Resilient Hope
SUMMARY
In this sermon from 1 Thessalonians 4, Karl Ihfe walks through Paul's pastoral words to a grieving church, reminding believers that Christian hope doesn't ask us to deny grief — it anchors our grief in the resurrection of Jesus. The difference between Christian grief and hopeless despair isn't the absence of tears, but the presence of hope. Because Jesus rose, death is not the end of the story, and one day we will be with the Lord forever.
TRANSCRIPTION:
Well, if you have your Bible, I invite you to turn over to first Thessalonians, chapter four. That's where we'll be today. We've been walking through this epistle, this letter from Paul to this young church in Thessalonica, thinking about what does it mean to live out faith in real life. So we looked in chapter one as we talked about what a faith worth imitating looks like. It's a faith that isn't just informed, but it transforms us.
So we heard Paul rally around and encourage this young church. He says, we saw your faith that produced, or your work, rather, that produced faith, your labor that was prompted by love and your endurance that was inspired by hope. Hope. We're going to talk a little more about hope. He's going to bring us back around to this idea of the power of hope in our lives.
Last week, we spent some time reflecting in chapter two and three of Faith in Real Life is the kind of faith that invests in the right thing in people, that really matters, who we are and how we are living our life out in the real world. We spent some time thinking together about Paul said, you know, when we shared the gospel with you, we didn't just share the gospel, we shared our life as well. And so thinking about what does it mean to be people who don't just preach to others, but we actually live life with them, that we share who we are, not just what we know, not just what we believe, but we actually experience life together. This morning, we're going to look at a question that I think is one that all believers come face to face with at some point. You know, if you look back over, even just the last few weeks, couple of months.
Grief is not just a theoretical idea that we come to church and kind of pontificate on as a preacher or think about, but rather, grief is a reality that we have seen face to face. We've been in funeral homes and we've stood beside grieving families. We've worshiped with them in this very room together. As we celebrate the life that God has lived in and amongst those that we love so much. We've replayed memories and we've shared heavy hearts together as we think about and navigated what happens when grief hits close to home.
It exposes this question in us. We all want to know if hope is actually strong enough to carry the weight of loss. And we experience loss, we understand the heaviness that comes with that. And as Christians, what does. What does this mean for us?
Because grief asks some hard questions. It asks questions like, is death the end? Or what happens to those that we love? Or how do we keep going when our hearts are broken? Or how do we remain faithful when life feels so fragile?
Now, that's actually the kind of questions that are being asked in the church in Thessalonica that Paul's writing to. They've experienced grief. They've lost people that they love, and they're wondering what happens to them. Paul, Jesus hasn't returned, or have they already missed out or because they weren't around, what happens then? They were grieving, they were struggling.
And Paul, I love how he doesn't rebuke them for their grief. In fact, he's going to say some specific words about them. He pastors them through it. What does faith in real life look like when it comes to the question of death and dying? How do we as followers of Jesus respond?
What does that look like? Paul's going to say some pretty pointed words I hope will bring us comfort. Because what he's going to point out is the difference is not that there's grief. The difference is there's hope. And hope changes us.
In fact, what we learn first about Christian hope is that it is honest about grief. Notice Paul begins this passage that Allison read for us to a moment ago. He says, we do not want you to be informed, uninformed, rather, brothers and sisters concerning those who are asleep, a euphemism for death, so that you will not grieve like the rest who have no hope. Paul acknowledges that grief immediately. He jumps in and says, christianity is not denial.
Believing in Jesus is not denying that we've lost someone. Faith is not pretending that everything is okay when we know that it's not. Hope is not avoidance. It's not pushing it down or pushing it aside. See, sometimes people think faith means being emotionally untouched, strong.
In West Texas, maybe more so than other regions of our state, there's this sense of gotta be a man, gotta be a woman. Life is hard. Deal with it, right? But Scripture never teaches that. In fact, if you read through and follow Jesus along through the Gospels, he doesn't model that.
