Message for THE LORD S DAY EVENING, March 17, 2013 MESSAGE 10 IN SERIES: Getting Ready To Meet Jesus (I/II Thessalonians) Christian Hope Church of Christ, Plymouth, North Carolina by Reggie A. Braziel, Minister Encouragement For Suffering Saints Message 10 in Getting Ready To Meet Jesus Sermon Series (A Study of I & II Thessalonians) II Thessalonians 1:1-12 (NKJV) As we continue with our series Getting Ready To Meet Jesus we now move on to Paul s second letter to the Thessalonians. Before we get into our study let me give you just a little background information. Most Bible scholars agree that Paul probably wrote II Thessalonians within just a few months of finishing his first letter, which would place the writing of both letters sometime between 50-52 A.D. Whereas the primary focus of Paul s first letter to the Thessalonians was COMFORT, the primary focus of this second letter is CORRECTION. After Paul s first letter, the persecution against the Thessalonian Christians intensified greatly, causing many to believe they were living in the time of The Great Tribulation. And then a letter arrived from someone claiming to be Paul, stating that the Day of The Lord was actually present. Well as you can imagine, this fake letter created a great deal of fear and confusion in the Thessalonian Church. Some of the Thessalonian Christians thought since the coming of the LORD was so near they should quit their jobs and spend their time waiting on Christ. As a result, the other members in the Church had to pick up the slack, which placed them under a heavy burden.
When Paul learned about this fake letter and the confusion it had caused in Thessalonica, he wrote this Second letter to the Thessalonians to CORRECT these false teachings. As Paul begins this second letter he addresses the most immediate need of the Thessalonians, and that was they needed ENCOURAGEMENT. ************************************************************ First of all Paul gives them. I. The ENCOURAGEMENT of PRAISE (vs.1-5) 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. God s Final Judgment and Glory 3 We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, 4 so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, 5 which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; 1. One of Satan s most powerful weapons against the Christian is discouragement. Satan s goal is to get us so discouraged that we start believing God doesn t care or that God has forsaken us. 2. Satan had attacked the Thessalonian Christians hard. They were beat down and discouraged. After receiving that fake letter supposedly written by the hand of Paul, they felt as though God had forsaken them.
3. Well the best antidote for discouragement is encouragement. After writing his introductory remarks to the Thessalonians in verses 1,2, Paul encourages the Thessalonians by praising them for three things. (A) Paul praised them for their GROWING FAITH (v.3a) 3a We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly. We must remember the Thessalonian Christians were relatively newborns in the faith. They had only been Christians a short time when Paul wrote them his two New Testament letters. And now Paul is praising them because the faith that had brought them to Christ was continuing to grow exceedingly. That means their faith was growing by leaps and bounds! Their faith surpassed all expectations. Now there s a vital truth for us to learn here, so please listen carefully. Faith doesn t DIE in the midst of persecution, it THRIVES.. (repeat) FAITH is STRENGTHENED by persecution, not weakened. The faith of the Thessalonian Christians GREW EXCEEDINGLY in the midst of persecution. Sadly, many who profess to be Christians today aren t growing in their faith. The average Christian today has never had his or her faith truly challenged. For many Christians today persecution is totally foreign. It has never been a part of our Christian experience. Many who have been Christians for years are still babes in Christ. They are still feeding on the milk of God s word and have never moved on to the meat. They are still struggling with the elementary teachings of the faith and have never graduated to a deeper level of spiritual understanding.
As I was preparing this message I couldn t help but wonder what Paul would say of our faith if he had written this letter to the Church at Christian Hope. (B) Paul also praised them for their ABOUNDING LOVE (v.3b) 3b We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, This was another good thing that came out of being persecuted. Persecution not only caused the Thessalonians to reach up to GOD in FAITH, it caused them to reach out to one another in LOVE. Its one thing to say we love the Lord. Its quite a a different matter to have true love for our brothers and sisters-in-christ. The Thessalonians abounded in their love for one another. Their love flourished. Does love abound in this Church? Does our love for one another flourish? Paul praised them for their GROWING FAITH. He praised them for their ABOUNDING LOVE. (C) Paul praised them for their NOBLE EXAMPLE.. (v.4) 4 so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, You don t become patient by reading a book on patience. Nor do you become patient by listening to a speech on patience. You become patient by SUFFERING. The Thessalonians patience and faith had grown so much while suffering terrible persecution that Paul held them up as a noble example to all the other Churches.
Think of the most patient person you know. They weren t born with patience were they? Chances are that patient individual has endured lots of trials and walked through many dark valleys in life and weathered lots of heartache and sorrow. JAMES 1:2,3a My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4. Now I want you to pay close attention to what Paul says to the Thessalonians in VERSE 5... 5 which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; Paul is reminding the Thessalonians that their suffering is NOT without meaning and purpose. For one thing, the fact that they are being persecuted is evidence that the righteousness of God is evident in their lives, otherwise they would not be suffering persecution. Paul would later write in 2 Timothy 3:12 (NKJV) Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But the other wonderful truth Paul is reminding the Thessalonians of is that GOD was allowing them to suffer persecution NOW so that they might be COUNTED WORTHY later. All suffering that we endure for the cause of Christ in this life, whether it be persecution, trials or hardships, is PURGING US.PURIFYING US and PERFECTING US for that day when we stand before the mercy seat of Christ. Well after giving the Thessalonians the ENCOURAGEMENT OF PRAISE, Paul now gives them.
