1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 (Part A)

This is a breathtaking moment. The coming of the Lord, the shout, a voice of an archangel, and a blast of a trumpet, and this is going to be unlike anything ever known before.

But when I say command, it's a command of execution. You know, ready, aim, fire. So a very exciting moment.

This is when it happens. This is the Lord saying to the church, come up. This is Cross Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of 1 Thessalonians. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross Reference Radio.

Specifically, how you can get a free copy of this teaching. And now, Pastor Rick's going to continue in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 on this edition of Cross Reference Radio. Let's open our Bibles to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. We will resume at verse 15. I have a brief introduction to this section that is probably helpful to both unbeliever and believer alike.

At least that's the plan. Now those of you who are students of the Word, you know the Bible is filled with fulfilled prophecies. There are those things that were foretold and they have come to pass. Peter, of course, points out to the believers that this is a big reason behind our faith and our trust in the Lord and the scripture. 2 Peter chapter 1 verse 19, Peter writes, so we have the prophetic word confirmed. And he means it's been fulfilled.

We've watched this and there's nothing else like this around. Where else are you going to find someone telling you about the future and then it coming to pass outside of scripture? Others may claim it, they just can't back it up. He continues, Peter does, he says, which you do well to heed, I love that, as a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Now we cannot continue examining what Peter has to say but we've extracted from that, I hope, enough to know that the scripture itself boasts of its power to fulfill those things which were told in advance. But much remains unfulfilled and much is being fulfilled right in our lifetime, right before our eyes. For example, well, the rebirth of the nation Israel, prophesied, done. Globalization, prophesied of, happening. It is done, it is happening, it will continue to happen.

There's much more of this to take place. The dawn of the nuclear age. You cannot have some of the prophecies fulfilled in the book of Revelation and Ezekiel without nuclear exchanges.

The rise of the Russian Islamic alliance. There has to be an alliance between those two to enter into Israel for Antichrist to wipe them out. Tough spot we're in, both of them against Christians. Who do you root for? You root for Christ. That's who you root for. You root for righteousness. But anyway, we see this taking place.

Why do you think Russia has her fingers so deeply embedded in Iran? Well, that's going to end up being expanded in prophecy. A sodomite society, prophesied of, happening. It's the new racism. You know, if you're not on with this, you're some sort of a bigot.

Call me a bigot, write my name down, bigot in Christ. Because if it's wrong, it's wrong. And not that we don't love the opportunity to share Christ with those in there, but we don't side with that.

Nor do we side with adultery or stealing or lying or murdering or bad haircuts. Anyway, technology, fulfilled. We cannot have some of the prophecies fulfilled in scripture without the expansion of technology. For instance, a global currency.

An ID system that belongs to that global currency. The apostate false church on a global level happening right before our eyes, in this country, in this neighborhood. And then global persecution of Christians who actually believe in Christ. These things are taking place, we're watching prophecy being fulfilled, and there's others, but that's not what we're going to limit our discussion for this morning. Now, some don't know these things because they listen to sources outside of Christ. They deserve better.

That doesn't mean they're going to get better. The choice is up to them. But there are people who listen, who get their information from unauthorized dealers of truth. Therefore, they're not dealing the truth.

They're doling out something else. You know, we don't go to church to learn accounting or engineering or various sciences. Don't go to the universities to learn Christ. That is the role of the church. Paul writes this in 1 Timothy, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourselves in the house of God. I love that because he's saying, you know, Christians don't just know this automatically.

They think they do. Because they survived another church, they think they know it. But what does the scripture say? And so then he continues, he says, how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, he's echoing Ecclesiastes, also Ecclesiastes 5, but he continues, which is the church of the living God, the pillar, the ground of truth. The church is where we learn the truth about human beings and their behavior. There are no auxiliary sources authorized by God. Paul instructed these Thessalonians in prophecy and in proper behavior and morality. You're not going to find morality lessons in the universities. They might call it that ethics committee. You got to be kidding me. Well, what we're coming to now is God's program for the day of man versus the day of the Lord.

