Latest / Scripture Central / #43 Scripture Central Come Follow Me Insights (Oct 16 - Oct 22) 1 and 2 Thessalonians

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#43 Scripture Central Come Follow Me Insights (Oct 16 - Oct 22) 1 and 2 Thessalonians · Scripture Central

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Hello everyone. Thanks for listening to Come
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Follow Me Insights with Taylor and Tyler presented by Scripture
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Central. We use a lot of visuals in our
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videos, so if you want to see the visuals, we invite you to
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find us on YouTube. Thanks for listening and enjoy.
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I'm Taylor and I'm Tyler. This is Scripture.
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Central's come, follow me insights this week.
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Paul's epistle to the Thessalonians.
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So this is possibly his very first letter written that there
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are many biblical scholars who who assume that this is the
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first one written first Thessalonians.
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You remember that on his second missionary journey he had
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crossed over from Asia into Europe, beginning with some
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success in Philippi. And then he had come down to
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Thessalonica, and it's here where he, he had some pretty
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good initial success until the leaders of the synagogue there
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in Thessalonica rose up and he had to quickly leave and go down
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to Athens. And now Silas and Timothy have
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joined him and they brought word of what's going on in
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Thessalonica. And so he pens a letter to go to
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be sent back to them. And this is that letter, this
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first epistle of the Thessalonians.
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And again, some biblical scholars will tell you this is
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our earliest New Testament writing of the 27 books.
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Whether or not that's true, I'm not sure, but there's pretty
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good evidence that this is very early, at least in his in his
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ministry as an apostle. So the theme that there there
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are many themes here, but one of them to watch for is this idea
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of you have heaven, here we are on the earth and here you have
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this group on the earth who are looking and waiting and watching
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for the second coming of the Savior to come down from heaven
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and reestablish His Kingdom. It's all been promised.
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It's all been promised. Remember in the Old Testament
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there were two sets of prophecies concerning the
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Messiah. Prophecies of his first coming
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to the earth from heaven, his condescension when he would come
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down like a lamb and be slain for the sins of the world.
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And then the second coming prophecies, when he would come
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down like a lion and take upon his shoulders the government of
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the people and overthrow all the kingdoms of the earth.
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So they're waiting for this second coming.
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And when we get into this epistle to the Thessalonians,
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if, if you read it just straight up let Paul's words be what they
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are on the page. He makes it sound very much like
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the Second Coming is imminent, like it could be next week for
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them. And so it's going to cause some
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some issues with with those people at that time and you're
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going to see an overcorrection later on in in because of this
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epistle. And then he's going to correct
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that with his 2nd letter to them, the second Thessalonians.
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Where he basically says heaven is going to come back, Jesus
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will come back, but it is not our job just to sit around
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waiting for good to happen. But we should be anxiously
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engaged in a good cause. And it's interesting how we can
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watch God's leaders preach Teach truth.
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And also provide course correction when either there's
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new information or there's been some misunderstanding or an
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opportunity to upgrade people's thinking and to help them be
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more aligned with what will help them to find joy right now and
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be aligned to God. I love that, that finding joy in
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the journey right now, as President Monson used to say.
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It's that idea of don't become so hyper focused on the final
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exam that you end up failing multiple daily and weekly
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quizzes along the way because you're you're so focused on the
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end that you're missing the means.
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Well, if that's happening, then once the end does come, it's not
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going to go well. So this, this whole lesson is an
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invitation for us to focus on bringing the heavenly into our
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life more fully than ever before today.
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We're not. We're not teaching this for next
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week. We're not teaching this for a
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month from now. It's for today and every day.
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What can I do to invite more heaven into my little part of
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the vineyard here on earth so that it becomes more and more
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and more a branch of heaven and outpost of heaven, so to speak.
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So let's dive in Chapter one, verse one.
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Paul and Sylvanus and Timotheus. So Sylvanus is Silas.
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It's just a a Greek way of saying that.
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And Timotheus is a Greek way of saying what we would call
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Timothy, so his two missionary companions unto the Church of
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the Thessalonians. Now the the Joe Smith
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translation says the servants of God the Father and the Lord
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Jesus Christ unto the Church of the Thessalonians grace unto
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you. Notice the significance here.
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It's not just us three writing you this letter as as if we're
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buddies. It's we're on a mission.
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We are commissioned by God as emissaries of the Father and the
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Son to speak for them in addressing you.
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It's it's it's pretty powerful when you consider the blessing
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to have living prophets on the earth who do this exact same
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thing. They don't just speak of
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themselves, they're speaking in behalf of the Lord.
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And that does become clear in a couple verses like verse four
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and five. We'll get to So again, let's
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jump right down to verse 4, knowing Brethren beloved, your
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election of God. Now if you live in a part of the
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world where they where they hold open public elections, how does
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that work? You have people who run for an
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office and people campaign for them and then a vote is cast and
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whoever gets the most votes is elected.
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Who got elected in verse 4. Knowing brethren beloved, your
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election of God. Now in the English that that the
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way you word that it could, it could mean one of two things.
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Your election of God that you elected God or your election
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that comes to you from God. Your election of God meaning he
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elected you. And I think it's beautiful in
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the KJV when it leaves the King James translation when it leaves
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it ambiguous like this where you're not sure which one it is.
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The advantage of that is both are important in this context of
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of trying to apply it to our own life.
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Of saying, huh, God chose you and he elected you.
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What did he elect you for? He elected you for salvation,
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worthy to be saved and worthy to send his son to do that saving
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for you. You were elected, called and
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elected. And now what we do in return, so
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that the arrows go both directions, is we cast our vote
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to elect God as the 1st and Supreme Leader in our life.
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Not just, not just in Word, but in, but in everything that we do
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in life. And as we move on to verse five,
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you will see how Paul explains how they can get confirmation of
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that election process. For our gospel came not unto you
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in Word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in
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much assurance. As you know what manner of men
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we are, we were among you for your sake, so he's saying that
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like it's just wasn't because we preached fancy words.
