Lord Jesus Christ in 2Thessalonians
Verses within this Study.
1:1, 2, 7, 8, 9; 12; 2:1, 2, 3 , 8, 13, 14, 16; 3:1, 3, 4, 5, 3:6, 12, 18.Click on the following links to jump to a section within the study of this Bible Book: Lord only, Jesus only, Christ only, Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus, Lord Jesus, Lord Christ, Lord Jesus Christ, Son
Study Overview.
Lord Jesus Christ
occurs 10 times in this book. Lord
occurs by itself 8 times, Lord Jesus
occurs 1 time, Christ
occurs by itself 2 times (once in the same verse as Lord
) and the other titles for God the Son do not occur in this book. The main emphasis of this book is an error taught about the 'Rapture'. The two verses that use Christ
use that role in direct reference to the 'Rapture'. As you can see, all other verses use that mention the Son of God use His role as Lord
. More than anything else, Paul is emphasizing that this letter has the authority of the Lord
behind it.
The main doctrinal teaching of 1Thessalonians, according to many preachers, is the 'Rapture' and second coming of the Lord (the Day of the Lord
) . There, Paul was dealing with the false teaching that the 'Rapture' would not happen or that the dead would not be in it. Now he is dealing with the false teaching that it already happened. God the Son's role as Lord
is emphasized in this book because the 'Rapture' and the 1,000 years reign of God the Son is mainly related to His role as Lord
. In addition, since some people have come in and caused additional confusion after Paul tried to clear this up once, it is obvious that Paul's authority has been challenged. Where Paul might have used Jesus Christ
in other letters, he uses Lord Jesus Christ
to emphasize that if anyone challenges the teaching of this letter, they aren't challenging Paul's authority. They are challenging the authority of the Lord
of all creation.
Lord Only
2Thessalonians 1:9; 2:8, 13; 3:1, 3, 4.
In this epistle we see the Lord
destroy His enemies and direct, protect and provide for His followers. Click here for all of the Verses that use Lord
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Lord
.
2Thessalonians 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
Please also see the note on 1:8 under Lord Jesus Christ and the note on 1:7 under Lord Jesus. This sentence is broken down by punctuation in the note for 1:8. This verse and 1:10 are the fourth part of a single sentence that goes from 1:3 through 1:10 and is Paul's opening remark in this letter. There are several Bible references which speak about people leaving the presence of God such as Genesis 3:8; Genesis 4:16; Job 21:14; Job 22:17; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 51:11; Isaiah 33:14; Isaiah 66:24; Daniel 12:2; Matthew 7:23; Matthew 22:13; Matthew 25:41; Matthew 25:41; Matthew 26:24; Mark 9:43-49; Luke 13:27; Luke 16:25-26; John 5:14; Philippians 3:19; Hebrews 10:29; 2Peter 2:17; 2Peter 3:7; Jude 1:13; Revelation 14:10; Revelation 20:14; Revelation 21:8; Revelation 22:15. This verse is talking about a judgment by God with no grace, mercy of any other attribute that is associated with God the Son's roles as Jesus
or as Christ
. Those who reject these roles of God will meet the Lord
in His full vengeance and judgment. Also, please notice the use of and
in this sentence. The placement of them aligns them that know not God
with Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord
and aligns (they) that obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ with who shall be punished...from the glory of his power
. A lot of people are looking at the destruction of the lost and ignoring the punishment for disobedient children
. Jesus called such fools
in Matthew 7:24-27. These fools
expect the same reward as the obedient and one thing that we find in 1 and 2Thessalonians is that our Lord
will give out rewards and punishment at time of judgment based upon our obedience to His word. These disobedient fools
expect a mansion and continuous good time in Heaven and this verse says they shall be punished...from the glory of his power
.
2Thessalonians 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
Verses 2:8-10 form a single sentence which is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence within the Book Study on 2Thessalonisans. While many people have been taught that this section is talking about 'The Antichrist', it is actually talking about the beast
of Revelation. As shown in the many verses referenced in the Study on False things, true Biblical antichrists
point people at the beast
so that people don't look at them and their false doctrine that they are teaching from church pulpits. As shown elsewhere on this site, this beast
operates in the political arena while true antichrists
are preachers in God's churches.
As can be seen in this sentence, people who are deceived by the beast
received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved
. Also look at the next sentence which adds to this sentence (And
) and
enhances what Paul says here when it says And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
As explained in the Study on Truth, this sentence is the first of three sentences in this section which deal with truth
. A lot of people ignore the warning found in these sentences because they have been taught that this truth only applies to the lost. As shown in the notes for these sentences, there is a warning that also applies to God's people who are not willing to pay the price that these Thessalonians paid.
Just like God hardened Pharaoh's heart
(Exodus 7:13, 14, 22) because Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also
(Exodus 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 34, 35). When we insist upon sin, God confirms us in that sin.
