1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 ~ The Coming of the Lord + PDF Teacher's Notes

Winston Churchill’s body lay in state at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London. A trumpet player played Taps. By his own wishes, when it was finished, a second trumpeter, stationed out of sight high up in the dome of Saint Paul’s, played Reveille. This was to reflect Churchill’s belief in the resurrection of the dead.
When a believing loved one dies, we are comforted with the knowledge of his presence with the Lord in heaven. However, the believers in Thessalonica somehow did not have this comfort. Their problem was ignorance, sorrow and hopelessness. The apostles taught that Jesus might return within their lifetimes, but were forced to leave before they could give full teachings on these things. The problem was that some believers had already died since the apostles left and before Jesus’ return. Where were they? What happened to them? Would they miss the Second Coming? They misunderstood death and the Second Coming.