Transcript

Former President Ronald Reagan told a story, which he said was true, about a newspaper photographer out in Los Angeles who was called in by his editor and told of a fire that was raging out in Palos Verdes. Pa-lows Vur-dee is a hilly area south of Los Angeles.

His assignment was to rush down to a small airport, board a waiting plane, get some pictures of the fire, and be back in time for the afternoon edition. Breathlessly, he raced to the airport and drove his car to the end of the runway.

Sure enough, there was a plane waiting with all the engines all revved up, ready to go. He got aboard, and at about five thousand feet, he began getting his camera out of the bag.

He told the fellow flying the plane to get him over the fire so he could take his pictures and get back to the paper. From the other side of the cockpit there was a deafening silence. Then he heard these unsettling words: “Aren’t you the instructor?”

Some of us have been in situations like that one. Our lives are going along smoothly, and we assume that everything is fine and will continue to be. We thought we were in control, but then something unsettling happens, and everything suddenly changes.

Illness, bereavement, financial problems, relationship issues, the list goes on and on. Life does not always go according to plan.

But God offers each of us comfort and strength through His Word. And as we live by faith in it, we will find ourselves drawn closer to the Lord, and we will grow in our understanding and appreciation of God’s faithfulness and our good hope through grace.

2 Thessalonians 2:13-14: “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: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

With verse 13 in this chapter, Paul shifts from dealing with the Tribulation period and the doom of the Antichrist and his followers to a prayer of thanksgiving to God for the Thessalonians. The apostle considers their destiny in contrast and is why he starts verse 13 with “But.”

In contrast to the unbelievers of the previous verse, “who believed not the truth,” Paul thanks God for the Thessalonian believers and their “belief of the truth.”

Paul wrote, “But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you.” The word, “bound,” means that Paul was obligated. He saw it as a debt he owed. Paul felt duty-bound from an inward conviction to thank God for the Thessalonians.

Earlier in this letter, Paul spoke of being “bound” to thank God also: “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth.”

In this earlier passage, Paul felt duty-bound to thank God for the Thessalonians in their growing faith and abounding love.

Here in chapter 2, verse 13, Paul saw it as a spiritual obligation to thank God for the great things He had done for the Thessalonian church and all saints in the Body of Christ.

Paul continually thanked God for the Thessalonians, who were “brethren beloved of the Lord.” The Thessalonians were “brethren” and family in the Lord.

And Paul was thankful for his brothers and sisters in the Thessalonian church, who were members of God’s forever family.

And these Thessalonians were enduring persecutions and tribulations for their faith. They were suffering and were being troubled by those who opposed the church (1:4-6).

Though men might’ve hated them, Paul thanked God for them, because they were the objects of Christ’s love.

And no matter what kind of backlash we may get for our faith, and in any kind of suffering we endure, we know we are deeply and dearly loved by the Lord.

It’s been put well of Paul’s words here and the Thessalonians’ suffering, “In the thick of this darkness, Paul doesn’t barge in, throw open the windows, pull back their sheets, and drag them outside.

“He lights a single candle of hope, a solitary but brilliant flame of compassion. With gentle words, he informs them that he is thankful to God for them, that they are his brothers and sisters in Christ, precious in His sight—beloved by the Lord. To a people pummeled by affliction, those words could bring them to tears.”

To further comfort and cheer his brothers and sisters in Thessalonica, Paul wrote that he was thankful to God for them “because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation.”

Now, on the surface, it sounds like Paul is thanking God for choosing the Thessalonians to be saved from their sins. However, the word “salvation” simply means deliverance, and when you see the term “salvation” in the Bible, it does not always refer to salvation from the penalty of our sins.

For example, at the Red Sea, Moses commanded the people of Israel to “stand still, and see the SALVATION of the Lord…for the Egyptians ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.”

The “salvation of the Lord” referred to Israel’s salvation or deliverance from the Egyptian army by the Lord parting the Red Sea. And as Jude 1:5 puts it, “the Lord, having SAVED the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.”

In Philippians 1:19, Paul wrote, “For I know that this shall turn to my SALVATION through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” Paul had already been saved from the penalty of his sins on the road to Damascus. The “salvation” Paul referred to in that verse was deliverance from his imprisonment in Rome.