From this sentence we can conclude that those that are saved, received the love of the truth
. When we reject the truth, because it goes against our religion or our flesh or for any other reason, we are interfering with the salvation that God wants to give us, including the spiritual maturity that Christ
brings. This sentence is talking about the beast
of Revelation who is not an antichrist
, but is very similar. Anti
means alternate
or opposed
. An antichrist
is opposed to the way of Christ
, but that way is removed when the church is removed. The prior sentence in this
epistle told us that the church is removed before this beast
of Revelation is revealed. While he is not an antichrist
, he has
characteristics that are shared with many people who are in the church today. What is true, and pointed out in the note for this sentence within the Book Study on 2Thessalonisans is that all who are like him will also perish
. He, and people like him, like to hide their lies in shadows but those lies will be destroyed with the brightness of his coming
. Notice that Paul uses Lord
in this verse. When the Lord
brings judgment He does it with absolute laws that are less forgiving of errors than the laws of Math are. Further, the Lord
will do it with the spirit of his mouth
. That means that the Lord
will show that these people rejected the spirit of His Word (the spirit of his mouth
). When we seek God's truth in God's Word we need to seek not just the words but also the spirit
that he put into His Word.
2Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
Verses 2:13and 2:14 form a single sentence that is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence in the Study on 2Thessalonians. Please also see note on 2:14 under Lord Jesus Christ. This sentence is separated by a colon making the two verses equivalent.
This verse starts with But
which connects it to the prior sentence while going in a different direction from that sentence. In the prior sentence Paul said that God damned those who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness
. (Please see the note for 2:8). Here, Paul notes But...you to salvation through...belief of the truth
. Those that chose to believe a lie were damned by the Lord
and those that chose to believe the truth were saved. This truth that we are to believe is to result in our salvation through sanctification
, our receiving the sanctification of the Spirit
, our belief of the truth
, and our obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ
. We will return to these points in a minute, but notice that each of these points end in our obtaining of the glory of
(glory belonging to) each and every role of our Lord Jesus Christ
. Any so-called gospel that only gives us the glory of
one of these roles, or that neglects the glory of
any of these roles is not the full belief of the truth
that we are supposed to be going through in order to receive the salvation
which God hath from the beginning chosen you to
.
Going on, please notice that in both parts of this verse we find that the saved acted upon that belief and didn't just talk it (James 1- 2). Notice that we are chosen to salvation
through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth
. That means that God planned for us to go through
these things to have salvation
. As we have seen several places in this study, those who want to go to Heaven because they did some religious act (like say the words to the 'magic prayer of salvation') and continue living for the flesh and Hell are not saved by God. God saves those who agree to a changed life through the ministry of Christ
. That ministry provides the things that this verse says we are to go through
to have salvation
. Specifically, Christ
provides sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth
and God hath from the beginning
(before the foundation of the world
) declared that salvation (during the church age) is only available through this ministry.
Now, returning to the prior points in more detail, we find that we are to have each of these points in relationship to each of the roles of our Lord Jesus Christ
and our obtaining of the glory
of each of those roles requires our active faith in order to receive that glory
through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth
. The truth that we are to believe about each and every role of the Son of God is to result in our:
salvation through sanctification
-Jesus
lived to show us how to live a sanctified life by the Holy Ghost. He died to pay the price for our sins so that we could receive the Holy Ghost and live a sanctified life like He did.The glory of Jesus
is when we prove that His sacrifice and example worked. When we refuse to be sanctified, we prove that he wasted His life and death. Weobtain...the glory of Jesus
when we let His example show in our life.Christ
shows us how to mature spiritually. He died to pay the price for our sins after our initial profession so that we don't have to spend our lives paying for ongoing sins but can spend it learning how to live a life that is increasingly sanctified.The glory of Christ
is when we prove that His sacrifice and teachings work. When we refuse to be sanctified, we prove that he wasted His teaching and death. Weobtain...the glory of Christ
when we let our life show the spiritual maturity that He provides.- The
Lord
removed the legal charges against us that are due to our sin (violating His Law [1John 3:4]). Weobtain...the glory of the Lord
when our life provides the justification for His legal decision (seejustification
in the Bible, especially notes for Philippians). sanctification of the Spirit
-Jesus
constantly fought with the religious leaders and was killed by them. We do notobtain...the glory of Jesus
when we follow the example of His enemies. Peter preached at Pentecost (Acts 2) that the coming of theSpirit
was a result of the death ofJesus
. Oursanctification of the Spirit
(opposed to sanctification of religion) allows us toobtain...the glory of Jesus
, which is living aSpirit
powered life. Please see the document called Jesus used the power of the Holy Spirit.- The
sanctification of the Spirit
byChrist
is best taught in Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians with the distinction between thesanctification of the Spirit
and sanctification by religion best covered in Galatians. Please see those epistles and associated notes. - The
sanctification of the Spirit
by theLord
is taught in 1 and 2Thessalonians. Please see those epistles and associated notes. belief of the truth
- John 14:6 tells us
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
When we refuse to follow the example ofJesus
we deny the truth that He lived and do notobtain...the glory of Jesus
. Weobtain...the glory of Jesus
when we live like He did and obey the truth that he taught. Again, this truth is in opposition of what religion says to do when religion disagrees with the Bible. Christ
is constantly showing us things when we maintain our relationship with Him. Spiritual maturity isn't obtained in a single lesson but requires a life of constant learning and obedience. The more we mature spiritually, the more weobtain...the glory of Christ
.- Our
Lord
does not want to punish His children but wants to reward them. The more that we livebelief of the truth
, the less He has to punish us and the more that He can reward us at our judgment. We increasethe glory of the Lord
that weobtain
as we increase the amount of rewards that He can give us at our judgment. obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ
- God gives us each of these methods of obtaining glory from each and every role of the Son of God. He wants us toobtain of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ
through every method listed above and other (similar) methods.
