2 Thessalonians 1

0:22 But don't tell everybody. They might get mad that I said that. We are in the book of 2 Thessalonians in your New Testament, so let's turn there tonight. If you are new to Wednesday nights, this is very simply a Bible study, verse by verse, chapter by chapter, through the Scriptures. We do an alternating Old Testament than New Testament book and work our way through. And we have made good headway because if you look at where we are already in the New Testament, we're doing great.

0:58 Let's have a word of prayer. Father, you alone know the particulars of what we have been through this week, what is troubling us, concerning us, exciting us, what things we are cautious about, worried about, wondering about. You know the things that keep us up at night. You are our hope. You are our rest. You are our source. We are simply asking that your Holy Spirit would take this ancient but inspired letter and use it. Use it as we gather.

1:52 Use it as we listen. Use it in the days ahead to make us excited about eternal things and to become less enamored with temporary things. We invite your spirit to be our teacher. and we pray these things in Jesus name amen well second Thessalonians is the sequel to first Thessalonians thank you very much and we're going to do something just a little bit different instead of making remarks right off the bat we're just going to jump right into the text and read the entire chapter, chapter one. I say entire chapter, there's only 12 verses.

2:48 It's a short book, and each chapter is relatively short. So let's just take a running start at it. Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy. To the church of the Thessalonians, in God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 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. 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, 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.

4:00 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels 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. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power. 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.

4:55 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, 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. this letter we believe second thessalonians was penned within months of the first letter going out by paul to the thessalonians paul wrote the first one from corinth paul wrote the second one from corinth no more than a year, let's say, within a few months to a year. So it has been estimated that Paul wrote 1 Thessalonians in the spring of A.D. 50 and that he probably wrote 2 Thessalonians around February, March of A.D. 50.

6:11 So one time, one early in the year and one later in that same year, but around 5051 A.D. something has happened between first and second Thessalonians and we can only discern what that is by taking a look at the entire book some of the issues that Paul brings up give us some of the background necessary for why Paul would write a second letter to this church and I'll get into that I'll show you what we think those things are but let me just jog your memory a little bit because you may recall that Paul never planned to go to this part of the world. He had been in Jerusalem after he made his first missionary trip. He goes back to Jerusalem.

7:06 They have a big powwow. The council in chapter 15 of the book of Acts about how Gentiles come to faith, how they can be admitted into the church. a group of people in Jerusalem was saying we got to tell these Gentiles that they need to go through the ritual of Jewish circumcision in order to be saved and Paul said uh no that's not going to work and and gave several reasons as to why they capitulated to Paul and Barnabas and Peter who made the case for grace alone, faith alone through grace alone. And they wrote that letter to the Gentiles in Acts chapter 15. Now, after that was done, when that was settled, Paul turned to his buddy who went on the first trip with him named Barnabas and said, let's do it again. I mean, that was so cool. I am paraphrasing a bit. That was so fruitful. Let's go back over the same area that we went on the first trip and strengthen, encourage those new believers in faith.

8:20 Barnabas said, I'm in. In fact, not only am I in, but I'll also get John Mark, who was with us on the first missionary journey as well. My relative, Paul said, he's not coming. Barnabas said, oh no, he needs to come. He was on the first trip. Paul said, no, he's not coming. He left in the middle of the first trip. If you remember correctly, Barney, when we hit the mainland of Asia Minor, he turned tail and went back to Jerusalem. I'm not going to go through that again.

8:55 Well, they had an argument. And it was so fierce between Paul and Barnabas that they split company and they divided into not one, but now two missionary groups. So Barnabas took John Mark and they went somewhere. Paul shows Silas as his partner. He'll pick up Timothy along the way and he took a small group with him. And as they were going back through that area that Paul went on his first missionary journey, he tried to get into a few places but was not allowed access for some reason. All we know is what we are told in Acts chapter 16, where Paul went through Phrygia and Galatia, but was forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia.

