Sermon: Eternal Perspective for Evil Days

You have a copy of God's word. We will be in Second Thessalonians chapter two tonight. So if you wanna turn there, page 989, if you're using a pew Bible there in front of you.

We've been working our way through both of these short letters, first and second Thessalonian. Tonight we come to the second half of chapter two. You'll remember that this is a city that Paul had visited and shared the gospel and saw many come to faith. Um, and if you remember from the first letter, as we read through that and studied through the first letter, Paul was, uh, pretty much immediately chased out of the city.

Uh, the, the people did not like his message. They did not like, uh, the exclusivity of Christ. Uh, so he was chased out. Of course, Paul left and continued ministry, but the believers there in this city remained and we know that they endured much hostility and opposition. So in our book here tonight, second Thessalonians, if you glance back at chapter one, verse four, Paul says there that he is boasting about them and the churches of God because of their steadfastness

and faith and all of the persecutions and the infliction that they were enduring. Now, the, the persecution itself was not a surprise to Paul, but what was a surprise was that this young church, they were enduring these afflictions. They were standing firm and they were holding fast to the faith that they had believed and had received. And so Paul was excited about that. He was boasting in that fact. But then a little later on in our book, chapter two, Paul

references there that though they were standing firm and holding fast, they were being rattled through false teaching. And so you'll see that in chapter two, verse two, where he writes that he does not want them to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed. Now, apparently what had happened is, uh, some people had written a letter that was supposedly from Paul and sent it to this church, perhaps, uh, several churches around, uh, the Roman Empire.

And one of the things they were saying was that Christ had returned the day. The Lord had already come. And so Paul is writing to address that, that false teaching. Paul is concerned for them. They're, they're standing firm. They're holding fast to the faith, but they're also being rattled. They're, they're being shaken because of this false teaching. Now we know that false teaching always leads to confusion, anxiety, frustration, and despair,

because what it always does is distort who God is and what God is doing in the world. And so that's why Paul is writing this second letter to this church. One of the things he's doing is he's trying to get them to see that there's this bigger perspective. There's a bigger perspective to see and to know what God is doing among them and what God will continue to do among them. And so one way to think about this little book is Paul

sort of pulling back the curtains of heaven to show us this is what God has done and will continue to do through history. John Stott calls this short book a Christian perspective on history. What is really happening in the world today? Maybe that's a question you've been thinking about and wondering about, especially given the circumstances of the sort of events that have transpired in in the world today. What's, what's really going on in our world?

What's really going on in the history of humanity? Well, Paul here has given us that perspective tonight we could really boil it down to two words. So these two words, rebellion and salvation. Those are the two words, the two words to see and to view all of history. On the one hand, history has been and will continue to be full of rebellion and lawlessness. History will be full of people that resemble verse 12 of chapter two, people who do not believe the truth,

but take pleasure in unrighteousness. And Paul told us the reason why this is the case. In this chapter, chapter two verse nine, Paul tells us that Satan is still active in the world. He is working with all power in false signs and wonders. He is actively deceiving people so that they do not obey the gospel and they do not obey the truth of the Lord Jesus. So that's on the one hand, but there's another perspective that we need to see as well.

And that's how our passage begins tonight in verse 13, we see this stark contrast. The contrast is this, God has been and continues to be at work in this evil world to save lawless and wicked people. Friends, we need this perspective. If we are going to endure evil days, we need this perspective to keep us from giving in, from chasing our own pleasures. We need this perspective to keep us from despairing. As lawlessness and rebellion continue to increase.

We need this perspective to remember what God is doing in the midst of chaos. Satan deceives rebels, but God saves sinners. And before we read our passage tonight, let me pray and ask for the Lord's help Father in heaven, it's a privilege that we can gather once again on this day and open your word and to hear from you. And so I pray that you would help all of us to receive this word not as the word of men, but as what it really is the word of God.

