Switch to Audio

Listen to sermon audio here:

Rapture Not Wrath

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 • October 22, 2023 • t1278

Pastor John Miller teaches a topical message through 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 titled, “Rapture Not Wrath.”

Pastor Photo

Pastor John Miller

October 22, 2023

Sermon Scripture Reference

In 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, Paul says, “But concerning the times…”—which means chronology—“…and the seasons…”—which means the characteristics of the end times—“…brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord…”—that’s a reference to the tribulation period, when God’s wrath will be poured out on the world—“…so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they…”—that is, “unbelievers”—“…shall not escape.”

Verse 4, “But you, brethren…”—note the contrast with the believers—“…are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.” The first reason the church won’t go through the tribulation is that we are children of the light and of the day.

Verse 6, “Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. For God did not appoint us to wrath.” This is the second reason why the church will not go through the tribulation: we are not appointed to wrath “but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep…”—which means, “alive or dead”—“…we should live together with Him. Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.”

There are two distinct problems that have always fascinated and perplexed human minds. The first problem relates to what happens after a person dies. Some of the greatest questions we could ever ask are, “What happens after we die? Is there life beyond the grave? Will we go to be with the Lord? Will we be separated from God? Is there conscious existence after death?” We already answered these questions in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, where Paul dealt with the problem of bereavement.

The second set of questions that plague mankind is, “Is there going to be an end of the world as we know it? Will there be a day of judgment, or a day of reckoning?” These questions are answered in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11.

One of the reasons I’m preaching on this text is because I feel it’s so vital and important. So many Christians are abandoning a pretribulation rapture. I believe the Bible is clear that we are not appointed “to wrath but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

1 Thessalonians 4:13 through 5:11 is one text, with two subjects. The Bible wasn’t written with chapters and verses, and there are no breaks here. It is one, whole text dealing with what happens after you die. In chapter 4, it deals with our relationship to the rapture. And chapter 5 deals with “the day of the Lord”; that we, as children of the light and children of the day are not appointed “to wrath but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” But we will not be here for “the day of the Lord” or for the tribulation. The world, as we know it, will come to an end at what the Bible calls “the day of the Lord.”

First, I want to answer the question: “What is ‘the day of the Lord’?” from verses 1-3 of our text. “But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren.” So notice Paul is clearly speaking to Christians. The word “but,” a disjunctive conjunction, indicates that it is the same text but going in a different direction. So Paul connects that with the previous, but he goes a different direction with what he’s dealing with. He says, “You have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that…”—here’s our topic—“…the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they…”—that is, “unbelievers, non-Christians”—“…say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden…”—or “unexpected”—“…destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.”

We get so wrapped up in the rapture verses, which is understandable, that we fail to read the next chapter. And Christians are divided and fighting over these verses. I don’t believe that we should break fellowship over another believer’s position on the rapture—whether it’s pretribulation, midtribulation, posttribulation or there’s no rapture—there’s just the Second Coming. I don’t believe that’s a test of orthodoxy, but I believe we should know what the Bible teaches. And understanding the truth has practical implications to our lives, as well. If you’re wrong about Scripture, then you’re wrong in your application to the way you live. Before you can apply a text, you need to understand the meaning of the text. So before you can live the Gospel, you have to know the Gospel.

A text means what the original author of the text meant it to mean. It’s called “authorial intent.” And the authors were writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. God super-intended the authors’ words, so that the very words they wrote were the words of God. And what they meant, by what they said, is what the text means. You can’t make it mean what you want it to mean. You can’t read into a verse your own ideas. We want to find the authorial intent.

I believe Paul is dealing with the second issue here: not the dead in relationship to the rapture, verse 4, but the believer in relationship to the tribulation, verse 5.