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You felt the Holy Ghost confirming in your hearts that
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the message we had to share was true.
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So think about that for just a moment because he's he's making
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a a critical point here that that the gospel didn't just come
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in Word alone. You you have, for example you
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have the Holy Bible. She have the 66 books in the
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Bible, 39 in the Old Testament, 27 in the New Testament.
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There are lots of words in here and he's saying our gospel
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didn't just come in Word only. Well, if you look at some of the
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statistics across the world, like from the Pew Center for
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Research, they they do all of these surveys and they gather
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all this data. Well, they've identified well
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over 40,000 individual distinct, unique Christian denominations
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in the world, all which have the same words to 1 degree or
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another, depending on which which biblical version or
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translation they're using. But it all starts with words.
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And you have over 40,000 Christian denominations, and
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that's just the Christian faiths.
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You'll notice what Paul is saying here.
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It sets apart his message. It's not the word only, but also
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in power and in the Holy Ghost and the word here in much
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assurance, you and I in our church context today would
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probably use the phrase with much testimony bearing We're
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giving you our word, Not just the words here, but we're giving
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you our word. You'll notice there's a big
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difference between asking, for instance, students the question
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what do we know about? And then fill in the blank with
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a topic of the gospel or something related to to the
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Lord. What do we know about this?
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And then you hear people give the socially acceptable answers
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that you would expect in church. But something shifts when you
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change one word in that question.
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And when instead of asking What do we know about XYZ, you say
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what do you know about XYZ? Or instead of a question, what
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when you say let me tell you what I know about XYZ.
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Now it becomes more than just the words.
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There's that much assurance that comes, and you can't force this.
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You can say whatever word you want, you can give whatever
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assurance your testimony you want, but at the end of the day,
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people aren't going to change because of things they hear or
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see alone. They'll only make lasting change
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because of things that they feel deeply in their soul, and you
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have very little control over that.
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You can't force that. But you'll notice what happens
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here in power and in the Holy Ghost.
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When you give that much assurance, you're opening the
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opportunity for the Holy Ghost to carry a message a little
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deeper into the heart and into the life of those individuals or
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into the life of that individual, than if you just
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speak in general words. This is what we know about XYZ.
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But when you say I want to tell you what I know or tell me what
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you know, don't don't tell me what everybody else says.
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You tell me what you know. And it gives people this
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opportunity to dig deep and allow the Holy Ghost to then
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carry the message deep or to have them generate what they
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what they know from deep within their heart.
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And what President Boyd K Packer used to teach is really powerful
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that a testimony has to be found in the bearing of it.
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It's not just in the listening to others, it's it's in the
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bearing of it that often you first discover.
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I do know that. And then he continues, and he
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says, and ye became followers of us and of the Lord, having
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received the Word in much affliction with joy of the Holy
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Ghost. So I love how he helps him to
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see that this new movement, this Christianity you've been part
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of, you did get it through us. But ultimately who you're
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following is Jesus Christ. And again, he ties in the Holy
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Ghost. We you've mentioned this
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multiple times that Paul is very good.
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That identifying the three members of the Godhead.
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And here again right there in chapter one we have all three
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members talked about and I love the fact that he's he's using
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this word and he and we've mentioned it before be
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followers. The the Greek word remember is
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mimitis. Well you can see the English
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word mime. You don't follow.
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You actually mimic. You're minding what the prophets
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are doing because who are they following?
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The Lord. So it's this beautiful pattern.
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So look at verse 9. For they themselves show us,
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show of us what manner of entering and we had unto you and
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how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true
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God. So people have come, and they've
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they've given a report of what you've what you've done and your
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faithfulness and how you've turned from this idol worship to
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serving God and verse 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven,
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whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us
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from the wrath to come. There's your first hint at the
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Second Coming. Not just the Second Coming, but
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the eminence of the Second coming.
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That the the short term expectation of the second
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coming, that you've turned from all these idols to serve the
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living God and to wait for his Son from heaven.
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So hold that thought. You're going to get one of those
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thoughts in every chapter here in First Thessalonians.
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Which now brings us to chapter two.
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Look at verse 4. But as we were allowed of God to
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be put in trust with the gospel, Even so we speak not as pleasing
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men, but God, which tryeth our hearts.
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For neither at any time used we flattering words, as you know,
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nor a cloak of covetousness. God is witness.
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So he's now he he's bearing a bit of a testimony for them and
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of the Lord saying, you know this and God is our witness that
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that our motives were pure here nor of men sought we glory
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neither of you nor yet of others, when we might have been
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burdensome as the apostles of Christ.
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He's saying we didn't want to be a burden to you and we weren't
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doing this to get gain or glory from you.
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One of my favorite quotes following this this line of of
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checking why am I doing what I'm doing?
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What? What is my motive?
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What am I seeking? What what do I hope to gain
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10,000 years from now? What?
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Am I going to look back and say, oh, I wish I would have had more
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of this or that or the other. Listen to this, this beautiful
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principle. It's actually at the very end of
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CS Lewis's book called Mere Christianity.
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This is how he ends the book. Listen to this phrase.
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You will never make a good impression on other people until
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you stop thinking about what sort of impression you are
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making. Even in literature and art, no
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man who bothers about originality will ever be
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original. Whereas if you simply try to
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tell the truth without caring 2 pence how often it has been told
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before, you will nine times out of 10 become original without
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ever having noticed it. The principle runs through all
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life from top to bottom. Give up yourself and you will
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find your real self. Lose your life and you will save
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it. Submit to death, death of your
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ambitions, your favorite wishes every day, and death of your
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whole body. In the end, submit with every
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fiber of your being and you will find eternal life.
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Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given
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away will be really yours. Nothing in you that has not died
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will ever be raised from the dead.
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Look for yourself and you'll find in the long run only
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hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin and decay.
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But look for Christ and you will find him and with him,
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everything else thrown in the end.
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That's how he ends. The the the entire book, Mere
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Christianity, this idea of why am I doing what I'm doing?
