2 Thessalonians 2:1
Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to Him, we ask you, brothers,
Sermons
Caution Against ErrorW. Burkitt, M. A.2 Thessalonians 2:1
ReunionDean Vaughan.2 Thessalonians 2:1
The Advent as a MotiveProf. Jowett.2 Thessalonians 2:1
The Coming of ChristC. Hodge, D. D.2 Thessalonians 2:1
The Coming of ChristT. Manton, D. D.2 Thessalonians 2:1
A Great DelusionW.F. Adeney 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2
A Misapprehension, Respecting the Time of the Second AdventT. Croskery 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2
The Day of Christ not ImmediateB.C. Caffin 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2
AntichristR. Finlayson 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12














The apostle's main design in this Epistle is to correct a most disquieting error that had arisen upon this point.

I. THE PANIC IN THE THESSALONIAN CHURCH.

1. It was concerning the date of the second coming of Christ. "Touching the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto him." The facts of this august event had been prophetically described in the First Epistle.

(1) It was the personal coming of Christ in "the day of the Lord" to judge the quick and the dead.

(2) It was an event involving their "gathering together unto him" to meet the Lord in the air: a happy meeting, a marvellously glorious sight.

2. The misapprehension caused a sort of panic. "That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled" - like a ship tossed upon a stormy sea. It was this deep agitation of mind, this consternation and surprise, which led to the unsettled spirit that manifested itself in the Thessalonian Church. Errors in the region of dispensational truth often have this tendency.

3. The panic was due to one or other of three sources. "Neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us."

(1) It may have had its origin in some pretended revelation or spiritual utterance in the Thessalonian Church. Our Lord had predicted false alarms of this sort. "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe him not" (Matthew 24:23).

(2) Or it may have come "through word," that is, word of mouth, supposed to be spoken by the apostle during his visit to Thessalonica.

(3) Or "through letter as from us," apparently forged letters such as had already become rife in the early Church.

II. THE GROUND OF THE PANIC. "As that the day of the Lord is now present." This is the correct translation; not "it is at hand."

1. It could inspire no terror for the Thessalonians to know that the day was at hand, for this had always been the apostle's teaching, as well as that of all Scripture (Matthew 24.; Romans 13:12; Philippians 4:5; Hebrews 10:25, 37; James 5:8; 1 Peter 4:7). They had been already familiar with the doctrine, which ought rather to have filled their hearts with transcendent gladness.

2. Their disquietude and distress arose from the belief that the Lord had already come without their sharing in the glory of his kingdom. Their relatives were still lying in their graves without any sign of resurrection, and they themselves saw no sign of that transformation of body in themselves that was to be the prelude to their meeting the Lord in the air. The apostle tells them distinctly that the day has not come, and that the signs of its approach had not yet been exhibited. - T.C.

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I. THE NATURE OF IT. Christ came. He comes. He is to come.

1. He came in the flesh. The long line of predictions from Adam to Malachi were accomplished at last, after long delay and anxious expectation.

2. He comes continually.

(1)In the extraordinary manifestation of His presence and power, whether for judgment or mercy.

(2)In the special manifestation of Him self to His people.

3. He is to come.

(1)Personally and visibly.

(2)With power and great glory.

(3)The dead shall rise, the just and the unjust.

(4)The judgment will then be held.

(5)The world destroyed.

(6)The kingdom of God consummated.The consequences to His people will be —

(a)Their redemption, i.e., their final deliverance from the power of death.

(b)Their complete conformity to the likeness of Christ.

(c)Their perfect enjoyment of that kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world.

II. THE TIME.

1. It is unrevealed.

2. It is to be unexpected.

3. It will not be until the conversion of the Jews and the calling in of the Gentries.Did the apostles expect Christ in their day?

(1)They regarded His coming as they regarded the coming of death.

(2)It was revealed to them that there should be a falling away first.We must distinguish between their personal expectations and their teaching. The latter alone is infallible.

