In our study of 2 Thessalonians chapter two, we look at the signs that Paul told us to look for concerning the day of the Lord. In Thessalonica, there was a false report being made that Paul had said that the people were living in the day of the Lord. This had caused confusion and concern as the church there was suffering persecution. In response to that, Paul reassures the church and gives us some guidance on the great tribulation period.
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But in connection with the coming of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah and our gathering together to meet him, we ask you, brothers, not to be easily shaken in your thinking or anxious because of a spirit or a spoken message or a letter supposedly from us claiming that the Day of the Lord has already come.
In chapter 1, Paul had tried to reassure the believers that persecution was normal for followers of Christ. People had confused this persecution with what is described as the great tribulation period or the day of the Lord. He had taught them in his first letter that the believers would be caught up (raptured) when Jesus came and so the people were wondering why they were still there and not with Jesus.
Don't let anyone deceive you in any way. For the Day will not come until after the Apostasy has come and the man who separates himself from Torah has been revealed, the one destined for doom.
Paul gets right down to it and meets this false teaching head on by saying it has not come and will not come until two things occur. The first is the rebellion and the Greek word refers to apostasy or departure from the faith. This first sign speaks of the complete turning away from faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. It also speaks to the departure of the true believers from this earth in the rapture. We are called to be the light of the world and the day of the Lord (like any other Hebrew day) begins in darkness. Therefore, we will be gone before this darkness and total rebellion happens. The second sign will be the revealing of the "man of lawlessness" also known as the beast (see Revelation 13).
He will oppose himself to everything that people call a god or make an object of worship; he will put himself above them all, so that he will sit in the Temple of God and proclaim that he himself is God.
This beast will set himself up and try to replace God. Satan wanted to replace God and that was why he was thrown out of heaven along with one third of the angels. This beast will mock and oppose everything that has to do with God and those that accept Jesus will be killed. We may ask ourselves how this could be but, if we look around us today, it seems that many have already set themselves up in God's place.
Don't you remember that when I was still with you, I used to tell you these things?
Paul is reminding the Thessalonians that he is not telling them anything new. God does not want us to be ignorant and so He provides teachers and His word to help us to grow. If we are growing and grounded in the word, then we will not be easily confused by false prophets and false reports.
And now you know what is restraining, so that he may be revealed in his own time.
Paul reminds them that it is God who is in control and He is keeping this beast from taking control of the earth. There is an appointed time for this but only the Father knows when it will happen. Sometimes, we want to ask why God doesn't just take the church out of the world and get on with it and the answer is it is not the appointed time. God is merciful and He is waiting for all of His people to accept His grace. But, the appointed time could be today or tomorrow so we must be prepared.
For already this separating from Torah is at work secretly, but it will be secretly only until he who is restraining is out of the way.
Satan is at work in the world today as we can easily see by looking around us. But, as bad as things appear today, they are going to be much worse when this man of lawlessness is able to reveal himself (see Revelation 13). Most of the time this power is at work behind the scenes because the anti-christ has not been allowed to reveal himself. This verse reminds us that even in this matter God is in control and the devil and his workers cannot just do anything they want.
Then the one who embodies separation from Torah will be revealed, the one whom the Lord Yeshua will slay with the breath of his mouthd and destroy by the glory of his coming.
Paul reminds us that even when the beast is revealed, it will only be for a short time. He reminds us that Jesus will defeat him when he appears again. This fake lord will fade quickly when the real Lord shows up.
When this man who avoids Torah comes, the Adversary will give him the power to work all kinds of false miracles, signs and wonders. He will enable him to deceive, in all kinds of wicked ways, those who are headed for destruction because they would not receive the love of the truth that could have saved them.
This beast will be able to perform all kinds of miracles and signs. Many will be deceived and follow the beast because they abandon the Truth which is Jesus Christ. If we love Jesus, we will want to know more about Him and a big part of that is studying His word. If we know His word, we will not be deceived by the schemes of the devil or his demons.
This is why God is causing them to go astray, so that they will believe the Lie. The result will be that all who have not believed the truth, but have taken their pleasure in wickedness, will be condemned.
This delusion is when the beast has a fatal wound but does not die (see Revelation 13:3 & 4). Those that do not trust in Jesus and have the Holy Spirit will believe this lie and worship the beast. They did not believe the truth that Jesus is the Son of God and so did not receive the Holy Spirit.
But we have to keep thanking God for you always, brothers whom the Lord loves, because God chose you as firstfruits for deliverance by giving you the holiness that has its origin in the Spirit and the faithfulness that has its origin in the truth.
If you are in Christ, it is because God chose you from the beginning of time and called you through the working of the Holy Spirit. Nobody comes to God on their own; we all come as we are called by the Spirit of God. When confronted with the truth of His Word, we accept it and believe because of the work of the Spirit.
He called you to this through our Good News, so that you could have the glory of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah.
God called the Thessalonian believers to Christ through the sharing of the good news (that's what gospel means) by Paul and his companions. God did this so that they could be in His presence (glory) forever. That is how we all must come to Christ in that someone has to share the good news that Jesus died for our sins and rose again so that we may have eternal life with Him.
Therefore, brothers, stand firm; and hold to the traditions you were taught by us, whether we spoke them or wrote them in a letter.
Paul reminds the believers of how they heard the gospel and how they were saved. Then, he urges them to hold onto what they were taught. This reminds me of the Parable of the Sower (see Matthew 13) and how, after some of the seed was sown, the birds came and ate it up. Paul is warning them to hold on to the truth and not let it be snatched away by men with all of their traditions and philosophies. That is very good advice for us today as it seems like everyone has their own tradition and philosophy to try to replace the teaching of Jesus.
And may our Lord Yeshua the Messiah himself and God our Father, who has loved us and by his grace given us eternal comfort and a good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen you in every good word and deed.
Paul prays that the Thessalonian believers would have the same encouragement and hope that he had because of Jesus and our eternal home with Him. We should all have that encouragement and hope as we know that the things here are only temporary. Many Christians walk around with very little hope and like they are mad at the entire world. That is not how we share the light of Jesus with the world. Those around us need to be able to see that we are different because of the hope that we have in all situations.
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