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For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.  For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:7-9).

It used to be that Christian preachers loved to preach about Jesus second coming; not so much anymore. Christ’s return was often compared to a thief in the dark. As one never knows when the thief will come, we do not know when Jesus will return. This imagery was frequently used to scare Christians into behaving. We would not want Jesus to show up when we are doing something wrong. Would that keep us from heaven?

I am not sure that this preaching devise lines up well with scripture. In our text, the apostle is writing about Jesus’ return because the Christians are worried about it. They are worried about the judgement that will be part of this final event of world history. Paul desires to alleviate their fear.

He is using the common imagery of light and dark. Good things are done in the light where they are visible to all, while bad things are done in the dark so they will not be visible to all. Isn’t this still true today?

But then he continues, “since we belong to the day”. This is key. Why do we belong to the day? Because we have been called out of darkness into God’s wonderful light. Once we were not a people, but now we are the people of God; once we had not received mercy, but now we have received mercy (cf. 1 Peter 2:9-10). Once upon a time we lived in darkness, but now God has, through Christ, brought us into the light.

Since this is true, writes the apostle, let us be sober, that is, ‘let’s not live in fear.’ If we are in the light, which we are if we belong to Jesus, then there is no need to fear his return. Rather, we are to put on the armour of faith and love. We do good not out of fear, but because its our nature to do good. The spiritual armour is a metaphor Paul liked using; he did feel free to mix it up, altering it for different purposes.

Our lifestyle, in fact, our very deeds, are rooted in faith and motivated by love. Recall, that biblical love is primarily action; action that is sacrificial. Love costs us. How can we love this way? Because of our faith in God. We follow the example of Jesus who humbled himself even unto death on the cross. It was God’s ultimate act of love. But he did not stay dead. God raised him to life to bring salvation to the world. Christ’s death has huge benefits that continue to ripple out from the past, through the present and into the future.

We act in love because we believe that God uses our sacrificial love to benefit others. He uses it to establish his kingdom. This is our breastplate, the armour which protects the soldier’s vital organs.

But that leaves our heads exposed. So, Paul encourages us to use hope as a helmet. God has appointed us for salvation, not judgement. Christ died so that we may live with him. That is the purpose of salvation. That is our hope. So, do not be afraid, trust in God. And since we have been rescued from darkness, let us live in the light.