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I'm Paul saying this, I'm not trying to get anything from you.
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I'm just trying to give the hope of Christ and faith in the Lord
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to you for his sake, not for our sake.
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I just love Paul. He was so bent on destroying the
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Christian Church. He's there on the road to
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Damascus and has these transformative experience.
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It doesn't stop there. He goes and spends how many
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years? We're not even sure he doesn't.
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We don't have it, even an autobiography.
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He's gone for multiple years, apparently trying to relearn
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things that he should have known.
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Understanding the gospel he dedicates the rest of his life.
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He basically pours out his life to do these things, to serve
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people and here. 2000 years later, he's still serving us.
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That's powerful. Now.
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Has there ever been a time where you've had a calling or a
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mission and you've you've gotten out a calendar of some sort or
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or some way to measure time and you're counting down?
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You're either counting days or months or years till you're
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finished with that calling or that mission.
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I actually did that on my mission for a little while and.
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I gave it up, and that's a good thing now that there's nothing
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evil or inherently wrong with doing that.
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The point here that I love that comes off of this page here in
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chapter 2 is to me, it's a sense of Paul saying I'm not serving
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time as a as an apostle. I'm not serving time as a
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missionary. I'm serving people and I'm
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serving God and his focus is on them, not the calendar and not
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the clock. It it.
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It's not like a prison sentence that On this date I get released
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and then I can go and be free now, as if working in the
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vineyard of the Lord isn't true freedom.
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There there are many people who for one reason or other, say, I
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just can't go and serve that mission, or I can't take that
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calling because I'm too busy and I have too many other things.
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And that may be true. And that's not for anybody to
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judge except for you and the Lord.
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It's just the principle here is look over seven and eight when
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trying to make these decisions. But we were gentle among you,
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even as a nurse cherishes her children, so, being
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affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted
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unto you. Not the gospel only.
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Because today with our world, you can do that.
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With Zoom, you can go anywhere in the world.
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You can, you can impart all kinds of things via technology.
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But there are some things you can't do with technology.
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And look at this next part. Not the gospel of God only, but
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also our own souls, because you were dear unto us.
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Brothers and sisters. That is a powerful reminder of
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how the Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled his mission, how Paul
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fulfilled his, and how we could maybe apply that in our own
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church callings in our family. If you're if you're dealing with
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somebody who has a disability or who is lacking in capacities,
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it's it's to not look at them as a burden, but rather as an
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opportunity to give your own soul to God through that Christ
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like those Christ, like acts of service and love for them on an
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ongoing basis. I love how Paul extends that
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down to verses 14 and 16. He essentially acknowledges that
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not only has he been serving them, pouring out his soul to
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them, but they too have been serving, even suffering because
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of the acceptance of Jesus Christ.
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They have suffered. Not exactly like Jesus, but
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they've suffered because they've accepted Jesus.
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So let's read those. For ye brethren became followers
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of the churches of God, which in Judea are in Christ Jesus.
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For ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen,
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even as they have of the Jews, who both killed the Lord Jesus
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and their own prophets, and have persecuted us.
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And they please not God, and are contrary to all men, forbidding
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us to speak to the Gentiles, that they might be saved to fill
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up their sins all way, for the wrath is come upon them to the
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uttermost. So Paul is trying to address the
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fact that this new ward that has just been created, there's never
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been Christians in that area before as far as we know, Brand
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New ward, and they're suffering persecution from their fellow
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Gentiles. And Paul just wants to
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acknowledge it sometimes is hard to follow Jesus Christ.
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It comes at a cost. It's not always a bed of roses.
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And it's not just the Gentiles who are heaping that
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persecution. It's the leaders of the
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synagogue in that area as well. They're getting it from both
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sides. Now you look at verse 19 for
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what is our hope or joy or crown of Rejoicing?
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Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ that is
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coming, for ye are our glory and joy.
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Notice the Eminence of verse 19. Aren't you even in the presence
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of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?
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It's this idea of you're you're going to, it's worth it.
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Keep making that sacrifice. Because when he comes, you're
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going to be in his presence and he'll make it.
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All right, Now, hold on. We'll keep we'll we'll keep
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coming back to that theme. So now you go into chapters 3.
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Skip clear down to verse 10. Actually, let's go to verse nine
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first. For what?
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Thanks. Can we render to God again for
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you for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes before our
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God night and day, praying exceedingly that we might see
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your face and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith.
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Just a quick word on this. There are a variety of places in
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the epistles, especially these early epistles, where Paul's
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making it very clear the difference between what he's
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able to do when he's face to face with them versus what he's
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able to do with the technology of their day, which is writing
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an epistle and sending it that using whatever technology is
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available. He's saying we can give you
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some, some correction, a little bit of direction, but it's not
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the same as when we're with you, when we're teaching you.
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So some have said, well, everything's taught here in
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these epistles. And I think Paul would disagree.
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I think he would say no, no, no, no.
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I'm making it very clear. I taught them the gospel when I
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was with them. Now we're we're making course
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corrections. We're we're helping guide, but
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we're not teaching the fullness of the gospel through these
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epistles. We're also helping people to
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fill encouragement. It turns out that when people
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are suffering a lot of persecution and struggle,
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sometimes helping them to remember that Jesus Christ will
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come and put things are right is a very encouraging doctrine.
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So this was a really meaningful thing for this ward at this
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time. We're like, wow, it should be
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nice if Jesus just show up and clean things up.
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And Paul is kind of emphasizing that, yes.
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Jesus will clean everything up. And sometimes in our own lives
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we wish Jesus would just show up and just make everything right.
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And we will see as we get to 2nd Thessalonians that Paul has to
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do a slight course correction. Say, well, it turns out Jesus
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may not come as quickly as you think, but you still can have
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His joy and peace now and things can get better as you live the
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gospel, even if you're dealing with suffering.
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And actually, as you're talking, I got thinking about some of the
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Book of Mormon writers. Who talk about how they feel
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like they're weak in writing but far more powerful when they're
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speaking. And I'll speak for myself here.
