 Good evening. We welcome all of you back, and we are continuing our series in eschatology. And we're going to be looking at the eschatology of first and second Thessalonians. So I'm going to preach this sermon, and then I won't be back for like a month. So I hope you have good memory. You remember all these things. Let's begin with a word of prayer, and we will get right into our study. Heavenly Father, we thank you again for gathering us together this evening. We come to you knowing that we need your spirit. We need your spirit to help us understand and apply and preach and explain your word accurately. Help us this evening. Help me to communicate these things with accuracy and may your Son be honored in my preaching and in our hearing. Amen. So I want to begin sort of lecturing at first and then preachy the second half. I want to give a little bit of the historical background for the Thessalonian epistles. A little bit of the history and set the letters in their context so that as we get into the various texts, we have some framework, some idea of what's going on in the epistles, and we're not just jumping into texts and making assumptions. So first, the historical context. The city of Thessalonica. We'll start with the city of Thessalonica. In the first century, the city was identified as the metropolis, or the mother city. Its location was a major factor in the city's prominent status. But the city had one of the best, if not the best, natural harbors in the Aegean Sea. Cassander, the king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia, from 305 to 297, brought 26 villages together in the town of Thermes, or Thermi, and he named that new city Thessalonica after his wife. The city also enjoyed access to major travel routes. It was situated near the Via Ignatia, and it connected to many major cities in the Macedonian region and to ports that traveled directly to Rome. So it had a port, it had this major road running through it, but not only this, additionally, geographical contributions to the city's wealth were abundant. There were fertile plains, there were abundant rivers, rich mineral deposits of gold, silver, iron, copper, lead, and vast forests that provided timber for building. So we're not looking at Galilee. This was a major metropolis. The estimated population of the city is in the tens, 200,000, making it one of the largest cities in the Roman Empire. With these factors in mind, it's no wonder that Rome had a very strong connection to the city. And because of this connection to Rome, because of its wealth, because of its location, it was a center for wealth, culture, and cult. Religiously, pluralism was widespread. Over 25 different god, heroes, or personifications were worshipped in the city so that Paul can say in 1 Thessalonians 1-9 that the Thessalonians, they turned from serving idols to serve the living and the true god. So very wealthy, very wealthy, a very large, a very influential, and a very religious city. Missions in Thessalonica. Thessalonica was the second major city visited by Paul for evangelistic outreach on his second missionary journey. His time there was short. Turn to Acts chapter 17. In Acts chapter 17, Paul arrives. And most commentators believe that immediately we receive the timeframe Paul arrived there. So in Acts chapter 17, beginning at verse 1, now when they had passed through Ancipolis, or Anphopolis, and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days, he reasoned with them from the scriptures. So more than likely, the amount of time Paul spent in Thessalonica was three Sabbaths, maybe a little more. He spent a few weeks, three weeks, four weeks maybe, and then had to leave town because of persecution. Let's read verses three and following, two and following. And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead and saying, this Jesus whom I proclaim to you is the Christ. And here are the results of his preaching, verse four. And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great number of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. But, and this was from the very beginning of his time doing ministry, the issue he's going to pick up in the epistles. The Jews were jealous and taking some wicked men of the rabble. They formed a mob and set the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities shouting, these men who have turned the world upside down have come here also. And Jason has received them and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus. We would be afraid if we preached and this happened, but this is what regularly happened when the apostles preached. They turned cities upside down. Verse 8, and the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things and when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. Verse 10, the brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. And when they had arrived, they went into the Jewish synagogue. So very brief time spent there. Immediate results of the preaching. Some Jews are converted, a great number of Greeks, a substantial number of leading women. The Jews who rejected Paul's message stir up a riot and Paul is forced to leave this city. The apostle made at least two other visits to the area on his third missionary journey. Acts chapter 20 verses 1 through 4 records that. Also, he may have visited the Thessalonian church after his first Roman imprisonment. So Paul was there a very short period of time. And if you had to describe that period of time, gospel preaching and persecution. That's what sums up his period of time there. Preaching the gospel and