With this in mind, in other words, with your glorious future in Christ in mind, we’re constantly praying for you. Now, what should we pray in the light of our glorious future in Jesus Christ? I end with this because it surprised me and therefore challenged me. Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. I’m David Peckin. Colin, I know you’ve been a Christian for nearly 50 years. Are you really saying you’re still surprised by God’s Word? You know, one of the wonderful things about reading scripture, and one of the things that I find keeps me fresh, is in reading a passage of scripture, sometimes just to stop and say, what would I expect to come next? And then to be surprised, because sometimes it’s something very, very different. So this is a great example. I’m reading through this part of 2 Thessalonians. We have all of this marvelous truth about the glory that’s going to be revealed in us, what it will be for us to be in glory. And what comes out of that, Paul says, in the light of this, may God fulfill every good purpose of yours. Every good purpose. In other words, when a believer has really grasped what lies ahead of us, what comes out of that is that we form plans, purposes for the advance of the gospel and for the utilization of life now, in the light of the fact that there is this glorious and this eternal future ahead. Planning comes out of that. Activity comes out. It’s a surprise. That’s not what I would have expected to be there. But it’s very powerful. The question for me is, in the light of my eternal future, what good purpose am I pursuing in the name of and for the sake of Jesus Christ now? That’s the application. And the surprise of it is the challenge of it. So join us, if you can, in 2 Thessalonians chapter 1 and verses 10 to 12 as we continue our message. Christ will be glorified in you. Here’s Colin. Not only will you see Christ’s glory and not only will you be glorified in him, but he, Jesus Christ, will be glorified in you. Now, if this was not stated so clearly or so plainly, we would never even begin to imagine it to be possible. So I want you to see it right there in your Bible in front of you. Verse 10. When Christ comes, he comes, quote, to be glorified in his most holy people. So it’s not only that we are going to be glorified in him, now Paul is saying that he, in some sense, is going to be glorified in us or through us. And you have the same statement again in verse 12. He repeats it a second time. It’s exactly the same. Paul prays that the name of the Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, that Jesus will be glorified in you. You say, well, now what does that mean? How is it possible for Jesus Christ to be glorified in us? I can see and begin to imagine how I could be glorified in him as what is his becomes mine. How in the world can he be glorified in me and us? At the end of the Bible, the Apostle John, as most of you know, was given a marvelous vision of things to come recorded in the book that we call Revelation. John saw in that vision what it will be like when God’s people, his redeemed people, those who are in Christ, are gathered in the presence of Jesus. And in chapter 7, John noted what was most striking to him. And there are three things. And I think they explain well how it is that the Lord Jesus Christ is glorified in his holy people. How will Jesus Christ be glorified in us, first answer? Christ will be glorified by the vast number of the redeemed. The vast number of the redeemed. I’m quoting now from Revelation in chapter 7, which I think sheds light on the passage that we’re looking at here. And John says, I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count. They’re from every nation, they’re from every tribe, they’re from every people, and they’re from every language. And as John sees this vision, you see the first thing that strikes him is the sheer number of these people. It’s the first thing he writes. Christ has redeemed people from every corner of the planet. And they have been drawn from every generation in history. And John is given in this vision a glimpse of what that day of their gathering looks like. And the first thing he says is, nobody could possibly count them. Nobody could count them. And I’m suggesting to you that this brings great glory to Christ. Isaiah puts it this way. He says, there’ll be a day when Jesus will see the fruit of his suffering. He’ll see what came from the agony of his own soul. And when he sees what came from it, the vast multitude, he will be satisfied. Not disappointed. Satisfied. This will be larger than any gathering that you have ever seen or ever imagined in all of your life. And think of this. Every person there will be there redeemed because of the precious blood of Jesus Christ. That brings glory to him. He is glorified in the redeeming of this vast company of people. And then as John looks at that vision, there’s something else that comes to him. He’s asked a question and he gets an answer about who these people are. And he discovers that they are people who have come through or out of great tribulation, great trouble. And I want to suggest to you secondly, that Christ is glorified here by the unique difficulties that his people have endured. See, here’s this vast, vast crowd. But if you move closer and you begin to get to know the individuals that make up this marvelous company of redeemed people, you will discover that each of them has endured some special difficulty in life. That’s true of all of us here today. Come through great trouble. Here’s someone in the crowd, in the presence of Jesus, who has struggled with depression all her life. All her life. But not now. Not now. There’s a light, there’s a joy in her that she has never known in one of her days in her life in this world. Here’s someone else who’s lacked confidence. He’s battled with fear all his days. But here he is in this great crowd now and there’s no fear in him. He stands there sure and certain and confident in Jesus Christ. You look further and you see that there is someone in this crowd and they’ve been scarred by a great evil that was done to them by another person. And it troubled them, it haunted them, it dogged them all the days of their life. But it’s not dogging them now. Folks, it’s not dogging them now. There they stand in the presence of Jesus and every tear that has been wept over that has been wiped from their eyes. Each of these people in this vast crowd has faced unique difficulties in life. Some of them have endured lifelong struggles that arose from their temperament