The Second Coming: Not Before the ‘Man of Lawlessness’

let's pray together this outer nature is wasting away but our inner nature is being renewed day by day because we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen and so I pray Lord that you would grant us the kind of eyes Paul called them the eyes of the heart that can look look at the unseen I ask this in Jesus name Amen so when Paul introduced the teaching on the second coming in Chapter 1 of 2nd Thessalonians and I encourage you to open your Bibles right now we'll be looking in significant detail in chapters 2 and 3 but when he introduced the teaching on the second coming in Chapter 1 of second Thessalonians like we saw Monday night he did so precisely to help the church understand how it was a righteous judgment of God that he would appoint for them to walk through persecutions and afflictions so his first treatment of the theme of eschatology is not in a chapter in a systematic theology book as precious as those are but as an urgent message right here to people who are being slandered being fired from their jobs being beaten being jailed being killed in other words he's writing about the second coming for the sake of pastor Wang Yi in China just got sentenced to nine years in jail a few weeks ago he's writing for the family of pastor loved one on handi me in Nigeria who's just beheaded two weeks ago he's writing for Fatima Muhammadi in Iran because she's disappeared and note we don't know she is that's the context of thessalonica and us however persecution and suffering are not the only issue at Thessalonica and Paul has another problem to deal with and he deals with it again with the second coming and the question is how so what's the second issue the second issue is that some people have quit their jobs they're not working anymore and they're becoming a nuisance to the others who have jobs and they're mooching off of them and not earning any money that's the situation where did it come from that's what the second coming is introduced for the beginning of chapter 2 so chapter 1 you could say he introduces the teaching on the second coming designed to help Christians believe and love each other through suffering and now in chapter 2 he goes into even more detail about the second coming designed to counteract the hysteria in the community and get people back to work so we could say the aim of eschatology in Chapter one is steadfastness in suffering and the aim of eschatology in Chapter two and three is steadfastness in doing good work and earning a living so let's read chapter three verses 1 to 15 and I don't want you to take my word for it that this is the situation I want you to see it and then make it the connection with chapter 2 on the second coming finally brothers is chapter 3 2nd Thessalonians verse 1 finally brothers pray for us that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored or be glorified as happened among you and that we may be delivered from wicked evil men for not all have faith but the Lord is faithful he will establish you and guard you against the evil one and we have confidence in the Lord about you that you are doing and will do the things that we commanded may the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ no we command you brothers in the name of the Lord Jesus that you keep away from any brother who's walking in idleness that's the number one problem in Chapter three brothers who are walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you receive from assi so I taught them about this when he was there for you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us because we weren't idle when we were with you nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it but with toil and labor we worked night and day that we might not be a burden to any of you it wasn't because we didn't have a right but to give you our selves as an example to imitate for even when we were with you we would give you this command if anyone is not willing to work let him not eat for we hear that some among you walk in idleness not busy at any work but busy bodies now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work depictive work do you work quietly and earn your own living as for you brothers don't grow weary in doing good if anyone has does not obey what we say in this letter take note of that person and have nothing to do with him that he may be ashamed don't regard him as an enemy but warn him as a brother that's pretty clear I think the situation is negatively I'm gonna condemn your idleness you shouldn't be idle and don't be so nosy going to poking in other people's business and mooching off of the people who are earning a living that's negative positively he says be steadfast toil labor non dependence on others earning your own living not growing weary in doing good and and it's all rooted in verse 3 the Lord is faithful he will establish you he will do this he will direct your hearts to the steadfastness of Christ and because of verses 3 and verse 5 verse 3 God is faithful verse 5 he'll establish your hearts and the love of in the steadfastness of Christ because of this work of Christ in you now I'm telling you to do some things and not to do some things verse 6 avoid people who are walking in idleness instead verse 7 imitate us we weren't idle verse 8 we didn't eat anybody's bread without paying for it we were night and day not to burden any of you verse 9 we could have demanded that you take care of us we're apostles for goodness sakes but instead we worked and chose to lead by example rather than demand so in verses 10 and 11 Paul tells the brothers who have stopped working we're not going to take care of you anymore it comes in into this because you've chosen idleness and you need to get back to work so stop meddling in other people's affairs and mooching off of others do your work quietly verse 12 do you work quietly and earn your living and then verse 13 no matter how long this affliction lasts till the Lord comes don't go weary in well-doing feel your lives up with