Deo Gloria
Sermon for November 17, 2019
Pastor Martin Bentz
Text: 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10
Theme: God’s Judgment is Right!
- When he brings punishment on unbelievers
- When he gives relief to believers
It happens in the Olympics. It happens in the NFL. It happens in the World Series. It happens in your son or daughter’s soccer game: a judge or a referee will make a mistake. He’ll make a bad call that has a dramatic effect on the game, perhaps even determining the outcome. I remember watching the World Series a few years ago. A ball was hit deep into the outfield. The outfielder was standing on the warning track up against the wall, waiting to catch the ball, when a fan reached out into the field of play, caught the ball and pulled it into the stands. It should have been ruled fan interference. The batter should have been called out, but instead the umpire ruled that it was a homerun. It was the wrong call.
Is the same thing true when it comes to God and his judgment? On the last day, on Judgment Day, when God brings punishment on unbelievers and gives relief to believers, is he making a “bad call”? Is that the wrong decision on his part? Absolutely not! As Paul clearly states in the verses of our text, God’s judgment is right. And in these verses he helps us see why.
Paul is addressing these words to a group of Christians in the city of Thessalonica, a large city in what we know today as the country of Greece. Though the city was very large, with an estimated population of about 200,000 people, the congregation there was very small. And they were persecuted too. In fact, the persecution began almost right from the start. Luke tells us in the book of Acts that several weeks after Paul and Silas began preaching there, a riot broke out in the city, a riot instigated by some of the Jews. During the riot, some of the Christians were arrested and dragged before the authorities, and later that night Paul and Silas had to leave the city under cover of darkness. But the persecution didn’t end after they left. Paul speaks about the persecution the Christians in Thessalonica were experiencing in both of his letters to them. In the first one he even refers to it as “severe suffering”(1:6).
Because of this persecution, because of the “severe suffering” they were experiencing on account of their faith, some of the Christians in Thessalonica may have thought that God was punishing them, that he was bringing judgment on them because of their sins; but such was not the case. That would be the wrong conclusion for them to draw.
In order to clear up any misunderstanding on their part and in order to comfort them and encourage them, Paul proceeds to talk about God’s judgment. “All this,” he says, “is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering”(v. 5). “God’s judgment is right.” God doesn’t make mistakes. He’s not like the referee who misses a call or makes the wrong decision. He’s not like the corrupt judge who gives the wrong verdict and let’s the guilty go free. God always makes the right decision. His judgment is right and just. In the following verses Paul goes into more detail about God’s judgment. He does so in a kind of sandwich method. First he talks about God’s judgment on believers. Then he talks about God’s judgment on unbelievers. Then he comes back again and talks about God’s judgment on believers. This morning we’re going to take it in a linear or two part approach. First we’re going to look at God’s judgment on unbelievers. Then we’re going to look at God’s judgment on believers.
Judgment Day—most people today don’t like to talk about Judgment Day. They don’t like to think about the fact that some day this world of ours in going to come to an end and they’re going to have to stand before God and answer for the things they have done. They don’t like to think about the fact that God may actually hold them accountable for the nasty things they said and the evil things they did and that God may actually punish them for those things; but he will. Paul makes that very clear in these verses. One day God will hold people accountable. One day God will pay them back. That is, in fact, the very phrase Paul uses in v. 6: “God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who are troubling you.” The unbelievers in Thessalonica, especially the unbelieving Jews, were persecuting the Christians and bringing pain and suffering and “trouble” into their lives; but one day God would pay them back. He would “even the score,” so to speak. God would bring trouble on them for the trouble they had brought on the Christians.
Later on in these verses Paul becomes more specific about the kind of “trouble” God will bring on unbelievers. He says they will be punished with “everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power”(v. 9). Many people today don’t believe in hell. They believe that heaven is a real place but not hell. They believe that when you die, if you’re a good person, you go to heaven, and if you’re a bad person, you’re just gone. You cease to exist; but that isn’t what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches that hell is a real place, a place where people experience “everlasting destruction,” unending destruction, or as Jesus put it, a place where “their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched”(Mark 9:48).
Paul also says that they will be “shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power.” Have you ever been locked out your house? Maybe you forgot your key or you lost your key and you didn’t discover it until you got home. Then you had to go around and try the back door. And if that was locked, then you had to go around and try the windows and see if you could get one open. Or maybe you even had to break one of the windows just to get in. Unbelievers will be locked out of God’s house. They will be shut out from the presence of the Lord. And it’s not like they’ll be able to go around and get in the back door or break one of the windows and climb in that way. They’ll be shut out from the presence of the Lord forever.
When will that happen? When will God bring this punishment on unbelievers? Paul tells us in v. 7: “This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.” That’s the last day, isn’t it, the day we often call “Judgment Day”? On that day Jesus will return in all his power and all his glory with all his powerful angels. He will return “in blazing fire,” an ominous sign of the judgment and punishment that is to come.
And on whom will Jesus bring this punishment? In v. 6 Paul specifically mentions those who were persecuting the Christians in Thessalonica, those who were “troubling” them and afflicting them. Later on, though, Paul broadens the scope. He says that God will bring punishment on those “who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus”(v. 8). Those are really two different groups of people. Some people do not know God. They worship other gods instead, idols like Buddha or Allah, idols like money and material possessions. Some people insist there is no God, that religion is just a crutch for the weak. Such people will be punished on Judgment Day.
