The Day of the Lord: March 2011
Table of Contents
The Day of the Lord
Besides the ordinary use of the word “day” to mean a 24-hour period of time, the word is also used in Scripture to identify a period in time. For example, we read of “that day” and “the great day,” and we speak of the day of grace, the day (or dispensation) of law, and the millennial day.
God does everything in an orderly way according to His own schedule. His dealings with man were all scheduled according to His purposes from eternity past and will continue on to their perfect eternal results. Like the day, month and year cycles of time, so He has organized his dealings into periods of activity and ways that His Word refers to as “days” and sometimes as “dispensations.”
In this issue we focus on “the day of the Lord” and two other days related to it, man’s day and the day of God. Now God is allowing man to have his day — a day of confusion, disorder and unrighteousness. Soon God will tell the Lord that it is time for Him to bring the whole of creation by His power into a state of order and righteousness and then reign. At the end of that day, all sin and all the results of sin will be removed, and then the Son will turn over the results of His work to God for His eternal day to abide with man and rest in His love.
The Days of Scripture
The word “day” is used in the Word of God with different meanings which must be deduced from the context of the passage. Sometimes the word means a literal twenty-four-hour period of time, sometimes it symbolizes a year, and sometimes an era or epoch of time. In this article we would like to look at some of the different periods of time in Scripture that are spoken of as days. It is important to notice that when Scripture mentions a particular day in this context, it is often connected with responsibility.
Man’s Day
This expression is found in 1 Corinthians 4:3 JND: “For me it is the very smallest matter that I be examined of you or of man’s day.” While this day is not mentioned elsewhere in the Word of God, the truth connected with it is found throughout Scripture. When God created man in His image and likeness and placed him in this world, it was with the expectation that man would walk in obedience and dependence on Him. When man exercised his own will in disobeying God, he began the time span spoken of as “man’s day.” This has perhaps become more pronounced since Christ has been rejected and Satan has been called both the god and prince of this world.
It is the time period when man has been allowed, more or less, to have his own way in this world, although God has intervened from time to time and is accomplishing His purposes in spite of man’s plans. It is the exhibition of Cain’s world — the world that began when Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, built himself a city, and then surrounded himself with everything calculated to make him as happy as possible in a world blighted by sin, but leaving God out. The momentum of this world is increasing today, but it will eventually come to an end.
The Day of Christ
The day of Christ is mentioned first in Philippians 1:10, although it is called the “day of Jesus Christ” in verse 6. It is mentioned again in Philippians 2:16, and the same time period is also referred to as “the day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:8) and “the day of the Lord Jesus” (1 Cor. 5:5; 2 Cor. 1:14). Paul also refers to it simply as “that day” several times. It is found in 2 Thessalonians 2:2, but this is an erroneous translation, for here it should read “the day of the Lord.” Likewise, the Lord Jesus could say in John 8:56, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day.” How much Abraham understood of the implications of all this we do not know, but evidently he looked forward to the coming of the Messiah and “a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb. 11:10).
The day of Christ is connected with God’s work in His people, with a view to displaying them with Christ in the day of His power; it is thus connected with responsibility. All the various circumstances in our lives and all our experiences in the school of God are forming in us that which will be displayed for the glory of Christ in that day. In that day, each one will be the fruit of His work, both His work on the cross for us and His work in us during our Christian lives. Having “begun a good work” in us, He will indeed “complete it unto Jesus Christ’s day” (Phil 1:6 JND). All this will be in view of the time when Christ “shall come to be glorified in His saints, and ... admired in all them that believe” (2 Thess. 1:10).
The day of Christ is the day of His glory on the heavenly side, just as the day of the Lord is the day of His glory on the earthly side. In the day of Christ, His people are seen with Him. Not only will there be the display of what God has wrought in us by His sovereignty, but there will also be the display of rewards — what has been the result of the exercise of our responsibility down here in this world. Even in this, we know that all is of God, for “it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). It will be our joy in that day to cast our crowns at His feet and to proclaim for all eternity, “Thou art worthy!”
