1 Thessalonians

In my last four posts, I have laid the groundwork for a revised understanding of Paul’s “rapture passage” (1 Thess 4:13–5:11), especially his statements about the dead rising and the living being “caught up.” He says,  The dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain…

A faithful friend has compounded my difficulties. I had admitted that Paul’s “rapture passage” (1 Thess 4:13–5:11) poses significant challenges for my prophetic view, which I call inmillennialism. Over two years ago, I wrote a series of blog posts explaining that Paul used protensive language in this passage: he put…

The major challenge to my prophetic view (inmillennialism) in Paul’s “rapture passage” (1 Thess 4:13–5:11) is in the following statements: The Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.…

Before looking at 1 Thessalonians, I want to share an announcement for which I am thankful:                       Inmillennialism is available at Amazon, Books-A-Million, and Barnes & Noble.   We Who Are Alive and Remain Our last three posts on First…

Our last two posts on First Thessalonians provided key information about Paul’s “rapture” passage (i.e., 1 Thess 4:13–5:11). First, his aim was to assure the Thessalonians that their dead brothers and sisters would be at no disadvantage during the messianic-age parousia (presence) of the Lord Jesus with his people. Second, the…

In our last post (here), we proposed that Paul meant for his “rapture” passage—1 Thess 4:13–5:11—to comfort the Thessalonians regarding the relationship of their dead to the parousia (i.e., coming/presence) of Christ. Here is the heart of his answer: We say this to you by a revelation from the Lord:…

We have arrived at a passage—1 Thess 4:13–5:11—that mentions several important prophetic events. In this famous “rapture” passage, Paul discusses the coming (i.e., parousia = presence) of the Lord (1 Thess 4:15), the resurrection (1 Thess 4:16–17), the day of the Lord (1 Thess 5:2), and sudden destruction that would…

R. C. Sproul, one of my favorite theologians, spoke often of living life coram Deo. He explained: “The big idea of the Christian life is coram Deo. Coram Deo captures the essence of the Christian life.” This phrase literally refers to something that takes place in the presence of, or…

Paul tells the Thessalonians of his desire to be present with them but says “Satan hindered us” (1 Thess 2:18). Most commentators express uncertainty about Paul’s meaning here, but I want to make a suggestion that, if true, will help us understand God’s prophetic word: Satan was using Israel after…

A reader who wishes to remain anonymous responded to my recent blog post, Parousia Now. Carl—my fictitious name for the reader—said: The Messiah is not on earth yet. When he is here there will be no evil. Evil is rampant now. I don’t see how you can say we are…