A Thief in the Night

Sermon OverviewScripture Passage: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11If we believe in our hearts that Jesus is coming again, we must be ready for His return; 1 Thessalonians 5:2 says He will come “like a thief in the night.” This chapter, 1 Thessalonians 5, offers four truths about Jesus’ glorious return.First, it will be a surprising day.We are certain that He is coming, but we do not know when. As we wait for Him, we should be sharing our faith with others, so that they are also ready for the Second Coming.Adrian Rogers says, “Jesus Christ is coming; He came on time, He was born on time, He died on time, and He rose on time. He’s coming again in His own time; He will never be late.”Second, we can escape sudden destruction.“But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief” (1 Thessalonians 5:4). The day of Christ’s return will be a solemn, sudden, and sure day—the calm before the storm of judgment to come. On that day, He will rapture His Church from the world, and believers will escape the Great Tribulation prophesied in Revelation.Third, we must endure this surrounding darkness.We live in a world plagued by moral, spiritual, and political darkness. As children of God, we must be aware and wise up, be awake and get up, and be alert and dress up—putting on the armor of God. According to 1 Thessalonians 5:8, we need to get our hearts right and keep our heads right: “But let us who are of the day be sober.”Finally, we will experience a sure deliverance:“For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11).This passage explains that we can expect to be delivered from His wrath. This assurance is meant to edify us in these Last Days. As God rescued Noah and his family before flooding the Earth in Genesis 6, so will He rapture His Church before the Great Tribulation.Apply it to your lifeAs we wait with expectation for Jesus’ return, we should be in the habit of sharing the Gospel. Adrian Rogers says, “Get your head out of the clouds of prophecy and get your feet on the pavement of soul-winning.”