Steve Soto
1 Thess. 4:13-18

Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai.

1 Thessalonians 4, 13-18 The coming of the Lord. We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve, as others do, who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so through Jesus God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep.

For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not perceive those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore, encourage one another with these words. Welcome to the Bridgeway Christian Church Daily Advent Devotional for Friday, December 6th.

My name is Stephen Soto and I serve as a community group leader at Bridgeway. Today I’m going to talk about the hope in Christ’s coming. I served in the military for over 20 years.

The military life is a demanding commitment. Some pay the ultimate sacrifice in the giving of their lives, but there are also other demands that are very hard on those serving. The military tells you what you will wear, where and what you will eat, and how long you will work.

The many hours of work usually exceed those required by most jobs, and forget about any overtime pay. You are considered on duty 24-7. The military tells you where you live and what conditions you will live in.

Many assignments are in remote, isolated locations in severe cold and heat conditions. It is all part of what you’ve signed up for. In my opinion, one of the greatest challenges is the family separations you must experience in your career.

Family separations from your loved ones is a hardship many relationships often end up parting over. The infamous Dear John letters of World War II, written to military members overseas, express that separation and tension have proven unbearable, and that the person back home has found someone else to fill that loneliness. Those letters continue to this day.

My first separation from my wife was after we had only been married less than a month. I was on my way over to Taiwan in December of 1969. The Vietnam War was on and many people looked unfavorably on those serving at that time, even though there was a draft going on.

Many were treated very unkindly on their return home. We endured that first separation knowing that we would be reunited in 15 months at my coming home. When those serving overseas returned home to the world, many cheered, shouted, and rejoiced as the aircraft touched down back in the States.

My second family separation was harder. It came in 1984 to 85. At that time, Denise and I had been married for 15 years and we had three wonderful daughters.

You try to prepare for that separation, but nothing can really prepare you for the anxiety and unforeseen problems that you will have to endure. At the time of both separations, we had the hope of my coming home. Our scripture today tells us of another family separation the Christians experience with those loved ones of ours that have passed away before us.

God is giving us hope that when Jesus returns at his second coming that he will bring all those who have gone before us and that we will be with him and we will never again have to be separated from him or our loved ones. As Jesus told his disciples in John 14, I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am there you may be also and so shall we be with him forever. Remember brothers and sisters in Christ that our hope in his coming isn’t like making a wish before children break a wishbone or like a child would make before blowing out candles on a birthday cake.

No, our hope in his coming is a confident assurance based on God’s word. May we celebrate with hope this Advent season.

 Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai