You tend to know the maturity level of a person by how they spend their time. If, at the end of the day, you look forward to playing with toys, you're most likely a child. If you look forward to texting or skyping your friends you are most likely a teen. If you look forward to going to sleep, you're most likely an adult. But if it's the clubs, you're most likely a young, single adult. These people of the night like to wear flashy clothing, spend lots of money on alcohol and hang out in loud dance clubs. Generally there are people who live for the day and people who live for the night.
In this passage Paul contrasts night people (unbelievers) with day people (believers). Night people are associated with darkness, sleep, and drunkenness; day people with light, alertness, and soberness. The apostle’s purpose in contrasting the saved and the lost in this passage was to comfort the Thessalonians (4:18; 5:11). Despite Paul’s teaching during his stay in their city (2 Thess. 2:5), they were worried about their future. Exacerbating their fears were false teachers who were attempting to deceive them (2 Thess. 2:1–3). As a result, numerous questions troubled them, questions no doubt relayed to Paul by Timothy, who had recently returned from Thessalonica (3: 2, 6). Paul reassured the troubled new believers in Thessalonica that they would not face God’s wrath. His use of the pronouns “they” and “them” (5:3) distinguishes the Thessalonians from the unbelievers who will experience God’s wrath. He did so by presenting a series of contrasts between night people and day people. Paul gave the Thessalonians a multifaceted description of the distinction between believers and unbelievers, and the implications for each concerning the Day of the Lord. By so doing, the apostle made it plain that the Thessalonians’ fears that they were already in the Day of the Lord were groundless. Believers are light people and will not experience the darkness of the Day of the Lord.
Do you know a person who keeps going from relationship to relationship, scheme to scheme and job to job. Often, they don't look ahead to the consequences of their actions, and eventually just realize that their present situation is not for them. Believers, who have the indwelling Holy Spirit and new natures, through discernment, have the ability to foresee unnecessary problems, and avoid them. Day people deliberately avoid the pitfalls of stumbling in the darkness and want to call others to this enlighten life.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:4-11, we see three distinctive characteristics that set day people (believers) apart from night people (unbelievers). We see their 1) Nature (1 Thessalonians 5:4–5), 2) Behavior (1 Thessalonians 5:6–8), and 3) Destiny (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11).
1) The Distinctiveness of Believers’ Nature (1 Thessalonians 5:4–5)
1 Thessalonians 5:4-5 [4]But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. [5]For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. (ESV)
The phrase but you introduces a contrast with verse 3, where Paul used the pronouns “they” and “them” to refer to unbelievers who will not escape the Day of the Lord. The familial term brothers/brethren further emphasizes Paul’s point. As God’s children, the Thessalonians would not experience the Day of the Lord, because unlike unbelievers, believers are not in darkness; they possess an entirely different nature. They do not belong to the night; they are not part of Satan’s evil kingdom. They are not in darkness of understanding (that is, spiritual ignorance) or of the moral nature (that is, a state of sin) (Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1 Th 5:4). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.)
The spiritual darkness/night that engulfs unbelievers includes both intellectual and moral darkness. It is the intellectual darkness of ignorance on the one hand, and the moral darkness of sin on the other; of not knowing what is true, and of not doing what is right. The Day of the Lord is a “day of darkness” (Joel 2:2; Zeph. 1:15); “the day of the Lord … will be darkness and not light …. Will not the day of the Lord be darkness instead of light?” (Amos 5:18, 20). It is for the night people; thus day people need not fear the Day of the Lord; they will not be part of it. God has chosen not to tell his people everything about Christ’s return, but believers know all that they need to know (Barton, B. B., & Osborne, G. R. (1999). 1 & 2 Thessalonians: life application commentary (p. 77). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.).
