Stop the Madness, Part II

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
Cascades Fellowship CRC, JX MI
July 13th, 2003

Last week, I mentioned that “End Times Fever” was nothing new to the Christian

church. Listen to this list which gives expression to that very point – (read article on list

of end times misfires).

Pretty frightening stuff, if you ask me. Possibly the most frightening are the ones

that become self-fulfilling prophecies, like the Branch Davidians. Another disturbing

trend that comes with an end times obsession is reactionary behavior. As the year 2000

approached, numerous articles began appearing about the preparations some Christians

were making in reaction to all the doomsday prophecies that surfaced during that time.

Unfortunately, they made compelling reading – the public loves an earnest fool – and

were just general enough for all of Christianity to be implicated. Here are some excerpts

from such an article – (read article excerpts).

Now, lest you think that we in the Reformed faith – who certainly know better –

are immune to such nonsense, listen to this article.

As demonstrated in the three articles I just read, end times fanaticism is a powerful

influence in the life of many. Those captivated by its titillation often act in bizarre and

nonsensical ways. I heard of people in the year 2000 that emptied their bank accounts of

tens of thousands of dollars and hid their cash stash somewhere in the house. And then

spent the rest of their savings on large stores of canned goods, gas-powered generators

and 55 gallon drums of fuel. Others sold all they had, believing that on January 2 they
would have no need for material riches. As I noted last week, such preoccupation with

end times prophecies often leads to a scandalous waste of resources and time.

In our passage this morning Paul writes to the Thessalonians and says that about

times and dates he did not need to write to them, for they knew very well that the day of

the Lord will come like a thief in the night. Time and dates. The real centerpiece of the

end times furor. Trying to nail down times and dates is the passionate core of much

research and biblical study on the end times or the field of theological study known as

eschatology.

The word eschatology literally means “the study of last things.” In other words,

studying the Scriptures to discern or glean how things end up. And Paul, true to the form

he demonstrated in the previous passage refuses to speculate on what the Scriptures

themselves are silent about – times and dates.

Can I offer you the final and definitive word on this matter? Turn with me in your

Bibles to Matthew 24:36. “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels

in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Folks, this is Jesus speaking here. Note

that there are no qualifiers, no exceptions, no caveats. Jesus says “No one knows….”

He doesn’t say that as the time draws near he will give some special visions, insights or

words of prophecy to help narrow down the date. He doesn’t say that you will be able to

read the current events like a time map and therefore guestimate when he is returning. It

is significant that Jesus makes this statement about no one knowing immediately after he

talks about the signs leading up to the end times. When he says no one, he means no

one. Can we please just accept Jesus at his word and drop the whole discussion on times
and dates? Can we please stop watching every political and cultural shift in the nation of

Israel and start paying attention to our own culture so that we can discern how best to

present the Gospel to the people in our own community. If those who spend so much

energy and time on noting so called “signs” and how they fit into the overall end-times

scenario spent that time and energy on studying their own community and how the

Gospel communicates in their immediate culture we could see a veritable great

awakening. All efforts to forecast a time frame, a date, a period, a window of

opportunity, whatever you want call it is utter foolishness in the face of Jesus’ own words.

That’s what Paul means when he says he doesn’t need to write about dates and times. To

do so would engage in idle speculation – a practice that way too often leads to error.

So why does Paul carry on the conversation and why do we have a sermon this

morning called “Stop the Madness, Part II?” Because there are two sides to the hope that

Paul wants to convey to the Thessalonians. In the previous passage, Paul comforted the

Thessalonians concerning those who had died before the return of Christ. In this passage

he explains what it means to live in the times before Christ’s return.

Now whether Paul is addressing a particular concern of the Thessalonians –

perhaps some among them lived in fear of the return of Christ because of the x-factor

involved, the unknown element – or he is just naturally following a line of thought, the

Scriptures do not make clear. What is important to note though is that Paul immediately

(as we have already talked about) turns the Thessalonians away from idle and worthless

speculation and jumps right into what is the only critical thing to know about the timing

of Christ’s return. It will come like a thief in the night.

 Jesus in Luke 12:35-46 warns of this very thing. Using a parable concerning a

master who is returning, expecting all to be ready for a wedding feast, Jesus teaches his

listeners that the servant who his master finds ready and waiting will be greatly rewarded.

But the servant who says, “Aw, he ain’t coming today. I’ll get ready tomorrow,” will be –

and this is the image Jesus uses – cut to pieces and assigned a place among the

unbelievers. The Lord’s return will be like a thief coming. If the master of the house had

known at what hour the thief was coming, he would made sure the cops were there to

arrest the culprit!

That’s how Paul says the return of Christ will be for those who do not know Christ

– who do not believe he will return. Like a thief. They will be saying to themselves

“peace and safety” thinking that their existence will continue in the circle of life they

have come to expect and take for granted. As Jesus warned in Matthew 24, people will

be getting married, life will be going on in the cycles we have become accustomed to –

when bam! Jesus will return. And they will never see the danger of continuing to reject

Christ; it will never cross their mind that their days are numbered. The hour of escape –

the time allotted to believe on the name Jesus Christ – will pass and the only thing left for

them will be judgment.

Note, I have just said more than Paul writes to the Thessalonians. He says nothing

of judgment in the sense of who God’s wrath will be poured out against. He only says

that we who are in Christ will not suffer wrath. But he never speaks specifically in this

passage on the judgment coming for those who reject Christ. Instead he concentrates on

what Christ’s return means for believers.

 Look at what he says in v.4-6 of our text.

But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise
you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do
not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like
others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.