The Lord
loves those who come to Him through His plan of salvation. We are brethren beloved of the Lord
when we are saved God's way, which includes our sanctification
and everything listed in this sentence.
2Thessalonians 3:1 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:
Verses 3:1 and 3:2 form a single sentence that is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence in the Study on 2Thessalonians. It is separated into 3equivalent parts with 2 colons. The first section is a prayer that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you
. The second (equivalent) section is a prayer that the messenger who delivers the word of the Lord
would not be hindered. The third (equivalent) section explains why we need to pray these prayers.
The word of the Lord
is a subset of the word of God
and is that part of the word of God
which will be used to judge all people. The word of God
includes things like a lie from Satan (Genesis 3:4-5). God certainly is not going to use a lie from Satan as His standard to judge men by. The word of God
includes one-time events which show us how God applies word of the Lord
to men's lives. Men are in error when they use these one-time events for doctrine such as praying for a repeat of Pentecost. We certainly don't find men praying for God to command them to offer their only child as a human sacrifice like God did to Abraham. While I could go on further, I will simply say that the word of the Lord
is that part of the word of God
that applies to all men regardless of any differences that exist between men. The simplest way to identify those parts of the word of God
that are also part of the word of the Lord
is that the part is literally said at least two times. There are a few further qualifiers and all of these things are explained in detail within the papers accessed from the Hermeneutics page. A simple example is the commandment to call upon the name of the Lord
(Genesis 4:26; 1Chronicles 16:8; Psalms 86:5; 99:6; 105:1; 116:13, 17; Isaiah 12:4; Joel 2:32; Zepeniah 3:9; Acts 2:21; 22:16; Romans 10:13; 1Corinthians 1:2). When it comes to judgment, the Bible is clear: whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved
. Those who do not do what the Bible means by call on the name of the Lord
, such as those who 'Say a prayer to Jesus', shall not be saved
.
In the first section of our sentence, Paul instructs us to pray that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you
. The fact is that the word of the Lord
is restricted by religion more than anything else. I left one church after I was ordered to stop telling 'Bible believing fundamental King James believers' how their 'doctrine' went against the word of the Lord
. Many preachers and so-called 'spiritually mature Christians' have all but called me a heretic (and some did call me that) for showing them how their 'doctrine' went against the word of the Lord
. A simple example is the difference between what the Bible calls an antichrist
and what most 'Bible believing fundamental King James believers' claim that it means. (Please see this subject in the Study called False Things According to the Bible.)
In the second section of our sentence we are instructed to pray that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men
. Unreasonable men
are 'men who refuse to use sound reasoning methods' with the 'sound reasoning methods' defined by the Bible. To the best of my recollection, I have only met one preacher who knew that the Bible tells us how God shall...make (men) to understand doctrine
. He had been a preacher for over 30 years and had taught Hermeneutics at Bible College for several years. He also reported that most preachers were shocked when he told them that there were rules for interpreting the Bible. Obviously, they could not say 'Here is where the Bible tells me the rules that I use to interpret the Bible'. Yet, most insist that their lack of orderly methods (1Corinthians 14:44) is more reliable than an orderly method of interpretation that is based upon commands from the Bible. Such an attitude makes them unreasonable
, even if they are saved and 'Bible believing fundamental King James believers'. Such an attitude will prevent the word of the Lord
from having free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you
.
Wicked men
are not necessarily limited to lost. Wicked men
want to hold onto their sin and use religion to justify their actions. Wicked men
don't want to hear how their religious opinion doesn't matter and won't be heard or considered at our judgment by God. God is going to judge us by the word of the Lord
and those who refuse to listen and obey are called fools
by God.
In the third equivalent section of our sentence Paul explains why (for
) he said what he did in the first two sections (all men have not faith
). I could write a lot about how a lack of true Biblical faith
causes men to act like Paul described in the first two sections of this sentence, but I will direct the reader to pray for God to reveal that truth to them. I will simple point out that later in this chapter Paul instructs Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us
(3:6). As shown many places in the Bible and explained many places on this site, true Biblical faith
is an action word that is revealed by our lifestyle and not the lies out of our mouth. We are to try to reason with men but when they prove themselves to be unreasonable and wicked
, they also prove that they have not faith
. Rather than try to do anything more with them we need to prove our faith
by obeying the word of the Lord
(especially when it doesn't make sense to us) and withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly
.