Please turn to Ephesians 2 (p.976)
All believers once “were formerly darkness, but now … are Light in the Lord” (Eph. 5:8). Earlier in that epistle, Paul graphically described believers’ former lives in darkness:
Ephesians 2:1-3 [2:1]And you were dead in the trespasses and sins [2]in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience-- [3]among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (ESV)
Because their nature is distinct from unbelievers, believers need not fear that the day would surprise/overtake them like a thief. The verb surprise may mean simply “come upon,” as nightfall comes upon people, but it could also be used where someone wished to describe how some disaster or death would suddenly befall or overtake a person (Green, G. L. (2002). The letters to the Thessalonians (pp. 235–236). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.)
Far from being in the darkness, believers are, as verse 5 indicates, are all children/ sons of light and children/sons of the day (cf. Luke 16:8; John 12:36; Eph. 5:8). The phrase children/sons of is often part of an idiomatic Hebrew expression describing the dominant influence in a person’s life. The Old Testament uses the phrase “sons of Belial” (Judg. 19:22; 1 Sam. 2:12; 2 Sam. 23:6; 1 Kings 21:10 KJV) to describe worthless men who are by nature children of the devil (cf. 2 Cor. 6:15). Jesus nicknamed James and John “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3:17) because of their volatile, aggressive personalities. Barnabas’s name literally means “Son of Encouragement” (Acts 4:36), denoting his gentle, encouraging nature. Thus, to describe believers as children/sons of light is to say that light is the dominant influence in their lives. Adding the parallel phrase children/sons of the day reinforces Paul’s point; light belongs to day just as darkness belongs to night.
To drive home his point, Paul declared emphatically, We are not of night or of the darkness. Believers live in an entirely different sphere than those who will experience God’s wrath in the Day of the Lord. As children/sons of light and children/sons of the day, believers “walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4), are new creatures in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17), are new creations (Gal. 6:15), are “seated … in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6), and have their lives “hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 3:3). Therefore, the Thessalonians did not need to fear missing the Rapture, being caught in the Day of the Lord, or experiencing God’s wrath and condemnation. Believers live in a separate sphere of life, where judgment cannot come. Yet, we are not to live irresponsibly—sitting and waiting, doing nothing, seeking self-serving pleasure, or using the time until he returns as an excuse not to do God’s work of building his kingdom. No one should develop a false sense of security based on precise calculations of events or let their curiosity about the end times divert them from doing God’s work (Barton, B. B., & Osborne, G. R. (1999). 1 & 2 Thessalonians: life application commentary (p. 78). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.)
ILLUSTRATION: How do we understand this "New Life in Christ"?
WHEN you take a shower, you don’t put on the same clothes that you had on before. If you did, you’d be canceling out the benefit of the shower. When you clean the inside, you want the outside to match it. Having a clean inside and a dirty outside cancels the point in being cleansed. When you came to Jesus Christ, God gave you a blood bath. You were bathed in the blood of Jesus Christ. You were cleansed from all of your sins. But what many do, which wreaks havoc in the community of faith, is having been washed by the blood of Jesus Christ we put on old clothes. The Lord wants us to take off old clothes, as they do not fit with the new cleansing (Evans, T. (2009). Tony Evans’ book of illustrations: stories, quotes, and anecdotes from more than 30 years of preaching and public speaking (p. 214). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.).
2) The Distinctiveness of Believers’ Behavior (1 Thessalonians 5:6–8)
1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 [6]So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. [7]For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. [8]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. (ESV)
The phrase so then emphasizes the inseparable link between Christians’ nature and their behavior, between their character and their conduct—a truth taught throughout the New Testament (cf. 2:12; 4:1; Eph. 4:1, 17; Phil. 1:27; Col. 1:10). What people are determines how they act; believers are day people and must act accordingly.
