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1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
“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. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (vv. 16–17).
Speculation about the timing of Christ’s return and the events that precede it can be found throughout church history. Yet when we look at thoughtful theological reflection from the time of the Apostles until now, we find that the church has been circumspect regarding general or cosmic eschatology, the study of the last days of human history and the consummation. The church’s historical creeds and confessions have remarkably little to say about the doctrine of last things beyond that Christ will return to judge all people, who will be resurrected to stand before His judgment seat.
Today we are considering the Bible’s teaching on the return of Christ at the end of history. We find in 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 one of the clearest presentations of what will happen on that day. The Apostle Paul does not include everything to occur at Christ’s return in this text, but he does describe the manner of our Lord’s second coming. When Jesus comes again, the sound of the trumpet will be heard, as will the voice of the archangel. Jesus will descend from above, from the heavens, and this will be a bodily descent. Acts 1:6–11 says that Jesus will come back in a manner like the one by which He ascended to heaven. In other words, it will not be only the spirit of Jesus or an apparition of Jesus that returns but the incarnate God-man, descending in His human body.
When Jesus comes back, those who have died in faith beforehand will be raised from the dead. This is a reference to the resurrection of the dead, which we will consider in our next study. The resurrected servants of Christ, once their spirits have been reunited with their bodies in the resurrection, will ascend to meet Jesus in the air. Then those who are alive at the day of Jesus’ return will also ascend to meet Jesus and His people, with whom they will enjoy blissful fellowship forever (1 Thess. 4:13–18).
No one will miss the return of Christ. This truth and the accompanying truth of divine judgment assure us that while justice may be delayed, it will not finally be denied. It also comforts us to know that we will again see our Christian friends and family who have died. Matthew Henry comments, “The doctrine of the resurrection and the second coming of Christ is a great antidote against the fear of death and inordinate sorrow for the death of our Christian friends; and this doctrine we have a full assurance of, because we believe that Jesus died and rose again.”
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
When another Christian dies, we experience mixed emotions. On the one hand, we are glad that the person is no longer suffering. On the other hand, we are sad because we no longer have in-person fellowship with the individual. The truth of Christ’s return and our being gathered with fellow believers to meet our Lord in the air comforts us, reminding us that we will again see our brothers and sisters in Christ who have died.
For further study
- Psalm 82:8
- Matthew 24:44
- 1 Thessalonians 5:1–11
- Hebrews 9:27–28
The bible in a year
- Jonah 1–4
- Revelation 9