2Thessalonians 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
This sentence is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence in the Study on 2Thessalonians. . This verse starts with But
, which ties it to 3:1-2 while going in a different direction. Please also see the note above and the note for the prior sentence in the Study on 2Thessalonians. In the prior sentence, Paul was talking about unreasonable and wicked men
who lacked faith
and the consequences of that lack of faith
. However, in this sentence, Paul is telling these faithful
Thessalonians that he expects them to be stablished
and kept from evil
by the faithfulness
of the Lord
. The Lord
responds to us as we deal with Him. When we are faithful
, He can be faithful
in how He responds to us. However, when we are not faithful
then He can not consistently reward us or we will be rewarded for our lack of faithfulness
. Because of His faithfulness
, even when we stumble we can know that He will help and bless us when we get right again. His faithfulness
allows us to rely upon Him no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in, which is what shall stablish
us. Remember, these Thessalonians were going through persecution but remained faithful
in spite of that. So, Satan had sent men to lie to them and discourage them and try to break their faithfulness
. Here, Paul is telling them to ignore these things. In addition, Paul uses Lord
because the Lord
makes the never-changing laws that they were relying upon such as we will reap what we sow
. Since they were sowing faithfulness
, they would also reap faithfulness
from their Lord
. In addition, when Paul says But the Lord is faithful...and keep you from evil
, Paul didn't promise that they would be kept from bad circumstances but from evil
. Even here, he didn't promise that evil
wouldn't attack them but that evil
could not make them evil
. When people are ugly and nasty to us our flesh wants to respond in kind but when we learn to obey out Lord
instead of our flesh, our Lord
keeps us from becoming evil
.
2Thessalonians 3:4 And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command you.
This verse is part of a sub-section that goes from 3:1 through 3:5and tells us about our Lord
and how He keeps us from error. This is the third sentence in 2Thessalonians 3 and it's the third reference to the Lord
on this chapter. This verse also starts with And
, which ties it to the prior verse which told these faithful
Thessalonians that the Lord
shall stablish you, and keep you from evil
. Please see the notes on 3:1 and 3:3. Paul is telling them that as much as devils and wicked men want to deny the authority of our Lord
our Lord
has the final say. Basically, Paul is sure that our Lord
will keep reminding them of coming punishment for disobedience and coming reward for obedience (thereby keeping them doing the things which we command you
) and our Lord
will keep some liar from the devil from deceiving them so long as they keep looking to our Lord
. Please also see the note on 3:5 under Lord Christ.
2Thessalonians 3:16 Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.
Paul uses Lord
twice in this verse because the Lord
is the final authority in all creation. Only the Lord
has the power to provide and enforce true peace. Only the Lord
can protect us when we are surrounded by enemies and 'brothers' that would use and abuse us. It is only when we obey the law of the Lord
and stop making excuses for disobedience that we will see true peace in our own personal lives.
Jesus Only
Jesus
Does not occur in this epistle. Click here for all of the Verses that use Jesus
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Jesus
.
Christ Only
2Thessalonians 2:2.
Christ
actually occurs twice in this book. See note on 3:5 under Lord Christ. Both verses that use Christ
are talking about the 'Rapture'. Click here for all of the Verses that use Christ
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Christ
.
2Thessalonians 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Verses 2:1 and 2:2 form a single sentence about the 'Rapture'. Also see the note on 2:1 under Lord Jesus Christ. The day of Christ
is also called the judgment seat of Christ
in 14:10 and 2Corinthians 5:10-11. That is where we will go from the 'Rapture' (2:1) and receive our rewards for serving Christ
. Today, Christians look for the 'Rapture'. For some reason, these saints were troubled
and shaken in mind
. My guess is that Satan was having someone tell them that they had missed their day of reward and they might as well give up serving God, but this is only a guess. Regardless of why they were troubled, it is the day of Christ
because God will judge those that belong to Christ
. It is only through Christ
that variable rewards are given and as said in 2Corinthians 5:10, we receive different rewards because every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done
. In Philippians, we found out that the day of Christ
is different than the day of Jesus Christ
and is also different from the day of the Lord
. Please see the verses and associated notes for 2:16; Philippians 1:6, 10; 2:16;
Jesus Christ
Christ Jesus
Does not occur in this epistle. Click here for all of the Verses that use Jesus Christ
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Jesus Christ
.
Christ Jesus
Christ Jesus
Does not occur in this epistle. Click here for all of the Verses that use Christ Jesus
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Christ Jesus
.
Lord Jesus
2Thessalonians 1:7.
Lord Jesus
is used as the ultimate human leader. Click here for all of the Verses that use Lord Jesus
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Lord Jesus
.
2Thessalonians 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from Heaven with his mighty angels,
Please also see the note on 1:8 under Lord Jesus Christ and the note on 1:9 under Lord Only. This sentence is broken down by punctuation in the note for it in the Book Study on 2Thessalonians. This sentence is quite complex with four equivalent sections and that note is extensive in explaining the sentence. This note will be limited to explaining the use of this name for the Son of God.
Within this sentence Paul uses three different names (combination of names) for the Son of God. This is deliberate and it shows the differences that the Bible makes in how these names are used. In this verse we see Lord Jesus
used to talk about when He returns to this Earth to set up His kingdom. Jesus
is used because this verse is talking about His physical return and the Bible always uses Jesus
when it is talking about the physical
aspect of the Son of God. Lord
is used because He will take complete control of this Earth. At the moment this Earth is ruled by various governments that are highly influenced, if not controlled, by devils.