On that basis, Paul exhorted the Thessalonians, let us not sleep as others do, but let us keep awake/be alert and be sober. The apostle did not need to exhort them to be day people, because their nature was permanently fixed by the transforming, regenerating power of God in salvation. But because that new nature is incarcerated in fallen, sinful human flesh (cf. Rom. 7:14–25), it is possible for day people to do deeds of the darkness. Therefore, Paul exhorted the Thessalonians to live consistently with their new natures. The word translated “sleep” (katheudo) is used for moral indifference (see Mark 13:36; Ephesians 5:14). (Unbelievers) aren’t waiting for the Lord, and aren’t caring that he could return (Barton, B. B., & Osborne, G. R. (1999). 1 & 2 Thessalonians: life application commentary (p. 78). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.)
To be sober in the NT it always carries the metaphorical sense of exercising moral self-control or self-restraint and having clear thinking in the face of adversity or danger (2 Tim. 4:5; 1 Pet. 5:8), especially as Christ’s revelation and the end of all things approaches (1 Pet. 1:13; 4:7) (Green, G. L. (2002). The letters to the Thessalonians (p. 238). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.).
The present tense verbs indicate that the Thessalonians were to be continuously awake, alert, and sober. Rather than threaten them with chastening, the apostle appealed to their sense of spiritual dignity. As children of the day and the light, it was unthinkable for them to participate in the deeds of darkness (cf. Eph. 4:1; 5:11).
• All too often we look at the standard of the word as the boundary that we just keep back from. The problem with that, is that this boundary continues to slide down the path of unrighteousness, so if we try to just keep back that boundary, then we fall further and further into sin. When we anchor the standard of our conduct to Christ, then His unfailing holiness roots our conduct on the path of righteousness.
The term sleep in verse 6 (katheudō; a different word than the one used to refer metaphorically to “death” in 4:13–15) here, adds yet another dimension to Paul’s portrayal of the night people (which are the others to whom he refers). As children of the night and the darkness, it is not surprising to find them asleep in spiritual indifference, living as if there will be no judgment. Like the man in the Lord’s parable (Matt. 24:43), who was unaware that he was about to be robbed, they are foolish, unwitting, and unaware of the disaster that threatens to overtake them. That they sleep further compounds their dilemma; not only is the night they exist in pitch black, but they also are in a coma.
In verse 7 the apostle will complete his description of their sorry plight by noting that they are asleep in the darkness in a drunken stupor. Sadly, though they are asleep to spiritual reality, night people are wide awake to the lusts of the flesh.
Please turn to Romans 13 (p.948)
As day people, the Thessalonians had been delivered out of the dark night of sin, ignorance, rebellion, and unbelief. Therefore, it was ridiculous for them to walk in the darkness. There is no place for night life among day people—a truth Paul reinforced in another exhortation:
Romans 13:12-14 [12]The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. [13]Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. [14]But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. (ESV)
• Living consistent with their nature as day people provides believers with comfort, because living a righteous, godly life brings assurance of salvation (cf. 2 Peter 1:5–10). When day people walk in the darkness, however, they forfeit that assurance and become fearful of God’s judgment. They become “blind or short-sighted, having forgotten [their] purification from [their] former sins” (2 Peter 1:9). Though it is not possible for day people to be caught in the Day of the Lord, it is possible for sinning ones to lose assurance and fear they might be.
Sleep is the natural condition of night people, but day people are to keep awake/be alert. Grēgoreō (keep awake/be alert.), the source of the name “Gregory,” means to be watchful. Unlike the slumbering, witless night people, day people are awake and able to rightly assess what is happening in the spiritual dimension. They heed Peter’s injunction, “Prepare your minds for action” (1 Peter 1:13) and, knowing the Day of the Lord is coming (2 Peter 3:10), they are “diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless” (2 Peter 3:14). In other words, they must watch over their hearts and lives in the same way as an armed soldier standing on guard is careful not to get drunk or fall asleep, which would not only be a dereliction of duty, but dangerous to himself and the people he is meant to be protecting (Shenton, T. (2006). Opening up 1 Thessalonians (p. 99). Leominster: Day One Publications.).
All the tenses are present to express enduring conditions. Christians must be warned in order not to (act like they were) in their former state (Lenski, R. C. H. (1937). The interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistles to the Colossians, to the Thessalonians, to Timothy, to Titus and to Philemon (p. 345). Columbus, OH: Lutheran Book Concern.).