The Day of the Lord
As the day of Christ is the heavenly side of things, so the day of the Lord brings before us the earthly side. This day is a day of judgment, and it is connected with the Lord Jesus taking His rightful place in this world and reigning in righteousness. It is first mentioned in Isaiah 2:12: “The day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty,” and it is mentioned many times in Scripture, mostly in the prophecies of the Old Testament. It is primarily connected with judgment, for terrible judgments will precede the setting up of that glorious millennial kingdom. For this reason, strong language is often used to describe it, such as, “The day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?” (Joel 2:11). It is referred to as the day of the “Son of Man” in Luke 17:24 and will come upon this world as “a thief in the night” — unexpected and unwanted.
More than this, the day of the Lord will include not only the judgments preparatory to the setting up of Christ’s kingdom, but takes in the entire millennial age and also the judgments at the end of the millennium — the judgment of those who rise up in rebellion when Satan is loosed for a little season and the judgment of the wicked dead at the great white throne. If man has spoiled God’s creation and rejected His Son, God will have Him honored and glorified in this world — the very place where it has taken place. “He must reign, till He hath put all enemies under His feet” (1 Cor. 15:25).
We must remember, of course, that while the day of the Lord is characterized by judgment, it is judgment only on those who oppose God’s rightful king. God has declared, “Yet have I set My king upon My holy hill of Zion” (Psa. 2:6), and all who resist this will fall under judgment. For those who look for Him and welcome Him, the day of the Lord will usher in unprecedented blessing and a time of peace for this world such as it has never known since the fall of man. It will indeed be a time when “the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations” (Isa. 61:11).
The Day of God
The day of God is mentioned only once in Scripture: “Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:12). (The expression “that great day of God Almighty” in Revelation 16:14 is clearly a reference to God in His power and describes the day of the Lord.) The day of God brings before us what is sometimes called “the eternal state,” for it is a state of things that goes on for all eternity, long after the millennial kingdom has come to an end. It is also referred to in 1 Corinthians 15:28: “Then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him that put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.” When Christ has “put down all rule and all authority and power,” He will deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father” (1 Cor. 15:24). At this time (at the end of the day of the Lord), God will destroy this present earth and the heavens — “the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (2 Peter 3:10). Then comes the day of God, “by reason of which the heavens, being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements, burning with heat, shall melt” (2 Peter 3:12 JND). Through the judgments during the day of the Lord and the subsequent destruction of the earth and the heavens by fire, sin will forever be removed, ushering in the day of God.
The day of God (and it is God in trinity who is in view here) will be a time of peace, where sin will never rear its head again. If the day of the Lord is necessary for the public vindication of God’s holy character, the day of God is for the everlasting satisfaction of His heart. We get a description of that day in Revelation 21:1-8, where there is “a new heaven and a new earth” — the new creation resulting from the removal of sin forever, through the work of Christ. In that day will be the ultimate and visible fulfillment of John 1:29: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” God will forever dwell with men, and all tears will be forever wiped away.
No sun or candle do they need;
no night
Is there, but endless day — the day
of God;
And every heart pours forth eternal
song.
W. J. Prost
The Day of the Lord
The word “day” is often used in Scripture to denote a certain period of time. The “day of the Lord” refers to the time when the Lord Jesus will come back to the earth, set everything right, and then reign. The world is very sick and there is no indication of any improvement at hand. Strife, greed, famine and troubles of every nature beset the whole world. The very foundations seem to be tottering. This is “man’s day” (1 Cor. 4:3 JND), and he has made a great mess of everything. The coming of the Lord to call His own away may take place at any moment. What a happy moment that will be for all who are saved, and how terrible for those unsaved who will be left behind. Then the things which are troubling the world will become suddenly worse, only to end when the Lord Jesus returns to subdue His enemies and set up His righteous government in the earth — the beginning of the “day of the Lord.”