persecution. Paul writes first and second Thessalonians, more than likely from Corinth, where the apostles spent about 18 months on his second missionary journey. So soon after leaving, he writes. He's in Corinth in Acts chapter 18. The date of that he wrote the two epistles are very close. He wrote from anywhere from 49 to 52 AD. The epistles are written, both of them. Paul's 18 months in Corinth can be dated pretty accurately because of the ruler during that period of time. If you look at chapter 18 verse 2. I'll read from verse 1. After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla. Because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. A very specific dating there. So we know when he was in Corinth, chronologically, after his time in Thessalonians. And this is about the period of time where he writes back to them. Now the purpose. Paul is writing the epistles to address three issues. The first is persecution. They're still being persecuted. So if you turn to 1 Thessalonians chapter 3. 1 Thess chapter 3. I'll read verses 1 through 4. Therefore, when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone. And we sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-worker in the Gospel of Christ to establish and exhort you in your faith. That no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction. Just as it has come to pass and just as you know. So they saw that Paul's time there. When he began to preach, when the first converts of the church came to Christ, it was in the midst of persecution. They warned them about these things when he was there. And they see that when he left, the same things continue to happen. It's picked up also in 2 Thessalonians. You go to 2 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 5. There's steadfastness in faith, he says in verse 4. Paul says to the church, Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring. So this is happening to them now. They're currently suffering these things. But there were also some ethical concerns. Whether it was because of Paul's instruction, or maybe just because of their own personal inclination, the Thessalonians were big on eschatology. And they felt that there was this Christ in return at any moment. And because of this, this had a negative effect ethically on some in the church. Look at 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 10. I'll read from verse 9. Now concerning brotherly love, you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another. For that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Macedonia is the region, and that's the region. But we urge you brothers to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your own hands as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. So they were very charitable, but here you have a small hint and reminder, remember to work. Don't just stay home reading your Bible, waiting for Jesus. You have to work. Look at chapter 5, 1 Thessalonians 5 and verse 14. And we urge you brothers, admonish the idol, encourage the faint hearted, help the weak, be patient with them. So in 1 Thessalonians, you have these sort of hints, right, about their ethic. Now look at 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 and verse 6. Now we command you brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how we ought to, how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you. Nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have the right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command, if anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busy bodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. So there was this ethical concern. So first issue is persecution. Second is ethical concerns, ethical concerns. And then third, eschatology. And our focus for the next three, maybe four sermons, will be the eschatological concerns. Paul was confident in their knowledge of the times and seasons of the coming of the Lord. Look at verse fast five. Now concerning the times and seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourself are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. So they knew, they were instructed, but there may have been some nuances that weren't clear in their mind, some things that they didn't quite understand. The wording in the text that we'll look at this evening highlights that. So they were knowledgeable. They knew Paul was confident. They had received repeated instruction by Paul about these things. Their knowledge of these events was not intended to be solely intellectual. But their knowledge of the future was intended to bring comfort, purity, and hope to the church. Look at verse nine, chapter five, first test five. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us. So that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live with him. Therefore, encourage one another and build up one another just as you are doing in light of these eschatological teachings. Look also at second test two, second test two and verse 13. In light of his teaching concerning the coming of our Lord and our being gathered together with him. Then in verse 13 he says, But we are always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, beloved by the Lord. Because God chose you as first fruits to be saved through sanctification by the spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. Now, may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace. Comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. You see, comfort, good works, purity, all of these things is what a firm grasp on eschatology should do for the believer and should do for churches. It's not so that we're able to argue with each other about times and seasons. No, the purpose is purity, hope, comfort. Paul addresses three specific concerns related to eschatology in the epistles. First and second test. Those concerns are what happens to the dead in Christ, what happens to the dead in Christ. And 1 Thessalonians 4.13 in following addresses this particular issue. The coming of the Lord in 1 Thessalonians 5.1 in following. And the events that occur at the coming of the Lord. 2 Thess 2.1-2. We'll take them one at a time. And this evening we're going to look at 1 Thessalonians 4.13-18. 