Lesson for April 28, 2013: The Lord Will Triumph (2 Thessalonians 2)

2 Thessalonians 2 King James Version (KJV)

1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

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.
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;
⁴ Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
⁵ Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
⁶ And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
⁷ For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
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:
⁹ Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
¹⁰ And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
¹¹ And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
¹² That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
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:
¹⁴ Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
¹⁵ Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
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,
¹⁷ Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

 

Lesson for April 21, 2013: The Lord Will Return

By Sam E. Stone

The apostle Paul founded the church in Thessalonica on his second missionary journey (Acts 17). Because he was not able to stay with the new converts as long as he would have liked, he continued to instruct them by letter.  A central theme in both epistles to the Thessalonians is the topic of today’s study—the return of Jesus Christ.

Return
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Paul describes Christians who have already died as those who sleep in death. In the New Testament, death is often compared to sleep for the believer (Luke 8:52; John 11:11; Acts 7:60). It lasts only for a brief period. Therefore, Christians should not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.

Grief is natural.  When his friend Lazarus died, even Jesus wept (John 11:35). When Stephen died, the people wept (Acts 8:2). But when believers grieve, there is a difference.  We have hope.  The unsaved do not.  They are “without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12). For the believer, Paul explained, “To live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).

The Thessalonian Christians were eager for Christ’s return.  It appears, however, that some were worried their brothers and sisters who had already died might miss it.  Paul assured them this would not happen. God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. The Lord had revealed to Paul that we who are still alive . . . will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. Believers still living at the time of Christ’s return will not have an advantage over those who died trusting Jesus.

The apostle explained exactly what would occur. The Lord himself will come down from heaven with . . . the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. The voice of Jesus will call all his people (John 5:25-30).  Once he called Lazarus from death to life with a word (John 11:43). When he returns, the Lord will summon every Christian with the voice of the archangel. Countless angels will accompany Jesus when he returns (Matthew 25:31; 2 Thessalonians 1:7). As at Mt. Sinai, God’s trumpet will also be heard (Exodus 19:16; Hebrews 12:19).

Believers who are living when Jesus returns will meet the Lord in the air. Like the Lord caught away Philip after he baptized the Ethiopian (Acts 8:39), so he will catch us up to meet him as he returns to earth.  So we will be with the Lord forever.

Some Bible students like to discuss technicalities.  Will we actually go to Heaven at that moment, or will that come later?  The important thing is that we will be with Jesus.  Wherever he is, all will be well. This passage wasn’t written to answer all our questions about eschatology (the study of last things). Instead it is intended to encourage us to live faithfully until death.

Readiness
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
We don’t need to know the precise date and time when the Lord will return.  Instead, we are to be ready

always for that moment.  The apostle compares the event to a thief’s visit.  No one knows when to expect a robber.  Neither can anyone predict when Jesus will return (Matthew 24:36).  Nor can expectant parents know exactly when their baby will be born.  An obstetrician may tell the mother-to-be when her baby is due, but the baby may have other plans!

Though the Lord will come like a thief in the night, we need not be “in the dark” about it.  Instead, we are to be watching and waiting. The children of the night face destruction while faithful believers are children of the light and children of the day. Expecting his imminent return, Christians are to be like soldiers prepared for battle (see Ephesians 6:13-17).

The Christian’s destiny is to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus did not appoint us to suffer wrath.  He came to deliver us from judgment, not bring us into condemnation (John 3:17). Whether we are still living when Jesus returns, or whether we are in the sleep called death, we need have no fear (Philippians 1:23).  

All will find new life in Christ. Our goal is to encourage one another. Help other Christians.  Don’t tear them down, but build them up (Jude 20; Romans 15:2).

Lesson for April 14, 2013: The Lord Sends the Spirit

This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD.

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By Sam E. Stone

Jesus had told his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit to them (John 14:15-17). Today’s lesson tells when that occurred. It happened on the Day of Pentecost, immediately following his resurrection. Pente means 50^th. Pentecost was observed on the 50^th day after the Sabbath of Passover week. At Passover, Jesus had been crucified; at Pentecost, the inauguration of his earthly kingdom took place.

Passover provided a time to remember when the Lord “passed over” those Jewish households in Egypt which had been marked with the blood of a Passover lamb. It signaled their release from bondage in that foreign land. Pentecost was known as the “Festival of Weeks.” At this annual celebration Jewish pilgrims came to Jerusalem to thank God for a good harvest.

The Spirit
Acts 2:1-4
They were all together in one place. W. R. Walker suggests that they “doubtless refers to the apostles only, not to the entire 120 of their company. This is the natural conclusion from the fact that Acts 1:26 mentions the ‘eleven apostles,’ the nearest antecedent of ‘they.’”

The exact location of their meeting is not mentioned. It could have been at the home of one of Christ’s followers. Many think they were gathered in a room in the temple area, since the disciples had been staying there continually (Luke 24:53). Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the house. It sounded like wind, but it was not wind. In similar fashion, the Spirit of God energized the dry bones in Ezekiel’s vision (Ezekiel 37:9, 10; John 3:8). A divine flame came to rest above each apostle. Fire often symbolizes God’s presence in Scripture (see Exodus 3:2).

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. In the verses that follow, the apostles preached the message of salvation. Jesus had promised that he would baptize them in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5, 8; Luke 24:49). Now the apostles were able to speak in various languages, languages they could not use in normal circumstances (Acts 2:6-12).

The Reaction
Acts 2:5-13
Many Jews were present in Jerusalem. A large number of them had traveled a great distance from home to attend the two feasts. Others lived there year-round. Some of the nations represented are listed in verses 9-11. The sound like a mighty wind had attracted a crowd; hearing many foreign languages spoken at once was even more compelling. Each one heard their own language being spoken. The miracle was in the speaking of the apostles rather than in the hearing of the people.

The crowd was utterly amazed! Luke heaps up descriptive words to explain the tremendous impression this miracle made. The people asked each other, “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?” People could recognize the apostles by their dialect (Matthew 26:73). God chose the perfect miracle. The apostles could not only convince people from many countries of the divine message, but also communicate the gospel itself to them clearly, each in his own language. An interesting way to see the great distance from which the people had come is to look up on a map all the places that are listed.

The people’s response was mixed. Many asked, “What does this mean?” Some have described the experience that day as “Babel reversed.” The people had never seen or heard anything like this. Some made fun of the apostles saying, “They have had too much wine.” Years later the apostle Paul warned that a stranger entering a Christian meeting in which all were speaking in tongues might conclude that they were mad (1 Corinthians 14:23).

The Message
Acts 2:14-16
What followed was the first Christian sermon ever preached. The Savior had instructed his followers to wait until they received power from on high before taking the message of salvation to a lost world. They did just that. Now that the Holy Spirit had obviously and miraculously come on them, they were ready. Simon Peter stepped forward to speak out. Although he had denied his master on the night when Judas betrayed him, Peter had repented completely and Jesus had reinstated him (John 21:15-19).

First, Peter refuted the accusation that they were drunk. “It’s only 9:00 a.m.,” he told them. No one gets drunk so early in the morning! Instead, Peter explained, this is what the prophet Joel predicted years before. He then began to tell them who Jesus is and what he had done. This basic presentation of Jesus as “both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36, NIV 1984) was used by all the apostles in the years that followed.