A WORD OF WARNING FOR THE ENEMIES OF GOD
II Thessalonians 1:4-10
These verses draw a contrast between 2 groups of people. Paul speaks a word of comfort to the Thessalonian Christians who were being persecuted for their faith in Christ. He also gives a warning about the future of those who were persecuting them.
This morning we examined the comfort that is available to Christians facing persecution. This evening I want us to examine the fate of those who persecute Christians. Furthermore, in these verses we will see the fate of all of the enemies of God.
- Let’s look to verses 4-10 as we examine “A Warning For The Enemies Of God”.
The Thessalonian Christians were in the midst of a very troublesome time. They had endured great persecution for their faith in Jesus Christ. In this passage, Paul assures them that their enemies them would be dealt with in due time. The enemies of God do not fear His judgment. They live life on their terms with no thought concerning the consequences of their rebellion.
- Listen to how they are described in:
Romans 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: 14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15 Their feet are swift to shed blood: 16 Destruction and misery are in their ways: 17 And the way of peace have they not known: 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Though they profess that they do not believe in God, and though they may think that they have no reason to fear God, one day they will face the wrath of God! Paul mentions this in verse 7. He declares that:
I. JESUS IS COMING BACK IN GREAT POWER
When Jesus comes He will be "revealed from Heaven with His mighty Angels". There are several magnificent descriptions throughout the Bible concerning this event. I want us to look at a couple of them today.
Jesus spoke of His return in the “Olivet Discourse”:
Mark 13:24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, 25 And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. 26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. 27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.
- Jesus gave John a glimpse of His return in:
Revelation 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
When Jesus returns He is going to establish His Kingdom. At this point in time His unrivaled power will be revealed. He will demonstrate His authority over the entire universe. When Jesus returns, all of creation will be involved. Scripture tells us that the sun will not shine, nor will the moon. The stars will fall, the planets will be shaken and the sea will roar
Revelation 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
Luke 21:26 indicates that people will die of heart failure when they see these things take place. When Jesus comes back, He will appear in His unveiled glory.
The time of Jesus' return will not be daytime or nighttime. (Zechariah 14:6-7)Without the sun, the moon or the stars, there will be no way to discern the time of day. The earth will be covered in complete and total darkness. Then breaking through this darkness Jesus will appear in the clouds riding a white horse! When He appears in the heavens the whole world will see Him - Revelation 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him.
Out of this utter darkness, our Savior will circle the globe in great power. Every inhabitant on the earth will see His glory. The Bible says that He will come with “great power”. So much so, that power on earth will be able to oppose Him. His strength will be displayed in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. When His feet touch the earth, they will do so on the top of the Mount of Olives. This is the very place from which He ascended. Zechariah tells us that when His feet touch the top of that mountain, it will split from top to bottom. (Zechariah 14:3-4)
When that mountain splits in two, the Mediterranean Sea will flow into the valley around the Dead Sea. (Zechariah 14:8). The Prophet Isaiah said that this will cause “the desert to blossom like a rose” (Isaiah 35:1) Jesus is coming back in great power! When He arrives, He will send His angels throughout the world to “gather His elect”.
This speaks of the saved remnant of Israel and the Gentiles saved during the Tribulation. No one will be left out "from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven". Every single living saint will be brought to Jesus and they will stand before Him redeemed and rejoicing! When Jesus comes back, we will see His great power and glory! And when He returns His enemies will see His great power and glory! Today... Jesus is mocked scorned, ridiculed, blasphemed and rejected. The same has been true since His arrival in Bethlehem.
But there will be some vast differences when He comes the second time: When He returns He will not be riding a donkey, He will be riding on a white horse in the clouds. He is not coming back as a lowly carpenter, He is coming as a risen conqueror! This time He won’t be weeping, He is coming with a shout! When He returns He is not coming for a people who will reject Him, He is coming for those who have received Him. This time He isn’t coming to redeem man, He is coming to rule over man! When He returns He will not be mocked, He will put all of His enemies under His feet. This time Men will not put Him to death; with the word of His mouth, He will destroy the enemies of God! He is not coming back to earth as “the lowly Nazarene”, He is coming as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Jesus is coming back in great power and glory. When He returns, it will be a time of great peace and celebration for those who are His.
However, what follows will be a time of wrath, judgment and condemnation for the enemies of God! If I were you, I would make sure that I am not in that number!
