Balancing the Books - 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10

Life is not easy and it is not fair. There are a host of things that happen which make us question God's wisdom and rule. Why are some children born with birth defects? Why are some homes so dysfunctional? Why are random shootings so . . . well, random? Why do some get cancer and die while others get it and live? Why do some people pick on Christians?

This morning we will reflect on Paul's words in 2 Thessalonians 5-10. Though the words may initially sound like really bad news, however, this text should be seen as a comfort, giving us a framework to help us enjoy any hardship. Let's jump into the text.

5And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. 6In his justice he will pay back those who persecute you. (1:5-6)

The Blessing of Suffering

The church in Thessalonica was facing persecution because of their faith. Paul does not say God sent the persecution, but he will use the suffering to make them "worthy of the kingdom." In other words, the Lord used the trials to deepen these believers. Just as a period without rain causes roots to look for water deeper, so, the Christian, going through trials, must take a deeper hold of faith and trust.

You can ask almost any believer when in their life they believe they grew the most and many ofthese people will recount some period of difficulty when they discovered the faithfulness of God. Here is something to remember: "God does not waste anything." He has chosen to use the violence of the world as a tool to chisel faith into our lives.

Trials deepen our faith in several ways,

They make us cling to Christ in a new way and with a new intensity. It is easy to say you believe when life is easy. Such belief does not cost you anything. When life is hard we must answer the question: Do I trust Him or don't I? Do we trust Him to bring good out of evil? Do we trust Him to give us strength in time of need? Do we trust Him to make all things right? Only time in the furnace can deepen our faith in this way.

The times of trial make us long for Heaven in a way nothing else can do. When we are confronted with the harshness of life, when loved ones die, when we are tired and worn out our fierce attachment to this world starts to be transferred to what is to come. The persecutions and trials lead us to more sincerely pray, "Come Lord Jesus, come!"

The fierce times of trial and pain help us to appreciate the blessings of this life (family, church, health, the Word of God, prayer).

The times of trial separate the true believer from the pretend follower. The pretender throws up their hands and says, "I don't need this!" They walk away. The true believer holds the Lord more tightly.

This raises a penetrating question: If being Christian were outlawed by a hostile government and meeting together for worship risked arrest, how many people who currently fill churches today would still be there?

Justice

The next part of the text takes a turn.

7And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, 8in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. 9They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power.

Many people find this text distasteful. Even some who call themselves believers do not like what is says. There are three things affirmed here:

The Lord will Judge those who refuse Him and rebel against Him and will do so decisively (in flaming fire).

The punishment will be eternal.

This judgment will involve being separated from the goodness and kindness of God. Those who spurned God in life will get what they desired: life without God for eternity. Unfortunately, the Lord is the giver of every good and perfect gift which means this Judgment will involve the removal of all the good and perfect gifts of God: things like love, friendship, satisfaction, intimacy, joy, peace, hope and so on. Those who say they are looking forward to partying in Hell have greatly mistaken what Hell will be like. They, in essence, are hoping to enjoy the gifts of God without having to submit to God. Those days will be over. One person has described Hell as utter and eternal loneliness. I think that may be an apt and terrifying concept.

It is an uncomfortable picture. So uncomfortable that many people have tried to soften it. Even professing Christians over the years have tried to minimize the teaching on Hell. Some, (such as Pastor Rob Bell) have suggested people get a "second chance" after they die (similar to Purgatory). The theory is: God is too loving to allow people to suffer forever and too filled with love to give up trying to draw people to Himself. He believes God's love will "win" in the end.

The problem with this notion is the Bible! The book of Hebrews says,

27And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, 28so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. (Hebrews 9:27-28)

26Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins. 27There is only the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies. 28For anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29Just think how much worse the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God, and have treated the blood of the covenant, which made us holy, as if it were common and unholy, and have insulted and disdained the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to us. 30For we know the one who said,

“I will take revenge.

I will pay them back.” (Hebrews 10:26-30)

In John chapter 3 (where we get John 3:16) we also read,

Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.” (John 3:36)

When people proclaim a second chance after we die it is irresponsible and unloving because it leads people astray and removes the sense of urgency which should be present when it comes to escaping judgment.

The second way of escaping the reality of Judgment is a doctrine called annihilationism. This doctrine teaches: once you die all conscious life has ended. They argue God would never subject someone to eternal punishment for the sins committed during the brief time while here on earth. Again, the counter to this idea is scripture which talks of eternal punishment. I don't like that notion any more than you do . . . but rather than stand here and take God to task, I would be much better served to proclaim the gospel with a greater sense of urgency and compassion than I have in the past!

The Comfort and Joy of Judgment

10When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people—praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him.

Believers tend to wring their hands at the notion of Judgment rather than praise God and rejoice. In verse 7 we are told this time of Judgment will bring "rest" for His people. In a sense, when God's Judgment comes on the world we will say, "Ahhh!"

This is hard to wrap our minds around. How could we ever rejoice at Judgment? First, we rejoice at the reality of Judgment because it means everything we do for His glory will count, it will be noticed and it will be rewarded.

Much of what we do in life goes unseen. Sometimes we do the right things but no one notices, or worse, they see and charge us with being insincere or manipulative. One of the best reasons to endure persecution and hardship is the realization that in the end, those who endure will be rewarded. The little acts of kindness the little sacrifices you make that no one seems to appreciate count. They matter forever.

Second, the great thing about the coming Judgment of God is it means we don't have to act as Judge. In other words, we can forgive. We can overlook offenses. We can refuse to get caught up in the prison of bitterness and resentment. Why? Because God will sort it all out. He sees every motive, He knows everything done in secret. He will right all wrongs so we don't have to. This is good news because at least part of the time we are going to get it wrong. The Lord will NEVER get it wrong.