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I have written a lot. It is a lot of work to write
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versus standing here with you and talking.
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It's way easier for me to talk and to share than to have to
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labor through all the words and make sure that I don't get any
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of the grammar wrong for my English speaking or my English
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teaching wife. Yeah, that don't sound good.
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You get the idea. Nephi talks about that.
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Moroni talks about that. The struggle of writing.
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Look now at verse 12. The Lord make you to increase
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and abound in love one toward another and toward all men, even
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as we do toward you. So this is another one of those
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my meaties things. Do what we're doing.
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Just love everyone here to the best of your ability.
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Abound in that love toward all men, even the ones who are
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persecuting you and and hurting you.
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Look at verse 13 To the end. He may establish your hearts
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unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the
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coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His Saints.
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There it is again, this imminent coming of the Lord.
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Now we need to we need to clarify something here.
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There's a big difference between abounding in love toward all
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men, even those who who despitefully use you or
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persecute you. If there's abuse going on in a
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relationship, that's not what we're talking about here.
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Paul's not encouraging people to go and expose themselves or
26:52
others to to open abuse. That's not the message of the
26:56
gospel. We stop abuse, then work on with
27:01
the help of the Lord figuring out how to let go and forgive
27:06
that person and let the Lord deal with with that problem.
27:10
So this is more of the garden variety of of persecutions and
27:15
hurts that are being inflicted upon people as they're waiting
27:19
for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ with all His Saints who
27:23
will come with him. Which brings us now to chapter
27:27
4. Let's let's jump into verse 3,
27:32
for this is the will of God, even your sanctification.
27:37
The the word for sanctification is to be separated from evil, to
27:42
to be combined with God in such a way that you've you've lost
27:47
the desire for evil, you've lost the appetite for sin.
27:51
It's not appealing to you like it used to be.
27:54
It's not a as big of a temptation and this is a
27:58
process, usually something for some people.
28:00
It's an event where they have this complete change of heart in
28:04
a moment. But for most people, it takes
28:07
time to refocus, to turn, and to change.
28:11
The way we're looking at the world, the way we're looking at
28:14
eternity, the way we're looking at ourselves and others.
28:17
And over time, focus our attention on the prophets, on
28:20
the scriptures, on the Lord, and you generally walk the direction
28:24
you're facing. So if you're following the
28:26
Prophets, looking at them more frequently than you are at the
28:30
quote UN quote experts of the world, you're probably going to
28:34
find that you're your desires, your appetites, your passions
28:39
are now going to be more in in alignment with what the Lord
28:45
gave them to you for, for the purposes to be fulfilled.
28:48
What's interesting, one of the ways he says to be sanctified,
28:51
is that you should abstain from fornication.
28:55
And this is actually a common theme in the early Christian
28:58
Church. They're trying to help people
29:00
who come from a highly fornicating environment like it.
29:03
That is not something that you should be participating in.
29:05
It's going to make it hard to have a life of sanctification.
29:08
Now there's two words here. They're interesting.
29:10
Abstain literally means to not hold on to anymore.
29:14
And this other word, fornication, is related to a
29:16
word that is quite common in our language today.
29:25
The word porn or pornography. It turns out porn is simply a
29:30
variant of the word from fornication.
29:33
And we say pornography. It simply means graphic or
29:38
expressed or written forms of fornication, visual or in words,
29:43
whatever it might be. And look, it is natural as human
29:47
beings that we have natural inclinations.
29:50
God knows that he's also just given boundaries.
29:53
And so we have to not hold on to these fallen nature desire to be
29:58
engaged in these things and to walk away to let go.
30:01
And so Paul's inviting people feel the joy of sanctification
30:05
by not being bound down to base nature.
30:10
And again, as we see today, fornication is unfortunately
30:14
alive and well in porn or foreignography fornication
30:18
graphic. That's really what's going on.
30:21
So he he expounds on that in verse four that every one of you
30:26
should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and
30:32
honor the the vessel being your body, that those those
30:37
appropriate physical relationships in the bounds that
30:42
God has established for them to be used not in Pornaia as as the
30:48
Greek word there these non sanctifying ways that that
30:55
abound in Thessalonica and quite frankly all of that Greco Roman
31:00
culture of idolatry. In verse five he takes it one
31:04
step further and he says not in the lust of concupiscence, even
31:09
as the Gentiles which know not God, stop and think about that
31:13
for just a moment. If you know not God and you you
31:17
don't rely on and you don't thirst and hunger after things
31:22
of the Spirit, well there are counterfeits.
31:26
There are natural releases of chemicals in our in our bodies,
31:32
in our brains that can make people feel these these feelings
31:36
of euphoria and and feelings of deep pleasure.
31:41
And he's saying, don't don't spend all of your time in the
31:45
lust of concupiscence, or these these passions of lust, because
31:52
you'll notice none of those last It it's a pleasurable moment,
31:57
but then it leaves you lacking. Whereas Christ offers the living
32:03
water that that steady love that is deep and profound and can
32:09
keep growing not just between you and the Lord, but in all
32:14
relationships that are meaningful in the gospel of
32:17
Jesus Christ. On the covenant path at
32:19
different levels you get those feelings of lasting love and
32:24
charity one towards another. And it's profound, that contrast
32:28
that Paul is offering these these thessalonic and Saints.
32:32
Then he gives them a little practical maybe.
32:36
Maybe you could call these proverbial items of advice here.
32:41
Look at verse 11 that you study to be quiet, to do your own
32:46
business, and to work with your own hands as we commanded you.
32:50
That you walk honestly toward them that are without, and that
32:53
you may have lack of nothing. So you're looking for people who
32:56
are lacking, those without the means, the needy, and you
33:02
provide for them. That you may have lack of
33:05
nothing. It's this beautiful idea, the
33:08
difference between the world's giving of handouts versus the
33:14
Lord's giving a hand up. As you've probably heard, that
33:18
is the essence of the Church's welfare program is not just to
33:21
give handouts, but to try to give people a hand up so that
33:25
they would lack nothing along the process of growing.