And so would you give us eyes to see and hearts that would believe we pray all this in Christ's name. Amen. Follow along as I read. We are in chapter two beginning in verse 13. We'll read through verse 17. But we are always to give thanks to God for you brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as first fruits to be saved through sanctification by the spirit and belief in the truth to this He called you through our gospel so that you may obtain the glory

of the Lord Jesus Christ. So then brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our father who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word, amen. Well, in this text tonight, Paul is giving the Thessalonians and eternal perspective as he reminds them

of their supernatural identity, their ordinary obligation and their eternal confidence. And that's the outline we will follow tonight. Our supernatural identity, our ordinary obligation, and our eternal confidence. So first, our supernatural identity. Notice three ways that Paul is reminding these thessalonian believers and he's reminding us as well of our supernatural identity, an identity that is not fashioned by the activity of Satan,

but rather by the power of God. So number one, we belong to God's family. We belong to God's family 23 times in both of these letters, first and second Thessalonians, Paul addresses them with this term. Brothers, we see it in our text tonight, verse 13. He says, we are always to give thanks to God for you brothers. And then he says it again down in verse 15. He's calling them brothers. He's reminding them that they belong together,

they belong in this family seven times in both of these letters, God is called our Father. You see that in verse 16. Now may the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God who is our Father, friends, here's the good news. Among the lawless people of the world, you will always find the family of God. As Paul says in Philippians two, we are children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation among whom you shine as lights

in the world, no matter where you go, you will find the family of God. Recall the Apostle John's words in in John chapter one, to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. So though we live in evil days, Christians are not marked by the lawlessness or the rebellion that exists all around us, but rather by the divine dignity of belonging to God's family, we belong to God's family.

Second, we are loved by God. We are loved by God. Several times in these two letters, Paul tells us this, here we see it mentioned two times verse 13, brothers, beloved by the Lord. And again, in verse 16, God, our father who loved us, what is it that you and what is it that that I need to endure evil days? Well, these two truths are, are so powerful. You belong and you are loved. If you are in Christ, those two things are true of you.

You belong and you are loved. Why would we chase after the approval of this world when we can rest in the love and the acceptance of God? Perhaps you're here tonight and you are maybe unsure about the Christian faith or you're unsure. Is this something that I really want to believe? Is this really worth it? I hope you see and hear this tonight, that in Christ you will find all the love and acceptance that your heart desires

and that your soul needs you belong and you are loved. Here's the third reality of our identity that undergirds both of these truths. You are saved. Verse 13, you are saved. God chose you. It says, as the first fruits to be saved or unto salvation. This word salvation, we, we use it a lot in the church. We sang about it in some of our songs here tonight. Well, what does this word actually mean? What? What is salvation?

Well consider what Paul has told us. And just from these two letters, if you go back to one Thessalonians chapter one, verse nine, Paul says there reflecting on these believers how they had turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his son from heaven whom he raised from the dead Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. That's one thing that salvation is it's God delivering us from wrath to come.

It is God delivering us from idols. Two Thessalonians chapter one verse nine, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels inflaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus, they will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might. That's what wrath is, vengeance, punishment that is eternal.

That's what we've been saved from. Or again, one Thessalonians five, nine, for God has not destined us for wrath, but rather to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live with him. Friend, salvation is God's power to deliver us from the grip of idols. It's his kindness to rescue us from the vengeance and and eternal punishment of his wrath against our sin.

And it's his love to place us on the path of eternal, joyful life. This is the greatness of our salvation and this is what God has been and will continue to do throughout human history. Satan is deceiving, but God is saving. And notice what our passage tells us about how God does this work. So look back at verse 13. Paul writes there that God chose you as the first fruits you were chosen. Now that phrase that follows first fruits depending on

how you take the original Greek word, if it's two words, it means from the beginning. If it's one word, it's this word first fruits. Both are attested all over in the scriptures, but both are really getting at this one important question, if you have been saved, if I have been saved, why is that? Why is that the case? And here's the Bible's repeated answer. Ultimately, God is the sovereign agent who stands behind every conversion.

It's not anything that's good within us. It's not because we were smarter or more educated behind whatever choice we made. Antecedent to our own wills is the will of God. So we're called even Jesus's words to his disciples, you did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide. Or the seminal text from Ephesians chapter one, verse four, even as God chose us in him in Christ

before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. He did all of this in love. He pretested us for adoption as sons to himself through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace. Friends, it is God's sovereign and free choice to save sinners. It's according to his own will and it is to the praise of his glorious grace. This is the repeated refrain through all of the scriptures.

