Paul’s Footsteps #110

Footsteps #110

Dwell on the idea of “love of the truth” (2Thess2:10)  He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them.” NLT. How do you receive that and why is having this love so crucial for anyone who doesn’t want to get caught up in any spiritual deception, especially in the last days?

V11 is a text that many people find extremely challenging. Paul states very directly, “So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies” (NLT).  How can a God of truth send deception? (compare v11&v9).

Paul is drawing back the curtain and giving us a glimpse of the great controversy between Christ and satan, which involves much more than just the affairs of this earth and its history. Satan has accused God of being unreasonable, a bully, and a deceiver. In the final crisis of earth’s history, God “sends” a delusion upon the wicked, not because He lies, but because He allows the wicked to choose lies over truth thereby exposing the outworking of decisions that they have already made (2:12). He simply allows them to bear the fruits of their wrong actions. The events of the end time clearly expose the mind and character of Satan and his followers for all to see.

The process of delusion begins when people reject the gospel. In v10 the wicked refuse to receive the love of the truth. The offer of salvation in the gospel is the subtext that lies behind the apocalyptic powers of 2Thess.2. Through its teachings and practices, the papacy has undermined the gospel. That work continues until it is exposed by the final events described in 2:8-12. Thus, the final proclamation of the gospel (Matt.24:14; Rev.14:6-7) sets the stage for both the final judgment and the delusions of the end time.

In the end, whatever the outward political and religious manifestations of the great controversy as it plays out here on earth, the gospel of Jesus Christ, not political events, has always been the crucial divide between good and evil throughout Christian history. Antichrist reveals its true character by usurping the life, death, and heavenly reign of Jesus. All other actors in the drama play subordinate roles. Meditate on V12.

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