1 Thessalonians 4.13-18. I'll read the text. But we do not want you to be uninformed brothers about those who are asleep. That you may not grieve as those as others who do not have hope or who have no hope. 4 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 precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command. With the voice of an archangel. With the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive or 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. So first the concern. In verse 13 we have the concern and then the need to address the concern. So the concern really if we wanted to make it a question. Do those who die before the coming of Christ miss the glory that comes with his coming? Do those who die before the coming of Christ miss the glory that comes that appears with his appearing? And Paul wants the believers to have assurance, assurance of the truth. So he says, but we do not want you to be uninformed brothers. Theocritous, a Greek poet said, hopes are for the living. The dead are without hope. The gospel shatters this earthly platitude. Even the dead in Christ have hope. What a wonderful savior. Some unbiblical thinking crept in among the believers there. So they're picking up some bad theology somehow. It's not clear how this may have happened. There was fear that their brothers and sisters would not partake. They would not be partakers of the glory to be revealed at Christ's advent. Second advent. Paul wants the Thessalonians and then by inspiration of the spirit. He wants us to have confident assurance about those who have fallen asleep. That's the terminology that he uses about those who are asleep. Commonly refers to the dead in Christ as having fallen asleep as he does here in 13. He uses it again in verse 14. At the end there have fallen asleep again in verse 15. 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 receive those who have fallen asleep. And in chapter 5 verse 10 he uses it again. Who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. And then throughout the other Pauline epistles this is the terminology that he uses for the death of believers. As one commentator notes it implies existence, rest, and eventually awakening to refreshed activity. That's what it implies. Yet he never uses this language to speak of Christ. Never. Christ doesn't fall asleep. He says our Lord died. He died. So in chapter 14 and chapter 5 of verse Thessalonians verses 9-11 Christ died. In our greatest pains and most grievous temptations let this truth support us. We have to learn how to draw comfort from biblical propositions. Biblical truths carry weight. This truth carries a massive amount of weight. Christ died. You know what that means for the believer? Your Lord has delivered you from death by the unspeakable distress, torment, and terror of his own soul. I will never, never walk through that curtain of wrath. He bore that wrath for me. As he hung on the cross, as he died, as he was buried, the Lord crushed him. He became an offering for our guilt. My guilty soul was delivered from the wrath of God because Christ died. And in this way God delivers us from the torments of hell and death. For the believer we sleep when we die. Death has no sting. It is the door to permanent sinless fellowship with God. That's what death is. Death is just a door and it ushers us into the presence of God. Our sinful flesh is put to death and we enter into everlasting life. We must not fear death, not our own death, not the death of any other saint. Christ died that we might never taste death. We can say with Paul, death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting? God has given us victory over death through our Lord Jesus Christ. So Paul adds, and then really here in the second part of the verse, the need to address their concern. He has a particular concern because of their bad theology, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. Do not sorrow as those who have no hope. If you're here this evening and you are not a Christian, I do not know how you can live in hopelessness. The unbeliever is quintessentially the hopeless. You have no peace in this life and nothing but eternal terror to look forward to in the life to come. It doesn't matter how old you are and you're sitting here today. The oldest person, the youngest person in here. If you are not a Christian, you have no hope. Your intellect, your wealth, whatever it is you think you have is done. It's worthless. Why would you stay in such a wretched condition? God has provided hope in the person of His Son. So if you are an unbeliever, what must you do? In addressing the believers in Thessalonica, in verse 14, we receive some instruction. Look at verse 14. So He says, don't be like those who have no hope since we believe that Jesus died and rose again. Even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep. For since we believe or since we have believed that Jesus died and rose