MORNING MESSAGE: John Cline
Reader: John Renfree
Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
In 1906, there was a train derailment in Atlantic City, New Jersey. What followed was the first press release in history from any company, which was made by the West Jersey and Seashore Railroad company to explain what had caused the train wreck in an attempt to bring peace-of-mind to their customers. The press release explained how, on the day of the wreck, the train conductor had worked a double shift and was so tired that he failed to see a prominent warning sign stating that the draw bridge which the train regularly went over had been raised to let a boat on the river go through. In missing that warning sign, the conductor hadn’t stopped the train, and it plummeted into the river below and 53 people died. I’m not sure whether that press release brought the hoped for “peace of mind” to customers but, it is useful for this sermon as it reminds us that often in the Bible there are warnings so that God’s people won’t “fall asleep at the switch”. That, in part, was the message sent in two letters to the Thessalonian church in northern Greece. “Be ready!” for Christ’s return will happen on a day that no one will have successfully predicted ahead of time.
Last Sunday, we finished preaching through First Thessalonians and, today, we will start into Second Thessalonians, a letter which scholars believe was written about five months after the first one. In this second letter, Paul the primary author, and Silas and Timothy, his note-taking scribes, wrote to encourage the Thessalonians to, in chapter 1, stand fast in the midst of troubles; in chapter 2, stand firm against evil, particularly as it relates to the Second Coming of Christ and the “Man of Lawlessness” who will be reeking havoc at that time; and, in chapter 3, stand faithfully in their Christian duties. The first letter they had written had been delivered and read out loud to the entire Thessalonian congregation, but its’ contents had raised more questions in the people’s minds, questions which were then relayed back to Paul, Silas, and Timothy where they were located in southern Greece, in the city of Corinth. I like to imagine that, when hearing that second batch of questions, Paul and his friends would have raised their eyebrows and said to each other, “Ok, let’s try this, again”. Thus, the reason for this follow-up, second letter was for clarification.
Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. (2 Thessalonians 1:1-4)
The Thessalonians’ faithfulness had impressed Paul and his colleagues so much that they were boasting about them to other churches, particularly because the Thessalonians’ faithfulness had come in the face of “persecutions and trials”. Acts 17 tells of the historical events when Paul, Silas, and Timothy, on an evangelistic missionary journey, had started the church in Thessalonica. Once they heard the gospel message of salvation through Jesus Christ and of the lordship of Jesus that Christians believed in and pledged themselves to, some Jewish religious leaders in the synagogue there violently opposed that message, causing Paul and Silas to flee for their lives. Timothy could go back to Thessalonica because, unless Paul and Silas, his life was not at stake in that city. But he found that the Christians in the Thessalonian church were likewise being persecuted, possibly by those same Jewish synagogue leaders, or by Roman authorities by the new Christians refusal to offer sacrifices to the Roman gods or to pledge allegiance to the lordship of the emperor Caesar. Persecution of Christians was intense in both Judea and the eastern Mediterranean Sea area, but it would soon worsen under Emperor Nero. But through it all, the Thessalonians had stood firm.
All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. (2 Thessalonians 1:5)
People generally think of judgment as being only negative, but judgment can also be positive, as is seen here. God had earlier made a positive judgment call about the Thessalonians; that they could be trusted to stand firm in the face of persecution and trials thus be “worthy of the kingdom of God”. Paul continues:
God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. (2 Thessalonians 1:6)
Do you ever think about what life would be like if God were not “just”, if He simply winked at sin and allowed all sorts of terrible things to take place without any consequence, or, on the converse side of a positive judgment, did not notice when people were believing correctly or doing things that were righteous? He would not be worth following or worshipping if He were not just. But God is just! He is not like a clockmaker who, after inventing a clock, puts it on a shelf to sell to someone else, and then is forever finished with that clock. No! God created the church and stays involved with its people. With the Thessalonians, God saw their persecution and trials and promised He would act by exacting justice on those mistreating them, ultimately bringing full relief at the time of Christ’s return for those new-in-the-faith Thessalonian Christians.
How do Christians keep going in the light of continuing animosity in this world against our faith? Certainly, around the world in places like northern Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Christians are being persecuted to the point of death. Here, in North America, we don’t have that kind of persecution but certainly there is animosity towards Christianity. How should we respond to that? By understanding that God is “just”, continue praying, and keep on going in faithful witness and lifestyle. In the USA, and even here in Canada, there are signs of people searching for God for the first time, desiring a relationship with a God who is “just”. Baptisms of 7,000 people at a time have recently happened in California, 60 people at a Sunday evening worship service here in Edmonton two weeks ago, a baseball stadium (Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles) which last year had 5,000 people come out for a crusade but this year had 35,000 come out for the same crusade, there has been since 2022 a 41.6% increase in Bible sales, 50% more listens to Christian music, and a 79.5% increase in the download of Christian apps. A spiritual awakening is stirring among North Americans, and that encouraging fact is bringing “relief” to Christians who feared it would never happen in their lives. In his second letter to them, Paul pointed out to the Thessalonian Christians that in the face of their persecution and trials, positive things had happened: their faith had grown, their love had increased, they were standing tough, and facing their troubles together. All positive effects!
