Insight for Living

Bill Meyer: Why is saying goodbye so much harder than saying hello? Well, for most of us, there's a finality to it. The door closes, the lock snaps. So how do we offer a graceful send-off? Today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll draws his answer from Paul's beautiful farewell to the Thessalonians. In this benediction, Paul focuses on the God of peace, satisfied and smiling because His Son met all the demands on the cross of Calvary. Chuck's message comes from his 12-part series called *Contagious Christianity*. He titled today's study "What a Way to Say Goodbye."

Chuck Swindoll: Paul concludes his wonderful letter to the Thessalonians with six verses to graciously affirm his readers with a benediction that is the emotional capstone of his entire letter. Listen to the way Paul said goodbye: "Now also we beseech you, brethren, get to know those who labor among you. Recognize them for what they are; acknowledge and appreciate and respect them all. Your leaders who are over you in the Lord, and those who warn and kindly reprove and exhort you.

And hold them in very high and most affectionate esteem, in intelligent and sympathetic appreciation of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. And we earnestly beseech you, brethren, admonish, warn, and seriously advise those who are out of line; that is, the loafers, the disorderly, and the unruly. Encourage the timid and fainthearted, help and give your support to the weak souls, and be very patient with everybody, always keeping your temper.

See that none of you repays another with evil for evil, but always aim to show kindness and seek to do good to one another and to everybody. Be happy in your faith and rejoice and be glad-hearted continually, always. Be unceasing in prayer, praying perseveringly. Thank God in everything, no matter what the circumstances may be. Be thankful and give thanks, for this is the will of God for you who are in Christ Jesus, the revealer and mediator of that will.

Do not quench, suppress, or subdue the Holy Spirit. Do not spurn the gifts and utterances of the prophets. Do not depreciate prophetic revelations, nor despise inspired instruction or exhortation or warning. But test and prove all things until you can recognize what is good; to that, hold fast. Abstain from evil, shrink from it, and keep aloof from it, in whatever form or whatever kind it may be.

And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you through and through, separate you from profane things, make you pure and wholly consecrated to God. And may your spirit and soul and body be preserved sound and complete and found blameless in the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Faithful is He who is calling you to Himself and utterly trustworthy, and He will also do it; that is, fulfill His call by hallowing and keeping you.

Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a sacred kiss. I solemnly charge you in the name of the Lord to have this letter read before all the brethren. The grace, the unmerited favor and blessings of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, be with you all. Amen. So be it."

Bill Meyer: You're listening to Insight for Living. To dig deeper into 1 Thessalonians on your own, be sure to purchase our Searching the Scriptures Bible study workbook by going to insight.org/offer. Chuck titled today's message "What a Way to Say Goodbye."

Chuck Swindoll: Saying hello is easy. In fact, it's fun. It's saying goodbye that's hard. I think Neil Diamond's popular piece, "Hello Again, Hello," tells us what a lilt there is connected with saying hello. Well, not always. There are some exceptions. There are times when saying hello is a difficult thing. There's a young man in our church, for example, who, though he's now a young adult and very happy in the home into which he has been adopted, decided this past year that he would trace his original roots.

Through a rather arduous plan, he went to the other country where he was in fact born. As a matter of fact, he was adopted by a mother and dad while the father was in the military serving in Europe. And so, the man's real mother not only lives in another country, but she doesn't even speak the language, which added to the difficulty of the pursuit. Nevertheless, he pressed on. I wish I could have him here to tell you his remarkable story. It's full of emotion.

He found the town, he found the street, he in fact found the house. And then he sat down out front and thought, "Now, how do I walk up and say, 'Hi, I'm your son'?" Well, I'll leave that for another time. Saying hello is not always easy, but it's usually a lot easier than saying goodbye. As a matter of fact, I thought recently of the number of places where I have seen people wrenched trying to get the words "goodbye" out of their mouth.

I have been in airports, and I have been in train stations and bus depots where those words could hardly be said. I have been in courtrooms where they were said. I have seen it happen in hospital corridors and in prisons and on college campuses. I've been in homes where there was the need to say goodbye to a family member, and it was always with an enormous amount of emotion. Saying goodbye is not an easy thing. In fact, it's tough.