in 1Thessalonians Paul corrected the error that the Lord
would not return. Now he is correcting the error that the 'Rapture' has already happened. Our Lord Jesus
will not allow sin to go on in His kingdom and the people in Thessalonica were surrounded by sin, just like we are surrounded by sin today. This sentence says that our Lord Jesus
will give two different classes of punishment to two different classes of people who continually sin. This verse is talking about the revelation of our Lord Jesus
and His kingdom on Earth that will happen in the first 19chapters of the book of Revelation. The initial punishment (In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God
) will occur when He first returns and be given to all lost. However, the second punishment (Who shall be punished...from the glory of his power
) is given to cursed children
. (Please see the note for 2 Peter 2:14-16 in the Book Study on 2Peter.) God makes a clear distinction between those who have a testimony of being obedient and those saved people who are disobedient. God will be taking vengeance
on those that rejected the authority of our ultimate human leader: the Lord Jesus
and lead a life of disobedience. There are a lot of people who claim to be saved but their testimony is that they lived for the world, the flesh and the devil. According to this sentence, God will not be able to justify giving the disobedient the same rewards as the obedient. As explained in the note for this sentence in the Book Study on 2Thessalonians, we will be no closer to our Lord Jesus
throughout eternity than we choose to be here in this life. The Son of God is called Lord Jesus
here because He has the right to tell us what to do and the right to punish, and deny reward, to those who refuse to obey. Yes, Jesus
is a physical man, but He is also Lord
.
Lord Christ
2Thessalonians 3:5.
This verse does not use Lord Christ
but actually uses Lord
and Christ
in the same verse. Click here for all of the Verses that use Lord Christ
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Lord Christ
.
2Thessalonians 3:5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
This verse is part of a sub-section that goes from 3:1 through 3:5. As noted for 3:1, 3:3 and 3:4, this is the fourth sentence in this chapter and the fourth reference to the Lord
and His authority. Paul is trying to drive home that these things are by the authority of the Lord
and all of the devils and wicked men together can't set aside the authority of our Lord
. Here, Paul is saying that the final authority in all of creation will direct your hearts into 'the patient waiting for Christ
. This reference to Christ
directly ties back into the only other reference to Christ
in this book. There, and here, Paul is talking about the judgment seat of Christ where Christians will receive their rewards. Once more, Paul is assuring them that they will not loose their reward and assuring them that the promise of it is based upon the authority of the Lord
. In addition, we see that the love of God
is different from the patient waiting for Christ
. The verb direct
is present tense. That is, as we obey the Lord
and He makes us aware of the rewards that we will receive, our love of God
increases. As one preacher preached, we always reap far more than we sow. We obey just a little bit and then when we realize what we are reaping right now, and realize that it is far more than we could claim to have earned
, we realize that what we are reaping is due to God's love. In addition, it isn't really us that is doing the work but Christ
in us (Galatians 2:20, Ephesians 2:10, etc). The truth is that we reap for what we let Christ
do through us. This causes the true child of God to direct our hearts into the love of God
right now. However, God also teaches us that we don't receive all of our reward today. Revelation and other places tell us that the saints will return with the Son of God when He returns to set up His kingdom on this Earth. Since He fulfills prophecy in His role as Christ
, that is the role that he will use to set up His kingdom. A true child of God desires the end of sin and temptation that will only come at that time. Until then we have to be patient waiting for Christ
.
Lord Jesus Christ
2Thessalonians 1:1, 2, 8, 12; 2:1, 14, 16; 3:6, 12, 18.
Please see the note on the whole book at the top. Click here for all of the Verses that use Lord Jesus Christ
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Lord Jesus Christ
.
2Thessalonians 1:1 Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Verses 1:1-2 form a single sentence which is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence within the Book Study on 2Thessalonisans. This sentence has a colon, which divides it into two equivalent parts and each part uses Lord Jesus Christ
. In addition, since we have the phrase God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
appearing twice in this sentence, we can say that this is a matter of doctrine. That is, God the Father
works with each and every role of God the Son as Lord
and Jesus
and Christ
and every combination of those roles. John 14:6 tells us Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
We have seen several places in this study where that claim applies to each and every role of the Son of God. God the Father
has given everything into the hand of God the Son and supports Him on everything that He does in each and every one of His roles. This is very important because there were others challenging Paul's God given authority. This is almost identical to the opening that Paul used in 1Thessalonians. When these people claiming a false message were proved wrong in 1Thessalonians, they didn't go away but started teaching another error. That's why in Cchapter 3 Paul emphasizes that they break fellowship with those who walk disorderly
. When we know that someone isn't living according the Bible, we need to get away from their influence before they lead us back into wrong living. Only sinful pride would make someone claim that they can't be led astray.
Grace and peace
come from each and every role of the God the Son and from God the Father. Grace and peace
come from the Father because of the Son. Grace and peace
come from the Lord
because the legal problem of sin has been removed and our Lord
expects us to obey the Law of the New Testament. Grace and peace
come through Jesus
when He provides the debt for our sin and gets us out of hell and into Heaven. Grace and peace
come through Christ
as we obey and become more Christ
-like by that obedience. We not only have the one time grace and peace
of initial salvation, but we have the ongoing grace and peace
of an ongoing personal relationship with our Lord
through Christ
. We have grace and peace...from God our Father, and (each and every role of) the Lord Jesus Christ
because we are in the Lord Jesus Christ
.
2Thessalonians 1:2 Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Please see the note for 2Thessalonians 1:1.
2Thessalonians 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Verses 1:3-10 form a single sentence which is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence within the Book Study on 2Thessalonisans. This sentence has 3colons, which break it into 4 equivalent parts and an included part. The first part (1:3-4) talks about the current results of their testimony. This was a testimony of spiritual growth during tribulation. The second part (1:5) says that their testimony is evidence of the righteous judgment of God
about them. It tells the spiritual results of their testimony. The third part (1:6-8) tells about how God will judge those that reject their testimony. The fourth part (1:9-10) tells how their testimony proves that the judgment God will bring upon those people is righteous. So, this sentence is talking about their testimony and the various results of that testimony. In addition, to this note, please also see the note on 1:7 under Lord Jesus and the note on 1:9 under Lord Only. (Those verses are in this sentence.)