You know, a few weeks ago, we looked at John chapter 11, where Jesus weeps at the tomb of his friend Lazarus, even though he knows resurrection is just moments away, it's just minutes away. And yet still Jesus weeps with the family. Now, the Psalms, if you read the the prayer book of the church, the Psalms are full of tears and weeping and questions. Paul himself will write to other churches of his own anguish and sorrow and Challenge and facing life, sorrow and heartbreak. And so some of us may need to hear this word this morning.
Grief is not weakness. Being sad is not weakness. Grief is actually love. You see, if you love someone, Paul will say, and your loved one dies, your heart aches. That doesn't mean your faith has failed.
That means the relationship really mattered. It was important. I love NT Wright's understanding of this passage. He says Paul's main concern here is not to eliminate grief. It's not to say it's not good or it's unfaithful.
He says, I want to shape it. Paul's trying to shape their grief into Christian grief instead of hopeless despair. You know, in the ancient world, death was the end of the story. That was it. There was no more, no future, no reunion, just loss.
Many of us know there are those who live that way still in our world today, aren't there, where death is the end of the story? But Paul says Christians face death differently because of Jesus, because of his resurrection. He changed the story. Not because death isn't painful, but because death is not ultimate. That means Christians cry at funerals.
We weep with those who who weep and we mourn with those who mourn. But we don't collapse into hopelessness or despair. We recognize that our hope and our grief, it has an anchor. And that anchor is Jesus. Maybe that's what some of us need to hear today, is not to explain away our pain, but rather to remind us that there's an anchor underneath it.
Because not only is Christian hope honest about grief, it's also grounded in the resurrection and our hope in our story. Paul's hope is not sentimental optimism. He says it's rooted in something. We don't grieve like those without hope. Instead, he says, we believe Jesus died and rose again.
And so in the same way, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep, Paul twice. Everything that he's going to say back to the resurrection of Jesus, that the Christian faith rises and falls on this reality. You heard it from Hallie this morning in our call to worship, that Jesus physically died and Jesus physically rose again. And because he rose, then death no longer has the final word. And Paul's logic is pretty simple here.
He says if God raised Jesus, then that same God who is in us, that that same God is going to raise those who, who are in Jesus, who belong to Jesus. And so our hope then as Christians is not just that our loved ones will live on in our memories, even though they will. And it's not that Their influence will continue in our lives because it will. Our hope is the resurrection. Now, again, in keeping in mind, Auntie Wright says, this is not this disembodied idea of a spirit kind of floating up and strumming the harp on the clouds.
That's not. That's not what Paul's talking about here. You know, some of the imagery in this text has sometimes been used to. To kind of wonder, is that the picture Paul is painting? No, that's actually not.
We'll get back to that in just a minute. The writer says the resurrection means it's an embodied life in God's renewed world. And that's important because our view, God's plan, it's not escape from creation, it's actually the redemption of all creation, of all things. Jesus resurrection is the preview of what God intends for all of us, both every person and his beautiful world. And so notice something that Paul says, he goes, those who died did not just disappear, they didn't just cease existing, he says, they're with God and God will bring them with him when he comes through Christ.
To the church in Rome, who was also dealing with this question of what about life and what about death? And where does Jesus fit into that? How do we live out our faith in real life? He would tell them, I'm convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present or things to come, nor powers or height or depth or anything in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ. And nothing can separate, not even death.
Even death can't separate us. That means the people we've loved in Christ, they're not lost to God. They are held close in his love. They can't be separated from him. So Christian hope is honest and it's rooted in the resurrection, but it's also looking forward to reunion and restoration.
So Paul describes this return of Christ. And this is often where people get distracted and start to wonder, is this that floating off on a cloud somewhere, playing a heart? The timelines, the charts, all that, they miss the pastoral heart. I think of what Paul's trying to do here. And again, Wright argues that Paul's purpose here is comfort, not speculating.
So he paints this dramatic picture, right? The Lord descends and the trumpet sounds and the dead in Christ rise. Believers meeting with the Lord. Throughout church history, people have often tried to turn this into a detailed map of the end times. I don't think that's Paul's goal here.
