Today, this is our message from 2 Thessalonians chapter 3, and I've preached on all of these eight chapters. Today is the eighth message from 1 and 2 Thessalonians, and the major theme that I see in the book of both 1 and 2 Thessalonians is about hope. And so today's message is entitled, Choosing Hope.

And I'm just going to read verse 16, 17, and 18 to begin with now. 

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all. The salutation of Paul with my own hand, which is a sign in every epistle so I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

I want to begin by giving this testimony. Whenever I study or prepare a message from the Word, my first desire is to personalize the text and to apply it for my own life. That's my serious desire for study of the Word and for preaching the Word. And so I want to begin with a statement of my own confidence about choosing hope.

First of all, I'd like to talk about my own heart choice. The choice of my life for a long time has been to be what I call a biblical realist. Not an optimist, not a pessimist, those are personality characteristics, but I want to choose to be a biblical realist. That means, for example, when I read Colossians 1, 26 and 27, that Jesus Christ lives in me, I want to believe that for what it says. Or Philippians 1, 6, which declares that God who began a good work in me will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. I want to choose to be a biblical realist about that statement. 

Or Paul's statement in Philippians 1, where he said, to live is Christ and to die is gain, and to depart from this body will be far better. My choice, my desire, is not to be optimistic or pessimistic, but a biblical realist and choose hope. 

Or 1 John 5, verse 4, which says this is a victory that overcomes the world, even our faith in Jesus Christ. In all of these instances, my desire in my heart, my choice, is to be a biblical realist. Not optimistic, not pessimistic, but realistic.

I'd like to give you five words that begin with R that relate to this choice of being a biblical realist who chooses hope. The first R is reason. God said in Isaiah chapter 1, come now and let us reason together. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow. To be a biblical realist means that I settle that issue with the Lord. I reason with God and experience his complete forgiveness.

The second R I'll mention is remember, and that's taken from the Last Supper where Jesus lifted up the cup and he said to his men, I want you to remember this cup. It speaks of my sacrifice for you. And continually we need to remember what Jesus did for us on the cross to be a biblical realist. 

The third word is remain. It's the word for John 15 where Jesus said, abide in me, remain with me. And at all times, whatever is going on in life, whether we're discouraged or confused about life, the secret is to remain in Jesus. And the best way I know to do that is to just give him thanks at all times. Whatever happens in my life, to be thankful to him that I can remain with him and in him.

And the fourth R is the word reckon. That means that we count the promises of God as positive truth. We reckon things to be true, like Paul said in Romans 6.11, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

And the fifth R is renew. Paul told us in the book of Romans, we need to keep renewing our minds with the word. And in order to be a biblical realist, to face life with hope, we need to continually be in the word, renewing our mind and meditating on the truth.

Having said that, I'd like to remind you about our new covenant security. As a believer, the Bible says, the New Testament in Hebrews 6 declares that we are anchored to the rock during this severe cultural hurricane, earthquake that we're experiencing in our society. Jesus has gone into heaven as our great high priest. And we're pictured there as a ship or a boat tied to the anchor who's gone into heaven. And so our hope is consistent because it's based upon Jesus who went into heaven on our behalf. 

I just heard a news commentator recently make the statement, after a horrible act of terrorism, he said, we're living in a very dangerous world. That's true. But we're anchored to Jesus. He's in heaven for our sakes. It's a catastrophic world, but we're secure in Jesus Christ. 

Now, then I want to mention our daily opportunity, and I reckon my daily opportunity is to live with courageous hope in the face of this fierce, threatening danger that we're experiencing. We can live as confident believers who are clinging to Jesus Christ, who's entered into heaven for us. 

I'd like to have us turn in our Bible to the sixth chapter of Hebrews, and I want to read, I think I'll have you turn to Acts 27 instead. The 27th chapter of Acts, and read about a fierce storm in which Paul experienced great danger, but had great hope. He chose hope. 

I want to begin reading in verse 17 of Acts 27. When they had taken it on board, they used cables to undergird the ship, and fearing lest they should run aground on the sordid sands, they struck sail, and so were driven. Because we were exceedingly tempest-tossed, now notice that picture, Paul on a ship on the Mediterranean Sea, 276 total passengers tossed about, and they're exceedingly tempest-tossed, the next day they lightened the ship. On the third day, we threw the ship's tackle overboard with our own hands. 

Now when neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest beat on us, all hope that we would be saved was finally given up. That was a hopeless situation that Paul found himself in with the other passengers on that ship, and they gave up hope. 

