Sermon for Sunday December 6th, 2009
Anticipating
Advent -- Part II by C. Philip Green
2 Thessalonians 2:1-2:17
Sandy has seen a lot of doctors this last year, and as I’ve tagged along, I have
learned a lot of medical terminology. I’m sure many of you, as you’ve had
medical issues, have learned some interesting terminology, as well. It’s a
strange language, isn’t it, because doctors have their own jargon.
For example, what do these terms really mean?
* Barium – isn’t that what they do to dead people?
* Benign – isn’t that what you wanted when you were eight?
* Carpal – someone with whom you drive to school or work.
* Cauterize – that’s what the guy did before winking at the girl.
* Chiropractor – an Egyptian doctor.
* Dilate – to live long.
* Elixir – what a dog does to his owner when she gives him a bone.
* Intubate – what a fisherman is into.
* Nitrate – what the phone company charges after 5 p.m.
* Varicose – nearby.
* Vitamin – what you do when friends stop to visit.
(“Strange World,” Campus Life, Vol. 53, no. 7; www.Preaching Today.com)
Sometimes ignorance is funny, but most of the time it is downright scary,
especially when you face a medical issue where you don’t even know the
terminology.
That’s also true when we think about the future. Ignorance is NOT bliss. It is
frightening. I think that’s why so many people are in an uproar these days. They
don’t know what’s going to happen in these uncertain times, but we do!
We who read and study the Bible know what’s going to happen, because God told us
so in His Word. Nearly 2,000 years ago, the Holy Spirit directed the Apostle
Paul to write some words of assurance to a group of believers who faced
uncertain times in their day. They were going through so much suffering and
persecution they thought they were in the Tribulation itself at the end of the
age. But those words, from the Holy Spirit Himself, gave them hope, and they
will give us hope, as well.
If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to 2 Thessalonians 2, 2
Thessalonians 2, where we find those words of hope.
2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or
alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying
that the day of the Lord has already come. (NIV)
You see, these Thessalonian believers were unsettled because they thought they
were already in the Day of the Lord. They thought they had missed the rapture of
the church and were already in the Tribulation.
In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul described a day yet future when
Jesus will come down from heaven and gather all the believers unto Himself,
i.e., all those who have died and all those who are still alive at that time (1
Thessalonians 4:13-18). Then he talks about “the Day of the Lord” when
“destruction will come” on the people of this world “suddenly, as labor pains on
a pregnant woman, and they will not escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3).
Even so, Paul makes it very clear that “God did not appoint us [believers] to
suffer [the] wrath [of that day]” (1 Thessalonians 5:9). Instead, we will “live
together with Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:10) rather than be judged together with
the people of this world. In other words, Christ will take us to be with Him
before that great and terrible Day of the Lord comes to this earth.
This is the clear teaching of Scripture, but other teachers came along and told
these new believers something different. They told these new believers that “the
day of the Lord had already come” (vs.2) and
that the end of the world was near.
Well, that kind of thing has been going on ever since even right up to the
present day.
In 960, Bernard of Thuringia, a German theologian, calculated 992 as the most
likely year for the world’s end. As the time approached, panic was widespread.
In the 1500’s, German astrologer, Johann Stoffler, predicted an overwhelming
flood on February 20, 1524. Believers actually started constructing arks, and a
mob reportedly trampled a man to death trying to board his specially built boat.
Then when nothing happened, Stoffler revised his calculations and gave a new
date for sometime in 1588, but that year also passed without any unusual
rainfall.
In 1665, Solomon Eccles was put in London’s Bridewell Prison for walking through
the Smithfield Market, carrying a pan of blazing sulfur on his head. He was
preaching about doom and destruction, declaring that the end of the world is
near. Well, the end of the world did not follow, but the Great Fire of London
did, in 1666.
In 1874, Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, preached that
the Second Coming of Christ had already taken place. He came to this conclusion
after combining passages from the Bible with the mystical messages of the Great
Pyramid. Then he declared that people had 40 years, or until 1914, to enter his
faith or be destroyed. When 1914 passed, he modified the date to “very soon
after 1914.”
In the middle of the 20th Century, Herbert W. Armstrong came along and began
predicting January 7, 1972, as a date to watch, but nothing happened. (“Facts
and Fallacies,” Reader’s Digest, 1988; www.PreachingToday.com)
In 1987, Edgar Whisenant published a book titled, 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Is
in 1988. & We all remember the Y2K scare at the end of the 20th Century when all
the computers around the world were supposed to crash at midnight January 1st,
2000, and world-wide panic would ensue. Now, the latest scare is the prediction
that the world will end as we know it on December 21, 2012, because that’s when
the ancient Mayan calendar runs out.
People have been predicting the end of the world since the beginning of the
world, so don’t be shaken by such predictions.