gainful employment doing good work and volunteer employment doing good works that's the situation now how did he deal with it people are quitting their jobs living in idleness mooching off of others how how would you deal with that and the answer is chapter 2 it appears that there's a kind of hysteria that has taken over the community gripped some in the church they're being shaken out of their senses and they're in the sway of an irrational excitement so let's read about it verse 1 chapter 2 now concerning the coming of our Lord Christ now pause they're coming Carausius tentative is the ordinary word that Paul uses five times in the Thessalonians to refer to the second coming and now concerning the coming of our Lord Christ and our being gathered together epi soon ago GaSe significant because it's the word Jesus used in Matthew 24:31 the son of man will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call and he will gather epi soon not soon he will gather his elect from the four winds right so we've got two parallels with Jesus Paris and epicenter go gay and it's verb form in Jesus he's talking about the second coming the angel sent out the in gathering of the elect to welcome the Lord home that's the situation he's describing here we ask you brothers verse two now not to be quickly so evidently it's happened already it's in process they're quitting their jobs not to be quickly shaken in mind literally shaken from your mind shaken from your understanding you've lost your senses you're out of touch with reason or here comes a third parallel with Jesus this is really important to get your bearings on what Paul's talking about here or alarm don't be shaken out of your brain and don't be alarmed throw a thigh that word is used one other place in the mouth of Jesus namely into text matthew 24:6 mark 13 7 here's what he says you will hear wars and rumors of wars see that you are not alarmed for a step only 2nd Thessalonians 2:1 only in the mouth of Jesus both serving the fame function don't be alarmed he's not here yet that's significant you were to get your bearings or what Paul is talking about and how Matthew 24 works in the mind of Paul that's the thing you tend to three words parallel and there are more do this study this is important just another princess so when joe Rigney up here said that clearly in matthew 24 there's a telescoping of the ages so that some things happen all through history some happened within a generation some happened at the end and he said big which is which this is how you find out this is how you find out how the apostles thought about what Jesus meant in Matthew 24 very significant let's keep reading I stopped with alarmed see that you are not alarmed for this must take place but the end is not yet that's that's Jesus talking now back to Paul don't be alarmed either by a spirit so that's that's some word of prophecy probably because that's the way John talks about it in first John 4:1 lots of prophets test every spirit so a spirit somebody said oh I had a dream last night he's here or spoken word like some oral report or a letter and any part of it the spirit the report the letter seemingly from us like it has apostolic authority it doesn't Paul is saying seeming to be from us to the effect that the day of the Lord has come the word there is not the usual New Testament words were nearness like he has come near this is a nice kami he's here it's here now that's the mistake and Paul says verse 3 let no one deceive you so my interpretation of how chapter 2 and 3 relate is that this idleness and meddling of chapter 3 is owing to this hysteria in verses 1 and 2 of chapter 2 they're being shaken out of their proper use of their reason and they're in the grip of an alarmist emotional mindset the day of the Lord that is the coming of Christ perseus that is the gathering by the angels to meet the Lord in the air is here and if you say that makes no sense Paul would say that's my point they're out of their minds shakin out of their mind that's what hysteria is it's irrational it's come perhaps from a a prophecy a vision this is how lots of heresies get started right somebody has a vision Joseph Smith type vision or whatever and you add to apostolic teaching this vision impulses no no this does not have my imprimatur on it so now you can see a double prong challenge in Thessalonica that for the sober-minded believers you haven't lost their senses one challenge we've got persecution to deal with and we don't understand what's going on here and how to fit this in and Paul deals with that in Chapter 1 I'll tell exactly how it's a right judgement of God and that was Monday night and the second issue is I don't know how many but a lot of you are out of your minds and you're quitting your jobs and that has to be dealt with and that's today's message so how does the Lord's coming this is something amazing that he would go into the kind of detail he goes into on the second coming in the days leading up to it to handle this issue of get back to work I love Paul don't you love Paul so let's read chapter 2 verses 3 to 12 let no one deceive you in any way because for that day say it again day of the Lord parasya gathering to meet him in the air with the angels that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed the son of destruction who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called God or worship so that he takes his seat in the temple of God proclaiming himself to be God do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things and you know because I told you we don't and he hasn't told us you know what he's restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time his time God is a time for the man of lawlessness it's not here yet it'll come when whatever the restrainer is is taken away God's in charge of that and you know what is restraining him now so that when I'm still in verse 6 so that when he may be revealed so that he may be revealed in his time verse 7 for the mystery of lawlessness he got a man of lawlessness now you got a mystery of