So Paul addresses believers, in 1 Thessalonians 5:1. “Brethren, you have no need that I should write to you.” Now why would Paul said he didn’t have to write to the Thessalonians about the chronology and the characteristics of the tribulation? Because the Bible explains it very clearly. Paul had already talked to them about it. And the doctrine of “the day of the Lord” is in both the Old Testament and in the New Testament. As far as “the day of the Lord,” Paul needed to write to the Thessalonians, because the church is to be aware of the Second Coming and its signs. Yet that’s not to be the focus of the church. The rapture is.

The doctrine of the rapture is only a New Testament revelation. In 1 Corinthians 15:51, Paul calls it “a mystery.” And when it comes to eschatology or end-time prophecy, many Christians get so enamored and focused on the signs of the Second Coming that they forget that the rapture of the church may be imminent. So when it comes to the rapture, we, the church, should be looking and waiting for it, because the Lord is coming soon.
Jesus said, “I go and prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you…”—that’s the rapture—“…to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also,” John 14:2-3. Jesus didn’t say that before that happens they’ll be tribulation, the Antichrist, “the abomination of desolation” and all these troubles on the earth. Then He’ll come back to get us and take us to heaven. No. Jesus just said He’ll come back for us and take us to heaven at the rapture. So the church is “looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,” Titus 2:13.

But it’s important to understand the times and the stages set for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, and to let your heart be comforted that we will not be here to experience the seven years of tribulation on the earth.

Now what is “the day of the Lord”? Let me answer the question from our text. First, it’s not a 24-hour day. The Bible uses the phrase “the day” or “the day of the Lord” over and over in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. But it is a time when God will pour out His wrath upon the earth. It covers what is commonly called “the tribulation,” which will be seven years long, the Second Coming, the millennium and the “great white throne” judgment.

The 70 weeks of Daniel’s prophecy covers 70, seven-year periods or 490 years until the Second Coming of Christ. And from the commandment to go forth and restore and rebuild Jerusalem in 445 BC, in Nehemiah 2, until the coming of the Messiah on the earth, is 483 years. It consists of two sections: 7x7=49 years and 62x7=434 years, for a total of 483 years. So Daniel was given the calendar or the time chart when Jesus Christ would come to the nation of Israel. But Israel rejected Jesus and crucified Him, so God’s plan and program for Israel stopped. There are now seven years left of Daniel’s prophecy. Daniel’s prophecy is the ABCs of Bible prophecy.

One of the big mistakes that prophecy students make is they don’t consult God’s timeline for the nation of Israel, that God determines 490 years, but we still have seven years left to go. We live in what’s called “the church age.” That is the time from Acts 2, when the church was born, until the rapture of the church. This is the dispensation of the church age. When the church is “caught up…to meet the Lord in the air” in the rapture, then God’s time clock will start again for Israel. The seven years of tribulation is divided into two periods: three-and-a-half years of peace and three-and-a-half years of great tribulation on the earth. The tribulation is Jewish in nature, relating to God’s promise to Israel. So you need to understand that.

I said all that to say this: “the day of the Lord” covers the tribulation, the kingdom age, and even the Second Coming of Christ, to the “great white throne” judgment. And then the new age is the new heaven and new earth, which is the “eternal state.”

In Matthew 24-25, the Olivet Discourse, “the day of the Lord” is mentioned. In Revelation 6-19—and some say even chapter 20—it talks about “the day of the Lord.” So unlike the rapture, “the day of the Lord” is a common theme throughout both the Old Testament and the New Testament.

I want to give you three facts, from 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3, about “the day of the Lord.” Number one, first comes the tribulation, and it comes like “a thief in the night,” verse 2. “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.” We often hear the rapture coming “as a thief in the night.” But the Bible here is making it clear that the tribulation, “the day of the Lord,” will come unexpectantly and suddenly.

It’s interesting that when Jesus ascended back to heaven in His Ascension, two angels showed up and told the disciples, “This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven,” Acts 1:11.

Before Jesus ascended, in Acts 1:6-8, His disciples asked Him, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And Jesus replied, “It is not for you to know times or seasons…”—same expression Paul used—“…which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” So we are supposed to be about preaching the Gospel and looking for the Lord to come again for the church at the rapture before the tribulation.