9:58 We're not told why the Holy Spirit wouldn't let him into that region, but he couldn't go. he then went to mysia tried to go into bithynia but it says spirit forbade us wouldn't let us go so paul was a little bit befuddled flummoxed wondering what's next what's up why can't we make progress and he was in troas and that night he got a vision of a man from macedonia saying come over to Macedonia and help us. Paul woke up the next day and he said, I got the plan. We're going to Macedonia. So they crossed the Aegean Sea from Troas, landed in Europe, and Paul went to Philippi looking for that man from Macedonia, not finding him, only finding a few women who were meeting down at a riverside. One of those women was named Lydia, a seller of purple. The Lord opened her heart to receive the things spoken by Paul. She became his first convert in Europe. He's preaching the gospel in the city of Philippi. Things don't go well. He gets arrested, thrown into prison, the Philippian jail. He and Silas were in stocks, and at midnight they were singing praises to God. An earthquake shook the prison, opened the doors of the prison so that the prisoners could escape. Paul and Silas, their chains fell off their hands because of the earthquake. The soldier who was watching them took a sword out to kill himself. Paul hears it, yells at him, do yourself no harm. We're not going anywhere. We're still here.

11:49 the Philippian jailer comes in after this whole episode of power and this gracious response of Paul and Silas after them singing praises to God at midnight before the earthquake and the Philippian jailer looks at Paul and says what must I do to be saved Yeah. and Paul led him to Christ that night the Philippian jailer proving that he has been transformed and converted took him home them both home and cleaned them up and tried to get them out of town Paul said not so fast they have beaten us both of them happen to be Roman citizens you've beaten Roman citizens without a trial. You've condemned us without a trial and we're Roman citizens. And he made a big deal of it. So they begged him to leave. And he left.

12:54 And he made his way along to other regions, Berea. He eventually goes to Athens and speaks. but before that he goes to Thessalonica and when he's in Thessalonica this city Thessalonica is was the biggest city in the northern part of modern day Greece at that time Macedonia it was about 250,000, a quarter of a million people in population. It was called the Queen of Macedonia. It was a port city, so it took in traffic from the water from around the world, the Orient, on the way to Rome. So they could dock at Thessalonica and they could take a main roadway westward to Rome called the Via Ignatia or the Ignatian Highway.

14:05 And because it was a major crossroads, it had every imaginable, conceivable vice, sin, ideology, etc. well when Paul hits Thessalonica you know what he does where does Paul always go first when he goes into a city synagogue he's Jewish so he goes to the synagogue and so we're told that he goes to the synagogue in Thessalonica called modern-day Soloniki Greece he goes to the synagogue and for three consecutive Sabbaths. I love it. It says he reasoned with them from the scriptures. And I love that because the scripture, the Christian faith is reasonable. It is based on objective truth, not just I had a warm little fuzzy feeling. I know the Lord is real. He could objectively bring evidence to engage the mind that if you're a thinking person based upon the evidence, you'll make a decision to follow Christ. Now he's doing this with a Jewish audience.

15:21 He's reasoning with them from the scriptures for three weeks and proving that Jesus had to die and rise again from the dead. And he's doing it from the scripture. And we are told some of them believed. And those are the ones we live for. The some, the few who believe. Not everyone will believe, but there are some. And when one or two or three does, those are the ones you live for. Some believed, some did not believe, but they stirred up trouble. and in stirring up trouble eventually they again had to usher Paul out of town he had to escape for his his life at night and he eventually made his way to the city of Corinth so he's up north and he goes down south on the way down south I mentioned he goes to Berea goes through Athens speaks to the Areopagus, Mars Hill, goes to Amphipolis, Apollonia, makes his way to Corinth where he stays for, oh, I always say 18 months, between 18 and 22 months he's there. Let's just say a year and a half plus. And he stayed there because it was fruitful and they're not trying to kill him or run him out of town on a rail. So he stays there. It's very fruitful in Corinth. The Lord gave him a vision at night and said, I have many people in this city. So he hangs around. And from there, he writes a letter to the Thessalonian church. First Thessalonians, it was written because there was some confusion still in their mind about end times and eschatological topics, end time theology. He had already in three weeks laid the foundation for that, but because some of their loved ones had died, they were going through stress over that, thinking, you know, how's it going to work out when the Lord comes if our loved ones have already