33:30
And then he says verse 14. For if we believe that Jesus
33:33
died and rose again, Even so them also which sleep in Jesus,
33:37
will bring or will God bring with him.
33:40
So when he comes for a second coming, he's going to bring the
33:44
people who have died before. For this we say unto you by the
33:46
word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the
33:51
coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
33:54
Because along among the Thessalonians they are so
33:58
excited about this doctrine of the the second coming.
34:02
And they're thinking, oh, but my mother just passed away and
34:07
she's going to miss it. And my brother died of a
34:10
disease, and he's going to miss it.
34:11
And maybe some have buried a child and they're just really
34:15
concerned about those who have slept.
34:18
I'm Paul saying, no, don't worry about those who have died,
34:22
because they are going to be raised up and you can't prevent
34:25
them from being resurrected. Verse 16.
34:27
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a
34:31
shout, with the voice of the Archangel and with the trump of
34:34
God. And the dead in Christ shall
34:38
rise first. All those who have died in
34:40
Christ, they're going to be raised first.
34:42
I want to point out just a few things here.
34:44
I was studying the walls of Jericho falling down and I read
34:47
this article about how the trumpets and loud noise in the
34:51
ancient world was a symbol of God's presence.
34:53
And I thought, well, today when I go to the temple, I'm looking
34:56
for peace and quiet. Like what we saw on verse 11
34:59
study to be quiet like reverence.
35:01
But here, how is God's presence acknowledged?
35:04
Listen to that. A shout.
35:06
Points of the Archangel and with the trump of God.
35:11
So in our culture today, typically reverence is how we
35:14
express the presence of God. But in an ancient biblical
35:17
context, it is a loud noise. He has arrived.
35:23
Now look over 17. Then we which are alive and
35:27
remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds
35:32
to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the
35:36
Lord. Now we need to unpack this verse
35:39
because it is loaded. Notice the imminent nature of
35:44
this teaching that we which are alive and remain, we're going to
35:51
be caught up together with those that have come out of the grave.
35:54
He's speaking as if, well you can expect it.
35:57
Second Coming is going to be anytime now and we're going to
36:00
be caught up together. Now the Greek word there for
36:04
caught up together is rooted in this idea of the Rapture.
36:09
Some of you have maybe heard of the doctrine of the Rapture in
36:12
some of the Protestant faiths, and they have this belief that
36:16
at the second coming of the Lord he'll come, the trumpet will
36:20
sound and the righteous will be caught up to meet him, and the
36:24
righteous dead will come out of their grave.
36:27
They'll come up with Jesus and then they'll be carried off to
36:31
heaven, leaving the rest of us here on the earth left behind.
36:36
We we missed the boat and it's sailed off to heaven, and now
36:40
we're stuck on the earth. Wait, where does the word left
36:43
behind show up in verse 17? It doesn't.
36:45
So here's the idea. We're caught up to meet the Lord
36:49
in the air, and so we shall ever be with the Lord.
36:53
In the Doctrine and Covenants we learn this beautiful principle
36:58
of at the Lord's coming the wicked will be burned at his
37:04
coming. The old testimony even asks this
37:05
question. Psalms Who Who shall abide the
37:08
day of his coming, and who shall stand in that day?
37:12
Who can be in his presence? And the idea being the wicked
37:17
cannot abide and they will be consumed as stubble or burned at
37:24
his coming because they're not quickened by the Holy Ghost.
37:28
So it's this idea of the terrestrial and celestial type
37:32
people who were caught up in the air to meet him.
37:36
The world is cleansed, so to speak, at his coming burned.
37:40
If you can't abide his presence and you're not quickened by the
37:43
spirit, you're consumed. And then what?
37:46
Then he comes down and creates this millennial day that that
37:53
lasts for 1000 years. So a day in heaven's time, 1000
37:59
year our time. And now he reigns personally
38:02
upon the earth. Notice the difference.
38:06
It's not us leaving the earth and going to heaven.
38:10
It's Christ leaving heaven and coming to the earth to
38:15
celestialize and help us to become heavenly.
38:19
What an amazing concept to stop looking forward to the Second
38:23
Coming when he'll take us off to heaven, but rather look for
38:27
heaven around you today in the earth, because His Kingdom has
38:33
come and it's increasingly coming, with more and more of
38:38
God's children bringing that light into the world and more
38:42
people focusing on him. I like how he concludes.
38:45
He says. Wherefore, comfort one another
38:48
with these words, so you can imagine the persecution and the
38:52
stress. That this early Christian ward
38:55
in Thessalonic Thessalonia is dealing with, and Paul is trying
38:59
to emphasize, one particular doctrine, the coming of Christ,
39:02
as a way of helping this these people feel a sense of security
39:08
in the face of a lot of threats. So it's a beautiful doctrine,
39:11
and it is true across the last 2000 years, as some Christian
39:16
groups have felt enormous pressure, this particular
39:19
doctrine of Jesus. Showing up and making heaven on
39:22
earth has been particularly appealing, and what's important
39:25
to realize is that Paul gives an update to his thinking in Second
39:29
Thessalonian, saying it may not happen as quickly as you guys
39:32
think. And as Tyler's pointed out, we
39:34
have been invited now to help build heaven on earth.
39:39
Now we're not going to build it so well that Jesus doesn't need
39:42
to show up, but we don't. We are actually under.
39:46
It's moral obligation to do our part to make earth as much of
39:50
heaven as possible now instead of just waiting for Jesus to do
39:54
it all. I mean, if Jesus is going to do
39:56
it all, then what's our point for having agency?
39:59
So this is an important thing that we invite all of us to
40:03
consider. Again, what is something I could
40:05
do today to bring a bit more heaven into my relationships and
40:09
into my home and in the communities where I am, and if
40:12
we all choose to do that on a daily basis?
40:14
Like President Hinckley used to say, just be a little bit better
40:16
every day. We will find there is, as Paul
40:20
says, comfort one another of these words because we are now
40:23
seeing heaven in our lives. Powerful.