We can also give up on vengeance because we know people are not going to "get away with" evil. Since we don't have to worry about rendering judgment it frees us not only to forgive but also to love. We can let the petty (and larger) offenses go. There is no sacrifice that we make that is not seen and taken note of by the Lord.

Time Keller relates the following,

There’s a man named Tom Howard who wrote a book some years ago called Chance or the Dance. A lot of people don’t like the way a guy like Tom Howard pushes, but here’s what he says. He says either you have the doctrine of the judgment day, which the religions of the world believe … If it’s really true, that means everything means something. Nothing is forgotten. Good deeds, bad things … everything means something.

Or, he says, if it means in the end the planet just dies, the sun burns out, human injustice goes on inexorably till the end of whatever, in that case, it means nothing means anything. He says you have two choices. You have two views of life. Either everything means something, or nothing means anything. What is it that distinguishes those two views? Judgment day. Judgment day is very good news. Judgment day means you will not be forgotten. He sees. He knows.

If there isn’t anybody like Jesus, if there is no Judge, nothing means anything. Your sacrifices mean nothing. No one sees you when you fall. Your death means nothing at all. Your life is just one more life. Or judgment day. Good news. You see? The Nietzsches of the world, the Bertrand Russells of the world, the Sartres of the world … These guys were great thinkers, and they got rid of judgment day, and they knew what it meant: bad news, despair, tragedy.

One thing you must not do is say, “Oh yeah, judgment day; I’ve gotten rid of that primitive religion,” and in a very breezy way say, “Yes, now I believe in a God who loves everyone, if there is a God. Everybody has to decide these things for themselves.” You need to see the bad news that comes when you lose judgment day and the good news you’ve lost. He sees.[1]

We want to sidestep responsibility for our actions. We are constantly looking for others to blame. The truth we must understand is this: no one will fool God. He sees all things clearly.

Putting it Into Practice

It is relatively easy to talk about keeping the faith in the time of crisis when you are not going through a crisis! It is more difficult when you are walking in the midst of the fire. How do you know rest in that situation? How do you hang on when the foundation seems to be crumbling beneath you?

First, remember what you deserve and compare it with the grace you have received. It is essential that we remember that we are sinners who are saved by grace. Have you ever said something like this to God: "Lord, I deserve better?" If you have, did you ever sense God saying back to you: "No, you don't!" I have. And I know it is true. What I deserve is to face the full force of God's righteous judgment. I do not deserve a single blessing I have enjoyed because I was a rebel. I lived as if God was "out there" and detached. I figured He was probably pretty impressed with what a good kid I was. After years in the Bible, I know better.

Even as a professing believer I cannot claim any blessings as owed to me. I am, by the grace of God, living a better life than I used to live, but it is by no means a holy life. I still battle selfishness, materialism, unforgiveness, bitterness and much more. When I remember what I deserve, I will realize whatever I am going through is better than I deserve. I will also remember there is much yet to overcome and I should be glad for God to use whatever means necessary to refine me.

Second, recall the love of Christ in giving His life for You. It is valuable for us to stop and think about what God has done. He endured our sin. He sent Christ to die for that sin. He came back from the dead to show us there is life beyond the grave and those who follow Him will live even though they die. So . . . if God has invested this much in us; if He loves us so greatly, He is not going to abandon us in the hard times. He is not going to let things destroy those whom He loves. He will redeem even that which seems to be beyond redemption. He has proved His love. Remembering this will help us to hang on.

This doctrine of the Judgment of God should provoke worship, praise, and delight in all who put their trust in Christ. It is not an oppressive doctrine. It is a doctrine that helps us hang on.

Third, in light of the reality of God's coming Judgment, in the time of trial we should look for opportunities to witness rather than be forced into hiding. If we care about someone, we should be using any means possible to introduce them to the Lord Jesus Christ and the message of forgiveness and a new heart and life. We should,

Share movies that point to faith

Share music that lifts the soul

Share books from a Christian perspective in areas of interest to our friends

Constantly look to plant seeds in conversations. This may be a word, a statement, you could even share something you learned in church.

Pass out business cards that point to truelife.org and answers to honest questions

Look for ways to demonstrate your faith to the other person and BEFORE the other person.

Share scripture, offer to pray, open your home.

The point is we should be creative in our singular purpose of helping as many people as possible escape the dreadful and eternal punishment of God.

Let me add something here. Urgent and obnoxious are not the same thing. There are some people who push others away by their obnoxious badgering about the gospel. Peter gave us this challenge:

And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. 16But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ. (1 Peter 3:15-16)

Did you catch the qualifier? "Gentle and respectful." We not only want to tell people about the love of Jesus, we need to show them the love of Jesus as we do so. As you read the Bible, watch and see how Jesus tailored His approach to each person. He was direct with those who opposed the gospel but He was always tender with broken people. We should do the same.

The last thing Peter tells us is: if we do not live a consistent life it won't matter much what we say to our friends and neighbors. They will quickly dismiss what we say if it appears to have no practical impact on our lives.

Trials are real, Judgment is real, Hell and Heaven are real. You can bury your head in the sand and try to ignore the truth but . . . the day is coming whether you embrace it or not.

As you sit here today, are you ready to face God's Judgment? Do you put all your confidence and hope in the work of Christ? If not, I invite you to do so today. Stop playing at faith and take hold of the One who longs to take hold of You. Rest in His arms as you wait for the wonderful day when we will see Him as He truly is and worship Him forever.

[1] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).