THE COMING OF THE LORD
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 22:20
We have sung the hymn,
‘In peaceful wonder we adore
The thoughts of love divine,
Which in that world, for evermore,
Unite our lot with Thine.’ (Hymn 114)
What we have read about are ‘The thoughts of love divine’. We could never have thought of these things. And it is ‘In peaceful wonder’ that we adore them: we are caused to wonder at the greatness of the thoughts of divine love for us. Then ‘in that world, for evermore, unite our lot with Thine’: it will be the ultimate blessing, to be with Him. The Lord Jesus was here for just a few years, relatively speaking; but we are going to spend eternity with Him. We will be for ever with the Lord Jesus. The apostle says, “So encourage one another with these words”. This was written for the encouragement of these believers in Thessalonica, and it is written for our encouragement too in a scene where there is what can discourage.
The Lord’s coming is the hope of the church. The words, “be not grieved even as also the rest who have no hope” refer to unbelievers. We feel for men, women and children who have no hope, but as believers we have an assured hope. First of all, our hope relates to God’s purpose for us in a past eternity, an amazing thing. God knew all that would come into the race, but before that happened, He had His purpose for men, that they would be with Christ for ever. That purpose involved that one of the Persons of the Godhead would come into manhood. We read here that the Lord Jesus will descend from heaven. He has already descended – He descended once, what a stoop! It was in view of securing God’s purpose.
These young believers in Thessalonica thought that those who had fallen asleep would be deprived of coming out publicly with Christ, so the apostle writes, “so also God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep through Jesus”. That is, God will bring them with Christ, with Jesus. The apostle is giving light that these believers would not be deprived of that public side of things, of coming with Christ. He brings in this light to explain that those who have fallen asleep will not be deprived of anything. “For this we say to you in the word of the Lord”: he is emphasising the authority of the word, and the reliability of it. He does not say it is his word, Paul’s word, but it is the word of the Lord. The Lord gave this word, this light, to Paul and he passes it on to the Thessalonians and to us.
The Lord Jesus says of the Spirit that “he will announce to you what is coming”, John 16:13. Only a divine Person can announce what is coming. We only know about it because we have been told about it, the light has come to us. We do not know the future, unless we are given light as to it, but the Persons of the Godhead do know as to the future. You can see that in the Scriptures, over and over again. Prophecies, and promises; promises as to the Lord coming; coming in at Bethlehem, born in a manger – that was all promised, it was all foretold. Only a divine Person can foretell things. There are other promises that have come to pass, and some that are still to come to pass. We can rely on God’s word, on His promises.
What we have read of here is still future, but it is our hope: it is encouraging and keeps the believer bright. How glad we are to have this hope. Here we get the detail, through Paul, of what will happen. But it is the Lord’s word: “that we, the living, who remain to the coming of the Lord, are in no way to anticipate those who have fallen asleep”. That is those who were in the apostle’s mind, those who had fallen asleep, because that was troubling these persons to whom Paul was writing. It says, “those who have fallen asleep through Jesus”. That is those who are of this dispensation of faith. “Asleep through Jesus” is a very attractive way to think of death. The Lord Jesus actually puts each one of His own to sleep and takes them to be with Himself.
Then it says, “the Lord himself, with an assembling shout”. What power there will be in that assembling shout! When time began, it says, “the sons of God shouted for joy”, Job 38:7. Here is another shout: “the Lord himself, with an assembling shout”. The Lord will gather all His own. Each individual will be gathered together, for it is an “assembling” shout. What a scattering there has been, and we grieve over that. How the Lord feels it! But here there is an assembling shout, with which He will gather all His own. This is spoken of as the rapture. It is not a word used in the Scriptures, but it is a good description. Think of that assembling shout: every single thing here will have to be let go. Every believer alive on the face of the earth, whatever links they have, whether natural or other links, all will be let go immediately in the power of that shout. It brings out the attractiveness and the greatness of His Person. These are amazing things. Only the Lord could do this, with His assembling shout.
Then it says, “with archangel’s voice and with trump of God, shall descend from heaven”. The Lord is coming Himself for all His own; the Lord knows those that are His. He will descend from heaven, He will not touch the earth, we will meet Him in the air, but He will descend. Right at the beginning of Christianity, when the faith period began, it is said of Him that He will thus come in the manner in which they beheld Him going into heaven (Acts 1:11). Immediately the faith period began, the period marked by the absence of Christ, there is light given that He would come again in the manner in which He had gone into heaven.
In Thessalonians, it says He “shall descend from heaven”. What a movement from the divine side! There is nothing else that is to happen before this. The work of Christ was accomplished when He came the first time, to secure persons for Himself and for His God and Father; and He will come again to take them to Himself. The movement will begin from the Father’s throne, and the Lord Jesus will receive the word to come, and He will come. That Man will descend from heaven and will come for us all, and that will be rapture, because every one will be absolutely enthralled with Him. We have sung of it: we will hear His voice, we will see His face.
And “the dead in Christ shall rise first”. That is wider than “those who have fallen asleep through Jesus”. “Those who have fallen asleep through Jesus” belong to this present dispensation. But “the dead in Christ” include persons from the outset, when God first had relations with man, right through all previous dispensations: the dead in Christ will rise first. What a mighty power will be displayed then. These things are actually going to happen.
Then we “shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air”. Think of what that will mean to the Lord, to “see of the fruit of the travail of his soul” (Isa.53:11), all together to meet the Lord in the air. And we will enter eternal conditions, we shall be with the Lord for ever. We are so near eternal conditions. It will happen in the twinkling of an eye. We are being prepared now for that. Then it says, “and thus we shall be always with the Lord”.
We read in Revelation: “He that testifies these things”. That is a reference to the Lord Jesus. He says “Yea, I come quickly”. The Lord is saying this from His present position. He gave this to John: “He that testifies these things says, Yea, I come quickly”. That is His attitude and His desire. The response is – and the Spirit would be in this – “Amen; come, Lord Jesus”. The Lord is looking forward to this: “Yea, I come quickly”. He says, “I desire that where I am they also may be with me, that they may behold my glory”, John 17:24. He also says, “I ... shall receive you to myself”, John 14:3. Think of that welcome we will have when He comes: “I ... shall receive you to myself”. He says, “I am coming again and shall receive you to myself, that where I am ye also may be”. It is fulness of blessing for the Christian.
May we be encouraged by these things. What a hope we have, and the best is yet to come. The Lord Jesus in that word in John 14 says, “I shall receive you to myself”. He was leaving them, and He knew there would be difficult times ahead, but He gives them that word as comfort and encouragement, that it would not always be times of trouble and sorrow and testing, but the end will be bliss with Him for ever.
For His name’s sake.
Word in meeting for ministry, Dundee
2 January 2024
Bruce Grant