Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20020609.htm

1 THESSALONIANS: STRENGTHENING CHRISTIANS
Part VII: Settled CHURCH Life In View Of The Pretribulation Rapture
(1 Thessalonians 5:12-15 with 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

On May 31st, after our message on the Rapture out of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, we held an unofficial congregational meeting in Fellowship Hall to discuss our Church's ministries. That meeting became critically important in view of the spiritual needs we face:

(1) In our world, while we met, (a) Pakistan and India faced each other while the media spoke of a possible nuclear war between them. (b) Then, a story was preparing to break on more CEO dishonesty problems in a major American company. (c) Hence, as has been typical since mid-2000, the market dropped sharply on June 3rd.

(2) Yet, the Evangelical community around also has great spiritual need: Michael Horton, a contributor to the book, The Coming Evangelical Crisis, notes the non-Christian news media has written of the drift in Christians toward secularization: (a) for months in 1995, Newsweek "asked churches why sin and forgiveness have been thrown overboard for more psychological and seeker-sensitivie' themes" and (b) "Time reminded us of the Resurrection and asked us why it is no longer central (or, for that matter, believed by all who call themselves Christians)." (c) A "cover story of U.S. News and World Report was on the commercialization of evangelical Christianity" (Ibid., p. 245). Horton summarized, "The unregenerate may not understand the things of the Spirit of God (1 Cor. 2:14), . . . [but] they can tell when the church and the world are no longer distinguishable." (Ibid., p. 246)

(3) However, our May 30th Church meeting took on its greatest import in light of issues within our own body: (a) At the June 5th Wednesday Prayer service, we became engulfed in prayer requests of dire need in the lives of our Church families. (b) Then, after that Prayer service, the Board met and among a number of other issues discussed special needs in our Sunday School and VBS ministries. (c) One of our deacons summarized it well when he told me after our May 30th meeting, "There's no way we can address all of the needs brought up tonight in our next Board meeting!"



So, in VIEW of the CRITICAL IMPORT of our Church's ministries in THIS age before the Rapture of the Church, what does GOD desire of US as a BODY NOW?

(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )

Need: "As I see growing spiritual apostasy in our world or even in the Evangelical community as we head toward Christ's return, HOW does God want ME to FUNCTION for blessing in MY CHURCH?"
  1. After writing about the Pretribulation Rapture in his letter to the Thessalonians (1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11), Paul QUICKLY turned his attention to REGULAR CHURCH matters in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-15, cf. Bible Knowledge Commentary, New Testament, p. 707.
  2. In DOING so, he noted GOD'S WILL for INDIVIDUAL believers in the CHURCH in VIEW of the END of the age, 1 Thess. 5:12-15:
    1. In view of the coming rapture, God wants individual believers to appreciate and esteem in love those leaders who labor to minister God's Word to them, for their ministry deserves as much:
      1. The KJV word, "know" in 5:12 carries the vernacular meaning of "appreciate, respect" as Moulton & Milligan testify exists in secular papyrii, cf. The Vocabulary of the Greek New Testament, p. 440; Hendriksen, I-II Thessalonians, p. 134, ftn. 102.
      2. The phrase "esteem they very highly"(KJV) in verse 13 actually conforms to our idiom as the NIV has it, "hold them in the highest regard," cf. UBS Greek New Testament, p. 711.
      3. Those who are to be thus appreciated and held in highest regard are those who (a) labor (kopiontas) (b) among the congregation, who (c) are overseers and who (d) "put (their brothers) in mind (noutheteo from nous [mind] and tithaymi [put, place]) to obey God's ordinances," Ibid., Hendriksen. (5:12-13b) (brackets ours)
      4. This appreciation and esteem is to be done in love, 1 Thess. 5:13a.
      5. Summary: In view of the rapture, God calls any child, youth or adult in the Church who is taught in a Sunday School or VBS class or from the pulpit from God's Word to appreciate and esteem in love that teacher-overseer as their ministry is deserving of it.
    2. In view of the rapture, God wants the congregation to be at peace with these teacher-leaders rather than always criticizing them, 5:13b:
      1. The command to be at peace among themselves in 1 Thess. 5:13b is given in connection with the first part of verse 13, Ibid., p. 135.
      2. That being so, the congregation is called by God to cease always criticizing its teacher-leaders who minister God's Word.
      3. Thus, the ministry of the Word is so important in these latter days of apostasy that everything must be done to nurture teacher-leaders to keep at the ministry of the Word so the Church body can be fed!
    3. In view of the rapture, God wants each believer in the body to minister to those in their midst who are in spiritual need, 5:14-15:
      1. Spiritually needy believers in the body often tend toward sins of disorderliness (ataktos, rendered "unruly" (KJV) or "idle" (NIV)), faintheartedness (holigopsuchos, translated as "feebleminded" (KJV) or "timid" (NIV)) or moral weakness (asthenays, translated "weak" (KJV, NIV), Ibid., p. 135-136.
      2. Thus, each member of the congregation is to admonish the disorderly, encourage the fainthearted and help the weak, 5:14a, being careful to be PATIENT with all three groups of needy believers as they need TIME to be discipled, 1 Thess. 5:14b.
    4. In view of the rapture, God wants every believer to avoid repaying evil for evil to any who wrong him, but to do good to instead, whether this involves wrongdoers in or outside the Church, 5:15.
Application: (1) In light of the PREtribulation Rapture and the accounting we will all make to God, we must trust in Christ as Savior from sin to be placed into the TRUE spiritual BODY of Christ, John 3:16; Colossians 1:12-14, 18. (2) Once we thus belong to Christ, and are thus EQUIPPED by the indwelling Holy Spirit to LIVE a godly life (Romans 8:1-4; Gal. 5:16-22), we must (a) confess any post-salvation sins we do to be equipped for holy living (1 John 1:9; 1:6-7) and (b) rely on the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:16) to (c) HEED Paul's directives given us in 1 Thess. 5:12-15. (3) Though there are many OTHER Scriptures to heed, heeding this passage helps us START to HEAD in the WAY that GOD wants us to go for blessing in view of the coming rapture!