III. POINTS OF ANALOGY BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND COMINGS.

1. Both predicted.

2. Anxiously and long expected.

3. The subjects of much speculation as to time and mode.

4. Disappointing in the one and the other.

IV. THE STATE OF MIND WHICH THE DOCTRINE SHOULD INDUCE.

1. A firm belief in the revealed fact that He is to come. This faith should not be shaken by long delay. How long Abraham waited and died without the sight.

2. Earnest desire. The hopes of the ancient people were concentrated on the coming of the Messiah. This led them to bear patiently what they had to suffer. To set their hopes on the future and not on the present. The same effect should be produced on us.

3. Watchfulness and anxiety, lest that day should overtake us as a thief in the night. We should have our lamps trimmed and our lights burning. It would be a dreadful thing for Christ to come and find us immersed in the world.

4. Prayer and waiting.

5. Solicitous efforts to prepare others for His coming, and to prepare the way of the Lord. He will not come to the individual nor to the Church till His way is prepared. This includes —

(1)Taking out of the way obstructions to His coming.

(2)The accomplishment of the ingathering of His people.

(C. Hodge, D. D.)

I. THE COMING OF CHRIST TO JUDGMENT IS A TRUTH —

1. Well known by all the saints (Jude 1:14; Psalm 96:13; Psalm 98:9; Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14).

2. Firmly believed (2 Peter 3:3-5; Titus 2:11-13).

3. Earnestly desired (Song of Solomon 8:14; Revelation 22:20). Why?(1) In respect of Him who is to come — that we may see Him who is our great Lord and Saviour. All who believed anything of Christ before He came desired to see Him (John 8:56). And now Christians (1 Peter 1:8; 1 Peter 2:3).(2) In respect of the persons desiring — there is that in them which moves them to it.(a) The Spirit of Christ (Revelation 22:17). The Holy Ghost creates this desire: it is His great work to bring Christ and us together.(b) The graces planted in us — faith, which takes Christ at His word (John 14:2); hope, which is faith's handmaid (1 Peter 1:3); love, which is an affection of union (Philippians 1:23).(c) Christian privileges; believers then find the fruit of their interest in Christ, and have their reward (Revelation 22:12; 2 Timothy 4:8; 1 Peter 5:4).

II. WHEN CHRIST SHALL COME ALL THE SAINTS SHALL BE GATHERED WITH HIM. There shall be —

1. A congregation (Matthew 25:32; 2 Corinthians 5:10). Adam will then meet all his posterity at once. All distinctions of age, quality, wealth, nation, etc., will disappear.

2. A segregation (Matthew 25:32, 33). There may be some confusion now, but there shall be a complete separation then (Matthew 13:49).

3. An aggregation: believers are gathered together for several ends.(1) To make up the number of Christ's attendants (Jude 1:14; Zechariah 14:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:17).(2) To be presented to God by head and poll. We were given to Christ to be preserved for glory (John 17:6). Christ is to give an account (John 6:40). The form of presentation (Hebrews 2:13).(3) To be brought in one troop to heaven (John 14:3). Conclusion: There is much comfort in this.

1. Real Christians seem few (Luke 12:32): but when there assembled they shall be a multitude that no man can number (Revelation 5:9; Revelation 7:9).

2. Christian friends are now separated — then they shall meet to part no more (Matthew 24:31; 1 Thessalonians 4:17).

3. The Church seems in a degenerate state — then it shall be without spot.

(T. Manton, D. D.)

1. The exact word occurs only again in Hebrews 10:25, and that gathering is typical of this. When we meet in the House of God, for prayer, praise, instruction and communion, we are practising for that other gathering, which shall be perfect. The verb, however, occurs in two other places: one is where our Lord reminds Jerusalem how He would have gathered her children together. That idea of safe keeping, cherishing under the wing of the mother, is involved in the "gathering" of the Second Advent. The other text is Mark 13:27, the interpretation of the text before us.