This verse says (somewhat) the same thing as 1:7 and emphasizes the difference between the use of Lord Jesus
and Lord Jesus Christ
. Here, Paul says that the gospel is from the Lord Jesus Christ
and many other places in this study we have seen that all three roles of God the Son are involved in salvation. In 1:7, we are told that the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from Heaven with his mighty angels
because when that happens, men will no longer have the chance to get saved and deal with the Son of God through His role as Christ
(during the church age).
While other places in this study deal with the difference between the cross of Christ
and the cross of Jesus
and deal with the differences between the gospel of Christ and other gospels, here Paul is saying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ for a very simple reason. He is emphasizing that God provides more than one witness and more than one method of letting people know that they need to get saved. If they still know not God
it's because they refused to obey
and not because God failed to present the gospel in a way that they could understand.
2Thessalonians 1:12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Verses 1:11 and 1:12 form a single sentence. 1:11 starts with Wherefore
which means 'Because of everything said in the prior sentence (1:3-10)'. So, you need to read the notes on 1:7, 1:8 and 1:9 to understand the note on this sentence. Paul prayed that God would continue to count them worthy to be used the same way as God had in the past and Paul reminded them of how God used them in 1:3-10. 1:12 is equated to 1:11 with the colon dividing the two verses. In 1:12, Paul says first That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you
. The name of the Lord Jesus Christ would be glorified by the way they handled persecution. People who claim God's name in vain (claim to be Christian and live for Hell) detract from God's name. People who claim God's name and respond like other people deny God's power to change and help our lives. It's only when we respond in God's spirit to persecution that we prove God's power to change lives. In addition, no matter which role of God people consider (Lord
or Jesus
or Christ
) , God's name is glorified by His people responding with His spirit to persecution.
In addition, Paul points out that their suffering was the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ
. Grace
is often defined as God's Riches At Christ's Expense
. A non-spiritual person would ask how tribulation could be God's Riches
. However, 1Peter and 8:18 and other places in the New Testament make it clear that when we suffer properly for God's sake that He increases our eternal rewards in Heaven. This type of grace is only for saved (Jesus
) who have grown in spirit enough to respond properly (Christ
) and is backed by the righteous promise and judgment of the Lord of the universe. Therefore, this grace is from God and the Lord Jesus Christ
.
In addition, to tribulation, there is every reason to believe that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (was) glorified in
them even when they were not in tribulation because those who won't live for our Lord Jesus Christ
in easy times won't live for Him during tribulation. We saw (in the notes for 1:3-10) that God was justified in giving them the kingdom, and in judging the disobedient, because they lived righteously after receiving salvation. As seen elsewhere, such as the parables of talents
and pounds
, our rewards in Heaven are directly related to how much we allow our Lord Jesus Christ
to change our lives and bring glory to God. When Paul says Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and
fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power
, he is praying that their reward for eternity would be increased.
Please also note that this sentence tells us that 'Christ in' us is directly linked to us 'in Christ' (when it says That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him
) and that our having both is according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ
.
2Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
Verses 2:1 and 2:2 form a single sentence about the 'Rapture'. Also see the note on 2:2 under Christ Only. Every role of God the Son is involved in the 'Rapture'. Only the saved will be in the 'Rapture' and many other notes in this study have shown how every role of God the Son is involved in salvation. Look at those notes if you need details. Further, Paul is emphasizing the authority of the Lord
in this reference. See the general note on this book for more details. Paul emphasizes the position and authority of God the Son's role as Lord
more than any other role in both letters to the Thessalonians. As noted for 1Thessalonians, many of the things that Paul tells to others to do based upon God the Son's role as Christ
, he tells the Thessalonians to do based upon the role as Lord
. We end up with the same instructions but with different motivations because different people need different motivations to do something like go through persecution with a Goodly attitude. Since Paul uses God the Son's role as Lord
more than any other role with the Thessalonians, he uses Lord Jesus Christ
in this verse where he might use just Jesus Christ
or (more likely) Christ Jesus
with someone else. That is because these people were motivated by the rewards and punishments that they would receive at judgment day. So, Paul includes Lord
here to remind them that judgment day is coming. He also includes Jesus
because that day is when the Son of God will physically return to this Earth. Paul includes Christ
because Christ
is the one who spiritually matures us, and our reward or punishment will be based upon how much we submitted to the ministry of Christ
. Paul also includes Christ
because that is the role of the Son of God that is used to fulfill prophecy and the second coming of Christ
is a fulfillment of prophecy.
