"The Dead in Christ Shall Rise First"
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Today, we gained an extra hour with the clock change! I hope you all remembered to set it back since everyone seems to have arrived on time. And perhaps that extra hour means I get an extra hour to preach—well, maybe not, since we do have a clock to keep us honest.
But this change of time brings a question to mind. A question was once asked to a group of people: If you only had one hour left to live, who would you spend that hour with? It’s a question we might not think about often, but it’s powerful. People gave all kinds of heartfelt answers: some wanted to be with their grandfather, some with a parent. Then one person said they’d want to spend it with their pastor. The pastor was beaming until the man continued, “because he can make an hour feel like a lifetime!”
Let’s take this new hour we’ve been gifted today as a reminder to cherish every moment, to reflect on where we spend our time, and to find true joy in the present.
Today, we dive into one of the most powerful passages of hope in Scripture, found in Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians, chapter 4, verses 13 through 18. In these words, Paul reassures believers about the fate of those who have “fallen asleep” in Christ. Written to a church in Thessalonica that was new in faith, experiencing persecution, and wrestling with fear and confusion about death, Paul’s message here is not only comforting but transformative. He assures them that they need not grieve as those who have no hope, for we are grounded in the promise that those who have died in Christ will rise again, just as Christ himself was raised.
Imagine for a moment the context of these early Christians, a group of people deeply committed to their faith in a society that often ostracized them for it. They looked forward to Christ’s return but worried about what would happen to those who died before he came back. Were they lost? Would they miss out on the promises of Christ? Paul’s words here answer this question beautifully and clearly, reminding them that the dead in Christ shall rise first and that we will all, one day, be reunited with them in an eternal embrace with our Lord.
Resurrection is the cornerstone of our faith
According to the Lord's word, we who are still alive until the coming of the Lord will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so, we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore, encourage one another with these words.
As we gather here today to remember and celebrate the lives of our dear ones who have gone before us, the scripture reminds us not to grieve as others do. We experience grief, sorrow, and pain in the separation from our loved ones. Sometimes, the deepest pain we feel is from broken relationships and the void left by those who have departed. Those vacuums are often beyond anything we can fill, no matter how we look at it.
Yet, when we read scripture, it reminds us that while we, as human beings, do grieve, we do not grieve like those without hope. The grieving of people without hope is different from the grief we experience, for even in our sorrow, we have the hope of reunion. We believe that one day, we will be united with our dear ones again. This is the hope we preach and live by.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of our faith. Without the resurrection, there is no Christianity. We also believe with certainty in His second coming—that He will return to establish His kingdom. The hope of resurrection and the promise of reunion go hand in hand, giving us the strength to move forward with faith.
Hope Beyond the Grave: A Look at Death and Resurrection
Paul begins by addressing the natural sorrow of losing loved ones. Grief is human, a testament to the love we shared with those we miss. But for believers, grief is always underpinned by hope. We have something the world cannot offer—a blessed assurance of life beyond the grave. In verse 14, Paul states, "For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him." Here, the phrase “fallen asleep” softens the concept of death for believers, showing us that, in Christ, death is only a temporary state before an everlasting reunion.
We have heard stories of people coming back from the dead many times. Recently, there was a notable case reported in the news. This incident occurred in 2021, but the news only came out a couple of weeks ago, in Richmond, Kentucky.
A man was declared dead because he had his organs listed for donation. He was moved to a facility to have his organs harvested when he suddenly started moving. The woman who had come to remove the organs was startled and afraid; she began screaming. Meanwhile, the man started moving his arms and legs, opening his eyes, and rolling them. His name is Anthony Hoover, and you can look up this story. It's been covered in live news, and people are still talking about it.
The significance of this news is that we should not be afraid to donate our organs. There are many steps involved in the process before any organs are taken. They don't just go in and cut you open. In this case, they followed every procedure, which is how they discovered this man was still alive despite being declared dead. At some point, he revived.
We should not fear organ donation because, as demonstrated in this instance, there are numerous safeguards in place. Similar events have occurred in the past. For example, in 2014 or 2015, a man in Mississippi named Mr. Love woke up in a funeral home. Both he and Anthony Hoover were able to walk out alive and lived for a few more days or months after their experiences.
However, this is not the kind of resurrection we are ultimately talking about. While there are biblical accounts of people who rose from the dead, such as Lazarus, who was raised in the Old Testament, and others like the Prophet Elijah and the Apostle Peter, all these individuals eventually died again.
The resurrection we speak of is different—it is the resurrection of our bodies after death that leads to eternal life. This is our hope: that after our time in this world, we will live eternally with God. Jesus Christ rose from the dead not to die again but to live eternally, seated at the right hand of God the Father. This is the promise we hold on to after our death in this world.
To be absent from the body is to be with the Lord.
When we lose someone, we often ask, “Where are they now?” For the Christian, the answer is in Jesus’ victory over death. They are not lost. We are a group of people living in the land of the dying, and this is a reality. Yes, it is a reality, but we are heading to the land of the living, where we can live eternally. The promise of resurrection is very important in our faith.
Paul reminds the Thessalonians that he does not want them to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, saying, “Do not grieve like the rest, who do not have hope.” We have hope. We must not live without it because we know that our loved ones in Christ have not been lost forever.
Often, when we hear about someone passing away, people say, “We have lost so-and-so.” But we have not lost them. Yes, they may be absent from us, but they are not lost.