We must allow the context to interpret the meaning of the words “saved” or “salvation” in God’s Word. And when we see them, we should ask, “Delivered from what?” And the context of this verse is the Rapture and the seven-year Tribulation period.

There was false teaching floating around the Thessalonian assembly that the Day of the Lord was “at hand,” and that the Tribulation had begun.

The intense persecution that the church was enduring, along with bad teaching that was being shared with them, made them think that they might have been in the prophesied 7-year Tribulation.

Thus, Paul reinforced the truth with the Thessalonians that “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and…our gathering together unto Him” must take place first.

The Church, the Body of Christ, will depart this world at the Rapture before the events of the Tribulation period ever begin.

This reminds us that no matter how bad things get in the world, none of what happens under grace is part of the Day of the Lord, or the Tribulation. The Rapture must take place first before the Tribulation and its prophecies begin.

When Paul thanked God for the Thessalonians, who were concerned that they were possibly in the Tribulation, he comforted them by thanking God that He had “from the beginning chosen you to salvation.”

Paul was saying that from the very beginning, or in the eternal plans and purposes of God for this age, God chose, He determined that those who believed and were in the Church, the Body of Christ in this dispensation of grace, they would be saved, or delivered from ever entering the Tribulation.

From the beginning, God has chosen all believers of this dispensation “to salvation,” meaning to be saved from the Tribulation period.

And that is a blessing of grace, and that is something to thank God for. Because the Tribulation will be a time of terrifying horrors that this world has never seen before.

And the purpose of the Tribulation, which is called the time of Jacob’s Trouble, is to punish and judge Israel for her rejection of her Messiah and to bring her to repentance, so that she is ready and fit to enter the Millennial Kingdom.

As members of the Body of Christ, the Tribulation is not for us, it’s for Israel and pertains to God’s program with her. And we are saved and delivered from it.

In other places in Paul’s letters, the word “salvation” refers to salvation from the Tribulation. For example, 1 Thessalonians 5:9 states, “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.”

When Paul said that God has not appointed the Church to wrath, the “wrath” in that context is the wrath of the Day of the Lord, or the Tribulation period,

Paul explained that the Day of the Lord will come suddenly and unexpectedly “as a thief in the night.” It is a time of darkness, when sudden destruction will come upon the world.

But we do not have an appointment with that day of wrath. Rather, we have an appointment “to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” In other words, we have an appointment with the pre-tribulation Rapture, by which we will be saved or delivered and removed from this world by the Lord’s return at the Rapture before the Tribulation begins.

The Church has been chosen by God’s will to the salvation of the pre-Tribulation Rapture.

Paul added that “God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.”

“Sanctification” means to be set apart unto the Lord. God the Father has “chosen” the Body of Christ to the salvation of the pre-Tribulation Rapture, and God the Holy Spirit has carried out the Father’s will and set the Church apart unto the Lord for it.

By the Spirit, at the moment of salvation, we are set apart from sin and the world and set apart unto God as members of the Church. And being members of the Body of Christ, the Spirit has set us apart unto the salvation of the pre-Tribulation Rapture.

And this setting apart has been carried out as a direct result of our “belief of the truth.”

Then Paul defines what “truth” that the Thessalonians had believed in verse 14: “Whereunto He called you by our gospel.” We are set apart to God by believing the gospel.

“Our gospel” is the gospel that was committed first to the apostle Paul and was made known to the nations by him and his co-laborers. In Acts 20:24, Paul calls it “the gospel of the grace of God.” This gospel is a message of faith alone in Jesus Christ, just believing that Christ died for our sins and rose again.

As Romans 4:5 says of this gospel, “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”

And the gospel of the grace of God calls all people to believe it. This gospel tells us that Christ “died for all,” that Christ “gave Himself a ransom for all,” and that “whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

The Thessalonians had been called by the gospel of grace and they responded to it, and they believed the truth.

As a result, they were saved from all their sins, and at the same time, they received the blessing of being chosen and set apart to the salvation of the pre-Tribulation Rapture. And Paul thanked God continually for this fact on behalf of the Thessalonians.

