Padlocked

Big Idea:

The church is secure, not shaken. The enemy out here trying to steal from us - from joy to our souls.

Intro:

Good morning. Welcome to Church Online! Technology is crazy. The fact that we can gather together, have church together, while being miles apart is crazy. It’s awesome.

You know what’s also awesome? The technological advances in home security. That’s a strange transition. Don’t worry - I have a point!

I experienced this earlier this year - actually, in the beginning of the pandemic. Now, let me setup this story a little bit. Remember, not all our Church Online family is from Glastonbury, so they may not know what it’s like here. But Glastonbury is beautiful. While church planting is always hard, he definitely did not call my family to suffer location-wise. Glastonbury is a beautiful, amazing, and safe town. That being said, every now and then Glastonbury PD has to send out reminders: Lock your vehicles!

Because not only do Glastonbury residents know how beautiful and safe it is, but so do criminals. And they will happily come and still your unlocked Range Rover.

A few months ago, I was dropping off hand sanitizer (when there was a shortage) to a friend. When we got to his house, I had my son Kade jump out of the car and leave it on the doorstep. We didn’t see any cars in the driveway and figured he wasn’t home. He wasn’t.

Then, I texted him to let him know about the drop-off and he replied, “Oh I know.” I was like, “That’s creepy. Are you peeking through the window?” He then informed me that his truck had just been stolen earlier in the week. And so, they upgraded their home security system. They got one of those Ring systems (say or type- Ring-Ring). But it’s super advanced. I guess as soon as Kade walked into the drive way, he got a notification on his phone. He logged into his cameras through the app and saw Kade’s face at the door. Creepy, but secure! This family isn’t messing around. They lockin it down. They’re making their home secure! Putting the padlock on!

This week in the “Read the Instructions” series, Paul will instruct us on another characteristic of a healthy church. In 2 Thess 2, he will talk about how Christians should be solid and secure, and not shaken by fear, worry, or circumstances. And not only should we live this way, but we should grow in this way too. We don’t just live in this mentality, we take steps to secure our spiritual lives.

Let’s start reading in verse 1...

2 Thessalonians 2:1–5 ESV

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For 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 object of 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?

Exegesis:

If you remember from last week, Paul is writing a now second letter to this young church because after his first letter to them, they continued to have problems. Many of them, the same problems he addressed in his first letter. One of those things being the future return of Jesus.

This was something Paul taught them about in-person, when he started their church… hence the “do you not remember that I taught you about this when I was with you...” But, it’s a complicated thing. 2000 years later, we still have plenty of questions about this event. So, it’s no surprise they needed more clarity on the subject. But the real problem wasn’t the complexity of the event, but false teaching going on in Paul’s absence.

Although we don’t know exactly what was said, or how it was said, it’s possible these false teachers were tricking the young church into believing they had missed the return of Christ.

Ya’ll ever seen that meme with the two dinosaurs on the shore looking at an ark floating away and one of them says, “Oh crud, was that today?” Bye bye dinosaurs. While I don’t believe that’s what happened to Stegosaurus, I do believe that’s what the false teachers made the Thessalonians believe: You missed Jesus!

Combine that with the persecutions the Thessalonians were suffering, and it’d be easy to believe you were experiencing the “Day of the Lord,” which is a phrase that describes God’s future judgment on the world. Basically, the false teachers were saying, “You missed Jesus! Which is why you’re suffering now.”

And they had the Thessalonians “shook.” They were scared.

But Pauls writes to correct this. He says, “Remember the truth I taught you. You know what’s supposed to happen before the return of Jesus, right? Have those things happened? No. So, why you trippin?”

And Paul reminds them of two big events that must happen before the return of Christ:

The “rebellion” or “apostasy” or “the falling away” must happen. There is speculation over what this event is. Some have said it’s a falling away from the church - where many Christians will depart from their faith. I don’t think that’s consistent with the use of the word based on the context. I actually believe it means a rebellion against a power, authority, or deity. If you will, a time when people will reject the authority of God over their lives. Warren Wiersbe takes it a step further and says, “A time when people will reject God’s word in their lives.”

The revealing of “the man of lawlessness.” The person who will take control of the world and even make himself the “god” of the world. Some of you may be familiar with this person under the name of the anti-Christ.

And in Paul’s day - when he wrote this - neither of these events had happened! And so Paul’s like, “Why are you shook? Remember what I taught you according to the supernatural revelation God gave me.” Or in other words, “Be secure in God’s truth.” Which is our first point...

A healthy church is...

[Be] secure in God’s truth (vv. 1-5).

