THE END TIMES - PART 1 (2 Thessalonians 2:1-5)
INTRODUCTION:
Chapter one of 2nd Thessalonians was all about encouragement as Paul sought to encourage the believers of Thessalonica as they had come under intense persecution. In chapter two Paul turns to a doctrinal issue that he must address due to the confusion that had been brought on by the growing persecution and the teaching of false teachers which had caused the believers to lose their hope and joy because of their misunderstanding of the end times. Paul had already spoken to them concerning both the Rapture and the Day of the Lord in his first letter, but now just a few months later, they have become confused again, fearing they have missed the Rapture and were in the Day of the Lord. Paul wants to reassure them by clearing up this error.
Paul is going to do this by speaking of a world leader who is coming and who will make the other evil leaders of history pale in comparison both in the extent of his power and the wickedness of his person. He will be the most brutal, evil, powerful man ever to walk the earth. Let’s pray and then turn to chapter two to see what Paul has to say concerning the end times.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles this morning to 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-5. Paul uses this whole chapter to clear up the confusion that has come upon the believers. We will look at it in two parts, beginning this morning with verses 1-5. If you are able, please stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word. Follow along as I read.
2nd Thessalonians 2:1-5,
“Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?” (2 Thessalonians 2:1–5, NASB95)[1]
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE RAPTURE? (2nd Thessalonians 2:1-2)
The Thessalonian believers had forgotten what Paul had taught them about the end times when he was with them. They had forgotten what he had written in his previous letter even though it was only a few months since they had received it. They feared that the Rapture had already taken place and they were in the terrible time of judgment which Scripture calls “The Day of the Lord.” Paul begins this chapter by making an urgent request of the Thessalonians to properly understand the events surrounding the Second Coming. By beginning this chapter with the word translated “now” Paul shows that he is transitioning from his prayer plan in the end of chapter one to this doctrinal issue that the Thessalonian believers were struggling to understand.
Often those who teach on the end times or what is called eschatology do so to gratify curiosity, but this was not Paul’s purpose, his purpose was that of a pastor trying to comfort confused Christians. Because this was his purpose, he limited his teaching to what was necessary to correct the error that had robbed the Thessalonian believers of their joy, hope, and peace. He did so tenderly caring for them as his children. He humbly called them his brethren and did not exhort or command, but used the gentle term translated “request” a word that can mean “to plead,” “implore,” or even “to beg.” Instead of coming across as harsh, or intolerant, or overbearing, Paul gently corrected those struggling under this error.
The struggle that the Thessalonian believers were having, as Paul makes clear in verse one, is that they were confused in regard to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and the gathering of believers together to Him. Even though Paul uses two expressions: “coming of the Lord Jesus Christ,” and “gathering together to Him,” he has one event in view here, not two. This is the seventh time in 1st and 2nd Thessalonians that Paul has spoken about Christ coming. The word translated “coming” is the Greek word Parousia which Paul only used when speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ coming for believers. In this first verse he is focused specifically on the first event, the gathering together of believers to the Lord Jesus in the Rapture. He zeroes in on this event in the first verse because as I already said, the Thessalonians, expecting relief at the Rapture, instead were suffering severe persecution. This caused them to believe that they had missed the Rapture and were in the Day of the Lord. Paul wants to reassure them that they have not missed the Rapture.
In verse two Paul voices his concern for the Thessalonian believers that they would “not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.” (2 Thessalonians 2:2b, NASB95)[2] The word translated “spirit” likely refers to a false prophet who supposedly received a divine revelation. The word translated “message” refers to a sermon or teaching, and letter refers to written authority for this doctrine. Paul lumps them all together to show us the careful and extensive way that this false teaching was presented to the Thessalonians. It had all the marks of authenticity—divine revelation, proclamation, and the authority of apostolic writing. It is important to understand that the Thessalonians’ fear indicates that Paul had taught them that the Rapture of the church would precede the final wrath of God, including the Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. If he had taught them that they were to go through those judgment periods, they would have been rejoicing because it meant that the Lord’s coming was near. Clearly, Paul had taught them that they would be taken up in the Rapture before those periods of judgment, thus their confusion when they felt like they were in them.
