The Hopeful

This is a sermon preview for the fifth week of our 1 Thessalonians series. 

Visit FBCM’s Church Center Channel to view video live stream (live) or audio version of sermon (published week after).

“For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” -excerpt from 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 5:11

I’ve never watched It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but my favorite meme comes from an episode where Charlie thinks he’s discovered a “major conspiracy.” It’s an older meme now, so you probably know what I’m talking about. There’s a picture of a typical office worker man. But upon further inspection, he has crazy eyes, a cigarette in one hand, and the other hand pointing behind him to a board covered in pictures, clues, and a red web of string that supposedly connects everything together in the conspiracy. It makes me laugh. Every. Time. 

Unfortunately, sometimes when people talk about scripture passages like 1 Thessalonians 4 or Revelation, they start to feel a little like this meme. They know Jesus is coming back. This is a GREAT thing! But they’ve gotten too caught up in trying to read the signs or figure out the details of when or how. And that’s when they’ve missed the point!

2,000 years after this letter, what are we supposed to learn from the Thessalonians about the end times or Jesus’ return?    

While Jesus was on earth, he taught often that the Kingdom of God had come. So when Jesus defeated death and told the disciples that he was coming back for them, the early church thought Jesus was coming back soon after he ascended to heaven. Obviously, you don’t need me to tell you that Jesus still hasn’t returned. We’ve been waiting way longer than expected. This is a promise that the Church still waits on.

Waiting for God to fulfil his promises is hard. Sometimes it's hard for Christians to come to terms with the "already but not yet" nature of the Kingdom of God. We celebrate that Jesus is risen! But the world is so deeply broken that, if we're honest, sometimes it doesn't feel like it matters. 

The Thessalonians could relate. In a season when persecution was prevalent against the early church, and many were killed for their faith, the grief could be overwhelming. 

But Paul encourages us that while it's okay to grieve, we have hope that overcomes our grief! Christ has risen, he has risen indeed! If Jesus delivered on that promise, we can certainly trust that he will follow through with his other promises. We can have hope that Christ will return and we are not lost to this looming death. Whether we wait our whole lives or only part, we will see Jesus again. We will be taken up with him. We will have a forever new life at a banquet that is beyond our wildest dreams! (The “Jesus Buffet,” as FBCM Kids like to call it!)

We need not get lost in the details. We need not worry about signs and details. God can take care of those. We are Easter people who grieve with hope.