I think his emphasis is much more simple and profoundly more Beautiful. He says Jesus is coming back and death will be undone. And we will be with the Lord forever. Forever, he says. Verse 17.
Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. That's the climax of the passage, right? Not fear, not escape, but that we will be with the Lord forever. Church can we say that we will be with the Lord forever?
We will be with the Lord forever. Paul says the living aren't going to precede the dead. In fact, they're going to rise first. No one gets left behind in the kingdom of God.
In fact, Paul says they'll go first. But for grieving believers, for those who have lost someone that we care deeply about, death feels like a separation now. But that separation is not forever. One day we're told every tear will be wiped away, that one day every grave will be empty. One day every broken thing will be restored and Jesus will be at the center of it all.
He will renew all things.
That hope. It doesn't erase grief, but it helps to transform, helps to anchor it, that we will be with the Lord forever. Because Christian hope, faith lived out in real life, it's anchored in reality, right? Christian hope is honest about grief, and it's anchored in the resurrection, and it looks forward to the restoration and reunion that we will have with all the saints that are in Christ. But it also produces a steadiness and hard times.
If you remember, in chapter three, Paul talks to this young church about suffering and struggling and holding on, being strengthened and established in their faith during this suffering. He says these words in verse 13 of chapter three. And so he may he God strengthen you. May he strengthen your hearts in holiness, that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. Now, why might Paul say this?
Well, for anyone who's ever been through grief, we understand, it can destabilize us, can't it? Grief can make us spiritually dizzy, especially when it's a time or a place or it's unexpected or unwanted. And it makes us wonder that loss sometimes can tempt us toward fear and bitterness and numbness or even isolation. And Paul wants this young church to be anchored, to hold fast. He doesn't want them to be shallow.
He's not asking them to pretend that things aren't really difficult. Instead, he's challenging them to be anchored, anchored in their faith.
Some who don't understand the Christian faith think that Hope is more emotional. It's kind of hype. But Biblical hope is sturdy. Biblical hope is not. I feel positive today because it's all going well.
No, no, no. Hope is Jesus has risen and Jesus is reigning. And one day Jesus will return. Therefore, I'll stand firm even when my heart hurts. This is the kind of hope that's allowed us to grieve as we have together these last many months.
But even many years where we can still gather and worship, we can continue to love while we hurt. We can continue to serve and to reach out to those, even when we're mourning, that we can keep trusting when the answers don't come easily.
Church this matters because people watch, don't they? People are watching. How do you suffer? I'm convinced they were in the city of Thessalonica because grief is not unique to Christians. Everybody grieves, but what's different about the way that a Christian grieves is it's just like everybody else.
I mean, anybody can celebrate when life is easy. Anybody can thank God when it's all going well. But what about when we're facing the reality of loss? You see resilient hope in the face of suffering or in the face of loss. It's a powerful witness to the gospel.
See, when the world sees believers grieving honestly, not pretending, not trying to manage people's responses, but instead learning how to really grieve. John, John 11. Jesus wept kind of grief, knowing that resurrection, it is coming. But even still we weep and we mourn, but we do so on hope. And that reveals something to the world around us that hope is most powerful, I think, when it's shared.
So Paul closes with this command, Chapter four. Encourage one another. Encourage one another with these words. Notice he doesn't say, keep it private. Don't let anybody see you sweat.
Don't let them know that it's gotten to you. He says, comfort one another, encourage one another. Hope is meant to be shared in our community. And one of the most important ministries that I'm convinced that so many of my buddies in chaplaincy in Jordan can give this an amen or not. One of the most powerful ministries of the church in the midst of grief is presence, is being there, is being the hands and the feet a tangible witness of, of Jesus.
You've heard me share a lot about the experience of my mom's passing. A few years ago this week, we actually celebrated her 79th birthday. And I can't help but think about the people who showed up when she passed, the people who came and spent time with our family and said, I'm just gonna be here. I wanna be with you. One of the powerful ministries is showing up.
It's listening and sitting quiet. I remember a professor of mine when I was in graduate school, close connection with another professor. And in that professor's family, they experienced a tragic accident in the metroplex. And so this friend had driven off and was spending time with his family. And my professor left and went, showed up the day of this important surgery.
