“…and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come“
from heaven,
The Thessalonians were waiting for Jesus to come literally through the clouds. This is the great climax, consummation, and coronation of the Christian life. This is the time when Jesus comes to take us physically into Heaven.
Principle:
Jesus will come from Heaven to take our physical bodies to be with Him.
Application:
When a Christian dies, he goes to Heaven. God does not leave our loved ones in the grave. God translates their souls into His presence. He does not bury souls in cemeteries. He will resurrect even the body at the rapture (4:13f).
“For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).
This is great news for those with physical problems. Those who are disabled or have bodies racked with paralysis will one day have a perfect body. Our present body is a body that humiliates us. Our future body is a body that will be like the resurrected body of our Lord Jesus Christ. This gives optimism to people with mental problems. The best is yet ahead. That is why we anticipate His coming.
