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Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord\u2019s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

The day I prepare this devotional, I led the funeral for Henry Katerberg. Among the many things he will be remembered for is that he was a preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ and a shepherd in Christ\u2019s church. I wonder how many times he travelled to a cemetery along with a family who was leaving behind their loved one.

I can imagine Henry standing at the graveside reading these words from 1 Thessalonians to reassure and comfort this grieving family. Today, I read them to Henry\u2019s family as they stood at his open grave. And we return to them, on the Friday after Easter, as we continue to meditate on the hope we have in Christ.

Remember that the Old Testament ideas about life after death were very vague. We find references to Sheol, the place of shadows and death. The idea of resurrection and heaven are not found there. They are things of the New Testament. Paul wrote these words to the church because many Christians were afraid of death, thus Paul ends saying, \u201cEncourage one another with these words\u201d. In obedience to that challenge, we take up these words.

Paul wants to make several things clear. First, when Christian\u2019s die, they go to be with Jesus. We do not need to worry about them at all. They are in a much better place than we are. They are with their Lord and ours. In fact, they are so well cared for, that when Jesus returns, they come with him. Paul also says that their bodies will be raised, so resurrection, the reunion of body and soul.

Secondly, Paul wants us to understand what will happen when Jesus returns. He will come with those who have already died, and their bodies will be resurrected. Then those who are still alive will join them in the air and be with Him forever. Notice the emphasis on being with Jesus. This is eternity, being with Jesus forever. It will be the best family reunion ever. We will all be there, and we will all want to stay, which, of course, we will.

Paul makes something else clear: when Jesus returns it will be the opposite of his first coming. He came unobtrusively the first-time round. If the Magi from the east had not shown up in Jerusalem asking about him, who would have known? But not his second coming. There will be fanfare. This time, no one will miss it. Despite all the theories to the contrary, Christ\u2019s second coming will be seen by all on earth.

And please don\u2019t worry about how this will happen. We are talking about the God who can raise the dead. Surely, this will only be a minor miracle. All will see him and acknowledge him as Lord.