Explanation of the Text: 1 Thess 5:5-6 Offspring of the LIGHT.


1Th 5:5  You are all the sons of light and the sons of the day. We are not of the night, or of darkness. 
Th 5:6  Therefore let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us watch and be calm. 
____________________________________________________________________________
Notes 
You are all the sons of light and the sons of the day. 
This is definitely connected to the previous verse 4. But you, brothers, are not in darkness, that the Day should overtake you like a thief. 
You have no reason to fear the Coming Day of the Lord, for you are all Sons of the Light and Sons of the Day. You have been 'Born Again'. There has been a spiritual transformation in your life whereby the Spirit of God has transformed your life, and therefore now you resemble your Father in character (intellectually, morally, and spiritually illuminated.

Joh 12:36  While you have the Light, believe in the Light so that you may become sons of Light. Jesus spoke these things and departed and was hidden from them. 

Luk 16:8  And the unjust steward's lord commended him because he had done wisely. For the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. 
Notes by RWP.     For (hoti). Probably by this second hoti Jesus means to say that he cites this example of shrewdness because it illustrates the point. “This is the moral of the whole parable. Men of the world in their dealings with men like themselves are more prudent than the children of light in their intercourse with one another” (Plummer). We all know how stupid Christians can be in their co-operative work in the kingdom of God, to go no further.
Wiser than (phronimōteroi huper). Shrewder beyond, a common Greek idiom.

1 Thess 5:5b We are not of the night, or of darkness.  Paul changes the subject from "You" to "We" in v. 5b. Meaning :'You are Sons of the Light because YOU became Christians (followers of Christ); and WE, Christians, are not of the Night nor of the Darkness.

Th 5:6  Therefore let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us watch and be calm. 
Therefore let us no sleep, as do others - As the wicked world does; compare notes, Mat_25:5.
But let us watch - That is, for the coming of the Lord. Let us regard it as an event which is certainly to occur, and which may occur at any moment; notes, Mat_25:13.
Image result for Picture of a Guard on duty
Be on Guard and Watch :DeviantArt
Guard Duty
And be sober - The word here used (νήφω  nēphō) is rendered sober in 1Th_5:6, 1Th_5:8; 1Pe_1:13; 1Pe_5:8; and watch in 2Ti_4:5, and 1Pe_4:7. It does not elsewhere occur in the New Testament. It properly means, to be temperate or abstinent, especially in respect to wine. Barnes Notes.

To watch means to be on your Guard. Very few Guards every pass the whole night awake. Most sleep on duty. But we had a Guard named Ibraihim, who was  always awake no matter what time of the night I would check on him. he was faithful, persistent, enduring and reliable. Are youwatching and calm as you wait for Christ's Coming.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Explanation of the Text 1 Thess. 2:7 Paul's Gentle Approach to the Thessalonians

Image
1 Thess 2:7 On the contrary, in our relations to you we showed ourselves as gentle as a mother is when she tenderly nurses her own children W.N.T. 1Th 2:7  even though as apostles of Christ we could have made demands on you. But we were gentle when we were with you, like a mother taking care of her children. GNB Instead of using authority, we used only the most kind and gentle methods to win you and to promote your peace and order. The word here rendered “nurse,” may mean any one who nurses a child, whether a mother or another person. It seems here to refer to a mother (compare 1Th_2:11), and the idea is, that the apostle felt for them the affectionate solicitude which a mother does for the child at her breast. A Daddy Blog young brunette mother breastfeeding her baby gentle: G2261  ἤπιος  ēpios  ay'-pee-os Probably from G2031; properly affable, that is, mild or kind: - gentle. What a picture of a 'mother nursing her baby lovingly.'  She cherishes her
Read more

Background to 1 Thessalonians

Image
     Read Acts 17 (1-9) Paul and Silas's  First Visit to Thessalonica. The Bustling City Today. The Thessalonians were Pagans. Paul and Silas arrived in Thessaloniki after walking about 144 kms from Philip-pi where they had been abused, bashed and imprisoned unjustly. They preached the Good News of Jesus there for just three weeks and left  a church in the homes of Jason, Aristarchus and Secundus. Thessalonica was the Provincial Capital of Macedonia. It was on the  Via Egnatia from Byzantium to Rome; a natural port and a free city  in the Roman Empire. Wikipedia Maps. The Greek Religion  was bound by civic and domestic rituals which  had to be visible. They paid their respects to their deities who acted as  their 'patrons'. They had Feast Days; sacrifices; celebrations, and Games which were all public events.. Every event had it's religious ceremonies;  even the banquets, games and business transactions. In every household their
Read more