The day of the Lord will follow the days of “apostasy” and “great tribulation.” The troubles of the great tribulation will be terrible, and it will end with the Lord coming personally to execute judgment. He will come to cleanse this world by taking vengeance on them that know not God, preparatory to setting up His kingdom on earth. Some have confused the day of the Lord with His coming for His saints, but this should not be done. When He comes to usher in the day of the Lord, His saints will come with Him. When He appears in glory, they will appear with Him (Jude 14-15; Col. 3:4). Previously (that is, before the apostasy and the great tribulation), He will have come and called His redeemed from the earth and the tomb, according to 1 Thessalonians 4.
A Time of Judgment
Both the Old and New Testaments speak of the day of the Lord as a time of judgment and darkness for the earth. Let us notice some of the verses from the Old Testament: “The day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand; a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness. ... For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?” (Joel 2:1-11).
“Behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. ... Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord” (Mal. 4:1-5).
“The day of the Lord ... is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm” (Zeph. 1:14-16).
“The day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low. ... And they shall go into the holes of the rocks. And into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth” (Isa. 2:12-19).
Many other verses of the Old Testament also tell of time when the Lord Himself shall come to judge the earth. At that time His enemies, called in Acts 2 His foes, shall be made His footstool. What a serious thing it is to be an enemy of Christ! Since the death of the Lord Jesus at the hand of man, there can be no neutrality with regard to Him; one is either on the Lord’s side — for Christ — or against Him. Reader, are you a friend or a foe?
In the New Testament the Lord Himself foretold His coming in judgment. The words of Matthew 24:27-30 are plain: “As the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. ... Then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
The Rapture Revealed
In the first epistle to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul had to instruct these young Christians in the truth of the Lord’s coming to take His saints away from the earth before the judgment. These newly-saved ones were distressed because some of their number had died before the Lord came, so the Spirit of God sent this word to them, explaining how the dead in Christ shall be raised and the living believers caught up to meet the Lord in the air. This will not be at the day of the Lord, but will take place before He appears in glory. Then in the fifth chapter of this epistle, they are informed of the day of the Lord that will be subsequent on the Lord’s coming for His own. “Yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.”
From this verse we learn that even in the midst of all the troubles of the great tribulation, men will be working on plans for world improvement and for the insurance of peace to a ravaged world. They will become quite confident of the success of their plans, and they will prophesy, “Peace and safety,” only to find their hopes dashed to pieces by the coming of the Son of Man to execute judgment on His enemies. God will be left out of their plans, and their destruction will be swift and sudden.
What a contrast the “day of the Lord” will be to man’s day of the present! Even now man’s will is paramount, and God is left out. In that day, with all the Christians gone from the world, it will have become utterly godless and apostate. But the day will come when Christ, once rejected here, will return with His saints to execute judgment. He is despised and rejected now, but the day will come when all must own His right to rule.
Present-Day Troubles
After Paul had written his first letter to these young Christians at Thessalonica, they became further troubled. This time their trouble was concerning the day of the Lord. They had been passing through troubles as a result of their testimony for Christ. They were suffering persecutions and were tempted into believing that the reason they were having so much trouble was that they were passing through the day of the Lord. This was not true, and Paul wrote his second letter to correct the error. In the second chapter he says, “We beg you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, nor troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as [if it were] by us, as that the day of the Lord is present” (2 Thess. 2:1-2 JND).
He beseeches them not to be worried by this false report, and he calls to their remembrance “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and ... our gathering together to Him.” This is to precede the “day of the Lord.” They had been instructed in Paul’s first letter about how the Lord will come in the clouds and call the saints to meet Him in the air. This hope should be their comfort and encouragement. The fictitious report said that the “great and dreadful day of the Lord” had actually come. This threw them into consternation (remember it bore the forged name of the Apostle to accredit it) for they understood that the day of the Lord was to be a terrible time. They no doubt knew some of the Old Testament prophecies which we have just noticed, so we can well understand their troubled state on hearing such a report.
