Sermons and music by Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church, Portland, Oregon, USA.  Sellwood Community Church is a Christ-centered Christian congregation worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ by verse-by-verse Bible teaching, song, and prayer. We hold to the 5 solas of the reformed Protestant tradition: we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, according to Scripture alone, for God's glory alone.

Richard L Rice

In recent years it’s become popular to say there is no absolute truth; there is nothing anyone can know for certain, including right and wrong, good and evil. Every idea is true, if it’s true for you. The God of Scripture says otherwise and as Christians are devoted to Jesus , “the Truth” (Jn 14:6), we can not accept that all ideas are equal or that all ideas are true. 
 If a person doesn’t love the truth (2 Thess 2:10), then he must accept the lie (2 Thess 2:11). There is no neutral ground. Everyone either stands on the truth or the lie. 
 
I. The Delusion (2 Thess 2:11). This section begins with For this reason, because sinful man has rejected the love of the truth unto salvation, God will send a strong delusion upon unbelieving humanity. God is not whimsical or capricious. He has a reason for everything He does. 
 Man’s rejection of the Son God sent means God will send the strong delusion (planao). To reject His love results in Him sending judgment upon the deluded. Like He did with Egypt’s pharaoh, He will further delude their deluded minds (Ex 4:21; 7:1-5, 13, 14, 23; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 12, 27, 34-35; 10:1, 16-20, 27; 11:9-10; 14:4, 8; Rom 1:24, 26, 28). 
 Planao is the basis of the English word planet and means to wander about (Mt 24:11; 27:64; Rom 1:27; 1 Thess 2:3; Jas 5:20; 2 Pet 2:18; 1 Jn 4:6; Jude 1:11). It’s used metaphorically of religious conmen using lies on gullible people so they wander from the truth (Eph 4:14; 2 Pet 3:17). And this delusion is strong (energeian) or energized. 
 
II. The Devil (2 Thess 2:11). Fools and the ignorant are easily deceived (Prov 14:8). Satan has no power to make you believe anything, but he does recognize the gullible mind lacking a firm grounding and commitment to and in the truth. So he deceives, through various means, the simple (1 Tim 4:1; 2 Tim 3:6-7; 2 Jn 1:7). This God-sent delusion will cement the unbelievers’ in the lie. 
 Here, like in verse 3 (the falling away and the man of sin), there is a definite article, pointing to a very specific lie the world in the Day of the Lord will believe. The first lie recorded in the Bible was Satan thinking he could be like God (Is 14:14). It’s the same lie he told Eve (Gen 3:4-5). It’s the lie of man making himself in God’s image (Rom 1:18-25). 
 Satan doesn’t necessarily demand worship, but he does want to keep you for worshiping God. Idolatry takes many forms, and every form serves Satan’s purpose to keeping humanity for worshiping the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. Antichrist will convince the world that he is god, and so is everyone on earth. 
 God’s delusion on humanity proves God and Satan are not equals locked in battle and looking for a way to get an advantage on the other. God is in control and is using both Satan and sin to fulfill His eternal, willed, purpose. 
 
III. The Damned (2 Thess 2:12). The result of believing the lie is final. There isn’t hope these ones can be saved if given one more chance. Believing the lie results in condemnation. There is no “maybe they’ll be saved if we …”. 
 When a person hears the gospel and rejects it, each new hearing of the Gospel works like an additional helping of condemnation. The gospel is a promise of redemption to the elect, but a further condemnation to the wicked. Today is the day of salvation, therefore believe in Jesus now (2 Cor 6:2). 
 Paul provides two reasons for God’s condemnation: (1) a person doesn’t believe the truth; (2) a person finds pleasure in unrighteousness.

In recent years it’s become popular to say there is no absolute truth; there is nothing anyone can know for certain, including right and wrong, good and evil. Every idea is true, if it’s true for you. The God of Scripture says otherwise and as Christians are devoted to Jesus , “the Truth” (Jn 14:6), we can not accept that all ideas are equal or that all ideas are true. 
     If a person doesn’t love the truth (2 Thess 2:10), then he must accept the lie (2 Thess 2:11). There is no neutral ground. Everyone either stands on the truth or the lie. 
  
I.     The Delusion (2 Thess 2:11). This section begins with For this reason, because sinful man has rejected the love of the truth unto salvation, God will send a strong delusion upon unbelieving humanity. God is not whimsical or capricious. He has a reason for everything He does.
     Man’s rejection of the Son God sent means God will send the strong delusion (planao). To reject His love results in Him sending judgment upon the deluded. Like

The Truth and The Lie (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Satan’s effort as the god of this age (2 Cor 4:4) is to oppose God, yet desires to be like Him. His great weapon in achieving this desire is deception. If by deception he can draw a person’s attention from God to anything else, he succeeds. 
 
I. His Power (2 Thess 2:8-9). At the coming (parousia) of our Lord Jesus Christ, He will end the son of perdition’s reign of terror by the breath of His mouth and the brightness of His coming (2 Thess 2:8). 
 Both Christ Jesus (2 Thess 1:7; 2:1) and the antichrist (2 Thess 2:6, 8) have a coming (parousia) and a revealing (apokalupsis). Like Jesus, the man of sin’s coming (parousia) will be controlled by God (2 Thess 2:6, 8), but will be according to the working (energeo) of Satan (2 Thess 2:9). Antichrist will be empowered like the battery in a flashlight or toy by the devil to perform power, signs, and lying wonders, with all unrighteous deception (2 Thess 2:9, 10). 
 
II. His Practice (2 Thess 2:9). Power (dunamis) refers to an inherent physical power from a supernatural source. A sign (semeia) is a deed done to confirm or authenticate authority. Wonders describe acts which are strange or spectacular and cause people to be in awe. Often, these words used of miracles, are found together in the Bible, but miracles never prove that a man has been sent or empowered by God. Both the man’s message and character must be considered. 
 The pharaoh of Egypt had magicians who performed signs and wonders (Ex 7:11ff), as did Judas Iscariot. Jesus also worked miracles and performed signs (Acts 2:22) and empowered His apostles to do the same (Lk 10:19). Miracles and signs will be the cry of some for why they should be allowed into Christ’s kingdom (Mt 7:21-23). Yet John the Baptist, Jesus’ forerunner, didn’t perform any miracles, signs, or wonders (Jn 1:6; 10:41). 
 The age of antichrist will be one of miracles that defy nature and nature’s laws. There are three ages of miracles in Scripture: Moses/Joshua, Elijah/Elisha, Jesus/Apostles. Each of these ages ended when a portion of Scripture was written; the Law, the prophets, and the New Testament, which are spiritually all-sufficient as the more sure word of prophecy than are miracles (2 Pet 1:16-21). The antichrist’s era, with his false prophet, will bring in a fourth age of the miraculous, but his works will be lying (pseudous), meaning something false or fake. His miracles will be genuine, but they will lead to false conclusions and deluded beliefs. 
 
III. His Ploy (2 Thess 2:9-10). Paul ministered in Thessalonica without deceit (1 Thess 2:3), yet the believers fell for deceit (2 Thess 2:3). Now Paul writes that the lawless one’s ministry is one of falsehood and his works are deceitful. Deception (apate) lures someone away from what is true, and in this case, away from God. Satan uses any wickedness and evil necessary to accomplish his purpose, ultimately opposing and replacing God. 
 Satan’s deception targets those who are perishing (2 Thess 2:10). Like a drug, Satan’s schemes keep the unsaved coming back for more. They are deceived because they reject Jesus and the God of the gospel’s love (Jn 3:16). Deception doesn’t keep someone from Jesus, but is the result of rejecting Him. It is a judgment from God for refusing the gospel (2 Thess 2:11; Rom 1:24, 26, 28). 
 Anyone who has heard the joyful sound, “Jesus saves! Jesus saves!”, and understood the good news, yet rejects the Father’s saving Gift of Jesus, has made himself a willing dupe for the deceptive schemes of Satan.

Satan’s effort as the god of this age (2 Cor 4:4) is to oppose God, yet desires to be like Him. His great weapon in achieving this desire is deception. If by deception he can draw a person’s attention from God to anything else, he succeeds. 
  
I.    His Power (2 Thess 2:8-9). At the coming (parousia) of our Lord Jesus Christ, He will end the son of perdition’s reign of terror by the breath of His mouth and the brightness of His coming (2 Thess 2:8). 
     Both Christ Jesus (2 Thess 1:7; 2:1) and the antichrist (2 Thess 2:6, 8) have a coming (parousia) and a revealing (apokalupsis). Like Jesus, the man of sin’s coming (parousia) will be controlled by God (2 Thess 2:6, 8), but will be according to the working (energeo) of Satan (2 Thess 2:9). Antichrist will be empowered like the battery in a flashlight or toy by the devil to perform power, signs, and lying wonders, with all unrighteous deception (2 Thess 2:9, 10). 

II. His Practice (2 Thess 2:9). Power (dunamis) refers to an inherent 

Behind Every Great Man (2 Thessalonians 2:8-10) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Many picture good and evil, God and Satan, like the Chinese religious symbol of yin and yang, equals, locked in a cosmic battle for control. Nothing could be more untrue. Satan, like all of creation, is under the authority and control of the Creator, subject to Him in every way. 
 God has an eternal plan for His creation, including Satan, and He’s bringing that plan to His determined end. When things seem out of control, they are still advancing according to God’s eternal will and timing. 
 
I. The Restrainer (2 Thess 2:5-6). The Day of the Lord with it’s falling away and man of sin (2 Thess 2:3) was being kept to a divine and eternal schedule. Something and someone was restraining it. The word restraining (katecho) means to actively and deliberately hold down, hold fast, keep in control. The Thessalonians knew the identity of this restrainer from Paul’s teaching when he was with them. 
 The restraining power was at work in Paul’s day and greater than sin. It would be removed one day. Because he’d taught this in person, Paul didn’t include the restrainer’s identity. The church only had to remember (2 Thess 2:5) Paul’s teaching while he was with them. 
 Many suggestions have been offered as to the identity of the restrainer: Israel, the Roman Empire, the Apostle James, Paul, an angel, government, Satan, the antichrist, and the preaching of the gospel. We are convinced by Scripture, that the restrainer is the Holy Spirit. 
 
