Second Thessalonians-Introduction Part 4

Doctrinal Bible Church

Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom

Sunday March 2, 2025

Second Thessalonians Series: Introduction Part 4

Lesson # 4

Paul wrote Second Thessalonians for many of the same reasons he wrote First Thessalonians since he writes to encourage the Thessalonians in the face of the persecution they were experiencing at the hands of the unregenerate Gentiles of Thessalonica (1:4, 5-7).

Like First Thessalonians, Paul in Second Thessalonians once again addresses the Thessalonians relationship to the eschatological day of the Lord.

In the first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul reassures them that they will not be experiencing the Lord’s wrath during the seventh week of Daniel and Second Advent of Christ which composes the eschatological day of the Lord.

He asserts that they were appointed to experience the perfection of their salvation at the rapture and were emphatically not appointed to experience the Lord’s wrath during the eschatological day of the Lord (cf. 1Thess. 5:9).

But in the second letter to the Thessalonians Paul reassures them that this eschatological day of the Lord which follows the rapture has not arrived when he wrote this epistle since it appears some false teachers were proclaiming otherwise.

He then goes on to remind them about what must take place first before the day of the Lord can take place.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, Paul describes the Antichrist and then the blasphemous actions he will perform during the seventieth week of Daniel.

Then, he asserts that Antichrist cannot appear until the thing which is restraining his being revealed to the world has been taken out of the way (cf. 2:7).

This is a reference to the Holy Spirit being removed from planet earth at the rapture since He permanently indwells every member of the body of Christ.

Thus, the implication is that when the church is gone, Antichrist will then be revealed.

The apostle Paul also writes Second Thessalonians because he wants to encourage them to continue to hold fast to his apostolic teaching (2 Thess. 2:13-17).

He also requests that they intercede in prayer for him and his ministry in that he would be delivered by God from wicked, evil people (2 Thess. 3:1-5).

Lastly, in 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15, Paul exhorts the Thessalonians to practice church discipline in regard to those in their community who reject his apostolic teaching by refusing to work for a living.

Paul anticipated this taking place among the Thessalonians in his first letter to them.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:11, he commanded the Thessalonians that they must continue to make it their habit of working to support themselves, rather than being a burden to each other financially.

The reason why Paul exhorts the Thessalonian Christian community to work in both 1 and 2 Thessalonians is that the Greek culture despised work or manual labor in general because of their use of slaves, unlike the Jewish community which embraced the concept of working.

When Paul wrote First Thessalonians, they were not guilty of not working.

However, the contents of 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 reveals that this was no longer the case in that some were reverting back to their pre-conversion days when they did not work.

Thus, the command in 1 Thessalonians 4:11 was preventative maintenance and prophetic.