The Judgment of Apostasy
After reminding them of the coming of the Lord as their own hope, the Apostle Paul goes on to explain that the day of the Lord cannot come until after certain other things take place. The apostasy and the revelation of the “man of sin” must precede the coming of the Lord to execute judgment. Surely He will come in flaming fire to take vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the gospel. His coming in judgment, bringing in the day of the Lord, is a certainty, but no Christian should be troubled by it, for he will be gone from the scene first to be with Christ and will come back with Christ in that day.
The second epistle of Peter also speaks of the coming of the day of the Lord as a thief. A thief comes without warning and never for good, so the day of the Lord shall come on the godless world very unexpectedly for judgment.
Peter, speaking by the Spirit of God, goes further and tells of events that will take place even after the thousand-year peaceful reign of Christ. He speaks of the dissolution of the present earth and heavens at the close of the day of the Lord. Thus we see that the day of the Lord will usher in the reign of Christ on earth and continue throughout and even beyond it, to the ushering in of the “day of God” — the eternal state, with new heavens and new earth.
P. Wilson
The Day of Christ
“The day of Christ” is found in Philippians 1:6,10 and 2:16. It takes one in thought to the heavenly rather than the earthly scene. The Apostle Paul looked forward to the day of Christ. He had joy in the Philippian saints as he saw what grace had already wrought in them, and then he looked forward to the time when they would be with Christ, and all would be completed in them.
“Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy. ... Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:4,6).
After that he writes about his desire for them that they would abound in knowledge and intelligence so as to approve the things that are excellent to the end that they might walk without a wrong step until that glorious day — the day of Christ. Such should be our desire also. Sad to say, we do fail and take wrong steps, but if we were walking close to the Lord, it would not be so.
God has made provision for us if we fail. “If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). But the Word of God does not suppose that we must fail. Just think of all the provision that we have in order to walk pleasing to Him: We have been saved and brought to God in perfect peace; we have the Word of God as a perfect guidebook; we have the Spirit of God dwelling in us for power; we have the Lord Jesus Christ as our Great High Priest to succor us when we are weak. How little we avail ourselves of the resources we have in Christ to walk pleasing to Him! Not that we should ever expect perfection in the flesh: Such ideas are wrong and only tend to exalt self — to give confidence in the flesh. We should have no confidence in the flesh, but we can say that when we do fail, it was our fault and our own lack of watchfulness. That blessed day — the day of Christ — is soon coming. Then all shall be perfect and the work begun in us shall be complete, but let us seek to walk pleasing to Him in view of that day.
The Apostle had labored in the gospel and suffered for it at Philippi (Acts 16), and these dear saints had been the fruit of his labors. After they were saved, they had taken an active interest in the gospel; they had shown their fellowship in it from the first day they were saved. They were willing to share in its trials and conflicts. Then he writes to encourage them to walk blamelessly before the unsaved and to show them the way of salvation: “Do all things without murmurings and disputings: that ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain” (Phil. 2:14-16).
Paul looked forward to the time when he and all the saints would be with Christ—when he would see the fruit of his labors. The beloved Apostle put this forward as a motive for their going on in faithful testimony. That will be the time when the results and fruit of all our labors will be manifest. We can then look forward with joyful anticipation to the day of Christ. Our work for the Lord cannot be correctly appraised now, but in that coming day of glory it will be seen in His light. Surely the day of Christ presents a different thought than the “day of the Lord,” which speaks of the subjugation of all on earth to His righteous rule.
P. Wilson
The Coming and the Day of the Lord
In 2 Peter 3, it may seem strange that the Spirit of God, instead of entering upon the subject of the coming of the Lord [for believers], should at once turn from it to speak of His day [the day of the Lord]. Many readers of this and other parts of the New Testament have, through haste, been led to confound the two things together, because of that very circumstance. But Peter is writing to those who had been Jews formerly, and they would be, therefore, somewhat familiar with the thought of “the day of the Lord,” for it is much spoken of in the Old Testament about the tremendous day of divine dealing with the habitable world. It is not merely the time when men will be raised from the dead to be judged before the great white throne. The day of the Lord is God is dealing with the world as it is — stopping all its wheels, arresting men in the midst of all the busy scenes of life, and calling them to account. The Old Testament, as it deals with man upon the earth, naturally lays great importance upon “that day.” The great white throne judgment is outside the world altogether. Heaven and earth will then have disappeared; it will be a judgment not connected with time, but ushering into eternity.