That was one of the problems for the Thessalonians. They took their focus off of God’s word - His truth - communicated to them thru the apostle Paul. And it radically shook them. The phrase in verse 2, “Do not be shaken in mind,” literally means “these things should not cause you to lose your mind!”

We can’t blame them. For one, they were a young church. Typically, we’re easier to scare when we’re young. And as we mature, we get a handle on our fear we better process the world.

But it’s not just youth-related, it’s deception-related. False teachers were deceiving them. And considering both fear and deception, it’s easy to understand why they were shaken. I mean some of us adults heard me mention both the apostasy and Anti-Christ and started to ge anxious. That’s scary stuff! Especially since it REALLY will happen one day.

What’s even scarier is while it wasn’t happening in Paul’s day, 2000 years later, our situation is a lot closer on the prophetic timeline. It may happen in our day. As my friend Jon recently put it, “At some point, the current generation will be the one to face the end times.” Now, I’m not going to go into the end times today, but just consider these two verses about the last days...

1 Timothy 4:1 NLT

Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.

There’s definitely that happening in our day. Ever notice how the Bible and church aren’t popular or even accepted in our day, but “spiritual” stuff is… mystical creepy spiritual stuff?

2 Timothy 3:1–5 NLT

You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!

Is that not a description of our modern society?

How many of you have been on social media lately? Does it not seem like the entire world is being shaken? Like people are “losing their minds” and have “no self-control?” They are “cruel and hate what is good.”

My point isn’t to say we’re living in the “rebellion” and the Anti-Christ is here. That might be true - I don’t know. My point is to apply Paul’s instruction to the Thessalonians to us. Nowadays, how often do we - the church - get thrown into a tailspin (or lose our mind, are shaken in mind, alarmed) because of fear and deception?

We be going crazy. We lose our minds. We make poor decisions. We’re reactive. We live as if our world is falling apart, as if we’re going to lose everything. We live shook. But God’s made us secure. And if we held onto God’s truth by faith, we’d see that. We’d live like that, regardless of what the deceptive voices around us say… no matter the scary circumstances we face...

Because we will face scary circumstances… God’s word says so. Look at what Paul goes onto say...

2 Thessalonians 2:6–12 ESV

And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Paul is clear: One day, a lot of scary stuff will happen. Whether or not the “rebellion” is happening now or not… whether the Anti-Christ is present now or not… one scary fact is true: the mystery of lawlessness is already at work.

Yo. That’s creepy. I’m not a conspiracy-type person. At the same time, having read the Bible, it wouldn’t surprise me if conspiracy stuff is true. It says...

One day, a rebellion will happen against God.

One day, a world leader will arise who will grab control of all the power.

We just read… one day, this leader will be empowered by Satan and be able to do miraculous-type of things to deceive people.

And Paul says, “the mystery of lawlessness”… is already at work. Meaning, the planning of evil things is already happening behind the scenes.

Furthermore, in the last days, people will eat up the deception. They will adhere to the lies without a second thought. Why? Because they “refuse to love the truth and had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

That’s creepy stuff. That’s stuff that easily makes us afraid. The Bible predicts that in the last days, the world will be SHAKEN. But again, while that is God’s truth, it shouldn’t shake God’s people.

Shaken people refuse God’s truth (vv. 6-12).

The church ain’t shaken because we already know about it. Not only that, but we don’t put our hope in this world, but in God’s truth - in His promises! We know that He promises that we will always be secure in His hands.

Check this out… in the 12 verses we’ve read so far, we see a little theological habit of Paul. Paul is real. He’s straight-up. And he tells us the truth, that scary times will happen one day. But he never let’s evil have the last say… because the Bible is clear: sin, death, and the devil have already been defeated by Jesus.

He may say… “the rebellion is [coming], and the man of lawlessness is [going to be] revealed...” but look how he finishes that verse (verse 3), some of you may have translations that say, “the son of destruction.” But the NIV does a better job interpreting that phrase. It says, “the man doomed to destruction.”

Additionally, verse 8 says, “the lawless one (the Anti-Christ) will be revealed...” but then what does it say? “… whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of HIS coming.”

You guys see it? Paul presents the “scary stuff.” The stuff that “shakes the world.” But then, to the church, he says, “But you got security.” Yes… the Anti-Christ will one day come and bring destruction to our world… but then Jesus is going to come and take him out. Therefore, when you’re standing in Jesus, don’t be shaken, be secure!

Which leads us to the final point...

God’s people ain’t shaken; we secure (vv. 13-17).

2 Thessalonians 2:13–17 ESV

But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

Paul’s like...

