Followers of Jesus are called to lives set apart from the rest of the world. The world may choose to have sex with whoever they want whenever they want, but those of us who follow Jesus are to honor God by choosing to express ourselves sexually within the context of a covenant marriage. In living differently from the world we please God as we are trusting Him, and could potentially intrigue those who are without faith.
The Thessalonians looked forward to Jesus’ return as they believed He would make all things right, bringing justice for their suffering. This passage does not teach a rapture (Christ-followers disappearing from earth to go to heaven). Instead those who are in Christ go to be with Him when we die, and when Jesus returns He will bring together a new heaven and a new earth as promised in the last two chapters of the Bible. This is more of an image of a crowd going out to greet the King who is on His way to the city.
#NewTestament, #Thessalonians, #BibleStudy, #Christianity, #BibleCommentary, #ScriptureAnalysis, #Faith, #ReligiousEducation, #Devotional, #ChristianLifestyle, #SpiritualGrowth, #ChristianTeachings, #Church, #EarlyChurch