The Scoffers
Notice the wisdom of God here. Men do not scoff at the day of the Lord; even an unconverted Jew, with the Old Testament Scriptures in his hand, would have been afraid to make light of that. Rather, they were saying, “Where is the promise of His coming?” You Christians are waiting for the coming of Christ to make you happy. You are the most miserable people in the world; you enjoy nothing. You separate yourselves from all our interests and pleasures. You find fault with everything, not only with our bad ways, but with our best endeavors, and, after all, He does not come. “Where is the promise of His coming?” This is just the place in which the coming of Christ puts the Christian. What says the Spirit of God to those who deride the hope of the saints? I believe His answer, in effect, amounts to this: “I will not talk to you about the hope of the Christian, a theme that you make light of. But I warn you of a terrible scene that you have forgotten. There is such a thing as ‘the day of the Lord’ coming.” That is, He drops the subject of the church’s and the Christian’s hope, the coming of the Lord to receive us to Himself, which will take us out of all this scene, bring us into heaven and put us in peace and blessedness before the Father. The Holy Spirit in 2 Peter does not enter into this.
In Jude, he just gives us a little passing glimpse of the blessedness of the saints before God. “Unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.” There you have a glance into the deep inner joy of God’s saints that the world will know nothing about. It can never see what the Christian will enjoy best in the presence of God the Father, nor will it know anything of the coming of Christ which will introduce us into that scene. But the world is to see the day of the Lord, and when that day comes, the Lord will have all His saints in heaven, in the full brightness and intimacy of enjoyment of the Father’s house. Afterwards, He will bring them out and display them in His Father’s glory and that of the angels’ before the world, and then will come retributive judgment. The Lord will come from heaven and deal with men in the midst of their busy ways, and works and plans here below. This is what we see taken up in 2 Peter 3. You mock, he says, at our hope, but I will remind you of your fear, and when you hear of it you may tremble.
The Lord Is Long-Suffering
“Be not ignorant of this one thing [and let the beloved saints of God remember it well] that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years.” The Lord can amazingly crowd up events that might have spanned a thousand years into a single day, while, on the other hand, He might draw out those of a day into the patience of a thousand years. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise. He is unwilling to strike the terrible blow that is about to fall on the world. He “is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” These words entirely set aside the horrid idea (technically called reprobation) that any man ever was made for the purpose of being cast into hell. God, on the contrary, desires to save. His heart yearns over men. He waits upon them, entreats them, and sends the gospel to them that they may receive it. No doubt it is pure grace and only grace that awakens one soul to the love of God. But it is the sin — the unbelief of man (whatever be the judicial hardening in certain cases) — that shuts them up in the rejection of His mercy.
The converse of this appears in 2 Thessalonians, but it strongly confirms the same distinction. The Apostle launches, in 2 Thessalonians 1, into the solemn character of “that day,” with its righteous, retributive issues for both saints and sinners. In chapter 2 he is developing its special bearing on the destruction of the lawless one, the man of sin, that should arise at the close, the ripened fruit of Christian apostasy. His subject is “the day of the Lord,” as to which the Thessalonians had had their minds shaken and alarmed by false representations, but he turns aside to entreat them by “the coming of the Lord,” which was full of the sweetest and most comforting associations, not to heed these groundless rumors. Compare also 1 Thessalonians 4-5. Their special portion, at least their gathering to the Lord, is bound up with His “coming,” while “His day” is reserved for the judgment of His adversaries.
Whether the delay is short or long, whether of a thousand years or one day, the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night. It will come suddenly and be most unwelcome in this world. He makes the day of the Lord to encompass the whole space from the coming of the Lord in judgment, through the millennium, till the great white throne, for all that is implied here. “The heavens shall pass away with a great noise. ... The earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” must take place before that day closes.