In contrast to the drunken stupor that envelops night people, day people are also sober. Literally, to be sober means to be free from the influence of intoxicants. A sober person exhibits self-control, lives a serious, balanced, calm, steady life, and maintains proper priorities. To be sober is to be alert; the two terms are essentially synonyms. Just as sleep and drunkenness define night people’s insensitivity to spiritual reality, so alertness and soberness describe day people’s sensitivity to it. The sober person's pleasures are not primarily those of the senses, like the pleasures of the drunkard for instance, but those of the soul. He is by no means a Stoic. On the contrary, with a full measure of joyful anticipation he looks forward to the return of the Lord (1 Peter 1:13). But he does not run away from his task! The apostle’s exhortation, then, amounts to this: “Let us not be lax and unprepared, but let us be prepared, being spiritually alert, firm in the faith, courageous, strong, calmly but with glad anticipation looking forward to the future day. Let us, moreover, do all this because we belong to the day and not to the night.” (New Testament Commentary: Exposition of Thessalonians, Timothy, and Titus [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1981], 125–26; emphasis in original)
The self-evident observation in verse 7, that those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are/get drunk at night, further strengthens Paul’s point. He also may have been alluding to a parable told by Jesus in Luke 12:45-46 where the servant mistakenly believers that his master is delayed in coming,' and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk. The warning being that the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful.
Both sleeping and getting drunk are things generally done at night. To sleep refers metaphorically to passive indifference; to get drunk to active sin.
• What are we most sensitive to? Most often it is to public sin either in language or action. We tend to excuse passive sin in ourselves or others with the excuse that we either have other priorities, don't know how to handle a situation or someone else will take care of it. This passive indifference is just as onerous a sin as the active one we tend to be more sensitive to. This means we must be more diligent to be on the lookout for those things we too quickly pass by.
Repeating what he said in verse 6 for emphasis, Paul starts verse 8 with the word: "But", to show a sharp contrast to the sleeping, drunken night people—since we belong/are of the day, let us be sober. The apostle’s repetition suggests that their fear of being in the Day of the Lord was a major concern for the Thessalonians. In fact, they were so concerned that Paul had to address the issue again in his second inspired letter to them (2 Thess. 2:1ff.). Once again, he stressed that as day people, the Thessalonians would have no part in the Day of the Lord. Both their nature and their behavior set them apart from the night people on whom the Day of the Lord will descend. Yet this command emphasizes continual diligence, but with an element of contingency. Some believers are asleep and are not alert or sober (Utley, R. J. (1997). Paul’s First Letters: Galatians and I & II Thessalonians (Vol. Volume 11, p. 115). Marshall, TX: Bible Lessons International.)
The concepts of alertness and sobriety suggested to Paul the image of a soldier on duty. He therefore viewed day people as having put on the “armor of light” (Rom. 13:12; cf. Isa. 59:17; Eph. 6:13–17). A soldier’s breastplate protected his vital organs, the area where he was most vulnerable. It was the ancient equivalent of a bulletproof vest. The obvious function of a soldier’s helmet (like a modern football or motorcycle helmet) was to protect his head from blows that otherwise might crush his skull. The breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation equip the Christian soldier to “stand firm against the schemes of the devil …. against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:11–12). The idea of watchfulness brings the figure of a sentry, on guard and armed, to Paul’s mind. (Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953–2001). Exposition of I-II Thessalonians (Vol. 3, p. 126). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House )
Faith, love, and hope form the supreme triad of Christian virtues (cf. 1:3; 1 Cor. 13:13). They also provide an excellent defense against temptation. Faith is trust in God’s power, promises, and plan. It is the unwavering belief that God is completely trustworthy in all that He says and does. We can trust His person, power, promises, and plan.