or arose from their own background. But in every case Jesus Christ has brought them through. And now here they are. You see this is what we’re to think about. Your glorious future in Jesus Christ. Because that will sustain you when you’re right in the middle of the battle. That’s the whole point. So I’m saying that the Lord Jesus Christ is glorified not only by the vast number who are brought into his presence but by the unique difficulties that every one of them have endured and yet he’s brought every one of them safe home. Delivered them completely. That’s your future in Jesus Christ. Remember it when you feel the struggle right now. And then let me suggest that Christ will be glorified by the complete transformation of inveterate sinners. Now I’m using the word inveterate not only because I like the sound of it which I have to admit I do. I like the sound of that word. But I’m using it because I want you to remember today that your sin is not a small thing. The word inveterate means, here’s the definition, long-established, deep-rooted or habitual. So the word inveterate is a good word to describe the human condition. By nature we are inveterate sinners. And think about it. Last week we saw clearly from 2 Thessalonians that sinners are shut out from the presence of the Lord. And here are all these people in the presence of Jesus. And they were sinners too. So how are they here? What are these folks, this vast multitude, doing in the presence of the Lord? And why in the world are they all dressed in white as John saw them in this vision? John is given this answer. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. That’s why these people are here. Not because they’ve lived some kind of perfect life, but because they have been washed by Jesus Christ and therefore Christ is glorified by the very fact that they are there. So you see, if you were to look into this crowd and to learn everybody’s story, let’s just take some stories that we know. Who’s in this crowd, this vast crowd in the presence of Jesus? Well, there’s a man called David who was an adulterer. There’s a man called Moses who was a murderer. There’s a man called Peter who once denied Jesus Christ. There’s a man called Paul who was once a persecutor of the church and a violent man. And then if you’re in Christ, there’ll be you and there’ll be me and all the stuff that we have done. And this great crowd of people, they’re all there, every one of them there, because we have been washed in the blood of the Lamb, that is in the blood of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. Christ has cleansed us and now look at us now. There we are, dressed in white robes. We’re righteous, not because we’ve lived that marvelous perfect life, but because he has and his righteousness has been given to us. We become holy as God is holy. We have become like him. We’re in his presence and we’re there without fault. That’s why the tears are wiped from our eyes. We’re not living eternity with regret. We’re there with great joy. So this transformation of inveterate sinners brings glory to Jesus Christ, because clearly only Christ could accomplish such an amazing transformation. You’ve been listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith and the message, Christ will be glorified in you. And as we always say, if you miss one of our messages, you can always go online, catch up, go back, listen again at openthebible.org.uk. At Open the Bible, we want to help you take your next steps in your walk with Jesus, to grow deeper in your relationship with him. We’ve got lots of free resources that might help you to do that at our website. One of the things we’d encourage you to check out is Open the Bible Story. It’s there to help you get a better understanding of the Bible story. As Pastor Colin says, it’s one story which begins in a garden, ends in a city, and all the way through points to Jesus. Find out more at our website, openthebible.org.uk, and click on Open the Bible Story. Back to the message now. Here’s Colin. Let me give you one more quote from Spurgeon. He was a wonderful evangelist, and he had a great heart to appeal to people who feel very far from God. And if you feel very far from God, maybe this will be a word of encouragement and hope and help for you. Spurgeon says this to a person who feels, boy, I’m so bad, there’s no hope for me. He says, let me put it to you. If Jesus Christ is glorified in saved sinners, would he not be glorified indeed if he saved you? You see the point? If he were to save such a rebel as you have been, would it not be the astonishment of eternity? You’d be amazed if you were saved, wouldn’t you? And it would be for the great glory of Christ. What if my master, said Spurgeon, were to make a saint of you? Now to someone who feels today that you have been so bad, what you have done is so wrong, that there is no hope for you, I extend this hope in the gospel of Jesus Christ today. You put your trust in him, and his salvation in your life will be for his glory forever and forever. You have every reason to come to Jesus Christ right now and to put your faith in him and to trust him as your redeemer, as your redeemer, your saviour and your lord. It’s a marvellous thing. The open arms of Jesus Christ. So here’s what we’ve seen. When Jesus Christ comes, three things will happen. You’re going to see his glory. We’re all, all who believe are going to marvel at him, marvel at him. You’re going to be glorified in Christ. There’s going to be a change in you, and Christ will be glorified in you. The completion of your salvation, the gathering of this vast company of the redeemed, his keeping power through all that we’ve faced. What you endure in your life will turn out to be for the glory of Christ forever and forever and forever. Now you see what he’s saying? You see the force of this. If you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, this is your future. It is whatever you face right now, however difficult it is. So this will help you to stay the course when you are tired of the battle. Lift your mind up and see what is yours in Jesus Christ. Now I’ve got a couple of minutes left, and so just one more thing that is very important, and it’s this. In the middle of these massive truths, in verses 10 and 12 about the glorious future of every believer in Jesus Christ, Paul prays for believers in verse 11. And what he asks of God in the light of our glorious future is very significant. Notice what he says, verse 11, Now what should we pray in the light of our glorious future in