- Jesus is coming back in great power, and as we move to verses 8 & 9 we will see that:
II. JESUS IS COMING BACK TO PUNISH HIS ENEMIES
- Notice what Paul says will happen when Jesus returns - v8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
Paul says that Christ will return in "flaming fire taking vengeance"
"Fire" is a symbol of judgment, “Taking vengeance” literally means “to give full punishment”. Vengeance will come for "those who do not know God and do not obey the Gospel." When Jesus returns His enemies will face His undiluted wrath. Paul encourages the Thessalonians with the information that those who were persecuting them would one day be punished. Their punishment is not because they persecuted the believers. They are punished because they did not "know God"! This speaks to the lack of a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.These are people who blatantly rejected God!
Several scriptures speak of those who "will not inherit the Kingdom of God". One passage is - I Corinthians 6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
It is clear through the scriptures that there are countless people will not inherit the Kingdom of God. Furthermore, we are told that these people will be cast into the Lake of Fire. Understand that this will not happen because of the things that these people do. They will face eternal condemnation because they rejected Jesus Christ. The Bible describes the works of the flesh, they are
Fornication, Idolatry, Covetousness, Drunkenness, Cheating, Extortion, Adultery, Hate, Homosexuality, Murder, Stealing,and Lying. These are all fruits of a life without Christ! The only hope of overcoming these things… the only hope of salvation, is to fully surrender your life to Jesus Christ!
Every person here has a choice to make: Follow Jesus and receive eternal life, or reject Jesus and receive eternal damnation. Follow Jesus and experience peace, or reject Jesus and endure punishment. Follow Jesus and spend eternity in Heaven, or reject Jesus and spend eternity in Hell.
When Jesus returns He will bring eternal punishment for the enemies of God! After his arrival, after the 1,000 year millennial reign, and the great Battle of Armageddon we are told of a place of horrible punishment. Revelation 20:11-15 describes Great White Throne Judgment:
(John said) And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Who exactly will face punishment at the Great White Throne? John says "I saw the dead, small and great stand before God" . There is no separation between these people, they are all described as dead. There will be a vast range of people present at this event. From Cain to the present day unbeliever. So called “Good” people will be there! Religious people will be there! Respected people will be there! Those that believed that works could save them will be there. Those that believed that they did not need Jesus will be there. Those that procrastinated and put off salvation will be there. Those that persecuted the Thessalonian believers will be there. Those that have persecuted the church throughout the ages will be there. Some of our family will be there, some of our friends will be there, some of you may be there!
When Jesus comes He will bring eternal punishment! Will you face that punishment? Have you trusted in Christ as your Savior? Is your name written in the Lamb's book of life?
Revelation 20:15 says that "whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."
If you have never been born again, you can be today. If you will repent and believe in Jesus Christ you can be forgiven of your sins. Through Christ you can experience peace here and throughout eternity. I am certain that many people here, probably most would say “I know that I am saved and I am ready for His return”. If that is the case, then we should praise the Lord for all He has done, is doing and will do!
May we never take for granted His great salvation. Let us not forget that He left us with the promise that one day He is coming back! When He does, we will praise Him!
Look back to II Thessalonians 1:10 for a moment - "When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day."
Paul says that on the day of His return Jesus will receive glory, worship and praise from His people. We do not have to wait until then... we can and should praise Him right now. Furthermore, we should be living as if He was coming back today. The people of Thessalonica endured suffering, persecution and tribulation. But they lived as if Jesus was coming back at any moment.
In fact in II Thessalonians 2:2 Paul said that "The day of the Lord is at hand" The phrase "at hand" means "imminent". Though we do not know the day or the hour of His return, it is over 1900 years closer now than it was then. May we be found faithful. Let us live each day as is it was our last.
John F. Kennedy used to tell the story of a man named Colonel Davenport. Davenport was the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives. On May 19th, 1780 in Hartford the sky became very dark. Some of the representatives believed that this was the end. They demanded that they adjourn the session immediately. To which Davenport replied "The Day of Judgment is either approaching or it is not. If it is not, there is no reason for us to adjourn.... If it is, I choose to be found doing my duty." Therefore, I wish that candles be brought into the chamber"
Rather than fearing what is to come, we are to be faithful till Christ returns. Instead of fearing the dark, we're to be lights as we watch and wait. - (Source: Harry Heintz submitted on sermonillustrations.com)
There is no doubt that Jesus is coming... the question is "are you ready for His arrival"? I have good news for you today… you can be fully prepared for His return. If you will repent and believe in Him, you can be saved. You can be forgiven of your sins, delivered from Hell and granted eternal life if you will trust in Him.
Those who reject Christ will one day face His undiluted wrath. Those who belong to Him will experience peace and joy unspeakable throughout eternity. I encourage you to surrender to Him while there is time. If He is calling you this evening, don’t turn Him away!
Pay attention to this passage of scripture and learn from this “Word Of Warning To The Enemies Of God”.