II. The Mystery of Lawlessness (2 Thess 2:7). The word mystery in the Bible (musterion) describes a once hidden truth now fully revealed (Mk 4:11; Rom 16:25; Col 1:26; 1 Tim 3:9; 3:16). That revealing isn’t by man’s searching but by God’s revelation. There have been mysteries about sin withheld by God until the New Testament, but the power and scope of sin will be fully revealed in the man of lawlessness. He will be the physical embodiment of sin. 
 This lawless one’s advent is yet future, but lawlessness was already at work supernaturally in Paul’s day (1 Jn 2:18-22). Satan’s power through sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden and mankind in Adam (Rom 5:12-19) and restrained by the Spirit of God. When the restrainer is removed, the lawless one will be revealed, the apostasy begin, and the Day of the Lord start (2 Thess 2:3). The rebellion can’t begin until the revel is revealed. 
 
III. The Brightness of His Coming (2 Thess 2:7). Just before his death, Paul wrote to Timothy that evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived because sin feeds upon itself (2 Tim 3:13-17). Only the coming of Jesus will put an end to the son of perdition’s reign. Even with sin’s power at work in and through him, God remains supreme and sovereign. 
 Again, Paul doesn’t create a calendar of events, but writes to comfort the church of God that He’s in control of all things to the very end of all things. 
 The universe was created from nothing by the simple, yet powerful voice of God through Jesus (Gen 1:1-3; Jn 1:3). Jesus will also be the one to will consume (to put to an end) and destroy (to make useless) the man of sin at the brightness of His coming with the breath of His mouth (Is 11:4; Rev 19:11-21). Jesus’ first appearing was with brightness; His second coming will be no less spectacular. 
 Jesus will not have to do anything but appear in person to put an end to the man of sin and his reign of wickedness on the earth. He is in control!

Many picture good and evil, God and Satan, like the Chinese religious symbol of yin and yang, equals, locked in a cosmic battle for control. Nothing could be more untrue. Satan, like all of creation, is under the authority and control of the Creator, subject to Him in every way. 
     God has an eternal plan for His creation, including Satan, and He’s bringing that plan to His determined end. When things seem out of control, they are still advancing according to God’s eternal will and timing.
  
I.    The Restrainer (2 Thess 2:5-6). The Day of the Lord with it’s falling away and man of sin (2 Thess 2:3) was being kept to a divine and eternal schedule. Something and someone was restraining it. The word restraining (katecho) means to actively and deliberately hold down, hold fast, keep in control. The Thessalonians knew the identity of this restrainer from Paul’s teaching when he was with them. 
     The restraining power was at work in Paul’s day and greater than sin. It would be remove

The Restrainer (2 Thessalonians 2:5-8) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

The falling away or apostasy will coincide with the man of sin, whom Paul also calls the son of perdition (2 Thess 2:3) and the lawless one (2 Thess 2:8). Paul writes that this man’s revelation (apokalupthe) suggests he will appear to be something different prior to his apostasy. It’s not his birth, but his revealing which is important and will begin the Great Tribulation (Mt 24; Rev 5-10). 
 
I. His Character (2 Thess 2:3). This man is a human, not a personification. John called him the antichrist (1 Jn 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 Jn 7). The word anti has two aspects. First, anti means against; the antichrist is against Christ; second, anti means substitute; the antichrist is a substitute Christ. This end-time character will be against Jesus and offer himself as a replacement Jesus. 
 Paul described this man by two fascinating titles. The title son was a common Jewish figure of speech to describe the primary characteristic of a person, something that was shared from a father. First, he’s identified as the man of sin (anomia) describes the man’s character. Sin is his “father”. He will be like sin in human flesh without any light of God’s image. He’s also characterized by perdition (apoleia) meaning ruin, waste, or lostness. Perdition is used in the New Testament of things or people eternally damned (Mt 7:13; Acts 8:20; Rom 9:22; Phil 3:19; 2 Pet 2:1; Rev 17:8, 11), including Judas Iscariot (Jn 17:12). 
 
II. His Type. Judas Iscariot was a type or illustration of the man of sin. Judas knew Jesus personally, experienced Him as only eleven others did, yet rejected Jesus, His miracles, His teaching, and everything about Him. Judas was an apostle (Lk 6:13, 16), preached the gospel and performed miracles (Mk 3:13-19); none of these are evidences of salvation (2 Cor 11:13-15; 2 Thess 2:9-10; Rev 13:11-18; 16:14). Judas had the other 11 apostles fooled to his identity, but Jesus knew him from the beginning (Jn 6:64). For all the greatness of his ministry, Judas betrayed the Lord (Jn 13:21-26), was a thief (Jn 12:6), a deceiver (Mt 26:14-16), and demon possessed (Jn 13:27). Upon his suicide, Judas went to his own place (Acts 1:16-20, 25) and was better off never being born (Mt 26:34). 
 Rather than the gospel bringing Judas to faith, the gospel hardened him. As horrible as Judas’ apostasy was, the man of sins’ will be worse. 
 
III. His Actions (2 Thess 2:4-5). The son of perdition will display his apostasy by opposing (antikeimenos, an open hostility) and exalting (huperairomenos, to place one at the highest point possible over another) himself above God and what is worshiped. He will do this in the temple of God, sit as God, showing himself as if he is God. He will not only be against God, but will be a substitute god. He will be, by very definition, the antichrist. 
 The Church has never had a temple building; we are the temple (1 Cor 3:16-17; 6:19-20). In the Bible, the temple of God is always associated with Judaism. 
 Paul adds he’d taught these things while present in Thessalonica; it wasn’t new to the church. Eschatology, the study of end time events, was a significant issue of doctrine for Paul if he taught so much of it personally. 
 As believers in Jesus as our Saviour and coming King, we have no need to fear the apostasy of the man of sin of the last days. We will not be overtaken and defeated by these things (1 Thess 5:2, 4). The church is waiting for the return and our gathering together unto Jesus Christ not the revelation of the antichrist (1 Thess 4:15-18).

The falling away or apostasy will coincide with the man of sin, whom Paul also calls the son of perdition (2 Thess 2:3) and the lawless one (2 Thess 2:8). Paul writes that this man’s revelation (apokalupthe) suggests he will appear to be something different prior to his apostasy. It’s not his birth, but his revealing which is important and will begin the Great Tribulation (Mt 24; Rev 5-10). 

I. His Character (2 Thess 2:3). This man is a human, not a personification. John called him the antichrist (1 Jn 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 Jn 7). The word anti has two aspects. First, anti means against; the antichrist is against Christ; second, anti means substitute; the antichrist is a substitute Christ. This end-time character will be against Jesus and offer himself as a replacement Jesus. 
     Paul described this man by two fascinating titles. The title son was a common Jewish figure of speech to describe the primary characteristic of a person, something that was shared from a father. First, he’s iden

The Man of Sin (2 Thessalonians 2:3-5) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Paul soothed the fears of the Thessalonians: the Day of the Lord, which begins with darkness and moves to light, had not yet begun. The Lord Jesus would come for His bride before pouring out His wrath on the unbelieving world (1 Thess 1:10, 4:13 - 5:11). Neither the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto Him had happened. And before the Day of the Lord occurs, there will be two great events: the falling away and the revelation of the man of sin. 
 
I. Deception (2 Thess 2:3, 5). Satan’s greatest weapon is deception (exapatao). It was the weapon he used against Eve (2 Cor 11:3). Satan is a created being like everything else in the universe (Gen 1:1; Col 1:16). He is knowledgeable, knowing even the Bible (Mt 4:1-9), but is not all-knowing. He is powerful (Heb 2:14-15; 1 Jn 5:19), but not all-powerful. He is in the world (Mt 4:11), but not all-present. Even today, he has the ability to appear as an angel of light, but because of his limitations, he uses others to minister on his behalf (2 Cor 11:14-15; Rev 12:9). 
 The Biblical word deception means to fully lead astray by a trick. The Thessalonians had been shaken by what or who they thought was reliable (1 Thess 2:2), but they were not to fall for the tricks. He’d already taught them the truth about the Day of the Lord, now they needed to hold to it. 
 Paul taught eschatology, even to new believers. It wasn’t a secondary issue. It concerns the Person and nature of Jesus. It is also practical because it’s a motive to godly living (1 Jn 3:2-3; 4:17-81; 2 Pet 3:11, 14). 
 
II. Error (2 Thess 2:3). The early church of Bible days was no different from the church today except for one thing: the early church was newly created. It was far from being pure, perfect, or powerful; it was made up of people. Every epistle of the New Testament reveals the early church was riddled with doctrinal errors, and doctrinal errors always produce errors in practice (Gal 1:6-9; 2 Pet 2:1-22; Jude). It was not something we should attempt to re-create or restore 
 Early doctrinal errors included that the resurrection of the dead had already occurred (2 Tim 2:18); circumcision of the flesh was necessary to be saved (Gal 5:2-11); Jewish laws, ceremonies, and festivals were necessary to follow (Col 2:16); worship of angels (Col 2:15, 18); Jesus was a spirit not human (1 Jn 4:2-3); Jesus was an exalted angel (Heb 1:1-14). 
 
III. Apostasy (2 Thess 2:3). The falling away (apostasia) describes an aggressive revolt or rebellion; a deliberate defection from or abandonment of a previously held belief. Apostasy is a deliberate falling away from the truth of God’s Word; an apostate is someone who once professed salvation but whose heart was never regenerated. 
 Apostates are not saved people who lose their salvation. God promises not to lose anything belonging to Him (Jn 10:28, 29; Phil 1:6; 1 Pet 1:5). Instead, like Judas Iscariot, they were never saved at all (1 Jn 2:19). One of the proofs of genuine faith in Jesus is how persecution and trials are met; Paul gave thanks because the Thessalonians passed this test of their faith (Mt 13:20-21; 2 Thess 1:3-5). 
 There have always been apostasies, both in the Old Testament history of Israel, and in the New Testament record of the church (1 Tim 4:1-3; 2 Tim 3:1-5, 13; 4:3-4; Heb 3:12). What Paul writes to the Thessalonians about, however, is different. This is the apostasy, one in particular, greater than any other in both scope and depth, deceiving the elect if it were possible (Mt 24:24). It will be worldwide and by God’s will (2 Thess 2:9-12). It is what Jesus spoke of His second coming not finding the faith on the earth (Lk 18:8). When Jesus returns, the faith will not be present on earth.

Paul soothed the fears of the Thessalonians: the Day of the Lord, which begins with darkness and moves to light, had not yet begun. The Lord Jesus would come for His bride before pouring out His wrath on the unbelieving world (1 Thess 1:10, 4:13 - 5:11). Neither the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto Him had happened. And before the Day of the Lord occurs, there will be two great events: the falling away and the revelation of the man of sin.  
   