17:31 died? So Paul corrects that or explains that in 1 Thessalonians. But since then, since he wrote that, Paul gets more reports about the church at Thessalonica saying it's an awesome church. They're growing. Their faith is strong, Paul. But there's some people that are coming in saying some weird stuff. they are saying that because the Thessalonians are enduring a more intense form of persecution than even you endured there, and they had endured there, but it's gotten worse, that these teachers are coming in saying that they're in the great tribulation period, and it's causing real distress. And because they're living at the end of days, there are people who are quitting their jobs and just being lazy bums, leeching off the church, mooching off the church. So Paul writes 2 Thessalonians for three reasons.

18:43 Number one, to encourage the flock that is enduring a very hard time. The world is against them. The persecution has been turned up. The flame is getting higher and hotter. So Paul writes to encourage them, to let them know, hey, this is what you signed up for on one hand. At the same time, you can have the peace of God as you endure it. And God has a purpose in using it in your lives. So he writes to encourage them.

19:20 He also writes to correct the false theology that these teachers were bringing in about the day of the Lord. so second thessalonians like first thessalonians is all about eschatological topics for the most part he's dealing with end times theology now it is the sequel second thessalonians to first thessalonians and i've noticed something about sequels whether it's books or movies they're usually not as good as the original so they make a movie and it sells out. It's gangbusters. So they think, oh, people liked it. I can cash in on this. I'll make a sequel. And I rarely find a sequel as good and compelling as the original. Not so with second Thessalonians. With second Thessalonians, it's as if Paul saved the best for last.

20:20 and it really packs a punch, and we learn a lot in chapter 2 about the Antichrist. So the church is growing. Paul writes to comfort them, to encourage them, and to correct. So, verse 1. Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, and if you remember 1 Thessalonians, first couple verses are identical. To the church, the Thessalonians, in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Okay, we know who Paul is. Paul was, before he was Paul, he was what? Saul of Tarsus, a Jewish rabbi, the chief enemy of the Christian church. The chief antagonist has become the chief protagonist.

21:26 Not only a believer, but an ardent, avid, almost rabid believer going everywhere, telling everyone that he can who Jesus the Messiah is to the Jew first and also to the Greek. this man has had a dramatic conversion and this man becomes a prolific writer he writes at least 13 books in the new testament 14 if you believe he wrote hebrews having said that paul is not the author of he's he he didn't write most of the new testament luke wrote most of the new testament and luke only wrote two books the gospel of luke and the book of acts but if you were to count up the number of words in acts and luke and count up all the epistles of paul luke wrote more but that has nothing to do with this i just it came to mind Paul, a.k.a. Saul of Tarsus, now Paul the Apostle. He is the author of this book, but he has a team with him, and he mentions teammate number one in verse one, Silvanus, also known as Silas.

22:50 Silvanus is his Roman name, Silas his Hebrew name. Silas was with Paul, as I mentioned, on his second missionary journey. As they went back through that area and then they got the Macedonian call. Silas was with Paul in the hardship of the Philippian jail and stocks at night, singing praises to God. And, like Paul, a Roman citizen. A Jewish man, but had full Roman citizenship. A very unique blend. um also sylvanus or silas becomes important not just to paul but to the apostle peter you can if you want to write a note you can look later you don't have to look now in fact i would recommend you don't but in first peter chapter 5 peter makes the remark that though he peter is giving this letter, this first general epistle of Peter, it is Silvanus who is actually writing down the words of Peter. Just like Mark wrote down the words of Peter for the gospel of Mark, Silvanus wrote down the words of Peter for first Peter. He was the amanuensis. He was the scribe.