DON’T BE DISTURBED or frightened. &
DON’T BE DECEIVED.
Don’t be fooled, because the Bible is very clear about what will happen at the
end of this age. The Bible is very clear about the Day of the Lord when He will
judge the people of this world and usher in a new Kingdom.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will
not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the
man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything
that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple,
proclaiming himself to be God. (NIV)
People will know they are in the Day of the Lord, i.e., the last days of this
age, when they see this “man of lawlessness” come on the scene. Daniel 9 calls
him “the ruler who will come” (Daniel 9:26). 1 John 2 & 4 call him “the
antichrist” (1 John 2:18; 4:3). & Revelation 13 calls him “a beast” (Revelation
13:1).
The Bible talks about a world ruler coming from a revived Roman Empire that will
sign a 7-year peace treaty with Israel. Then in the middle of those 7 years, he
will break that treaty with Israel, overrun the city of Jerusalem, and set
himself up as God in the Jewish Temple.
In previous generations, up until the middle of the 20th Century, none of this
was feasible. There was no real coalition of nations in what was once the Roman
Empire, and the Jewish people were scattered all over the world with no homeland
and no temple.
Now, all of that has changed! The European Union has come together in a
coalition of nations that once made up the Ancient Roman Empire. The Jews are
back in their land. & They have gathered everything they need for the rebuilding
of their temple. Our generation, unlike any other, has seen the stage being set
for the coming of this “man of lawlessness.”
The antichrist will be revealed, and maybe soon, but not before the Restrainer
is removed. Not before the one who holds the antichrist back is taken out of the
way.
2 Thessalonians 2:5-8 Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell
you these things? And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be
revealed at the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at
work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken
out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus
will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his
coming. (NIV)
The “restrainer” will be taken out of the way. Then “the lawless one” (or the
antichrist) will be revealed. & Then Jesus will come and destroy him.
That’s the sequence of events presented here, but the question is:
Who is this restrainer? Who is this “one who holds back” the antichrist right
now in our day and age?
Well, I believe “the restrainer,” or the “one who holds back,” is none other
than the Holy Spirit working through the church. You see, Christ calls the
church to be “salt and light” in this decaying and dark world (Matthew 5:13-16).
That is to say Christ calls believers to be a preserving influence in a decadent
society, but we can do that only through the power of the Holy Spirit.
A boy, growing up on the Atlantic Sea Coast, spent long hours working on
intricate sandcastles. People marveled as whole cities appeared beneath his
hands. There was only one problem. They didn’t last long. Local bullies would
come along and smash his creations.
So the boy came up with an idea. He put cinder blocks, rocks and chunks of
concrete down first. Then he built his sand kingdoms on top of the rocks. That
way, when the bullies appeared (after he disappeared), their bare feet suddenly
met their match, and the bullies were stopped in their tracks. (Gregory P.
Elder, Leadership, Vol.6, no.2)
Now, that’s what the Holy Spirit does through the church. He restrains evil from
running rampant in the kingdoms of this world. But when the church is removed,
i.e. when believers are gathered to Christ, then watch out world!
For then the antichrist will appear. For then the man of lawlessness will be
revealed, and all hell will break loose on this earth.
But we who believe in Christ don’t need to worry about that. We don’t need to be
disturbed by end of the world predictions, because we know that we will be with
Christ when it all happens.
So dear believing friend, don’t be disturbed, and don’t be deceived like many
people will be in the last days. For after the restrainer is removed – after the
believers are taken out of this earth – the antichrist will be revealed, and he
will deceive many people. He will get people to believe a lie, because they
refuse to believe the truth.
2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with
the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and
wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They
perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason
God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that
all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in
wickedness. (NIV)
When people refuse to love the truth, they are easily deceived, and that
deception will destroy them in the end.
When Michael Crichton was doing research for his book, State of Fear, he looked
into the Chernobyl disaster to get some ideas for the book, which was about a
global disaster caused by eco-terrorists. He was surprised, though, to find that
Chernobyl was not quite what it had been made out to be. In a speech Crichton
gave in 2005, he shared a little about what he discovered.
Chernobyl was a tragic event, but nothing remotely close to the global
catastrophe he imagined. About 50 people had died in Chernobyl, roughly the
number of Americans that die every day in traffic accidents. “I don’t mean to be
gruesome,” he said, “but it was a setback for me. You can’t write a novel about
a global disaster in which only 50 people die…”
Crichton said, “What I had been led to believe about Chernobyl was not merely
wrong – it was astonishingly wrong.
“The initial reports in 1986 claimed 2,000 dead and an unknown number of future
deaths and deformities occurring in a wide swath extending from Sweden to the
Black Sea. As the years passed, the size of the disaster increased: by 2000, the
BBC and New York Times estimated 15,000–30,000 dead, and so on…
“Now, to report that 15,000–30,000 people have died, when the actual number is
56, represents a big error,” Crichton said.
