The Deceiver First and Then The Deliverer

2 Thessalonians 2:”3 gLet no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, hexcept there come ia falling away first, and jthat man of sin be revealed, kthe son of perdition;” [1]

I.   Deceive

     A. Man

     B. Method

II. Detour

     A. Unless

     B. Until

III. Discover

     A. Sin

     B. Satan

Introduction:   Last week in chapter one Paul reminded the Thessalonians how important their faith was in that day and in that time.  We have the Bible now with these two letters from Paul to the Thessalonians included to teach us that faith is timeless.  We are surely going through some difficult times as we see those who are in power now doing all they can to stifle those who have ideas that are contrary to theirs.

This is not a new time in the world.  Solomon knew that all things come around that have been before.  Tyrants have confounded the truth before and they lasted only long enough to take them to infamy.  They came and they went and now they are unpleasant memories.

The church however will survive.  Though it seems that we have only few who value the congregating of believers, we only need One to support us.  He gave His earthly life for us and now we have His strength and His Holy Spirit to encourage us.

Surely this is a scary time though.  Because I was not here for the two world wars or the great depression I have no idea how it felt to live through those times.  I wasn’t living at the time to witness Hitler yet he still lives in infamy and the hatred that he had for anyone who disagreed with him.  That hatred  is still being seen even in the governments of this world today.

Governments live and are ordained by God to show us what happens when we get what we ask for.  The children of Israel asked Samuel for a king like the surrounding nations.  Samuel was hurt because he took their request very personally as a rejection of himself.  God set Samuel straight.  1 Samuel 8:”4 *Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto fRamah, 5 And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now gmake us a king to judge us like all the nations. 6 But the thing †displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the Lord. 7 And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for hthey have not rejected thee, but ithey have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.” [2]  Believe this, we are in good company…

Scripture:  Today’s scripture is 2 Thessalonians 2:3.  When you have found it please rise to your feet for the reading of God’s written word.

Prayer: Please be seated

Message:  Follow as we read chapter two through to verse twelve.  In the first verse, notice what Paul said there about beseeching them by gathering together unto Jesus?  Those with Paul were congregating and discussing with prayer for those who were in dire need of Jesus’ strength.  He knew that there was persecution against the Thessalonians and he knew that they needed encouragement.

So what must we do today?  Instead of worrying why some local churches think it’s OK to still be meeting while others are doing the crazy Facebook thing, we should be encouraging our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Anything else is a further way of dividing and controlling us.

His bride, His church will not be conquered.  We know that from the message of Revelation.  Since all of our Merry Oaks messages are on the internet.com webpage it will not be a shock someday soon to see resistance to having the truth posted even on our internet platform.

The second chapter is a reminder of things that were to come and are still to come.  Let no man deceive you by any means.  There are so many people who are attempting deceit today that we haven’t got time to discuss them all.  In Paul’s day word of mouth and letters carried from one place to another were the mass media.  It was pretty easy to see the deceiver then.  Actually it is still easy today.  When you turn the channel on the cable or satellite box or channel selector on the TV and you hear the same message from many different people who have lied to you in the past, it is pretty easy to understand where their message is coming from.

The devil uses whatever man or woman of his choice who falls for the temptation of false power.  Today there are many methods of deceit, and new ways of spreading garbage are appearing every day.

For the true believers we are ready for God’s will to be accomplished now!  Where is the express lane that will bypass the junk but still allow the journey?  I do not want to leave this mess for someone else to live through but it sure would be nice not to have all these detours.

Anyone who tells you that being a Christian is easy in what they say or in the self-help books they write is part of the problem.  There is no easy way.  Jesus sweated so much in the garden at Gethsemane that the Bible said his sweat was like droplets of blood.  If there had been an easy way don’t you think that God the Father would have provided an easier way for His Only Begotten Son?  Let nobody deceive you.

There is definitely a huge detour!  In fact Paul told them that day would not come until and unless something else happened.  First this thing will happen.  That day (The Day of Christ) will not come unless there is a great turning away first.  It is inevitable so we must be prepared.

When you get routed into a different place because of whatever reason, if you are not familiar with where you are it is pretty easy to get lost.  Mountain folks talk about getting turned around.  I like that.  You know what it is to repent right?  So you were going the wrong way but something changed and now you are headed in the right direction.  Uhoh, there is a detour and now you are not sure where you are so instead of asking directions, you turn around and start in the wrong direction again.  Turning around is a bad idea but it will happen.

But I was raised in church!  I have always been in the right direction.  Nobody can fool me!  I won’t be turned away!  Paul said this is not so.  Except there be a falling away first, that day (The Day of The Lord) will not come.

Why can’t we just cut to the chase?  Why is it not enough to stay with Jesus?  Why!  Could it possibly be that this is what many people are dealing with today?  Until you know the bad you can’t really love the Good.  The man of sin must first be uncovered; discovered, revealed.

You would think that most people can judge for themselves who is the bad guy.  That thing about recognizing good and evil; isn’t that really what the forbidden fruit was.  Eating from the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil is what Adam and Eve decided and that was against trusting God to reveal the truth to them.  They decided against trusting God.

We must come back to that time of trusting God!  Then Satan will be discovered again as he was in the garden and we will have the chance to decide to follow God or Satan and we will not be able to blame anyone else’s bad decision.  We are judged for our decisions.

So there are two things going on here and they are both blessings from God.  First, we don’t need to worry about our grown children making the righteous decision before we die.  Perhaps they are turned around.  Lord knows it seems that most people are turned around right now and it’s getting worse but we don’t need to worry.  If anyone is still drawing breath, they have time to make the righteous decision.  That should give us hope.  It gives me hope.  It relieves my mind and gives me strength to continue.