The coming of false teachers to Thessalonica had only reinforced the believers’ confusion. There teaching was to minimize the glory of Christ’s coming for believers and to destroy the hope and joy that the believers had, and the false teachings sought to build a distrust in God’s love, grace, and goodness to His saints. The reason the false teachers were able to succeed in their deception was because the teaching seemed to have apostolic sanction. It appeared that the teaching had been received supernaturally through direct revelation from God via a spirit (prophetic utterance), it was then preached our taught as God’s message, and most convincing of all, they had a letter from the apostle Paul giving what they were teaching apostolic authority, that was attested to by two other trustworthy men, Silas and Timothy, because Paul refers to the letter “as if from us.” Such forgeries and counterfeit apostolic documents continued to appear early in the life of the church, written to appear authentic and used to deceive many in the following centuries. Because of this, Paul took special care to verify this letter’s apostolic authenticity by closing it with his own distinctive handwriting as we will see at the close of this letter.
This false teaching on the Rapture and the Day of the Lord had a dreadful effect on the already frazzled Thessalonians due to the severe persecution they were suffering. Paul makes this clear, in verse two, because they believed that the Day of the Lord had arrived, they were quickly shaken from their composure and disturbed. The word translated shaken is used in the New Testament to describe the shaking of many things, even buildings. The word translated “composure” literally means “mind” and the word translated “disturbed” is translated “frightened” in its other uses in the New Testament. The picture that Paul paints for us is that these new immature believers have been shaken loose from their mental moorings, and now were adrift on a tossing sea of anxiety and fear, their faith, hope, and joy destroyed by deception.
To end this deception and the confusion it had caused, Paul needed to refute the lies of the false teachers, and to calm and put to rest the fears of the Thessalonians. He needed to correct their misunderstandings about the Day of the Lord. Paul accomplishes both of these objectives by proving that the Day of the Lord could not have arrived. His undisputable point was that God has fixed in the future an unmistakable event that must take place before the Day of the Lord arrives. This event still has not taken place. Paul used this truth to exhort the Thessalonians to be ready for the end times by not being deceived and by not being forgetful in what they had learned from Paul’s own teaching.
DO NOT BE DECEIVED (2nd Thessalonians 2:3a)
Anxiety and fear are often the results of deception, and that was true for the Thessalonians. When they were deceived by the false teachers who had infiltrated the church and were teaching them that they were in the Day of the Lord, these young believers panicked. Deception in the church is not rare, it was there in Paul’s day, and it is here in our day, and we must guard against it. Countless false teachers have disturbed the church through the centuries with their false predictions about the Lord’s return. Jesus when speaking of the end times warned his disciples when He said, “See to it that no one misleads you.” (Matthew 24:4b, NASB95)[3] Scripture tells us that we must be on constant guard and to do this we must know God’s Word and measure every teaching by the standard of God’s Word. Paul told the Ephesians the result of being equipped through the teaching of the Word of God in Ephesians 4:14, “As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;” (Ephesians 4:14, NASB95)[4] Rather we are to be on guard against those who are guilty of adulterating the Word of God. We must understand that as Christ’s return draws near evil men and imposters will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. We must be on guard against false teachers.
Paul’s exhortation to the Thessalonians is a strong command. By using a strong form of the Greek verb translated “deceive” and a double negative in Greek, Paul was saying, “Do not let anyone by any means or any method lead you astray in any way.” These false teachers should have never misled the Thessalonian believers, despite the forged letter as if from Paul and his companions. They should have known and understood that Paul would not abruptly contradict in a letter what he had so recently taught them in person and in his first letter. The fact that the Thessalonians believed the false teachers was an emotional reaction to the stress of their situation. Truth should never be determined by emotions or circumstances, but only by Scripture. As believers we must allow biblical truth and theology to rise above every situation.