I.   Deception (2 Thess 2:3, 5). Satan’s greatest weapon is deception (exapatao). It was the weapon he used against Eve (2 Cor 11:3). Satan is a created being like everything else in the universe (Gen 1:1; Col 1:16). He is knowledgeable, knowing even the Bible (Mt 4:1-9), but is not all-knowing. He is powerful (Heb 2:14-15; 1 Jn 5:19), but not all-powerful. He is in the world (Mt 4:11), but not all-present. Even today, he has the ability to appear as an angel of light, but because of his limitations, he uses other

The Falling Away (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

The Day of the Lord is an important term in the Bible, mentioned in 17 different books. Today it appears people are getting away with sin, but during the Day of the Lord, God’s judgment will be direct and dramatic. This period begins with judgment upon every aspect of society and moves to reward, darkness to light, curse to blessing. 
 
I. The Times (1 Thess 5:1-3). Paul introduces a new subject here, shifting from the Lord’s catching away of His people to what happens when Jesus returns. Paul didn’t need to teach them about "the times" (a sequence of events) and "the seasons" (eras or epochs of time) of these events; the Thessalonians already knew Jesus’ coming will be like a "thief in the night" and a mother going into "labor pains" (1 Thess 5:2-3). Both illustrate difficulty and pain which is sudden, unexpected, and unannounced (Mt 24:42-44; Lk 12:39-40; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15). Neither symbol describes a rapture, but the coming of the Day of the Lord. 
 The Day of the Lord begins with delusion, people thinking it’s a time of "peace and safety" when it’s really a time of "sudden destruction" (1 Thess 5:3). The "destruction" (olethros) will be "sudden," without warning or "escape." 
 It’s important to note the change in pronouns from "brethren," "you," and "yourselves" (1 Thess 5:1-2) to "they" and "them" (1 Thess 5:3). The Day of the Lord affects non-believers. 
 
II. The Threat (1 Thess 5:4-7). Truth in the head and heart are useless until it also invades the hands and feet. Truth requires action. Because the "brethren" will not be "overtaken" (katalabe, a hostile capture) by the Day of the Lord, we are not to "sleep as others do" (1 Thess 5:6). The brethren are "sons of light and sons of the day," terms Jesus used to describe saved people (1 Thess 5:5; Lk 16:8; Jn 12:36). Christians are contrasted with unbelievers, whom Paul calls in darkness of the night and asleep. 
 "Darkness" (skotei) is symbolic of spiritual or moral blindness and separation from the Lord who is light (Col 1:13). Generally, the word is applied to spiritual matters (Jn 8:12; Eph 5:8). Light, on the other hand, pictures purity. Believers and un-believers are opposites in nature. The future Day of the Lord won’t affect God’s children, but our different nature causes a different lifestyle in the present. 
 Paul uses the word "sleep" (katheudomen) of unbelievers to warn Christians. The Greek word Paul uses here is different, however, from the word he used for the death (koimao) of believers (1 Thess 4:13-15). The word in verse 6 describes an apathetic and indifferent spiritual state. Christians must not be spiritually indifferent but be continually "watchful" (paying attention) and "sober" (calm, self-controlled). The Christian’s very nature in Christ makes him different from the unsaved, so the Christian is to live and think differently from the unsaved. 
 
III. The Tact (1 Thess 5:8-11). The threat of Christian indifference is great enough Paul reminded the Thessalonians to be like ready soldiers. Yet in a one-time act, believers are protected by the core Christian virtues of "faith, hope and love" (1 Thess 1:3; 1 Cor 13:13). 
 With the Day of the Lord looming, we can "comfort one another" today because we will spend eternity with Jesus. Our salvation is certain and appointed by God through the death of Jesus. This salvation, whether we are dead or alive at Christ’s return, keeps us from God’s wrath in the Day of the Lord, which will be poured out on unbelievers in destruction they cannot escape.

The Day of the Lord is an important term in the Bible, mentioned in 17 different books. Today it appears people are getting away with sin, but during the Day of the Lord, God’s judgment will be direct and dramatic. This period begins with judgment upon every aspect of society and moves to reward, darkness to light, curse to blessing.  
    
I.  The Times (1 Thess 5:1-3). Paul introduces a new subject here, shifting from the Lord’s catching away of His people to what happens when Jesus returns. Paul didn’t need to teach them about "the times" (a sequence of events) and "the seasons" (eras or epochs of time) of these events; the Thessalonians already knew Jesus’ coming will be like a "thief in the night" and a mother going into "labor pains" (1 Thess 5:2-3). Both illustrate difficulty and pain which is sudden, unexpected, and unannounced (Mt 24:42-44; Lk 12:39-40; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15). Neither symbol describes a rapture, but the coming of the Day of the Lord.  
     The Day of the

The Coming of Our Lord (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

In his first Thessalonian letter, Paul reminded the church of what he’d taught them in person concerning the return of Jesus in the air (1 Thess 4:13-18) and the Day of the Lord (1 Thess 5:1-11). But rumors from false teachers created discouragement, fear, and confusion that their trials and persecutions were proof Jesus had come and they’d been left behind! 
 This chapter has been labelled “difficult”, but it’s easy to understand when we take it literally, just as Paul wrote it. 
 
I. The Tenet (2 Thess 2:1). Paul links two subjects in one event: (1) the coming of Jesus. Coming (parousia) is used 24 times in the New Testament and in every instance means physical presence (1 Thess 2:19; 4:15). 
 (2) our gathering (episunagoges) together to Him. This word is used only two other times in the New Testament, first of the gathering of believers on earth (Heb 10:25); and second of the gathering of the living and dead to Jesus in the air (1 Thess 4:13-18). 
 
II. The Trouble (2 Thess 2:2). Only months after writing his first letter to the Thessalonians, troubling rumors quickly (soon) spread that the Day of Christ [better, Day of the Lord] had already come. The Day of the Lord is the same as the coming of Jesus (2 Thess 2:1). These rumors had shaken (saleuthenai) and troubled (throeo) the congregation. Saleuthenai describes a sudden rocking back and forth that continues, like a boat tossing in a storm or the shaking of an earthquake (Acts 4:31; 16:26). Jesus used the word throeo in the Olivet Discourse (Mt 24:6; Mk 13:7), which literally means to cry aloud as in pain or shock; to be frightened, scared, panicked. The rumors taught by false teachers poisoned the composure and poise of the believer’s minds. 
 
III. The Truth (2 Thess 2:2-3). The false rumors came in three forms: by a spirit, by word, and by letter. The word spirit refers to a prophetic revelation. The prophetic words were important in the early church because the New Testament had not yet been written, or what was written wasn’t widely circulated or compiled. Biblical truth was built on the Old Testament and expanded on by ecstatic prophetic messages. Two or three prophets were permitted to speak in the assembly, but the messages had to be judged by others as to accuracy (1 Cor 14:26-33; 1 Thess 5:20-21). 
 "Word" (logos) describes a verbal teaching, especially that from the apostles (Acts 2:42; Eph 2:20; 3:5). The letter (epistle) was written instruction. Today we call it the New Testament. False teachers were claiming equality with Scripture! 
 The New Testament contains all we need to know for salvation and godly living. God is not revealing new truth not already found in the Bible. Once the foundation of the church was laid in Scripture, new revelation ceased; what believers need today is to preach the word (2 Tim 4:2) and obey the Word (2 Tim 3:14-17; 2 Pet 1:19-21); not hear a new word. 
 Paul denied the Day of the Lord had come, and the new revelation was not what he’d taught — that’s why they were troubled! Some today say that the Church will go through the Day of the Lord or the Great Tribulation described by Jesus (Mt 24). They even say it will be a good thing for the Church because Jesus will protect His people. But Paul denied the Day of the Lord had come. If it was a good thing, why was the Thessalonian church troubled and shaken? They should have been rejoicing. 
 Paul urged the believers not to be deceived (exapatao), to be led astray. False prophecy, false teaching, and false letters led away from truth, so believers today must know the Scriptures well to avoid their own deception.

In his first Thessalonian letter, Paul reminded the church of what he’d taught them in person concerning the return of Jesus in the air (1 Thess 4:13-18) and the Day of the Lord (1 Thess 5:1-11). But rumors from false teachers created discouragement, fear, and confusion that their trials and persecutions were proof Jesus had come and they’d been left behind! 
     This chapter has been labelled “difficult”, but it’s easy to understand when we take it literally, just as Paul wrote it. 
    
I. The Tenet (2 Thess 2:1). Paul links two subjects in one event: (1) the coming of Jesus. Coming (parousia) is used 24 times in the New Testament and in every instance means physical presence (1 Thess 2:19; 4:15).  
     (2) our gathering (episunagoges) together to Him. This word is used only two other times in the New Testament, first of the gathering of believers on earth (Heb 10:25); and second of the gathering of the living and dead to Jesus in the air (1 Thess 4:13-18). 

II. The Trouble (2 The

Man's Rumor or God's Word (2 Thessalonians 2:1-3) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Good news? Bad news? Bad news is that the church is tried, but our troubles and trials don’t define us; they reveal what’s in us, our hope, our character, and our Lord, Bad news is also that the wicked will be judged and punished by God. 
 The good news is that God will reward His people and be glorified. Since glory and eternal reward in God’s presence are ahead for believers, we should live today for His glory. 
 
I. Christ’s Praise (2 Thess 1:10). At Christ’s second coming, there will be a great judgment of the unbelieving, and Jesus will be revealed in unimaginable splendor (Mt 16:24-17:8; 2 Pet 1:16-21). His saints on earth will admire (marvel, be astonished) Him and the Church shine as the example of His grace, mercy, love, and wisdom (Eph 1:7; 3:10). An amazed universe will bow before Him in awe-inspired worship. 
 
