Study Desk

and we sent Timothy, our brother and fellow worker for God in the gospel of Christ, in order to strengthen and to encourage you about your faith,

so that no one would be shaken by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are appointed for this,

for indeed when we were with you we told you beforehand that we were about to be afflicted, just as indeed it happened, and you know.

For what thanks can we repay to God concerning you, because of all the joy with which we rejoice because of you before our God,

and may the Lord cause you to increase and to abound in love for one another and for all, just as also we do for you,

Finally therefore, brothers, we ask you and appeal to you in the Lord Jesus that, just as you have received from us how it is necessary for you to live and to please God, just as indeed you are living, that you progress even more.

For you know what commands we gave to you through the Lord Jesus.

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;

For God did not call us to impurity, but in holiness.

But concerning brotherly love, I do not have need to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another,

for indeed you are practicing it toward all the brothers in all of Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to progress even more,

For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, thus also God will bring those who have fallen asleep through Jesus together with him.

For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who remain until the Lord's coming, will not possibly precede those who have fallen asleep.

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

Then we who are alive, who remain, will be snatched away at the same time together with them in the clouds for a meeting with the Lord in the air, and thus we will be together with the Lord always.

for you yourselves well know that the day of the Lord is coming in the same way as a thief in the night.

for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.

For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night.

because God did not appoint us for wrath, but for the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live at the same time with him.