Deception concerning the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus carries with it serious practical consequences for those who believe the deception. It is essential that we understand and know the truth concerning the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The knowledge and understanding of His return is important because it produces accountability. The Apostle Peter after describing the cataclysmic destruction of the heaven and the earth in 2nd Peter 3, ends by exhorting his readers in 2nd Peter 3:11 and 14 when he writes, “Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness…Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless,” (2 Peter 3:11,14, NASB95)[5] John in his first epistle also taught about the purifying effect a proper and true understanding of Christ’s return can have upon us, 1 John 3:2-3 says, “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” (1 John 3:2–3, NASB95)[6]
The Lord’s coming to receive us to Himself and a correct understanding and hope of this not only produces accountability and purity but also joy. The Thessalonian believers’ fear that they would experience the terrible judgment of the Day of the Lord robbed them of their joy. They also lost their hope of the Lord’s promise that is found in Revelation 3:10 in His letter to the church of Philadelphia. The Lord Jesus Christ said, “Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.” (Revelation 3:10, NASB95)[7] To keep the purity and joy of true hope these new believers needed to remember the truths concerning the Rapture and the Second Coming that Paul had taught them.
DO NOT FORGET (2nd Thessalonians 2:3-5)
As we come into our third point this morning, which is closely related to my second point, it must be understood that forgetting the truth opens up a believer to deception. Verse 5 is the key to this point. Paul writes, “Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?” (2 Thessalonians 2:5, NASB95)[8] In this question Paul uses the imperfect tense of the verb translated “was telling.” The imperfect tense of a Greek verb indicates a repeated action in the past. This simply means that Paul’s teaching on end times events was a continual theme of his while he was ministering in Thessalonica before he and his companions were forced to leave. What this means is that what Paul was writing in this section was not new information for the Thessalonians, but information that he had taught them in person. The fact that Paul taught eschatological truth in whatever time he had in Thessalonica shows that end times prophecy, including the sequence of events is not unimportant, as some believe, but is foundational to the Christian faith. Again, what Paul is teaching is not to wow the Thessalonians or to satisfy their curiosity, what Paul teaches is practical and if they had remembered what Paul taught them, they would not have lost their joy and hope.
What Paul writes here in verses three and four is truth that the Thessalonian believers had forgotten. Paul told them again that the Day of the Lord would not come unless the apostasy comes first. Paul focused on one event out of all the events leading up to the Day of the Lord, he singled out the apostasy. Understand that Paul was not setting a posttribulational date to the Rapture, notice he does not say that his readers would live to experience the apostasy and the unveiling of the man of lawlessness. Paul’s point is that the apostasy will come before the Day of the Lord, and since that has not happened yet, the Day of the Lord could not have arrived.
The word translated “apostasy” means “revolt” or “rebellion.” It is only used one other place in the New Testament and refers to forsaking the Law of Moses (Acts 21:21). The LXX or the Greek translation of the Old Testament uses it three times always to express rebellion against God (Joshua 22:22; 2 Chronicles 29:19; Jeremiah 2:19). Understanding these uses clearly indicates that the word means a deliberate defection from a formerly held religious position.
Paul is not using the word in the general sense (defection from Gospel truth). There have always been and always will be apostate churches and apostate individuals. This cannot be what Paul is referring to because this does not refer to a specific time period. Apostasy will reach it peak in the end times, but because Paul calls it “the apostasy” using the definite article “the” to qualify it reveals that he is not speaking of a general flow or trend, but a specific and identifiable act of apostasy. This apostasy will be a blasphemous act of unparalleled degree. Paul identifies the apostasy by giving us the title of the lead character connected to the apostasy, Paul identifies this person as the “man of lawlessness.” Understanding who this main character is necessary if we are to identify the apostasy event. The word translated “lawlessness” literally means “without law.” This person will be the absolute lawless one; a blasphemous sinner, who will openly display his defiance of God and God’s law. Out of all of human history’s godless, wicked, lawless sinners, this man’s evil influence will not even compare to any others in its greatness. Even in the end times when lawlessness is increased, this Satan-energized leader will be recognized as the most depraved, wicked, lawless leader the world has ever known, and his leadership will control the whole world, and his influence on mankind will be unlike any ever before seen.