II. Paul’s Prayer (2 Thess 1:11). Although separated by distance, Paul had a continuing ministry to the Thessalonians. Besides thanking God for them (2 Thess 1:3), boasting of them to others (2 Thess 1:4), assuring them of God’s reward (2 Thess 1:7), he prayed for them always (2 Thess 1:11). Always doesn’t mean non-stop, but that these believers were in his heart and on his mind, and at every remembrance, he prayed. 
 Paul prayed that God would count them worthy of this calling. A calling (kleseos) is an invitation and summons to a relationship (Gal 1:15-16). When God calls us to Himself, we are wholly un-worthy of Him and His salvation. Nor do we become worthy, but we are accepted in the Beloved (Eph 1:6) and counted worthy only because Jesus is worthy. Once we are born again, we are to walk or live worthy of His calling, living up to the name Christian (Eph 4:1-3; Col 1:9-14). 
 Outer space declares God’s glory (Ps 19:1-2). The moon, galaxies of stars and such manifest His power, wisdom, creative, greatness, etc. The heavens reveal something of His character and ability (Rom 1:20), but seeing creation can’t save anyone, nor demonstrate all of His attributes like love, mercy, forgiveness. Our lives are to glorify Him, revealing the wonders and greatness of His character. 
 Paul prayed for God to fulfill (complete, finish, work to an end) all the good pleasure of His goodness. His good pleasure refers to an inner purpose or desire that produces satisfaction. His second request was that God would perform a good work in them, the work of sanctification making them more like Jesus, even if by trials, testing, and persecution (Phil 1:6). 
 This isn’t a work we can achieve, it is the work (ergon) of faith with power (dunamis). Dunamis usually describes the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. It refers to an inner ability or strength to fulfill an function or purpose. No one can fulfill the work of God but God Himself. Paul is asking for more than power to do something, but for God to finish what He began, and believers to trust Him to do it (Phil 1:6). 
 
III. God’s Purpose (2 Thess 1:12). The purpose of Paul’s prayer was more than for the benefit of the Thessalonians; it was for the benefit of the Lord Himself and His name’s sake (Ps 23:3). 
 A name describes one’s character. To glorify a name is not to chant a name or sing a song, but to praise or enhance the reputation of someone. Paul’s prayer was that the believer’s lives would bring glory to the Father and Son. 
 In the end, the Father, Son, and those who believe will be honored. The trials and troubles of believers will one day be reversed, the put downs and persecutions will become praise and pleasure. 
 This is all a result of God’s grace, God’s unmerited favor. Everything in the Christian’s life is the result of His grace.

Good news? Bad news? Bad news is that the church is tried, but our troubles and trials don’t define us; they reveal what’s in us, our hope, our character, and our Lord, Bad news is also that the wicked will be judged and punished by God. 
     The good news is that God will reward His people and be glorified. Since glory and eternal reward in God’s presence are ahead for believers, we should live today for His glory. 
    
I.     Christ’s Praise (2 Thess 1:10). At Christ’s second coming, there will be a great judgment of the unbelieving, and Jesus will be revealed in unimaginable splendor (Mt 16:24-17:8; 2 Pet 1:16-21). His saints on earth will admire (marvel, be astonished) Him and the Church shine as the example of His grace, mercy, love, and wisdom (Eph 1:7; 3:10). An amazed universe will bow before Him in awe-inspired worship. 

II. Paul’s Prayer (2 Thess 1:11). Although separated by distance, Paul had a continuing ministry to the Thessalonians. Besides thanking God for them (2 The

Live for His Glory (2 Thessalonians 1:10-12) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

The Thessalonians were under great distress from everyday living, but also the added trouble of persecution from Jews, the business community, and government (Acts 17). Paul reminded the believers what he’d taught earlier: Jesus is coming to repay His Church with glory for their suffering, and persecutors with His righteous judgment. Just as He’d come literally, bodily, and physically to be born in Bethlehem, He’ll return again literally, bodily, and physically. 
 
I. The King and His Army (2 Thess 1:7-8). This amazing, unbelievable, glorious unveiling (apokalupsis, revelation) of Jesus, will be an open event the eyes of all living will behold. Jesus will come from Heaven with His mighty angels, a warrior King with His invading army (Jude 1:14-15). In His first coming, He was the Servant-King to redeem His people from their captivity to sin. In His Second Coming, He returns as a Conquering King to dispense justice upon those in rebellion and reward those in faith. 
 
II. The Judge and His Vengeance (2 Thess 1:8-9). The Creator-King will judge those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel. To know about Jesus and know the gospel isn’t sufficient for salvation; one must believe upon Jesus and obey the gospel (Jn 6:28-29; Rom 1:5; 10:16; 1 Thess 4:5; 1 Pet 1:22). 
 Jesus with His angels will judge with flaming fire. Despite only 58% of American Christians believing in a literal Hell, Jesus spoke of it as a literal place of darkness and un-ending flame (Mt 5:22; 8:12; 13:42, 50; 18:8-9; 22:13; 24:41; 25:30; Mk 9:48; 2 Pet 2:4, 17; Rev 19:20; 20:10). The darkness of Hell is real, but also symbolizes separation from God, who is the light of the world and the light of life (Jn 1:5, 7; 8:12; 1 Jn 1:5). The fire of Hell is literal, but also symbolizes the worst kind of un-ending torture: separation from God’s gracious presence. 
 God’s punishment of the wicked will be everlasting destruction (Rev 14:10-11). The word everlasting denotes something without an end. It’s used in the Bible to describe God (Rom 16:26), salvation (Heb 9:12), and the resurrected bodies of believers (1 Cor 15:53). Destruction (olethros) means ruination, utter doom and hopelessness. It does not suggest annihilation as the 7th Day Adventists and Jehovah’s Witnesses teach, but the absolute hopelessness caused by separation from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. 
 God is omnipresent (1 Ki 8:27; Ps 139:7-10; Jer 23:24; Jn 1:1-3; Col 1:17; Heb 4:13); Hell is separation from the favor of His presence. God is wholly good (Mk 10:18); beautiful (Ps 27:4), holy (1 Pet 1:16), gracious (Ps 86:15), merciful (Heb 2:17-18), and loving (1 Jn 4:16). To be separated from Him is to be abandoned to receive everything that is contrary to Him. 
 
III. The Lord and His Glory (2 Thess 1:9-10). As physical beings, we think of punishment in physical and emotional terms. Punished (tisousin diken) means to settle up an owed debt. Christ’s judgment of the wicked is their deserved payment for a debt due (Ps 37:38; 145:20; Is 59:18; Rom 6:23; Heb 2:2-3). At His return, the wicked will not be given time to defend themselves, ask questions or offer answers. There will be no trials or hearings. Jesus will appear to sentence unbelievers in equality and justice (Rev 20:11-15). 
 Though future, His judgment also has a present aspect. Jesus said that one who doesn’t believe upon Him now is already condemned and believers not condemned (Jn 3:18, 36; 5:24; Rom 5:1; 8:1). By contrast, Jesus will be glorified in His saints.

The Thessalonians were under great distress from everyday living, but also the added trouble of persecution from Jews, the business community, and government (Acts 17). Paul reminded the believers what he’d taught earlier: Jesus is coming to repay His Church with glory for their suffering, and persecutors with His righteous judgment. Just as He’d come literally, bodily, and physically to be born in Bethlehem, He’ll return again literally, bodily, and physically.  
    
I. The King and His Army (2 Thess 1:7-8). This amazing, unbelievable, glorious unveiling (apokalupsis, revelation) of Jesus, will be an open event the eyes of all living will behold. Jesus will come from Heaven with His mighty angels, a warrior King with His invading army (Jude 1:14-15). In His first coming, He was the Servant-King to redeem His people from their captivity to sin. In His Second Coming, He returns as a Conquering King to dispense justice upon those in rebellion and reward those in faith. 

II. The Judge a

Hell is Real (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

God is at work in the trials and even the persecutions of His people. The endurance of faith (perseverance) in us is an evidence of our salvation, the on-going work of sanctification, and of God’s promise of future glorification in Heaven. 
 
I. Contempt (2 Thess 1:5). The Thessalonians were pressed by persecution and the ordinary trials of life. Today, believers are likewise tried, and we’re assured that God will repay us with glory in eternity. This was the pattern for Jesus, whose suffering led to glory; the cross comes before the crown. 
 The unsaved, however, will experience something far different. Yes, they suffer like everyone under the curse of sin, but their motto is “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die” (Eccl 8:15; 9:7; Is 22:33; Lk 12:19; 1 Cor 15:32). According to Jesus, the unsaved in Noah’s day were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage (Mt 24:38). They were having the times of their lives, their best lives now. Their prosperity is often troubling to us (Ps 73; Jer 12:1). 
 Life went on for these sinners without interest or concern for God’s judgment. In Noah’s day, the unregenerate were warned of God’s impending judgment by Noah, a preacher of righteousness, for over 100 years. 
 
II. Compense (2 Thess 1:6). God’s judgment of sinners and sin is a righteous thing. God is righteous or just, and can act only in righteousness; there is no unrighteousness with Him (Ps 11:7; Rom 3:21-26; 9:14; 1 Pet 3:18). He does no wrong. His ways sometimes feel wrong to us, but His unchanging nature makes wrongdoing impossible. The real wrong is our thinking of Him and how we view the outworking of His will. 
 The righteous God will repay the sinner for all his sins. The word repay means to give back in full what is deserved. This is the concept of justice, getting what one deserves. A righteous God can do nothing less than punish that which is in rebellion against Him. Those who trouble God’s people are due trouble back, and Jesus will fully repay at His second coming. His repayment is a manifestation of Hiss righteousness. The God who does right repays rightly! 
 Every son of Adam deserves God’s justice, but by grace, those who believe upon Jesus receive the Father’s mercy; perishing is replaced by eternal life (John 3:16). Sometimes God metes out a degree of justice in this world, but always in eternity. 
 
III. Comfort (2 Thess 1:7). Jesus will distribute justice when He’s revealed at His Second Coming (Rom 12:17-19; Rev 22:12). His revealing (apokalupsis) refers to an unveiling, a revelation, to uncover something that was hidden or secret. 
 His first coming was anticipated by faithful believers. His identity as the Son of God was veiled, in human flesh as the Son of Man (Jn 1:14-18). His identity was revealed to those whom the Father revealed Him (Mt 16:13-17). 
 Knowing that God is just and will repay the wicked provides believers with rest (anesis), a relief from tension, the relaxing of pressure. Our rest from trouble today is knowing God is just and will repay the wicked at His second coming; our rest will ultimately come in Heaven, when every trial and trouble is over. 
 His return isn’t a secret to believers; however, it will be a surprising shock to unbelievers who mock, ridicule, and discount His return (2 Pet 3:4-7). If the unsaved believed Jesus was coming, they’d turn to Him for the forgiveness of sin and receive the righteous of Jesus. They would believe everything the Bible says is true of Him.

