A Sermon on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

Grace and peace to you from God, our Father, and from his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A few months ago, Harold Camping, president of California’s Family Radio, predicted that God’s “Judgment Day” would happen on May 21, 2011. You may recall the hype surrounding his prediction. He said that three million people would be saved, and the rest of the world would perish.

Of course, that did not happen.

And then Mr. Camping revised his prediction a bit. He claimed that a “spiritual salvation” had happened on that date in May and recalculated the end of the world for October 21, 2011. Everything I’ve read about these predictions was filled with darkness and doom. A select few people would be “raptured” (that is, taken up to some form of “heaven” with no warning).

The rest of us? Well, we’re left with very little hope. But here we are, nearly halfway through November, still journeying through our day-to-day lives, most of us probably giving little to no thought about Mr. Camping’s predictions. It is not, after all, the first time we have experienced something like this.

Did you know that there is actually a website called “judgementday2011.com” that offers a list of “The Top 10 Reasons You Won’t Be Saved in the Rapture”? I stumbled across it this week, as St. Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians sent me researching end-of-world theories. Among those Top Ten reasons are these, all of which are given as the voice of God speaking:

“At some point you’ve wanted what someone else has had. Fail.”

“Stealing candy from the store, even if you were a child – still counts as stealing!”

“Ever lie to your parents? That wouldn’t be considered ‘honor’ in my opinion.”

All of these reasons—and most of the others on the list—are clear violations of The Ten Commandments. Wanting what someone else has is, obviously, the sin of coveting. Both the Ninth and Tenth Commandments address that.

Stealing? Number Seven.

Lying to parents? Number Four.

Included on the website’s list, as well, are other basic commandment violations such as taking the Lord’s name in vain (Number Two), failing to keep the Sabbath day holy (Number Three), and murder (Number Five).

All of the reasons listed are written in a tone that doesn’t sound very grace-filled and Godlike to my Lutheran Christian ears and I hope this list was posted in humor. At the same time, I am forced to acknowledge that the list is a pretty accurate reflection of twenty-first century American Christian culture. Our society teaches us—and it is too-often affirmed by so-called theologians—that we have some measure of control over eternity. We are taught that we can choose not to sin, thereby ensuring our status as “saved” for eternity.

At the same time, many faithful Christian voices are speaking up in defense of Jesus and in reminder of what St. Paul addresses in this morning’s lesson from the first letter to the Thessalonians—words which hearken directly back to the Lord and Savior himself. “For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.”

Jesus will return when God determines and humanity will not be given any warning beyond what we already know—and that, as we’ve all heard—is that the world will be surprised! No one—not Mr. Harold Camping, or any mainstream Christian pastor—knows the day and time.

And no human being—regardless of how righteously we may try and live—will determine our own eternal destination. But that doesn’t stop some people from hoping to control it. Would you like to know the number one reason why people won’t be saved in the rapture, according to the website I quoted earlier? “You were never baptized. Instant strike.”

We’re Lutheran. We understand that in the sacrament of baptism we are claimed by God forever. When water and the Word are combined, we are brought into the family of God and given eternal promises of love and grace. Our faith teaches us that nothing we can do—no matter how dark and sinful our choice—can take us away from God’s light and love.

Oh, I suspect that most (and perhaps all) of us feel a bit anxious from time-to-time, when we gather enough courage to look deeply into ourselves and acknowledge our sin. But the cross on our forehead, which points to the cross borne by our Savior as he committed the act that proves God’s endless love for humanity, is our source of hope in God’s promised grace.

At the same time, given the fact that we do not know when our Lord will return and complete the kingdom, it is inaccurate and totally unfaithful for us to assume that those who are not baptized will be given an “instant strike” are destined for eternal condemnation. The baptized live under the promise of salvation. But those who have not received that gift do live without hope—and to imply that our Lord is so cold as to refuse eternity to people simply because they have not been baptized is not faithful.

It is true that, immediately after the reminder that “the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night,” comes these words, “When they say, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them...,” but that warning does not refer to the wrath of God coming to destroy anyone. It’s a warning against over-confidence. Peace and security are what will be destroyed, not humanity—and especially not Christians!

Even the baptized, then, would be wise to remember that while we live under an eternal promise, God is the one who holds the power in the sacrament. We did not choose baptism—nor did our families choose it for us—God chose us for baptism! We are powerless in the face of God’s choice, having no option other than to submit. Our faith promises us that we can trust God’s grace and love. At the same time, St. Paul reminds us that over-confidence is dangerous and will be destroyed when we come face-to-face with our judge.

Please note, though, that the warning is immediately followed by a promise, “You, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; for you are all children of light and children of the day…. God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live with him.”

“Whether we are awake or asleep, we may live with him.” That’s a huge promise! First, it acknowledges that we may not be as fully prepared for our Lord’s return as we might like to think. It also points to our Lord as the sole source of salvation. And, more than anything, it promises that God’s grace is bigger and deeper than we will ever comprehend! Awake or asleep, when the time comes for Jesus’ return, we may live with him!

Lutheran theology understands baptism as the moment at which we are made children of light. We who have received this gift live under God’s promise. Jesus’ birth in the stable marks the beginning of God’s human journey. Throughout that journey, we have multiple examples of love and grace, the most significant of which occurred when he allowed himself to be beaten and nailed to the cross and placed in the grave. His resurrection, of course, is our source of eternal hope. It’s Good News. Amen.