Godliness While God Is Patient
“Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness.” We may feel, and ought to feel, what man is in his scoffings against the truth of God. However, the best answer to it all is that of a godly conversation — the effect upon our souls and in our walk of the knowledge of that hope and our sense of the dreadful doom that awaits those that despise not only the righteous will of God, but His mercy. The Lord here shows us the importance of it. “What manner of persons ought ye to be ... looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God.” That is, we do not want this day to be delayed for our own sakes, but we love the patience of God towards men. This knowledge reconciles our hearts to the delay while, personally, we long for the Lord to come, because we know that when He has come and taken us away, the day of the Lord must quickly close in upon the earth.
“Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness.” That gives the key to Peter — righteousness is the thought in this epistle as well as in the first. The coming of the Lord for His people is not the display of righteousness but the unfolding of His grace. He has begun and He will end with us in full and heavenly grace, by which He has chosen us to be with Himself. But here we get the day of the Lord, which has an aspect of righteousness even for us. When that day comes, we shall be manifested. The day will reveal. It is the time when we shall have rewards for special suffering or faithfulness of any kind; it is the time which will, therefore, detect where we have been unfaithful, and why we failed. The day of the Lord will not close till all evil has been banished and righteousness brought in and established, all enemies having disappeared. The day of the Lord is as emphatically righteousness as His coming is grace. The world is never said to see anything of the coming of the Lord for His saints. It will miss them, no doubt. The warning of the day of grace will have closed, though there may be raised up a testimony of the coming kingdom and judgments, and some hearts may be opened to receive it. But not a word of hope does Scripture hold out for those who now refuse the gospel.
Bible Treasury, 3:58
Waiting for Christ
With the Thessalonians, their one hope was Christ’s coming; they were waiting for it, as though it might be any day. But while waiting thus, some had been removed from their midst by death, and they do not seem to have apprehended that their departed brethren would be raised to participate in their joy at the coming of Jesus. It is on this point the Apostle now instructs them. Concerning them which were asleep, they were not to sorrow, as others who had no hope.
“If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, [marking it thus as a new, special revelation] that we which are alive, and remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent [or go before] them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:14-17).
The Apostle uses this hope to seek to perfect what was lacking in their faith. Already they knew that the Son of God was to return from heaven and that on His return He would reign over the kingdom promised to Him of old. It was for this they had been waiting from the day of their conversion. Now they are told that their sleeping brethren are to have part in the glory of that coming kingdom and that so far from losing anything by having departed, their resurrection will be the first event connected with the descent of the Christ. The risen saints and those who are alive and remain are then to be caught up together. The meeting-place is to be in the air. Such are the additional truths contained in this transcendently important passage. Surely there is nothing here to place in the distance the hope of Christ’s coming. “WE which are alive and remain” placed in contrast with “them which are asleep” would suggest anything rather than the necessary, inevitable lapse of centuries before it is possible for that event to transpire! The language used can only correspond with the firm persuasion that we may, and with the desire that we should, be alive when the Lord Jesus shall descend.
The Two Parts of His Coming
But this is not the whole. After comforting the Thessalonians and exhorting them to “comfort one another with these words,” he proceeds to say, “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.” They needed to be instructed on the points just handled — the resurrection of the sleeping saints and their rising with those who are alive to meet the Lord in the air — these were new truths, of which they had till now been ignorant. But of the times and the seasons there was no need to write to them. Why? “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” Here we enter upon another subject. The descent of the Lord Jesus into the air, and the translation of the church to meet Him there, is one thing. The day of the Lord, and its coming upon the ungodly as a thief in the night, is another thing. The one is all brightness and joy; the other is all gloom and darkness and terror. The Thessalonians had to receive a new, fresh revelation through the Apostle to acquaint them with the former; with the latter they were already acquainted by means, doubtless, of the Old Testament scriptures, as well as by the ministry among them of the Apostle and his companions.