24:10 He was the secretary. So Paul, Silvanus, Silas, Timothy. Now, you know, Timothy was Paul's son in the faith. He was converted in the area of Lystra and Derbe when Paul went through on his first journey. And then his second journey, he picked him up and brought him on his second and third missionary journey was he was with Paul in his first Roman imprisonment. And then he calls for Timothy again when he is about to die in his second imprisonment. So Paul and his teammates, Silvanus and Timothy, by the way, these two were with Paul when Paul founded the church at Thessalonica. And then they stayed a while. Paul went down to Corinth. They joined him and probably brought the word back to him, how the church was doing that prompted first Thessalonians, who it was that brought further news to prompt Second Thessalonians, I can't tell you.

25:11 he continues in verse one to the church now we're familiar with the word church as being this or us we're used to the word in a new testament concept but when paul wrote the word church 2 000 years ago it was a common phrase for any type of an assembly any type of an assembly especially in a greek city in a greek polis a church or an ecclesia they called it the assembly was a formal gathering of greek citizens so he's writing and he says to the assembly of the thessalonians but then he says not just any assembly, not just, it's not a heathen assembly. It's an assembly of the Thessalonians who are in God, our father. So these are God's people. This is God's assembly.

26:18 And it's further designated by, belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ, God, our father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, Paul is going to be using, and he does this frequently, these two persons of the trinity he'll combine them he will often say God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ God our Father and the Lord he often does that it is one of his ways to tell his audience that we're dealing with two persons in a triune God who are co-equal and co-eternal.

27:00 And I know some of you are thinking, well, where's the Holy Spirit? How come he didn't mention him? He'll mention him, but not always in the same context. And one of the reasons is Jesus himself said, the Holy Spirit doesn't want to be noticed. he doesn't testify of himself he's pointing to the son he's giving glory back to the son his job is to point to christ so he simply says to the assembly of the church the ecclesia of the thessalonians in god our father and the lord jesus christ now he begins with a very familiar Dear Pauline, greeting that you find in nearly all of his epistles, grace to you and peace from God our Father, here it is again, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

27:51 If you were to examine the fragmentary literary evidence of ancient papyri, ancient letters that were written during this era, you would find this formula of greeting in most of them. Or something similar, grace to you and peace. Or grace to you. What Paul does is he takes a common greeting from these ancient letters, but he tweaks it. It's as if he is combining a Western greeting and an Eastern greeting together. That is a Hellenistic Greek greeting and a Hebraic greeting. The typical Greek would say, karis, when they see you. Grace. That's how they say hello. Karis, which is his grace grace to you if you meet a jewish person in israel the first thing he'll say to you is shalom peace now of course paul is writing in greek not in hebrew so it's not kathis and shalom it's kathis and irene that's the greek equivalent but it's like he takes these this ancient greeting and tweaks it a little bit but you always find grace and peace coupled together and grace is always first is never peace and grace. And why is that important?

29:27 Because you'll never know the peace of God till you understand and experience the grace of God. Grace always precedes peace. Once you've experienced grace, God's unmerited favor, by the way, the best way to remember grace is to make it an acronym, G-R-A-C-E, God's riches at Christ's expense. G-R-A-C-E. God's riches at Christ's expense. Grace. Unmerited, undeserved, lavish favor. You deserve hell. You deserve punishment. God withholds it and pours salvation and blessing and favor, even though you don't deserve it. That's grace. Now, once you experience that, you have peace. You sigh a breath of relief. Now I have peace with God. Peace. Peace with God. Peace is literally the cessation of hostility.

30:36 Every Christian has peace with God. Every believer, if you believe in Christ, if you've trusted him, you have peace with God, meaning there is a cessation of hostility. Let me be more pointed than that. You have a cessation of divine hostility. Divine hostility? I have nothing against God. Maybe, maybe not. God has something against everyone. I'm letting that sink in because this is often misunderstood. Romans chapter 1 verse 18, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness and ungodliness. That's the position of humanity under the wrath of God. You come to Christ and experience God's riches of Christ's expense, grace, there's a cessation of hostility. Now you have peace.