Neither one of those are limited to a 24 hour period. The day of man has been going on since Nebuchadnezzar. Well, really, since the fall, but with the church involved and the Gentiles since Nebuchadnezzar. But it has been happening since the fall of Adam. The day of the Lord will begin to make visible reverses to this day. Starts with the rapture of the church, the extraction of the church. Fine, you don't want it, you're out of here.

They don't want you. No need for you now. That's what the rapture is about.

It is a statement. If you want to have it your ways, I'll turn you over to your own deceptions. Well, with that, we now come to the 15th verse of Thessalonians and Paul is now going to continue to school them on how things are going to wrap up in the end so that we will know how to behave right now. He says, for this we say to you by the word of the Lord that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. To give you a brief background on what's happening, he's talked to them about morality and persecution and now he's talking to them about what's going to happen in the last of the last days, the end times.

And he is going to give detail on the rapture all the way through the remainder of this letter and then he's going to resume that tribulation teaching in the second Thessalonian letter which we'll get after we've finished the first. But where he says, for this we say to you by the word of the Lord. These things I'm going to say to you about what's happening with the church, what will happen with the church in the end, they don't come from men. These things come from the Lord himself. You say, well where in the New Testament does the Lord teach this?

The only explicit place that removes the challenges because there are other verses that I think folks get a little confused and really don't apply to this except this verse. John chapter 14 verse 3, Jesus speaking to his disciples and beyond. Beyond the disciples who were there in front of him, he's speaking down through the generations.

He says, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am there you may be also. Well now this is fulfilled when we die, yeah, but also this is something that belongs to the church. Paul is going to open it up a little more where he says that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord. Well their concern was that the dead Christians in Thessalonica perhaps even killed in persecution.

What's going to happen to them? You know when you have a keen understanding of what the scripture teaches about the end times and you share that with someone, they don't get it in one sitting. It takes time to begin to put it together to draw out outlines and graphs and charts and try to get at what's happening and so you may find yourself having to explain over and over again just how the Bible lays out what's going to happen because it's scattered throughout various books and scripture. Well that's what Paul was up against. He had told them these things but they were still almost going to tell me again what's happening or what's going to happen to the dead and so he's now going over it with them again.

He's going to assure them in the second letter also. They're going to say there before Antichrist can be revealed the church has to be removed. Then Antichrist comes into power.

We have much to say about the beast and we won't say much about his little prophet who is just a monster but our focus is on Jesus Christ not Antichrist. But we still have to have a working knowledge of the scripture if we can get it. And so again where he says that we who are alive remain until the coming of the Lord. Believers who have not died will not die when the Lord comes back for the church because they leave this world through what is called the rapture.

Now we'll get into the word and the details of it and the precedence for it and illustrations of it and as we move forward. But why why will the church be extracted it was miraculously given to mankind at Pentecost that was a miraculous moment boom there was the church all of a sudden. The Jews couldn't even understand the prophets did not even understand the church didn't even see the church. Jesus began to release information about the church that houses Gentiles and Jew together and makes them no longer Gentile and Jew but Christians one in Christ without division. But why pull them out because there'll be no need it will be time for wrath and Paul is very careful and so is John in Revelation very careful to point out that the Lord will spare his church this time that will be trouble on earth such as never known before.

What about the flood of Noah was wet but jokes aside the flood of Noah was relatively instant compared to the seven year period of tribulation with three of them gone wild three and a half of them gone wild. But someone's going to be feeling it all the way through and so we'll try to comment on that again he continues in verse 15 he says will by no means proceed those who are asleep now that's a euphemism for those who have died in Christ believers who are already dead will be the first ones made ready. With their supernatural bodies given to them by the Lord and then those who are on earth and so he's breaking it down for them these things will happen in.

