will return tomorrow. That’s the heartbeat of the Christian life. It’s about embodying the values of the Kingdom here and now—values like faith, hope, and love—so that we are ready whenever the Day comes, be it tomorrow or decades from now or even millennia. And what does vigilance look like in our day-to-day lives? It looks like extending grace to those who least deserve it—as Jesus did for us. It looks like keeping our integrity intact even when no one’s watching. It looks like standing firm in our faith, especially when the trials of life hit us like a freight train.

Whether we’re in Thessalonica facing religious persecution, or here, dealing with the struggles of modern life, the principle remains the same. Vigilance is about making sure our eyes are affixed to the horizon, expectantly watching for our King to return. For we know that regardless of what we face, one day the heavens will open, Jesus will descend, and every care and concern will melt away in the brilliant light of His presence.

And as we wait in vigilance and expectant hope we are reminded of our final insight for today and it is this: as we wait we are not alone, for each of us are called to find strength in the body of Christ within a supportive community of faith. A community of faith and encouragement just as described by Paul in the conclusion of our text:

“For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through Jesus Christ, who died for us that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with Him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11).

You see, the Thessalonian church is not just a collection of individuals, but it is a body that must work together, work together as they face persecution and await the Day of the Lord. So too we are called to encourage one another and build each other up, living into the type of community spoken about throughout all of Paul’s letters.

While we are separated by time, we are part of the same body of Christ that began in Thessalonica all those years ago. Their waiting is our waiting. In fact, we carry their proverbial lamps, passed down from one generation of waiting Christian communities to the next. I assume that many believed or at least hoped that the preparations would be complete, and that the Day of the Lord would arrive in their lifetime, but instead they have joined the heavenly side of the Lord’s coming parade.

So here we are: the call to encourage and build up is now ours. We still struggle with death just as our spiritual forefathers; we still hopefully mourn; we still encounter those who ridicule and even persecute us for our faith. Not much has changed, and rightly so. For the Day of the Lord is still coming; the need for vigilance remains; the call to encourage and build up is still needed perhaps even more than ever.

But just as our call has remained, so has God’s promise. Because of Jesus Christ, you have been set free. Through His death you have received life, and just as He was raised from the dead so too you will one day stand before Him, forever alive.

For while the Day has yet to arrive, it has already dawned in your heart. You have been translated from the kingdom of man to the kingdom of God. You have been reborn through the waters of Baptism, and your new life has already begun. This is why we are called to watch and wait, not so that we might receive something that we do not have, but so that we might joyfully be reunited with what is already ours. How can we be overcome by what Christ has already conquered.

Yes, death is real, it is painful. It breaks my heart to be separated from those whom I love. To miss their embrace, their voice, their smile. But even in their absence, I, we, are not alone. We have each other. We have the community of faith; we are the body of our Lord. We have His voice in His Word, His body and blood in the bread and wine, His Spirit in the waters of Baptism. And in this great now and not yet, just as we are certain that His promise has yet to be fulfilled, we are certain that one day it will be. And even amid the chaos and cacophony of life, the quiet call can still be heard: “Have patience, be vigilant for He will return.”

It might be today, tomorrow, or after we close our eyes in death, but it will come, perhaps like a thief in the night but, nonetheless, it will. And I will be there, and you will be there, and all of those who have gone before us, including the Thessalonians from our text for today, and even Paul himself. And Paul’s fears regarding Jesus’ church will be wiped away along with all tears, suffering, and pain.

So let us be sober, putting on faith and love as our breastplate and the hope of salvation as our helmet, encouraging one another and building each other up as together we faithfully wait, expectantly wait, joyfully wait—for Jesus. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Reflections for November 19, 2023
Title: Until That Day

Mark Eischer: You’re listening to The Lutheran Hour. And joining us now, here’s Lutheran Hour Speaker, Dr. Mike Ziegler.

Mike Zeigler: Hello, Mark.

Mark Eischer: In our church services over these next few weeks, I think we’ll be rehearsing that sequence of events that Dr. Cook was talking about in today’s message. With all that’s going on in the world nowadays, we might be hearing these messages with a heightened level of attention.

Mike Zeigler: Well, we are living in a period of social upheaval.

Mark Eischer: Sure.

Mike Zeigler: And whenever people feel unsettled, they often turn to the Bible and especially to Bible prophecies, hoping to find answers to their questions. This is especially true of United States Americans.