2. The text is used not as a terror but as an attraction. "We beseech you by it," as those who would not part with it for their life. The Advent, as a regathering, is full of consolation. But it implies —

I. DISPERSION. There are senses in which this is tolerable. The severance of nations by dividing seas and deserts, and by the Babel judgment of divided tongues, is no affliction. It is as a type that we must read it to enter into its significance for sorrow.

1. It tells of sons and mothers parted for a lifetime by calls of duty or self-made necessities; of friends closer than brothers bidding each other a long farewell at a noisy station or a sea-washed pier; of vows of lifelong friendship broken in sudden passion; of discords which a breath would have healed; hence severance.

2. There is a dispersion of divided tongues concerning Christ in God's behalf. Men made offenders for a word; men unable to read in identical phrase some microscopic doctrine; men, kneeling in the name of one Saviour, imputing wilful blindness to one another.

3. Then the uncharitableness of individual men must be made the watchwords and heirlooms of parties and Churches. Creeds and articles must adopt the quarrel, and anathematize the deviation as a crime. So Christ's house is divided.

4. Behind and beneath all these dispersions there lurks the giant disperser, Death. Those unaffected by the other dispersions are all doomed to suffer from this.

5. But the greatest is sin. Brothers and friends may part and not part; even in this life they may be divided, and yet know that they have one home and Father. But sin divides even in its joining. Where sin is there is selfishness, and selfishness is severance.

II. THE REGATHERING. To Paul, and to all whose hearts are large and deep, there was a peculiar charm in the thought of this. "I beseech you," as though no motive could be more persuasive.

1. The scene thus opened is august even to oppressiveness. Expanded from one end of heaven to the other, enhanced by multiplication of generations, till it has embraced all the living and dead who have possessed the one Divine faith which makes the communion of saints, it overwhelms and baffles the soul's gaze.

2. But we must seek to refine and decarnalize our conceptions. "There is a spiritual body," doubtless like that of the risen Jesus which entered the room whose doors were shut. We must reassure ourselves by thoughts of the possibility of a communion in which mind shall touch mind, and spirit breathe into spirit, and soul kindle soul with no cumbersome machineries or limiting measurements.

3. Even now we feel within ourselves an instinct of the regathering. There are those who profess to have the key of death, and to hold commerce with the departed. We could better believe them if we found in their supposed communications profiting or solemnity. But the instinct of reunion is there; we read it even in its follies.

4. Still more do we long and yearn in ourselves for that kind of union which can come only to the immortal. Here we meet and part with a sense of unrest which leaves us to the end hungry and desolate. To the friend of our souls we cannot say one half of what we meant to say, and that was not fully understood. Our love he read not, and our passing humours he took as a changed affection. But then friend shall meet friend in absolute oneness, knowing as known, because loved as loving.

5. The condition is "unto Him." There are many human heavens for one Divine. We picture to ourselves a future bright with earth's joys, and cloudless of earth's troubles; but have we remembered that "the light thereof" is the Lamb. The promise of the text is vocal only to the Christian. Conclusion: Make now the great decision. If we will here trifle together, live for the world, neglect Christ, mock at sin, we must look abroad for some other hope: there is none for us in the gospel. The Advent regathering is for those only who in life "have loved the appearing."

(Dean Vaughan.)

"By" is not a formula of adjuration. There would be no point in saying, "I beseech you by the day of the Lord, not to suppose that the day of the Lord is at hand." It must be taken in the sense of "on behalf of," as though he were pleading in honour of that day, that the expectation of it might not be a source of disorder in the Church.

(Prof. Jowett.)

I. THE ERROR WHICH THE APOSTLE DISPROVES — that the day of Christ was then at hand.

II. THE EFFECT WHICH THIS ERROR MIGHT PRODUCE — trouble and unsettledness of mind. This implies —

1. That errors breed this disquietude.

2. That Christians should be firmly established against them.

III. A REMOVAL OF THE FOUNDATION OF THIS ERROR. The brethren were not to be shaken either by spirit, by word, or by letter.

(W. Burkitt, M. A.)

