Paul sounds like it shouldn't be a surprise that Jesus comes as a thief in the night and it is because Jesus Himself talked about that in Matthew. "Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
" Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." (Matthew 24:42-44) The watch refers to watchmen who begin at 6 p.m. dusk, each takes a period of a certain number of hours, usually four shifts, until dawn, 6 a.m. [6 a.m. refers to the beginning of the Millennium].
"But note `hour', not the day, month or year and also note `would not have suffered his house to be broken up,' which leads us to the next point: the Day of the Lord. But before we look at `The Day of the Lord', let us think about this situation of suddenly being snatched away. Jesus is not necessarily talking about night-time. He uses the term `night' in reference to spiritual darkness on earth.
"He could call us unto Himself in the clouds any time. It reminds me of the incident at Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs recently. The woman who was confronted by a suicidal father of four with explosives, threatening to blow up the building, stated that she thought it was to be her last moments.
"She reflected, "am I ready? No," she said, "I wanted my family, because they would miss me." It was an important comment to Christians. In this case she got her wish. What about the Rapture, would we hesitate and miss out? What are our priorities?Our minds and hearts have to be totally in tune with His desires for us to allow this event to happen without failure were we are concerned. It is not a time, not to understand the righteousness and thinking, I'm not worthy.
"That is what happened to the five virgins who had no oil. Notice that they were all ten waiting for the bridegroom. The five who were ready to go through the door when it opened, got in. The other five found a closed door when they got back. (see Matthew 25:1-13)
We are 2000 years closer to the Rapture then the time of Paul's teaching. To God a thousand years is like one day. Knowing and understanding what the Gospel teaches is critical. We can't receive the sealing by the Holy Spirit until we have heard and received the Word. Even if we feel we can't trust teachers anymore, we can read it out loud to ourselves and hear it. Our heart has a much easier time accepting our own voice than another's.
"The "Day of the Lord" holds an important place in prophecy. Amos declared that the "Day" signified judgment for Israel (cf.Isaiah 2:12-24; Ezekiel 13:5; Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11; Zephania 1:14; Zechariah 13:1..) Several prophets refer to it as God's "day of judgment" upon individual nations such as Babylon (see Isaih 13:6-9), Egypt (see Jeremiah 46:10), Edom (see Obadiah 1:8), and many other nations (see Joel 2:31; 3:14; Obadiah 1:15) Thus, the Day of the Lord represents the occasion when Jehovah will actively intervene to punish sin.
"During the time period of the Day of the Lord, there will be those who truly repent and are saved, but those who remain enemies of the Lord, whether Jews or Gentiles, will be punished. In the New Testament, the Day of the Lord is related to the Second Coming of Christ. So also is the phrase "the Day of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. 1:8; 5:5; Phil. 1:6; 10; 2:16; 2 Thess. 2:2).
Both expressions, the "Day of the Lord" and the "Day of Christ," refer to time periods of judgment by Christ. The Day of the Lord will include the time of Great Tribulation (cf. Rev,6-20). It also refers to the liberation by Christ of His Church, see Zechariah 14:1-4, which happens before the Day of the Lord.
"Thus, the Day of the Lord and the Day of Christ occur simultaneously. For the Church, it is the Rapture; and for the unbelieving world, it is the beginning of judgment and the Tribulation. If the Day of the Lord began after the Second Advent, it could not come as a "thief in the night," unexpected and unheralded, since that particular advent is preceded by signs (1 Thess. 5:2; 2 Pet. 3:10). Consequently, the only way these events
could occur unexpectedly would be for them to begin immediately after the Rapture of the Church.The Day of the Lord, therefore, is that extended period of time when God begins to deal with Israel. It also continues through the Second Advent and the millennial age preceding the creation of the new heaven and new earth." We agree that what is described in the following Scripture could not possibly happen in one day and we can safely say that the Day of the Lord includes the tribulation and the thousand year millennium.
"Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
"Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which [is] before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, [and there shall be] a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south." (Zechariah 14:1-4)
The following concluding description of the day of the Lord describes the final destruction of the earth which does not come about until after the millennium is over. "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens
shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up." (2 Peter 3:10)"To assure us that we can count on the pre-tribulation Rapture, Paul gave us, "For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.." (1Thessalonians 5:9)
This understanding of the Day of the Lord changes the whole picture, because he is suddenly dropping the whole period, the beginning of the tribulation to the end of the millennium on us like a thief in the night unless we are part of the Rapture. "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
"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. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief." (1 Thessalonians 5:2-4)
Here the Apostle Paul makes it clear that believers are not going to be overcome by sudden destruction. The Day of the Lord shall not overtake us because we won't be here. Paul just told us that that day cometh upon them which isn't us. These following verses describe what all of this action relating to the tribulation is about and why peace and safety is the beginning of the tribulation:
"Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, [that] from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince [shall be] seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off {i.e. crucifixion}, but not for himself: and the people of the prince {of this world} that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof [shall be] with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week {i.e. seven year tribulation}: and in the midst of the week {3.5 years} he {i.e. Antichrist} shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he {i.e. Antichrist} shall make [it] desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate." (Daniel 9:24-27) The last verses describe the takeover of the temple by the Antchrist.
As long as God is gathering the Church out of the world, this seventieth week remains future. Once the "times of the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24) are complete, the clock of God's judgment will count off the last remaining week. Of one thing we can be sure and that is Jesus is coming. He will come according to God's divine plan and hopefully we can say to Him:
"I have fought a good fight, I have finished [my] course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7,8)
Tribulation Saints, people who come to the Lord Jesus Christ during the tribulation will be martyred. Antichrist receives freedom to kill Christians who do not take the mark of the beast. This is also the last call for the Jews to repent before the final part of the Tribulation begins. They who pierced Him, were the Jews. Just before Armageddon Jesus himself will appear to Jews who did not accept Him before the Tribulation."Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they [also] which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
(Revelation 1:7) "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received [his] mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished."This [is] the first resurrection. Blessed and holy [is] he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." (Revelation 20:4-6, see also Rev. 7:9-14) The first resurrection begins with the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and ends at the last minute before Armageddon.
To prove that the believing Gentiles are included in this promise He gave us this: "That the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:" (Ephesians 3:6) To affirm again that death is a thing of the past for Christians at the Rapture read: "Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection." (Luke 20:36)
At the end of the thousand year reign of Christ Jesus and His saints (us), an end will be made of death and evil. The world will be destroyed. A new heaven and earth will be created for those who are with Jesus Christ. God showed this vision to John: "And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying,
"Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God." (Revelation 21:9,10) The bride being all believers, Jews and Gentiles, male and female. "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready." (Revelation 19:7)