But after long abstinence from food, then Paul stood in the midst of them and said, Men, you should have listened to me and not have sailed from Crete and incurred this disaster and loss. And now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only the ship. 

Paul urges them to stir up hope, to choose hope. He said this, For there stood by me this night an angel of God, of the God whom I serve and to whom I belong, saying, Do not be afraid, Paul, you must be brought before Caesar, and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you. Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God, that it will be just as it was told me. However, we must run aground on a certain island. 

When the fourteenth day had come, as we were driven up and down the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors sensed that they were drawing near some land, and they took soundings and found it to be twenty fathoms, and when we had gone a little farther they took soundings again and found it to be fifteen fathoms. Then fearing less we should run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for the day to come. 

In the midst of that fierce storm on the Mediterranean Sea, Paul demonstrates what it means to choose hope. Everyone had given up hope. The ship was being slammed by the fierce Mediterranean storm. There was little hope that they could survive, and Paul had a word from God that none of them would perish, and he urged them to stir up their hope. And when the ship was finally battered to pieces, they all survived. Not one drowned. They held on, grasping and clinging fast to a broken timber of the ship with a promise from the Lord in the midst of the raging storm.

All of this introduction I'm making today, friends, is to introduce our text about choosing hope and what difference will it make. And I want you to notice this in our chapter today, 2 Thessalonians 3, how will it affect someone's life if we choose biblical reality, choose to believe God's word, and choose to live with hope? 

Well, in verses 1 and 2, Paul said we'll be able to pray with confidence. In verses 3 through 5, we'll be comforted by God's saving love. Verses 6 through 12, we will be obedient because of his saving name. And also in verse 12 to 15, we'll be driven because of his merciful grace. 

I want us to look at those four ways our life will be impacted when we choose to be a biblical realist, we choose hope. Verses 1 and 2 of chapter 3 of 2 Thessalonians, finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men, for not all have faith. 

Pray with promise. I'd like to invite you right now to turn to John chapter 14, where we have a great prayer passage of scripture and a promise. John 14, we're going to begin right at verse 1, and you follow along in your Bible, please. 

Jesus said this, let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go, you know, and the way you know. 

Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you're going, and how can we know the way? Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you'd known me, you would have known my Father also. And from now on, you know him and have seen him. Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father, and it's sufficient for us. 

Jesus said, have I been with you so long, and yet you've not known me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen my Father. So how can you say, show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak to you, I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves. 

Most assuredly I say to you, he who believes in me, the works that I do, he will do also. And greater works than these he will do, because I go to my Father. Now notice this promise, and whatever you ask in my name, that I will do that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in my name, I will do it. 

Now I want to remind you, dear Christian friend, that verse 14 and verse 13 and 14 are just as viable and trustworthy as verse 1 in My Father's house are many mansions. This is a promise to us that prayer will be effective when we have, when we're choosing realistic faith, realistic hope. And there'll be two effective benefits of prayer, stimulated by the promises of God's Word. 

First of all, we'll have confidence in the words of God. That's what Paul said, that the Word of God may run swiftly. And I especially pray for that for my own life. But what does that mean? It means to choose a promise of the Word, fasten our hope to that statement. For example, John 6, 37, where Jesus said, if you come to me, I promise I will not cast you out. To choose to believe that promise at face value stirs up our hope, our living hope. 

Hebrews chapter 4, which says Jesus is our high priest who's gone into heaven on our behalf and now we can approach his throne to obtain grace and mercy at the time of need. Or Hebrews chapter 8, where he said as a high priest, I will be merciful to your unrighteousness and your sins and your iniquities, I will remember no more. 

Friends, when we pray with promise, it's because we have confidence in the words of God. We hold fast to the statements of God. And also, when we pray with promise, we have certainty of deliverance by the Lord in the time of hatred and persecution. Notice what Paul said in verse 2, that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men. That was Paul's confidence. 

Paul's bold testimony concerning the fierce hostility and hatred he faced was, I know whom I have believed. I'm persuaded that he's able to keep that which I've committed to him. And I think of Paul's testimony in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, of all the variety of suffering that he experienced. He was beaten with lictor's rods, iron rods, on several occasions. 

He was stripped naked, his hands tied above his head, and he was scourged with a Roman whip, 39 stripes on 5 occasions. He was stoned outside of a city and drawn out of the city as though he were dead. All of this Paul experienced. And yet he said, I have confidence of deliverance. What about the deliverance? Well, his deliverance was, when I'm absent from this body, I'll be present with the Lord. To live is Christ, to die is gain. I am ready, because to meet him in heaven will be far better than this.