The Greek word translated “revealed” and the verb tense it is in points to a definite time when this man will appear. It implies that he was previously present and known, but his act of apostasy will reveal his true evil identity. In other words, at that specific time he will drop all pretense and the previously hidden wickedness of his character will be fully displayed. God and the Lord Jesus will not have appeared as his enemies until the time he is revealed.
The man of lawlessness is not any past historical figure, even though some try to identify him as one. The Rapture is still future, and he will not be revealed until the Tribulation. This man of lawlessness is not Satan, he is energized by Satan and distinguished from him in verse nine. This title also does not refer to a principle of evil, Paul clearly and specifically identifies him as a man. He is none other than the final Antichrist.
Paul further describes this man as the “son of destruction.” In Hebrew the phrase “son of…” was used to show a close association to or to indicate that something was of the same kind, just as a son share’s his father’s nature. The Antichrist will be so devoted to the destruction of all that relates to God’s purpose and plan that he can be described as destruction personified. He also belongs to destruction as the one to be destroyed. He is marked out for punishment and judgment; he will be thrown into the lake of fire to be tormented forever.
Only one other person in Scripture shares this name “son of destruction” with the Antichrist. That person is Judas Iscariot. This title is reserved for the two most vile people in human history. Both are controlled by Satan and are guilty of the two most evil acts of apostasy. Judas lived and ministered intimately with the incarnate Son of God for more than three years—only eleven other men had this privilege. He observed Jesus’ sinless life, heard His wisdom, experienced His divine power and gracious love, after all this Judas betrayed Him. What amazes me is he was so much a son of destruction that the glories of Christ that softened the eleven hardened him.
As horrid as that apostasy was, it does not even compare to the act of future apostasy the man of lawlessness, the Antichrist will commit. Judas betrayed the Son of God; the Antichrist will proclaim himself to be God. Judas defiled the temple with the money he received for betraying Jesus; Antichrist will defile the temple by committing the abomination of desolation. Judas, without influencing others that we know of, went astray, a tragic, solitary disaster. Antichrist will lead the world astray into destruction.
At the beginning the man of lawlessness will seem to be the friend of religion. Daniel tells us that he will make a covenant with Israel which will open the way for the temple to be rebuilt. The covenant is for seven years, at the midpoint the Antichrist will break the covenant and will suddenly reveal his true nature when he commits blasphemy against God and opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship. Energized by Satan and aided by the false prophet, Antichrist will have immense power to successfully demand that the world worship him. Satan, who has always wanted to be worshiped, will fulfill that desire through the worship given to the Antichrist whom Satan controls. Antichrist will exalt himself by taking a seat in the temple of God displaying himself as God. The temple, which has always been the symbol of God’s presence, is the most fitting place for Satan to devise the ultimate act of blasphemy—an evil, wicked man displaying himself as being God. This is the apostasy that Paul refers to here and that Jesus called “the abomination of desolation” referring to the prophecy of Daniel and it will take place at the mid-point of the Tribulation. At the end of that three-and-a-half-year period, the Lord Jesus Christ will return, as Nathan read this morning in Revelation 19, He will return in glory to destroy Antichrist’s kingdom and all the ungodly. The Lord will cast Antichrist into the lake of fire along with the false prophet. Paul’s point is clear, the apostasy, the Antichrist’s blasphemous self-deification and the desecration of the Temple is a one-of-a-kind, unmistakable event that comes before the Day of the Lord. Since that clearly has not happened, the Day of the Lord cannot and has not arrived. And it never will for believers.
CONCLUSION:
As those who have put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, believing that His death on the cross paid the penalty for sin, and His resurrection is proof that God’s wrath against sin was satisfied on our behalf, we have no reason to fear judgment. Paul told the Romans in Romans 8:1, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1, NASB95)[9] Paul told the Thessalonian believers in his first letter in chapter 5, verse 4, “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief;” (1 Thessalonians 5:4, NASB95)[10] We who have received salvation are waiting for Jesus to return from heaven and gather us to Himself as Paul spoke of in the first verse of our passage. We look for the true Christ, not the Antichrist. Only those who are deceived and forgetful risk losing their confident hope and expectant joy of Christ’s return before the Day of the Lord.
[1]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[5]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[6]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[7]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[8]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[9]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[10]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.