Faith provides a defense against temptation, because all sin results from a lack of trust in God. For example, worry is the failure to believe that God will act in love on behalf of His people; lying substitutes man’s selfish plans for God’s sovereign purposes; adultery denies God’s wisdom in instituting the monogamous marriage bond. Thus, faith is an impenetrable breastplate, providing sure protection against temptation. But to put it on, believers must study and meditate on the rich depths of God’s nature as revealed in Scripture, and then translate that knowledge into action in their lives.
If faith forms the hard, protective outer surface of a Christian’s breastplate, then love is its soft inner lining. Love toward God involves delight in and devotion to God as the supreme object of affection. It, too, provides a powerful deterrent to sin, since all sin involves a failure to love God. The greatest command, the injunction that sums up the whole law of God, is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37). “Love is the fulfillment of the law” (Rom. 13:10), because those who genuinely love God will not do what grieves and offends Him. So love and faith form an impregnable barrier against temptation; it is only when one or both are lacking that Christians fall victim to sin. Perfect trust in and love for God leads to perfect obedience.
The final piece of armor is the helmet of the hope of salvation. The salvation in view here is not the past aspect of salvation (justification), or its present aspect (sanctification), but rather its future aspect (glorification). Paul described that future aspect of salvation in Romans 13:11 when he wrote, “Now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.” It is then that believers will receive the eagerly anticipated redemption of their bodies (Rom. 8:23), when the Lord Jesus Christ “will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory” (Phil. 3:21). Focusing on the eternal glory that awaits them (2 Tim. 2:10; 1 Peter 5:10) protects believers against temptation. “Beloved, now we are children of God,” wrote John, “and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:2–3). Hope ‘is not “mere” hope, as often in modern speech, but a sure and certain expectation’ (Morris, L. (1984). 1 and 2 Thessalonians: An introduction and commentary (Vol. 13, p. 97). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.).
When faith is weak, love grows cold. When love grows cold, hope is lost. When hope in God’s promise of future glory is weak, believers are vulnerable to temptation and sin. Only those who keep the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of the hope of salvation firmly in place can resist effectively the onslaught of the forces of darkness.
Poem: (7237 One Little Hour)
One little hour of watching for the Master, Eternal years to walk with Him in white; One little hour to bravely meet life’s duties, Eternal years to reign with Him in light. One little hour for weary toils and trials, Eternal years for calm and peaceful rest; One little hour for patient self-denials, Eternal years of life where life is blest (Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 1587). Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.).
3) The Distinctiveness of Believers’ Destiny (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11).
1 Thessalonians 5:9-11 [9]For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, [10]who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. [11]Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. (ESV)
The most sobering truth in Scripture is that God will judge the wicked and sentence them to eternal hell (Matt. 3:12; 13:40–42, 50; 18:8; 25:41, 46; John 3:36; 5:29; Acts 24:25; Rom. 2:5, 8; 9:22; 2 Thess. 1:9; Heb. 6:2; 10:26–27; 2 Peter 2:9; 3:7; Rev. 14:9–11; 20:11–15; 21:8). On the other hand, the blessed truth for believers is that God has not destined us for wrath (cf. 1:10; John 3:18, 36; 5:24; Rom. 5:1, 9; 8:1, 33–34). Like their nature, established in the past at salvation, and their present pattern of obedience, day people’s future destiny sets them apart from night people. Believers will not experience the wrath God will pour out on unbelievers on the Day of the Lord, and for eternity in hell.
The word destined expresses the inexorable outworking of God’s sovereign plan for believers’ salvation. In Matthew 25:34 Jesus promised that believers will “inherit the kingdom prepared for [them] from the foundation of the world.” To the Ephesians Paul wrote, “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him” (Eph. 1:4), while in 2 Timothy 1:9 he added, “[God] has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity.”
Orgē (wrath) does not refer to a momentary outburst of rage, but to “an abiding and settled habit of mind” (Richard C. Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament [reprint; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1983], 131).
