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Bro. Otis Fisher
There's something I want to bring out that was discussed last Sunday in the
Sunday morning service. I had never thought of it until then.
Something Clarence said, or David said, that caused me to realize this truth.
We show the cross being empty. That's right, it is empty.
The Catholics show it with our Savior dead on the cross.
Well, we know that's not right. We have the empty cross displayed every place.
From around the neck to charm bracelets, in our churches, every place.
It's almost a banner of the Christian church. We say, look, see, our cross is empty.
Well, I want you to realize that Satan has done something. He's been busy.
He's kept us looking backward at the cross ever since it became empty. We're not to look backwards.
We're to look forward. It is the resurrection, and even that is behind us.
We are to look forward, not at an empty cross. We must be looking forward to the coming of our
Lord. I don't know if this means much to you, but it does to me.
The cross represents something past, something's dead, something's gone.
The truth of it is true, but let's not spend our time looking back at the cross.
Let's not give Satan that upper hand. Now to the lesson.
David discussed the first two or three verses of this chapter last week.
Now what I say today in no way contradicts what he said. He went very deep in it.
But I want to start with the first verse and present you with yet another idea.
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the gathering together unto him, as if the apostle had said, brethren, we beseech you as you assuredly expect the coming of Christ, and do love and look and long for that day when it shall go well with us, that we will then be in heaven,
Christ will appear in your glory, that you be not troubled, that the coming of Christ to judgment is a truth well known, firmly believed, and interestingly desired by all truth
Christians, well known because of the apostles. When they went abroad to persuade the world, they taught the gospel, and it teaches
Christ is coming. The apostle calls the coming of Christ a gathering together unto him, intimating that when
Christ shall come and all saints shall be gathered together unto him at that day of judgment, there shall be both a congregation and a segregation.
A congregation of the believers to make up the number of Christ's procession and the attendance, and that in one truth they may be brought into the heavenly kingdom.
And a segregation, he shall separate the sheep from the goats and sever the wicked from among the just.
Verse 2, that you be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled neither by spirit nor by word, nor by letters as from us as that day of Christ is at hand.
That you be not soon shaken, soon is a frivolous ground without due consideration.
Soon shaken, literally tossed as ship in an aggravated sea.
That you be not shaken in mind, rather as the Greek puts it, from your mind, that is from your mental steadfastness on the subject.
That you be not troubled, this verb applies to emotional agitation as shaken to the intellect, by spirit, by a person professing to have the spirit of prophecy.
The day of Christ, the oldest manuscripts read the day of the Lord, is at hand, rather is immediately, imminently, literally, is present.
Instantly coming. Christ and his apostles always taught that the day of the
Lord coming is at hand, and it is not likely that Paul would imply anything contrary here.
What he denies is that it is so imminent, so immediately, so instant, or is present as to justify the neglect of everyday worldly duties.
We look for it any time, but we don't neglect our worldly duties, and that's what was going on, that's what's going on today in some circles.
Three, 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.
Can you hear me? I can't hear myself, so. The apostle foretells that before the coming of the
Lord, before that day arrives, there will be a throne set up completely contrary to Christ's glory, in which that wicked man will sit and will transfer all things that concern
God to himself, and many will fall away from God to him.
Four, 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, showing himself that he is
God, himself, the only one that's going to see it. Who opposeth and exalteth.
He stands against and exalts himself above all divine authority, and above every object of adoration, and every institution relative to divine worship, himself being the source, whence must originate all the doctrines of religion, and all its rites and ceremonies, so that sitting in the temple of God, having the highest place and authority in the church, he acts as God, taking upon himself
God's titles and attributes, and seizing to himself the authority that belongs to the
Most High. Remember ye not that when I was yet with you
I told you these things? There is a danger, and it's before us today.
That's the Catholic Church. You cannot imagine all the things they've done.
We've become so entwined recently in Islam that we kind of forget about the
Catholics. The rise and progress of the papacy, and all its abominations and exact fulfillment of the
Declaration of Paul, uttered and recorded hundreds of years before, show that he was divinely inspired to make known these things, and that the epistles as well as the
Gospels, the New Testament as well as the Old, are the sure and infallible
Word of God. Sixth, and now you know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time, how the apostles intimated to the
Thessalonians that antichrist was not then revealed, and consequently that they were not then to expect the coming of Christ to judgment.
For the mystery of iniquity doth already work, only he who now letteth will let until he be taken out of the way.
David, who do you suppose it is that now letteth? And let here means to hold back from going away or to restrain.
Well, note here, so great an enemy is Satan to the salvation of mankind that no sooner did
Christ erect a kingdom in the world for saving sinners, but the devil set up his own kingdom.
There is a system of corruption, a system of doctrine which will lead us to the general apostasy, already in existence, but it is a mystery.
It is not as yet, it is as yet hidden.
It dare not show itself. It couldn't show itself or it would take over.
Because of that which hindereth or withholdeth, but when that which now restraineth shall be taken out of the way, then shall that wicked one be revealed.
It will then be manifest who he is and what he is, but not until then.
I don't know who this is. No, no, before Pentecost there were people saved.
We know that, we have a record. They showed faith. So the same
Holy Spirit saved them that saves us. He didn't indwell them as a body.
They could not go to church because there was no church. Well, wait a minute, wait a minute.
Let's just stop right here. Let's stop right here. No, I don't want to get into any arguments about this.
This is explaining to us when we do come. He's talking to the
Jews. When that time comes,
I don't know when it is. Nobody knows. When that time comes, nobody knows when.
I care less what you think, what you can prove. We do not know.
What? That's right.
Let's forget it. Let's forget it for now, please.
And then shall that wicked one be revealed. When he is revealed, there's not much argument about it.
Whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.
The Lord's going to win no matter what. These words contain both the risk and the ruin of Antichrist.
That's what we're talking about. His revelation and his destruction.
We're to know that. Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders.
There is in the world today the beginning and end of that. False pretended miracles.
They would be such as would be claimed to be miracles. Such as would excite wonder and yet such as were false and delusive.
That's in the world. It's just not openly. No Christian surely needs to be convinced that this is just the character of the pretended miracles of the
Catholics. It would be impossible for a language to describe them more clearly in apprehension of the
Christian than is done in the language that Paul sets forth here. And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish because they receive not the love of truth that they might be saved.
They receive not the truth. They don't know the truth. They don't want the truth.
Among them that are destroyed and they are destroyed and perish because they would not receive the love of truth that they might be saved.
So they perish because they constantly refused the truth.
This has been true in all the Jews from the days to the apostles right up until now.
And not only Jews but Gentiles also. And for this cause
God shall send them strong delusions that they should believe a lie.
Did you ever try to convince an unsaved person?
Did you ever witness to an unsaved person? I know of one here in town that said he wanted to go to hell.
He was sincere. He meant that. He didn't know what hell was. He thought he did.
But he was convinced. We can't convince anybody.
Only the Lord can. For this cause
God shall send them strong delusions they shall believe a lie. And for this cause because they choose error.
They choose that which is false. And think that that is right. And their hearts love that more than they do the truth.
The original reason then of their embracing and adhering to the system was not an arbitrary decree on God's part.
God didn't have to think it over. He didn't have to weigh this against that. If they refuse the truth, that's it.
But they did not love the truth. He turned them over to the system of error.
If a man strongly prefers to the truth, he prefers error to the truth.
And sin to holiness, it is not wrong to allow him freely to believe it.
That they all might be damned who believe not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
That they might be damned. What are we talking about? So that they may all be condemned who believe not the truth when it was proclaimed to them.
But took pleasure in unrighteousness preferring that to the way of holiness.
Their condemnation was the effect of their refusal to believe the truth.
And they refused to believe it because they loved sin. Did you ever know anybody that loved to sin?
This world, our world, is made up of people that make believe
Christians. They're pretty good people, David.
But they're as lost as a goose. They wouldn't believe you if you told them.
So I don't tell them. But we are bound to give thanks always 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.
That this is a reason for thanksgiving. Why should it not be?
Can there be any higher ground of praise or gratitude than that God has chosen us?
Can you think of anything that would be greater than God choosing you? He chose you,
Greg, before there was anything. He chose you to eternal happiness.
Now we say those words, we don't know what that means. I'm going to have to quit.
And that he has from eternity designed that we should be so. He designed it that you would be one of his before you were born, before there was anything.
He said, this one is mine. That's all that he designed.
Whatever, therefore, it is clear to those who have evidence that they are chosen should make it a subject of grateful praise.
Talking this morning about praise to God, prayer to God, glory to God. That ought to be on the heart of every one of us all of the time.
They can have no more exalted source of gratitude than that they are chosen for eternal life.