If no one knows the day or the hour, how can we not be surprised by it? Because,

though we do not know the timing, we do know it is coming. So what Paul is implying

by saying that we will not be surprised is we need to be ready at all times.

In Matthew 25 Jesus tells the parable of the ten virgins who are waiting for the

bridegroom. None of the virgins know when the bridegroom will arrive. It would be

easy for all of them to think to themselves, “Our Lord tarries. I have time to get things in

order. I’ll trim my lamp and get oil another day.” But five of them maintain a vigilant

watch – they take oil out with them to keep their lamps alight throughout the night. The

other five take a chance – they don’t prepare. Suddenly the word goes out that the

bridegroom is approaching and the foolish virgins are running out of oil. While they are

away trying to procure some more oil for their lamps, the bridegroom arrives – they are

surprised and excluded from the wedding feast. The wise virgins who had oil with them

are not surprised and go into the wedding feast.

When Paul says that we who believe in Christ will not be surprised, he is not

saying it is possible to know the date and time; he is saying that we know for certain that

he is coming and we can be prepared for his arrival.

Again, it is worth noting that the parables Jesus tells immediately after the one

concerning the virgins. He first tells the parable of the talents – it matters what you do
with the gifts and resources God has entrusted to you. How you use them defines the sort

of servant you are – in the words of Christ “good and faithful or worthless.” The parable

after that is about the sheep and the goats. The good and faithful servants are identified

by the works that they do in Christ’s name. Despite the fact that the Lord tarried, they

remained vigilant, doing the work he set them to.

Michael Holmes, in the NIV Application Commentary on 1&2 Thessalonians says

“In short, Paul is calling us to stay alert and to keep busy: to conduct ourselves as though

Jesus may return soon (he might), and to minister as though his coming may be delayed

indefinitely (which it might). Practically speaking, this is a matter of combining a short-

term attitude with long-term planning…To summarize, Paul wants us to plan to minister

for the long haul, but to do so with the attitude he shared with James: ‘If it be the Lord’s

will, we will live and do this or that.’”

So how do we prepare? How do we keep from being surprised? How do we have

a short-term attitude with long-term planning? I suggest three things. The first is that we

should live in anticipation, not apprehension.

Let me ask what may sound like a silly question. Of the people here that are or

have been married, how many of you really enjoyed your wedding day? And I mean

enjoyed it while you were going through it, not on reflection and looking back. One of

the saddest things to hear is how a bride or groom cannot wait for the wedding to be over

– and not so that they can get to the honeymoon. They want the wedding over so that

they can relax. Every muscle, every nerve is strained with anxiety – apprehension. The
couple – particularly the bride – wants every detail to go perfectly and they live through

the wedding ceremony in the constant fear that something will go wrong.

We can do the same in our Christian walk. We can become so wrapped up in

trying to determine if something fits into our prophetic scheme that our anticipation of

Christ’s return turns to apprehension. We start focusing on details and forget the big

picture. To help refocus our vision, allow me to draw the big picture again.

As I stated before, we are not destined for wrath. Do you know what that means?

Salvation! Instead of experiencing the unmitigated wrath of God, we experience peace

with him. Instead of enmity with God we experience love – eternal love that nothing can

separate us from. Not even death – as we learned last week. But there is more to the big

picture. Because we are preserved for salvation in Jesus Christ, the coming of Jesus will

mark a progression to a level of friendship and fellowship with Jesus Christ not seen

since the Garden of Eden. Get this, we will know full, uninterrupted, uncorrupted

intimate fellowship with God. No sin will stand in the way our service to him. Talk

about something incredible to anticipate! To finally live faithfully before God without

the struggle against sin. That’s the big picture – something to really look forward to.

The second thing I’d like to suggest is that we be self-controlled. Paul says in v.8

says that being self-controlled is “putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the

hope of salvation as a helmet.” In other words, rather than following after the sinful

nature in drunkenness and debauchery, in greed and lust, in hatred and violence let us do

the things in keeping with our faith in Christ. If you need a short list of what that looks

like how about this, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your
mind and all your strength and love your neighbor as yourself.” Recall often your

redemption in Christ and let it become a spring of gratitude overwelling in you onto

works that show the fruit of righteousness. Engage God’s Word, approach him in prayer,

and fellowship with him among the saints to know his will and then do it.

The final thing I want to suggest as a way of preparing ourselves is to study long

and hard Lord’s Day 1. What is my only comfort in life and in death? That I belong

body and soul to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. I don’t know if you have ever sat down

and really thought about the truth of that statement, but you really should. The first

question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism is a compendium in itself of biblical

truth and doctrine. It assures us of one thing – it captures one central truth of the

Scriptures – that our lives are hidden in Christ and in him we are secure.

Security is a tenuous thing these days. Shifts in the stock market, terrorist attacks

and warnings, new diseases that defy conventional treatment all vie for our concern – a

piece of our anxiety. Nothing seems secure. The truth is, we live under the illusion of

“peace and safety” everyday when in reality we enjoy very little of either. True security –

the security that allows us to live in anticipation – comes only through Christ. Take some

time to absorb Lord’s day 1 into your heart and mind. For it is when we are secure in

Christ that we are able to truly live in anticipation of his coming again.

It is an easy thing to get caught up in the temptation – and that is precisely what it

is – of trying to read the signs of the times to declare if this is the day, month, year or era

of Christ’s return. Let’s not be so apprehensive about the future return of Jesus that we

neglect what he has called us to be – a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people
meant to be a blessing to the nations through the proclamation of the gospel. Instead,

dwell on your security in Christ – in life or in death. Then live in the joyful anticipation

of his return.