Turn again with me in God's Word to 2 Thessalonians chapter 1, and looking at verses 5 to 12 in particular. Last week we saw that the return of Christ at the end of the world will bring justice, that he will come and destroy the wicked, that he will come and bring vengeance. We examined some of that, of the punishment, eternal punishment given by the consuming fire in hell. But today I want us to look at the positive side of judgment, where Christ judges for his people and where he brings blessings to his people on that day. We have something to look forward to if we're trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ. For the Thessalonians, we see in verse four that they were suffering persecution. They were enduring. God had given them the grace to endure, but they certainly were not having an easy time. Don't let anyone tell you that you become a Christian and your life will simply be easy. It won't. In fact, becoming a Christian makes your life harder in many ways. Because you have to stand up for righteousness, and that comes at a cost. And these Thessalonians had discovered that. But God is the righteous judge. He would not allow his cause to be extinguished. He would show his justice in due time. And there's a phrase here used in verse five, but also in verse 11, about being considered worthy. Look at verse five. that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are also suffering. And then in verse 11, to this end, we always pray for you that our God may make you worthy of his calling. The worthiness of the Thessalonians and indeed the worthiness of Christians. What does this phrase mean? Well, it certainly doesn't mean that the Thessalonians were worthy of grace. We are not, and we never will be worthy of what Christ has done for us. By nature, we were born in sin. We were considering this in the adult Bible class today. We were conceived in sin, brought forth in iniquity. We had original sin, a fallen, depraved, crooked, twisted nature. In our heart was sin. And so out of that sinful heart comes sinful actions, sinful words, sinful thoughts. There was nothing in us worthy of Christ's love or affection. Yet, whilst we were without strength, Christ died for the ungodly. He didn't die for those people he thought were favorable to the gospel. He didn't die for those people who he thought there's a prospect that they might repent and turn. No, he died for ungodly people. Yes, his elect people, chosen in grace, but ungodly, wretched sinners, hell-deserving sinners. It's love and it's grace. that makes a difference. And isn't that at the heart of the gospel? You and I are not worthy, and we never can make ourselves worthy. Do as much as you want in the church. You will not be worthy of what Christ has done. And so this phrase, to be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, does not in any way imply merit, that we deserve a place in the kingdom of God, that we deserve a place amongst the royalty of the kingdom at the royal table of our king. Now, rather the point here is that the Thessalonians were living in such a way that was fitting for citizens of the kingdom to live. They were living in such a way that was fitting for people who had been called by God. In other words, there was a consistency between who they said they were and what they did. There was a consistency with their heavenly calling and how they lived. There was a consistency between their being a citizen of the kingdom of heaven and how they lived. They weren't living as citizens of the kingdom of darkness. They were no longer living that way. They had abandoned their former ways. They'd repented of it and had turned 180 degrees away from that sinful way to be citizens of the kingdom of God and to live in a way that was fitting. And that was evidenced particularly by their willingness to suffer. At the end of verse five, you see it. They're considered worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are also suffering. The Thessalonians were not fair weather friends of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know what a fair weather friend is? It's someone who's with you as long as times are easy, but as soon as it becomes hard, they abandon you. That's not the way the Thessalonians were with Christ. They were determined to stick with Christ, to remain loyal to him through thick or thin. If the government legalized Christianity, if the government paid for ministers of the gospel to preach, if the government established the reformed faith as indeed they're meant to do, they would follow Christ. But if the government took the other task, to persecute, to afflict, to burn them with fire, to destroy their bodies, no matter how hard it got, the Thessalonians were determined that they would continue steadfast as Christians, no matter their circumstances, no matter what happens, they would be true. And that's the point. That shows that they were considered worthy of the kingdom of heaven. And so the question for us is, are we to be considered worthy of the kingdom of heaven? We have things fairly easily. in comparison to the Thessalonians. But is there that determination within you to live faithful to Christ, no matter what the cost? There will be days in which it's easier to live for Christ than others. But are you determined that, come what may, that you're living for him, and that you're willing even to suffer? The Christian life will be hard. Some of you experience it in your families. You maybe have an unbelieving spouse. And when it comes to the things of the faith, when it comes to talking about going to church or activities that you want to be involved with at the church, it is very hard for you. And things are said to you that should not be said. And you are suffering as a Christian. Does that suffering show? Doesn't it show that you're counted worthy of the kingdom of God? Doesn't it show that you're living consistently with your Christian