The Truth For Tumultuous Times

The Truth for Tumultuous Times

1 Thess 4:13-18

13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.

14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Introduction: Good morning and welcome to New Bethel. I want to begin the message today with the observation that there has never, at least in my memory been a time like the one we are living in. It is a tumultuous time to say the least! It is a time marked by chaos in almost every part of our lives. Social, civil, societal, religious, political, governmental and spiritual chaos reigns supreme. The God of this world is sowing chaos everywhere. This should not be looked upon as something thing new but in fact it is a very old thing. Satan began sowing the seeds of discord and disharmony in the Garden of Eden and he shows no signs of slowing down. It should come as no surprise that the believers in the church at Thessalonica were experiencing some of the same feelings as we are today. As always we are exhorted to look to God’s Word for help and comfort in times like these. Listen to what Jesus had to say about the times we are living in:

Matthew 24: 4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.

10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Of all their concerns one thing in particular seems to have been an issue for these believers…let’s look at our text to see the reason for their:

I. The Distress of the Saved – vs 13-14

a. The cause v. 13

They were “uniformed” which is what the word ignorant means. A great deal of what upsets believers today is caused by misinformation or a lack of information. Unfortunately many believers spend more time on social media than they do in the Word and this contributes the uncertainty of the times we live in.

b. The concerns

“…concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not even as others which have no hope…”

The word “sorrow” means to grieve. The lack of information about those who had died was the source of their concern. He admonishes them to not behave like those who were lost and unsaved.

c. The correction – v 14

What we believe determines how we behave. Paul declares that their loved ones who have died in the Lord are not lost or annihilated, they are with the Lord.

2 Corinthians 5:8 “We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”

II. The Disposition of the Saints v. 15

Paul wants to set the record straight about what happens to those who die in Christ.

a. His authority

There is no higher authority than the Word of the Lord.

VOICE OF AUTHORITY

When I was serving with YWAM in the summer of 1982, we played a concert at a school in Amsterdam. As the concert ended, the students began to come up to us and talking with us, and believe it or not, some even asked for our autographs. At that moment a tall, thin, man with a flat-top and a long flowing beard stepped to the microphone and with a very authoritative voice said in Dutch "Un zitten!" ("sit down" in English). Without hesitation every student returned to their seats and you could have heard a pin drop. He had the voice of authority.