Mark Eischer: And people are talking about the end times, things like the rapture. What do we make of all that? What is that and where do you find it in the Bible?

Mike Zeigler: Dr. Cook quoted it in his sermon today. It’s from Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians 4:17. English translations render it usually as “caught up,” but in the Latin version of the Bible the word used was “raptus,” where we get the word raptor, like a bird that grabs things with its talons. And in the context of 1 Thessalonians, it refers to the Second Coming of Jesus, to the Day of the Lord, the final judgment, not to some day before that, but to that very day.

So apparently some of the followers of Jesus in Thessalonica were afraid that fellow believers who had died before the return of Jesus were going to miss out on His kingdom. So Paul writes this part of the letter encouraging them. He says that actually those who have died in Christ, they will rise first. And then those who are still alive will be raptured up together to meet Jesus in the air as He descends for final judgment. And when he says that they will meet the Lord, he’s actually using a technical term that the Thessalonians would’ve understood from their Greco-Roman culture. Paul is comparing the rapture to the cultural practice of going out to meet the king or the emperor when he came to your town for a visit.

So let’s say the Roman Emperor was going to come for a visit. All the elders and leaders of your town would go out to him on the road and meet him and then escort him back into your town. So Paul is using this as a word picture to describe how the Second Coming of Jesus is going to happen. He says that all of His followers living and dead will be raised from death, raptured up together to meet Him, and will escort Him back to earth for the final judgment. So it’s the same event, just seen from different angles, the Day of the Lord event.

Mark Eischer: Now, when I think about this Day of the Lord and Christ’s Second Coming, I’ve always wondered how it is that all people will know it and see it all at once. On what stage will this play out? Will we have an announcement on social media available all over the world? Or does this take place in a spiritual dimension different from what we have right now?

Mike Zeigler: Right, right. Whenever we try to picture these things in our mind and imagine how they will play out exactly, we run into difficulties. Because God’s promised future, the coming Kingdom, the resurrection of the body, the renewed creation, it all exceeds our present experience. So, it would be like trying to explain the outside world to an unborn child. If you could imagine such a conversation with a child in her mother’s womb, it would be difficult to explain it to her because there is so little in her present in utero experience that can compare to life on the outside world. So also for us in the life to come.

But because God wants us to look forward to this life, to hope for this life, He talks to us in baby talk, so to speak. He gives us His prophets to give us comparisons drawn from our current experience to point us to this new birth in the life to come.

So, the problem with books like Hal Lindsey’s Late Great Planet Earth is that they’re trying to use Bible prophecy to answer questions about politics, current events, timelines, within the womb of this present age. So for example, they’ll read a passage from Ezekiel 38, the prophecy about Gog and Magog, and say, “Oh, oh, oh, that’s talking about modern-day Russia.” Or they’ll read about the rebuilding of the temple in Ezekiel 40 and say, “Oh, oh, that’s going to be fulfilled when the modern nation state of Israel rebuilds the physical temple in Jerusalem.”

Now the problem with those connections is that they’re swimming upstream from the direction that Bible prophecy is going. See, the Bible isn’t a playbook for 21st-century politics. It’s a unified account of how God’s involvement in all of history ultimately leads to Jesus, to God’s Son being born in our experience, to live and die and rise again so that we could be reborn as God’s children.

So the most important event for Bible prophecy, the hinge point of all history isn’t in the future. It’s in the past. It’s in the middle of history, not the end of history. Because everything hinges on Jesus the Messiah. His resurrection from the dead fulfills the prophecies of Ezekiel. Jesus is the new temple. Jesus is Israel, not the modern-day Israeli nation state. And to follow the Messiah, Jesus, to be part of His body, the church by faith, to wait for His return, that’s how we become members of the true Israel.

Mark Eischer: How would you summarize all of this for us today?

Mike Zeigler: Keep going back to the Bible and meeting Jesus there in His official biographies, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Because Jesus is always the key to understanding biblical prophecy. And there’s two attitudes that He warns against in those biographies, specifically in Matthew 24. First, He says don’t get so worked up in a fevered frenzy looking for signs so that you’re distracted from your actual task of making disciples of all nations that He’ll give in Matthew 28.

The second attitude He warns against is in Matthew 24:48, which is don’t get lazy. Don’t pretend like there is no urgency, and that His return for judgment is far off or is going to be delayed indefinitely. Jesus says, to avoid both of those attitudes.

Music Selections for this program:

“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.

“The Day Is Surely Drawing Near” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House) Used by permission.