| Teacher: Rusty Kennedy Series: 2 Thessalonians (Acts) |
Rusty's Notes | |
- We left off last week with Paul finishing the “thanksgiving” section of his 2nd letter in Chapter 1.
- You have to understand the context of the letter.
5 It is clear evidence of God’s righteous judgment that you will be counted worthy of God’s kingdom, for which you also are suffering, 6 since it is just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you 7 and to give relief (rest) to you who are afflicted, along with us.
- There is major religious persecution happening to the very young Church in Thessalonica.
- It causes a lot of questions about faith, teachings and leadership.
- Paul talking about God’s judgment and wrath doesn’t seem like much comfort in the “thanksgiving” paragraph.
- But there is one statement that brings comfort: “righteous/just judgment of God”
- Persecution is relative… so is the understanding of “vindication”.
- Paul is saying, “relax”… rest in Jesus.
- Paul is taking words of comfort from Isaiah 66:
- 5 You who tremble at his word,
“Your brothers who hate and exclude you
for my name’s sake have said,
‘Let the Lord be glorified
so that we can see your joy!’
But they will be put to shame.”[2]
THE MAN OF LAWLESSNESS
2 THESSALONIANS 2
- William Neil said this: This passage is “probably the most obscure and difficult passage in the whole of the Pauline correspondence.”
- Michael Holmes more recently said that this passage is “by common consent one of the most obscure in the Pauline corpus.”
- Paul’s purpose in this passage is to provide his readers not with a prediction of what will happen in terms of a blueprint for the future but, instead, comfort, meeting their very real pastoral need.[3]
- This next passage is just a glimpse of what Paul had taught the Church at Thessalonica, which we don’t have the privilege of knowing all that was taught.
- This apocalyptic paragraph is not conclusive.
- We would look to Revelation as the bigger picture of end times.
- This paragraph just brings confusion to us.
- Things which are mentioned just once or twice in the Scripture, we have a tendency to whisper.
- Things that are constantly repeated we have a tendency to shout… identity in Jesus.
1 Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him: We ask you, brothers and sisters, 2 not to be easily upset or troubled, either by a 1) prophecy or by a 2) message or by a 3) letter supposedly from us, alleging that the day of the Lord has come.
- None of the things that Paul had said were supposed to happen when Jesus comes again had happened.
- They should have said to themselves, “Where are the dead who have been resurrected? [1 Thess 4:13, 16]
- Where is the cry of command, the voice of the archangel, or the trumpet call of God? [1 Thess 4:16]
- Where is the sudden destruction that was supposed to come upon the pagan neighbors [1 Thess 5:3]?”
- Don’t underestimate how irrational fear is and how contagious fear is.
- We can see that easily in the classic fable of “Chicken Little.” I hope you know the story.
- An acorn falls on Henny Penny’s head, and she runs around saying, “The sky is falling, the sky is falling.”
- So yes, fear is irrational, but it’s also contagious.
- “Thus, even though the claim ‘the day of the Lord has come’ may have seemed obviously false, it nevertheless has caused the young church of Thessalonica to be greatly alarmed, fearful of whether they will avoid the wrath connected with that day of judgment and instead experience salvation.”[4]
- What caused the confusion?
- Compare verse 2 with verse 15
- 15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold to the traditions you were taught, whether by what we said or what we wrote.
- Prophecy/utterance was omitted.
- At the very end of the first letter (5:21–22) he talks about treating the Spirit and spiritual utterances.
- There he seems to be aware of a danger threatening the church—about them being misled by a false prophecy.