31:35 You've raised the white flag of surrender. You've made peace with God. He has nothing against you because everything he had against you, the wrath poised against you, was put on his son, Jesus Christ. God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him. God treated Jesus like you deserve to be treated, so he might treat us like Jesus deserves to be treated. That's peace with God. Once you experience, and I know I'm going slow, but it's worth it. Once you experience peace with God, you can also experience the peace of God. not every christian does but you can every christian can every christian does have peace with god not every christian has the peace of god now that's a tranquil feeling of peace that's like well-being and a settledness and a contentedness and that peace can be yours no matter what you're going through on the outside you might have the worst possible experiences going on in your life and you can still be at peace deep down. The waters are not troubled deep down. Like in the ocean, you get down deep enough, there might be a storm on the surface, you get down, it's quiet. You might have that underneath river of peace calming your soul, even though the diagnosis is grim. Somebody in your family just gave you bad news about a condition they have, something is going on with your physical health or whatever it might be, you can still have the peace of God. And I know that because Paul is writing to a group of people who are pressured and going through horrible trials. And he speaks about peace and rest and and God's goodness to them. Air condition took my page away.

33:45 to the church of the Thessalonians, in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, grace to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Now once again, Lord is a title.

34:06 It is not a first name. His first name is not Lord, second middle name Jesus, last name Christ. Lord is a title you say a title for what? it's a title to express relationship when you receive Christ as your Savior he wants to be your Lord Master one who calls the shots one who gives you direction Jesus said why do you call me Lord but you don't do the things that I command you. if he is your lord then let him call the shots now one day even if he's not the lord now of anybody who might be listening to this or certainly people in this world he's not their lord but one day they will have to admit that this title is true of him every knee will bow every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is lord to the glory of God the father so that day is coming but before that day people who know Jesus as Savior also know him as Lord. From God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. So making great progress. Two verses down. Verse three, we are bound to thank God always for you. That's a very interesting phraseology. We are bound. We are constrained.

35:50 literally, we are under obligation. I'm obligated to thank God for you. If I have any debt or obligation, it's one of thanksgiving to God, not complaining to God, but thanksgiving, thankful heart for what God has done, who God is. We are bound, we are constrained, we owe a debt to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting. And here's why. Because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other. so notice that paul begins after his greeting and salutation speaking about two of their qualities faith and love now this is different from first thessalonians you remember there was a trio he mentions it twice in first thessalonians he mentions faith love and hope i'm just gonna you don't have to turn there but i'm gonna jog your memory because you were i think with most of you I can recognize were with us in 1 Thessalonians. Paul speaks about in chapter 1 of 1 Thessalonians, your work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope.

37:19 Remember that trio, faith, love, and hope. Now he mentions faith and love, but he doesn't mention hope. why is that well i don't know but i do know this now listen carefully this group had come into the church since paul wrote first the salonians telling the people you're in the great tribulation period robbing them of hope stealing their hope they once had faith love and hope now it's just faith and love you guys are doing great you're growing your faith is awesome and you love each other that's Cool, but where's the hope? now when we get to the book of titus in chapter two of titus paul is going to call the rapture of the church by a a great phrase the blessed hope the blessed hope now if the thessalonians are in the great tribulation period which they're not. It's not much of a blessed hope. In fact, if Christians are going to go through the tribulation period, then my prayer is going to be, Lord, delay your coming.