I was reading about a story of a woman who was at the funeral home for her husband. Many people came to visit, and during that time, many expressed their condolences, saying, “We have lost so-and-so.” After hearing this several times, she became upset and stood up to address the crowd.
She said, “You need to stop saying that my husband is lost. When you lose something, it means you don’t know where it is. But I know where my husband is. He is not lost; he is with my Lord, Jesus Christ. So please stop saying he is lost.”
This is the essence of our hope. We know where our dear ones are, and we have the assurance of where we are going to be. This promise also gives us the hope of reunion because Christ will come again to reunite us all. Because Jesus died and rose, we have confidence that those who belong to Him will experience the same resurrection. In John 14:19, Jesus said, “Because I live, you also will live.” Just as Jesus rose, defeating death, so shall we.
I remember reading about a mother who lost her young daughter unexpectedly. Heartbroken, she found solace in Christ’s promise of resurrection. Instead of seeing her daughter’s burial as an end, she likened it to planting a seed, believing that her little girl would rise again, perfected in the presence of Jesus. Her hope rested in the promise that Jesus made to Martha in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.”
Resurrection and Reunion: The Great Gathering
Verse 16 states, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.” Picture this for a moment: the skies parting, the voice of the archangel proclaiming Christ’s victory, the trumpet sounding a call to all who belong to Him. It’s a stunning image of reunion, one in which our loved ones who died in faith will rise first, followed by those who are alive, as we are all gathered together to meet the Lord.
There’s an old story of a boy whose father was a soldier. His dad had to leave for an extended deployment, and the boy missed him terribly. Every night, he’d pray, “Please, bring Daddy home soon.” When his dad finally returned, he didn’t just come quietly; he made sure it was a grand surprise, arriving in the middle of the day, catching his son in an embrace while everyone cheered. Imagine that on an even grander scale: Christ’s return is not a quiet affair; it’s a reunion planned for His entire family, with a trumpet call heard by all.
Encourage Each Other with These Words
In verse 18, Paul urges, “Therefore encourage one another with these words.” Paul wants us to live with an eye toward eternity, to lift each other up with the truth that death does not have the final word. By comforting one another with the promise of resurrection, we acknowledge that we are not alone in our grief. We stand as a family, knowing that Jesus has triumphed over the grave.
In times of sorrow, we don’t need to turn to empty platitudes or vague ideas. We have a real, living hope grounded in the resurrection of Christ. Our words of encouragement can point each other back to this hope. Just as we gain an extra hour when we turn our clocks back, we gain something infinitely greater through Christ—eternity with those we love, in the presence of God.
Faith in the Power of Resurrection
I found a funny story that I’d like to share. When we went to the Holy Land, someone on the bus told this tale about a man and his wife who traveled to Jerusalem. While they were there, unexpectedly, his wife passed away. Imagine how terrible it must be to experience something like that while in a foreign country, especially during what should be a vacation. They had to make arrangements to bring her body back home. The funeral home informed him that if he wanted to transport her body to the U.S., it would cost close to $20,000 to $25,000, considering all the processes and tickets involved. However, they offered to handle everything locally, here in the Holy Land, for only about $1,500. After thinking it over for a while, he told them, “No, I would rather have her shipped home and buried in the U.S.”
The staff asked him, “Why would you want to spend $25,000 to ship her body back home when you could do it for $1,500 here?” He replied, “A long time ago, a man died here. He was buried here, and three days later, he rose from the dead. I just can't take that chance.” I honestly trust his faith and appreciate his hope in the resurrection. He believed in the promise of bodily resurrection, which made his decision clear.
It’s easy to be consumed by earthly fears and doubts, but faith calls us to something higher. There’s a story of a missionary named George Müller, who, after losing his beloved wife, leaned on the promises of God’s word. He would read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, drawing comfort and reminding himself that their separation was temporary. He once wrote in his journal that death was “but a gentle sleep,” and that one day he would “wake up to see her again.” Müller’s faith kept him looking forward, his eyes fixed on the promise of resurrection and reunion. His life and ministry continued, grounded in that hope.
This hope is not an escape from reality but a bridge between this life and the life to come. As believers, we live knowing that death is only a transition, not an end. We can face it without fear because Christ has already gone before us.
Invitation to Reflection and Refreshing Hope
Today, as we gather, let us take time to reflect. When we come to the Lord’s Table, we are reminded of Christ’s suffering, but also of His victory. The bread represents His body, broken for us, and the cup represents the new covenant sealed by His blood. As we partake, we proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes again in glory. We affirm our belief in the bodily resurrection—a promise that just as Christ was raised, we too shall be raised.
The mystery of death loses its hold when we see it in the light of the resurrection. David expressed this confidence in Psalm 23:4, saying, “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” The valley is not the end; it’s a passage. Jesus walked it first, ensuring that we can follow Him without fear.
As you take the bread and cup today, remember that Christ’s death and resurrection are our assurance. In Him, we find forgiveness, and through Him, we are offered eternal life. May we reflect on the glorious hope that one day, we will join the “cloud of witnesses” in His presence, fully alive and made new.
Comfort and Assurance
In closing, Paul’s words encourage us to live with a confident expectation. Christ has already conquered death, and because of this, we do not grieve as the world does. As we look to the future, may we hold tightly to this promise, finding strength and joy in the truth that “the dead in Christ will rise first.” We are part of an eternal family, held together by Christ, our Living Hope. Let us comfort one another with these words and live in the assurance of our future in Him. Amen.
Amen.
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