So Paul said, one of the things that happens when you choose biblical reality, you choose hope, living hope, you can pray with confidence. And secondly, when you choose hope, you'll be comforted by God's saving love. And that's verses 3 to 5. Would you follow, please? 

But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ. Paul said you can be comforted by God's love when you choose hope.

Now this strategic statement reveals the promise of supernatural hope in times of trouble, fear, anxiety. The promise is we can keep our heart directed into the saving love of God. And I think of 1 John 4, where John declares, here's how we know the love of God, that he sent his only begotten son to this world to be our Savior. And we can direct our heart at all times, at any moment, into that great love. 

And that will result in personal courage because of God's faithfulness. Look at verse 3 again. But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. We can trust in God's faithfulness at all times. Paul said to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians, God is faithful. He's called us into the fellowship of his Son. We can trust him for his faithfulness at all times, even when we have failed to be faithful. 

And we can live with eager expectation because of God's sanctifying work. Paul had the assurance concerning God's saving work in the hearts of the believers at Thessalonica. They'd turned from false religion to the true God to wait for Jesus to come from heaven. But now he expresses his certainty concerning God's ongoing work of sanctification in them. He will sanctify them. And what is the personal secret of that? 

Well, Jesus answered that in John 17, 17, his prayer to the Father. He said, Father, I pray that you sanctify them by truth, your truth, your word is truth. And it's when we set our mind on the things of God's word, when we keep our heart stayed upon him, that he sanctifies us by the word. 

I remember we had a preacher in our church in Wausau named David Needham. He wrote the wonderful book called Birthright. And he was talking about living with courage and steadfastness and hope in this kind of world. And one of the points that he made that I've never forgotten is he said, we need to take some of specific words of God and we need to affirm those words in our mind and heart again and again. And this is what Paul is talking about when he said, you'll be comforted by God's love as your heart is directed into his love, his saving love for us.

And then the third thing that Paul mentions that will change in our life is we'll be obedient because of his saving name. Let's start at verse six and read through verse 12 of our text. 

But we commend you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which he received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you. Nor did we eat anyone's bread free of charge, but worked with labor and toil night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. Not because we do not have authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us.

For even when we were with you, we commanded you this, if anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busy bodies. Now those who are such, we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread. 

Now there's several things I'd like to highlight in this part of the word about our obedience, but there are two paramount applications for every believer who follows Christ and who wants to choose hope, who loves God's Savior Son. It tells us what is the daily impact of this saving hope in Greece. 

First of all, choosing to trust in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Please look, if you will, at verse 6 again. But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which he received from us. 

Now the context was severe persecution of Jesus believers. It was unreasonable and wicked men who do not have the faith. And the simplicity of what he's saying is that every believer is to honor and exalt the saving name of Jesus in this kind of context. At all times, we must be conscious of his saving name. Just give thanks at the remembrance of his name and bow with your knees and confess with your mouth when you hear the name of Jesus. 

During the atmosphere, that atmosphere of political hatred and cruel terrorism, what should we do in America? Should we join the angry mobs? No, the answer of this book is affirm and proclaim the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

I'd like to invite you to turn to Acts chapter 5 as a wonderful illustration of what we're saying. The apostles of Jesus in Jerusalem have been threatened and then they've been beaten and they've been commanded not to speak in the name of Jesus anymore in Jerusalem. 

And here's the follow-up to that statement. So they, that is the magistrates, released them and they departed from the presence of the council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his namesake. 

And daily in the temple, in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ. That's what we should do at this time when we choose hope. Then we will be obedient because of the saving name of Jesus and we'll be witnesses and we'll choose to make our routine life an example for Christ. 

He said that in verses 7 through 12. Here's, I'd like you to think of this. The reasoning of the Thessalonians was this, of some of them at least. They said, we believe Paul's promise concerning the imminence of the Lord's coming back for us. It could be today. And since the coming of the Lord to rapture us is imminent, let's just quit our jobs and sit around waiting for him to come. 

Well, Paul's commission was very clear. He said, you must get to work, be diligent about your work and don't think that you can just wait for Christ and not provide for your families at this time. He said, if you don't work, you shouldn't eat. And I remember what Jesus said about that when he talked about these things. 

He said, in this time of expecting Christ to come, we should occupy till he comes. And that's what Paul did. That's why he was making tents, sewing pieces of leather together on the streets of the cities, selling his tents to the people who came by. He said, I did that to be an example, even though I believe Jesus may come today. 