38:38 I don't want to go through the tribulation period. In fact, Jesus said, pray always that you would be counted worthy to escape these things and stand before the Son of Man. If I'm going through the tribulation period, I don't want that to speed up. I want the Lord to delay his coming. But the fact that I'm not going through the tribulation is why I say, Maranatha, the Lord is coming. Look for that. It's the blessed hope, that signless event called the rapture of the church. So anyway, he speaks of their faith and he uses a very important term for that. You are bound to thank God always for your brethren because your faith. Now look at this word, grows exceedingly. the word for grows in the new testament is the word oxano it's a it's a word that uh speaks of the growth of plants it is used for the growing of foliage it is used for the growth of babies oxano is a very typical word for growth Paul here calls uses the term huperoxano hyper growth your faith is in hyper growth mode not only do you believe in Jesus Christ and I wrote first Thessalonians but now I hear that you are in hyper growth mode your faith in Jesus Christ is rock solid it's a beautiful term and their love for each other abounds or their love for every one of you all abounds toward each other. Now love always is accompanied when there is faith because faith gets you in touch with God.

40:43 Faith connects you with God. Without faith it's impossible to please God. So you believe in God by faith, you come into covenant or relationship with God. But even as your faith puts you in contact with God, in contact with God, his personality rubs off on you.

41:05 Let me put it this way. This is how faith and love work. Faith brings you to the eternal spring of which you drink deeply. When you drink deeply of that eternal spring of the love of God for you, that makes you in turn a loving person.

41:27 That principle is found in the book of Romans, for the love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts. So when you get in contact with God through faith, the love of God, you experience his love. oh Lord, it's awesome. I've never experienced anything like it. Wow, wow, wow. Now, the evidence that you're experiencing that love is that you love people. If you're bitter and hard and unloving, I'm going to doubt that you've had a sip of that stream of God's love. It's certainly not shed abroad in your hearts. And this is why, this is why you have the capacity to endlessly love.

42:13 Now listen, those of you who are saying, I'm in a relationship now and I've fallen out of love with him. That's a choice you're making. If you're experiencing the love of God, if the love of God is shed abroad in your hearts, you also have a capacity you didn't have before. And that is to love. To extend that love. So he is making the remarks that this is an outstanding church. Their faith is in hyper-growth mode, grows exceedingly, and their love for everyone of each other abounds more and more. And the order is important. Faith first and then love, just like grace and peace. So that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God. Here it is, very important word.

43:07 for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure. patience is one of the words that's a key word in the new testament also translated perseverance I know some of you have told me that you struggle with being a patient person and I've even had people say hey pastor would you pray for me pray for patience and I always say are you sure are you certain you want me to pray that for you because you know what that means don't you if I pray for that no what does it mean it means God is sure to send you trials and tribulation. Why? Because the Bible says tribulation works patience. That's how you get it. They were getting it. They were under the gun. They were under fire.

44:14 They were going through pressure, persecution, he says, tribulation that you endure. the word patience is the greek word hupamones and it means to remain under to remain under to stay under when you're going through a a problem a trial you're going through a time of suffering the first thing you try to do is to get out from under it James, when he writes his little letter, says, let patience have its, any of you know the rest of the verse? Perfect work. Let patience have its perfect work that you might be complete, lacking nothing. In other words, when the pressure comes, don't try to escape it.

45:09 stay there. Stay under it. Remain under it. Learn through it. Learn from it. Don't say, God, how can I get out of this? Say, God, what can I get out of this? Teach me. Show me. your patience and faith in your persecutions and tribulation. Now a word about this word tribulations, the tribulations they were getting, plural, was the tribulation from the world. Every Christian goes through that. Jesus said in the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. You're going to get tribulation. The source of these tribulations is from the world. The source of the great tribulation is not from the world. It's from the Lord. The great tribulation is God pouring out his wrath upon the earth.

46:09 but you're getting it from the world. You're getting persecuted and you're getting tribulations. So stay under it. Let patience have its perfect work. some of you need this word tonight you need a holy toughness let's call it a holy toughness tough it out learn the lesson stay put which verse 5 is manifest or evident shown 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 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you and to give you who are troubled rest with us. When? When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels. Now, Paul is writing this to encourage a struggling church. They're suffering. He knows are suffering. They're under the gun. But he's saying this, when the Lord renders his final judgment, he's going to count you worthy of inheriting the kingdom. Not because you suffer.