A former neighbor of ours told me some time ago that her husband's company, a large corporation, has moved them three times in the past seven years. She says we have learned as a family, just to lighten the pain of saying goodbye, we just no longer bother to say hello. They have, by the way, moved again; four times in eight years. It is painful to say goodbye. Stop and think. We don't even like to use the words.

We say, "See you later," or "Talk to you tomorrow," or "Give me a call later on." We say, "Have a nice day." We've even learned how to say it differently on Monday nights: "Turn out the lights, the party's over." We don't say goodbye. I checked my correspondence and I found that in my correspondence I have never once written "goodbye" and signed my name. I've said, "Gratefully, lovingly, affectionately, warmly, cheerfully, encouraged, relieved, affirmed, strengthened."

Never once have I said goodbye. And people who write me often feel the need to sign in a religious way. So they will sign "with love in the Lord," "in Christ," "because of Him," "yours and His." One signed recently, "I'll see you here, there, or in the air." That's a new one. And I even have letters signed "without wax" by an individual. I'm starting to sound like Andy Rooney right now talking about this subject.

But we don't like to say goodbye. Why? Why is it so hard simply to say goodbye? There's finality in it. You can hear the lock snap. You can hear the door shut. And the deeper we feel about people, the longer it takes us to say goodbye, if, in fact, we ever say it. We like to lengthen our talk when it comes time to close off the conversation. You know, that's biblical. You may be relieved to know that never once in scripture is there a letter signed "goodbye" at the end.

Sometime the writer closes with a couple of verses, sometime he will give as much as an entire chapter to saying it, but there's never simply a curt goodbye. That's true in the Thessalonian letter. As a matter of fact, you may have already forgotten that this is the very first recorded letter Paul wrote. It may not be the first letter he wrote, but it's the first one chronologically that has found its way into the New Testament canon of scripture, which we call today a part of God's Word.

And Paul felt deeply about them. These are among his firstborn. Now, I'm a father, I'm not a mother, but I think I know enough mothers to know that there's something about the firstborn that makes them sort of special. I've always said that mothers feel affectionately about the firstborn and fathers really owe the firstborn an apology. I think most dads ought to look at their oldest and say, "I'm sorry. Look, I learned on you," and then go on to bigger and better things.

But mothers have a sense of oneness with the first one that came from their womb, or the first one that they've adopted. There's something special about the first. For example, this letter to the little church in Thessalonica. Let's kind of review it. Chapter one, he says, "I give thanks for you." Says that in verse two. In chapter two, he says, "I love you dearly." Says that in verse eight, "having thus a fond affection for you. You'd become very dear to us."

Chapter three, he says, "I'm concerned about you." In fact, so concerned I sent Timothy to see how things were. Verse five, "for this reason, when I could endure it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith." Chapter three is a letter written kind of like a mother or father would write someone who's been away to college quite some time and the only time they've written home is to get money, but there's not really been any contact.

There's not really been any meaningful talk. There's not even been much phone conversation. And you get concerned in their absence. Chapter three is an "I'm concerned for you." Chapter four is "I exhort you." Now, don't let this pass too quickly. "I give thanks for you," chapter one. "I love you dearly," chapter two. "I'm concerned for you," chapter three. "I exhort you," and there's kind of an exclamation point after that.

In fact, the first eight verses of chapter four form some of the most frontal counsel on moral purity in all the Bible. Did you know that? Right here. I exhort you to be pure. I exhort you to stay sexually clean. I exhort you, friends, I love you too much to let you play in the traffic. I exhort you. I guess for chapter five, he's encouraging them. In fact, verse 11 says, "Therefore encourage one another."

And that's exactly what he does, and he gives them a grocery list, I call it. A long list, over a dozen things between verses 12 and 22 that they're to do, and he is encouraging them to do it. I encourage you. So when it comes time to say goodbye, how can you say goodbye to people like that? Oh, what a way to say goodbye. He does it beautifully. George Cohen used to give the counsel to fellow entertainers in the world of showbiz, "Always leave them laughing when you say goodbye."