When we are under pressure, we can see that God provides and cares for us. We can learn some lessons from nature, where it takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, and broken bread or food to give human bodies strength. God is at work when times are tough> His power in us brings relief and hope.
In one of his books, Chuck Swindoll tells how in the northeastern United States, codfish are a very big commercial enterprise. A vast industry has grown up around catching, preparing and shipping codfish. But the great demand for codfish posed a problem to the shippers many decades ago. At first, the people who bought the codfish and shipped them off for sale, froze the codfish before shipping but freezing the codfish took away much of the flavor. Then the ship tried shipping the codfish alive in salt water, but that didn’t work either. Finally, someone hit on a creative solution of placing the codfish in a shipping tank with their natural enemy—catfish. From the time the codfish left the east coast until they arrived at their destination, the catfish chased the codfish all over the tank! When they arrived at the markets, the codfish were as fresh as when they were first caught with no loss of flavor or texture because they had never stopped swimming, all for the purpose of escaping their enemy, the catfish, and staying alive. All of us live in a “tank” (a boxcar, so to speak) of trying circumstances. Now, the catfish in our lives can either catch and destroy us or keep us healthy and alert by the fact that we need to stay aware and swimming. God is “just” and with us always, helping us to stay alive and healthy. Our heavenly Father stands with us, and we never face the music alone, with full “relief” guaranteed for us at the time of Jesus’ Second Coming.
This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you. (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10)
The Greek word here for “relief” is also used to describe a bowstring that is unstrung from its bow—the idea of the tension being relaxed. When Christ returns, He will bring with Him your final and complete relief. We will be exploring his Second Coming more next week when we preach through the second chapter of Paul’s letter – which focuses on the “Man of Lawlessness” – but let us understand as a firm takeaway from today’s first chapter that though Christians will find relief others, those who reject Christ, sadly, will experience something far different. In fact, the truth of the two sides of judgment is at the heart of the gospel message. For example, let us consider that the much beloved verse of John 3:16 is followed by verses 17 and 18.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. (John 3:16-18)
At the end of chapter 3, John then writes this summary statement:
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. (John 3:36)
These are non-negotiable, eternal consequences, both positive and negative. I admit that, as a human who cares, in some ways, I wish that I could erase the truth of the two sides of judgment from my Bible and that universalism, which teaches that all will be saved, could be true. But I can’t tamper with God’s truths when they are uncomfortable to my modern-day sensibilities and sensitivities. Besides which, the truth that I – and you – should cling to, is that God is “just”, as Paul wrote. Being fully aware of those two sides to judgment, Paul, Silas, and Timothy, state their biggest concern for the Thessalonians…
With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
And, so, chapter 1 ends as it began, with Paul, Silas, and Timothy praying for the Thessalonians. The storms of adversity and trials that break against God’s people can’t be weathered by our own strength and determination; it is only as Christians call on God to see us through storms in His strength that we will prove that God’s judgment call on us as being trustworthy of the “kingdom of God” will be proven wise. When He calls a person to enter His family by proclaiming faith in Jesus Christ, God will see that person through to the end. As we live for Him, we are to do so with one purpose in mind: so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in us and that on the day Christ Jesus returns, we will experience the full relief God has promised us.
I realize that some of you may be thinking, “I want – and need – relief now and I don’t want to have to wait until Christ’s return.” I get it. But in the midst of wading through this time of trials, God is with you, and He will sustain you. Perhaps He is allowing you to go through the tough times you are in in order to be a blessing to others either now or in the future for as they see your perseverance they will find strength and hope through their own time of trouble.
As mentioned, next Sunday, we will go to chapter 2, which begins with these words, “Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus and our being gathered to him…” Remember that Paul, Silas, and Timothy writing on that topic was in response to the Thessalonians asking about Christ’s return. “Let’s try it, again!”, Paul, Silas, and Timothy would have thought and thus they gladly wrote this Second Letter to the Thessalonians. So, feel free to read ahead, but before we reconvene next Sunday, let’s each of us live for the Lord, finding comfort and relief in the fact that God is “just”! Amen.