47:30 It's not like you become worthy through suffering. No, that's not the point. Your suffering proves or demonstrates that you're worthy. You don't earn anything. It's by God's grace alone. but the fact that you are given the ability to endure the tribulations from the world the persecution the trouble it is a demonstration or a proof that you've inherited the kingdom that you're a child of God it is what he calls manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God for which you also suffer notice the word righteous again, since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you. I'm not going to ask who's going through a trial. Let me tell you something about a trial.

48:32 Trials expose us. You know what I mean by that? They reveal who we really are. If you want to know who you really are, it's who you are during a time of suffering. Our character is tested by fire. and these Thessalonians were making straight A's so far, and says, you know, hold on, stay under the gun. It's a righteous thing with God. One day, he's going to repay with tribulation those who trouble you. What he's saying in these two verses, three verses, really, is that God's judgment is righteous. God is fair. God is perfectly fair. You're never going to be able to point a finger at God and say, that's unfair. God sees what you don't see.

49:26 God knows everything. His judgment of all judgments is absolutely fair. He knows how to balance the scales. So it is fair. And he knows what you can take. And he won't give you too much. And one day he will reward you with rest. and repay those who trouble you with, he's going to trouble your troublers, he's saying. He's going to bother those who bother you one day.

49:58 But he's going to give you rest. Do you remember, because I trust you've read the book of Revelation, that one of the seals, John says, I saw the souls of those who were under the altar. They had lost their lives in the tribulation period. They will have lost their lives in the future tribulation period because of persecution, but they're like kept, buffered somehow. Their souls are protected. Their souls are under the altar, supervised by God. It's a beautiful picture. So he'll repay with tribulation and give rest to those who are trouble or give you who are trouble rest with us. And here's the when, this is important when all this is going to come down, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels. Now that little word revealed is the same word as revelation chapter one, verse one, which says the revelation of Jesus Christ.

51:11 The word revelation, apocalypsis, is the same word as here revealed from heaven, apocalypsi. If you were to look up in the dictionary apocalypse, you wouldn't get a great definition. And it would say kind of like it's the end of the world and bad things happen and everything gets burned up. that's not the original meaning of the word apocalypse apocalypse is a word originally means to reveal or unveil if you had a sheet over a statue and you rip the sheet off to reveal the work of art now that's an apocalypse that's a revelation the revelation of jesus christ one day Jesus is going to be revealed as king and as Lord. And that will not be the rapture of the church. That will be the second coming. That is Revelation chapter 19 when he comes as king of kings and lord of lords. And that's the title on his thigh. He comes as the conquering king. He'll be revealed.

52:21 the book of Revelation, the revelation of Jesus Christ, is all about Jesus. It presents Jesus. It's as if God says, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Jesus Christ. Ta-da! And I say that because, did you know that Martin Luther hated the book of Revelation?

52:44 And the reason he didn't like it is he said Jesus is not revealed in it. now with all due respect because I am far from Martin Luther but if Martin were here I'd say Marty you were so right about the reformation but you are so wrong about the book of Revelation the book of Revelation is all about Jesus Christ Revelation chapter one is a vision of Jesus Christ. Chapter 2 and 3 is Jesus Christ superintending and evaluating his church. Chapter 4 and 5 is Jesus Christ, the sacrificial lamb who becomes the lion of the tribe of Judah. Chapter 6 through 18 is Jesus Christ pouring out his wrath and seals and bowls, etc. on the earth. And Revelation 19 is Jesus coming back to assume control over that which he has purchased.

53:43 it's all about Jesus which book are you reading Marty go back at it again it's all about Jesus that's the revelation of Jesus now Paul mentions revealed one day Jesus will be revealed and this is not the rapture of the church that he spoke about in first Thessalonians chapter four but the revelation of Jesus Christ spoken about here in this book and in the 19th chapter of Revelation, and that is his second coming.