40:26
Now you come to chapter 5, but of the times in the seasons,
40:30
brethren, you have no need that I write unto you for yourselves
40:33
know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in
40:36
the night. So you're saying don't ask me to
40:38
put an X on the calendar for you?
40:41
Because when the Lord comes, he's going to come like a thief
40:43
in the night. I I don't know, but it
40:45
apparently in their mind at this point is very soon.
40:49
And then he says, for when they shall say peace and safety, then
40:53
sudden destruction cometh up on them as travail upon a woman
40:56
with child, and they shall not escape.
41:00
And he goes on to say, But ye brethren are not in darkness
41:04
that that day should overtake you as a thief.
41:07
Ye are all the children of light and the children of the day.
41:10
We are not of the night, nor of darkness.
41:13
Therefore let us not sleep, as do others, but let us watch and
41:16
be sober. Let's let's not have the Lord
41:20
overtake us like a thief in the night.
41:23
Now we've talked about it multiple times.
41:25
This is the 5th chapter, and he's talked about the eminence
41:29
of this coming of the Lord. And here we are, 2000 years
41:35
later. And he still hasn't come.
41:38
And in the early days of the Church of Jesus Christ, in those
41:43
those sections of the doctrine comments that talk about his
41:46
coming, you'll hear phrases like, I am at the very doors.
41:51
Every generation has this feeling, this sense of urgency,
41:56
this sense of of, of applicability to I got to get
42:00
ready because we've all got to get ready for his coming.
42:06
Because whether you're alive or whether you've passed, by the
42:10
time the actual Second Coming occurs, when you die, it's as if
42:15
the Second Coming has occurred for you.
42:17
So it's that sense of urgency. It would be terrible for
42:20
multiple generations to say don't worry about it, just eat,
42:25
drink and be merry for its 400 years down the road that that
42:29
generation is going to have to worry about the coming alert,
42:31
brothers and sisters. It's not about the coming alert.
42:35
It's about our preparedness to come into the presence of the
42:38
Lord, whether it's him coming to us or us going into the Spirit
42:43
world. It's preparing to meet the Lord
42:47
that is the key here. So these people at this time,
42:51
they seem to be a little focused on the Lord's coming, but the
42:56
principle's the same. So you can see why the Lord
42:58
didn't feel the need to to overly correct this as this
43:03
letter's being written. Look at verse 8.
43:07
But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on there's that
43:11
word in duo again to be endowed with this power, the breastplate
43:17
of faith and love, and for a helmet, the hope of salvation.
43:21
You can see that this early on, this being probably one of his
43:25
first epistles. It's later on when he wrote the
43:28
Epistle to the Ephesians. Many years later, when he's
43:32
clearly had an opportunity to develop this theme of endowment
43:36
in a clothing and the the elements of that endowment
43:39
clothing, it's much clearer years later.
43:43
So let's not hold Paul hostage to what he wrote early on,
43:47
whether it be regarding the coming of the Lord or whether it
43:50
be the the Enduo passage here. Let's let him.
43:55
Grow and become through the process of His calling as the
43:58
Lord works with him, just like the Lord works with us in our
44:03
own sphere and domain, working along the covenant path.
44:07
That's a beautiful principle. And then verse 10.
44:10
The Lord Jesus Christ died for us, that whether we wake or
44:14
sleep, we should live together with Him.
44:19
And then he gives you this beautiful description of Christ.
44:23
In verse 13 through 24. And he doesn't say that.
44:27
He doesn't say this is what the Lord is like.
44:30
He just gives you a whole bunch of things that you should and
44:33
shouldn't do. So it it's fascinating when
44:36
people want to emphasize Paul as antiworks and all grace.
44:42
We don't want to contend or fight with them, but we want to
44:46
say read all of Paul, not just small excerpts here and there
44:51
pulled out of. Out of their chapters and
44:54
exalted above all of the other verses.
44:57
Because here you get an entire column of things to do and to
45:00
focus on other only works or faith is to say to give somebody
45:05
a coin and tell them they can only spend it if they spend the
45:09
front face of it. It's impossible.
45:12
You have to take both sides to make it workable and that it is
45:16
how it is with faith and work. Now sometimes we need to
45:19
emphasize one over the other, but never the exclusion of the
45:23
totality that God expects us to do something with our agency as
45:27
we receive these gifts of grace from Him.
45:30
So as you read verse 13 through 24, don't just zone out
45:36
thinking, Oh yeah, this is another one of those long
45:38
scriptural lists of things I should do or not do.
45:42
Things like comfort the feebleminded, support the weak,
45:45
be patient toward all men or jumping down, rejoice, pray
45:48
without ceasing, quenching out the Spirit.
45:51
Prove all things hold fast that which is good.
45:53
Abstain from all appearance of evil, brothers and sisters.
45:56
These aren't just a list of good do's and don'ts.
46:00
These are. These are descriptions of what a
46:04
true Christian becomes. By what they do, we're trying to
46:09
become like the Lord Jesus Christ.
46:12
So here's the point. Instead of.
46:15
Getting so caught up in prophecies of end times and
46:19
trying to predict when Jesus is going to come again and
46:22
preparing food storage for the the Great destruction day, which
46:26
is not a bad thing. We should be prepared, get the
46:29
food storage in place. But don't have that be the end
46:32
all, be all, have who I'm becoming, be the more important
46:39
task so that. When I'm so prepared, because
46:43
I've I've. I strive every day to become
46:46
more like him. Then when he comes it's not this
46:50
Oh no, I I missed the boat. It's oh, what a blessing and a
46:55
privilege it's been to to work through this process of
46:58
preparing for his for this great day that has now come.
47:03
So Paul sends this letter off, and apparently it helps the
47:05
community, and sometime goes by we know we don't know exactly
47:09
when Second Thessalonians was composed, but Paul's had some
47:12
more time to think, reflect, possibly receive revelation, and
47:16
he provides a bit of a course correction from things he had
47:19
said. And I will just jump right into
47:21
chapter 2. Now we beseech you, brethren, by
47:25
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathered
47:27
together unto him, that ye be not so not soon shaken in mind,
47:32
or be troubled neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by
47:36
letter, as from us, as if the day of Christ is at hand.
