Hope in Life and Death (1 Thessalonians): The sad reality of this broken world is that every one of us will one day walk through the valley of the shadow of death. How will we face it? How should we mourn the death of other Christians? Will we be consumed with fear or despair? The good news is that if Jesus died and rose again, then there is hope even in death. Recorded on Jun 15, 2025, on 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 by Pastor David Parks.
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This sermon is part of our series on 1 Thessalonians called Faithful to the End. Being a Christian in the Greek, first-century city of Thessalonica was tough. Thessalonica was a big and prosperous city, but it was full of idols. The Apostle Paul and the first Christians there faced fierce religious persecution and tremendous political pressure to conform. But despite their suffering, they remained faithful. Our culture is different today, but following Jesus can still be very costly. Will we be faithful to the end?
Sermon Transcript
After this week, we only have two more weeks of 1 Thessalonians in the Bible in our sermon series called Faithful to the End. I’m very excited to start a new sermon series in July called For Such A Time As This from the book of Esther in the OT. Esther is such a wild story! But we’re not quite there yet. Well, for the last few months, we’ve said that the early church in the Greek city of Thessalonica faced persecution and social/political pressure to deny Christ. It was tough, but they remained faithful. We’ve been trying to learn all the lessons we can from these ancient brothers and sisters to help us remain faithful today. Over the last few weeks, we considered two unique aspects of the way of Jesus that help us remain faithful, including our commitment to sexual holiness and our ambition to lead a quiet life. If you missed either of these sermons, you can always go back and watch or listen to the audio podcast if you’d like. Today, we’ll start the first of another little two-part series focused not as much on our moral conduct (work/sexuality), but on our hope. We’ve seen over and over that following Jesus may not make your life easier. In fact, as the Thessalonians learned, sometimes it makes life a lot more difficult. But what if the worst-case scenario happens? What if you have to give your life for your faith? Men and women have been martyred in the past. Well, the Apostle Paul doesn’t play here. He’s not talking about hoping things might get a little easier for the Christians in Thessalonica. He’s talking about a strong enough source of hope to sustain us in the face of death, even beyond death! We may not be in the same situation that the Thessalonians were in all those years ago, but every one of us will one day walk through the valley of the shadow of death. How will we make it? How will we face it? Will we be crushed with fear, or will we have the hope and the courage followers of Jesus ought to have? If you have your Bible/app, please open it to 1Th 4:13. As we usually do, we’ll read through it and unpack it as we go.
1 Thessalonians 4:13–14 (NIV), “13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For 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.” The practice of describing a believer not as dead but as asleep is found throughout the Bible, including with Jesus. In at least two different situations in the gospels, Jesus used this language. In Mt 9, a man named Jairus asked Jesus to heal his daughter, but before Jesus could get there, she died. Jesus came anyway, and when he saw her, he said, “The girl is not dead but asleep,” and then, “…he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up.” (Mt 9:23-25). Or in Jn 11, when Jesus’ close friend, Lazarus died, Jesus said, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” (Jn 11:11). And Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave, even after he had been dead for four days. Now, it’s possible that someone who has died might look like they’re sleeping. But the language of sleeping in death in the Bible reflects more of a belief about death than the appearance of death. Sleeping implies that death is not the end. Someone sleeping can wake up. So at this point in the letter, Paul wants to teach on this subject of death and grief, and the hope that Christians have. Now, we might ask, did someone in the Thessalonian church die? Did Timothy bring back as part of his report that they were in a state of mourning over one of their own? There are a number of theories about the context in Thessalonica that Paul was addressing. Some have wondered if there had been false teaching about life and death, the return of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and so on. We do know from Paul’s second letter to Timothy that there were false teachers leading people astray on the resurrection. Without more details than what we have here, it’s hard to say. What we can say is that Paul felt it was necessary to either teach (or remind them of what he had already taught) about these things because some believers had died. We don’t know if they were martyred for their faith or if they had passed away from more normal causes, but the Thessalonian church was grieving a real loss. And Paul says he doesn’t want them to be uninformed about Christians who have died. Why? Because Christians do not have to grieve like the rest of mankind. Why? Because Christians have hope. We’ll see a number of reasons for this hope as we continue, but the first reason is given in v. 14. “For (because) we believe that Jesus died and rose again,” these historic events, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, are at the heart of the good news of the gospel. The gospel is the good news of who God is and what he has done through his Son and Spirit to bring salvation to all who would believe. And the central work of salvation was the atoning death of Jesus on the cross for the sins of the world. His sacrifice means we can be forgiven and freed from the power of sin and restored in relationship with God. But then, on the third day, Jesus rose again, fully alive, fully God and fully man, never to die again. “…and so” Paul says, if the gospel is true, and if Jesus died and rose again, then “we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.” God will bring these Christians who died where exactly? He will bring these believers back to us when Christ returns.
