Let’s Review:
1. What does it mean when I say Jesus is Savior?
2. What does it mean when I say Jesus is Healer?
3. What does it mean when I say Jesus is the baptizer?
4. What does it mean when I say Jesus is the soon and coming king?
Tonight we are going to talk about _____________ more of Paul’s letters 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. These were letters written to the church in the Greek city of __________________.
In Your groups:
1. Paul said other churches talked about the Thessalonians in this way “They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.” 1 Thess. 1,9,10
What’s and idol? Why did the Thessalonians need to turn from them in order to get to God? Do we have idols today?
2. 1st Thessalonians 2: 19 says, “For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you?”
Paul also writes in 1st Thess. 3: 13 “May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.”
What coming of Jesus do you think Paul is talking about in these verses? What do you think that is going to look like?
Now Come together
Tonight we are speaking about the ______________ coming of Christ which the Bible speaks about in many places. Every ______________ but the very last in Thessalonians has a reference to this time in history.
You have already read three of them. Let’s look at the others.
“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. 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.” I Thess. 4:16,17
“for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” I Thess. 5:2,3
“God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.” 2 Thess. 1: 6,7
“Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness [fn] is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.” 2 Thess 2:1-3
The church has given many names to the events described in these chapters: The _______________, the ______________ coming, the tribulation, the _____________ of the Lord.
These chapters do not refer to one event but a _____________ in history which is yet to happen. You see the verses we just read are about the _____________ of the world as we know it.
Do you think the world will come to an end?
How do you think it will happen?
The Bible says that first there will be removal from the ___________ of all God’s faithful ______________. This is called the Rapture of the church. see I Thess. 4
Then there will be a _______________ in which an evil _____________ will take over the earth and deceive the ______________. See 2 Thess. 2:1-3
Then Jesus will return to _______________ with all his _____________.
We will learn more about the second _____________ when we study _______________. For now we see that when Jesus _____________ he will judge the wicked with ____________.
To escape this judgment you must be part of the ______________. How do you make sure you are part of the rapture?
Let’s go back to question 1 you answered in your groups and look at that.
You must turn from your idols and turn to Jesus! What are your idols?
Reinventing the We'll 