But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness.” vss. 4-5
1 Thessalonians 5:1-5
Like other followers of Jesus in the mid-first century Paul was looking for the Day of the Lord, which he understood as the imminent return of Jesus. But as he wrote to his friends in Thessalonica, he described that time for them, not as a day of wrath, but as an occasion for celebration and joy. And he knew that it would not take them by surprise, because they were all children of light. We perhaps have a different notion of how the future will roll out, but wouldn’t it be wonderful if we knew that there was nothing ahead that we can’t handle? And that’s how it is for all who walk in the light and who trust that in Christ there is nothing to fear. Oh we know that there will be valleys and mountain tops–that’s just the nature of life. So it really shouldn’t surprise us when those days show up–as children of light that’s what we’ve come to expect, and we’ll roll with the punches, knowing that one day we will be surprised by the joy God wants for all people. When that’s what lies in our future there’s really no need for anxiety or despair. It might be tomorrow, it might lie far down the road, but in the end, God’s biggest surprise awaits!
Thought for the Day: The biggest surprise life has given me.
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