Second, the great liar will be exposed so that he will be known for who he is and those who choose to follow him will die with him a death that will never end and we won’t need to worry about the devil ever again.  We will be responsible for our own decision when we know who the antichrist really is.  We know this will happen because it has been told in many places in the Bible.  The devil even jumps on us here now sometimes.  You can tell when he is affecting you because that is when you are worried.  STOP!!!  Do not worry!!!

Verses 5-12 again, “5 nRemember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? 6 And now ye know what ||owithholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 7 For pthe mystery of qiniquity doth already work: only he who now oletteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 8 And then shall that jqWicked be revealed, rwhom the Lord shall consume swith the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with tthe brightness of ahis coming: 9 Even him, whose coming is uafter the working of wSatan xwith all power and ysigns and lying ywonders, 10 And with all deceivableness of zunrighteousness in athem that perish; because they received not bthe love of zthe truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause cGod shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe da lie: 12 That they all might be damned who ebelieved not zthe truth, but fhad pleasure in zunrighteousness.[3]

Now you have been told again why this that is happening is happening.  What will you do with the truth when you leave this place today?

Prayer:

Invitation:  "13 But gwe are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, hbrethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath ifrom the beginning chosen you to salvation kthrough sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: 14 Whereunto lhe called you by our gospel, mto the obtaining of the lglory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 Therefore, brethren, nstand fast, and hold othe traditions which ye have been taught, whether pby word, or pour epistle. 16 Now qour Lord Jesus Christ himself, and rGod, even our Father, swhich hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting tconsolation and ugood hope through grace, 17 vComfort your hearts, and wstablish you in every xgood word and work." [4]

The altar is open to lay your dread upon.  Leave it here so you won’t be burdened down so that you are unable to show the love that God has for us.  Think on this and let us ponder this in hearts as we sing our son of invitation.

g See Matt. 24:4. Comp. Matt. 24:23.
h So 1 Tim. 4:1.
i See 1 Macc. 2:15.
j See Dan. 11:36. Comp. 1 John 2:18. & 4:3.
k John 17:12. See Luke 10:6.
[1] The Holy Bible: King James Version. (2009). (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., 2 Th 2:3). Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
* B.C. 1095.
f See ch. 1:19.
g ver. 19, 20. Deut. 17:14. Hos. 13:10. Acts 13:21.
† Heb. was evil in the eyes of Samuel. So Gen. 38:10 & 48:17. ch. 18:8. 2 Sam. 11:25, 27. 1 Chr. 21:7. Isai. 59:15. So Jonah 4:1.
h Comp. Ex. 16:8.
i See Judg. 8:23.
[2] The Holy Bible: King James Version. (2009). (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., 1 Sa 8:4–7). Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
n Comp. Matt. 16:9. Mark 8:18. Luke 24:6. Acts 20:31.
|| Or, holdeth.
o Gk. as ver. 7. Luke 4:42. Philem. 13.
p Rev. 17:5, 7.
q So ver. 8 (Gk.).
o Gk. as ver. 7. Luke 4:42. Philem. 13.
j See Dan. 11:36. Comp. 1 John 2:18. & 4:3.
q So ver. 8 (Gk.).
r Comp. Dan. 7:10, 11.
s So Job 4:9 (Gk.). Isai. 11:4 (Gk.). Comp. Rev. 2:16. & 19:15, 21.
t 1 Tim. 6:14. 2 Tim. 1:10. & 4:1, 8. Titus 2:13 in the Gk. See 2 Macc. 2:21. So ch. 1:9.
a ver. 8. See 1 Thess. 2:19. Comp. 2 Tim. 4:1.
u Comp. John 8:41. Eph. 2:2.
w See 1 Cor. 5:5.
x See Deut. 13:1.
y Rev. 12:3. & 13:14. See John 4:48.
y Rev. 12:3. & 13:14. See John 4:48.
z ver. 12. 1 Cor. 13:6 (Gk.).
a See 1 Cor. 1:18.
b So Prov. 4:6.
z ver. 12. 1 Cor. 13:6 (Gk.).
c Matt. 24:5, 11, 24. 1 Tim. 4:1. See 1 Kin. 22:22. Comp. Rev. 17:17.
d So 1 Tim. 4:2. See Rom. 1:25.
e So Rom. 2:8.
z ver. 12. 1 Cor. 13:6 (Gk.).
f See Rom. 1:32.
z ver. 12. 1 Cor. 13:6 (Gk.).
[3] The Holy Bible: King James Version. (2009). (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., 2 Th 2:5–12). Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
g ch. 1:3.
h 1 Thess. 1:4 marg.
i See Eph. 1:4. So 2 Tim. 1:9.
k 1 Pet. 1:2.
l See 1 Thess. 2:12.
m See 1 Thess. 5:9.
l See 1 Thess. 2:12.
n See 1 Cor. 16:13.
o 1 Cor. 11:2. ch. 3:6.
p ver. 2.
p ver. 2.
q So ch. 1:1, 2.
r See Gal. 1:4.
s John 3:16. 1 John 4:10. Rev. 1:5.
t See Luke 6:24.
u So 1 Pet. 1:3.
v See Col. 2:2.
w So 1 Thess. 3:13. ch. 3:3. See Rom. 16:25.
x See Acts 9:36.
[4] The Holy Bible: King James Version. (2009). (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., 2 Th 2:13–17). Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.