1 Thess 4:13-18 I’ll Fly Away

Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Intro:

Zion reads scripture

When I was younger my parents would take us to Sunday night church

One memory I had of those times were the songs we sung

We would sing songs like Victory in Jesus and I’ll fly away

Victory in Jesus is all about how we have overcome the struggles because of Jesus

I’ll fly away is all about Jesus coming and getting us in the rapture

How we sang those songs depended solely on what was going on in the life of the pianist

If things were good we sang at nice casual tempo

If things were bad the tempo increased because she needed victory in her life and wanted Jesus to come back sooner

Today’s passage takes a totally different direction than what we have been looking at

Paul deals with the question: “What happens when we die”

He also talks about the Rapture

If you don’t know what that is, It is a time when Jesus will descend from heaven and gather his church

We will be caught up in the air with him

This is one of the most unbelievable events in all of scripture

So much so that people debate if its even real

What we need to know is thatJesus is coming back for those who follow him

The question is “Are you ready?” and do you have hope when it comes to the subject of death

Hope in Death vs. 13

One of the ways we know Jesus is coming is that we have hope in death

Paul tells the Thessalonians that he doesn’t want them to be uninformed when it comes to the topic of death

Paul uses a common phrase for death, asleep

Sleep was a common way to express death in the ancient world, but among pagans, it was almost always seen as an eternal sleep.

1 Corinthians 15:20 ESV

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

Christians called death sleep, but they emphasized the idea of rest.

Early Christians began to call their burial places “cemeteries,” which means, “dormitories” or “sleeping places.”

Some have No Hope

If you drive by the Santa Maria cemetery on the weekend you will see hundreds of people

They are lingering by the grave of a loved one

It’s perfectly okay to pay your respects, but these people will linger for hours

They will bring lawn chairs, picnics, and read a book

Yet the Bible never describes the death of the unbeliever as sleep, for there is no rest, peace, or comfort for them in death.

For the Christian death is dead, and leaving this body is like laying down for a nap and waking in glory. It is moving, not dying.

For these reasons, Christians should not sorrow as others who have no hope when their loved ones in Jesus die.

Pillars of the Rapture vs. 14

Vs. 14 shows us the reason we can hove confidence Jesus is coming

We see three pillars of the rapture

For the Thessalonian Christians, their troubled minds were answered by the statement “God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.”

vs. 14a Death of Christ

Paul says “since,” or “based on the fact that” we believe that Jesus died certain things logically follow.

The apostle’s simple statement summarizes all the richness of Christ’s atoning work, which provides the necessary foundation for the gathering of the church.

His death satisfied the demands of God’s righteousness, holiness, and justice by paying in full the penalty for believers’ sins.

2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Jesus died: When Paul wrote about the death of believers, he called it sleep.

But in his description of Jesus’ death, he did not soften it by calling it sleep, because there was nothing soft or peaceful about His death

His death transformed death into sleep for believers

vs. 14b Resurrection of Christ

Christ’s resurrection proves that He conquered sin and death, and became the source of resurrection life for every Christian

2 Corinthians 4:14 ESV

knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence.

We will certainly live, because Jesus lives and our union with Him is stronger than death.

This is why we do not sorrow as those who have no hope and why we have more than a wishful hope.

Sadly, not all Christians are at this place of confidence and peace.

Even Christians have, in unbelief, had the same fear and hopelessness about death.

vs. 15 Revelation of Christ

Paul’s teaching on the Rapture was not his own speculation but direct revelation from God.

The phrase this we say to you by the word of the Lord has the authoritative tone of an inspired writer revealing what God has disclosed to him

Galatians 1:12 ESV

For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

Participants in the Rapture vs. 15

Who is going to participate in the Rapture?

Paul wanted the Thessalonians to know that those who are asleep – Christians who have died before Jesus returns – will by no means be at a disadvantage.

Those who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede them.

God will allow those who are asleep to share in the glory of the coming of the Lord.

Two groups of people will participate in the Rapture: those who are alive at the coming of the Lord and those who have fallen asleep.

That Paul used the plural pronoun we indicates that he believed the Rapture could happen in his lifetime.

He had a proper anticipation of and expectation for the Lord’s return

1 Corinthians 15:51–52 ESV

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.

The Plan of the Rapture vs. 16-17

Jesus Descends from Heaven

When Jesus comes, He will come personally. The Lord Himself will descend and come with a shout.

When Jesus comes, He will come in the company of prominent angels.

Believers are gathered with the trumpet of God.

In the Old Testament, trumpets sounded the alarm for war and threw the enemy into a panic

Matthew 24:30–31 ESV

Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Dead will Rise First

And the dead in Christ will rise first:

Paul’s point to the Thessalonians is clear.

The prior dead in Christ will not be left out of either the resurrection or the return of Jesus.

In fact, they will experience it first.

Many wonder how the dead in Christ are raised first.

Some believe that they now have temporary bodies and await this resurrection.

Others believe that they are now disembodied spirits who wait for resurrection.

Still others conjecture that the dead in Christ experience their resurrection immediately

There will come a day, when in God’s eternal plan, the dead in Christ will receive their resurrection bodies.

Yet until that day, we are confident that the dead in Christ are not in some kind of soul sleep or suspended animation.

2 Corinthians 5:8 ESV

Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.

Caught up in the Clouds

Those alive and remaining until this coming of Jesus are caught up to meet Jesus in the air, together with the dead in Jesus who have already risen.

The verb translated caught up here means to seize, or to carry off by force.

This passage is the basis for the New Testament doctrine of the rapture, the catching away of believers to be with Jesus.

The word rapture is not in the ancient Greek text, but comes from the Latin Vulgate, which translates the phrase caught up with rapturus, from which we get our English word rapture.

Paul’s statement, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is both dramatic and fantastic.

He speaks of Christians flying upward, caught up… in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air:

Paul’s plain language leaves no doubt regarding the certainty of this event.

Yet the timing of this event in the chronology of God’s prophetic plan is a matter of significant debate among Christians.

Many – though certainly not all – Christians believe the Bible teaches that there will be an important seven-year period of history before the Battle of Armageddon and triumphant return of Jesus.

The debate about this catching away centers on where it fits in with this final seven-year period, popularly known as the Great Tribulation, with reference to Matthew 24:21.

The pre-tribulation rapture position believes believers are caught up before this final seven-year period.

The mid-tribulation rapture position believes believers are caught up in the midst of this final seven-year period.

The pre-wrath rapture position believes believers are caught up at some time in the second half of this final seven-year period.

The post-tribulation rapture position believes believers are caught up at the end of this final seven-year period.

The manner in which Jesus will gather us to Himself is impressive.

But the main point is that whatever the state of the Christians (dead or alive) at the Lord’s coming, they will always be with the Lord.

This is the great reward of heaven – to be with Jesus. Death can’t break our unity with Jesus or with other Christians.

John 14:3 ESV

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.