The Day of the Lord
“The day of the Lord” is a phrase of frequent occurrence in the Old Testament and always refers to the execution of judgment on the earth. In its full sense, it doubtless implies the yet-future day of the Lord’s actual presence to execute judgment on the wicked and to establish by power His own rule over the earth. It may be used in some instances of remarkable interpositions of God in judgment, where the Lord’s actual presence is not included in the meaning of the phrase. Still, in such instances we have types and specimens of what the day of the Lord is, in its full, absolute sense. And wherever it occurs, it will be found connected with judgment. “The day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up, and he shall be brought low” (Isa. 2:12). “Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come” (Joel 1:15). “The day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand: a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains” (Joel 2:1-2). “Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?” (Amos 5:20). Such is the force of this expression in the Old Testament. In the New, it is similar. “As the lightning that lighteneth out of the one part under heaven, shineth unto the other part under heaven; so shall also the Son of Man be in His day” (Luke 17:24). Noah and the flood and Lot and the burning of Sodom are referred to, and it is said, “Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed” (vs. 30).
Gathering His Saints and
Smiting His Foes
Peter, on the day of Pentecost, speaks of “that great and notable day of the Lord.” Our Lord Himself warned His hearers to “take heed” lest that day come upon you unawares. “As a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth” (Luke 21:35). We need not give further evidence as to the meaning of the phrase “the day of the Lord.” In all these passages, as in the one in 1 Thessalonians 5, it points to the execution of sudden and overwhelming judgments on the wicked, introductory to the establishment by power of Christ’s earthly kingdom. How striking the contrast between the descent of the Lord Jesus in the air, which is presented to the Thessalonian saints as the consummation of all their hopes, and this “day of the Lord,” which is to come “as a thief in the night” on the whole world of the ungodly. True, they are just different stages of the one great event, the coming of the Lord, but in their character how distinct! In the one case, the Lord descends in the air; in the other, His judgments fall on the earth. In the one case, the Lord comes to gather His saints; in the other, to smite His foes. And the saints are instructed as to the one, that they may know assuredly that they are exempt from the terrors of the other. “Ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness” (1 Thess. 5:4-5). We are already, in our hopes and destinies and in the spirit of our minds, children of the day. Before the day actually bursts on the sleeping world, drunken with its carnal joys, we shall have been caught up to meet the Lord in the air, and we shall be with Him when His appearing frightens and overwhelms His foes. Such is the doctrine of this first epistle. May it be written indelibly on our hearts and exert there all its consoling and sanctifying power.
W. Trotter, adapted
The Consumption of Food
Nearly three years ago, an article in The Christian took up the subject of the world food supply and pointed out the drastic reduction in food stocks that has taken place in the world during the past ten or fifteen years. As conditions such as droughts, floods, increasing oil prices, and a larger world population continue to affect agriculture, the problem of a food shortage persists. It is true that a good wheat harvest in North America this year has somewhat stabilized the conditions existing back in 2007-2008, but the situation remains precarious with world carryover stocks projected to decrease significantly.
Industrialized Farming
However, there is another problem connected with food that perhaps needs to be addressed in the light of Scripture. The potential for a world food shortage, or “global food crisis,” as some are calling it, has given rise to a new food movement in some western countries, particularly the U.S. It has taken on the momentum of a religious revival, as it seeks to change the way people think about food and the use of the earth. It focuses on the sources of our food supply and the destructive effects of “industrialized farming” on humans, animals and the environment. It wants to reverse this trend by radically altering our eating habits.
It is true that large-scale farming methods, which now account for a large percentage of food production in western countries, are fraught with potential dangers. Contamination of any particular food has the potential to affect thousands of people in a short time, while the methods used to produce these products raise questions about sanitation, inhumane treatment of animals, and the overall effect on the environment. Huge amounts of liquid manure, for example, are difficult to dispose of, while the widespread use of pesticides, commercial fertilizers and herbicides is clearly a major factor in water pollution.