faith, because if you didn't have any of that, well then questions would be raised. Are you really determined not to compromise at all? It's the easiest thing in the world to compromise, isn't it? It's the easiest thing in the world to try to fit in with the people we're around. If they're not a Christian, to just compromise here and there, to take off the rougher edges of the Christian faith. in order not to offend, in order that they won't laugh at us or mock us. The Christian life is hard, but the way to deal with it is not by compromise. And that's what Paul is showing us here. There are things that we can believe, things that give us hope about the future, that enable us to face hardships in the here and now. And that's what we want. Do you find it hard at school? Do you find it hard in the workplace? Do you find it hard at home? Do you find it hard being part of this society in which we live, in which Christianity is mocked and ridiculed? Well, then look at what Paul is saying here, because there is hope for us. And particularly, he wants you and me to focus on the hope on the last day, the day in which King Jesus returns. Yes, we saw last week There's the judgment he will bring against the wicked. If those people who have mocked you and have hurt you and slandered you, if they don't turn to Christ for their salvation, well, they will be judged. But that's not enough to give comfort, is it? That's only half of it. That's only one side of the coin. There's this side. What will King Jesus do for you and for me in that day? And the first thing that we notice in this passage is that he brings comfort. He brings relief. Verse seven, to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven. He brings relief. This life is a life filled with afflictions. Every single person in this world will at some point face an affliction. something sore, painful, or hard to deal with. It's common to all men, Christian or not. And heaven will give relief to all these afflictions. Have you had crippling pain in your body? That will be gone in heaven. Have you suffered mentally on earth? There will be a glorious relief in heaven. suffered bereavement, that will be gone in heaven, the pain of it will be gone. There's rest for us. As we're told, there remains rest, a Sabbath rest for the people of God. There's a glorious rest. But this passage isn't focusing just on these common afflictions that happen to all of us and to everyone. It's focusing specifically on the afflictions that Christians face because they are Christians. You see that in the passage itself. You see that they're suffering because they're afflicted by these wicked people. You see it's those who do not obey the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ that are doing the afflicting. And it's this that there is a glorious relief from. Christians suffer because they are Christians. Because we're told by Jesus, deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me. We must first of all deny ourselves, mustn't we? We must deny ourselves sin. We must cut off sin entirely. No sin may be enjoyed by us as Christians. We must put it to death. We're at war with sin. And even though there is a passing pleasure in sin, we are to deny ourselves those passing pleasures. The world may enjoy them, but we are to say no to them. No matter what we think we may gain by sin, deny yourself, Jesus says. We deny ourselves other things. We sometimes deny ourselves things that we have a legitimate right to, but we give them up for the sake of Christ, to serve other people, to show love. It's inconvenient, isn't it, to be hospitable? It's inconvenient to show mercy. We can have that, we spoke about it in the Bible class, that selfishness, to think just about ourselves. But sometimes we have to deny ourselves, to look not only after our own interests, but to look after the interests of others. And so the Christian life is one of self-denial. But it's also one of taking up your cross. The cross is something to die on. The cross is a symbol of execution. And the cross is a symbol of suffering, of persecution. Jesus was persecuted ultimately by having to bear his cross and to die on it. He suffered at the hands of lawless men. Now, we may not have to take up a physical cross, but there is a form of suffering that we will all face for the gospel's sake, suffering, persecution for the kingdom of heaven. and we'll have to bear our cross. We have to be willing to publicly show ourselves as Christians, not to hide away and pretend, oh, I'm not a Christian, I'm not part of this, I don't really believe these things. No, we have to do as Jesus did, to bear our cross and walk through the streets outside Jerusalem, where he went outside the gates to be crucified. We deny ourselves, we take up our cross, And we follow Christ. We follow his word. We follow his instructions. Wherever he takes us, whatever he tells us to do, that we do for his sake. And all of that brings suffering, doesn't it? It would be easier to sin. It would be easier to compromise. It would be easier to evade the persecution by simply being quiet and not confessing our beliefs so publicly. But yet the Christian life is one of suffering. But here gloriously in this passage, Paul tells us that although now is the time to suffer, on the last day, verse seven, Jesus will grant relief. This word relief, I want you to imagine that someone ties a knot in a rope, okay, or ties you up in a knot. This relief is the untying of the knot. Imagine the knot is being pulled tighter and tighter and tighter, and you're feeling the effects of it. Jesus brings relief. Think of the knot being tied around you, the anxiety it brings, the pain it brings, the suffering it brings, and it just comes tighter and tighter and tighter, and you feel, I can't breathe, I can't continue on. But on the last day, the Lord Jesus will grant glorious relief and untie this knot. When he's revealed, he