Peter Barnes : 1 Thessalonians 5:4-8
SERMON NOTES: BE AWAKE AND SOBER! (1 Thessalonians 5:4-8)
In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Paul has been comforting Christians who were worried about the state of those Christians who had died before Christ’s return, and in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 he is encouraging Christians to live in the light of Christ’s second coming.
- Be awake.
– 5:4-7. Jesus refers to believers as ‘sons of light’ in Luke 16:8; John 12:36. ‘Sons of the day’ means much the same thing, but with the second coming more obviously in view.
– Paul switches from the ‘you’ to the ‘we’ in the middle of verse 5. We are all under the Word of God – even the apostles and prophets who wrote that Word.
– Matt.24:43; 25:13. Samson was literally asleep when he lost his strength – Judges 16:19. Christ called on the church at Sardis to wake up – Rev.3:1-3.
- Be sober.
– 5:4-7. There is something especially degrading about drunkenness during the day – Isa.5:11; Acts 2:15. Christians are to be controlled by the Spirit – Eph.5:18.
- Put on love, faith and hope.
– verse 8b is more obviously positive. The language is military, and comes from Isa.59:17. For the triad see 1 Thess.1:3.
William How:
And when the fight is fierce, the warfare long,
Far off we hear the distant triumph-song;
And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!