God is at work in the trials and even the persecutions of His people. The endurance of faith (perseverance) in us is an evidence of our salvation, the on-going work of sanctification, and of God’s promise of future glorification in Heaven.   
   
I. Contempt (2 Thess 1:5). The Thessalonians were pressed by persecution and the ordinary trials of life. Today, believers are likewise tried, and we’re assured that God will repay us with glory in eternity. This was the pattern for Jesus, whose suffering led to glory; the cross comes before the crown. 
     The unsaved, however, will experience something far different. Yes, they suffer like everyone under the curse of sin, but their motto is “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die” (Eccl 8:15; 9:7; Is 22:33; Lk 12:19; 1 Cor 15:32). According to Jesus, the unsaved in Noah’s day were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage (Mt 24:38). They were having the times of their lives, their best lives now. Their prosperity is often 

A Righteous Thing (2 Thessalonians 1:5-7) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Persecution is nothing new to the Church. More Christians were martyred in the 100 years from 1900 to 2000 than in any other century. In the New Testament age, Christians across the Roman Empire were on the verge of ten public persecutions lasting over 300 years. The first martyr, Stephen (Acts 7), was soon followed by the Apostle James (Acts 12:2). Christians were harassed by the law, abused by their neighbors, shunned in the markets, assaulted in their homes and murdered in the streets. The Thessalonians were among this number. 
 
I. Tried (2 Thess 1:4). There’s an evangelical myth that trials show we’re out of the will of God, we’re in sin and being punished by God, that our faith is weak, God doesn’t care, or that Satan is sovereign. Yet Jesus warned His disciples to expect persecution and trials because the unsaved hated Him, they will also hate His followers (Jn 15:18-25; 16:33). Peter wrote for us not to think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you (1 Pet 5:12). 
 The word tribulations refers to general suffering, trouble, pressure, squeezing. Persecution is a specific kind of tribulation. It’s an organized harassment. Paul persecuted the Church to prove his zeal for the Mosaic Law (Acts 8:13; Phil 3:6). Paul actively labored to destroy the message of grace through faith in Jesus and protect self-righteousness, but God’s grace reached even him (Acts 9). 
 Paul commended the Thessalonians who were growing in faith, love, and patience despite their trials. Patience literally means to stand under. It refers to endurance, steadfastness, courage, fortitude under pressure. It’s an attitude or virtue of how difficulty is handled rather than a waiting for something to be finished. 
 
II. Tested (2 Thess 1:5). We usually avoid pressure, but the Thessalonians’ faith withstood the pressure, unshaken and unbroken, proving it was genuine (Phil 1:28-30; 1 Pet 1:5-9). Perseverance in trials doesn’t earn salvation or keep one saved. Consistent faith in trials, however, is a proof of salvation (Acts 14:22; 1 Thess 2:12; 1 Pet 5:10). It reveals God’s righteous judgment (verdict or assessment) of the genuine nature of the faith He gifts us. It is the manifest evidence (verification or proof) that we belong to, and are kept, by Him (1 Pet 1:5-9; Heb 12:10). 
 
III. True (2 Thess 1:5). Perseverance is a proof of being worthy (kataxioo, declared or counted valuable) of God’s kingdom, revealing the genuine value of faith in Jesus (Acts 5:41). 
 Christians don’t seek out suffering or persecution to make us pure or prove anything; the theological issue is how we endure suffering. We can’t persevere unless we are tested. The test proves value. A new car model is designed, built, and tested. The test isn’t to destroy the car, but to prove it will do what it’s been designed to accomplish. Each passed test demonstrates the skill and ability of the maker. 
 Every descendant of Adam suffers in this world raped, ravaged, and rotting by sin. Suffering is common to all people. The difference is the believer’s attitude when suffering. Trials are a tool used by God to sanctify and build Christlike character in us. Trials drive the unsaved to curse God; they drive believers to their knees in prayer and uplifted hands in praise and thankfulness to God’s grace. 
 Christians today will suffer to varying degrees for following Jesus, but our suffering points us Heavenward to our eternal comfort and reward (2 Cor 4:17-18). This also means the unsaved will also suffer in the future for their evil today.

Persecution is nothing new to the Church. More Christians were martyred in the 100 years from 1900 to 2000 than in any other century. In the New Testament age, Christians across the Roman Empire were on the verge of ten public persecutions lasting over 300 years. The first martyr, Stephen (Acts 7), was soon followed by the Apostle James (Acts 12:2). Christians were harassed by the law, abused by their neighbors, shunned in the markets, assaulted in their homes and murdered in the streets. The Thessalonians were among this number.  
    
I.     Tried (2 Thess 1:4). There’s an evangelical myth that trials show we’re out of the will of God, we’re in sin and being punished by God, that our faith is weak, God doesn’t care, or that Satan is sovereign. Yet Jesus warned His disciples to expect persecution and trials because the unsaved hated Him, they will also hate His followers (Jn 15:18-25; 16:33). Peter wrote for us not to think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as

Trusted, Tried, and True (2 Thessalonians 1:4-5) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Church is more than a building or Sunday morning meeting. It’s a gathering of God’s saints He’s called out of sin and the world unto Himself, to show forth His praises (1 Pet 2:9). 
 While we expect unbelievers to occasionally come among us (1 Cor 14:23-25), we protect our gathering as a sacred time for God’s people to worship our God through prayer, singing, reading Scripture, preaching, and taking the Lord’s Supper. 
 God commands that we not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching (Heb 10:25). Christ’s return motivates us to gather, and the Thessalonians gathered even in persecution. 
 
I. Grace and Peace (2 Thess 1:2). Grace and peace are God’s gifts and the result of our union in the Godhead through faith in Jesus. This is the gospel: to be in God and He in us (Jn 14:20; 15:1-8; 17:3, 23; Gal 2:20). 
Grace (charis) describes a relationship apart from the recipient’s work, merit, or effort which relies upon the work, merit, and effort of the gracious One. It is God giving the undeserving what he doesn’t have and can’t gain himself. 
 At the cross, the wrath of God was laid upon Jesus and thus fulfilled, placing the sinner in fellowship with God. This propitiation produces peace “from” God and “with” God showing that all is right between God and the believer. 
 Paul, Silas and Timothy were bound (opheilo, to owe and pay a debt) to give the Father and Son thanks for the Thessalonians. This debt was to God for His graciousness in saving them. It wasn’t only a debt, but it was a fitting or right response to the Father. Paul shows that preaching and seeing people saved isn’t the end of a pastor’s work, but it continues with thankful prayer. 
 
II. Faith and Love (2 Thess 1:3). Their thankful prayer was the result of the believers’ faith growing exceedingly (beyond measure and expectation. Faith (reliance, trust) is a God-given gift of trust and reliance in God, sufficient and efficient to save and keep the believer eternally. A living, genuine faith is designed by God to grow by the Word of God and encompass trust in Him in other areas of life. Biblical faith is more than knowing truth, but living truth; the head and the heart, not one or the other. 
 The Thessalonians faced daily persecution. They trusted Jesus to save them from sin, but were also learning (growing) to trust Him in daily circumstances. This is what trials and testing will do (Rom 5:3-4). 
 Genuine love grows just like faith, and grows from genuine faith. Amazingly, Paul could write of each believer’s abounding or overflowing love for each believer in the church. It wasn’t love for the loveable, the likeable, or the important, but for each saint. This love isn’t a feeling or emotion, but a commitment to act in the welfare of the one loved (1 Thess 1:3). 
 A love for God always grows to include a love for His people (Mt 22:37-39). This is why the common talk about loving God but hating His church is evidence of an hypocritical and unregenerate apostate. 
 
III. Patience (2 Thess 1:4). Growing faith and love created more than a debt of thanks, but a reason to boast. This church had patience (to remain under) in their trials, carrying on with the load graciously given by the Lord. This patience is tied to hope, a certainty of God working (1 Thess 1:3). 
 Trials caused by persecution and ordinary living in a sin-fallen world weighed upon the Thessalonians. Trials and persecution destroy false faith, but true faith grows in the furnace of difficulty (Job 23:8-12; Mt 13:1-9, 19-23; 1 Pet 1:7).

Church is more than a building or Sunday morning meeting. It’s a gathering of God’s saints He’s called out of sin and the world unto Himself, to show forth His praises (1 Pet 2:9). 
     While we expect unbelievers to occasionally come among us (1 Cor 14:23-25), we protect our gathering as a sacred time for God’s people to worship our God through prayer, singing, reading Scripture, preaching, and taking the Lord’s Supper.
     God commands that we not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching (Heb 10:25). Christ’s return motivates us to gather, and the Thessalonians gathered even in persecution. 
    
I.     Grace and Peace (2 Thess 1:2). Grace and peace are God’s gifts and the result of our union in the Godhead through faith in Jesus. This is the gospel: to be in God and He in us (Jn 14:20; 15:1-8; 17:3, 23; Gal 2:20).
Grace (charis) describes a relationship apart from the reci

Beginning with Grace (2 Thessalonians 1:2-4) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Second Thessalonians was written by the Apostle Paul in about 51 AD to instruct a young congregation suffering persecution and infiltrated by false teaching about the end times. 
 
I. The Groundwork (Acts 17:1-9). Silas (Silvanus a Roman name) was a Jew with Roman citizenship, a prophet/preacher (Acts 15:32), missionary with Paul, and secretary to Peter (1 Pet 5:12). Timothy was like a son to Paul, whose father was Greek and mother a Jew (Acts 16:1; 2 Tim 1:5). He was a missionary companion of Paul, a pastor, and later his ambassador (Acts 19:22; 1 Cor 4:17; 16:10; Phil 2:19-24; 1 Thess 3:2; 1 Tim 1:3). 
 Paul, Silas, and Timothy were escorted from Philippi after Paul’s preaching stirred a riot (Acts 16). The journey from Philippi to the metropolis of Thessalonica was about 100 miles or a three day walk. Thessalonica had a Jewish synagogue where Paul went first, preaching three Saturdays in a row that Jesus was the promised Messiah who died and was resurrected 
 In the synagogue, Paul reasoned (to exchange questions and answers), explaining (opening to understand), and demonstrating (giving evidence to prove a point) the gospel of Jesus. He shared the gospel from Scripture, not experience or beliefs. 
 A few Jews and many devout Gentiles (non-Jews who worshiped with Jews but hadn’t converted with the physical sign of circumcision) believed the gospel, which was for all people (Gal 2:28). Rather than a city-wide revival, these conversions created a riot. People who cannot be convinced by reason turn to violence. These rioters were wicked men (lit, bums). 
 Paul and Silas were accused of rebelling against Rome, turning the world upside-down. Actually, sin turned the world upside-down; the gospel of Jesus turned it right side up. Christianity unsettled the sinful world as sinners knew it. The missionary team was snuck from the city under the cover of darkness. 
 From this short few month ministry came a congregation grounded in the essentials and fundamentals of the Christian faith. Good teaching can quickly produce a strong and well-grounded assembly. 
 