2Thessalonians 2:14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Verses 2:13and 2:14 form a single sentence separated by a colon making the two verses equivalent. Please see the note on 2:13 under Lord where this sentence is divided by punctuation. 2:13 calls the saved beloved of the Lord
in contrast with those that are damned
(2:12). Here, Paul expands the expression of beloved of the Lord
to tell us some of what that love provides. Specifically, we receive the glory that comes through each and every role of God the Son. But notice that it is the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ
. That means it is His glory
. He doesn't put His glory in anyone but only in those who let Him clean up their life so that they don't defile His glory
. When Paul says we are called to the obtaining
, it should be obvious that not all saved obtain
His glory
. Those that do obtain
His glory
will receive rewards. This verse tells us that we were saved (he called you by our gospel
) for this purpose and those who come short of the glory of God
(by not fulfilling His purpose in saving us) are sinning (Romans 3:23) and should expect punishment at the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ
. Those who fulfill His purpose should expect reward, as explained in the note for 2:13. The glory of our Lord
is when our changed life justifies His saving us and giving us His kingdom. The glory of Jesus
is our salvation while the glory of Christ
is our sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth
(as explained in the note for 2:13).
In addition, 2:15 starts out with Therefore
and goes on to tell us a little more about our responsibility related to receiving this grace (stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle
) . 2:16-17, which start with Now
, and tells us what God will give us now
if obtain
His glory
. Please also see the note on 2:16 related to this.
2Thessalonians 2:16 Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
Verses 2:16 and 2:17form a single sentence which is divided in the note for this verse within the Book Study for 2Thessalonians. This sentence is telling us some of the grace that we will receive through each role of the Son of God. This sentence starts with Now
because it is making promises which we can receive only after accepting the commandment that was in the prior sentence. Please see the notes for 2:8, 13 and 2:14.
Again, as noted for the entire book, Paul could have used just Jesus Christ
but he wanted to emphasize that the promises in this letter were also backed by the authority of our Lord
. The first thing that Paul tells us that the saved receive through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ
is consolation
. Philippians 2:1-2 tells us If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
Comfort of love...being of one accord, of one mind
are all parts of the consolation
that comes through our Lord Jesus Christ
. In addition, in 2Thessalonians 2:16-17, Paul tells us that we have good hope
through this grace. My understanding is that the main difference between hope and faith is that faith is based upon a specific promise found in the Bible while hope is based upon the character of God. God definitely is giving us grace when He tells us that we can hope on His character. But Paul goes on to tell us that the Lord Jesus Christ
will Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work
.
The main comfort
that comes from our Lord
is the assurance that He without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work
(1Peter 1:17; 20:12-13). This entire epistle is about the differences between saved and lost and the differences between the judgment that each will get. Paul wrote about the judgment of the lost several places in this epistle and he wrote those things as a comfort
from our Lord
. God does all judgment through His role as Lord
. In addition, God makes and enforces laws through His role as Lord
. It is these laws which make it possible to stablish you
because it is the never-changing
aspect of God's laws which provide the foundation for our being established
. Notice that we are stablished...in every good word and work
. If we are not in every good word and work
, then God does not stablish you
even though we are saved. Finally, our Lord
provides everlasting consolation and good hope through grace
. This is based upon His character (hope is our action based upon God's character while faith is our action based upon God's promise). We receive grace
because God chooses to give it to us, not because we earn it. The same is true about everlasting consolation
. The character of our Lord
is that He is faithful, consistent and never changing within His role as Lord
(Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8). Since that is His character, and His Law promises rewards for our faith and obedience, we can be positive that we will have everlasting consolation and good hope through grace
based upon His character as Lord
.
We have the same things based upon His role as Jesus
but the details are different. Jesus used the Holy Spirit shows many places in the Bible which teach us that He lived as a weak human man just like we do. 1John was written
partially to refute a false doctrine, within the church, which emphasized His Godhood to the point of denying His humanity. People like to say 'Has it ever
occurred to you that nothing ever occurred to God!' Yet Hebrews 5:8 tells us Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
. Starting in Hebrews 4:14 and going through the end of Hebrews 5we are told how Jesus
provides everlasting consolation and good hope through grace
and all the other promises of this sentence because He is a physical man Who personally went through more than any of us will go through. There is good doctrine in the saying of 'What Did Jesus Do?' but only if we ignore all of the false teaching based upon that phrase and find the true answer within the Bible.
Finally, we come to how Christ
fulfills the promises of this sentence. This should be the most obvious and yet many people are confused because most saved people of today believe false teachings about Christ
. Many believe that all saved during the church age are Christians
. However, many were saved before the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch
(Acts 11:26). Many saved people today still do not meet the Biblical requirements to be a Christian
. In addition, many believe the doctrinal error that all saved people always have Christ in
them. This denies the doctrine of the Trinity. All saved have the Holy Spirit in them but the Holy Spirit and Christ
are two different persons within the Trinity. Please see Prepositions in Verses which reference many Bible verses (and associated notes) which show us that that having Christ in
us and our being in Christ
are both conditional within the Bible.
The saints at Thessalonica had a testimony that they were true Biblical Christians
. As such, they received the promises of God which are conditional upon our being a true Biblical Christian
. When people don't meet the Biblical requirements they don't receive the promises. Then many believe the devil's lie that God is not reliable. However, it isn't God's fault but our fault for failing to meet God's requirements. The truth is that every one of the blessings mentioned in this sentence are experienced by true Biblical Christians
and they are experienced in this life in direct response to their building their personal relationship with Christ
.
If you really study the Bible for what is promised here, you will see that it takes all three roles of God the Son to provide all that is promised within this sentence.
2Thessalonians 3:6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.
