“let us who are of the day be sober” (1 Thess. 5:8, NKJV)
Paul has been urging us to vigilance. We are not to sleep, not to get drunk, but to be sober and watchful. He wants us to have our wits about us as we live in this world awaiting our Lord’s return.
Again he hits that nail on the head. “But let us who are of the day be sober” (1 Thess. 5:8). Sons of the night, that is, unbelievers, are ignorant and indifferent to the return of Jesus. They are in a spiritual stupor, oblivious to the warnings of the word of God.
But, as ones who are of the day, we are to be sober-minded, clear-headed, attuned to the kingdom reality that our Lord reigns and will one day return to usher in His kingdom in fullness.
Why is it so important that we be ready, sober, and awaiting? Doesn’t the gospel mean that we are already ready in Christ? He has readied us with the cleansing of His blood and the clothing of His righteousness.
When we cry out to Him, “Lord, Lord,” He will grant us entrance into heavenly glory, declaring that He knows us and has known us from before the foundation of the world. He will escort us to the place He has prepared for us to be with Him.
Why do we need to be sober and vigilant? It’s not as though we can miss the boat. After all, Jesus will lose none of those the Father has given Him.
Our readiness and watchfulness relate to our being of the day. The spiritual eyes given us by the Holy Spirit enable us not only to fix our eyes on Jesus as we run the race marked out for us, they also lift our eyes to the horizon of history in longing anticipation for Him.
Peter speaks of a longing for Jesus and His return (1 Pet. 1:7-9). He brings that to the trenches of everyday life when he says: “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:13).
Peter weaves together a trilogy of new life when he speaks of faith (1:7-9), love (1:8), and hope (1:13) that proceeds from the power of God (1:5), and works itself out in a holy and righteous life (1:14-16). This trilogy is characteristic of being light in Christ and belonging to the day. It carries by nature a spiritual adrenaline that animates and invigorates our lives.
Paul communicates something similar to us and the Thessalonians. Not only are we not to sleep as those in the darkness of sin and unbelief, as though we were still in ignorance, we are to employ the graces of our new position in Christ.
As he did to open his letter (1 Thess. 1:3), the apostle again references the trilogy of light as the animating principles of the Christian life. “But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation” (1 Thess. 5:8).
The difference here, though, is that Paul frames these characteristics in terms of a panoply for spiritual warfare, much as he does with the spiritual armor of Ephesians 6:10-20, as a reminder that while we are of the day, we sojourn in a world of darkness, facing a spiritual foe. His description carries echoes of Isaiah 59:17 of our Lord, urging us to be strong in Him and the might of His power (Eph. 6:10-11).
Paul identifies two pieces of armor, a breastplate and a helmet. The breastplate guards the heart, while the helmet protects the mind. Our hearts are to be safeguarded with the impenetrable vest of truth in which our faith is founded, not in sterile doctrine but in virile love and devotion. Our heads are to be surrounded with the hope of the gospel that protects our wits but also preserves our bearings in this life.
With these pieces of armor, the apostle is pointing us to Jesus. He is the object of our faith, the recipient of our love, and the confidence of our hope.
What is the relationship of faith, love, and hope?
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