II. The Gathered (2 Thess 1:1). Paul wrote to the church (ekklesia) in Thessalonica. The ekklesia is an assembly or gathering of called out ones. The church is called out of unbelief to faith, from darkness to spiritual light, from sin into righteousness, from alienation to God to fellowship with Him (1 Pet 2:9). Biblically speaking, the church is people, not a building; a living organism, not an organization. 
 
III. The Godhead (2 Thess 1:1). The church is in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The word Father is authoritative, relational, and pro-generational. He is both the Father of Jesus (1 Thess 1:1), and of believers; a personal, relational God; not “a” god or “the” God, but our Father. 
 The church lives and moves and has its being in (enveloped) the Father and the Son. This reveals an equality in the Godhead, but also submission. The Father and Son are equals in deity and attributes, but Jesus, as Son, has submitted Himself to the authority of the Father. 
In other religions, men become gods or are absorbed into a god-force. Christianity alone claims its followers are “in” God, revealing a union or immersion into Him (Col 3:3). 
 And Jesus (Saviour), the One who saved the church, is also its Lord (master, sovereign), and Christ (Messiah or chosen One).

Second Thessalonians was written by the Apostle Paul in about 51 AD to instruct a young congregation suffering persecution and infiltrated by false teaching about the end times. 
    
I. The Groundwork (Acts 17:1-9). Silas (Silvanus a Roman name) was a Jew with Roman citizenship, a prophet/preacher (Acts 15:32), missionary with Paul, and secretary to Peter (1 Pet 5:12). Timothy was like a son to Paul, whose father was Greek and mother a Jew (Acts 16:1; 2 Tim 1:5). He was a missionary companion of Paul, a pastor, and later his ambassador (Acts 19:22; 1 Cor 4:17; 16:10; Phil 2:19-24; 1 Thess 3:2; 1 Tim 1:3).  
     Paul, Silas, and Timothy were escorted from Philippi after Paul’s preaching stirred a riot (Acts 16). The journey from Philippi to the metropolis of Thessalonica was about 100 miles or a three day walk. Thessalonica had a Jewish synagogue where Paul went first, preaching three Saturdays in a row that Jesus was the promised Messiah who died and was resurrected
 In the synagogue

An Upside Down World (2 Thessalonians 1:1) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

After trying to wipe out every Benjamite from the earth, Israel struggled to keep the Benjamite tribe from extinction. For the 600 Benjamites who survived Israel’s justice massacre, Israel carried out a second massacre to provide wives for the survivors. That plan failed to provide all the wives needed, so another plan of human wisdom was contrived, just as sinful, earthly, and demonic as the first. Human wisdom never produces godliness. 
 Israel thought, planned, and acted according to what seemed right in their own eyes, which always leads to loss. People become commodities to be used and abused. Children are neglected by drugged out parents. Unborn babies are aborted by self-interested sex. Nations divide, churches split, and families are torn apart. Yet religion grows. This downgrade is described in 2 Timothy 3:1-9. Everyone is pleased but God. 
 
I. The Layout (Judg 21:16-18). Israel found 400 wives for 600 men; they needed 200 more Israelite virgins. The 200 virgins couldn’t be willingly given in marriage from among the other eleven tribes because of a previous agreement. 
 This story began in chapter 19 with immorality in the home, the first and foundational institution of society established by God for humanity. When government and society undercut and re-define the home, marriage, and child-rearing, society will crumble. 
 
II. A Lie (Judg 21:19-24). Man’s justice is injustice. Israel’s plan to find another 200 virgin wives focused on a yearly festival in Shiloh where the tabernacle was kept. Virgin girls living in Shiloh would perform a dance. None of the feasts given by God included dancing. This was most certainly a drunken pagan festival carried out in the name of the Lord. 
 When the girls came out to dance in the vineyards, the 200 Benjamin men were allowed to kidnap a girl and return home without consequence. Israel’s leaders weren’t concerned for the women but for the Benjamites and that the girls’ fathers be free from the curse earlier sworn. What began as vengeance for violence against a woman ended with violence against 600 women. Israel exonerated the guilty, but God didn't. 
 The Benjamites returned home to their inheritance, the real estate God gave them (Num 26:53-54; 33:54; Deut 4:21, 38; Josh 11:23; 21:45). Their inheritance wasn’t salvation of Heaven. Israel failed God, but God was faithful. He keeps His covenants. 
 Many events in Scripture are descriptive, not prescriptive. These events describe events but do not command them to be reproduced. One great error of many people and movements is turning a descriptive event into a modern event to be copied. 
 
III. The Light (Judg 21:25). Israel believed they were doing right, literally smooth, straight, or pleasing. God says man’s “right” is wrong (Prov 16:25). He was on their lips, but they refused Him any authority in their lives. The opening chapters of Judges give no indication that Israel wanted to, or tried to abandon God. It happened as they compromised with the world around them. That’s our problem today: a desire to compromise with both the truth of God, the Bible, and the God of truth revealed in the Bible. 
 This is the fourth time in Judges we’re told Israel had no king (Judg 17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25). The Book of Judges points us to God’s ultimate and final King: Jesus. Israel rejected her great King, Jesus, about 1,200 years later by choosing a murderer instead of God’s Son (Lk 23:13-25; 19:14). Today, Israel awaits the Second Coming of Jesus to reign.

After trying to wipe out every Benjamite from the earth, Israel struggled to keep the Benjamite tribe from extinction. For the 600 Benjamites who survived Israel’s justice massacre, Israel carried out a second massacre to provide wives for the survivors. That plan failed to provide all the wives needed, so another plan of human wisdom was contrived, just as sinful, earthly, and demonic as the first. Human wisdom never produces godliness. 
     Israel thought, planned, and acted according to what seemed right in their own eyes, which always leads to loss. People become commodities to be used and abused. Children are neglected by drugged out parents. Unborn babies are aborted by self-interested sex. Nations divide, churches split, and families are torn apart. Yet religion grows. This downgrade is described in 2 Timothy 3:1-9. Everyone is pleased but God. 

I.     The Layout (Judg 21:16-18). Israel found 400 wives for 600 men; they needed 200 more Israelite virgins. The 200 virgins couldn

Every End is a New Beginning (Judges 21:16-25) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

As Joshua prepared to die, he brought Israel together and recounted God’s grace and faithfulness to them. From God’s call to Abraham, the gift of Isaac, freedom from Egypt, protection in the Wilderness, and placement in the land of promise, God had been very good (Josh 24). 
 Joshua urged his people to stop serving the gods of Egypt and Canaan. Three times they made a collective promise to be faithful and worship only Jehovah (Josh 24:16-18, 21, 24). Within a generation came the events of Judges 21. Israel was an apostate, rebellious people doing what seemed right to them (Judg 2:6-19). Israel was a nation of spiritual apostasy, moral awfulness, and political anarchy; evidences of a people far from God. 
 
I. A Foolish Religion (Judg 21:01-3). The Levite sacrificed his wife to a mob (Judg 19:25); Israel sacrificed right to a sinful sense of justice (Judg 19:25). The world always looks different when crazed, irrational emotion settles down. Four months after winning the war of revenge, Israel realized they’d nearly exterminated the tribe of Benjamin (Judg 20:47). 
 The people cried and sacrificed, but it was empty ritual. There was no recognition of sin, no repentance from sin, and no request for God’s wisdom. They blamed God for their sin while still disobeying Him (Judg 21:3; 1 Sam 15:22). Weeping and fake repentance always returns to sin and never changes attitudes or actions (2 Pet 2:22); truth and time go hand-in-hand. 
 
II. A Foolish Vow (Judg 21:4-11). Israel foolishly vowed to punish Benjamin by never giving their daughters in marriage (Judg 20:1). The mad rush for mob justice led to a second foolish vow to exterminate Benjamin’s women and children; one evil upon another. At Mizpah they also vowed to kill any Israelite who didn’t join their war. They could resolve their three foolish vows by killing all the men in the Jewish city of Jabesh Gilead. 
 Israel did what seemed right in their own eyes (Jas 3:13-18). How different is the wisdom of this world and of God! How unlike is man’s justice to God’s justice! How deceitful and irrational sin is! Israel would be faithful to their vows to one another while breaking their vow to the Lord. 
 When you don’t know what to do, go first to your Father in Heaven in prayer. He loves you, cares for you, and from His unbounded knowledge graciously supplies wisdom from above for every situation. 
 Twelve thousand soldiers were sent to Jabesh Gilead on the east side of the Jordan River. Once God is rejected, only godless evil can reign. Where human life is devalued or made worthless, personal gratification becomes supreme (2 Tim 3:2, 4). 
 
III. A Foolish Result (Judg 21:12-15). Men are called by God to protect women, but Israel treated them as farm animals to be bought, traded, sold, and bred. When a person or a nation abandons God’s standard of right and wrong, it will do whatever seems right in their eyes and evil will reign. 
 The Israelite army killed everyone in Jabesh Gilead but 400 young virgins who were taken captive to Shiloh to be given as a peace offering to the surviving men of Benjamin. But they needed 600 women (Judg 20:47)! 
 Again, Israel blamed God for their rash, foolish, emotional, vengeful mob justice. Spiritual apostasy. Moral awfulness. Political anarchy. Can you see the national confusion and corruption about good and evil, right and wrong? Can you also see God’s great grace? Despite Israel’s sin, He would not give Israel up. He would be faithful to His promise even when they would not!

As Joshua prepared to die, he brought Israel together and recounted God’s grace and faithfulness to them. From God’s call to Abraham, the gift of Isaac, freedom from Egypt, protection in the Wilderness, and placement in the land of promise, God had been very good (Josh 24). 
     Joshua urged his people to stop serving the gods of Egypt and Canaan. Three times they made a collective promise to be faithful and worship only Jehovah (Josh 24:16-18, 21, 24). Within a generation came the events of Judges 21. Israel was an apostate, rebellious people doing what seemed right to them (Judg 2:6-19). Israel was a nation of spiritual apostasy, moral awfulness, and political anarchy; evidences of a people far from God.