54:19 Boy, I'd like to get through the chapter. There are elements though, but I think I'll just, I'll just, I'll keep moving. Inflaming fire, taking vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Notice the word vengeance. It doesn't say vindictiveness. When God judges the world. It's not like, I'll show you and I'll get even with you. No, it is carefully meted out, perfectly just, totally and awesomely holy judgment of God, deservedly upon a Christ-rejecting world. That's the vengeance of God, in flaming fire taking vengeance. Now, two groups are mentioned here that he's going to take vengeance on. Number one, those who do not know God, and number two, those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

55:22 The first group, those who do not know God, are those who reject the knowledge of God evident in creation and in conscience. Romans chapter 1. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness and ungodliness of men who suppress the truth in ungodliness. For what may be known of God by creation is evident to them. Anybody can look around and figure out that this design must have a designer, and if they're open, be led to God. So Paul says, they are without excuse. but then he mentions the second group, those who do not obey the gospel. Now the second group has greater guilt because the second group has greater privilege. They've heard the gospel. The first group may or may not have heard the gospel. The second group has heard the gospel and to whom much is given, much is required. Now let me just tell you about a scripture you can look up later Luke chapter 12. I'm going to guess around verse 47, verse 48. I may be wrong, but right around there, Jesus seems to indicate that when it comes to judgment, there's going to be degrees of judgment, just like there are degrees of rewards for believers in the kingdom, in the afterlife. So he said, the servant who knew not his master's will and did it not will be beaten with few stripes, but the servant who knew and didn't do it will be beaten with many stripes. For to whom much is given, much is required. So know this, don't lose sleep over that.

57:12 oh what a god in fear don't worry he's righteous he's fair he's got it all covered he sees it all he knows who's who and what's what these shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the lord and from the glory of his power 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. Have you ever heard of a belief called universalism? Universalism is the belief that nobody ever will go to hell. Everybody is saved. Nobody will be lost. No matter what you believe, you know, I heard some politician this week saying God is non-binary. God is male, female, and everything in between, whatever you want him to be, basically. And, you know, basically saying you make up your own God and everybody's okay. You're okay. I'm okay. Universalism. Everybody's saved. Nobody's lost. There's also something called annihilationism. Have you ever heard of that?

58:24 Annihilationism is the idea that God will never send somebody to an eternal hell, punishing them forever. That wouldn't be righteous. That wouldn't be right for whatever they've done doesn't deserve of eternal hell. So he's going to annihilate them. They're going to cease to exist. It will be as though they never existed in the first place. It's called annihilationism. And there are some Christians, even some that I admire, who believe this. I do not believe that. And one of the reasons I don't believe that, there are many, but one of them is this verse. It is the clearest statement of the eternality of judgment in the New Testament. Notice, these will be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power. now the word destruction does not mean a cessation of existence it is never a total destruction because you're thinking oh destruction it's like annihilation no the word is used in the new testament and is usually literally translated it should be literally translated the loss of well-being. It is a word Jesus used in speaking of the wineskins. Remember pouring new wine into old wineskins? He said they become ruined, destroyed. Doesn't mean they cease to exist.

59:50 They still exist, but they're ruined. Loss of well-being. So it's not an annihilation. It's an eternality of judgment and an eternal ruin, an eternal loss of well-being. 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 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. Probably there are more things to say about some of these ending verses that I didn't remark on, but I did want to cover a chapter.

1:00:44 So we have one chapter down. I'll probably, as you are now used to, dip in a little bit and get into chapter two for next time. Fair enough? Thank you, Lord, for your grace. thank you that you have poured a favor upon us that we did not earn and we certainly do not deserve we have no claim of entitlement and yet we are your children we are royalty because of faith and that faith has got us in touch with you and by that faith we are saved and with that faith we've experienced your love and with that love comes the ability to love those around us. I pray, Lord, that we will walk in these things and demonstrate, as Paul said, his evidence, demonstrate that worth of being a child of God, putting up with the trials, the tribulations, the suffering. Staying under it, learning the lessons, becoming.