Last year, when I read for the series on creation, I came across an excerpt from an article written in 1888 by the leading American astronomer at the time, Simon Newcomb. Listen to his assessment of astronomy at the time.

"'So far as astronomy is concerned, we must confess that we do appear to be fast approaching the limits of our knowledge. True, there is still a great deal to learn. Every new comet that appears must be found by some one, and I do not grudge the finder the honors awarded him. At the same time, so far as we can see, one comet is so much like another that we cannot regard one as adding in any important degree to our knowledge. The result is that that work which really occupies the attention of the astronomer is less the discovery of new things than the elaboration of those already known, and the entire systematization of our knowledge,'" (quoted in McGrath, Nature, 46-47).

Max Planck, who went on to distinguish himself in Physics, had to overcome the counsel given to him as an entering student in 1875, when the Professor of Physics at the University of Munich told him "that nothing worthwhile remained to be discovered," (ibid, 46). Such academic arrogance was about to be exposed by Einstein, Planck, Schrodinger, and others, who would shortly introduce the world to quantum mechanics.

Reality is unfailingly full of surprises for human knowledge. It is easy for people who know so much to draw the conclusion that there is not so much left to know. The ancient Christian scripture hits the nail on the head, when it says: the man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know (1 Corinthians 8:2). That applies to physics as surely as it applies to metaphysics.

To the chagrin of us Christians, it also applies both to Christian theology and to our understanding of the Bible. We can see this principle at work with remarkable clarity in the personal growth of the Apostle Paul. His understanding of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ underwent modifications, which we can trace on the pages of the New Testament. To show you what I mean we need to look again at 1 Thessalonians.

In fact, there are two items of unfinished business in this letter that I want to talk about today and next Sunday. Next Sunday, inspired by 1 Thessalonians 1, we should reflect on the witness of BVBC to Jesus Christ. Today, inspired by 1 Thessalonians 4, we should reflect on the growth of the Apostle Paul's understanding of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

The Imminent Second Coming
We can't read 1 Thessalonians without seeing the prominence of the Second Coming of Christ in the mind of the Apostle Paul. It shaped his thought in each of the five chapters of this letter.

As we see at the beginning of chapter five, Paul did not engage in setting times and dates for the Second Coming, and he strongly discouraged others from doing that. Here is how he put it in 1 Thessalonians 5:1. Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you. He warded off any innocent folly about times and dates by wrapping the Second Coming in mystery. Verses two and three say: for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

The Apostle did not set a date for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, but at one point in his ministry he seems to have left the strong impression that he expected it to take place during his lifetime. At least, the newly-founded Thessalonian church thought he did. And Paul did not discourage them from thinking so.

In 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 Paul had said that those young Thessalonian believers turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, Jesus, whom he raised from the dead. They did not expect to wait long. They expected the Second Coming of Christ in their lifetime. We know that because of a practical problem their belief created for them. Paul addressed that problem in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. The problem is simple to state.

Some in the Thessalonian congregation had died, and the rest wanted to know, "Christ is returning soon. What will happen to them when He returns?" Their question awakened the apostle's sympathy and led to the teaching we find in these verses. What it did not lead to was a retraction from Paul. He never said, "You're wrong to think that Jesus will return in our lifetime." His answer in these verses assumed that they (and he) continued to expect the Second Coming in their lifetime.

But I wonder if this experience with the Thessalonian Church stimulated Paul to rethink his expectation. I wonder when Paul began to come to terms with the possibility that Christ might not return in his lifetime. There is evidence in his New Testament letters that he did exactly that. Let me show you.

The Day is Almost Here
Scholars pretty much agree that among Paul's New Testament letters, 1 & 2 Thessalonians were the first he wrote. So, his belief that Christ would return in his lifetime characterized Paul's early years of ministry.

You can still see it several years later, when he wrote the letter to the Romans. Look with me at Romans 13:11-12: Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. He was still hoping strongly that it might happen in his lifetime. But a closer reading of Romans reveals, I believe, some subtle changes in Paul's attitude about the Second Coming. Let me show you.

In Romans 5:2 Paul said: We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, apparently meaning heaven or the coming of the kingdom of God on earth. But there is no mention of the Second Coming of Christ, where it would have been natural to do so.

He also writes in several passages about the resurrection of Christ and Christians. For example, in Romans 8:11: He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. In 1 Thessalonians four he connected the resurrection of Christians with the Second Coming; but not here.

The passage in Romans 13 is the only one in Romans where Paul had the Second Coming of Christ in mind, and even there, he did not explicitly refer to the Second Coming. It is quite explicit in every chapter of 1 & 2 Thessalonians.

Closely related to these observations is Paul's letter to the Galatians. Galatians deals with much of the same teaching as the first eight chapters of Romans. Galatians never mentions the Second Coming of Christ. At the very least, it indicates that Paul did not ride a hobby horse about the Second Coming. More than that, in my view, the apostle was growing in his understanding of the Lord's return.

