March 3rd follow-up

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
More of the day of the Lord

Paul once again finds himself addressing the Day of the Lord with the believers in Thessalonica. That’s because the believers were being told that the day of the Lord had begun, which unsettled them. As I mentioned yesterday, the news of this would not have unsettled them unless they were expecting something different. I believe they were expecting that Jesus would come for His church before the day of the Lord began.  Paul reassures them that it had not begun. And he speaks of two things that will usher in the Day of the Lord.

The first is that there would be a falling away. The word in the Greek is Apostasia and it refers to a turning from, a departure from, an abandonment of faith in God. Paul is telling us that as we approach the Day of the Lord there will be a turning away from the faith by many. No doubt many of us know of people who once professed faith in Jesus but later turned away from following Him and went the way of the world.

Along with that, Paul is letting us know that as we get closer, there will be a departure. I believe we can apply this to a departure from the truth of God’s word and sound doctrine. Look at what has been accepted among some churches today. There are a number of churches today that are teaching unbiblical things. I can’t tell you how many times we have had people visit and comment on how nice it is to sit in a church where the word of God is taught.

In addition to the falling away, Paul also tells us that the man of lawlessness must be revealed. This is another name used in the bible for the antichrist. The revealing of the antichrist will happen when he brokers a peace treaty with the nation of Israel and her enemies that will be 7-years in length. The signing of the agreement marks the beginning of the Day of the Lord.

In verse 7 of 2 Thessalonians, Paul speaks of the mystery of lawlessness. Here is what one writer said about this:

The mystery of lawlessness consists of its ability to make lawlessness look good and desirable to us! It hides its true nature in clothes that look outstandingly pretty and advantageous to us. Its counterfeit abilities are remarkable! Its deceitfulness is still at work today, and humanity is still blind to it, even as Adam and Eve were. Doesn't that sound like our culture today?

We already see these things happening in our world today. But as we get closer to the Day of the Lord, the abandoning of faith in God will increase.  The abandoning of sound doctrine for things people want to hear will increase. If you are not a follower of Jesus, get ready, because God’s wrath is soon to come upon this world. If you are a follower of Jesus, get ready, because Jesus is coming soon for his church. Let’s be faithful to pray for the unsaved.