That's not God's counsel. A good laugh is good, but that's not God's counsel. "Always leave them laughing" is not the way to say goodbye. If you're spiritually minded, if you really walk with God, if you really want your life to have an impact on someone else, always turn their attention back to God. When you walk away, when it's all over, when you say goodbye, when you end the time with them, always be sure they love the Lord more then than when you started.

That's good counsel, and that's what Paul does. There's a profound farewell in this letter, and I'm really falling in love with it. I'm confident he never dreamed it would be analyzed by preachers for centuries to come. God bless him. I think he just wrote an affectionate goodbye in the only way that he was led to do it. In fact, if you look at these verses, 23 through 28 in chapter five, you see that they really have to do with three things.

God Himself, verses 23 and 24, and then the little church, the people there, 25, 26, and 27. Three times he uses the word "brethren." That's a signal. "Brethren, pray for us." "Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss." I know you're anxious to know about that one. We'll get to it. Just relax. And then, "I adjure you. I hold you under oath to have this letter read to everyone." Brethren, all the brethren.

So verses 25, 26, and 27 have to do with the little church in Thessalonica, and last, he closes with his favorite expression, "Grace to you. Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you." He's packed a lot into this farewell. He starts by talking about the Father. And actually, the way the verse reads, verse 23, it's like a benediction, which is what I call a prayer with your eyes open. It's a prayer wish.

May God do this. It's not that "may we bow and then I pray," but I could look at you with my eyes open and say, "May God do this, and may the Lord cause that to happen, and may He bless this." It's a what F. F. Bruce calls a prayer wish. Now, look at how he does it, verse 23. "Now, may the God of peace Himself." You read it in the English. If you could read it in the Greek, you would read, "Now, Himself may the God of peace."

Why do I say "Himself" like that? Because in the Greek sentence, when something appears early on, out of place, it's emphasis. It's an emphatic part of the sentence. It's like we would say, "Her Majesty the Queen." "His Majesty the King." "Himself God." That's the way it reads. In other words, God is not going to provide these things through some delegation. He's not going to bring along a band of angels and make it happen.

He Himself will be there. He Himself promises to deliver these goods. "And now Himself, His Majesty." Whom? "God of peace." That's a great title. Great word. You know it's an old word. The oldest term is "Shalom." You know what it means? It means to be whole, to be whole. It often carries a wholesome or wholeness idea. In the New Testament, the term has in mind harmony, friendship as opposed to alienation, contentment as opposed to chaos.

Just think about peace for a minute. In fact, I remember one wag says that we really believe in peace as a nation; we build a peace statue after every war, and we have them all across our country. But this is real peace. This is peace that is opposed to disorder, conflict, confusion. This is peace that is without irritability, anxiety, or impatience. This is peace that is in contrast to restlessness and impulsiveness, hurry.

Doesn't that sound inviting? Makes me think of the words of Frances Havergal written back in the latter part of the 19th century that we now have the words put to music, and we love to sing them as a church. "Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace." Remember the second stanza? "Hidden in the hollow of His blessed hand, never foe can follow, never traitor stand. Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care, not a blast of hurry touch the spirit there."

Where? In the hollow of the hand of the God of peace. How unlike the gods of idolatry. How many idols do you know that smile? They're all frowning. Look. How many of them have all of their demands satisfied and simply ask for the worship of their followers? Not one. They are demanding, and they are aggravated, they are peeved, they are irritable. They have frowns, they have fire and smoke and eyes that glare because they're not satisfied.

Our God is satisfied. You know why? The cross. Isn't that wonderful? My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought, my sin, not in part but the whole is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, oh my soul. When they drove the nails in His hand, and when they put the spike in His foot, and when they hung Him and He bled and died for me and for you, He cleansed us from sin and He, furthermore, satisfied all of the righteous demands of the Father.

Theologians would write, "the Father became propitiated, satisfied." And at that great epochal moment, God smiled, and He's been smiling ever since. And all that He asks of His worshipers is that they come through the cross to Him. That's all. You don't have to pay for your sins. You don't even have to work hard to give them up. You don't have to wash your hands three times a day.

