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“But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that the day should overtake you like a thief. For you are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. Therefore let us not be like others who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of the hope of salvation. For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:4-11)
In 2012, Australian historian Christopher Clark published a book that was destined to be a box office hit: The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914. From its release in 2012 until May 2014, this major historical work sold a massive print run of approximately 200,000 copies, achieving particular success in the German book market.[1] In it, the historian presents his view of the events leading up to 1914 that resulted in the outbreak of the First World War.
A journalist for the Sunday Times, Dominic Sandbrook, assessed this book with the following statement: "For Clark, the statesmen of 1914 were 'sleepwalkers,' blind to the reality of the horror they were about to unleash upon the world." [2] And indeed, what happened between 1914 and 1918 is difficult to put into words. Hardly any other subject fills entire bookshelves in the same way, has been discussed and debated, documented and analyzed so often. With 9.5 million dead soldiers, 6 million dead civilians, and 63 million men who bore arms as soldiers, it was the bloodiest conflict humanity had ever experienced. [3] Dozens of countries were involved, leaving behind untold suffering, hunger, orphaned children, widowed women, and invisible yet painful emotional wounds. But what does all this have to do with the Second Coming of Jesus, and if so, what is it?
In his first letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul addresses the topic of the Second Coming of Jesus. He is concerned about the young church, which he and his co-worker Silas had to leave shortly after its founding during their second missionary journey due to hardship and a great commotion (cf. Acts 17:1-10). The young, yet exemplary church in faith and love in Thessalonica, a port city in what was then Macedonia, faces challenges: on the one hand, persecution and hardship, and on the other hand, their faith is still wavering in many respects, leading Paul to write: “For what thanks can we give to God for you, for all the joy we have before our God on your behalf? Night and day we earnestly pray to see you and to complete what is lacking in your faith?” (1 Thessalonians 3:9-10).
It is clear that the word of God wants to emphasize one thing above all to us, the Christians living on earth, with regard to the coming of Jesus: vigilance .
Apparently, one of the issues that unsettled the Thessalonians was the Second Coming of Jesus: Paul mentions it about eight times in his first letter and also devotes a large part of his second letter to this concern.
Not only this, but Paul emphasizes the importance of this letter and its message, commanding in stern terms: “I adjure you by the Lord that this letter be read to all the brothers” (1 Thessalonians 5:27). Apparently, the topic of the Lord’s return was so important to the Thessalonians in Paul’s eyes that he insisted all the brothers in the Thessalonian church should hear the letter.
Paul explains to them that they should not worry about those who have already died before Jesus' return (cf. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). Rather, the dead in Christ will rise first at His return, and then both they and those living at that time will be "caught up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
Now we come to the section of our study: 1 Thessalonians 5:4-11 (see the verses quoted at the beginning). The time of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ is unknown to us (verses 1-3). Rather, he is like a thief who comes by night to steal.
Therefore, the children of God, born-again Christians, must above all be watchful, sober-minded, and possess the faith, love, and hope of salvation (verses 4-8). The reason for this is that God has destined us for salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ (verses 9-10). This destiny must not be thwarted by decisions of our own free will—by inattentiveness or laziness in the spiritual battle. For the Word clearly states that at the coming of the Lord, we are to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father (cf. 1 Thessalonians 3:13). Paul reiterates this same important idea in the final verses of his letter: “May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
It is clear that the word of God wants to emphasize one thing above all to us, the Christians living on earth, with regard to the coming of Jesus: vigilance .
To be watchful means: to stand firm in faith, to be certain of salvation in Jesus, to trust in the righteousness of Christ, to have the word of God abiding within oneself, and to be ready to always proclaim the saving gospel.
“You […] are children of light” (1 Thessalonians 5:5)
We are Christians. Born-again children of God. Our spiritual lineage has undergone a profound transformation in Christ. We are now sons of light, sons of the day. Followers who have been enlightened by the “light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:4): “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth), discerning what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather expose them” (Ephesians 5:8-11). To be a son of light is to be a child of God. Light and darkness have no fellowship.
“Let us therefore be awake and sober!” (1 Thessalonians 5:6)
When we are told to be awake and sober, one can ask how and why.
Firstly, the Word of God gives us the answer to the question "Why?" elsewhere : "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the whole armor of God..." (Ephesians 6:12-13a). Here we also find the second answer to the question "How?": by putting on the whole armor of God. How could we fail to be watchful in a battle? To be watchful, therefore, means to stand firm in the faith, to be certain of salvation in Jesus, to trust in the righteousness of Christ, to keep the Word of God abiding within us, and to be ready to proclaim the saving gospel at all times.
Matthew Henry once wrote the following good sentence in his Bible commentary on this topic: “We will not stay sober unless we stay awake, and unless we stay sober, we will not stay awake for long.”
On the other hand, Paul writes in his letter to the Thessalonians that we should stand in holiness because God has called us to this: “For this is God’s will, your sanctification [… ]. For God did not call us to impurity, but to holiness.” (1 Thessalonians 4:3a, 7).
Jesus himself emphatically emphasized this vigilance and sobriety in his parables about the end times, when he said: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” (Mt 25:13).
But how can I tell if I am in a state of sobriety? Here, the Word of God gives us wonderful advice to examine ourselves: “Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is in darkness until now.” (1 John 2:9)
Let us be watchmen, eagerly awaiting the coming of the Son of God as we do the gentle and sweet rays of the morning sun.
Let us not be spiritual sleepwalkers, but vigilant and sober. Sleepwalkers are unaware of the enormous danger to which they are exposed.
“For God has not appointed us to wrath” (1 Thessalonians 5:9)
God's intention is to save us through His Son, Jesus Christ. Because He is so serious about us, we should be equally serious about our vigilance.
Now let's return to the opening statement:
If the actions, decisions, and attitudes of the statesmen of 1914 had such enormous temporal consequences in our visible, physical world, how much more can our actions in the spiritual world have disproportionately greater, eternal consequences? Let us not be spiritual sleepwalkers, but rather vigilant and sober. Sleepwalkers are unaware of the enormous danger to which they are exposed. It is said that the best thing for a sleepwalker is to guide them step by step back to their sleeping place until they lie down again, thus eliminating the danger of harming themselves and others. “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).
Daniel Asmus
Municipality of Bielefeld
All Bible quotations in this text are taken from the Elberfeld translation.
Sources:
[1] https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_Schlafwandler_(Sachbuch) ; Date last accessed: 10.04.2020; Date current page created: 04.06.2020
[2] The Sleepwalkers: How Europe went to war in 1914; Christopher Clark; Allan Lane 2012, Penguin Books 2013
[3] https://www.welt.de/geschichte/article183581324/Wie-viele-Tote-Die-blutige-Bilanz-des-Ersten-Weltkriegs.html ; Date last accessed: 10/11 April 2020; Date page created: 11 November 2018 (publication of the article)