“But, of course, you think, we’re talking about radiation: what about long-term
consequences? Unfortunately here the media reports are even less accurate.
[There were] estimates as high as 3.5 million, or 500,000 deaths, when the
actual number of delayed deaths is less than 4,000. That’s the number of
Americans who die of adverse drug reactions every six weeks. Again, a huge
error.
“But most troubling of all,” Crichton said, “according to the U.N. report in
2005, is that ‘the largest public health problem created by the accident is the
damaging psychological impact [due] to a lack of accurate
information…[manifesting] as negative self-assessments of health, belief in a
shortened life expectancy, lack of initiative, and dependency on assistance from
the state.’
“In other words, the greatest damage to the people of Chernobyl was caused by
bad information. These people weren’t blighted by radiation so much as by
terrifying but false information.”
Crichton said, “We ought to ponder, for a minute, exactly what that implies. We
demand strict controls on radiation because it is such a health hazard. But
Chernobyl suggests that false information can be a health hazard as damaging as
radiation…”
Later in the speech Crichton said, “Chernobyl was not a genuinely serious event,
but thousands of Ukrainians who didn’t die were made invalids out of fear. They
were told to be afraid. They were told they were going to die when they weren’t.
They were told their children would be deformed when they weren’t. They were
told they couldn’t have children when they could. They were authoritatively
promised a future of cancer, deformities, pain, and decay. It’s no wonder they
responded as they did.” (Michael Crichton, in a speech entitled Complexity
Theory and Environmental Management, given at the Washington Center for
Complexity and Public Policy on November 6, 2005,
www.crichton-official.com/speech-complexity.html; as referenced in
www.PreachingToday.com)
Misinformation will ruin your life. Deceit will destroy, but we don’t need to be
deceived, because we have the truth of God’s Word.
My friends, if you’ve never pursued the truth in this Book (the Bible), then
start today. Read it! Believe it! Live it! It will keep you from believing the
lies that will destroy you in the end.
In these difficult days, when it comes to predictions about the end of the
world, or when you hear about some doomsday scenario, please don’t be disturbed
and don’t be deceived. Instead...
STAND FIRM IN THE TRUTH OF GOD’S WORD.
Hold fast to the things you were taught from the Bible.
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved
by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the
sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to
this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ. (NIV)
God called us believers to share in Christ’s glory, not to share in this world’s
judgment at the end of the age. In other words, God chose us for salvation, not
for the Tribulation. When we believed the truth of the Gospel, God’s Holy Spirit
set us apart to be with Christ, not to be condemned with the world.
2 Thessalonians 2:15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we
passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. (NIV)
Don’t forget the things you learned from God’s Word. Stand firm and hold to
them. That is, don’t waver one bit from the old Gospel Paul preached way back in
the First Century.
In his book, Up From Slavery, Booker T. Washington talks about the days
following the Civil War. At that time, many people became teachers thinking it
would be an easy way to make a living. Washington talks about one such fellow
who went from village to village, teaching for a while and receiving his pay.
As he entered one town, the people asked if he taught that the world was round
or flat. He replied that he was prepared to teach either way, based on the
preference of the majority of his patrons! (Booker T. Washington, Up From
Slavery)
We laugh at that, but that’s still sadly true today. There are a lot of teachers
out there who are in it just for the money. & They will teach you just want you
want to hear, so you will give them more money.
Please, let’s not pay attention to those kinds of teachers. We don’t need their
new truths and new insights. No. All we need are the old truths of God’s Word.
In these difficult days, when people are predicting the end of the world, don’t
be disturbed and don’t be deceived. Instead, stand firm in the truth, and…
BE STRENGTHENED TODAY.
Find the confidence to go on. Be encouraged to continue doing good.
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father,
who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope,
encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word. (NIV)
At the 2002 Winter Olympics, Apolo Ohno, an American, hoped to win his second
gold medal in the men’s 5,000-meter short track, speed-skating relay. But during
one of the turns, another American skater fell. His fall and recovery only took
a few seconds, but it essentially put the American team out of the race. After
that, the American team began to skate slower and slower, eventually allowing
themselves to be lapped by the gold-medal Canadians.
Why did they slow down? Well, the hope of winning was gone. (Paul Richardson,
Half Moon Bay, California, www. PreachingToday.com)
Is your hope of winning gone? Then look again at God’s Word and be encouraged.
It’s very clear: We do win in the end. We who have put our trust in Christ will
be with Him in glory while the rest of the world goes through a gory end.
So don’t be disturbed and don’t be deceived. Instead, stand firm in the truth
and find the confidence to persevere in every good deed.