You don't have to come to church every day of the week. You don't have to pay a gob of money to earn your way in or to keep Him satisfied. The blood has satisfied Him. All He asks is that you come by faith through Jesus Christ, because He's a God of peace. All the wrath against sin has been poured out on His Son. That's why the Savior screamed, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"

That's when He took all of the awfulness of our sin unto Himself, and now God is satisfied. He's at peace. Well, so much for His name. Boy, at this rate, we'll be here two hours. Let's move right on. What does God do? I find three things right here in the text. They don't rhyme, they don't all start with the same letter, they don't have a cute little ring to them, but they're all in the text.

Number one, "may He sanctify you completely," or "entirely." That's the way it reads. "May the God of peace sanctify you entirely." That's number one. Number two, "may He preserve you completely." It's right there. "May your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete." And third, "may He receive you blamelessly." Isn't that a great outline? And I can't even claim that it's mine. It's His. He gave it to us.

May He set you apart entirely. Sanctification is a theological buzzword. Preachers love to use it and then kind of roll their eyes and then go right on. People think when they hear sanctification that they need to move to a monastery, or maybe dress in plain wrap, or look kind of holy because it sounds awesome. Well, it is an awesome thing, but it's none of those religious trappings. Sanctify simply means to set apart.

To set something apart. Now, in a Christian sense or theologically, it means the separation of the believer from evil things and evil ways. May the God of peace set you apart from evil things and from evil ways. It has nothing to do with geography. You may or may not live in a monastery and be set apart. You may or may not be in up-to-date clothes and still be set apart.

Has nothing to do with externals, nothing. You can even be an extrovert and be sanctified. You can be loud. You don't have to be quiet. You don't have to fold your hands and say religious things a lot. You can laugh and have fun in life. You can weep and be sad and still be set apart. See, it has nothing to do with temperament. We have religion to thank for making a lot of these words carry that connotation.

You cannot tell by looking at someone if they're sanctified, okay? So let's stop doing that. Just a little aside there; no extra charge for that. You can't tell by the externals if I'm set apart. I may look extremely, quote, sanctified, but I may be terribly carnal at the time. Now he's saying here, "May the God Himself set you apart entirely." Free from contamination, confusion, and wickedness. All that poison removed.

Second, "may He preserve you completely." Eyeball the word "preserve" for a moment, okay? Preserve. It means to watch over, to guard, to keep.

Bill Meyer: We've come to the final verses in Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians. It's a study that started on Monday, March 3rd, here on Insight for Living. The final message in the *Contagious Christianity* series will be aired this coming Monday. With that in mind, in just a moment, I'll point you to a helpful book written by Chuck Swindoll. First, however, we should acknowledge that today is a somber Christian holiday.

Good Friday is set aside to reflect on the darkest day in history, when sinful men revolted against Jesus and crucified Him on the cross. With His death, Jesus paid the penalty that our sins deserved, to redeem us from the power of sin and death. But that's not all. In an epic turn of events, that Sunday, Jesus miraculously arose from the dead with a brand-new resurrection body, to unleash joy and forgiveness and new life for all who place their trust in Him.

If your radio station carries the weekend edition of Insight for Living, Chuck will present a powerful depiction of the resurrection story as recorded in Matthew's Gospel. And even if you don't hear Chuck's sermon, we urge you to attend this weekend's services with your church family, celebrating the moment that Jesus rose from the grave. With Chuck's series called *Contagious Christianity* concluding on Monday, we invite you to get in touch with us to order a book he's written called *Laugh Again*.

It's yours when you make a gift to support the ministry of Insight for Living. You know, life has a way of stealing our joy quietly. Not all at once, but gradually, worry by worry, disappointment by disappointment, until laughter feels like something that belongs to someone else. Chuck says it doesn't have to be that way. In *Laugh Again*, he shows you that genuine, lasting joy isn't a mood; it's a choice, and it's available to you right now.

To learn more about the book, call us at 800-772-8888 or write to us at Insight for Living, Post Office Box 5000, Frisco, Texas 75034. You can also go online to insight.org/donate. I'm Bill Meyer. Chuck Swindoll concludes this series called *Contagious Christianity* Monday on Insight for Living.