Jesus said, in Matthew 24:37-39, “As the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”

Now there is nothing wrong with these things: eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. Thank God for sanctified taste buds! This was just the way they lived their lives. But meanwhile, Noah was building his big boat. They lived their lives like life was just going to keep on going. But God is warning them that there is going to be judgment, that He’s going to destroy the earth. That’s what “the days of Noah” is all about; they’re living like no end will ever come. But the doom is certain to come upon them.

Number two, “the day of the Lord” begins with a false peace and security, verse 3. “For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’….” The phrase “peace and safety” is in the continuous, perfect tense in the Greek. So they would constantly be saying, “Peace and safety!” Yet after the rapture, the “man of sin,” “the son of perdition,” or commonly called “the Antichrist” comes to power in a revived Roman Empire, which will be 10 nations co-aligned in Europe. The Antichrist will bring peace to the Middle East for the first three-and-a-half years of the tribulation.

Can you imagine if some politician or world leader right now could actually resolve the Middle East crisis? Everyone would hail him as the messiah.

So the Antichrist will make a covenant with Israel for seven years. Part of the covenant is that Israel could rebuild their Temple. But in the middle of the seven years, the temple will be desecrated. Daniel prophesied it, and Jesus spoke of it as “the abomination of desolation.” He will set up an image of himself in the rebuilt temple and command everyone to worship him. At that time, no one could buy or sell unless they have his mark on your right hand or forehead. Then everyone will realize that he’s not the messiah. Jesus says, in Matthew 24:16 and 21, “Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains….For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.” So the tribulation starts with a false sense of peace and security. The covenant that will be made between Israel and the Antichrist is spoken of in Daniel 9:27. It’s one, seven-year period.

Globalism is an indication that we are living at the end of time. There are people today who are absolutely convinced that the only hope for planet earth—and outside of Bible prophecy, you can understand why they think this way—is for there to be one-world government and, as the Bible predicts, one-world religion. There will be this great, ecumenical coming-together called “Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots,” Revelation 17:5. So the world will be united under this one leader, the Antichrist, and there will be one religion under the false prophet. But this will be a deception; it’s a false messiah and a false prophet.

The keywords, in verse 3, are unexpected or “sudden destruction.” The word “destruction” does not mean annihilation; it’s “utter and helpless ruin.” Daniel’s prophecy, in Daniel 9:27, was talked about as the tribulation by Jesus in Matthew 24:15. Jesus called it “‘the abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet.” It is also mentioned in Revelation 13, and in 2 Thessalonians 2:4, the Antichrist “opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”

The last three-and-a-half years of the seven-year tribulation will be a time of great trouble. This is “the day of the Lord.” In Joel 1:15, it says, “Alas for the day! For the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as destruction from the Almighty.” And in Revelation 6:16-17, the people “said to the mountains and rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” In Revelation 14:10, it says, “He himself…”—speaking of anyone who worships the beast and takes his mark—“…shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.”

It’s very important for you to understand that the source of the great tribulation, or even of the tribulation period, is God. Now, as Christians, we go through tribulation, and the source is the world, our flesh and the devil. But the great tribulation comes from God Himself. So the tribulation is a seven-year period when God will be pouring out His wrath upon a Christ-rejecting world and will bring destruction.

Number three, there will be no escaping “the day of the Lord,” verse 3. The world cannot escape this terrible time of the great tribulation. They won’t expect it to come, it will come during a time of peace and there is no way for them to escape it. Paul says it comes “as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.”

What does this mean? You ladies know that when you are giving birth and labor begins, you can’t stop it. Have you ever heard your wife say, “I’ve changed my mind! Take me home!” Nope; can’t do it.

So this is the picture that Jesus is giving of “the day of the Lord.” There is no way to escape this worldwide wrath of God that is coming upon the Christ-rejecting world.

