The Day of the Lord Revisited

In Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians, he revisits a topic which he had previously written about in 1 Thess 5, the Lord’s Day. The Church had cherished Paul’s first letter, which painted a picture of the future: the sky parting, the dead in Christ rising, and the living being caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord. It was a vision of hope, but in the days before the completed Word of God was in their hands—that hope was easily shaken.

Soon, false teaching began to circulate through the congregation. New voices arrived, claiming the moment had been missed. They taught that the "Day of the Lord" had already passed, leaving the faithful behind in a world that was without hope. They felt that they had missed the proverbial boat.

Recognizing what was happening at the church, Paul wrote to them once again to attempt to clarify this teaching about the Day of the Lord. He didn’t write to introduce a new doctrine, but to anchor them in the old one. He reminded them of his previous words—that the Lord would come "as a thief in the night," sudden and unannounced. This second letter was a "revisiting" of this most important truth.

Paul’s mission in the second letter is the same as ours today, to help cement this teaching in the minds of our listeners, to once again remind them that Jesus’ return is imminent, and it is soon.  This is a teaching that should ignite our hearts for serving the Savior.