Believing the gospel of grace and having the hope of the Rapture, Paul wrote, will result in “the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Glorification and being saved from the very presence of sin is the ultimate goal, hope, and destiny to which we are called.

Amazingly, and by grace, in our salvation, God shares His glory with us, and we will one day obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it is at the Rapture, when we will be glorified, and our bodies will be changed and made to be like Christ’s glorious body.

As Paul wrote in Philippians 3:20-21: “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body…”

2 Thessalonians 2:15: “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.”

Paul wrote, “Therefore.” In light of the Thessalonians receiving some bad teaching concerning the Day of the Lord and being “shaken in mind” and “troubled” by it, Paul encouraged them to “therefore,” stand fast in the truth that they had taught in the past.

Specifically, this concerns the truth of the Rapture taking place before the Tribulation. The doctrine of the pre-tribulation Rapture is an essential component of the message committed to the Apostle Paul by revelation from the Lord. Paul desired that members of the Body of Christ stand fast and never relinquish this precious hope.

Paul wanted the Thessalonian brethren to “stand fast, and hold the traditions which yet have been taught.”

The term “traditions” means transmission, a giving over which is done by word of mouth or in writing. When we talk about traditions, we typically think of them negatively, as religious, man-made traditions that contradict, add to, or take the place of the Scriptures.

But “when Paul exhorted the Thessalonians to “stand fast, and hold the traditions,” these are traditions in a good sense.

Paul is referring to instructions and the revealed truth of God that he had taught them in the past. “Traditions” here concerns the teaching and passing on of God’s Word to others.

And Paul wanted the Thessalonians to take a firm “stand” and to be steadfast with these traditions, or his teachings. He wanted them to “hold the traditions,” to hold and not let go of the transmission of grace truth he made known to them, and to never abandon it.

Paul had given divine truth to the Thessalonians for both their possession and protection.

As it’s been said, “You are to be like a member of the [King’s] Guard in England—no matter what happens around you, you stand firm. While everybody else is waffling and buying into different worldviews, you hold onto the truth of Scripture.”

The doctrine of the pre-Tribulation Rapture was one of the “traditions” Paul had taught and transmitted to them.

Even today, we need this encouragement to “stand fast” and “hold” on tight to the pre-Tribulation Rapture, because it is under constant attack from those who deny it.

And holding on to Paul’s teachings keeps us from being shaken and troubled when bad teaching is spread concerning the Rapture and the Tribulation.

The truth had been made known to the Thessalonians “by word, or our epistle.” When Paul established their church, he taught them orally in person “by word,” communicating the truth of the revelation of the mystery, which is the faith for the dispensation of grace.

And Paul had further taught them the truth in written form, through “our epistle,” or the letter of 1 Thessalonians. And now he communicated more truth in writing through this second epistle.

The command to “stand fast” implies a location. It means that a certain location is where one stands and stands firm, remains stationary, and perseveres there. Where we need to stand fast is in the Pauline traditions, the truth of Paul’s message in God’s Word.

It is there that we find the location of the truth for the Church under grace, and it is there that we must stand and keep standing fast and be unmovable.

This is for the benefit of our spiritual lives in bringing the comfort and strength of truth to our hearts, and it is for the benefit of others and them finding the truth.

All this is like what Paul told Timothy, “Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of ME, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us” (2 Tim. 1:13-14).

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17: “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, Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.”

Paul wrote and addressed his prayer to God the Son and God the Father: “Now our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God, even our Father.” And then he reminded the Thessalonians of the love of Christ and of the Father: “which hath loved us.”

In light of the persecutions the Thessalonians were enduring and the fears they had experienced due to bad doctrine, Paul reminded them of God’s love.

And in times of pain and fear, it is good to be reminded of God’s love. It’s good to find comfort in knowing that God’s love for us is persistent, patient, and steady. In considering God’s love, we know we cannot be loved better or more extensively than we are. No one else in the entire universe can love us as much or as deeply as God loves us.

In the original Greek, the plural subject, Christ and the Father, is followed by four singular verb forms: loved, given, comfort, and stablish. This indicates the oneness, equality, and unity of nature of the Son and Father in the Godhead.

Both the Son and the Father, with the same mind and heart, love us, give us everlasting consolation and good hope, comfort our hearts, and establish us.