He had all his books and his papers and his sack with him to carry it all in. And he just sat in the corner. And his buddy noticed him and said, what are you doing? He said, I'm just going to be here. Just want to be here.
No need to talk to me. I'm not going to bother you. I'm just going to be sitting here. But if you need anything, I want you to know I'm here. Physically, literally, I'm here.
Any of us who've ever been through something, I know I'm looking at people right now, you've been through something and the power of presence and how having someone with you reminds you you're not alone.
So Paul says, encourage one another, because there will be moments in the midst of grief where you wonder, God, where are you? What's happened? We know that. We know that feeling. And Paul says, share with one another.
We'll be with the Lord forever. Love doesn't separate us. Our death doesn't separate us from God's amazing love. He's with us. And so we share one another.
We refuse to let anyone hurting suffer alone. See, sometimes the most spiritual thing you can say is, I'm here. I'm here.
The Thessalonian church needed each other. They needed each other to survive what they were facing. Well, the truth is, church, so do we. I mean, so do we. We need one another.
Because some in this room this morning are carrying grief that nobody knows about, and they feel all alone. And church, they need you. That some people here are exhausted emotionally. They're tapped out. They're called teachers.
They give it all. And they need you. They need to be reminded that God is with them and he's choosing you to help send that reminder. That some people here today are afraid. They're terrified.
They're facing something and they don't know the outcome, and they're not sure how or why or where. In church, they need us. Some of us here today are still raw. Are still raw from recent losses or losses that may be from a ways ago, but they still feel recent. So Paul says, encourage one another.
Remind one another Jesus is alive and the tomb is empty, and we will be with the Lord forever. See, the beauty of the gospel is it never asks us to deny grief. It never does. Instead, it gives us a deeper story. I know it's hard.
I know for a short while we will be separated. But one day, oh, one day Jesus will return and all things will be made new because of Jesus. Death isn't the end of our story, and grief isn't hopeless, and so our suffering isn't wasted. One day Christ will return and the dead will rise and we will all be with God. Church encourage one another with these words.
That, my friends, is not wishful thinking, that is resilient hope. God, I pray that you would bless us this week as we come alongside some who in our community who are hurting so deeply. I pray that you will encourage us to be present your tangible hands and feet to those who are wondering, who are questioning, like this young church in Thessalonica. How does faith in real life deal with loss and grief and death? Oh, God, would you help us to be a church, a church that doesn't let anyone grieve alone, that won't let anyone suffer alone?
Instead, God, would you give us the courage to meet people as you do, right where they are? So, God, would you help us to wrap our arms around the Mills family and the Reed family and so many others who are grieving?
God, many in our church know and love have been touched by death. We've experienced the pain it can cause. That's separation.
And at times we felt overwhelmed by it. And so, God, would you help us as the church to encourage one another that we might practice the ministry of presence this week? Would you open up our eyes and our ears to seeing those around us in our community, in our families, in our workplaces, in our neighborhoods who are hurting? And would you challenge us, God, give us the courage to practice the ministry of presence, a tangible, living reminder that, that there is a different way that Christians grieve, not preaching at people, instead being present. That the difference is not that Christians don't grieve, it's that we grieve with hope.
And so, God, open our eyes and our ears to what it is that you want us to be this week. And God, I pray a special prayer over those who are grieving right now.
I pray for your presence and your comfort and your peace to be with them. They got to feel so heavy. God, would you raise up a friend, a loved one who knows you who could come alongside and help shoulder that load.
God, I pray that each one who is hurting, who is suffering, might know your presence in a powerful way. Holy Spirit, would you meet them right where they are in a tangible way. Remind them how much you love them. And then, God, this week, may you send a visible reminder of that through a friend. So God, as you prompt us this week to send a message or a note or a text message, or a phone call or a pop in visit, whatever it may be, God, would you give us the courage, let's be present this week for those who need to know.
God, would you help us to be a church who lives our faith in real life through resilient hope? Oh God, may it be true. Let it be true. In Jesus name.