In the Thessalonian letters he wrote as a man, who did not set dates but strongly expected the Lord to return during his lifetime. In Romans he was still hoping for that, but his strong expectations had been modified.

The Benefits, Not the Timing, of Parousia
When he wrote Philippians, he still believed that Christ would come again, but you no longer sense that he thought it would happen in his lifetime. Three relevant passages offer insight into what he was thinking about the Second Coming at the time of this letter. Look with me.

In his prayer for the Philippian church in chapter 1:10 he prayed that they might be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ. The day of Christ refers to the Second Coming. Paul's emphasis was on how the Philippian believers should live until that day came. Otherwise, Paul did not comment on the nearness of the event.

A more startling insight into Paul's state of mind comes in chapter 1 verse 23-24. In verse 21 he had just said: For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Now verse 23: I am torn between the two (between living and dying): I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.

Paul wrote these words in a prison in Rome and in a situation in which his life hung in the balance. He was not thinking about the Second Coming. He was exercised about whether he would prefer to die a martyr or live to minister another day. There is no mention that Christ would return and save him from both the Romans and death.

The third Philippians passage tells us more about his growing understanding of the Second Coming. Philippians 3:20-21: But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Paul's belief that Jesus will come again is clearly intact, but the timing of His Coming to an indefinite future. Personal benefit to Christians is very much in evidence. Christ will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. But something new and breath-taking emerges here. It is the power of Jesus Christ, when He comes again, to bring everything under his control.

A few years later, Paul refined this idea of control, when he wrote Ephesians. In Ephesians there is no mention of the Second Coming. Instead, the focus is on God's sovereign purpose, working itself out mysteriously throughout all creation. Look at Ephesians 1:9-10.

God made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment - to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

You know, the Thessalonian church's question about what would happen to those who had died, when Christ returns, is still valid. We could still ask it today. But the Ephesians passage lifts us up to higher levels of interest. The Second Coming addresses our most personal needs. More urgently, it addresses the global needs of humanity; and the Bible invites our understanding of the Second Coming to grow accordingly.

A Living Tradition
Paul's growth in understanding is a perfect example of what is called "a living tradition." The core belief does not change. "I believe in Jesus Christ, who will come again to judge the living and the dead." We never outgrow that. But our experience of that truth and our understanding of that truth change and grow, as we grow, and our circumstances change. We need not be afraid of that kind of doctrinal change and growth. It can be done without undermining biblical faith. Paul's example shows us that it can be done.

If biblical truth did not have the inherent ability to thrive in new circumstances, Christianity would have perished long ago. Here's the point: the content of biblical truth doesn't change, but our understanding of that truth changes and grows. It has to change, because we change and grow, and our circumstances change.

We don't want to make the mistake of Protestant Liberalism. Its leaders saw the dramatic changes in Western culture and tried to change the content of biblical truth. The mainline Protestant denominations are paying a terrible price for that, as they edge toward organizational chaos and lose members at an alarming rate and cease to be taken seriously by other Christians and in the public square.

Evangelicals don't want to make that mistake. The content of biblical truth doesn't change. Our temptation is to make the opposite mistake of thinking that our present understanding of the faith is as good as it will ever get. We would pay a terrible price for that. Thinking that way would make us to be reactionaries against anything new. It would discourage people from positively engaging the world with their faith. We would retreat into a cultural ghetto. We did that once, and they called it fundamentalism; and I for one don't want to repeat that folly.

The Pastoral Center of Gravity
So, in light of all this, I have two questions I'd like to pose for our consideration. First, is your faith up to date? Has your understanding of your faith kept pace with your growth in other areas of your life?

You are pretty savvy people. I have listened to you for thirty years talk about scripture, theology, business management, finance, engineering, biotechnology, computer technology, banking, law, medicine, education, and politics. You're smart people. In your area of expertise, what would have happened, if you had stopped learning a decade ago? You would be out of the game today, wouldn't you?

Does your experience never raise any questions about your Christian faith? I don't know which is worse: having no questions or never trying to answer them. It is precisely these points of tension that invite our faith to keep up with our experience. To ignore them or to be blind to them is the equivalent of doing computer science with 1990 technology. Both are irrelevant.

Listen to your heart. Listen to its anxieties and the questions they pose to our faith. Look for answers. Allow the process to deepen your faith. You may end up with more questions than answers, but your faith will grow, and you will discover how great is our God.

That brings me to my second question. If you have children, has their understanding of the faith kept pace with their growth in other areas of life? My experience with three children from pre-school into adult life tells me that you should expect them to come to you with questions about faith.

Help their faith to grow as they change, and they do a lot of that in their first 21 years. If we don't help their faith to keep pace with the changes they experience, some hot-shot university professor will seem credible when he redicules their childish faith.