It is a general reference to the final judgment, when God’s wrath will be poured out on the wicked (Matt. 3:7; John 3:36; Rom. 1:18; 2:5, 8; 3:5; 4:15; 5:9; 9:22; 12:19; Eph. 5:6; Col. 3:6; Rev. 14:9–11). But God’s wrath here must also include the Day of the Lord, since that was the Thessalonians’ primary concern. Paul assured them that they would face neither temporal wrath on the Day of the Lord (cf. Rev. 6:17), nor eternal wrath in hell.
But—in contrast to the doomed night people—God has destined believers to obtain (lit., “gaining,” or “acquiring”) salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Once again, Paul referred to the future dimension of believers’ salvation, their glorification. But all three aspects of salvation—justification (Isa. 53:11; Rom. 3:24, 26; 5:8–9; 1 Cor. 6:11; Gal. 2:16), sanctification (1 Cor. 1:30; 6:11; Heb. 7:25), and glorification (cf. Phil. 3:21)—come only through our Lord Jesus Christ.
The simple, yet profound phrase in verse 10 who died for (huper; “on our behalf”; “with reference to us”; “in our place”; “as our substitute”) us (cf. Rom. 5:8) expresses the sole basis for believers’ salvation. God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21); (1 Peter 2:24; cf. John 10:11; Rom. 8:3; Gal. 1:4; 3:13; Eph. 5:2; 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18; 1 John 2:2). The glorious message of the gospel is that Christ’s substitutionary death paid in full the penalty for believers’ sins and therefore believers will not face God’s judgment. In John 5:24 Jesus declared, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” Nor will they face His condemnation, because “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1).
Please turn to John 14 (p.901)
Christ’s death on their behalf sets all day people—both those who are awake (alive) and those who are asleep (dead; cf. 4:13–15)—apart from night people. The marvelous reality is that all believers will live together with Him, as Jesus Himself promised:
John 14:1-3 [14:1]"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. (ESV)
Finally, Paul concluded his discussion of the Day of the Lord by exhorting the Thessalonians in verse 11 to encourage one another and build one another up. Based on the truth he had given them, they were to reassure the anxious and fearful that they would not experience the Day of the Lord. We should add to other people in such a way that they will be spiritually stronger. In this way, we encourage maturity and fortification of character... We have a responsibility to encourage them to remain faithful and growing until the end (Larson, K. (2000). I & II Thessalonians, I & II Timothy, Titus, Philemon (Vol. 9, p. 71). Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.).
• As you near the end of a long race, your legs ache, your throat burns, and your whole body cries out for you to stop. This is when friends and fans are most valuable. Their encouragement helps you push through the pain to the finish line. In the same way, Christians are to encourage one another. A word of encouragement offered at the right moment can mean the difference between finishing well and collapsing along the way. Look around you. Be sensitive to others’ need for encouragement, and offer supportive words or actions (Barton, B. B., & Osborne, G. R. (1999). 1 & 2 Thessalonians: life application commentary (p. 81). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.).
To build one another up implies that by practicing and encouraging watchfulness, the Thessalonian Christians will move into closer conformity with God’s intention for them (Weatherly, J. A. (1996). 1 & 2 Thessalonians (1 Th 5:11). Joplin, MO: College Press Pub. Co.).
His concluding phrase, just as you are doing, affirms that they were already committed to encouragement. Ever the faithful pastor, passionately concerned for his people, Paul wanted them to “excel still more” (4:1).
One of two possible destinies awaits every member of the human race. Those who stubbornly remain in spiritual darkness will ultimately “be cast out into the outer darkness” of eternal hell (Matt. 8:12; cf. 22:13; 25:30). But those who through faith in Jesus Christ come to the light of salvation (Acts 13:47; cf. John 8:12; 9:5; 11:9; 12:46) will “share in the inheritance of the saints in Light” (Col. 1:12). They will live forever in God’s glorious presence, where “there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 22:5)
(Format Note: Outline & some base commentary from MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2002). 1 & 2 Thessalonians (pp. 153–164). Chicago: Moody Press.