God loves us and out of that love, He has “given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace.” The love of both the Son and the Father is what is behind our everlasting consolation and hope. Our comfort and hope is based on and stems from God’s love.

The word, “consolation,” means comfort, solace, encouragement. Temporal consolation is one thing, but everlasting consolation is something else. God’s consolation does not diminish or die.

It starts now, and it lasts forever. We currently experience the consolation of God that takes place in time, but it moves into eternity. And for eternity, we will experience His everlasting consolation and comfort.

As Paul told the Ephesians, “That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (2:7).

As God hath loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope, all of this looks back to the Cross. The Cross is what shows us God’s infinite and personal love for us that Christ died for us, in our place, for our sins.

The Cross and deliverance from all our sins and from hell is what gives us everlasting consolation and comfort. The Cross is what gives us good hope through grace, the hope of heaven and eternal life.

And the context of God’s “everlasting consolation” here is the comfort of being chosen to the salvation of the pre-Tribulation Rapture and the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ at that time.

There are many things that can comfort us amidst the troubles of life, but the thought of the Lord’s coming for us, based on the certainty of God’s promise, can give us true “consolation,” and that day will result in “everlasting consolation” in heaven.

Every single day we have this comfort, because every day the Lord could return for the Church. And at that day, in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, the believer will be changed and transferred to glory and enter God’s presence in heaven to live there eternally.

God has promised Israel to preserve and to be with her through the fires and the great storm of the Tribulation. That is her comfort. In contrast, the comfort for the Body of Christ is that we will be caught away out of this world before it ever begins.

Jeremiah 30:7 says of the Tribulation, “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.” Believing Israel will be saved out of the Tribulation but we will be delivered and raptured before it!

An that is “good hope through grace.” Not only does God give us consolation, but He also gives us “hope.” And He not only gives us hope, but He gives “good” hope. Our hope is good because of its encouragement and sustaining effect on us who cherish it.

It’s good hope because its source comes from the heart and mind of God who is good, and thus, it is intrinsically good and for our good. And it is good hope because it is certain, as God is always faithful to His promises.

And the Rapture is good hope for us. This hope can sustain us in times of trouble and heartache, its certainty can comfort and encourage our hearts, and it is for our good, because we will be caught up to be with the Lord and with our believing loved ones forever.

In Titus 2:13, Paul calls it the “blessed hope,” teaching the Church that we should be continually “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.”

And Paul says that God has given us everlasting consolation and good hope “THROUGH GRACE.” Grace is what God provides for us without any strings attached.

We don’t deserve God’s comfort or our good hope. We do not earn or deserve anything from God. Everything that the believer is and has is by grace.

Thus, God comforting us with an everlasting consolation and giving us good hope is by His grace and just due to His kindness and love.

Paul next prayed that God would “Comfort your hearts.”

The hearts of the Thessalonians had been shaken and they were worried that they were already in the Tribulation.

But Paul prayed that the writing of 2 Thessalonians and the truth that we will be gathered together unto Christ before the Tribulation begins would strengthen their hearts.

The truth of God’s Word can always comfort our hearts. When we are down and defeated, we know there is always comfort to be found and gained by the Word of God.

In 1 Thessalonians, after Paul described the Rapture in detail and meeting the Lord in the air, Paul instructed them to “comfort one another with these words” (v. 18).

Then, after describing the Day of the Lord that will follow the Rapture, Paul directed them to “comfort yourselves together” (5: 11) with the additional comfort that comes from knowing the Rapture will come before the Tribulation.

And here in 2 Thessalonians, Paul again tells the Thessalonian believers to allow the truth and hope of the pre-Tribulation Rapture to “Comfort your hearts.”

Finally, Paul prayed that God would “stablish you in every good word and work.”

The word “establish” means to fix, to set fast. The area where Paul the Thessalonians established was in the sphere of “every good word and work,” or in the truth of doctrine and in the practice of their faith. He desired that they would find strength for their faith and stability for their walk by the truth of God’s Word.

And specifically Paul desired the Thessalonians to be grounded in the truth of the Rapture and to live in light of its comfort day by day.

Because as Colossians 3:4 says “When Christ, Who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory.”