The
faithful man has perished from the earth, And there is no one upright among
men. They all lie in wait for blood; Every man hunts his brother with a net. Micah
7:2 NKJV
There
is a saying popular with many teachers of the Bible today which I find not only
very true, but also extremely helpful in understanding both the Old and New
Testaments. You are probably familiar
with it but even so I will repeat it here; “the Old Testament is the New Testament
concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed”. I am continually amazed as I study the
scriptures to find how much of the New Testament is actually hidden in plain
sight in the Old Testament, and this passage from Micah is a perfect example.
The
Hebrew word translated “perished” in the NKJV means “to vanish”. From the teachings of the Apostle Paul in the
New Testament, it becomes obvious that what Micah is describing is the rapture
of the Church, and the state of the earth after all believers have been
taken. What this world will be like
during this time of tribulation should literally scare any rational person to
the point of salvation, yet we know this is not the case. The passage from Micah does, however, help us
to understand the anxiety which the church at Thessalonica experienced when
they thought they had been “left behind”.
Now,
brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering
together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled,
either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of
Christ had come. 2 Thessalonians
2:1-2 NKJV
Paul
tells us immediately in verse 1 that the subject of the letter is about the
rapture, or parousia of the Church
which occurs when Jesus comes to take us home to be with Him. According to
verse 2, Paul says they were "shaken" and "disturbed". This
is one of those times where I think it's really important to look closely at
the meaning of the words Paul uses. The word shaken is saleuō in the Greek and means "agitate" or become
"insecure" in mind, while disturbed is throeō and means "clamor" or "tumult". So the
picture Paul gives us is that the believers in the church were in an uproar and
very agitated because they had become insecure in something they believed but
now have doubts about, and obviously it has to do with the rapture. Paul then
identifies the reason at the end of verse 2 when he refers to someone
claiming ”by spirit or by word or by
letter” that the day of the Lord
had already come.
This
brings us to the question, why were they so shaken? The reason for their
distress is the part I believe gets missed most often when studying this
passage of scripture. The problem was that they had been told by someone that
the tribulation had already begun, and they had obviously been left behind, yet
according to what they had been taught this could not be. This passage is one
of the many reasons I believe so strongly in the pre-tribulation rapture of the
church because if Paul hadn't taught the pre-tribulation rapture, the church at
Thessalonica would not have been upset. Obviously they were now either under the
impression Paul had taught them wrong, or they had done something wrong to get
left behind.
At
the time of this letter, the Church was undergoing persecution from Rome and it
was easy for people to believe that all of what they saw happening around them
fit the picture of events which take place during the Tribulation.
Unfortunately, all it took to shake them up was someone to suggest that their
belief in the pre-tribulation rapture was wrong. So it becomes Paul’s purpose
here to review the main points he taught about Jesus' return and its aftermath when
he first started the church, and then taught again in his first letter to them.
Let no
one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling
away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and
exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he
sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Do you not remember
that when I was still with you I told you these things? And now you know what
is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of
lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He
is taken out of the way. 2 Thessalonians
2:3-7 NKJV
What
Paul chooses to clarify is that while the present circumstances were troubling,
they should not be confused with what will happen in the future when the tribulation
period begins. He explains that the mystery of lawlessness is the evil in this
world produced by Satan and his angels, and the man of sin is the coming world
leader or anti-christ, who will be revealed at the beginning of the
tribulation. Paul makes the point that although evil forces were at work
already, they are being held in check by "he who now restrains", and
are not the same as what will occur after the Church, indwelt by the Holy
Spirit, is removed at the rapture. Paul
gently reminds these believers that they too "know" these things
because he had taught them before.
How
often do we too need to be "reminded" of what we have already been
taught, yet somehow begin to forget or doubt? I know I'm guilty of that, so I
can sympathize with the situation the believers at Thessalonica found
themselves in. I'm also sure there are many believers today who find themselves
to be in a similar position as those in the church at Thessalonica. We see
horrific images of things going on in the world around us, events we know are
the signs Jesus said would occur at the end of the age, and there are those
saying we have already entered the tribulation period.
But just as we find in
this passage, we can't have entered the tribulation period because as Paul so
simply said, the Church is still here! Evil
is present, but so are we; the Church, the body of Christ. There is no doubt in
my mind that we are as close to leaving this world as we can possibly be. One
day very soon, the Church will vanish from this world in the blink of an eye. If
you find yourself in the same position as those believers back then, the best
advice I can give you today is the same advice Paul gave the church in
Thessalonica:
Therefore,
brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by
word or our epistle. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and
Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by
grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word
and work. 2 Thessalonians 2:15-17 NKJV
Keep
watching.
I
also want to share a couple of articles which I ran across today from two
individuals who I greatly respect. Both deal with the subject of
Pentecost which occurs today. Enjoy.
https://prophecywatchers.com/the-mystery-of-pentecost/
http://gracethrufaith.com/topical-studies/holidays-and-holy-days/the-feast-of-pentecost/
