God Will Repay Trouble To Those Who Trouble You

"For you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will rise, and there will be healing in its wings. You will go out and jump around like calves from the stall" (Malachi 4:2). Amen.

Last Sunday afternoon, Matt and I took young Trapper to Casper Mountain to ride our side-by-sides. I'm blessed to have Bluetooth speakers in my side-by-side. So, I had him listening to my eclectic choice of music – Swing, Celtic, Home Free, Tophouse, Bodeans, and so on. One of the first songs that came on was "Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond. We both sang loudly to the song, especially the "ba ba ba" and "so good so good" parts. Later, Trapper asked, "Did we just listen to AC/DC followed by Johnny Cash?"

"Yes. Yes, we did."

One of the last songs that Johnny Cash released was a song that reflected his Christianity and his reverence for God's Word. The title of the song is, "When the Man Comes Around." It's a song about Jesus' return on Judgment Day. It is filled with biblical references and pictures that Jesus will return, time is short, and the moment for serious reflection is right now. Here are some of the lyrics:

Whoever is unjust, let him be unjust still. Whoever is righteous, let him be righteous still. Whoever is filthy, let him be filthy still. Listen to the words long-written down, When the man comes around. Hear the trumpets, hear the pipers. One hundred million angels singin'. Multitudes are marchin' to the big kettle drum. Voices callin', voices cryin'. Some are born and some are dyin'. It's Alpha and Omega's Kingdom come.

Jesus is returning. St. Paul encourages the Christians in Thessalonica with this news. Paul had only been able to stay in Thessalonica for about three weeks before he was chased out of the city by the extreme persecution to the gospel of Christ. The Thessalonian citizens stayed and endured this persecution. Paul encourages them that their faith is growing more and more (2 Thessalonians 1:3), despite – and perhaps because of – this persecution. He writes, "This is evidence of God's righteous verdict that resulted in your being counted worthy of God's kingdom, for which you also suffer" (2 Thessalonians 1:5). How was their persecution evidence of God's righteous verdict?

Paul assured the Thessalonians that God loved them, had forgiven them, and would continue to be with them. That was how God judged them. If they had caved in and not gone through the trials and persecutions they were called on to endure, God could not judge them worthy of eternal life. But because they had endured, God's judgment was right, and his judgment would be made public on the Last Day.

How about you? Are you being persecuted for your faith in Jesus Christ? At work, at home, at school, in public, on social media? Are you bold and unapologetic about your faith? Do you wear your faith symbolically on your sleeve or physically on your T-shirt? Do people know you're a Christian with every move you make and every word you speak? When you face persecution – which you should because the world hates us because they hate Christ – that is evidence that you, too, are being counted worthy of God's kingdom, for which you suffer.

Paul says that God makes a "righteous verdict". There are two things that God will do on Judgment Day because he is just and his verdict is righteous. First, God will judge us as worthy of eternal life because we held to Christ by faith. This verdict is ours, not because of anything we have done, but only because the Holy Spirit brought us to faith and kept us in the one, true faith. The only thing we "did" was not say "no" to this gift of faith. Second, God will punish the enemies of the gospel for all they've done to his chosen people throughout the history of the world. God will undo all the pain that sin inflicts on us, including the pain of persecution.

St. Paul then goes on to explain how God's justice will come upon those who oppose his Son and the followers of his Son. "Certainly, it is right for God to repay trouble to those who trouble you, and to give relief to you, who are troubled along with us. When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his powerful angels, he will exercise vengeance in flaming fire on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. Such people will receive a just penalty: eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from his glorious strength" (2 Thessalonians 1:6-9).

Paul says clearly that God will repay trouble to those who trouble you for your Christian faith. Why is God's justice important for Christians to remember as we suffer at the hands of tyrannical governments, demonic despots, unbelievers, pagans, social media bullies, and so on? As individual Christians, we don't take revenge. We follow Paul's advice to the Christians in Rome who were also being persecuted, "Do not take revenge, dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath. For it is written, 'vengeance is mine; I will repay,' says the Lord" (Romans 12:19-20).

The Lord Jesus will bring his righteous wrath upon those who persecuted his people. We leave room for God's vengeance. Until then, we turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39); forgive 70 times 7 (Matthew 18:22); pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44); live as Christian salt to season a decaying world; and live as light in the pagan darkness (Matthew 5:13-16). God will bring trouble on those who trouble us. But we cannot be weak Christians, either. We put on the gospel armor, and we take the fight to the devil and his followers. Every day, I am sharing images on social media reminding Christians that we are in a war. Christ has called us to be his warriors, Christian soldiers, marching off to war, with the blood of Jesus going on before. This is a war Christ has already won for us. But it's one where we'll get hurt and bloodied in. We're going to be in trouble!

What kind of trouble will those who trouble us receive? "Vengeance in flaming fire." Malachi describes this vengeance in a similar way: "The day is coming, burning like a blast furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble. The day that is coming will set them on fire, says the Lord of Armies, a day that will not leave behind a root or branch for them" (Malachi 4:1). "Eternal destruction." That seems like a contradiction, for how can destruction be everlasting? But there's no other way to describe the endless pain and torment there. "Away from the presence of the Lord." The worst part about God's justice is that unbelievers will be removed from God's presence. They will be outside, unwanted, and uncomforted.

American culture has attempted to neuter God by taking away his justice. They imagine he's a divine grandfather sitting in heaven handing out candy and sweets to those on earth. He looks the other way when people sin. He tolerates all kinds of false religions. Society has attempted to emasculate God by emptying him of his authority. They have mutilated the God of the Bible by removing his wrath and only emphasizing his mercy.

When the wrath of God is removed, then the central act in all human history has been emptied of its power and meaning. If God is not all that angry with sinners, then Christianity is nothing more than feeble moralism where we urge people to be a little nicer to each other. If Christ's death did not pay the terrible price for a world of human sin, then his death was nothing but a pathetic and weak act that can do nothing to change our lives. If Christ did not bear in his sacred body the wrath and punishment we deserve, then we are still in our sins and will endure God's wrath and punishment on the Last Day.

The Bible balances the wrath of God with the mercy of God. If people accept God's mercy through Christ Jesus, they escape his wrath. However, if people refuse to receive the mercy of God for Christ's sake, then they will receive the wrath of God coming from the Lord Jesus in blazing fire.

Take the time to bow your head and confess to God your sin of taking God's wrath upon your sin lightly.

Private confession.

Are you a Christian? Have you received and believe in Christ's mercy? Has God counted you worthy of his kingdom because of your faith in his Son?

If you answered "yes" to those questions, then Judgment Day has already taken place for you. It took place when the ever-living Son of God hung dead on the cross. It took place when the guilty verdict was placed on him. When God the Father poured out his wrath on his Son. When God declared his righteous verdict of guilty upon Jesus. When the Father forsook, turned his back on, and abandoned his only begotten Son. When the punishment for humanity's rebellion was placed upon the thorn-crowned head, the scourged back, and the nailed hands and feet of Jesus Christ.

All the judgment of God against humanity's sin took place on that one day, in that one place, on that One Man. On the cross. In the tomb. Under God's wrath. Your Servant took your place. Your King took your place. Your God took your place – as your Substitute – to set you free. And you are free. It is finished! God's judgment has been endured by Jesus so that you as Christians might receive God's pardon and forgiveness. God's wrath was poured out in history's past instead of being poured out in our eternal future.

This verdict of freedom and this pronouncement of forgiveness is what you need to hear in church every week. For every week, as we gather in church, we have a small dress rehearsal for Judgment Day. Every week in worship is like a little Judgment Day as the King comes to us and tells us his judgment. He announces in the absolution, "I have forgiven your sins by my sacrifice." He reveals, "You are mine," every time we see the pastor make the sign of the cross reminding us of the cross that was placed over our hearts and heads at our baptism – the date when we became God's. In the Scripture lessons, sermons, and hymns Jesus declares, "I will either be your unrelenting Judge or your all-merciful Savior." When we taste his body and drink his blood in the Lord's Supper he proclaims, "I am giving myself to you."

You will suffer for believing all this. The theme from the Scripture readings today is don't despair. God declares over and over again that there will come a time when those who have rebelled against him and brought trouble to his people will themselves have trouble, and God's believers will have relief. God will carry out his justice. We Christians may suffer temporally here on earth at the hands of unbelievers for our faith, but the unbelievers will suffer eternally in hell at the hands of a just God for their lack of faith. "Such people will receive a just penalty: eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from his glorious strength, on that day when he comes to be glorified among his saints, and to be marveled at among all those who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed" (2 Thessalonians 1:9-10).

Because of God's wrath there will be justice. And relief. What is the relief that all Christians are looking forward to? Eternal life in heaven where we'll be marveling at our Christ.

Failing to recognize God's wrath can effectively trivialize God's power. Singing about God's wrath upon sinners serves as a direct reminder of God's mercy to forgiven sinners. That's why we sang of God's wrath and relief that comes on Judgment Day. Songs like "Great God, What Do I See and Hear," "The Day is Surely Drawing Near," and "Day of Wrath, Oh, Day of Mourning." Or even country songs like, "When the Man Comes Around."

Last Sunday evening, I texted Ashley, Trapper's mom. I asked if Trapper enjoyed the ride. She said he did. I then wrote, "Great! I don't fault him if he said, 'I'll go with Pastor again. Just don't let him sing anymore!" She assured me he didn't say anything like that.

When you suffer for your Christian faith, you might wonder, "Where is God's justice?" Just wait. It's coming. Maybe not now. Maybe not soon. But eventually. Eternally. The final justice will be on the Great Day of Judgment. God's justice will be our relief. Then God will repay trouble on those who trouble you. Amen.

"You will trample the wicked. They will surely be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I take action, says the Lord of Armies" (Malachi 4:3). Amen.