47:42
So it hasn't happened yet, and it's not about to happen like
47:45
tomorrow. He goes on verse three.
47:47
Let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not
47:52
come, except their come of falling away, or the Greek word.
47:56
There is apostasy first, and that the man of sin be revealed,
48:00
the son of perdition. So he's he's realized that he
48:04
may have overemphasized A comforting true doctrine, and
48:08
that people are so focused on the potential immediate coming
48:12
of Jesus Christ they may have missed the larger plan of
48:15
salvation God had at work, and maybe even some of this list of
48:18
things that we just went over in chapter 5.
48:20
Maybe they were so busy counting the days they didn't have time
48:23
to abstain from all appearances of evil.
48:26
We don't know. But this is an important lesson
48:29
because sometimes in the Church we find ourselves discovering
48:33
that there have been course corrections among prophets in
48:36
the church. Some people it gets a little
48:39
disturbing, like, wait, something changed.
48:42
And we should look here in the ancient scriptures that God
48:46
updates and upgrades all the time.
48:48
That is the process of revelation.
48:51
So when there are course corrections or policy changes or
48:55
new revelation, we should rejoice and say this is exactly
48:58
what we expected, is that there would be ongoing revelation.
49:02
Now we're going to follow the example of Elder Dieter F
49:05
Uckdorf. And use an airplane analogy.
49:09
An airplane doesn't take off from Destin or from point A on
49:13
its way to destination B and usually fly a perfectly straight
49:18
course. There are constant adjustments
49:20
along the way, Because of wind, because of other air traffic,
49:24
because of other needs or unforeseen dangers.
49:28
You're constantly making these corrections and some would look
49:32
and say wait a minute. Right there we were headed in
49:36
the wrong direction. And I think the principle here
49:40
is if you follow the Lord, follow his prophets, let the
49:45
Lord be the captain and his prophets be the the the copilot.
49:49
Let them steer this airplane. It will make all kinds of
49:54
adjustments. And we don't say, well, we're
49:57
not headed towards point B, which this is a really important
50:03
concept. Because sometimes we we don't
50:06
teach an infallibility of prophets doctrine.
50:10
But sometimes in the church we get this sense that we expect
50:13
the prophets to be infallible. We expect it to be a straight
50:17
line shot from our our source airport to our destination
50:24
airport. This principle comes up
50:26
repeatedly when. There's this famous quote from
50:32
Official Declaration 1, the excerpt that comes after
50:36
Official Declaration One. It opens with Wilfred Woodruff,
50:42
the president of the Church at that time making this statement,
50:46
the Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as
50:51
President of this church to lead you astray.
50:55
So some have quoted that and said see.
50:59
So the prophets will never ever make a mistake or never need to
51:04
be corrected, because he'll never lead us astray.
51:08
Brothers and sisters, there's a big difference between God
51:12
giving, changing and and adjusting directions to the
51:17
Prophet or to the council of the First Presidency in the corner
51:21
of the 12th. There's a big difference between
51:23
those course corrections and. A prophet of the church who is
51:28
leading the church astray, that's a whole different ball
51:32
game. When somebody's being led
51:34
astray, it means they're not even.
51:37
You're not even close to headed towards be.
51:41
It's their purposefully taking you somewhere else.
51:44
They're taking you astray. And Wilfred Wooder said, the
51:48
Lord will not permit that, but he didn't say the Lord will only
51:53
ever let us. Never ever once change course or
51:57
direction because it's happening all the time.
52:00
That's what happens in a living, breathing organization called
52:05
the Church. Hence the need to stay right
52:10
with God's current prophet to follow the prophet.
52:15
Keep your focus fixed on the savior, follow the prophet and
52:19
know that expect. Some variation, some
52:23
adjustments, some change over time.
52:25
It's going to happen. And that's not a sign that the
52:28
gospel or that the church isn't true.
52:31
That's a sign that the church is growing.
52:33
It's living, it's breathing, breathing.
52:36
It's beautiful. And it's our invitation and it's
52:39
our privilege to be a part of that as we move forward.
52:42
Because there's not a single life that follows that straight
52:46
line. Only the Savior himself did
52:48
that. The rest of us?
52:50
We all have to make adjustments along the way, but there's a big
52:52
difference between that and being led astray.
52:55
Building on this phrase about the living church, we say a lot
52:59
and it's important. In a true statement, the church
53:02
is true. What if we said just as often I
53:05
am part of a living church? What would a dead church look
53:09
like? No change.
53:12
The plane has dropped out of the sky and it's just a massive
53:15
crash. So what God has offered us is an
53:19
institution, an organization where the doctrines of salvation
53:23
and the ordinance of salvation can be delivered and shared.
53:27
And it is living like living water.
53:30
So just like living water is true, God's living church is
53:34
true. And so again, maybe we just
53:36
change our language a bit and maybe that might help us on this
53:39
path. Like, yeah, I know I'm part of
53:40
the true church, but it's a living church.
53:42
That's how I see it, because we are growing, developing and
53:46
we're expanding as more light and truth is received and is
53:49
acted on. So look at that from the long
53:53
view, not the short term, myopic, short sighted view and
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say wait a minute we're we're missing the mark.
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Take the long view. Salvation is a long game.
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It's not an event. And we're talking not just about
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the church collectively, but us individually with our progress
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along this path, so. Because some direction was given
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to the Thessalonian Saints in the first letter, and they run
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with it and they are actually headed astray.
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Paul gives a correction, says whoa, some more has been
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revealed. I probably overstated.
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I probably told you that it was more imminent than it really is.
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And instead of saying, well then I'm going to discount everything
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that Paul says from here on out, I can't trust him.
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You stay with it and you follow it and you keep going and let
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him make. Let the Lord correct him.
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In fact, there's there's an amazing concept.