II. The ENCOURAGEMENT of PROMISES (vs. 6-10) 6 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, 7 and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, 10 when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed. 1. One of the most valuable treasures God has given to us is His promises. God is faithful to keep all His promises. God s promises are His written guarantees that He will do exactly what He says He will do. 2. In these verses Paul encourages the Thessalonians by reminding them of two wonderful promises from God. (A) First, Paul gives them the promise of the COMING of the Lord s JUDGMENT (vs. 6-9) 6 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, 7 and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,
In these verses Paul reassures the Thessalonians that their persecutors will face a day of RECKONING. Paul gives us some specific details about this COMING JUDGMENT OF CHRIST. THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH (a) First, Paul tells the Thessalonians WHEN this judgment will come. 6 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, 7 and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, This judgment will take place when Jesus Christ returns to the EARTH with His CHURCH and His mighty ANGELS. This is NOT the same event that Paul described in I Thessalonians 4:13-18. The rapture of the Church and the Second Coming of Christ are two separate events. Let me explain: THE SECOND COMING I THESSALONIANS 4:13-18 18 II THESSALONIANS 1:6-10 10 AIR. Christ returns in the AIR Christ comes secretly FOR THE CHURCH. TRIBULATION. Believers escape the TRIBULATION TIME. Occurs at an unspecified TIME (imminent: can happen at any moment) EARTH. Christ returns to the EARTH Christ comes openly WITH THE CHURCH. Unbelievers experience the TRIBULATION. Occurs at the end of the TRIBULATION TION,, the DAY of the LORD.
(b) Next, Paul tells the Thessalonians WHO WILL SUFFER THE LORD S COMING JUDGMENT. 8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, We need to draw a distinction between vengeance and revenge. The purpose of VENGEANCE is to SATISFY God s HOLY law. Whereas REVENGE is to SATISFY a personal GRUDGE. One day the tables are going to be turned. Those who CAUSED SUFFERING FOR GOD S PEOPLE will REAP SUFFERING, not because GOD hates them, but because HIS HOLY LAW requires justice. God does NOT hold a personal grudge against those who do not know Him and those who do not obey the gospel. God is not willing that anyone should perish but that all men come to repentance. God loves those who do not love Him. God offered the life of His only begotten Son to save those who do not know Him. God would love nothing more than for those who HATE HIM and HATE HIS PEOPLE to repent of their sins and turn to Him. You see God s vengeance HIS JUDGMENT will only come after His grace and His mercy and His love and His patience have been rejected to the nth degree. Paul encourages the Thessalonians with the promise that their persecutors will not get away with the awful suffering they have brought upon God s people.
(B) Secondly, Paul gives them the promise of the COMING of the LORD.. (v.10) 10 when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed. Oh what a difference there will be between the Second Coming of Christ and His first coming. -At His first coming, He came as the CHRIST CHILD of Bethlehem. At His Second Coming He will come as the VICTORIOUS KING. -At His first coming, He came in HUMILITY. At His Second Coming He will come in POWER and GLORY. -At His first coming, He came in MEEKNESS riding upon a donkey. At His Second Coming He will come as the CONQUERING WARRIOR riding upon a white horse. -At His first coming, MAN brought JUDGMENT upon Christ. At His Second Coming, CHRIST will bring JUDGMENT upon man. -At His first coming, Christ came to SUFFER and DIE. At His Second Coming, Christ will come to RULE and REIGN. Well Paul has given the Thessalonians THE ENCOURAGEMENT EMENT OF PRAISE and THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF PROMISES. Now thirdly, Paul gives them III. The ENCOURAGEMENT of PRAYER (vs.11,12) 11 Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, 12 that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
1. Can you imagine what an encouragement it must have been to the Thessalonians to know that the apostle Paul himself was praying for them? (A) ) Paul prayed that GOD would count them WORTHY. By praying this, Paul wasn t praying that they might be found WORTHY OF SALVATION, because NONE of us are worthy of salvation. What he was praying was that through their persecutions and trials, the worth of the Thessalonians might be revealed. Paul was praying that the persecution and trials would reveal the depth of their FAITH in Jesus Christ. (B) Paul prayed that God would be GLORIFIED in their suffering. That is the goal of all our suffering in this life, that GOD be GLORIFIED. It is in our times of trial and suffering that our faith and our trust in almighty GOD should be the most evident to this lost and dying world. Its during those times the world ought to see what difference Jesus Christ makes in one s life. C O N C L U S I O N As we bring our study to a close this evening I would like to leave you with this closing thought. Trials do not make a person, trials reveal what a person is made of. What was true for the Church at Thessalonica almost two thousand years ago is still true for us today. And that is regardless of what we re going through. Regardless of how difficult life gets, we are to live a life that is well pleasing to GOD, a life that brings GLORY and HONOR to Him. Brothers and sisters, may we be counted worthy when Jesus comes!