I.     A Foolish Religion (Judg 21:01-3). The Levite sacrificed his wife to a mob (Judg 19:25); Israel sacrificed right to a sinful sense of justice (Judg 19:25). The world always looks different when crazed, irrational emotion settles down. Four months after winning the war of rev

Worldly Wisdom (Judges 21:1-15) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

The first words recorded from Jesus’ mouth after He was nailed to the cross were for the Father’s forgiveness rather than the Father’s revenge (Lk 23:33-37). JC Ryle wrote, As soon as the blood of the Great Sacrifice began to flow, the Great High Priest began to intercede. It’s in what happened at the cross that we have the best image of the character of God: His faithfulness, determination to save, mercy, justice, grace, power, and love. 
 
I. Day One (Judg 20:17-21). The 11 tribes of Israel were prepared to attack and destroy Benjamin and the city of Gibeah, but God is not moved by appearances or numbers. The Sovereign Lord would have His way, not Israel nor Benjamin. 
 Israel superstitiously moved the tabernacle to Bethel to manipulate God for their political purposes. Remember, the nation is doing what is right in its own eyes. Rather than ask the Lord how to proceed, lots were cast to determine which tribe “God” would have attack Benjamin. The lot indicated Judah go to war first (Judg 20:18), just as Judah was to conquer territory in Canaan first (Judg 1:1-2). He gave the nation up to their own desires (Rom 1:24, 26, 28). Their anticipated quick victory resulted in 22,000 Judahites dead (Judg 20:21). 
 
II. Day Two (Judg 20:22-25). On the second day, Israel encouraged themselves (Judg 20:22), but this time weeping before Jehovah long into the night (Judg 20:23). Again, God told Israel to attack, and the following morning another 18,000 Israelite soldiers died in battle (Judg 20:23-25). 
 God was at work disciplining the 11 tribes. The men of Gibeah were guilty of sin, but Gibeah was no different from the rest of the nation. Everyone was doing what seemed right in their own eyes. It was so easy to see and be outraged by the sin in Gibeah without ever looking in the mirror at themselves. 
 
III. Day Three (Judg 20:26-48). For a third time, Israel returned to the tent of meeting, but instead of praying to “God”, the petitioned the Lord (YHWH, Jehovah) with weeping, fasting, and sacrifices (Judg 20:26-27). The commotion of emotion finally became devotion. This time their repentance was genuine (Heb 12:5-17). Emotionalism and being “sorry” don’t determine repentance. Genuine repentance is not because we’re caught or experience consequences of sin; it’s sorrow at offending God. 
 The chapter began with Israel determined to bring vengeance upon Benjamin, but now God promised to deliver them into your hand (Judg 20:28). God’s vengeance is perfect and He would repay (Lev 19:18; Deut 32:35). This time the nation inquired of the Lord through the righteous high priest, Israel’s mediator Phinehas (Judg 20:28; Num 25:6-7) and the Lord said He would strike and defeat Benjamin (Judg 20:35). 
 God’s ultimate wrath against sinners and their sin is future (Rom 2:5; 1 Thess 1:10; 5:2-3; Rev 6:16-17; 16:1; 20:10-15), but sometimes He judges in this world and life directly, by providence, and natural disaster (Num 16:32-34; Deut 11:17; Acts 5:1-11; 13:8-12; Rom 1:24-26; 13:1-4). Often He judges by allowing sin to consume the sinner (Rom 1:18-32). 
 At the cross, Jesus prayed for the Father’s forgiveness of those who did Him evil by crucifying Him. When we pursue revenge, we are rejecting the cross from which forgiveness flows from the faithful and merciful God (Ps 94:1-3, 12-15).

The first words recorded from Jesus’ mouth after He was nailed to the cross were for the Father’s forgiveness rather than the Father’s revenge (Lk 23:33-37). JC Ryle wrote, As soon as the blood of the Great Sacrifice began to flow, the Great High Priest began to intercede. It’s in what happened at the cross that we have the best image of the character of God: His faithfulness, determination to save, mercy, justice, grace, power, and love.  

I. Day One (Judg 20:17-21). The 11 tribes of Israel were prepared to attack and destroy Benjamin and the city of Gibeah, but God is not moved by appearances or numbers. The Sovereign Lord would have His way, not Israel nor Benjamin. 
 Israel superstitiously moved the tabernacle to Bethel to manipulate God for their political purposes. Remember, the nation is doing what is right in its own eyes. Rather than ask the Lord how to proceed, lots were cast to determine which tribe “God” would have attack Benjamin. The lot indicated Judah go to war first (

From Which Forgiveness Flows (Judges 20:18-48) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

When everyone does what is right in their own eyes, right and wrong ceases to exist. Right and wrong are replaced with “my truth” and demands of “don’t judge me.” It’s an excuse to rebel against God. 
 Surely Israel knew the sin among them. They knew the spiritual apathy, moral awfulness, and political anarchy, but were shocked by the body of a concubine. Something had to be done. Repentance from sin and a return to God was necessary. Israel didn’t need revival, which means a re-invigoration of life; they needed re-birth! False religion of ritual and lip service needed replaced with regeneration. Instead, Israel turned to revenge, which is man’s self-righteous definition of justice. 
 
I. Government Values (Judg 20:1-2). The values of a society reflect the values of individuals. A corrupt government exists because the people are corrupt. A government that lies and steals mirrors a citizenry that lies and steals. Yes, blame government corruption, but also the corruption of the people. God gives us the leaders we deserve, and He always gives us leaders chosen from among ourselves. 
 
II. Great Outrage (Judg 20:3-11). So great was Israel’s outrage at the hacked concubine, an army of 400,000 soldiers gathered as one man (Judg 20:11). This is the only time in Judges that Israel was unified in purpose. Why couldn’t the nation unite against the Canaanites in obedience to God? 
 The Levite roused Israel to act. As he retold his tale, he (1) didn’t mention his marriage trouble behind the journey; (2) claimed the men (the word describes political or financial elites) of Gibeah wanted to kill him, not rape him; (3) withheld that he forced his wife out of the house, trading her for himself (Judg 19:25); and (4) made himself the victim (Judg 20:4-5). 
 The punishment for both rape and homosexuality was death (Lev 20:13; Deut 22:25-27), but neither laws and enforcement, nor going easy on criminals changes the heart. Only the gospel of Jesus does that by giving the sinner a new heart (Ezek 11:14-21), or as Jesus called it a new birth (Jn 3:3). Judges continually points us through Israel’s failures, to the Saviour. 
 Instead of going after the culprits, each tribe would attack Gibeah in revenge. Justice never comes from half-truths. Portraying a criminal as a victim or making him a hero is to perpetrate an injustice. 
 
III. God’s Grace (Judg 20:12-17). The men of Israel called for the men of Gibeah to be turned over so the Law could be fulfilled, but Gibeah was in the territory of Benjamin, and the Benjamites would protect their own rather than discipline their own. They raised an army of 26,000 soldiers and 700 crack snipers from Gibeah. 
 Benjamin’s refusal to discipline was rebellion against God. Protecting evil is itself evil, and when men fail to do their duty judging sin, it will pollute a nation and God will judge (1 Cor 5:12-13). This is true in countries as well as in churches. 
 Every coach on the field, teacher in school, and parent in the home demands discipline. God is no different in His house, the Church, the body of believers (1 Pet 4:17). The church in Corinth was guilty of not only gross sin, but protecting it and celebrating it rather than mourning it (1 Cor 5:1-13). Having a sexual relationship with one’s stepmother was illegal in the Roman Empire and contrary to the will of God. 
 Discipline isn’t meant to be easy, but it’s necessary to reveal God’s grace in the restoration of our fellowship with God (1 Cor 5:11, 13). The price of this grace was the death of God’s own Lamb, the Divine for the earthly, the Innocent for the guilty, the Son for the sinner.

When everyone does what is right in their own eyes, right and wrong ceases to exist. Right and wrong are replaced with “my truth” and demands of “don’t judge me.” It’s an excuse to rebel against God.
 Surely Israel knew the sin among them. They knew the spiritual apathy, moral awfulness, and political anarchy, but were shocked by the body of a concubine. Something had to be done. Repentance from sin and a return to God was necessary. Israel didn’t need revival, which means a re-invigoration of life; they needed re-birth! False religion of ritual and lip service needed replaced with regeneration. Instead, Israel turned to revenge, which is man’s self-righteous definition of justice.   
    
I.     Government Values (Judg 20:1-2). The values of a society reflect the values of individuals. A corrupt government exists because the people are corrupt. A government that lies and steals mirrors a citizenry that lies and steals. Yes, blame government corruption, but also the corruption of the p

The Price of this Grace (Judges 20:1-17) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Bible history records more than places, names, dates, and events. It has a theological purpose. Scripture is given to transform our thinking from the twisted ways of sinful man to God’s perspective of life and living (Rom 12:1-2). Maturing believers aren’t tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine blowing across the unrighteous landscape of life (Eph 4:14), but take heart and hope in God (Rom 15:4). It’s the Bible that renews our thinking from the degradation of sin. 
 
I. A Perversion (Judg 19:22-25). The men of Gibeah were perverted men, literally, sons of Belial. The name Belial means worthless. It’s used in the Bible of unbelievers, false teachers, and as a name for Satan (2 Sam 23:6; Job 34:18; 2 Cor 6:14-15; 1 Jn 5:19). The men of Gibeah wanted to rape the Levite. Homosexuality is a sinful violation of God’s standard of righteousness (Lev 18:22; 20:19; 1 Cor 6:9-10) and of nature (Rom 1:24-27). Homosexuality is not a lifestyle, but a plummet into the depths of godless, perverted, and un-natural existence. 
 The old man refused to surrender the Levite, but offered his virgin daughter and the Levite’s concubine for their vile ... humbling ... desires. He condemned homosexuality as wickedness and an outrage, yet rejected his fatherly role as protector of his daughter and host to the concubine. He had a low estimation of women and told the men to do as you please, literally, do what is right in your own eyes. 
 Worse yet was the Levite, God’s servant, who saved himself while pushing out his concubine to be gang raped all night as he slept. How low his estimation of any life other than his own. This kind of selfish living has become rampant in the apostate church, which Paul warned about (2 Tim 3:2-4). 
 