As a subpoint, “What is the purpose of the tribulation?” There are two purposes. Number one, it is to prepare Israel for the Messiah, for the Second Coming of Christ. It’s a Jewish period. And number two, it is to punish the world for their sin and wickedness. God’s wrath will be poured out on this Christ-rejecting world.

As I have watched the news the last few weeks, I’ve determined that the world is a very wicked place. It is very dark and demonically energized. Satan knows he has only a short time left, and the heart of man has not changed.

Jeremiah 30:7 says, “Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.” That’s a good description of the tribulation, or “Jacob’s trouble,” which refers to Israel, but the nation of Israel “will be saved out of it.” And Isaiah 26:21 says the Lord will come to punish the world: “For behold, the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity.” God’s wrath will be poured out on the Christ-rejecting world.

Second, I want to answer the question, “Will the church go through the seven years of the tribulation?” from verses 4-5. The first answer is “No.” It says, “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day…”—or “the day of the Lord,” the tribulation—“…should overtake you as a thief.” So it’s coming like “a thief in the night,” but it won’t “overtake” the “brethren” or the believers, because “You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.”

I want you to see the contrast here. Verse 3 says, “For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.” The “they…them…they” refer to unbelievers. Then in verses 4-5, “But you, brethren…”—he’s now talking about Christians—“…are not in darkness, so that this Day…”—the day of the Lord”—“…should overtake you as a thief. You…”—referring to “Christians”—“…are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.”

So reason number one that the church will not go through “the day of the Lord” is because we are children of the light and of the day, and we’re not of the darkness. The Old Testament makes it clear that the tribulation will be a time of thick, gross darkness. Amos 5:18 says that “the day of the Lord” will be “darkness, and not light,” and verse 20 says, “Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light? Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?”

The church is “the light of the world,” and the church is “the salt of the earth,” Matthew 5:13-14. So what happens to the world when the church is taken out at the rapture? Darkness comes. I would not want to be here. You think the world is demonically energized and a wicked place right now? You haven’t seen anything yet.

Salt was used, in the ancient world, as a preservative. It was to restrict corruption. Salt would be rubbed on meat to preserve it. When the salt is left out, corruption comes. When the light goes out, darkness comes. The floodgates will be opened up, and “the day of the Lord” will be here. But as Christians, we are children of the day and of the light. “We are not of the night nor of darkness.”

Reason number two why the church won’t have to go through the tribulation is that it is never mentioned on earth during the tribulation, in Revelation 6-19. In those chapters, you may read of “the saints” or “the elect,” but those are the tribulation saints, those who come to Christ during the tribulation. They’re not the church. The church is mentioned in Revelation 2-3; the church is in heaven in Revelation 4-5; starting in Revelation 6, tribulation breaks out on the earth; and in Revelation 19, the church comes back with Christ from heaven.

The third reason why the church won’t go through the tribulation is that the church in Philadelphia, Revelation 3:10, was promised to be kept “from the hour of trial…”—referencing “the day of the Lord” or the tribulation—“…which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.” The faithful church in Philadelphia is promised to be kept from the tribulation.

On You Tube this week I heard one preacher say that “Nowhere in the Bible is there a direct promise that the church would be kept from the tribulation.” But Revelation 3:10 has that promise for the church in Philadelphia.

The fourth reason the church won’t go through the tribulation is the doctrine of the imminency of the rapture. No event has to happen before the rapture happens. That indicates that the rapture comes before the tribulation. If you believe that the rapture happens in the middle of the tribulation, you’re going to be looking for the event of the coming of the Antichrist, which is not Biblical. Rather Christians are looking for Jesus Christ.

People ask me all the time, “Who do you think the Antichrist is?” I don’t know and I don’t care. I’m not looking for him; I’m looking for Jesus Christ. As believers, we’re looking for the rapture.

And if you think the rapture happens at the end of the tribulation, then you’re looking for the events of the moon turning to blood and for the stars to fall from heaven. You’re looking for the “abomination of desolation.” Those aren’t signs for the church; they’re signs for the nation of Israel to know that their Messiah is coming soon. They’re to “look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near,” Luke 21:28.

