. ____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER ____________________________________________________ "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ October 19, 2008 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) The Dead in Christ Shall Rise First (Ron Daly) 2) Behold! (Jeff May) 3) God Expects Man to Understand His Will (Aude McKee) ____________________________________________________ -1- The Dead in Christ Shall Rise First by Ron Daly Paul wrote in his first letter to the Thessalonians, that when the Lord descends from heaven, "the dead in Christ will rise first" (1 Thess. 4:16). Apparently, Paul had reason to be concerned that some of the Christians in Thessalonica were uninformed regarding the status of fellow-believers who had died. He wrote to them so that they would not grieve. He states that when the Lord descends from heaven the dead saints will not be forgotten, nor left behind. They will rise before the living are caught up to meet the Lord in the air! "For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have fallen asleep" (v. 15). The apostle is not affirming any of the doctrinally erroneous presuppositions of the premillennial heresy. His point is not that the dead saints will rise and be caught up in "the rapture," a contrived theory of premillennialists. Instead, he implicitly indicates that the dead saints will not be abandoned, but they will rise to meet the Lord together with those who remain. The following verbal phrases constitute the immediate context of Paul's words, in which actions are ascribed to the Lord and his saints: "The Lord himself ... will descend (katabesetai) from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise (anastesontai) first. Then we who are alive, who are left (perileipomenoi), will be caught up (harpagesometha) in the clouds together with them to meet (apantesin) the Lord in the air, and so we will be (esometha) with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage (parakaleite) one another with these words" (vv. 16-17). Notice the word "then" in verse 17. It translates epeita which in the present context is emphatic, and the term means "after that, in the next place." The Greek-English Lexicon of The New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Bauer, Arndt-Gingrich-Danker, 284, indicates that epeita is used "to denote succession in enumerations, together with indications of chronological sequence." Paul's point seems to be, immediately after the dead saints rise the living saints will join them to meet the Lord in the air. The text does not teach a partial resurrection, i.e., that some of the dead, those who are in Christ will be raised at the Lord's coming, but the wicked dead will remain in the graves for several more years. In the 1 Thessalonians' text Paul's primary focus is on "we who are alive" in Christ and "the dead in Christ." He is not denying a general resurrection of all the dead, he simply discusses one class of dead persons who will rise. This seems to be the category about which the Thessalonians had inquired, or at least were concerned. Please consider that Paul does not say, "Only the dead in Christ shall rise," but he says, "The dead in Christ shall rise first." Let us ask, first in relation to what? The word "first" is a translation of proton, an adverb which in this text means "first of all, first in order." Before the living ascend to meet the Lord, the dead in Christ will be raised and both groups shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. According to numerous New Testament texts when Jesus comes to judge the world, all the dead will be raised. "Do not be astonished at this: for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and will come out those who have done good, to the resurrection of life and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation" (John 5:28-29). Peter and John caused much annoyance to the priest, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees "because they were teaching the people and proclaiming that in Jesus there is the resurrection of the dead" (Acts 4:1-2). Paul affirmed that he was "on trial concerning the hope of the resurrection of the dead" (Acts 23:6). Paul made his defense to Felix the governor, proclaiming "that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous," and he declared that he was on trial "about the resurrection of the dead" (Acts 24:15,21). The apostle said to the people of Athens that God "has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed . . . they heard of the resurrection of the dead..." (Acts 17:31-32). "For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised..." (1 Cor. 15:52). In his second letter to the Thessalonians, chapter 1:7-9, Paul states that when the Lord is "revealed from heaven" (the equivalent to "the Lord himself will descend from heaven" in the first letter, 4:16) vengeance will be inflicted on the wicked, but he will be glorified in the saints. Therefore in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Paul is not teaching a partial resurrection of some of the dead, neither is he indicating that there will be multiple resurrections of all the dead. There will be only one literal resurrection of all the dead. -- Via Guardian of Truth XLI: 4 p. 10-11, February 20, 1997 ____________________________________________________ -2- Behold! by Jeff May When God gave us the Bible, His intent was that we would be captivated as the greatest story that has ever been told is unfolded before us. In fact, there is a single word that appears at monumental moments. It's the word "behold." This word is meant to work like a stop sign. It basically means, "Stop. Look at this and marvel!!" Consider a few impressive moments when we see it. "Behold, a virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall call his name 'Immanuel'" (Matthew 1:23). Childbirth itself is a marvel. Just ask any mom and dad. However, this was the marvel of all marvels. A virgin gives birth to the Son of God. Jesus, the Word, became flesh and lived among us. He left a world of splendor and praise to be cramped for nine months in the confines of a womb. He would soon emerge into a world that would despise Him and would not leave Him alone until He was in a tomb. Here was a baby born to die. Yet, in that birth and in that death, our salvation is made possible. Behold! "Behold, the lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world" (John 1:29). I would have had a hard time living in Old Testament times. Offering those lambs would have been difficult for me. I'd be like the man Nathan told King David about in Second Samuel 12. I'd probably take my lamb and let it grow up with me and my children, letting my cup down for it to drink and allowing it to sleep next to me. I can't fathom sinning and then having to go and get that lamb, place my hands on it and kill it. But this is no ordinary lamb. This is Jesus, the Lamb provided by God to take away all our sins. Behold! "He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come see the place where the Lord lay...Behold I have told you" (Matthew 28:6-7). With expert precision, the Roman soldiers executed Jesus like any other man. He was dead when He was taken from Calvary's hill. They made sure of it. All of that changed on the first day of the week. With an earthquake, angels rolled away that stone and Jesus came forth from the grave gaining victory over Hades and death. The marvel of His resurrection transformed eleven scared men into the boldest men that have ever lived. They beheld a risen Lord and went to their graves never recanting their story. Behold! "Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us that we should be called the children of God" (I John 3:1). Isn't it a marvel that, if we are Christians, the God of the Universe calls me and you His sons and daughters? What love! Behold! "Behold, He is coming with the clouds and every eye will see Him" (Revelation 1:6). One day while the world slumbers in spiritual laziness, the archangel's voice will sound, the trumpet will blast, all our heads will turn heavenward and, behold, there He will be with the angels of heaven on the clouds. Now isn't that going to be a sight? Do you ever gaze into the clouds and imagine it? Will you be ready? See what I mean? The next time you run across the word, stop and behold! -- Via The Exhorter, Oakland church of Christ ____________________________________________________ -3- God Expects Man to Understand His Will by Aude McKee In Matthew's account of the Great Commission, Jesus said, "Go ye therefore and teach all nations..." Why would Jesus, the Son of God, tell his apostles to go and teach people if what they were going to teach could not be understood? Did not Jesus, in the command, necessarily imply that the material to be taught was simple enough to be understood and that those to be taught were capable of understanding? One of the answers to our present-day situation was given by Jesus a long time ago in Matt. 13:15: "For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and l should heal them." Jesus placed the blame for not understanding squarely at the feet of those who heard the teaching. They closed their own eyes, stopped their own ears, and hardened their own hearts so that they did not understand! Incidentally, had you thought about the fact that if a thing is understood by two individuals, they necessarily will understand it alike? If two people disagree on something, one or the other (or both) did not understand! If one person "understands" baptism to be sprinkling, and another "understands" it to be pouring, then neither of the two really understands what the New Testament teaches. Even the Greek word for baptism means "immersion." In other words, it is impossible to "understand" baptism incorrectly. So if you and I disagree over something the Bible teaches, we both need to keep studying. When we both really understand we will agree. ____________________________________________________ CHURCH OF CHRIST 201 Rushing Road (at the Hampton Inn) Denham Springs, LA 70726 Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520 tedwards@onemain.com http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go DIRECTIONS: Take the Denham Springs exit (exit 10) off of I-12. At the end of the exit ramp, turn north. Go about a stone's throw to Rushing Road. (You'll see a Starbucks, Circle K, and two other gas stations; with each on each corner.) Turn left on Rushing Road, and go less then 0.3 of a mile. Hampton Inn will be on the right. We assemble in its meeting room, which is very close to the reception counter. ____________________________________________________