Well, this is what we've seen, folks. We've seen when we choose to be a biblical realist, we'll pray with confidence. We'll be comforted by God's saving love. Our hearts will be directed toward his love. We'll be obedient because of his saving name. And then there's one other thing I want to mention. We'll be driven because of his grace. 

When I say that this morning, I wonder if you'd stop and think right now, what is it that drives your life? By what are you driven? And Paul concludes this document of hope with two strategic commands. What is it that drives my life just one day at a time? What compels me? How can I understand my own heart and life? 

We'll be driven, Paul says, in persistence of doing good. He said that in verse 13. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good. When you apply this instruction from Paul, what does it mean to do good? And I think it'd be a good thing for us to read his own testimony concerning that in 1 Timothy chapter one. 

And I'll start at verse 11. What did Paul mean that we'd be persistent in doing good? He said this in chapter one of 1 Timothy verse 11, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. And I thank Christ Jesus, our Lord, who has enabled me because he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry. 

Although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, an insolent man, but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant with faith and love, which are in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief. 

However, for this reason, I obtained mercy that in me first, Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering as a pattern to those who are going to believe on him for everlasting life. What did Paul say it meant to him to do good? He said it meant to be in the ministry of seeking to save those who are lost. That's what he considered to be good. 

And so Jesus said the same thing. He said, I've come to seek and to save the lost. That's what was driving Jesus at all times. I did not come to the world to condemn the world, but that the world through me might be saved. He said, lift up your eyes and look on the fields. They're already white for harvest. It's time to work. The night's coming when no man can work. 

What does it mean to be doing good? It means to be involved in the mission of winning lost people to Christ. And that stirs up this question in my own mind. What's the very best thing I can do for a lost sinner who's rushing toward the everlasting punishment, the torment in the lake of fire? And I'm going to say today, dear friends, I don't like to talk about this, but it's in the scripture and God talks about it. 

The book of Jude says our work, our ministry, our doing good right now is a matter of pulling people out of the fire. And when I read that in the book of Jude, I think of the description in Revelation 14 of the lake of fire for all those who do not receive salvation through Christ. And the writer of Revelation said, John the apostle said, the smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever, and they're tormented in that fire forever and ever. 

And doing good means to be seeking to save the lost, to win unsaved people to Jesus Christ by telling them the gospel. And why do we have that desire in our heart? Because of the indwelling Holy Spirit who lives within us. That's our passion. That's our purpose. And when we live with our hope, when we are choosing hope and living in biblical reality, when we choose that, dear people, these four things will be characteristic. We'll be praying with confidence. We'll be comforted by God's saving love. We'll be obedient because of his saving name. And we'll be driven because of his merciful grace. 

I'm going to end this message now with the last three verses of this chapter. 

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace always in every way, the Lord be with you all. The salutation of Paul with my own hand, which is a sign in every epistle. So I write the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. 

In verse 16, we see the fervent desire that Jesus has for every one of us who belongs to him. I want you to experience my peace. He is our peace. He said, peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you, not as the world gives do I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

And Paul told the Colossians, let the peace of God rule in your heart. The desire of Jesus for you and me at this time, as we choose to live with hope, is to experience his peace. And our cognitive confidence for all times and all circumstances is stated by Paul in verse 18, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. 

God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, made us alive together with Christ. By grace we've been saved. 

This month of October, I'm reminded that it was just 13 years ago when my dad went to heaven at the age of 97. I sure miss him. I still can see him coming in with his walker into our worship place, wearing his white sport coat and ready for the Sunday morning service, singing and enjoying the word. And sometimes when I preach just a little too long, he'd ask me, he said, do you get paid by the honor? Well, he was full of fun, but he was a man of great love and grace and goodness. 

And the thing I knew about my dad is whenever I had a need, whatever a crisis or need I had, I could always call on him. He was available. He was willing. His love was so great. And he was so helpful to me. And I just say that this morning because that's a reminder of our father in heaven. That's why we can choose hope. Because as a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear him. 

He's so good to us. Choose hope. Choose not to be an optimist or a pessimist, but a biblical realist, believing the hope that we have in Jesus Christ. 

Please bow in a prayer. 

Father, thank you for the words of this chapter and for the words of scripture concerning our hope and concerning your great saving love and concerning the name of Jesus, our dear Savior, our Lord. Thank you, Father. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.