Day 287: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17

“And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.” - ‭‭2 Thessalonians‬ ‭2:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Much is said of this “man of lawlessness” or “Antichrist” in the book of Revelation. After reading the verse above (and all of our passage today), my mind went immediately to Revelation 19:11-21. The scene is set and pictures Jesus riding on a white horse, exalted in power. His blood-drenched robe is leaving a trail of white (see verse 14). Jesus even seems to have a tattoo to remind us of who He is (see verse 16).

The battle is set. Armies face off against Jesus. Yet the clash is over before it begins and ends with the Beast and the False Prophet being tossed into the lake of fire.

Jesus never loses.

The Antichrist will be a very convincing counterfeit at the end of time. He will lead many away from faith in Jesus. Yet all King Jesus needs are His words to win a great victory.

False gospels always feed on panic (fear) and will exalt individuals over the truth found in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Which are you following today?

“Christ will in the meantime, by the rays which he will emit previously to his advent, put to flight the darkness in which Antichrist will reign, just as the sun, before he is seen by us, chases away the darkness of the night by the pouring forth of his rays.” - John Calvin

Day 286: 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12

“They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed...” - 2 Thessalonians‬ ‭1:9-10‬ ‭ESV

‬‬One of the goals Paul had at the start of this second letter was to show the end of those who were persecuting the Thessalonian church. The Christians were assured that God would bring justice and that their suffering was not going unnoticed.

In these two specific verses, we see the contrast of life after death between those who insist on going their own way (see Jeremiah 18:12) and those committed to following Jesus no matter what consequences follow on earth.

What is so terrifying about hell (a place initially prepared for the Devil and his angels. — Matthew 25:41)?  Endless punishment is enough to startle us, but the worst part is separation from God. All joy? Gone. All love? Gone. All hope? Gone.

In the end, everyone will want eternal life, but many will miss it due to their rejection of Jesus as their Lord and Savior. May this motivate us to keep sharing the Good News about Jesus crucified and risen for everyone who would choose to trust Him!

“Eternal destruction, then, is the opposite of eternal life.” - Ben Witherington III

Day 285: 1 Thessalonians 5:4-28

“And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.” - ‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Paul ends his first letter to the Thessalonians with a barrage of short bursts of challenge (like Christian Proverbs). The commands in verses 12-18 are decisions we can make every day to live the best life possible. Though things will be challenging in this fallen world, neglecting these will make life even harder.

To name a few:

1. Make sure those who serve the church (ministers) have their needs met.

2. Live in peace with each other (as it depends on you: Romans 12:18).

3. Warn the lazy (God expects us to work hard).

4. Encourage the timid (God expects us to be bold).

5. Take care of the weak (those often forgotten).

6. Be patient with everyone (they all have stories).

7. Do good to others (responding to evil with evil leads to chaos).

8. Rejoice always (chairo: to enjoy a state of happiness; see Colossians 1:24)

9. Pray continually (we will need it).

10. Be thankful (healthiest perspective).

Are you ready to be obedient to Jesus and shine bright in this dark world? Does this list at the same time seem daunting? The solution for us seems to be in verse 23 of our reading: “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.”

God never gives us a to-do list that He doesn’t intend to help us check off. His Holy Spirit, within us, will not leave us swimming in impossibilities.

”Thank you, Jesus, for shedding your blood, enabling us to live like You.”

Day 284: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-18, 5:1-3

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” - ‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭4:16-18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Here we see echoes back to Daniel 7:13, 12:2. Stop reading this for a sec and check those verses out for a better understanding of Paul’s language.

I love what Leon Morris says about this passage: “There are many points on which we should like further information. But when Paul comes to that great fact that makes everything else unimportant, he stops. There is no need (and no more) to add to that.”

Six verses (13-17) do seem to be quite inadequate to describe the end of time as we know it and a grand reunion with those Christians who have died before us. Yet we have what we need here. We learn two important things from these verses: 1) We will be together. 2) We will be with Jesus.

On the flip side, in our reading today, Paul spends 4:1-11 talking about life until Jesus returns. The process of pleasing God is our prep for heaven. He tells us what to avoid, and he even gives us advice on how to work our professions. May we ready ourselves for Jesus’ return!

Elizabeth K. Mills (1805-1829) said it well in the hymn she penned:

O land of rest for thee I sigh!

When will the moment come

When I shall lay my armor by

And dwell in peace at home?

We’ll work till Jesus comes,

We’ll work till Jesus comes,

We’ll work till Jesus comes,

And we’ll be gathered home.

Day 283: 1 Thessalonians 2:9-20, 3:1-13

“And may the Lord make your love grow and overflow to each other and everyone else, just as our love overflows for you.” - 1 Thessalonians 3:12 NLT

When we decide that we want to follow Jesus, one of the first things that God starts to work through with us is our love for others.

God’s desire is for our love toward each other to scale to the point of an overflow (excess).

The word Paul uses for grow is pleonazō, and it means to cause an increase. The word he uses for overflow is perisseuō, and it means to go beyond or more than enough.

Both words are associated with intensity. This means that God’s call to love will require us to be stretched. We know from this verse that it is God who will do the stretching. He will increase our capacity to care for others.

This language also suggests a process. None of us will overflow at the beginning, especially for someone who has wronged us. Before love can overflow, it has to grow. Start small with a prayer of forgiveness or an act of kindness.

This isn’t easy work, but it is necessary for our growth as followers of Jesus.