People
Paul, Thessalonians
Places
Thessalonica
Topics
Assembling, Beg, Beseech, Brethren, Brothers, Christ, Desire, Entreat, Gathered, Gathering, Meet, Meeting, Presence, Regard, Request, Respect, Touching
Outline
1. Paul urges them to continue stedfast in the truth received;
3. shows that there shall be a departure from the faith,
9. and a discovery of Antichrist, before the day of the Lord comes;
15. repeats his exhortation to stand firm, and prays for them.

Dictionary of Bible Themes
2 Thessalonians 2:1

     2565   Christ, second coming
     5396   lordship, of Christ
     9130   future, the

2 Thessalonians 2:1-2

     1615   Scripture, sufficiency
     5391   letters
     8750   false teachings
     8766   heresies

2 Thessalonians 2:1-3

     8353   tolerance

Library
Everlasting Consolation and Good Hope
'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. 17. Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.'--2 THESS. ii. 16, 17. This is the second of the four brief prayers which, as I pointed out in my last sermon, break the current of Paul's teaching in this letter, and witness to the depth of his affection to his Thessalonian converts. We do not know the special circumstances
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Election
Now, first, I shall speak a little concerning the truthfulness of this doctrine: "God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation." Secondly, I shall try to prove that this election is absolute: "He hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation," not for sanctification, but "through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth." Thirdly, this election is eternal, because the text says, "God hath from the beginning chosen you." Fourthly, it is personal: "He hath chosen you." Then we
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 1: 1855

Grace and Holiness.
"Now God Himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: To the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints."--1 THESS. iii. 11-13. There are few more precious subjects for meditation and imitation than the prayers and intercessions of the great Apostle.
W. H. Griffith Thomas—The Prayers of St. Paul

Of Antichrist, and his Ruin: and of the Slaying the Witnesses.
BY JOHN BUNYAN PREFATORY REMARKS BY THE EDITOR This important treatise was prepared for the press, and left by the author, at his decease, to the care of his surviving friend for publication. It first appeared in a collection of his works in folio, 1692; and although a subject of universal interest; most admirably elucidated; no edition has been published in a separate form. Antichrist has agitated the Christian world from the earliest ages; and his craft has been to mislead the thoughtless, by
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Sixteenth Day. Holiness and Truth.
Make them holy in the Truth: Thy word is Truth.'--John xvii. 17. 'God chose you unto salvation in sanctification and belief of the Truth.'--2 Thess. ii. 12. The chief means of sanctification that God uses is His word. And yet how much there is of reading and studying, of teaching and preaching the word, that has almost no effect in making men holy. It is not the word that sanctifies; it is God Himself who alone can sanctify. Nor is it simply through the word that God does it, but through
Andrew Murray—Holy in Christ

Colossians iii. 17
Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him. This, like the other general rules of the gospel, is familiar enough to us all in its own words; but we are very apt to forbear making the application of it. In fact, he who were to apply it perfectly would be a perfect Christian: for a life of which every word and deed were said and done in the name of the Lord Jesus, would be a life indeed worthy of the children of God, and such
Thomas Arnold—The Christian Life

Approbation and Blessing.
"Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of His goodness, and the work of faith with power: 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."--2 THESS. i. ii, 12. Two words sum up the Christian life--Grace and Glory; and both are associated with the two Comings of the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace particularly with the first Coming,
W. H. Griffith Thomas—The Prayers of St. Paul

The Edict of Banishment, 1729-1736.
But Zinzendorf was not long allowed to tread the primrose path of peace. As the news of his proceedings spread in Germany, many orthodox Lutherans began to regard him as a nuisance, a heretic, and a disturber of the peace; and one critic made the elegant remark: "When Count Zinzendorf flies up into the air, anyone who pulls him down by the legs will do him a great service." He was accused of many crimes, and had many charges to answer. He was accused of founding a new sect, a society for laziness;
J. E. Hutton—History of the Moravian Church