What Paul does in 1 Thessalonians 5:4-5 is he gives us the first reason we won’t go through the tribulation—we’re children of the light and of the day—and then in verses 6-8, he tells us how we should then live. Then in verse 9, he gives us reason number two, and then in verse 11, he tells us how we should live. So this is practical teaching.

So how then should we live, if we aren’t going through the tribulation, verses 6-8? “Therefore let us…”—“Christians” or “brethren”—“…not sleep, as others…”—“unbelievers”—“…do, but let us watch…”—as believers—“…and be sober.” We aren’t to be like unbelievers. “For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us…”—“Christians” or “believers”—“…who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.”

These are verses that don’t really need any explanation. Read these verses in a modern translation if need be to see the clarity. So they’re challenging to preach on, because I don’t have anything to say about them. They say what they mean and mean what they say; that we’re not going to go through “the day of the Lord,” because we’re children of the day.

Since we’re children of the light and of the day, then how should we live? Three things: don’t sleep, be watchful and sober and put on God’s armor. Don’t be sleeping, verses 6-7. In verse 6, where it says, “Let us not sleep,” Paul is using a different word for “sleep” than he did in 1 Thessalonians 4:13. In chapter 4, he was using “asleep” as a metaphor for the death of believers’ bodies; that we die, but our bodies are awakened in the resurrection at the rapture. In verses 6-7, the word “sleep” means “a lack of vigilance” and that we aren’t watching and ready; we become lethargic.

So this is talking about believers who are spiritually asleep. They’re believers, they’re born again, they’re children of God and will go up in the rapture, but they’re intoxicated by the world and are spiritually asleep and are not alert.

In Ephesians 5:14, Paul says, “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” I’ve referenced this verse before in relation to being born again, but Paul is actually referring to Christians here, telling them to wake up, be alert and watch. Don’t be lethargic, intoxicated by the world or spiritually asleep. Many Christians are.

Then we are to be watchful and sober and put on armor, verses 6 and 8. “Let us watch and be sober,” and “Let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.”

Paul says that those who sleep generally sleep at night. Don’t be like the unbelievers. Those who are drunk are generally drunk at night. Don’t be intoxicated. He’s not literally talking about being drunk; he’s talking about being drunk on the things of the world—“the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.” So you’re sleeping and your spiritually intoxicated. You’re not sober-minded, looking around and waiting for the coming of the Lord at the rapture.

So the believer is to be walking by “faith,” verse 8, and not by sight, by faith and not by feelings. “The just shall live by faith,” Hebrews 10:38. And “love” is a love for God and for others. And the helmet is “the hope of salvation.” This is the future hope of the believer.

Now why would the Bible say “hope of salvation” if we know we’re already saved? What are we hoping for? Salvation has three tenses: I’ve been saved, justification—past tense; I’m being saved, sanctification—present tense; and I will be saved, glorification—future tense.

Justification is the act of God whereby He declares the believing sinner to be righteous, based on the finished work of Jesus Christ on the Cross. I’m justified; God declares me righteous. That’s a done deal, and nothing can change that.

The second phase of salvation, present tense, is sanctification. It means that I’m being changed into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. It is a lifelong process. Some Christians are farther along than others, because they’ve been saved a long time. Others have a long way to go. And we’re not becoming more holy in order to be saved; we’re becoming more holy because we’re saved.

The third phase is glorification, future tense. When we get raptured, “this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality,” 1 Corinthians 15:53. That’s the rapture. So we’re not glorified yet. That’s why, as Christians, we still get sick, old, wrinkled, frail and forget things.

I came out of a store the other day and forgot where I parked my car. “Someone stole my car! Oh, no. It’s over there.” God have mercy on me! But one day we’ll get a new body, and we won’t forget anything. What a glorious hope that is. So when Paul says “the hope of salvation,” he’s talking about phase three, the hope of a glorified state in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at the rapture.