lawlessness is already at work only he who now restrains it will do so until he's out of the way and then then the lawless one will be revealed , relative clause whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his parousia the coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power that's a remarkable phrase for a man empowered by Satan that should be a god phrase right with all power and yes the false signs and wonders we'll come back to that and with all wicked deception come back to that for those who are perishing because they refuse to love the truth it didn't love it they didn't want to love it that's where we'll end therefore God sends them a strong delusion so that they may believe what is false and he may be condemned with all who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness now two things strike me immediately about Paul's response to the situation of the alarmist irrational disorientation concerning the second coming in Thessalonica one of these two things that strike me is how amazingly detailed and long and full it is because on and on write about the rebellion and a man of lawlessness and sitting in the temple of God and something restraining him and a mystery of lawlessness and satanic power and signs and wonders and a great delusion and the appearing of Jesus and slaying that's a lot of that's a lot to get people back to work and then to say it's not here yet folks the other thing that strikes me is that in spite of all this detail he has left us with unanswered questions like what rebellion what man of lawlessness who's that what temple seated in what restrainer person or thing masculine and neuter in the text what's the mystery of lawlessness so on the one hand he says more than I expected and on the other hand the more that he says leaves me with a lot of unanswered questions now I think verse five explains those two impressions that I get reading this text look at verse 5 don't you remember and evidently they didn't very well anyway don't you remember that when I was still with you I told you these things that's amazing like how long was he in Thessaloniki chapter 17 of Acts verses 1 to 9 few weeks and he told him about the man of lawlessness baby Christians not insignificant perhaps in your discipleship so he had told him these things and in remarkable detail had he told them to these things and it looks like they'd forgotten so it seems like because of their failure to remember he's rehearsing so much but since they had already heard this he doesn't answer every question I mean I'm sure I mean I probably wouldn't stake my life on it that when he taught this in those three weeks somebody raised and said who's the man of lawlessness I mean so I'm sure he didn't say none of your business he he probably would have helped them now here's a lesson will parentheses on the nature of Scripture God in God's providence in creating and preserving this book like the epistles for his church in all ages God does not see to it that everything the early church talked about with the apostles we get to know we don't and I think that is a work of God's wisdom and goodness he knows what he's doing it's better for us to know what is preserved in this book of apostolic and prophetic writings then that we know all the detailed conversations Paul had at Thessalonica it's better or God is unwise in inspiration we have what we need for salvation and God pleasing obedience we don't have enough as the panel made blame yesterday to answer all our questions and we're not meant to so what can we know from this chapter what can we know from second Thessalonians 2 that will help us not be shaken loose from our senses or fall into the alarmist hysteria of any eschatological mistake but rather remain steadfast in good works and gainful employment that's my question let's let's see what we can learn seems to me this will be my outline for the rest of this message that Paul says there are two things that has to happen before the parasya and he explains why he mentions those two things out of all the things he could mention and he takes us to the very practical root of the matter that explained how you can be protected from the hysteria and deceit of the last day which is of course begun but will come to a climax when verse verse three let's talk about the first thing that has to happen let no one deceive you in any way for that day will not come unless the rebellion or the apostasy the falling away comes first now that word rebellion or apostasy has to refer to more than the process of ups and downs in biblical faithfulness of God's people over the centuries has to refer to more than that because that observation won't work in Paul's argument it's of no help in settling the hysteria that has taken over in some of the people of Thessalonica if if it's plausible that they could say to Paul well of course the rebellion has already happened there's lots of people falling away because of this persecution if they could plausibly say that Paul's argument is useless here it's of no help in answering his issue so Paul when he says the rebellion hasn't happened the apostasy hasn't happened he's thinking of something decisive epoch-making climaxing recognizable catastrophic sweeping just before the man of lawlessness is revealed and Jesus kills him and since we have seen numerous parallels like three so far we'll see others since we've seen three parallels between the Thessalonians about the second coming and Jesus language about the second coming it's fitting therefore that we take our cue and go to Jesus and say do you have anything to say about the apostasy is he getting this from you like he got so much from you it seems and I think the answer is yes go to Matthew 24 verses 9 to 13 I'll read it to you Matthew 24 9 to 13 then these words then or significant running through this then after the beginning of the global birth pangs then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death and you will be hated by all nations by by my name say that that's provocative because ponte