Jesus Christ? And I end with this because it surprised me and therefore challenged me. Three things, planning, acting, persevering. Persevering, we’ve seen that the whole of this chapter is about that subject really. It’s there again in the words that God may count you worthy of his calling. Calvin says he speaks here of the end or completion, which depends on perseverance. And so really what he’s saying here, look, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, end or completion, which depends on perseverance. And so really what he’s saying here, look, is in the light of your glorious future in Christ, I’m praying that you’ll persevere. I’m praying for you that you will persevere. And then he says something about planning. Isn’t that astonishing? Would you expect that here? That by his power, he may fulfill every good purpose of yours. This is an astonishing statement. I would expect it to say, in the light of your glorious future, may I’m praying that God will fulfill every good purpose of his. But it doesn’t say every good purpose of his. It says every good purpose of yours. Don Carson has this comment. It’s so important. God’s people have been so transformed, he says, that through their conversion to Jesus Christ, they now come to develop a new set of goals. Prompted and shaped by goodness and faith, they inevitably formulate new purposes, decidedly Christian plans, Christian goals. Now you see what Paul is saying then? I want you to look at the glorious future that is yours in Christ. And as we saw last week, take a look at the eternal future for those who are without Christ. Put these two things together, and I want you to live in the light of that. And I’m praying that the church will live in the light of that eternal reality. That’s what he’s saying. It is not enough, folks, for you or for me to drift through life saying, I’m open to whatever the Lord wants me to do. That sounds much more spiritual than it is. Because candidly, if it becomes the pattern of life over years, you know what? It becomes a spiritualized cover for doing nothing. What will you do? That’s the question. What is your purpose? What is your good purpose? What will you do? That’s the question. What’s your plan? What’s your plan? How are you in the light of your glorious eternity and in the light of others’ lost eternity? What are you going to do? Paul says, I’m praying, because he knows that these believers have good purposes in the light of eternity, that they’ve come up with some plans and ideas for reaching out to this wretched town of Thessalonica that’s persecuting them so vigorously. And Paul’s saying, I’m praying that every purpose of yours, every good purpose that you have, that God will fulfill it. The Christian life is not passive. God invites us to take the initiative to formulate plans and to act in faith. It’s very important to understand it. Otherwise, we are mired in passivity by a false spirituality. That is why, folks, we have a ministry plan for the church. Some folks will come along and say, oh, yes, well, that was just written by humans, wasn’t it? Exactly. That’s what we’re being called to do, for us to have some plans. We pray about them, but we make in discussion and in thinking the best plans we can to reach out and to do the work of Christ in the short time we have in the light of eternity. We have good purposes. We’re to take action that’s prompted by faith. Every church should have a plan for ministry. Every church should have goals for the future. Every church should pursue ventures of faith. Every good purpose of yours, here’s the biblical basis for it. Now, I simply ask at a personal level, what good purpose can you pursue in the light of eternity this week? Who can you reach out to? Who can you speak to? Who can you visit? Do something. Planning, acting, persevering, every act prompted by faith. One more quote and we’re done. You want to know how Spurgeon ended his sermon? I wouldn’t have had the nerve, so I’m just going to quote him. You understand, you know? Here’s how he ends his sermon. Now get at it, all of you. I love that. I love that. He’s been preaching about eternity. Your future, the lost future. Now get at it, all of you. And you who have been doing nothing for Jesus, be ashamed of yourselves and ask him to work in you so that you may begin a work for him. You’ve been listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith and the message, Christ will be glorified in you. It’s part of our series, staying the course when you’re tired of the battle. And if you ever miss one of our messages, or if you tuned in late today, come to our website, openthebible.org.uk. There you can go back, listen again, catch up with any of our previously broadcast messages. Open the Bible is supported entirely by our listeners. And if that’s something you feel you’d like to do, this month, we’ve got a special offer for you. In return for setting up a new donation to the work of Open the Bible, in the amount of five pounds per month or more, we’d love to send you two copies of a book called More Than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell. And Colin, who is this book for? Well, it’s for anyone who wants to bear witness to Jesus and anyone who has questions about Jesus, which ought to just about cover everyone who’s listening to the program today, I’m sure. This is a marvellous book. More Than a Carpenter has a story behind it. And the story is that the author, Josh McDowell, actually set out to disprove Christianity. That was his aim. And what he found when he set out on that journey was that the evidence for Scripture and for the claims of Jesus Christ was so compelling that he himself was converted and became a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. So this is a great book for helping anyone who wants to be clearer and more confident in their testimony to Jesus. And it’s a marvellous book to be able to give to anyone who is a sceptic or is asking honest questions about the Christian faith. And that’s why we want to send you two copies of this book, More Than a Carpenter, one for you and one to give away. That’s our gift to you if you’re able to set up a new donation to the work of Open the Bible in the amount of £5 per month or more. Full details on our website, openthebible.org.uk. For Open the Bible and Pastor Colin Smith, I’m David Pick and I very much hope you’ll join us again soon. Would you like to have a better understanding of the battles you face in the Christian life? Get the Bible’s inside story next time on Open the Bible.