Introduction to 2 Thessalonians

Paul apparently receives an update as to the condition of the church when whoever took the first letter returns to Corinth.  Paul is greatly concerned to hear about the persecution that the church is facing but even more concerned about the false teachings that are producing wrong ways of living.  This concern leads Paul to write this second epistle to the church in order to address these issues.  More than likely this second letter is written within a year of the first letter to the same group of people.

COMFORT FOR THE DICOURAGED: Paul is very thankful to the Lord for the faithfulness of this church in spite of the great affliction and persecution that they are facing.  Paul knew firsthand how zealous the persecutors where in Thessalonica.  He encourages them to continue to be steadfast and not give up no matter how hard it seems.  He also reminds them of the great hope and promise that they have in Christ.  One day He will put an end to all of this injustice and suffering on the part of His children.  He will bring comfort to them and He will justly judge those who are afflicting His children today.  It may seem that the righteous suffer and the unrighteous prosper but Paul assures us and them that this is only a temporary perception.  One day God will make it all right.

CORRECTION FOR THE DECEIVED: Apparently, there were some false teachers in the city that were teaching that the Day of the Lord was currently taking place.  This passage can be very difficult to interpret and is used by both pre and post tribulationalists to defend their position.  The understanding of the passage hinges on the definition of the phrase: Day of the Lord.  I believe it is best to understand this phrase as a day of judgment that includes all of the final events of the history of earth.  It starts with the Tribulation, continues with the Millennium and culminates with the final judgment.  The false teachers were claiming that the Tribulation was already under way but this would have been in direct contradiction with Paul’s earlier teaching that the church was destined to face this time of wrath.  Paul assures the church that the Day of the Lord was not yet here but was being detained by the Holy Spirit.  Paul once again encourages them to stand firm in their hope of the Gospel and not be deceived by false claims.  It is vital that we carefully consider all teachings in light of the Word of God.

CONFRONTATION FOR THE DISOBEDIENT: False doctrines always lead to false practices.  The teaching that the Day of the Lord had already come was apparently leading some of the people in the church to stop working and just wait for the Lord to rapture them immediately.  Paul warns the church that this is not biblical behavior and reminds them of his own example of working hard while he was with them.  This same error has been repeated throughout history when people think that they are able to set a date for the rapture of the church and then go out and sell everything they have, quit their jobs and go wait for Christ to come on the top of a mountain somewhere.  This type of teaching is always false.  It is impossible to predict when the rapture will happen.  All we know is that it is closer today than it was yesterday.  Even if we did know the date; certainly the correct thing to do would be to work as hard as we could to share the Gospel to as many people as possible prior to that date.  When Christ returns He should find us working and not waiting around doing nothing on some mountain.