- In fact, he exhorts them in the first letter not to naively accept every spiritual utterance but [instead]—I’m quoting now from 5:21 and 22 of the first letter—he says [they] have to “test all things,” “hold fast to the good,” [and] “hold yourselves away from every kind of evil prophecy.”[5]
Correction
3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits in God’s temple, proclaiming that he himself is God. (speaking of future)
5 Don’t you remember that when I was still with you I used to tell you about this? 6 And you know what currently restrains him, so that he will be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the one now restraining will do so until he is out of the way, (speaking of present) 8 and then the lawless one will be revealed. The Lord Jesus will destroy him with the breath of his mouth and will bring him to nothing at the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is based on Satan’s working, with every kind of miracle, both signs and wonders serving the lie, 10 and with every wicked deception among those who are perishing. They perish because they did not accept the love of the truth and so be saved. (speaking of future) 11 For this reason God sends them a strong delusion so that they will believe the lie, 12 so that all will be condemned—those who did not believe the truth but delighted in unrighteousness. (speaking of present)
- Chapter breaks weren’t added until the twelfth century ad, and verse divisions weren’t added until the sixteenth century ad, so we shouldn’t be influenced unduly by those editorial features.[6]
- • The apostasy in verse 3--is this a political or religious apostasy? And does it involve Christians or non-Christians?
- • The man of lawlessness in verses 3–4 and again in 8–9—who is this evil figure who is not Satan himself but, in my alternate title, “Satan’s superman”?
- • The temple of God in verse 4—does this refer to the temple in Jerusalem or the church? And if it does refer to the temple in Jerusalem, should we take this reference literally or metaphorically?
- • The restraining thing in verse 6 and the restraining person in verse 7—to what and to whom does this refer? And which of the (are you ready?) seven or more proposed answers is the most likely one?
- • There are two comings [or] “parousias” in verse 8. One is the coming of Jesus that is mentioned many times in the New Testament, but the other is the coming of the man of lawlessness. And how does the one coming of Satan’s superman relate to the coming of Jesus Christ?
- • The powerful delusion of verse 11 that God sends—is this the cause of those who have rejected the truth of the gospel, or is it the consequence of those who have rejected the gospel?
- But this is the important point: Don’t let the exegetical difficulties of this second paragraph blind you to the fact that Paul’s primary point is actually very, very clear.
- The claim that the Day of the Lord has already come is obviously false.
- This was written in 52 AD approximately.
- 18 years before 70 AD and definitely before our current time!
- Why? Because there are several important events that have to happen first.
- Therefore, there’s no reason for the Thessalonians to panic about such a false and obviously wrong prophecy.[7]
STAND FIRM
Comfort
13 But we ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God has chosen (elected) you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. 14 He called you to this through our gospel, so that you might obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Paul never explains the meaning of “chosen/election”.
- This is why we have division among the saints.
- 1) Did God choose some to be saved and others to be condemned to hell?
- 2) Did God choose the believers because they chose Him out of their free will and He knew their choice in His foreknowledge?
- We can argue that all day… but one just seems like an evil God.
- Paul wants them to think of themselves as the first crop of, well, Christians; the first crop of Jesus followers.
- And they’re only the first. There’s a larger harvest that is surely going to come; they are only firstfruits for salvation.[8]
15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold to the traditions you were taught, whether by what we said or what we wrote.
- To say it differently, the opening problem [is that] the church was ready for the return of the Lord but not steady for that day.
- And what did they do? They panicked over a false prophetic claim that the Day of the Lord had come.
- So now the solution, here in paragraph four, is they have to stand firm and hold fast[9]
16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal encouragement and good hope by grace, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good work and word.[10]
- in this paragraph, he creates a sharp contrast, a sharp contrast between the doom facing unbelievers and what the Jesus followers will experience.
- And Paul ends the passage with this very positive note that God has chosen them; God has elected them.
- God has ensured that the Day of the Lord will be, for them, not a day of judgment but will be a day of salvation.
- So, whenever Paul talks about the end times, it’s never to predict but always to pastor, to provide his readers with comfort.
- And what that means is important for Christian pastors and teachers and believers today because if any of us would use now Paul’s end-time passages to predict and not to pastor, [turning] the apostle’s words into some kind of blueprint for predicting the future, that kind of person is guilty of misusing and even abusing the Word of God and preventing others from hearing the wonderful comfort that God brings to us about things yet to come.[11]
[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (2 Th 1:5-7, 11–12). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Is 66:5). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[4] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[5] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[6] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[7] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[8] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[9] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[10] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (2 Th 2:1–17). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[11] Weima, J. A. D. (2020). NT350 Book Study: 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
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