again, this is the prerequisite for being hopeful in this life. Faith in Jesus. Faith in a person and faith in the work that He accomplished together, not separate. Faith in the person. We believe that Jesus died and rose again. Because of that, we can have hope. If you are not a Christian, that is the only hope you have. Turning from your sins, believing upon the Lord, trusting with confident assurance that His death and His resurrection give you a perfect standing before God. Find peace for your soul in the person and work of Christ. He was raised to justify sinners. Resolve today to come to God in Christ. Have all your sins canceled. Enter into everlasting life freely by the merit of Jesus. And as He was raised, Paul says in verse 14, even so, or in the same manner, the destiny of the Christian is certain. I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, but I know what's going to happen when Jesus comes back. And so does every believer. Those who have fallen asleep in Christ and those that will be alive at His coming have the same faith. Resurrection glory. Glory. So Paul then, Paul now in verses 15 through 17, he gives us the order or the sequence of bodily resurrection. So granted, when we die now, we enter directly into the presence of God and of our Savior. And are there with all of the saints from history worshipping and praising, but we anticipate something better. The intermediate state isn't it? That's like, well, the spirit is our down payment now, but that's like an extended vacation before we arrive at our permanent home. That's what the intermediate state is. Verse 15. So here's the sequence. Listen to the words of Paul. He says, 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 precede those who have fallen asleep. We don't go before those who have died. That's what Paul is saying. Verse 16. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command. It's going to be loud with the voice of an archangel. And with the sound of the Trump of God, it's going to be loud. Everybody's going to know, right? Everybody's going to know. And the dead in Christ will rise first. So at that point, then the earth, as it were, is going to give birth. And all of these dead saints are going to be joined to glorified bodies. I don't know how that's going to happen. If like their skeletons come out of the tumors, I don't know how that's going to happen. But they're first. So Jesus comes in glory, right? And I forget the name of the hymn, but it's my favorite hymn. The site is glorious, right? The vault of heaven is already like it's ringing. It's exploding with praise. The angels. Everybody up there is praising the Savior. And then heaven is going to rip open one day and He's going to come. And the glory of His appearing is so overwhelming that those who are dead receive life. It's glorious. 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. Amen. So Christ comes, those who have died, resurrected bodies, they're there with the Lord, and then we go up. I don't know exactly how that's going to look like, but they go first and then we come. And we will always be with the Lord. When He is revealed from heaven, those who have died in Christ and we who are alive will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. Think about this. It goes with our sermon this morning. Today, if you want to grow in Godliness, if you want to be sanctified, what must you do? You must behold the face of Jesus. And it's in this word, right? So we study the scriptures to see the Lord Jesus Christ. To see, to understand with greater clarity the perfection of His work and to learn how to apply the benefits of His redemptive work to our own lives. We search the scriptures. On the day He returns, we will see the manifestation of His glory. We will see it. And what happens is sanctification to the nth degree, glorification. The way we are sanctified today is the way we will be glorified on that day by beholding Jesus. But there will be so much glory that we will be transformed. This is sure and certain. As sure as I am that this pulpit is here, I am certain that I'll be raised this way. This is sure and certain through Jesus Christ. God declared Him to be His Son in power according to the spirit of holiness by raising Him from the dead. And by that same power, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep. So every Christian, Nosa, James, Taxidora, Spurgeon, maybe Whitfield, well, maybe Wesley is what I meant. Maybe Wesley, maybe Wesley, but every saint. And then look at verse 18. This is comfort. Therefore, encourage one another with these words. This is what we need to encourage each other with right here. This kind of stuff. Man, brother, I'm doing so bad. My health, my toes, my hair is falling out. I've got all these problems. Do you know one day Jesus is going to come back and He is going to be so glorious that He will transform your lowly body into a body like His. That's glorious. That is glorious. And we should comfort each other with these things. I'll finish with the words or with the comments of John Gil on verse 18. Nothing can yield more true and solid comfort under all the trials and troubles of this life, under all diseases and disc tempers of body, under all afflictions and persecution for Christ's sake, under the loss of near and dear relations. And in the view of death and eternity, this is solid comfort. Here, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank You for this time together. And we ask that You would comfort us with these things and teach us how to comfort one another. In Christ's name I pray. Amen.