is nay all nations here evidently world evangelization is virtually over because there all the nations know enough about Jesus to hate his people they'll deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake and then well along in church history therefore many will fall away apostasy rebellion many God many will fall away and betray one another hate one another now of course that happens all through history nobody's denying that that's why you got this telescoping ambiguity the Bible the old and new Testament many will fall away but remember John said many antichrists have come that's how we know the end is here but the Antichrist is coming they thought this way of course that happens all through history but the word then verse 10 seems to show that Jesus is thinking a climactic gathering storm many false prophets will arise and lead many astray because lawlessness is increased ring any bells we're talking man of lawlessness we're talking mystery of lawlessness we're Paul get that why go anywhere else he's getting everything else here lawlessness will be increased we're at Matthew 24:12 for that lawlessness will be increased and the love of many will grow cold great rebellion and apostasy but the one who endures to the end which sounds like final decisive generation language will be saved so that's the kind of thing Paul I think is reading in the tradition that handed on that gave you these traditions and that's the way he's thinking about the climactic rebellion or apostasy at the end it's it's decisive it's epic making epic making is it's catastrophic it's coming from inside and outside the church all nations hating you from outside great growing coals on the inside that's coming Paul says it's not limited to a period of time it's not limited to history as a process it's identifiable that's why he can argue the way he's arguing it's not here yet go back to work second thing second event so first rebellion apostasy has to come here's the second thing that has to happen they believe the man of lawlessness and he's trying to say the coming the parasya the gathering to meet the Lord in the air the day of the Lord isn't here because before that this has to happen verse three again let no one deceive you in any way for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first number two the man of lawlessness is revealed the son of destruction so let's do Puritan here jason said 89th li 10th li i'm gonna do seventhly right 7 things clearly are said here about the man of loss it's number one he's a man not an angel not a demon just human could be you - he is quintessentially lawless that is considered himself above law he's lawless number three since there is only one above law God renders our law that's what he claims to be verse four who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called God or object of worship so that he takes his seat in the temple of God proclaiming himself to be God that's a final climactic anti-christ Paul doesn't use that word here just manifest I am Christ your God number four his he is born for destruction verse three middle of verse the son of destruction that is his DNA if if Paul were to use DNA his seed from his father is destruction son of a gun no son of destruction born for it has no future quintessentially lawless and dude by the nature of lawlessness number five as a man he's coming nevertheless by the power of Satan verse nine the coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan therefore number six as a man he will have supernatural power Satan is supernatural Paul calls it all power and he will work signs and wonders now in the ESV says in verse nine faults signs and wonders that's a that's a confusing translation because I think almost everybody would read that to mean they're not real signs and wonders they're tricks they're rabbits out of a hat they're using mirrors they're not Satan works signs and wonders many will say to me on that day did we not do many mighty works and Jesus won't say no you didn't they did let's go to Deuteronomy 13 all right verses one two three when a false prophet comes and tells you to depart from Yahweh and prophesize if that prophecy comes true don't follow him it comes true happens here as well he's testing your love love for the truth so let's translate it signs and wonders of the lie literal translation signs and wonders of the lie they serve the lie that's what they do Satan empowers the man of lawlessness to do signs and wonders millions of Christians think ooh that's my god and go after him and are deceived they serve the lie number seven therefore the man of lawlessness will be unparalleled in his ability to deceive verse ten with all wicked deception for those who are perishing now again the translation wicked deception obscures something we don't see it's deception of unrighteousness deception of unrighteousness Adygea and the reason I got to see it is because it's repeated at the end of verse 12 and the parallel is crucial oh yes so the deception is going to be by means of making unrighteousness look really juicy she's gonna be so juicy you can't resist it but as you love and take superior pleasure in the truth so again I would argue Paul here is unpacking the prophecies of Jesus in Matthew 24 let's read Matthew 24 21 to 27 then there will be Great Tribulation Jesus says such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now no and never will be this is climactic verse 24 of Matthew 24 false Christ's and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders signs and wonders word Paul get that notion that that would be done in a Great Tribulation signs and wonders will be performed to lead astray there's the apostasy the deception if possible even the elect now watch verse 26 so if they say to you look he's in the wilderness did you notice he not they not these false prophets he just said there's gonna be a lot of false prophets and now he's got it down a woman Paul reads this in the in the tradition so if they say look he's in the wilderness don't go out if they say look