DUDLEY HALL —

For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved — so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But God’s wrath has come upon them at last! (1 Thessalonians 2:14-16 ESV)

Question: I am intrigued by Paul’s statement that the measurement of their sins is filling up? What does that mean? Also, given the popular current emphasis in certain Christian circles about being raptured out of the troubled world, why is there so much in the New Testament about suffering?

Answer: As to the first part, God is merciful! He has plenty of time and is willing to wait for mankind to see the error of choosing against him. (Romans 1:18-21) Scriptures indicate that one of the reasons the descendants of Abraham had to spend such a long time in Egypt was to give the Canaanites ample time to fill their cup of wrath. (Genesis 15:16) Delay of judgment does not mean God doesn’t see or care. While the wicked wait for their cup or wrath to be filled, the righteous must wait for their vindication. During the wait true believers have the privilege of sharing in the suffering that comes from proclaiming and practicing the gospel.

The widespread theory of the secret rapture of believers before tribulation is a relatively recent development. It came to popularity through the influence of J.N. Darby in the middle 19th century. It was picked up by C.I. Scofield and included in his study notes of the King James Version of the Bible. Many under the influence of this view have never heard there is another one. Some even think that to question these man-made study notes is to question the authority of Scripture. Actually, the more orthodox stream of interpretation has not adopted this view, though there have been disagreements and discussion since the early days as to the nature of Christ’s last coming to earth.

Let’s be clear: Some who emphasize a coming rapture avoid peddling a no-pain gospel, Darby among them. But some who promote the rapture view, as well as some with a different end-times interpretation of Scripture, promote a no-pain gospel message. My purpose here isn’t to try to solve an eschatology debate that will surely continue among sincere Christians until Christ’s return. Rather, it’s to remind us that there’s no getting around the fact that Jesus has called us to take up our crosses, rapture or no rapture.

The gospel is so radical that it causes turbulence wherever it is proclaimed. Paul had been one of those Jewish leaders who fought vehemently against this new and subversive sect. The Judeans had persecuted the early churches seeking to stop the spread of this wild-fire passion for Jesus as Messiah. As Paul writes to the Thessalonians he knows they are destined to suffer also, and he wants them to be prepared.

They are espousing a Lord who is not Caesar. They are proclaiming the messiah as having already come. So, they are catching flak from both the religious world and the political world. The cross was then, and still is, a scandal for those who won’t believe.

So it is troubling today to see the church trying to downplay the suffering part of Christianity. We seem to want an escape from the very dynamic that spreads the power of the new kingdom. Jesus was crucified at the hands of religious people (the Jews) using civil authority (Rome). The same two forces are still at work in the world to stop the spread of the gospel.

Of course it can’t be stopped as long as there are believers who aren’t afraid to stand and die for its claims. We must not allow the gospel to be sanitized to fit current consumer demands. Two thousand years later, the gospel still draws a line in the sand and demands full allegiance to the only Savior. Believers must be aware of this and be prepared to stand, suffer, sacrifice and even die.

To offer an expectation of escape before trouble comes is cruel. Instead, we must warn and exhort one another to be ready to stand firm in the face of suffering “… that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know …” (1 Thessalonians. 3:3-4 ESV)