Paul's Exhortations to the Thessalonian Church Volume 29

Paul Reminds them How Christ 2nd Coming will Occur Part 2

1 Thessalonians 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. KJV

Paul now reminds these new believers in Thessalonica how blessed they are knowing these facts, this truth, and this reality concerning the 2nd Coming of our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ in sharp contrast to those who have yet to bow their knee in submission to Him during this open season of grace extended to all humanity. The time is coming very soon (not as human beings understand the word soon) that regardless of resisting or rejecting the promptings from God the Holy Spirit when lost men and women hear the Gospel of Grace preached and proclaimed to them that they will be forced to bow their knee to Christ Jesus just as Paul declared concerning Christ to the Philippian believers with these words, "And after He had appeared in human form, He abased {and} humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the Cross!Therefore [because He stooped so low] God has highly exalted Him and has freely bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, That in (at) the name of Jesus every knee should (must) bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, And every tongue [frankly and openly] confess {and} acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:8-11) (Amplified Bible).

With this as our background, Paul states this concerning the neglectful sinner as well as the willfully obstinate sinner, "For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." (1 Thessalonians 5:3) (KJV). The great Apostle Paul (of course under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit) makes perhaps (in my opinion) the most subtle, silent, but sure coming judgement of God the Father of human sinners here on this His earth that is found in the Bible. All of humanity has been eyewitness to the process of conception, pregnacy, and then child birth. The conception of a child takes place during the act of sexual intercourse between a man and a woman. In like manner in the spiritual realm the conception of human sin took place or occured when the first man and first woman disobeyed the command of God the Father and ate the forbidden fruit just as Paul declared with these words to the believers in Rome when he wrote this, "Therefore, as sin came into the world through one man, and death as the result of sin, so death spread to all men, [no one being able to stop it or to escape its power] because all men sinned." (Romans 5:12) (Amplified Bible). Note: "To any 'evolutionist' out there that may come across this and read it, if something came from nothing, then why does the 'something' that was before 'nothing' die and go back to 'nothing'." Next, in like manner, because sin has now entered the world and all men/women have sinned and are sinners just as Paul again wrote to the believers in Rome with these words, "Since all have sinned and are falling short of the honor {and} glory which God bestows {and} receives." (Romans 3:23) (Amplified Bible), then humanity is now pregnant with judgement for their sin that must be satisfied or paid for by themselves or by another (the Blood of Jesus Christ).

Finally, in like manner, the birth of God the Father's Judgement for human sin must happen just as a pregnant women will deliver her baby. When Paul writes, 'they shall say', he is referring to those we spoke of earlier as being resistant to the Holy Spirit or rejecting the Holy Spirit all together even as the Apostle Peter wrote of just such people in his second epistle or letter reminding them that God the Father's Judgement is certain and sure with these words, "To begin with, you must know {and} understand this, that scoffers (mockers) will come in the last days with scoffing, [people who] walk after their own fleshly desires And say, Where is the promise of His coming? For since the forefathers fell asleep, all things have continued exactly as they did from the beginning of creation. For they willfully overlook {and} forget this [fact], that the heavens [came into] existence long ago by the word of God, and the earth also which was formed out of water and by means of water, Through which the world that then [existed] was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been stored up (reserved) for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly people. Nevertheless, do not let this one fact escape you, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. The Lord does not delay {and} is not tardy {or} slow about what He promises, according to some people's conception of slowness, but He is long-suffering (extraordinarily patient) toward you, not desiring that any should perish, but that all should turn to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will vanish (pass away) with a thunderous crash, and the [material] elements [of the universe] will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and the works that are upon it will be burned up." (2 Peter 3:3-10) (Amplified Bible). Note: "We made reference to this passage of Scripture and requested that you read it in one of the last two studies/commentaries, but we felt it urgent to actually include the passage in this study/commentary for those who might not have gone back and found the passage and actually read it."

The Apostle Peter and the Apostle Paul are both only declaring to us what our Lord Jesus Christ so greatly emphasized during His earthly ministry and that was and is the suddenness of His 2nd Coming to the earth. The Apostle Paul uses the English word 'sudden' here in this 3rd verse and it is translated by the Greek word aiphnidios (used only one other time in the New Testament besides right here) meaning (as a negative particle non apparent); unexpected, that is, (adverbially) suddenly: - sudden, unawares. The English word 'destruction' is translated by the Greek word olethros a primary word (to destroy; a prolonged form); ruin, that is, death, punishment: - destruction. The English word 'escape' is translated by the Greek word ekpheugo meaning to flee out: - escape, flee. In other words, just as a pregnant woman cannot escape or flee away from the sure fact that a baby will be taken from her womb suddenly or at a time she may not expect, so is the Judgement of God the Father for human sin sure and sudden upon this His earth and there is no escaping it except to flee to the Cross of Calvary where my Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ shed His Blood for you and for me and there only can a sinner 'flee from the wrath to come' (Luke 3:7).

"The impenitent and wicked world will be sunk in carnal security when He comes. They will regard themselves as safe. They will see no danger. They will give no heed to warning. They will be unprepared for His advent. So it has always been and it seems to be a universal truth in regard to all the visitations of God to wicked people for punishment, that He comes upon them at a time when they are not expecting Him, and that they have no faith in the predictions of His advent. So it was in the time of the flood; in the destruction of Sodom Gomorrah, and Jerusalem; in the overthrow of Babylon: so it is when the sinner dies, and so it will be when the Lord Jesus shall return to judge the world. One of the most remarkable facts about the history of man is, that he takes no warning from his Maker; he never changes his plans, or feels any emotion, because his Creator 'thunders damnation along his path,' and threatens to destroy him in hell." Albert Barnes

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…