So Psalm three, eight, Jonah two, nine say the exact same thing. Salvation belongs to the Lord. It's his doing, it's his work. It's his will. When we recognize the sovereign free choice of God, not based on anything good within us, but entirely dependent upon the excellencies of his own nature, our hearts should soften in humility. They should overflow with gratitude. They should erupt with praise. This doctrine magnifies the glory

of God while it humbles us under his sovereign grace, he chose us unto salvation. This text shows us the divine means of this salvation still in verse 13, how did God do all of this work? He chose us, but how does he actually do this work? We see two things that Paul Paul tells us there through sanctification by the spirit and through belief in the truth. His choosing us unto salvation is through sanctification and through belief or faith in the truth.

Now, this word salvation in our text, this idea here is the definitive act whereby God, the spirit sets us apart. Those God chooses the spirit, sets them apart, pronouncing them holy. This is what some people call definitive sanctification, God's act of setting us apart. The scriptural image for this is a vessel and instrument that is designed and set apart and used for a specific holy purpose. And so Romans nine calls us vessels of mercy

prepared beforehand for glory or two Timothy, two vessels for honorable use. Set apart is holy, useful to the master of the house ready for every good work. Now, all throughout these letters, Paul is also interested in our progressive sanctification. That is our efforts to walk in holiness and to conform more and more to the image of Christ. But all of those efforts find their genesis right here in this definitive work of God, the spirit

wherein he snatches us from the fire and he sets us apart for a divine purpose. That's how God does it. He sanctifies us, he sets us apart and he also does it through belief or faith in the truth. It's by grace that you have been safe through faith and this is a gift of God. Now, notice how this belief or faith in the truth stands in contrast to what we mentioned before the activity of Satan. You see that again back in chapter two verse nine.

Satan's aim is to deceive. He's seeking to tap into our fallen nature and what is our fallen nature? Well, our natures want to suppress the truth in unrighteousness. And so Satan comes in and he incites us in our own rebellion. He seeks to convince us that his ways are right and good, and we know that part of God's judgment is to give us over to those things to give us up in that folly. You see that in verse 11 of this chapter

where God sends a delusion that we might believe what is false. This is God's judgment, but God's sovereignty also runs in the other direction as well. The God who gives us over is also the God who saves and he does it through belief in the truth. We need to believe and we need to believe the truth. And so if you believe tonight, it's because you've been sanctified and and if you have been sanctified, you will believe.

And that's how holiness in faith fit together. They're always bound together. You can never have one without the other. So God chooses and he does this supernatural work of salvation within us, by sanctifying us and by giving us faith to believe the truth. This salvation, this supernatural work of God to sanctify and to open our minds, to cause us to believe, Paul tells us is effectuated in real time when God calls us to himself through the gospel.

That's what you see in verse 14 to this, to this salvation. So this whole process of salvation, God's choosing us, his sanctifying us, our belief in the truth To this, we have been called through the gospel this this term here, this calling of God is what we sometimes call the effectual calling God's effectual calling. There's a a great one sentence definition of what this actually is. This is from the Westminster shorter ca catechism.

And here's, here's how it defines effectual calling effectual. Calling is the work of God's spirit whereby convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ and renewing our wills. He persuades us and enables us to embrace Jesus Christ as he's freely offered in the gospel. This is what he does when he calls us to him himself. He convicts us of our sin. He enlightens our minds to see and to value Christ.

He renews our wills. He gives us a new desire to know him. And from those three things, we are then able to see and to embrace Christ, we believe and we continue to believe. And Paul tells us all of that work, all of that supernatural work happens through the gospel that is the preaching of the gospel, telling people of this good news, explaining it to them. And as we're doing so, we're not just merely e uttering empty words.

There's power in these gospel words. The Holy Spirit uses these words, this gospel truth, to pierce our hearts, to bring conviction and to elicit a response of faith. Listen to how Paul explains all of this. This is from his first letter, first Thessalonians chapter one, verse four. There he writes, for we know brothers, beloved by God that he has chosen you. And here's the reason why. Because our gospel came to you not only in Word, but also in power

and in the Holy Spirit and full conviction. Friends, we live in evil days, don't need to convince you of that. But if you want to see others supernaturally changed by God, then we must be committed to sharing this gospel. This gospel is the power of God for salvation. This is how God supernaturally and effectually calls people to himself. Now notice the final aspect of salvation as we see it here in these verses. Verse 14. This is the culmination.