Twinkles of an eye however you can measure that. I don't know that you can in verse 16 he continues for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God in the dead in Christ will rise first. As I'm reading this I'm sort of like getting muscles I'm feeling stronger like I've had my spinach and about to flip over some tables it is such a glorious passage of scripture the Lord himself. That's how he starts out with this this is not going to be delegated this is a critical feature of what the church is all about. Brought on by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost brought up by the Lord Jesus himself says he will descend. This is still obviously a future event if it were not we would not be here. Now who gets left behind that attends church services or say they believe in the Lord.

Those who truly don't they're just playing games and they're very good at it. This should not cause you any concern because you blessed assurance you know the Lord you love the Lord. Many of you as have the Spirit of God your sons of God that should cause you courage. God is saying to you listen I treat you like an adult. I have so you have a matured faith as though that which I've poured into you mean something to you too.

Or would you rather me treat you like an infant all the time. No Lord we want to behave like men and women. We want to show that the Holy Spirit can develop us that we're not where we were five six years ago in our understanding. We may still have some of the same struggles take some of those struggles to our grave. That's as far as they go because they've been washed away by the blood of Christ. But he says he will descend the future event not the second coming. When the Lord descends he's coming for the church not for judgment on the world directly. Judgment will begin to happen. You know the seven seals the seven trumpets the seven bowls of the book of Revelation that is going to be unleashed. And I don't know why many otherwise good Christians don't see this it's inescapable to me.

It's been inescapable to many others also. But moving forward he says from heaven with a shout that's where he's coming from. Now again not sandals on the ground as there would be no need for the shout. But this word for shout is a command in the Greek command of execution. This is a breathtaking moment the coming of the Lord the shout a voice of an archangel and a blast of a trumpet. And this is going to be unlike anything ever known before.

But when I say command it's a command of execution. You know ready aim fire. So a very exciting moment this is when it happens this is the Lord saying to the church come up. Now as you read through the book of Revelation you'll find that there is a lot of angels who are thundering commands with loud voices. It's inescapable.

And it's very exciting. God is going to thunder these things going to let them go this summons to living believers to heaven without death. It accompanies the trump of God.

The rapture that's what he's talking about. I want to read Psalm 50 verse 5 gather my saints together to me those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice. Well first off before we get to the sacrifice the covenant is signed on our side with a single act repentance. Repentance is more than just OK I'm wrong.

It is much more than that. This is something that is deep down as deep as it can go inside of the individual that in a flash realizes who God is and who they are too. And when that happens in an instant you see the high and holiness of God in the low and dirtiness of a sinner. And you also see all at the same time God saying I'll fix this. That is true repentance. On God's side is written in high priestly blood of the sun.

Calvary Golgotha. Why would anyone cry foul about this? As though it were out of bounds and yet they do. They're all over the place. They're the majority. It's the world the definition of the world and the definition of the world may be better explained not by what they do but who they don't have. That's the world. Who they do not bow down to.

Who they don't want and understand as such were many of us. Where he says with the voice of an archangel. Well remember the excitement that belongs to this passage. How else is Paul to say it? This moment is going to be so powerful every Christian will hear it. I don't know that it will be something we we hear with the ear and I don't rule that out either. All I know is that I'll be going up and I got my position ready. I've got a few of them depending on how long it takes.

I mean how many poses can you strike in the twinkling of an eye? There'll be no time for that. Why not enjoy this teaching? Go be miserable then.

There's enough in life to be miserable about. Why not enjoy what the Lord promises or doubt? Go ahead and be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine because you doubt the good things.

And that's usually how it happens. They doubt the good things. A sense of guilt that has still got them. I know I'm guilty but I know that the blood is stronger than my guilt.

I know the cross of Christ deals with all that stuff and I don't need to put it under a microscope. I love it. That's all. I'm enjoying it.

And I plan to enjoy it until I am home in heaven. In the scripture, only in Jude 9 do we come across this archangel. And there it is in reference to Michael. But the word does not denote chief angel as much as it does say ruler of angels.

