1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

¹³ Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. ¹⁴ We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. ¹⁵ According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. ¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage each other with these words. ^[1]

One of the most difficult concepts for believers to grasp is what happens when one dies. An unbelieving world thinks and lives as though this life is all that there is. They profoundly believe that when dies their bodies decay, go back to dust and there is nothing more. So when someone dies the grief that is expressed is often inconsolable. For those who believe, however, there is an entirely different concept. This life is not all that there is. We believe and know that there is eternity waiting on us and we trust that we will spend that eternity with the Lord.

Paul addresses this concept by describing what will happen when the Lord shall return again. Those who have died in the Lord are described as sleeping versus having died and at the sound of the trumpet will rise from their sleeping to meet the Lord in the middle of the air, then those who remain on the earth will be caught up together with those who had been asleep and the Lord. Paul says that these two groups shall be with the Lord forever. We are then to encourage one another with these words.

Now whether Paul is right or not is not the question. There are many theories about what will happen when people die, where people go when they die, and what will happen when Jesus returns. Paul is not entering that debate but rather seeking to provide encouragement to his readers who have been enduring harsh persecution. Many were martyred because of their faith. Was it all for nothing? Is there something to hope for that is better than what we presently experience? For all of our advances life here on earth cannot compare with what awaits those of us who die in the Lord. Persecution can discourage believers to the point that we are prone to wonder: “What is the point?” Therefore, we need to encourage one another to remain faithful because eternity with Jesus waits.

Lord, we confess that we often place too much emphasis and energy on living life here on earth and not enough on preparing for heaven. We have focused on storing up as much treasure here instead of storing it in heaven. While we do not want to be so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good, enable us today to have a more balanced and realistic view of life now and life to come. Help us to see that eternity waits and to be prepared for it so that we spend it with you, and then let us care enough about each other to encourage one other with these words. Amen.