II. A Profanity (Judg 19:26-30). In the morning, the Levite didn’t attempt to find or rescue his wife, but left for home. He went outside and found her clutching the doorpost and he demanded she get up so they could finish their journey. 
 The Levite is called the concubine’s master (Judg 19:26, 27), not husband; she was property. Marrying her dismissed the value of marriage (Gen 1:18-25; Eph 5:25-33; 1 Pet 3:1-9; Rev 21:2), now he treated her like a piece of old luggage. The word profane means common, ordinary, without value. When we don’t respect God, we’ll disrespect one another. Man was created in God’s image (Gen 1:27; 5:1), that image now twisted and deformed by sin. Sin always leads to debasing one another as we do the Creator, and making ourselves nothing but common animals (Gen 4:3-9; Rom 1:20-23). 
We’re not told if the woman was alive or dead, but that once home, the 
 Levite cut her body into 12 pieces and sent one to each tribe of Israel; an object rather than a person. Israel responded by saying someone had to do something. 
 
III. A Purpose (2 Tim 3:16). Few preach from this passage because they don’t find value in it. But the Holy Spirit says all Scripture is profitable. So what is the value in Judges 19? 
 First, to warn us about the degradation of sin and danger of sin’s consequences (1 Cor 10:1-13). 
 Second, to remind us that there is hope (Rom 15:4) for those who love God and are the called according to His purpose. God is in fact working all these things together for our good and for His ultimate and eternal glory (Rom 8:28). 
 Third, to call us to the God of grace for His salvation in Jesus. 
 Fourth, to point us to the sovereign, gracious God actively fulfilling His perfect, divine plan and purpose. Righteousness will rule, because Jesus will return and He is the Righteous One (Is 54:11; 1 Jn 2:1). He will make many just through salvation, but He will also judge the wicked. Jesus will triumph, sin will be terminated, and right will prevail.

Bible history records more than places, names, dates, and events. It has a theological purpose. Scripture is given to transform our thinking from the twisted ways of sinful man to God’s perspective of life and living (Rom 12:1-2). Maturing believers aren’t tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine blowing across the unrighteous landscape of life (Eph 4:14), but take heart and hope in God (Rom 15:4). It’s the Bible that renews our thinking from the degradation of sin. 
    
I.   A Perversion (Judg 19:22-25). The men of Gibeah were perverted men, literally, sons of Belial. The name Belial means worthless. It’s used in the Bible of unbelievers, false teachers, and as a name for Satan (2 Sam 23:6; Job 34:18; 2 Cor 6:14-15; 1 Jn 5:19). The men of Gibeah wanted to rape the Levite. Homosexuality is a sinful violation of God’s standard of righteousness (Lev 18:22; 20:19; 1 Cor 6:9-10) and of nature (Rom 1:24-27). Homosexuality is not a lifestyle, but a plummet into the depths of godless, per

More than History (Judges 19:22-30)

Judges 19 begins by reminding us that everyone acted according to his own standard. No common standard of right or wrong (morality), no common leader (a king), or God (religion). These are three common cultural bonds in any stable nation. 
 Israel lacked all three, and the writer of Judges looks toward a day when the nation would have a king to lead the people in godliness and punish evil (Rom 13:1-5). This is still God’s purpose in our political leaders. Leaders matter! Leadership matters! 
 Before entering Canaan, God gave Israel instruction for the day He’d provide a king. There were two qualifications: (1) chosen by the Lord; (2) Jewish (vv 14-15); three commandments regarding trust (vv 16-17): not accumulating (1) horses; (2) wives; or (3) wealth; one cause: copying, reading, teaching, and obeying the Scriptures so that he would rule himself and others with God’s justice not mans’ (vv 18-20). 
 
I. A Crooked Home (Judg 19:1-3). Only God has the right to command His creation how to think, act, believe, and live. When we replace the Creator, we have only each of the earth’s 9 billion people to assert their individual ideas of right and wrong (Rom 1). The Pharisees, for example, looked righteous, but looks are deceiving (Mt 5:20; 23:1-ff). 
 A Levite took for himself a concubine, a secondary wife usually taken for sexual purposes or to produce an heir. The Levite was unfaithful to his wife, and his concubine was unfaithful to him. Religious apostasy (Judg 17-18) always leads to moral depravity. Just because it’s in the Bible doesn’t mean God approves; He’s simply recording for our instruction, the conditions at the time. 
 Israel, a nation which had experienced the profound and gracious love of God (Deut 7:6-9) wasn’t a people of love or fidelity. Contrary to the Law of Moses, Jewish women were generally considered no more than property. A society which rejects God’s standard and definition of love and marriage will elevate sex and sexual confusion will reign. That’s how sin and Satan work, creating a counterfeit to God’s standard. 
 The concubine returned to her father’s house, but four months later the Levite finally goes to speak kindly to her and bring her home. Notice the importance of Bethlehem in these chapters (Judg 17:7-9; 19:1, 2, 18) setting us up for the Book of Ruth. 
 
II. A Courteous Father (Judg 19:4-10). The concubine’s hospitable father was glad to meet his son-in-law and held a celebration of the couple’s reunion. The two men got along as best of friends while the woman fades into the background of the story. Five days later the Levite, his concubine, and his servants make the return journey to Bethlehem. 
 It was dangerous to travel in Israel, so five miles out, the servant suggested stopping for the night in Jebus (Jerusalem). It was a Canaanite city until David conquered it and made it his capital (2 Sam 5:6-8; 1 Chron 11:4-5). The Levite refused to stay in a city of foreigners where a Jew wouldn’t be safe; they continued to Gibeah, a Jewish city where the later King Saul was born and ruled Israel (1 Sam 10:26; 15:34). 
 Despite being obvious travelers, and a Levite, the people of Gibeah refused to take them in for the night. An old man from Ephraim took the party in. 
 
III. A Corrupt City (Judg 19:22). As the old man entertained his guests, wicked men (lit sons of Belial) came to the house and demanded the Levite be surrendered for homosexual acts. The writer of Judges wants us to see that life in Israel was worse than in Canaanite cities. He compares Gibeah to Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19), only it was worse than living in Sodom and Gomorrah. At least the Sodomites were pagans, the people of Gibeah were Jews!

Judges 19 begins by reminding us that everyone acted according to his own standard. No common standard of right or wrong ...

The Laughing Levite (Judges 19:1-21) ~ Richard L Rice, Sellwood Community Church

Judges 18 continues the shocking story of Micah’s false religion from chapter 17. We’re reminded that Israel had no ruler to unite the people in godly service or punishing evil. Yet Israel always had a King in the Lord, but not one like themselves. In wanting a human king, Israel rejected God (1 Sam 8:5, 7). Israel’s problem was in wanting self-rule apart from God (Gen 3:1-7), proven even when Jesus rode into Jerusalem and was rejected (Mt 21:1-11). 
 
I. Look (Judg 18:1-6). The Danites failed to colonize the land God gave them along the coast north of Philistia, but hid in the harsh hill country (Judg 1:34-36). Rather than obey the Lord, five spies were sent out to find an easier place to conquer than what God provided. They didn’t want the route of obedience; self-will was easier. Trouble and suffering can twist our emotions so we think we’re out of God’s will; that God’s will is always easy. But trials can be evidence of being in the center of God’s will (Jn 16:33; 2 Tim 2:3-4; 3:12; 1 Pet 4:12-13). 
 The spies came to Micah’s home, and one recognized the voice of his Levite priest. The un-named Levite acknowledged he was a priest for hire willing to say anything to anyone. The Danites were like the Levite, searching outside of God’s command. Micah’s priest blessed them in YHWH’s name. Religious words and rituals from a religious man was all that was needed. Ritual and worship without truth is paganism. 
 
II. Took (Judg 18:7-29). The Danite spies found the city of Laish on the Jordan River north of Galilee. The people of Laish were rich, the land productive, and the city unprotected. Greed and ease were on the minds of the spies. 
 As the Danite army moved to Laish, it stopped at Micah’s home and took his idols (Judg 17:2; 18:17, 18, 20, 24, 27) and offered the false priest a huge promotion as priest to all Dan. His acceptance proved his loyalty wasn’t to Jehovah or even Micah, but only to himself and his personal gain. 
 With his idols and priest gone, Micah saw himself with nothing left (Judg 18:24). An idol which can fall down, need repair, or even be stolen or destroyed is not god (Mt 6:19). 
 
III. Forsook (Judg 18:30-31). This event took place early in the Book of Judges, while the tribes were conquering Canaan and show how quickly and easily Israel forsook the Lord and slid into apostasy. The Danites were not heathen Gentiles; they were Jews, mightily redeemed out of Egyptian slavery and brought by God into a land of milk and honey. 
The Danites used the idols and Levite to establish a permanent rival religion, making Dan a center of paganism for the entire nation for more than 650 years (1 Ki 12:29). 
 The Danites believed they were worshipping the One true God. When we become ungrounded from Scripture alone as our rule of faith and practice, we will believe our false worship is also legitimate and godly. Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone), must be more than a motto or a tradition, but our practice. 
 The most shocking revelation in this chapter is that the Levite was named Jonathan, the grandson of Moses! Godliness is not inherited. Salvation isn’t genetic, passed from generation to generation or person to person. Salvation is a gift from God given to whom He chose from eternity (Jn 1:12-13; Eph 1:4). Jesus must be believed upon in every generation and thus the gospel must be preached in every generation even to the ends of the earth (Mt 28:18-20). No one is a Christian by birth or choice, but by God’s will by new birth through faith in Jesus.

Judges 18 continues the shocking story of Micah’s false religion from chapter 17. We’re reminded that Israel had no ruler to unite the people in godly service or punishing evil. Yet Israel always had a King in the Lord, but not one like themselves. In wanting a human king, Israel rejected God (1 Sam 8:5, 7). Israel’s problem was in wanting self-rule apart from God (Gen 3:1-7), proven even when Jesus rode into Jerusalem and was rejected (Mt 21:1-11). 
   
I.     Look (Judg 18:1-6). The Danites failed to colonize the land God gave them along the coast north of Philistia, but hid in the harsh hill country (Judg 1:34-36). Rather than obey the Lord, five spies were sent out to find an easier place to conquer than what God provided. They didn’t want the route of obedience; self-will was easier. Trouble and suffering can twist our emotions so we think we’re out of God’s will; that God’s will is always easy. But trials can be evidence of being in the center of God’s will (Jn 16:33; 2 Tim 2:3-4

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