It's a leadership position. Now when you go into the book of Revelation, as I've been referencing this morning, you find that there are many mighty angels in the scripture. And I said that I'd get into this this week and here we are. And I want to take a couple of them from Revelation. The first one is in Revelation 5. Now remember, Revelation chapter 1 is the introduction to the book. You know who the characters are and which direction it's going to go in.

I'm going to speak to you with symbols. And he tells us that in the beginning of the book. Then in chapter 2 and 3, we have the church age on earth. But then suddenly in chapter 4, the church is in heaven. And so it is in chapter 5. The great tribulation period doesn't start until chapter 6. And through that narrative, running through chapter 19, the church is not mentioned. Because she's not on earth. Her absence is conspicuous. Well, here it says, Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals.

And so there's one, and you know, it would be nice to just continue reading these things, but we have more to do. But there's one example of another mighty angel. No indication of it being Michael, the archangel. The archangel mentioned in scripture. Then there's Revelation 18, then a mighty angel, verse 21, took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence the great city Babylon shall be thrown down and shall not be found anymore.

That's a pretty strong guy. Picks up a millstone, throws it into the sea. It's stated that way for us to understand that God has got creatures in heaven. That while they're puny to him, they're mighty to us. And then, my favorite one in Revelation 20. Oh, you know, Michael, he goes to war with the devil and he beats them up, and we get that in earlier chapters, but we cast Satan out of heaven.

Satan still has access to heaven, far as we understand, from the New Testament and from the Book of Job. And what is he? The accuser of the brethren. He is the prosecutor. He points to you.

You're guilty. God, deal with him. And the Lord says, He's one of mine. I have dealt with him. I washed him. Cleaned him up.

He's mine. And you can't touch him. Not spiritually.

Physically, well, that's another matter. God will use us for his purposes. But here in Revelation 20, John says, Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. And he cast him into the bottomless pit and shut him up and set a seal on him so that he should deceive the nations no more till a thousand years were finished. But after these things, he must be released for a little while. That might create more questions in some of your minds than relief. It's a good ending, let me just put it that way, for all of us who believe and have to worry about these events. But I bring this section up to point out there are other mighty angels.

I mean, how strong do you have to be to grab Satan and lock him up and throw him into a pit? I mean, I want to be there for that. There have been times I say, I don't care. I don't want to be there. But then there are other times I like to see it from a distance.

I have binoculars. But anyway, you get the idea. So what he says with the voice of an archangel, he's not saying it is the archangel, but it's thunderous. Now, will there be archangels involved?

Maybe. They have been involved throughout Scripture. Not worth arguing, but it sure is exciting to explore the possibilities. And so you will find these things difficult to believe if you have a tiny God. If you have a homemade God, these things will be too much for you. You will believe other stupid things, though.

You have no problem with those. But when it comes to God, ooh, well, suddenly he can't be God. That's why you lost. That is your position. You have a problem within the beginning, God created. I just don't get it. Even people who believe in the evolution of the species, it's childish. It is more than childish. A child wouldn't even figure that out.

A child can look at the dog and cat running around the house and say, those aren't my parents. In spite of other similarities. And yet I'm a scientist. Well, let me just bow down to you.

Go get your lab coat. It's no slight on the good ones, but the bad ones. They are duped by Satan.

They are lost souls. Thanks for tuning in to Cross Reference Radio for this study in the book of 1 Thessalonians. Cross Reference Radio is the teaching ministry of Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia. To learn more information about this ministry, visit our website, crossreferenceradio.com. Once you're there, you'll find additional teachings from Pastor Rick. We encourage you to subscribe to our podcast. When you subscribe, you'll be notified of each new edition of Cross Reference Radio. You can search for Cross Reference Radio in your favorite podcast app as well. That's all we have time for today, but we hope you'll join us next time as Pastor Rick continues to teach through the book of 1 Thessalonians right here on Cross Reference Radio.