This is where it's all heading so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is glorification. What is glorification? Glorification is possessing. That's what that word obtain means. It's to possess it. You possess the glory of Christ. This glorification happens as we've already seen in these letters when we're raised up on that last day. And in being raised up, God open openly, acknowledges and declares that we are blameless in that day of judgment.

And from that moment on, we are made perfectly blessed to enjoy God forever. Friends, if you are a believer in Christ tonight, your identity is shaped from all of these wonderful benefits. You belong to God. You are loved to by God. You are saved from idolatry. You are saved from his wrath. You are sanctified for a holy purpose and you will be glorified on the last day. Notice quickly how all of this work, all of this

salvation is the work of the triune God. To save sinners. It's easy to, to read over it quickly. But notice the high Christology that's in this text. So right alongside of the Father in verse 16, we see the son, but but there's an emphatic himself that's that's given there, the son himself with the Father, the son is being elevated to the prominence of the Father. And then in verse 13, you see the spirit who is at work

with the father and the son to carry out the father's will, father, son, and spirit working together to save a people for himself. Friends, this is the eternal perspective that we need. That God is at work to save sinners. This is what will keep us sober minded, not rattled. This is what keeps us hopeful, not anxious or fearful. This is what will make us productive, not idle as we wait for the culmination of human history.

Secondly, and these would be much quicker, our ordinary obligation. So if that is our supernatural identity, what is our ordinary obligation? Well, you see verse 15 begins with this logical inference. So then, so here's, here's what comes, here's your obligation. So then based on what God has initiated and accomplished on our behalf, we are obligated to order our lives according to His grace. Now, I picked the word ordinary to define this obligation

to, to try to capture a bit of these two commands because you think about all that, we just covered all of these wonderful truths of God's salvation. And you might think, well, our marching orders should be to go out and storm the world and build a new future and let's just conquer everything and defeat our enemies, right? And those are, those can be good things in the right place. But notice what these commands say. Paul says, because of all of this truth,

because of this gospel, I want you to stand firm and hold fast. So stand still and just hold on tight. That's, that's all you get to do. Uh, probably not what you would expect for, for our obligation. And notice what Paul says to hold onto, he says the traditions again, not a very uh, flashy word. Hold onto the traditions. Well, Paul is not thinking here of maybe the way we're thinking of tradition. It's not the teachings of men, it's not cultural traditions

or even uh, church traditions. But rather Paul has something very specific in mind. He's saying here that these traditions are the traditions that you have been taught by us. And then he qualifies it either by what we spoke to you are spoken word or by our letter, he's referring back to the first book, first letter. And now even his second letter that he's writing, Paul says, stand firm in those things, stand firm in that truth.

Hold fast to those things. It reminds us of what he's already written in First Thessalonians two. And he says there that they receive the word of God, which they heard from Paul, from the apostles. And they accepted it not as the word of men, but what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. His spoken word and his letter is the apostolic gospel that they preached among these Thessalonians. And now Paul here is exhorting them to stand firm

and hold fast to this gospel. And you even see he uses this little pronoun in verse 14, he says, it's our gospel again, it's an indication he's thinking of this apostolic gospel. It's the gospel that Paul and Silas and Timothy and Peter and John and the other apostles as well. It's this gospel. They're all preaching the same gospel, the same Christ. And they're writing down their testimony and, and this testimony was even beginning to be circulated

among the churches. Paul is saying, hold fast to that. Don't, don't hold fast to these letters that others have written to you and you're not even sure where they came from. Hold fast to this truth, this gospel truth. Do not swerve from it. Do not redefine it. Do not soften it. Friends beware. If you find yourself being compelled by arguments that seek to fashion a new theology for the present day. Theological innovation is not a mark

of intellectual humility. It's our own pride and hubris to think that we should somehow reimagine the gospel to fit modern ears. And here's why this is significant. If, if we hold fast from anything that deviates from the testimony of this gospel, the full testimony of scripture, no matter how sincere the teacher, no matter how culturally acceptable the teaching, no matter how rational or how loving it may seem, we are deviating

from the power of God to save sinners. That's Paul's point, this gospel that has saved you hold fast to that. That's the only place. That's the only means whereby God is going to save sinners. So hold fast to it. So what should we do? And we look around and we see evil days. We see the activity of Satan. We see lawlessness being accepted as normal. We see evil being called good and good being called evil. We see the truth continually denied.