1 Thessalonians 4:15-16 (NIV), “15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 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.” Jesus taught on his return in a lot of places throughout the gospels. Just one example is found in John 14:1–3 (NIV), “1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” That Jesus would return and would take us to be with him to live in his Father’s house is a clear promise in God’s word. This is why Paul says that “according to the Lord’s word,” the believers who passed away before the second coming of Christ will not miss it. And maybe this was the situation that had affected their grief. Maybe this is why they were grieving without hope. They thought some of their loved ones were going to miss out on the return of Christ and life everlasting. But Paul says, on the contrary, not only will the dead in Christ not miss out, they’ll have a front-row seat! The dead in Christ will rise first. The Lord himself will come down from heaven. (Can you imagine that?) In Acts 1, when Jesus had ascended into heaven, two angels told the disciples that Jesus “will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (Ac 1:11). So the Lord will come down from heaven, not because heaven is in outer space, but because heaven is transcendent, it is outside time and space. And Paul envisions the return of a victorious king when he says that Jesus will return with a loud command (probably the command to raise the dead) with the voice of the archangel. In Jude, we’re told the archangel is named Michael. But along with Michael will sound the trumpet call of God, typical of an approaching king, and the dead in Christ will rise first. This is called the first resurrection in Revelation 20. But if the Christians who have died before the return of Christ will rise first, when will the believers who are still alive be resurrected?
1 Thessalonians 4:17–18 (NIV), “17 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. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.” This is God’s word. So, after some period of time, either immediately after the first resurrection, or after a longer period of time, “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with those who died to meet the Lord in the air.” This verse, along with a few others, is where the idea of the rapture comes from, that believers will be caught/snatched up either during or before the return of Christ. Different believers today have different theories about the timing of the rapture, this catching up. But the focus of this passage is not to give details about a rapture so much as it is focused on the reunion of believers at the return of Christ. Remember, the context is a teaching on Christian grief and the hope that we have for those who have died. And Paul expects the believers who are still alive to encourage one another with these words. In other words, this teaching was to be immediately helpful, not just helpful for some future day. Even if that day was very soon. We see that Paul expected the return of Christ to happen soon when he says, “…we who are still alive.” Now, it’s not that Paul was mistaken. Again, Jesus taught in several places to be ready, be expectant, for his return. Now, he also explicitly taught, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.” (Ac 1:7). Even though every generation has some self-proclaimed prophet who says they figured out when Jesus will return, according to Jesus we won’t know — it could be tomorrow or another 2,000 years from now. However, the best way to live is as if Jesus will return very soon. We’ll come back to this thought next week (that is, unless the Lord returns). But for now, if we are alive when Christ returns, or if it’s some future generation, what will happen when we are caught up and reunited with those who have died and with Christ himself? In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, he describes it this way: 1 Corinthians 15:51–53 (NIV), “51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep [in death], but we will all be changed—52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.” So, the dead in Christ will rise first, but then we who are left alive will be changed in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye. Our moral bodies in this broken world full of sickness and sin and death will be changed to be immortal and imperishable. And our Lord will dwell with us and we with him and one another forever and ever in the new heavens and the new earth. Just as our bodies will be re-created, so all things will be renewed and re-created. The return of Christ will change everything. If you notice, every chapter of 1Th has a reference to the return of Christ. Why? Well, first of all, this is such a big piece of news, and it’s so different from the world’s expectations for the future; it’s no wonder that Paul refers to it so often. But second, remember how tough it was to be a Christian back then in Thessalonica. The more you feel that this world isn’t our home, the more you long for the world to come. And the closer you get to death, the more you long for the life that is promised beyond the grave. This teaching would’ve been so helpful, so encouraging for the Thessalonians in their grief. But what about us? How might we apply this teaching to our lives?
How can we face the reality of death without losing hope? The resurrection of Jesus is proof that believers we know who have died are not lost forever. They will return with Christ when he returns, and we will be together forever. Big idea: If Jesus died and rose again, then there is hope even in death. The death of a loved one can be sad or even tragic, but it is never hopeless. But why do we have hope even in death? Paul mentions four reasons here. We have hope in death because, first, death is not the end of the story. At funerals, I always say it this way, “It’s not that our experience of loss today isn’t real. And it’s not that we won’t have sadness and grief when we think about this loved one and miss them in the days and years to come — it’s just not the end of the story.” Some modern people believe that death is simply nothingness. Consciousness simply ceases. There is no awareness, just something like a dreamless, eternal sleep. Now, that is truly hopeless — there’s no hope of salvation, no hope of justice, no hope of life, and no hope of reunion in the future. But if there is life beyond death, then there is hope because death is not the end. Second, we have hope even in death because death itself will come to an end. Death is only temporary. One day, Jesus will return. And he will bring an end to our current age and will usher in a new age with a new heaven and a new earth. When Jesus returns, “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Rev 21:4). So, we not only have hope for life after death, but we have hope for the death of death itself, the death of mourning, and the death of grief. He will wipe every tear from our eyes. Even death will come to an end. Third, if Jesus died and rose again, then there is hope even in death because the separation between the living and the dead will be no more. No longer will there be people alive on the earth and souls alive in the immediate state after death and before the resurrection of the dead. We will be reunited with our loved ones in Christ and will live with them forever after in the kingdom where Jesus is King. “For 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.” (v.14). Therefore, “…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.” (v.17). Finally, if Jesus died and rose again, then there is hope even in death because this means that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. Not even death. Jesus told the criminal on the cross, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Lk 23:43). Today, not at some point in the future. Paul wrote to the Philippians, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Php 1:21), because if he did die, then he’d be with Christ, which would be far better than even the best part of life here and now. This is our hope. He is our hope. Without Jesus, there is no hope. But with Jesus, and if Jesus did in fact die and rise again, then there is hope even in death. Therefore, we do not have to grieve like the rest of the world, without hope. We can have hope no matter what. Come what may. So we say, “Come quickly, Lord.” Let us pray.