Lesson: In view of our era's growing apostasy and in view of its signal of our growing closeness to the Rapture of the Church, GOD calls INDIVIDUAL CHRISTIANS in the LOCAL CHURCH to (1) NURTURE their leader-teachers who teach God's Word with esteem so they will be encouraged to KEEP ON protecting the flock with sound ministries. (2) God then calls EVERY believer in the Church to HELP spiritually needy people in their midst with APPROPRIATE discipling, and (3) for EVERY MEMBER to REPAY GOOD for EVIL done to him or her, whether it involves relationships within the Church or outside of it! >

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 In view of 1 Thessalonians 5:12-15, we can make appropriate applications in these days before the Rapture when the world, Evangelicals and even we as a BODY are in great spiritual need:

(1) In view of these last days and in light of our coming accountability to God for our lives, God wants all the children, youth and adults in our Sunday School classes or worship services to attend the appropriate meetings to heed God's Word and honor those who teach it unto them! (1 Thessalonians 5:12-13a)

(2) In view of these last days and in light of our coming accountability to God for our lives, God wants every child, youth or adult in our body to avoid needless criticism of his Church leaders, Sunday School teachers or VBS teachers, etc. and to esteem them very highly so they will be motivated to study Scripture and to minister God's truth unto them. (1 Thessalonians 5:13b)

(3) In view of these last days and in light of our coming accountability to God for our lives, God wants every believer in our body who sees a fellow attender struggling with self-discipline problems, or with fear in his life or who faces overwhelming temptations to sin to move along side and Biblically supply what admonishment, encouragement or assistance the weaker brother needs, and to do so with love and patience. (1 Thessalonians 5:14)

(4) In view of these last days and in light of our coming accountability to God for our lives, God wants each member of the body who feels he has been wronged by anyone in or outside of the Church not to take revenge, but instead Biblically to do good to that party who has wronged him! (1 Thessalonians 5:15)

(5) In view of these last days and in light of our coming accountability to God for our lives, God wants each of us in the body not to assume "somebody else" will address a need he sees that he can rightly, Biblically address, but take responsibility for what he can do to help out, and to perform it! (1 Thessalonians 5:13b-15 implied)