The second reason the church won’t go through the tribulation is in verse 9: “For God did not appoint us to wrath.” The tribulation or “the day of the Lord” is a day of God’s wrath. Rather for Christians, it is, verses 9-10, “…but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us.” So Paul talks about the Cross, the Crucifixion. “…that whether we wake…”—or “we’re alive”—“…or sleep…”—or “we’re dead”—“…we should live together with Him.” He speaks here of the unity of the believer with Christ at the rapture. Whether we’re alive or dead, we’re “in Christ,” and will be saved. So we’re not appointed to wrath.

Remember that the source of the tribulation is God. So we’re not appointed to go through it. The word “appointed” is a very strong word. It’s closely related to the word “predestined.” God has appointed or predetermined or predestined the believer that he’ll be saved and will not experience God’s wrath at the tribulation.

And why is that? Verse 10 makes it clear that Jesus “died for us.” And when Jesus died for us, He took the wrath for us, He took our place, He died in our stead. The wrath of God the Father poured out on God the Son, so that we could be forgiven. Jesus cried, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Psalm 22:1. Jesus did that for me, so I would never have to be forsaken by God. Jesus said, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will,” Matthew 26:39. Then Jesus drank the cup of God’s wrath so that I could be forgiven and free and have eternal salvation. But by faith you must receive Him and trust Him as your Savior. We are not appointed to wrath, but we are designed to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.

And since we are not appointed to wrath, Paul tells us how we are to live, verse 11. “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.” In the body of Christ right now, waiting for the rapture and the fellowship of the church, we should comfort one another. That’s what’s happening now; the Spirit of God is encouraging us through the Word of God. So we are to build up and edify one another through the Word of God, through prayer and through love and fellowship.

In summary, this whole text is a contrast between believers and unbelievers. Believers have knowledge. Paul said, “You have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.” Unbelievers are ignorant; they are caught unexpected. Believers are expecting the Lord’s return. Unbelievers will be surprised. Believers are “sober.” Unbelievers are “drunk.” Believers are “light.” Unbelievers are in “darkness.” Believers are saved from God’s wrath. Unbelievers are awaiting God’s wrath.

It’s interesting in the passage, too, that Christians are children of the light and of the day, and unbelievers are children of the night and of the darkness, but there is no gray. So there are no other options. There are only two groups of people: children of God and children of the devil. You are either a child of God, a child of the light, or you are a child of darkness and you will experience the wrath of God.

Jesus died on the Cross for your sins, and He rose from the dead for your salvation. If you haven’t trusted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you must personally, individually repent. That means to change your mind, metanoia, turn around from the direction you’re going, and put your faith in Jesus Christ.

The Bible says, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast,” Ephesians 2:8-9. God wants to give you the gift of eternal life, but you must open your heart by faith and trust Him. If you haven’t trusted Christ and been born again, then you’re not ready for the rapture, so you’ll experience “the day of the Lord.”

If we look at what Israel’s recently gone through in the last two weeks, who knows what lies ahead for them in battle. Jesus said, “There will be great tribulation, such has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be,” Matthew 24:21. It will be the worst time in human history, and it’s going to be on the nation of Israel to prepare them for the Messiah.

But if you’re not a Christian, not a believer in Jesus, you will go through this time of judgement. So repent and turn to Christ, and trust Him as your Savior.

Pastor Photo

About Pastor John Miller

Pastor John Miller is the Senior Pastor of Revival Christian Fellowship in Menifee, California. He began his pastoral ministry in 1973 by leading a Bible study of six people. God eventually grew that study into Calvary Chapel of San Bernardino, and after pastoring there for 39 years, Pastor John became the Senior Pastor of Revival in June of 2012. Learn more about Pastor John

Sermon Summary

Pastor John Miller teaches a topical message through 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 titled, “Rapture Not Wrath.”

Pastor Photo

Pastor John Miller

October 22, 2023