We see the Bible and the gospel seen as repressive or even immoral. What do we do when we see all of these things and and more pressing in on us from our own culture, right in our own streets reads well, Paul tells us our obligation is to stand firm on the truth of God's word. Hold fast to the truth and power of the gospel. Why? Because it's the power of God for salvation. It's the only means through which God brings life out of death.

It's the only way to be placed on the path of holiness and destined for glory. So friends, hold fast to this gospel and especially in the area of identity as we're thinking about it tonight. If you are in Christ, your ordinary obligation is to know who you are in Christ, to delight in God's work of salvation in your life, and to stand firm and hold fast to that gospel truth. So there's our ordinary obligation. Last notice our eternal confidence.

Our eternal confidence. What makes the Christian different is not just that we believe in the truth, but it's how we do it. We stand firm and we hold fast with what verse 16 tells us. We have eternal comfort and a good hope, eternal comfort, and a good hope. This is what makes us shine like light in the midst of a crooked generation, you love the truth. You stand fast, you hold fast to the truth, but you do it with an eternal hump, comfort and a good hope.

In a world of ever increasing culture shifts rampant confusion, political uncertainty, increasing anxiety about the future. The Christian life ought to be marked by the stability and the confidence of these two gospel graces, eternal comforts, and good hope. Friends, no matter what trials come your way, no matter what hardships or persecutions or afflictions, the father of mercies and God of all comfort is with us. His saving work in our lives comforts us

and reassures us that I am his and he is mine. Just as we were reminded of this morning, if God is for us who can be against us in Christ, we have something that the world does not have yet desperately wants eternal comfort and a good hope. And just think about those two adjectives, eternal and good. They they summarize for us the uniqueness and the beauty of the Christian faith. And it's one more reason why we ought to stand firm

and hold fast to this gospel. Where else can you go to? What else can you turn? Where can you find this same assurance and hope? Friends, it's only here in Christ and this offer is free to all. Come to him and receive him. Embrace Jesus Christ. But notice what Paul reminds us. Verse 16, this gift is through grace. You can't come with a heart that's proud with an attitude that is entitled with a mind, that's hostile to God.

No, we come with empty hands confessing that we are in depth to his mercy alone and having come to him and having received this eternal comfort and good hope. And as we stand firm and hold fast to the truth of this gospel, notice how our passage ends. Verse 17, two things. We work hard and we speak confidently. That's Paul's concluding prayer for them. May God establish your hearts in every good word and work. Paul here is reminding the Thessalonians,

they're the first fruits of God's saving work, which means there's more to come. There's more people that God is going to call to himself. But just as we saw, God does this through ordinary means. He does it through the proclamation of the gospel. And so Paul tells them they ought to get to work, they ought to share the gospel. They ought to work hard, they ought to speak often so that they would have the joy of being used by the Lord

as he's calling more people to himself. And this is our opportunity as well. The Christian life is not one of idleness. We work hard, we speak confidently because we know that God has more work to do. So let this be a challenge in an application for us to end with our words and our works are evidence of God's ongoing work within our hearts. So are you bearing witness to God's saving work within your heart by the way you live?

And also by the way you speak. The history of the world is one of Satan's deception, but it's also of God's great salvation. This is the eternal perspective. We need to endure evil days. And so be encouraged, be comforted, have the confidence that God out of his love and by his grace is calling people out of darkness. He's saving them. He's exchanging wrath for glory. He's inviting foes into his family. He's replacing hostility with love.

He's doing this supernatural saving work through the proclamation of this gospel. And so will you. Will I stand upon it? Will we hold fast to it even as the cultural winds may, may blow and cause us and and pressure us to stand somewhere else where we commit ourselves to work hard and to speak confidently of God's plan to save sinners to the end that more and more people will be counted as brothers and sisters in Christ, we are always to give thanks

that in the midst of evil days, God is still at work to save his people. Amen. Pray with me.

Father in heaven, we thank you for this wonderful truth and I pray that all of us here would leave with hearts and minds that would know the truth of your saving power and pray that you would comfort us and give us a good hope that we may work hard and speak often of Christ and have the confidence that you are working even in the midst of our evil days. And so would you encourage us and would you establish our hearts in this work?

We pray in Jesus name. Amen.