Fifteenth Day. The Holy Spirit.
But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believed on Him were to receive: for the Holy Spirit was not yet: because Jesus was not yet glorified.'--John vii. 39. 'The Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things.'--John xiv. 26. 'God chose you to salvation in sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth.'--2 Thess. ii. 13. (See 1 Pet. i. 2.) It has sometimes been said, that while the Holiness of God stands out more prominently
Andrew Murray—Holy in Christ

The Calling of the Regenerate:
"Whom He did predestinate, them He also called."--Rom. viii. 30. In order to hear, the sinner, deaf by nature, must receive hearing ears. "He that hath ears let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." (Rev. ii. 7, 11, 17, 29; iii. 6, 13, 22). But by nature the sinner does not belong to these favored ones. This is a daily experience. Of two clerks in the same office, one obeys the call and the other rejects it; not because he despises it, but because he does not hear God's call in it. Hence
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

First Day. God's Call to Holiness.
Like as He which called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living; because it is written, Ye shall be holy, for I am holy.'--1 Pet. i. 15, 16. The call of God is the manifestation in time of the purpose of eternity: 'Whom He predestinated, them He also called.' Believers are 'the called according to His purpose.' In His call He reveals to us what His thoughts and His will concerning us are, and what the life to which He invites us. In His call He makes clear to
Andrew Murray—Holy in Christ

The Third Wall.
The third wall falls of itself, as soon as the first two have fallen; for if the Pope acts contrary to the Scriptures, we are bound to stand by the Scriptures, to punish and to constrain him, according to Christ's commandment; "Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every
Martin Luther—First Principles of the Reformation

Perseverance of the Saints Proved.
The following considerations, taken together, seem to me to establish the truth of the doctrine in question beyond reasonable doubt. 1. God has from eternity resolved upon the salvation of all the elect. This we have seen. No one of this number will ever be lost. These are given to Christ from eternity, as a seed to serve him. The conversion, perseverance, and final salvation of the elect, we have seen to be secured. Their conversion, perseverance, and salvation, are secured by means of the grace
Charles Grandison Finney—Systematic Theology

Conflict and Comfort.
"For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; that their hearts may be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ."--COL. ii. 1, 2. Although he was in prison the Apostle was constantly at work for his Master, and not least of all at the work of prayer. If ever the words
W. H. Griffith Thomas—The Prayers of St. Paul

How Christ is to be Made Use Of, as the Way, for Sanctification in General.
Having shown how a poor soul, lying under the burden of sin and wrath, is to make use of Jesus Christ for righteousness and justification, and so to make use of him, go out to him, and apply him, as "he is made of God to us righteousness," 1 Cor. i. 30, and that but briefly. This whole great business being more fully and satisfactorily handled, in that forementioned great, though small treatise, viz. "The Christian's Great Interest," we shall now come and show, how a believer or a justified soul
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

The Holy Spirit Bringing Forth in the Believer Christlike Graces of Character.
There is a singular charm, a charm that one can scarcely explain, in the words of Paul in Gal. v. 22, 23, R. V., "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, temperance." What a catalogue we have here of lovely moral characteristics. Paul tells us that they are the fruit of the Spirit, that is, if the Holy Spirit is given control of our lives, this is the fruit that He will bear. All real beauty of character, all real Christlikeness in us,
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit

Discerning Prayer.
INTRODUCTORY. BY D.W. WHITTLE. To recognize God's existence is to necessitate prayer to Him, by all intelligent creatures, or, a consciously living in sin and under condemnation of conscience, because they do not pray to Him. It would be horrible to admit the existence of a Supreme Being, with power and wisdom to create, and believe that the creatures he thought of consequence and importance enough to bring into existence, are not of enough consequence for him to pay any attention to in the troubles
Various—The Wonders of Prayer

Concerning God's Purpose
1. God's purpose is the cause of salvation. THE third and last thing in the text, which I shall but briefly glance at, is the ground and origin of our effectual calling, in these words, "according to his purpose" (Eph. i. 11). Anselm renders it, According to his good will. Peter Martyr reads it, According to His decree. This purpose, or decree of God, is the fountainhead of our spiritual blessings. It is the impulsive cause of our vocation, justification, glorification. It is the highest link in
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

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