Warnings About Our Future and Impending Hard Times
Another installment of my ongoing Biblical Study Series from the Social Gospel Worship & Learning Center, Atlanta, Ga.
Why Staying Close to Christ Is Job One for Every True Christ Follower
(1st Thessalonians chapter 5 part 1, by Minister Paul J. Bern)
You are about to read an excerpt from my faith-based educational Christian book series, “The Social Gospel Teaching Series Vol. 3: the Apostle Paul” by Rev. Paul J. Bern, copyright (c) 2022 by Rev. Paul J. Bern, all rights reserved, available on Gumroad from this link ($3.99), or on Kindle ($4.95) from this link
When I closed out 1st Thessalonians chapter four last week, you no doubt recall my interpretation that we are to be living each day of our lives as if it will be our last. I cannot overemphasize this important truth, nor is it possible to diminish its importance. God is watching everything we do and listening to everything we say. For a man like myself, being in a position of Christian leadership, I am held to a higher standard by the Lord, because what applies to church members applies to me up to twice as much. Plus, as our Lord’s return for His Bride continues to get ever closer, I fervently hope that others will follow my example and be continually readying themselves for His coming. This, my dear readers, is a goal worth attaining at any time. It is at this point that Paul takes up where he left off, starting at the beginning of chapter five.
Part One of This Week’s Bible Verses for Study and Memorization
“Now, brothers, about times and dates we need not write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying ‘Peace and Safety’, destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. 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 self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation from our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1st Thessalonians chapter 5, verses 1-11)
What It Takes to Be a Member of the Bride
Paul the apostle paints a vivid picture of the coming of the Lord. Of course, one might ask if this is of the ‘rapture’ of the church, or to the Lord’s triumphant return three and a half years later (see the Book of Daniel chapter 12, etc). If you are one of those who have studied the rapture, the tribulation, and the signs that we are living in the end times, then we must understand what Paul meant here. When he wrote, “the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night”, I believe this warning was meant primarily for the Church. Be ready, watch and pray, that we receive purification from the Holy Spirit, so that as members of the Bride of Christ we may be found “without spot or blemish”.
World War Three, Plus Natural Disasters, Will Ruin Nearly Everything
“While people are saying ‘Peace and Safety’, destruction will come on them suddenly...”. According to prophecy, before the Antichrist can come to power, World War 3 will have to occur first. There will also have been a series of natural disasters that will have occurred by this point in time (I don’t have time to explain that part in detail, so please bear with me). People will be clamoring globally to be free to live in peace, and to be safe from natural disasters; “... and they will not escape” can be translated into modern English as saying, ‘Total destruction will overpower them without warning, and they won’t stand a chance’. You have been warned.
World War 3 Ends, the Reign of the Antichrist Begins
Nobody knows exactly what this means since all those other events have not yet occurred, and speculation would be counterproductive. All I can tell you is that the Antichrist will be in power for a total of seven years, and that one of his first acts will be to negotiate the peace treaty that ends World War 3. All the countries involved will adhere to this peace agreement for three and a half years. At that point, the Antichrist will do something that breaks that same peace deal while elevating himself to something supposedly equivalent to God. It is at this point that the persecution of Christians will greatly increase, and this will happen in the US as well.
We Will All Be Called Upon to Make Great Sacrifices
This will be the “acid test” for all of those who identify themselves as being Christians. Either we take the mark of the beast and worship the Antichrist as god here on earth, or we refuse and continue to worship Jesus as the Son of God in heaven. Those who do worship Jesus will find themselves being martyred or imprisoned by the forces of the Antichrist. A time is coming when our Christianity will cost us our lives. What will you choose? To quote the prophet Jeremiah, “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord”. Since the Lord died on the cross for my sins, I would not have any problem returning the favor, knowing that, like him, he will raise me from the dead to eternal life. We should all be willing to do the same. I know this may seem to be radical stuff being preached, but these are radical times we are living in.
We Have Been Bought At a Very Steep Price
Paul wrote, “But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.” Remember who we are in Christ! We are the adopted sons and daughters of the Most High God through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. We were bought at a very steep price, one that no man would be willing to pay. We were adopted as sons and daughters of Jesus, our Kinsman Redeemer, making all of us Jewish by adoption (see Romans 8: 15-17 or Galatians 4: 4-7, among others).
Seek Christ First and Before Anything Else
We don’t belong to the night, and we never did. We were born for the day and for the light from our very conception. “Let’s be alert and self-controlled”, Paul wrote. You won’t be ready to meet the Lord at the rapture if you’re in bed sleeping off a hangover or after playing video games all night long. As I have said before, it’s time for us all to get our priorities straight. First, worship Jesus; give Him top priority in your daily living. When we do, we will find ourselves living with an internal peace that was neither present nor possible before. I’m speaking from experience, and if God can do this for me, then he can do so for you too. But we must ask Him first. Sitting around waiting for God to give any of us a handout will accomplish nothing, unless one considers wasting time an accomplishment.
The Conclusion of This Week’s Lesson
This concludes the first half of 1st Thessalonians chapter 5. Be sure and return for part 2 this time next week, or in the next video, for the incisive conclusion of the First Book of Thessalonians. In it and by it, we will find ourselves enriched and empowered by the words of the apostle Paul while being energized by the risen Spirit of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So be sure and return for the conclusion to 1st Thessalonians chapter 5. God willing, I will see you then.
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