Humanistic Culture
In addition to all this, our casual and disconnected attitude toward food and its production is fueled by our humanistic culture of today, which holds that the end result of everything is the happiness of man. When food is bought primarily in supermarkets, the process by which it arrived there is often considered irrelevant. We abstract ourselves from it all, preferring simply to consume the packaged product, which by this time may have been so altered that we scarcely recognize its source.
The new food movement focuses on these attitudes and problems and raises questions about how we can stop global warming, feed the hungry in third-world countries, prevent cruelty to animals, and in addition be healthier and live longer. There are many books now promoting a vegetarian diet, and indeed, a recent study revealed that nearly 20 percent of U.S. college students are vegetarians. In many cases, such a diet is connected, at least in the eyes of its adherent, with righteousness, purity and “spiritual consciousness.”
The Glory of God
What should be the Christian’s view of all this? On the one hand, man was put into this world as a steward of God’s gifts. He is to use them wisely, recognizing the Giver, and also recognizing His ultimate dependence on God. Believers should not abuse God’s gifts, whether food, money, our health, our natural resources or any other mercies God has placed at man’s disposal. Paul tells us, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). It is true that God “giveth us richly all things to enjoy” (1 Tim. 6:17), but food is a means to an end, not an end in itself. When man loses sight of God, he tends to exploit God’s gifts, disposing of them as if he himself had made them.
On the other hand, however, we must point out that the new food movement often does not honor God, despite its emphasis on the careful use of our resources. The central tenets of the movement almost offer a religious alternative and can easily become a cause for which we labor. Its urgent wish to save the world can easily slide over into a feeling that by eating right, we can save ourselves. This ultimately links the movement with eastern religions, for both Hinduism and Buddhism connect pure food with spiritual purity. All this can become a snare for the true Christian.
Obsession With Healthy Eating
More than this, when believers become overly occupied with food, it may displace Christ in their hearts. A nutritionist in the U.S. has coined the term orthorexia, which he defines as “an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating.” He himself evidently took the journey into so-called healthy eating, but found that it eventually took over his life. He found that life’s meaning had been transferred to food, instead of being on something more transcendent and important. More than this, he found that it led to self-absorption and legalism.
While the believer should be a good steward of what God has given, we must remember that “the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost” (Rom. 14:17). We cannot reclaim the Garden of Eden, but rather must continue to live in a world blighted by sin, where death is still present. While we should not willingly add to a groaning creation, neither can we reverse it at present.
The Heart First
Satan is using the food movement, and many other things, to divert man from what is really important — a new heart. It was for this reason that the Lord Jesus reminded the Jews that it was not what a man ate that defiled him, but rather what came from his heart (Matt. 15:17-20). This is man’s real need, and the one who has truly come to Christ, accepted Him as his Saviour, and wishes to follow Him will not be found either abusing God’s gifts or having an undue obsession with food. We have been given freedom in Christ and should use it, not for self-indulgence, nor for an over-occupation with food, but for the Lord. If we are occupied with His interests down here, we will eat our food “with gladness and singleness of heart” (Acts 2:46), but our focus and occupation will be with the “true bread from heaven” (John 6:32).
W. J. Prost
Come and Reign
Lo! He comes, from heaven descending,
Once for favored sinners slain!
Thousand thousand saints attending
Swell the triumph of His train!
Hallelujah!
Jesus comes and comes to reign!
See the Saviour, long expected,
Now in solemn pomp appear!
And His saints, by man rejected,
All His heavenly glory share:
Hallelujah!
See the Son of God appear!
Lo! the tokens of His passion,
Though in glory, still He bears;
Cause of endless exultation
To His ransomed worshippers;
Hallelujah!
Christ, the Lamb of God, appears.
Israel’s race shall now behold Him
Full of grace and majesty;
Though they set at naught and sold Him,
Pierced and nailed Him to the tree,
Now in glory
Shall their great Messiah see.
Yea, Amen, let all adore Thee,
High on Thine exalted throne:
Saviour, take the power and glory;
Claim the kingdoms for Thine own:
Come, Lord Jesus!
Hallelujah! Come, Lord, come!
Little Flock Hymnbook, #170