he's in the inner rooms don't you believe it tell you why for as the Lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west so will be the coming of the Son of Man I've member sent with Muniz in my office after a sermon they were they were just making wolf-like approaches to my people and I grabbed him after a service and come back here this 1983 or so sat them down in my office three of them and I said look you believe Sun Moon is Christ yep can I read you a verse and I read him this first as the Lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west so we'll be becoming the son of man I haven't seen it and they said we'll bring our prophet in and he'll explain it no no this is clear enough for me hysteria produces moniece at the close of this climactic period of lawlessness and a great deception led by a person Paul is saying the Son of Man will come unmistakably and Jesus is saying unmistakably like light flashing from Horizon to Horizon now I don't think we need to know what temple he's talking about in verse 4 gonna sit in the temple of God I don't know what that is I think we can be sure it's not a reference to 70 AD and the desecration of the temple there I think we can be sure of that because Paul steps back in verse 8 and describes his coming the man of lawlessness he steps back in verse 8 and he says and then when he's no longer restrained the lawless one is revealed , whom Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of the Paris II of verse 1 not some other parasya type that don't work in this text and I'm sure 70 AD was the foretaste of that absolutely the telescoping concept of prophecy is not like an either-or like you can only have stuff at the end or you can only have stuff in 70 AD that's not I just don't think that's why the Apostles thought clears not the way Paul about the way Jesus language often used to apply to 78 D applies to the end in the mind of Paul whatever its precursor fulfillments were in 70 AD so that this coming Piru seus is the coming when the angels gather the elect Matthew 24 31 and verse 1 here in chapter 2 it's the coming of 2nd Thessalonians 1:7 with mighty angels in flaming fire wreaking vengeance on all unbelievers it's the second coming or the coming the parasya of 1st Thessalonians 2:19 3:13 4:15 where we're all raised from the dead and welcomed Jesus back so this rebellion and this man of lawlessness those two things this rebellion and this man of lawlessness are at the climactic end of the age and they are ended they are undone they are abolished by the glorious appearing of the coming of the Lord as he gathers his elect and establishes his final kingdom so where he sits in his period of time between his coming and his slaying Paul's not talking time there but where that guy sits down could be the Vatican could be Geneva could be Salt Lake City could be Colorado Springs could be Jerusalem I don't think it's of the essence it will be in the place of global focused Christian worship which has become anti-christian that's where it'll be wherever you know the temple of God has more than one meaning in the Apostle Paul there's one last thing I want you to see as we close move towards the close why did Paul choose these two events strange doesn't it you won't get people back to work and you want to establish them in good deeds and you choose these bizarre from our perspective and yet absolutely important things that Paul taught baby believers in the first three weeks of discipleship why did he choose them why is he talking about this it's because in my judgment it enables him to get at the root of the matter as to why the Thessalonians why countless numbers of professing believers and why we could be sucked into a deception why he didn't able something to get at the root issue and the root issue is not a mental Mis placement of the second coming like I've mentally got the wrong chart or mentally got the wrong ordering that's not the root problem it's a problem he set them straight but that's not the root problem the root problem is the tendency of the human heart not to love but to find pleasure in unrighteousness that's the root problem so Paul chooses to highlight rebellion apostasy why it's it's a reference to what happens in here I was going to church and now I'm going to laughs unrighteousness and believe a lie and Paul's watching this this way up tre he's watching this rebellion I just I gotta address that that's the problem in every age and it will be at the end and secondly he's going to talk about the power of a man of lawlessness to deceive with unrighteousness deception of unrighteousness because the rebellious heart doesn't love the truth does find pleasure in unrighteousness and that's the root problem look how he ends the paragraph in verses 10 to 12 why will they be deceived why will they perish verse 10 because they refuse to love the truth don't miss that word love it does not say believe it does not say be convinced of it does not say stand for it's not a mental word it's a heart word with all your heart soul mind and strength do this or you will be deceived they refused it don't want the love of truth that's just I know what truth I would love of truth there is thought of loving truth is so foreign to me that's that's what deceived people feel literally because they did not welcome a love for the truth they didn't want the love of the truth in their hearts and that's why they are deceived and that's why they are perishing and it gets clearer gets clearer in verse 11 and 12 what's the love of the truth that they don't have what is that you're using the word love what do you mean Paul well they don't welcome a love for the truth therefore God sends them I with me verse 11 God sends them a strong delusion so you don't wanna love the truth all right dilution is my appointment for millions of Christians God sends a strong delusion so that they may believe what is false now is that believing believing there's the word yes it does i believing does that believing what is false and falling in line with the man of