Beth-El Baptist Church

04/06/2008

Greg Tomlinson


How are we to understand end times according to 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12?


Neither Paul nor Jesus want Christians to miss the reality that Jesus is returning again. It is greatly debated within Christian circles about the timing of his return and the events that is to proceed it. This chapter of 2 Thessalonians is one of many passages used to try to understand the timing of Jesus' return. To some it cries out a pre-tribulation rapture of the church, to others it cries out the complete apostasy of the church and the associated need for true believers to exit their local congregations. It is important to understand just what Paul is trying to say in this passage.


  1. What did the believers in Thessalonica think about the end of times?

2 Thessalonians 2:1-2


The people of Thessalonica believed that the “day of Christ” or the “day of the LORD” was occurring now (“at hand” means “at the present time”). They were either in the midst of it or they had missed it and they were terrified about was about to happen to them. They based their view upon special “revelations” from false prophets, one even supposedly speaking from a letter from Paul himself.


  1. What did Paul claim was necessary before Jesus returned?

2 Thessalonians 2:3-7 Daniel 7:23-25

1 Corinthians 3:17; 6:19-20 Ephesians 2:20-22

Galatians 4:4-5 Matthew 24:3-15

Mark 13:32 Revelation 1:7


There had to be the falling away or a departure from the faith. A particular individual, or individuals would have to become very prominent in his proclamation of being “God” in the temple of God. Remember that these are gentile believers and they are a distance from the temple of Jerusalem so the “temple of God” would have been a person in their midst claiming to be some sort of exalted “believer” of Jesus Christ. The description of the end times describe a time of great persecution against believers that is beyond our ability to truly understand. In the midst of all of this persecution there will be many who will claim to be Jesus coming back, but they will be wrong. Anyone claiming to be Jesus, the Christ, or the Messiah, is not Him. True believers will know Him immediately and not have to be told because all will see His return.


  1. What did Paul mean by 'a falling away first'?

2 Thessalonians 2:3 1 John 2:18-19

1 Timothy 4:1-3 2 Timothy 4:3-4

Matthew 24:3-15 Revelation 2:9-10; 3:9-12

Hebrews 9:27


The falling away will be a time in which there will be a large number of people claiming to be believers but they are not. They are following after their own concept of religion and of Jesus. It will be marked by a time of abandoning true doctrine and seeking teachers who teach them what they want to hear. This could be such things as new marriage ideas, dietary laws, neglect of Bible reading and studying, separation from other believers, following after the teachings of a man rather than the teachings of Jesus Christ. They create a doctrine and teachings which satisfies peoples longings and interests. The teachings could include such ideas as how to be healthy and wealthy, the lack of judgment and hell, or the total and complete apostasy of the church and its destruction. Not that Jesus tells those in the Synagogue of Satan (Revelation 3:9) not to depart from the church to be stand fast in the faith and to wait for Jesus' return.


  1. Who is the 'man of sin' that is to be revealed?

2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 Daniel 8:23-25; 11:36-37

Ezekiel 28:2 John 17:12

Isaiah 14:12-15 1 Peter 5:8

Acts 2:22-24 Hebrews 2:4

Revelation 13:3-6, 12-15 Matthew 24:24

1 John 2:18-19; 4:3 2 John 1:7


In the most simplest of terms, he is most likely a special 'antichrist'. He is an individual who claims to have the power and capabilities of Jesus Christ, even performing “miracles” but his miracles are false miracles. They have no reality associated with them. They are sufficient to deceive the unbeliever and almost, but not quite, the true believer. His teachings are contrary to the very word of God and they bring attention to himself rather than to God who is the creator and the only one worthy of worship and praise.


  1. What will happen to this man of sin?

2 Thessalonians 2:8, 11-12 Isaiah 11:1-5

Revelation 12:10-11; 20:10-15


The man of sin will be judged by the mouth or breath of Jesus Christ. This is most likely a reference to the very words of God. As a result of the judgment from Jesus Christ, the man of sin, whether or not this is a unique individual, he will spend eternity in hell, the eternal lake of fire. Everyone who rejects Jesus Christ and does not have a love for or longing for the word of God is such a man of sin. He is defined by being and remaining a sinner and he has not sense of redemption.


Summary:


Although this passage is used by many to describe their favorite flavor of end times (pre-tribulation rapture, depart out of the church), the passage is a warning and an encouragement to all believers to remember to follow Jesus Christ and not the teachings of men. All things are to be evaluated with respect to the very words of God. Ultimately we are to look for Jesus to return and not so much our understanding of the things of this world that precede His coming. Look for Jesus, not for newspaper headlines.