This verse starts with Now
, which means 'after you have heard and understood all that came before this'. Paul has been telling them about those who teach error and the judgment that will come upon them. In this epistle, Paul has made the distinction between faithful
men and non-faithful
and the differet result that each type of person will receive from God at judgment time. Now he is telling these faithful
people to get rid of bad influences, especially if the people spewing the bad influence call themselves a brother
. In addition, in 3:11 Paul says that busybodies
are also disorderly
and are people that we are to separate from. 1Timothy 5:13 and 1Peter 4:15 also tell us about busybodies
and those verses should be looked at, with the surrounding verses, to understand these type of people and what God says about them. In all of the verses from here through the end of this epistle Paul is giving practical commandments
on 'walking orderly' versus 'walking disorderly'. In this section we see Paul using Lord Jesus Christ
because each and every role of the Son of God teaches us to walk orderly
and to withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly
.
We find the phrase iin order
(how to 'walk orderly') occuring 30 times within 29verses of the Bible. In almost every verse we see God working through His role as Lord
or we see men dealing with the things related to God's role as Lord
such as judgment, death and government. These things are all done orderly
and create the enduring traditions
which we are to follow.
In addition, to orderly commandments from our Lord
, Jesus
showed us how to 'walk orderly'. In John 8:29 we read: And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.
. Please see the Study called Jesus used the Holy Spirit which gives verses in the Bible where Jesus
showed us how to 'walk orderly'.
Finally, Christ
is the role that God uses to bring spiritual maturity to people after they receive the Holy Spirit. Please see all of the verses that show us how Christ
works in our lives by looking at the outline of verses which use Christ
. That outline is accessed with this link.
Please also see the note for this verse within the Book Study for 2Thessalonians. It gives details about the context of this verse.
2Thessalonians 3:12 Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.
Please also see the note on 3:6 which starts this section on how to deal with disorderly 'brothers'. While that note deals with the general theme, this note will deal with one more specific. Many people think that Christians are to be a 'doormat' and let anyone do anything they want to the Christian, demand that the Christian let them steal anything they want, treat the Christian like a personal slave and more. That's part of what's behind the current U. S. welfare mentality where a few 'rich' people have to work and provide for the world's poor. But 3:10 says if any would not work, neither should he eat
. We see the same sentiment elsewhere in the Bible. Rather than giving the world food, we should be giving jobs. Rather than encouraging women to become baby factories because they can have all of their needs met so long as they have a needy baby to take care of, we should give them jobs and tell them to get the father or their families to help take care of the child. If they can't, then let them give up the child PERMANENTLY and consider the costs before they bring another child into this world. This section, and this verse, make it clear that Every role of the Son of says that we are to be responsible for ourselves and not permanent leaches. This is true for society in general but especially true for those that claim to be saved.
2Thessalonians 3:18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
This is Paul's main closing. As noted for 1:2, grace comes from each role of our God. It is particularly appropriate here because it closes a section from 3:6 through here where we are given very specific commands in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ
. We will not receive the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
if we disobey these commands. Please see the verses and associated notes for 3:6 through 3:18.
Son
2Thessalonians 2:3.
Please see the note on the whole book at the top. Click here for all of the Verses that use Son
and here for the Summary on the name / role of Son
.
2Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Thessalonians 2:3-4 is a single sentence which is divided by punctuation in the note for this sentence within the Book Study on 2Thessalonians. That note contains things not covered here such as contextual considerations and details of word studies.
The only other place in the Bible where we find the son of perdition
is in John 17:12. There he is identified to be Judas Iscariot.
This sentence is prophecy. There is a lot of disagreement about prophecy because lots of people are selling lots of speculative books to fools who want to claim that they know the future. I'm not getting into all of that error. I have found that God deliberately hides the true interpretation of prophecy until after it happens. God gives prophecy to prove that He is the greatest being in all of existence. God lets Satan and all of the devils get all of their allies together and gives them plenty of time to try to stop Him. Then He does exactly what He said He would do so that we have proof that there is no god
to match our God.
Prophecy in the Bible isn't there to let us claim that we know the future. Unreliable prophecy
from devils allows fools to claim that they know the future, but the true God makes sure that they are wrong more than they are right. While I could show these things from the Bible, I won't. Bible believers will accept the truth and have the Lord
show it to them personally so that they have the word of the Lord
to rely upon and not my word. Fools won't believe no matter hat proof is shown to them. Therefore, I will not provide anything more about the subject of prophecy. People who claim to know more than what is literally said in the Bible about future events prove themselves to be fools and should be disregarded.
In this verse, we read that the son of perdition; opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped
. This is the second beast
of Revelation. He is like true Biblical antichrists
, because anti
means against
or alternative
. and since Christ
is God, and the son of perdition
opposeth God
. However, he is not a true Biblical antichrist
because the Bible says that there are many antichrists
and they are in the world today, as opposed to showing up after God's true children leave this world. 1John 2:18 gives us this warning (even now are there many antichrists
). We read about antichrists in 1John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2John 1:7.
The context of this sentence tells us to be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand
. The people whom this epistle was written to were upset because of lies taught by false prophets
. Paul wrote this epistle to mainly tell them to stop listening to false prophets
, stop wasting their time with lies and get on with serving God. The son of perdition
is mentioned here because these false prophets
were telling lies about him and Paul was assuring these people that they didn't need to worry about the lies.