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Clyde Williams wrote an article for the Leahonna Clear back in
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2000, June of 2000. It's called following the
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Prophet. In here he says the following
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Although prophets are human and have weaknesses, the Lord is
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perfectly capable of correcting them in his own way.
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And then he quotes Elder Maxwell.
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Prophets need tutoring, as do we all.
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However, this is something the Lord seems quite able to manage
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without requiring a host of helpers.
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I love that. That occasionally even the
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prophets need to be corrected. But guess what?
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It's not my role to correct the Prophet.
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That's the Lord's role and he's very capable of managing that
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without a without a host of helpers in that process.
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Also in that in that same article he quotes at the time
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Elder Henry B Iring, who said. The failure to take prophetic
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counsel lessens our power to take inspired counsel in the
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future. The best time to have decided to
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help Noah build the ark was the first time he asked.
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Each time he asked. After that, each failure to
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respond would have lessened sensitivity to the Spirit, and
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so each time his request would have seemed more foolish until
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the rain came, and then it was too late.
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Every time in my life continues Elder Iring.
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When I have chosen to delay following inspired, Counselor
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decided that I was an exception. I came to know that I put myself
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in harm's way Every time that I've listened to the Council of
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Prophets, felt it confirmed in prayer, and then followed it, I
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have found that I moved toward safety along the path.
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I have found that the way had been prepared for me and the
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rough places made smooth the rough places over time if you
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look at it in the aggregate. Become smoothed out.
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When you take the long view, they're very bumpy and turbulent
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and rough. When you're taking the short
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view and someone say, wait, that sounds like blind faith, you're
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going to blindly follow the prophet.
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I would say no, I'm not going to blindly follow the prophet.
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I don't follow him because I'm blind.
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I'm going to follow the Prophet because I can see and I can see
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what happens over time and I trust the Lord.
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That he's going to guide that prophet.
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And I don't care how many twists and turns, how many policy
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changes, how many procedure changes come.
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I'm going to follow him because I've learned that the more
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distant I become from prophetic council, the more adrift I
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become in being led astray by the winds of doctrine that blow
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on this path of life. And I'm probably not going to
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end up at the destination that I had thought I was aiming for.
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So with that perspective, if you now read Second Thessalonians
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chapter One, Two, and Three through this lens of maybe Paul
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giving now a course correction headed in a different direction,
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but all along the overall direction has been to bring them
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to Christ, to prepare them for His coming, whether it's in the
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flesh or in the spirit world. Then you see that others have
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troubled them by spirit, or by word or by letters, that the day
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of Christ was immediately at hand.
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It's a topic that people just get fascinated with in the 1st
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century as well as in the 21st century and quite frankly,
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follow the Prophet, listen to how he talks about the Second
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Coming and how to prepare for it.
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That's where you're going to find the safety, not in the
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speculative realm of of the world's experts who do try to
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calculate exactly when it's going to happen.
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Never hear the brethren trying to calculate using the book of
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Daniel, the Book of Revelation, or other signs of the times.
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They are just very deliberately teaching the basics of the
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gospel that we can love one another, repent, exercise faith,
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and in so doing find ourselves prepared.
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Exactly. Now, in Chapter 3, when you get
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there, you're going to find that he, he's addressing a group of
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the Thessalonian population that has actually taken this idea and
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run with it to the point where they've quit their jobs.
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They're now going to the public places, waiting for the coming
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of the Lord. Just waiting.
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He's going to come and now they've become a burden not just
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on society but on the the the ward there to provide for their
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needs. And so he tells them look at
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verse 11. This is chapter 3 for we hear
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that there are some which walk among you disorderly working not
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at all but are busy bodies. They're going around saying hey
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he's going to come you should come and join us and wait for
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him and and getting involved in everybody's business saying come
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and do this. And he's saying no now them that
1:00:03
are such, we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that
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with quietness they work and eat their own bread, that ye
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brethren, be not weary in welldoing.
1:00:16
It's super powerful. Imagine the challenge.
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It was to spread the message of Jesus Christ among the people of
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Thessalonica when they see some Christians basically loitering
1:00:28
around. Waiting for something to happen
1:00:31
that never happens. What wellmeaning person would
1:00:34
say I really want to be part of that group?
1:00:36
Nonproductive, speculating all the time, and there's no
1:00:40
productivity versus quietly going about doing good.
1:00:47
And if you look at the totality of scriptures, most of it is
1:00:50
about going about quietly doing good and not just sitting around
1:00:55
waiting for God to save us. That is not the gospel way.
1:00:59
So I love that Paul in his original letter he wants to
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comfort these people under persecution, realizes it may
1:01:06
have gone a little too far for some of them.
1:01:07
Let's pull it back a little bit and get people oriented on what
1:01:11
it means to live joyfully now instead of just waiting for joy
1:01:15
to somehow magically happen at some unknown date.
1:01:20
So to finish, let's make it very clear.
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The day will come when Jesus Christ will come from heaven to
1:01:28
the earth. That's not in question.
1:01:31
Question is when. But the bigger question for us
1:01:35
is, will I come under Christ before that day, whether I'm in
1:01:42
the grave or whether I'm alive? Am I going to choose to come
1:01:46
under Christ rather than putting so much focus on an event of Him
1:01:50
coming to us that I miss the point of me coming unto Him
1:01:56
today? And He's given us all kinds of
1:01:58
means to do that. And one of my favorites is to
1:02:03
follow the Prophet. Don't go astray, follow the
1:02:08
Prophet. He knows the way.
1:02:11
In closing, know that He is in His heavens watching over us,
1:02:17
and He will help us to come unto Him so that when He does return
1:02:22
to the earth, it will be a joyous reunion rather than a
1:02:27
terrible day. Because we've missed out on all
1:02:32
of these daily and weekly quizzes causes us to not do so
1:02:36
great on that final exam. That's our prayer.
1:02:39
We live with you in the name of Jesus Christ.
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Amen. Know that you're loved.
1:02:44
And spread light and goodness