There are other people, though, who do know God and who do know Jesus too. The problem is they don’t “obey” the gospel. They refuse to accept or believe the good news that Jesus did it all for them, that he lived a perfect life for them, that he suffered and died for all of their sins. Instead they continue to believe and insist that they can make it to heaven on their own by doing good and being good. Or they say that what Jesus did was not enough and there still are things they need to do in order to make it to heaven. They too will be punished on Judgment Day, punished because they prefer their own way of salvation instead of God’s way of salvation.
But is it right for God to do that? Is it the right decision on his part to bring punishment on such people? Well, let me ask it this way: If the penalty for speeding is a fine of $200 and you were stopped for speeding, would it be right for the judge to fine you $200? Of course it would. Or if the penalty for robbing a bank was 5 years in jail and you were convicted of robbing a bank, would it be right for the judge to sentence you to 5 years in jail? Of course it would. You did the crime, so now you have to do the time.
The same is true when it comes to God’s judgment on unbelievers. God is simply giving them what they deserve. You see, even though they might like to deny it, the fact is they are sinners. They have sinned against God and broken his laws time and time again. And God has made it clear what the punishment for sin is. He has published it ahead of time so everyone would know: the wages of sin is death, eternal death in hell. So then on the last day, when it comes time for God to pass judgment, should God let them off the hook? Should he let the guilty get away with it again? Should he let them go scott free? Of course not. That’s what happens so often in earthly courtrooms: those who are guilty get away with it. They end up not being punished for the crimes they committed—but not in God’s courtroom. God is just, and he always makes the right call. He never lets the guilty get away with it. When he brings punishment on unbelievers and sentences them to hell, he is giving them exactly what they deserve. God’s judgment is right.
But what about the other side of the coin? What about God giving relief to believers? Is that the right call? Is that just and right and fair? Paul says that in these verses, doesn’t he? “God is just,” he says: “He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well”(vv. 6-7). Relief—that’s what God intends to give to his people on Judgment Day. That’s the payback he has in store for them. Relief from persecution, relief from trouble, relief from hardship and suffering and pain, relief from everything and anything that makes their lives difficult. That’s what the Christians in Thessalonica had to look forward to. That’s what you and I have to look forward to: relief.
Another thing we have to look forward to is being in the presence of our Savior. Unlike unbelievers who will be shut out of heaven and shut out from the presence of the Lord, you and I will be allowed in—and not just to get a tour either. This won’t be like one of those tours they give of the White House or of Buckingham Palace, where you get to go inside for a while and see some of the beautiful rooms and then you have to leave. No, we will get to stay in the Father’s house forever. We’ll get to enjoy the rest and peace and glory of heaven forever. We’ll get to see Jesus in all of his glory forever. And we will marvel.
I still remember the first time my wife and I went to visit Mackinaw Island. We had seen pictures before, of course–pictures of the Grand Hotel and various other places around the island, but the pictures didn’t do it justice. It was far more beautiful than I had imagined. The same will be true of heaven. The Bible does describe heaven for us. It does tell us what it will be like. But once we’re actually there and get to see it for ourselves, our eyes will be this big. We’ll marvel at the glory and beauty of heaven. We’ll marvel at Jesus and his glory. It will be awesome, far beyond anything we can imagine.
But now we need to get back to the main point: Is it right? Is it right for God to allow people like you and me to live in such a wonderful place, a place of perfect rest and relief, a place where there is no more persecution or suffering or pain? Do you and I deserve that? No. You and I are no better than the unbelievers. We don’t deserve to go to heaven either. We too are sinners, people who have sinned against God and broken his laws over and over again. And because of our sins, we too deserve to be punished, to be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord. And that’s exactly what would happen except for one thing: our Savior Jesus.
You see, God is a just God, a God who always does what’s right. But God is also a loving God, a God who doesn’t want to see people punished with everlasting destruction, a God who takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. And because of his great love for us and for all people, God sent his Son to be our Savior.
As our Savior, Jesus did what we should have done. He lived a holy, sinless life, a life of perfect obedience to God and his commands. As our Savior, Jesus also paid the penalty for our sins. He took the rap for our sins and suffered the punishment that we deserved. And in light of that, God has declared us to be not guilty. And since we are not guilty, since we are holy and righteous through Jesus Christ our Savior, we are free to live with God in heaven. In fact, that’s what God has promised to give us, to all those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior: the gift of eternal life. Remember what the Bible says? “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”(Romans 6:23). So on Judgment Day, when God gives relief to his people, he is doing the right thing. He’s doing exactly what he promised to do. God’s judgment is right.
Referees, umpires, judges, officials—we may not like it when they make bad calls. We may yell and scream at the TV, but we might as well get used to it, because it’s going to happen. They’re only human and they make mistakes. Thankfully the same is not true of God. God never gets it wrong. His calls never have to be challenged and they never get overturned, because he always makes the right call. And what a comforting truth that is! You and I don’t have to worry that God is going to blow it on Judgment Day, that he’s going to send some people to hell who don’t deserve to go there or allow other people into heaven who don’t deserve to be there. On Judgment Day unbelievers will receive the punishment they deserve, everlasting punishment in hell. Believers, on the other hand, will receive the relief that God had promised, eternal relief in heaven. And there we will be perfectly safe forever. God’s judgment is right! Amen.