You know God’s truth, so don’t be shaken.

God already promised… One day, the world will be greatly shaken, but that hasn’t happened yet, so why you trippin?

Either way, you shouldn’t be shaken, because God has made you secure in Christ!

Look at verse 13...

2 Thessalonians 2:13 ESV

But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

Yo. It doesn’t get more secure than this. Think about what this verse says...

First off, you are beloved by Jesus. Man, Jesus loves you. He ain’t never letting you go because He is committed to His bride - the church.

Second, when we put our faith in Jesus, it shows God chose us to be saved. That’s confusing. It’s that whole free-will vs God’s sovereignty thing. Did I choose God or did God choose me? Yes. Here’s what’s truly important. Once you choose God - you’re safe and secure.

God sets you apart by His Holy Spirit because you believed the gospel. The 3rd person of the Trinity - God the Spirit - is guarding your life now. You are secure!

It’s the kinda security Jesus is talking about in John 10:29.

John 10:29 ESV

My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

That’s why Paul can boldly command, “brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught - hold onto God’s truth.” Don’t lose your mind because the world is falling apart. That ain’t your problem. You are secure, not shaken!

Furthermore, we are not only supposed to live in security, but we’re supposed to actively strengthen it! Just because you live in Glastonbury (a safe community), doesn’t mean you don’t lock your doors. The devil out here trying to kill, steal, and destroy. He wants to steal your peace and joy and destroy your life. You need to lock it down. You need to get that padlock. That’s what the phrase “stand firm” means! You need to lock it down - you need to padlock your life - by standing on God’s truth! If you’re watching put the little padlock emoji in the comments below!

When our lives are padlocked on God’s word, we will rest in God’s love. Secure in God’s grace, with eternal comfort and good hope, ready to live for God - regardless if the surrounding world is being shaken.

Response:

God has called his church to live in His eternal security, to not be shaken by the world. That’s Paul’s instruction to the Thessalonians. We do that best by standing on His word, the Bible.

We padlocked our lives by getting into God’s truth. So, let me suggest three responses that can help us do that:

Read, listen, or watch God’s word. Never in history has that been easier for us, especially here in the West.

We are free to ready the Bible. Heck, most churches will give you a Bible for free! I know we will! Just ask - put it in the comments. I will send you one!

Or you can download YouVersion Bible App. It’s free. And… it’ll even read the Bible to you. You can listen to it on the way to work.

Or, you can download RightNow Media. You can watch Bible studies on your phones, tablets, or smart tvs. And our church has purchased a subscription for you. You can get it for free on our website: riverchurchct.com

Encourage others with God’s word.

Don’t make this complicated. You don’t set a goal of running a 5K and then do so on the first day. You start small and train and build habits.

Send them a verse image. Post it on FB or IG story - start getting God’s word out. Share it like youre sowing seed into the field. It falls where it falls. God’s word promises that some of it will fall on good ground.

Man - you need to act like normal people. Have friends. Make time to meet your Christian friends and talk about the Lord together. Process. Create a safe space.

My friend Jon and I do that every Friday morning. Small, easy steps.

Position yourself to receive God’s word.

Go to church - online or in-person.

Signup for Life Group - where we eat, talk, and discuss God’s word as family and friends.

Or intentionally schedule time for God in your day. Maybe that’s in the morning or night or anytime inbetween. Whenever it is, schedule time to get into God’s word and padlock your life.

And the greatest way to padlock your life is to put your faith in Jesus. Maybe you need to do that today. This morning (or whenever you’re watching it) choose Jesus. Turn away from your sinful and selfish life - that just results in living shook. Put your faith in Jesus. Trust in what He did on the cross for you - that He died for your sins and then rose again 3 days later, proving His plan to save you worked! When you do, He will forgive your sins, give you His Holy Spirit, and give you eternal life. He will padlock your life. You will be secure in Jesus.

Let’s pray...

Father, these are crazy times. Most of us have no idea what tomorrow holds. Every comfort and worldly security has been shaken. But one thing is not shaken - Your Kingdom. Help us to live in that eternal security. Help us to stand firm on your truth. Give us a hunger for your Word, which is truth. So we can live securely regardless of the storms around us. And we ask this in Jesus name, amen.

Thanks for joining us for Church Online. If this was your first time, fill out a Connect Card. We’d love to say hi and send you a gift. Also, if you have prayer requests, would like to join a Life Group, or gave your life to Christ, we want to hear form you! There are easy ways to do that on our website (riverchurchct.com) or follow the links in the comments below!

Have a great day - God bless you!