1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18
The Coming of the Lord
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
REVELATION 20:11-15
The Dead Are Judged
Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
General testing for a student can follow only a limited number of pathways. Perhaps the student’s favorite is the essay variety. With such you are given the liberty of discussing what you know about an issue. Some teachers prefer multiple choice with more than one approach. You are given the question and must discern whether none of the answers, all of the answers, or any number of the answers are correct or incorrect. Lastly are true or false statements. This last approach may be simple or difficult depending upon the wording of the question.
The true/false method of questioning becomes infinitely more difficult if conducted in an oral fashion rather than a written one. A professor choosing to give such a test usually is merciful enough to read the question twice.
My medical school class was seated in a pathology lab, taking such an oral test over 50 years ago. The room was as still as 50 people could be. The subject matter was difficult and the difficulty was compounded by the oral format. The ringing of a half-dollar dropped on the marble countertop broke the tomblike silence. The metal coin sang for what seemed to be an eternity before it came to rest. It had slipped from the grasp of a student named Sam who was nervously turning it over in his hand as the answers were read. The professor produced a laugh by commenting, “Sam, at least wait until I finish the question before you flip your coin.” As a class, we needed a laugh for the subject matter was extensive and oral true/false questions are very difficult. Confusion can reign supreme. Keeping facts straight at such a time is difficult. Separating truth from falsehood is critical.
This morning’s scriptures concern what is true and what is false concerning what happens to us when we die. They outline two resurrections. The first, the passage from the letter to the Thessalonians deals with those who have “fallen asleep in Him.” The “Him” in this instance is Jesus. The sleep referred to here is physical death. All men die. The answer is “True.” An associated question is ‘Do all men fall asleep in Jesus.’ The answer is “ No.”
The Bible does not offer universal salvation. Physical life requires a choice. The classic examples are the thieves on the adjoining crosses who are crucified with Jesus. The one chooses to taunt and ridicule Jesus. The other declares the character of Jesus and requests (Luke 23:42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”). To this Jesus responds that on that very day, he will be with him in paradise. The reference is to the soul of the thief (eternal essence.) This man’s bodily resurrection awaits the 2nd coming of Christ. He is to be bodily resurrected at this time. His sins since he is a trusting, confessing sinner were judged on Jesus as they both hung on crosses. (Colossians 2:13-14 when you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.) The charges of the confessed were nailed to the cross and Jesus took the punishment on both His body and His soul for them. They require no further legal action. Confessed sins are covered and removed from the memory of God by the blood of Christ, forever. When believers are resurrected in the first resurrection and are given a fit spiritual body for eternity, they stand before Jesus, not to be judged a second time, but to be rewarded for righteous deeds done in the name of Jesus.
John, in the Book of Revelation of Jesus, tells us of an awful event known as the Great White Throne Judgement. Books are opened and the scene is one of judgement. Standing before this throne are those who have identified with the non-repentant thief on the cross. They have seen no value in a dying Savior and have decided to deal with eternity based on their own merits. As a result they will be charged with every breach of God’s law, whether by deed or thought. No one can withstand such a judgment. Nothing is hidden and no excuses will serve as a justification for past disobedience. There will be many good people who will stand before this judgment bar. They will have no legitimate defense for their past sins. Since God is eternal and Creator, judgment before Him results in eternal punishment. No one is righteous before God unless cleansed by the blood of the Christ.
So, what does this say to each of us who will be some day resurrected from the grave? Salvation by the confession of sin before God results in the covering of sin by the blood of Christ. No sin escapes this purging action. Salvation is assured. Without the salvific action of the Savior’s blood, all must appear before the Great White Throne and a convicting judgment.
There are many false gods in this world, but none of them goes with you to eternity. Only Jesus is already there, waiting for our arrival.