Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4
If you recall from 1 Thessalonians, the Church in Thessalonica was very concerned with the return on the Lord and how that would be experienced. Rumors were now circulating that Christ had returned, but they had missed it.* Paul was writing not to give a detailed report of the sequence of events of the Lord’s return, but to remind them of a more detailed conversation that they had that we are not privy to.*
There is a lot of research that has gone into these few verses that attempt to decipher Paul’s words for their exact meaning. Rather go into those details that attempt to answer the question of “what will these events look like?”, we will pause to consider this: the church had become deceived.*
It’s easy to become deceived when we are emotional and looking for answers. It happens to us more than we think. In times of hurt, we believe lies about God, ourselves, and others. For the Church in Thessalonica, their concern for their loved ones and their fate upon the return of Christ opened the door for them to receive lies about that.
Paul’s words are intriguing: Let no one deceive you in any way.
Paul suggests that deception is something that we can do something to prevent. We can “not let” ourselves be deceived. Said another way, and conversely, deception is something that we allow. How?
When we don’t remember the words of truth, lies will find and take their place.
In verse 5, Paul gives us some insight: Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?
The Church in Thessalonica had forgotten their conversations with Paul and his teachings of truth; thus, lies took their place.
Maybe today you aren’t concerned about the details of the return of Christ, but maybe there’s something you are concerned about? Remember God’s truth.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to remember what God has told you. Perhaps today God wants you to seek out His truth about the situation you are in. Maybe today God wants you to do your part to not allow yourself to be deceived. Perhaps today God wants you to remind a friend about truth.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Holmes, M. (1998). 1 and 2 Thessalonians (pp. 230–232). Zondervan Publishing House.
Shogren, G. S. (2012). 1 & 2 Thessalonians (pp. 277–285). Zondervan.
Green, G. L. (2002). The letters to the Thessalonians (pp. 306–313). W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.
Kim, S., & Bruce, F. F. (2023). 1 & 2 Thessalonians (D. B. Capes, Ed.; Second Edition, Vol. 45, pp. 586–588). Zondervan Academic.
Morris, L. (1984). 1 and 2 Thessalonians: An introduction and commentary (Vol. 13, pp. 126–127). InterVarsity Press.
Beale, G. K. (2003). 1–2 Thessalonians (pp. 203–211). InterVarsity Press.
Weima, J. A. D. (2014). Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: 1–2 Thessalonians (R. W. Yarbrough & R. H. Stein, Eds.; pp. 506–507). Baker Academic.