Ultimately, love will bring greater unity to the church and will become a bridge for more people to cross into the family of God by Jesus our Savior.

Day 282: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, 2:1-8

“So you received the message with joy from the Holy Spirit in spite of the severe suffering it brought you. In this way, you imitated both us and the Lord.” - 1 Thessalonians 1:6 NLT

Biblical joy can exist, and often deepens, alongside any suffering.

Imagine Paul cringing as he sees these new disciples encountering resistance almost immediately from persecutors in Thessalonica. Maybe he initially thought, “I hope they survive this!” or “God, could you have given them a little more protection at the beginning?”

No, Paul uses the word rescue (in verse 10) as he describes what God has done for the Thessalonian Christians.

I wonder how much joy we are missing out on each day because our perspective is off. Some of us view resistance as a sign that we are doing something wrong. What if we decided to see suffering as an invitation to a more secure form of joy?

It is hard to rob someone of joy who has already dismissed the idea of it being a generated emotion.

If we go back up to verse 3, we see how they made it through these trials:  “We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” - 1 Thessalonians 1:3 NIV

Faith, hope, and love in Jesus are the only ways we will stay consistent in this work we are called to as Christians (see 1 Corinthians 13:13).

Day 281: Colossians 3:18-25, 4:1-18

“Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart... Epaphras, a member of your own fellowship and a servant of Christ Jesus...He always prays earnestly for you, asking God to make you strong and perfect, fully confident that you are following the whole will of God. I can assure you that he prays hard for you.” - Colossians‬ ‭4:2, 12-13‬ ESV

These verses are so great because Paul gives them a specific instruction and then shows them an example, from their city, of what being devoted to prayer looks like.

The word used for devote is proskartereō, and it can also mean to persist obstinately in or to attend constantly.

There is no day that will not require an incredible amount of prayer. Moment by moment, we are to remember that we should not want to do this alone. We need God’s help, and we need others to intercede for (and with) us.

The beautiful thing is that when others pray for us, we are more likely to return the favor. May we be these prayer trendsetters.

Epaphras got it. He was asking God for strength and growth on their behalf. May we join him in this kind of stubborn prayer!

"Praying is working; and by such fervent prayer Epaphras toiled effectively on behalf of the churches of Colossae and Laodicea and Hierapolis." - E.K. Simpson

Day 280: Colossians 3:1-17

“When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.'”- Colossians 3:4 ESV

One of my favorite Christian hymns goes like this (John Peterson, 1957):

Coming again, Coming again

Maybe morning, Maybe noon

Maybe evening, and maybe soon

Coming again, Coming again

O what a wonderful day it will be

Jesus is coming again!

Right now, honestly, it seems like a fantastic time for Jesus to return. Between sickness, scandals, and all the hatred surrounding us, we may long to see the sky split, time stop, and Jesus coming back to set all things right (see Revelation 21:1-7). We look forward to the moment of our Savior's return with anticipation and longing!

Yet this isn't all there is when it comes to being a Christian. We aren't kept here on earth just to sit and wait as escapists. We are here to put off our old selves (verse 8) and put on the new life (verse 12) right now and to witness God producing fruit in our lives.

The best way for us to prepare for Jesus' return is to hit darkness head-on with lives of light.

What drives us? We are those "whom He loves.”

Day 279: Colossians 2:8-23

“Having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him.” - Colossians 2:12-14

If someone were to ask you what your life was like before Jesus saved you, what would you say? You might mention many of the stupid things you did, or you might mention how selfish you were. You may even use language like "lost" to describe yourself before Jesus made you new, as if all Jesus needed to do was to gently redirect you with the crook of his shepherd's staff.

Sure, sometimes Jesus uses this "lost" imagery in his parables. Yet Paul tells us what was really happening.

We were dead, shut off from eternal life. Jesus didn't just go on a rescue mission; He also went on a resurrection mission. Can you see why remembering your baptism is important? When our professed faith intersects with an all-powerful God, we experience salvation from all that is holding us back from becoming the people Jesus created us to be.

Let's let N.T. Wright, from his Colossians commentary, drive all of this home for us today: "As a Jew, Paul had believed in the solidarity of the racial people of God. In becoming a Christian, he transferred to the church the idea that the people of God was indeed a people—not now, indeed, drawn from one race only, but made up from every family under heaven. This people is not merely an invisible family known to God alone, but is an actual company of people in space and time, the church in which Christ is confessed as Lord: outward and visible entry into this outward and visible family is accomplished through the rite of baptism."

Day 278: Colossians 1:18-29, 2:1-7

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” - Colossians 2:6-7 ESV

Like any good host, when Jesus knocks, we need to let Him in (see Revelation 3:20). Yet we are caught off guard a little -- due to the fact that Jesus is no passive guest. We are charged to get busy walking in Him, thus obeying God.

When we decide to let Jesus have His way, He starts digging footers, causing us to be:

• Rooted — "to become strengthened" rhizoo

• Built-up — "to increase the potential of someone" epoikodomeo

• Established — "to increase inner strength" bebaioo

These three acts of investment cause us to overflow in thanksgiving. In them, we see that God is committed to seeing us succeed as we place our trust in Jesus. We are not left to fend for ourselves. Jesus is always after faithfulness, and He knows this will only take place as we let Him do His thing.

Next step?

Help others to hear the knocking of Jesus, encouraging them to let Him in for some rearranging as well.

C.S. Lewis drives this whole idea home:   "Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of - throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself."