We have all seen pictures of prophets of doom carrying signs that declare, “The End is Near!” Some so-called Christian prophets and teachers have even claimed to have figured out exactly when the End or the Second Coming will take place. This is not just a modern problem; Paul faces this same problem in today’s first reading to the Thessalonians. Some in the Christian community at Thessalonica have declared that the “Day of the Lord is at hand.”
Where could they get such an idea? Paul outlines three possible sources, 1) prophecy (“spirit”), 2) preaching (“oral statement”), or 3) Paul’s own letter. Paul wrote a prior letter to the Thessalonians in which he talked about the second coming (parousia) of Jesus:
“Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming (parousia) of the Lord, will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Thessalonians 4:15).
This letter to the Thessalonians is the very first letter that St. Paul wrote. He wrote this letter in the early 50’s, so some 20 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. In this letter Paul seems to assume that he would still be alive at the Second Coming of Jesus. Although Paul never says that the “Day of the Lord is at hand,” one can see how some could come to this mistaken impression from Paul’s first letter. So, Paul writes another letter to correct this false understanding.
What Paul knows and what Christians, preachers, and teachers need to remind themselves is that no one know when the End will come. No one knows, not even Jesus! “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). So, if any Christian teacher or prophet claims to have figured out the day or the hour, they are false teachers or prophets since only God knows and he is not telling. While we do not know the day or the hour of the end, we do know that God is always near to us as Jesus promised us: “And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20).
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Image: “The End is Near” by Thomas Hawk is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.