HOPE FOR THE COMING DAYS
FRIDAY, JULY 11
READING: 1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18
As you read Paul’s words in this passage, you may be flooded with more questions than answers. If that is the case, take heart, you are not alone. Scholars and theologians for centuries have speculated and debated this passage seeking to decipher what the return of Jesus will be like. Whatever that coming day turns out to be like, it is sure to be spectacular…a day unlike any other.
Read it again slowly paying attention to the portions of this passage that cause hope to rise in your soul. What words or phrases inspire a deep longing or sense of wonder? Let your imagination paint a picture in your mind.
One thing is assured from this passage for all those who have ever put their trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior: we will always be with the Lord. Let that sink in for a moment. We will always be with Jesus. All who were once far off, who have been forgiven and declared righteous because of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, who endure struggle and hardship, grief and loss, anxiety and uncertainty, will be gathered together for all eternity in the presence of Jesus.
Beloved of God, that is your future. Let that truth fill you with hope today. Perhaps, like Paul exhorts in verse 18, you will have the opportunity to encourage someone else with these words today.
Read it again slowly paying attention to the portions of this passage that cause hope to rise in your soul. What words or phrases inspire a deep longing or sense of wonder? Let your imagination paint a picture in your mind.
One thing is assured from this passage for all those who have ever put their trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior: we will always be with the Lord. Let that sink in for a moment. We will always be with Jesus. All who were once far off, who have been forgiven and declared righteous because of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, who endure struggle and hardship, grief and loss, anxiety and uncertainty, will be gathered together for all eternity in the presence of Jesus.
Beloved of God, that is your future. Let that truth fill you with hope today. Perhaps, like Paul exhorts in verse 18, you will have the opportunity to encourage someone else with these words today.
REFLECTION
When He shall come with trumpet sound
O may I then in Him be found
Dressed in His righteousness alone
Faultless to stand before the throne
O may I then in Him be found
Dressed in His righteousness alone
Faultless to stand before the throne
- Slowly read the stanza above from The Solid Rock, by Edward Mote.
- What words or phrases are you drawn to?
- Ask God what He might be trying to say through the words you’ve noticed.
- As you imagine the great gathering with Jesus, other than Jesus who do you most look forward to seeing?