will personally wipe away every tear from your eyes. No more mourning, no more crying, no more pain. The affliction you now face for being a Christian will be light and momentary in comparison to what is to be revealed. Dear friends, can you endure what you're suffering as a Christian now with the prospect that the Lord Jesus Christ will personally wipe away every tear that that suffering has brought to you? Can you endure even for a bit longer this light and momentary affliction knowing that the Lord Jesus will comfort you himself in heaven personally? Maybe even there's a sense in which we'll get to heaven and wish that we had suffered more as Christians, that we had denied ourselves more and taken up our cross more in order that in heaven we would face more comfort from Jesus for what we have suffered. This passage gets us to look to the future. There is hope for us. But then secondly, on the day that the Lord Jesus returns, there's glory for us. Verses nine and 10. Speaks here of, first of all, of the wicked, who are, they face eternal destruction from the glory of his might. But then look what it says, verse 10, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his sins. So you see, the glory of his might is poured out against the wicked, but then he turns to his people and he is glorified in his sense. The Lord Jesus is infinitely glorious. He's glorious in and of himself. He has a divine nature that is infinite, eternal and unchangeable. While he was on earth, the glory of that divine nature was veiled so that people couldn't see it. He came to his own, but they didn't recognize him and they didn't receive him. But in heaven, The glory of that divine nature will be seen, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable. There's also the glory of his mediatorial work. He is God and man, two natures united together in one person forever. And there's a glory in that, a glory that he is a mighty savior. A worthy king. Just as we've been singing in Psalm 21, we considered it earlier in our Psalm exposition. That exaltation of Christ. He is full of glory as our mediator. No longer is he the humbled savior dying on a cross. He's the worthy king. And this divine glory and this mediatorial glory belongs to Jesus alone. And yet here in this passage it tells to us that he will be glorified in his saints. And even in verse 12, that the Lord Jesus may be glorified in you and you in him. All his saints will be glorified in this day. Now who are the saints? It should be clear to us that these saints are not what the Roman Catholic Church believes saints are. In their view, if you're a particularly good person and you do all these acts of charity or whatever, you can be canonized as a saint, set apart as someone special, better than the average Christian. That is not at all what the Bible teaches about saints. Paul shows us in the opening of some of his letters that every single Christian member of the church is a saint separated by Christ away from the world to be his, sanctified by the Spirit, set apart for his purposes. And so in this room, there are saints. There are saints set apart by Christ. And notice here in verse 10, on that day when Jesus returns, he will be glorified in his saints. Are you a saint because you've been sanctified by Christ? Well, then on this day, you will be further sanctified. In fact, you will be fully sanctified because you will be glorified. When we die, our souls are immediately glorified. They're made perfect in holiness, renewed fully after the new man. But our bodies rest in the grave until the resurrection. And on this day, our bodies and souls will be reunited and perfectly glorified. And it's the glory of Christ that will shine in us. Like the moon reflecting the light of the sun, we will shine with the glory of Christ, his glory seen in us. And on that day, will you ask yourself, was it worth it? Was it worth suffering as a Christian? Was it worth putting sin to death? Was it worth avoiding going to places that the world told me to go to? Was it worth standing out like a sore thumb because I wanted to live for Christ? Was it worth it? Of course it's worth it. Because what are these passing pleasures compared to being glorified on that day? The light and momentary afflictions are not worthy of comparison with the glory that is to be revealed in the sense, like dust in the balance. Paul says that in Romans 8, verse 17. Now, if we are children, that is, if we're adopted children, if we're children, then we are heirs, heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. If, there's an if, if indeed you suffer with him, in order that you may also be glorified with him. If you are suffering with Christ, you will be glorified with Christ. Now Jesus isn't physically suffering anymore, but he does, you can think of how he said to Paul on the road to Damascus, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? He unites himself to his church. He identifies with his church. And if we identify with him and we suffer with him, we will share in his glory. If you suffer with Christ, you will be glorified with Christ. If you're not prepared to suffer with Christ, you have no share in the glory of Christ. Does that change your perspective? What you're facing at school or at work or at home or in society in general? Is it all worth it knowing that on that great day, we will be glorified? But then thirdly, there's something more for God's people on that day. Not only do we have the glorious relief, not only are we glorified, but there's also the worship that we shall participate in on that day. Every worship service is a foretaste of heaven. Sometimes it doesn't feel like it, but it is. It is. Every time we meet together to gather, we're doing what we shall do in eternity. And it's pointing us forward to heaven. But notice here in verse 10, when Jesus comes on that day to be glorified in his sense and to be marveled at among all who have believed. Jesus is coming again to be marveled at by all who have believed. All right. The saints of verse 10 are the believers of verse 10. It's the same group of people spoken off in two different ways. The saints who have been separated from sin for holiness shall be glorified. And those who have believed will marvel on that day. Faith will give way to sight. You come to church and you sing the Psalms. I hope you sing with faith. That you believe what you're singing. That you think of Christ whom we're praising. But now you're singing as looking in a glass dimly. Then you will sing face to face. Now we sing and we get distracted by all that's going on. Then there will be no distractions. Now Christ is physically far removed from us. Then we shall be in his presence. and see him face to face. Faith gives way to sight. And so on that great day in which Christ returns, if you've believed in him, you will marvel at him to such a degree that you've never marveled before. Think of the times, and we all have this, don't we? We read the Bible, and we think about what it says, and there are times that it resonates with us more than others. There are times when we just internally feel something more than we feel at other times. We shouldn't always go on our feelings. But there's a simple fact that sometimes we feel more admiration for Christ than others. And those best days are still nothing in comparison to how we will marvel at Christ and how we will admire him on this day. The Bible tells us that heaven is so glorious. It's like a city with 12 gates of pearls, and where the streets are made of gold. But friends, on that day, you won't be marveling at the streets. There'll be nothing in comparison to your Savior, who will be before your eyes. And you will see Him face to face, and you will behold Him. How many times we've caught a glimpse of Him but we're seeing through a glass dimly, but then there will be no limit to our admiration for him. But friends, let me make it very clear to you. Heaven is for those who marvel at Christ and those who believe in Christ. If you do not marvel at Christ here on earth, what makes you think you'll go to heaven to marvel with him in eternity? If you're not marveling at Him now, if you don't enjoy thinking about Christ now, what makes you think you would enjoy heaven, where that's what we'll do day and night, delighting in our Savior? It's not only that you won't enjoy it, you won't go there. For if you do not marvel at Him now, if you don't believe in Him now, you will have no place in heaven. You see, it is a law, a spiritual law, You reap what you sow. And what our life is down here is a reflection of what it will be up there. Do you have no heart for Christ in worship? Are you here going through the motions? Is there no love in your soul for a savior who is so richly offered to you? Well, if you're not marveling at him, it's a sure sign to you that you won't spend eternity with him, because only those who marvel at him and believe in him shall be there. And so this last day, Paul tells us there will be comfort, relief. There'll be glory, we'll be glorified, and there'll be worship, admiration. Paul is telling us that this life, difficult as it is, is worth it for what is going to be revealed. And so Paul returns to that phrase we began with in verses 11 and 12. It's a prayer. To this end, we always pray for you that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you and you in him according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. You see what Paul's doing here? He's saying to the Thessalonians, you've suffered with Christ. You've suffered for Christ. You've suffered as Christians, but you've endured. You're showing yourself to be counted worthy of the kingdom of God. And now he prays. that our God may make you worthy of his calling. It's interesting that throughout 1 Thessalonians, Paul recognized that the Thessalonian church had done well. They were believing. They had faith in Christ. They loved Christ. But he says, I'm writing to you that you may do these things more and more. Keep pushing forward. In 2 Thessalonians, we saw a couple of weeks ago in verses 3 And four, Paul was thankful that there was exponential growth. You've responded. You are doing more and more. But here in verses 11 and 12, Paul returns to his prayer that you would continue to grow, that you would be counted worthy of his calling, that he would fulfill every resolve for good, that you would advance even more than you've done already. Paul prays for growth once again. It shows to us that no Christian is so holy that they ought not to be concerned about growing in their faith. No Christian, even the one who's been a Christian the longest in this room, knows all that there is to know. No Christian can rest in their laurels and say that they've reached the point where they're satisfied with their Christian life. Nowhere to keep going. and by God's grace to be made worthy of his calling. Not that we deserve his calling, not that we deserve Christ's work, but that we would continue to live in a way that is consistent with his calling, to live as Christians in this dark world. And isn't that the point? Because Paul is showing to you the glory there is ahead. but it is ahead. You have to hope for it and you have to wait for it with patience. This relief that Christ will give will not come now fully. You'll have to continue suffering more pain, more trials. All the relief is ahead. And so we need prayer and we need grace now. that we may be made worthy of his calling, no matter what we must suffer. And remember that it's grace that gives way to glory, as the Psalms tell us. Glory is the fullness, glory is the flower, and grace is the seed. So let us look with hope to what is still to be revealed, but let us in the here and now depend on the grace of Christ to endure these trials we suffer, and to look to him with faith. Amen.