lawlessness is that at root an intellectual mistake No verse 12 B 12 at the end this is it maybe for pastors the most important sentence in the whole paragraph the whole chapter they did not believe the truth but here's the alternative to what I mean by believing in the truth they had pleasure you duck case Santas same word used for this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased they had pleasure in unrighteousness so the opposite of believing the truth is to find pleasure in unrighteousness or believing the truth includes finding pleasure in truth love for truth as there's ten cents you see how first ten and twelve are saying the same thing they don't want to love the truth they will love their sin they want to love lovelessness they're going after this big-time it feels better feels better not an intellectual problem at root so the battle to protect yourself pastor and your church the battle to protect them from the coming apostasy which of course always is here in measure the coming of pasta see is to pray and preach and live in such a way that you and your people are able to lay down your lives for the superior pleasure you have in righteousness and truth and Christ so I summarized and closed the white Paul got people back to work it's just wonderful I hope your people are working help him work help him work the way Paul got people back to work was to argue that the Second Coming hadn't happened yet so be done with the hysteria and get back to work and he supported the claim it hasn't happened yet by saying showing that there's an end time apostasy that hasn't happened and must happen and there's a man of lawlessness is going to show up like that and it hasn't happened he hasn't come yet either and in choosing these two events to highlight a massive turning away of the human heart from God to unrighteousness and the appearing of a man with supernatural power to deceive with unrighteousness in choosing those two paul was able to get at the root issue of why the rebellion is going to happen why the Thessalonians are already being shaken out of their brains into deception and how you can help your people not be deceived and in showing the route of how this happens Paul shows pastors how to prepare how to protect their people the great apostasy the great deception happened he says not because people don't have a clear mental picture of the timing of the second coming that's not the root problem if you made you're on that you miss the root say it preach it it's here but notice high ends that's not the root issue the apostasy and deception will happen because people will feel that's what you do with pleasure you'll think pleasure you feel pleasure people will feel pleasure in unrighteousness more than in truth it all comes down to verses 10 and 12 it really does it all comes down to verses 10 and 12 which get at the same thing in different ways here's verse 10 again because it's the root because they're gonna perish they're gonna be deceived your people are gonna be swept away in the apostasy your people will be swept away in the precursors of the apostasy or the final apostasy whenever it comes they're gonna be swept away cause they don't want to love doctrine truth to love issue it's a love issue not mainly on intellectual issues about some of the simplest people in your church are so far ahead of the educated there's 12 to wrap it up they're going to be condemned who who did not believe the truth yes you should use the word believe but you shouldn't leave it there as though they know what you're talking about because they don't who do not believe the truth but alternative to believing the truth had pleasure in unrighteousness so believing involves having more pleasure in truth then in unrighteousness so I'm going to close like this and I mean this as seriously as I can muster Christian hedonism Christian hedonism if you don't know the phrase I'll give it to you in two sentences in a minute lots of you know the phrase I coined it not really see us Lewis used it further LR used it bunch people have used it but I make a big deal out of it because it's a big deal it's not marginal it's central it's everywhere Christian hedonism is the antidote to end time deception if you want to take away a sentence from this message Christian hedonism is the antidote for your people to protect them against end time deception here's the doctrine God is most glorified in you when you are most pleasured satisfied happy content delighting in treasuring God God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him and therefore you and your people you teaching them devote all taken all from mine heart strength all their energies to maximize the pleasure that they and others have in God that's their calling and that's their protection so that doctrine Christian hedonism God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him and therefore you should devote all your energies to maximizing the pleasure that we and others have in God that doctrine pastors is how you help your people go back to work to how you multiply their good deeds and three how you prepare them to meet the man of lawlessness undeceived let's pray God it really does you have made it so plain for these pastors this is not complex details about eschatology or complex what to do for your people it's not complex helping them by preaching and praying and modeling to find more pleasure in God than in unrighteousness is not ambiguous it's massive so protect these pastors their wives the other ministers here of the gospel men and women protect them from the man of lawlessness and every precursor that crops out in these days through satisfying their souls in Christ I asked him his name

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Keywords: Desiring God, John Piper, God, Jesus Christ, Christianity, Christian Hedonism, Sermon, Second Coming, Lawlessness, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3:15, End Times

Id: Luz2ZSwvWTI

Length: 60min 17sec (3617 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 12 2020