Introduction

In this next section, vss. 6-12, the apostle is still writing to refute the idea that the Day of the Lord was present. The fundamental objective again, however, was protect the truth of the parousia and our gathering together unto Him, i.e., what that means to the church as the “blessed hope.” The apostle had appealed to the Thessalonians to not be shaken or easily unsettled about the false claims that they were then in the Day of the Lord. His appeal was first based on two facts: that day cannot be present without the presence of the great future rebellion that must come first before the second necessary ingredient—the unveiling of one called “the man of lawlessness.” This rebellion is not the mystery of lawlessness already set in motion, but evidently a future, sudden, and final revolt that provides the final seed bed for the unveiling of the lawless one’s presence.

Throughout history, it has been the desire of Satan to exalt himself above the throne of God and to be worshipped. This one who will come, “the lawless one,” is Satan’s man, the product of the working of Satan himself (vs. 9). So why hasn’t Satan been able to reveal his man before now? Though the identity of the restrainer is very difficult by way of interpretation, part of the answer to this question is found in these verses in the concept of the restrainer. Satan, as the arch enemy of God and man, is now active night and day seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet. 5:8). This nefarious creature would have long ago brought the kingdoms of this world to even greater ruin and raised up his own kingdom so that he might be worshipped if it were not for the sovereign restraint of God’s grace.

Both the activities of Satan before the flood and God’s response at that time illustrate this principle. Before the flood, the wickedness of man was extreme and the intent of his heart bent only on evil (Gen. 6:5). Satan’s activity was certainly part of the cause for the extreme conditions that existed, but the point is that God did not allow this to continue. Genesis 6:3-4 states the divine intention to halt these conditions in the declaration, “Then the LORD said, ‘My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years’” (NIV). Or as the NET Bible translates, “So the LORD said, ‘My Spirit will not always protect mankind—his days will be a hundred and twenty years.’” Regardless of how the word “contend”⁵¹ is translated, the point of the text “… seems to be that the Lord would not allow the race to continue on in such debauchery; rather, there would be a limit.”⁵²

Clearly then, because God restrains the forces of evil in the world today, Satan can only do what he does by the permissive will of God as with Job (see Job 1-2). But a day is coming when that restraint is going to be removed and then Satan will move quickly to set up his end time system of horror.

The Second Explanation:
The Day of the Lord and Its Relation to the Restrainer
(2:6-8)

2:6 And so you know what holds him back, so that he will be revealed in his own time. 2:7 For the hidden power of lawlessness is already at work. However, the one who holds him back will do so until he is taken out of the way, 2:8 and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his coming.

The Delay of the Day of the Lord (2:6-7)

Paul has shown us that the Day of the Lord cannot be present without the two phenomena mentioned, “the rebellion” and the “revelation of the man of lawlessness,” but now a third important phenomenon is brought into the picture that must also occur before the Day of the Lord can be present. Verse 8 begins with tote, “then, at that time.” It is an adverb of time which shows a sequence of events. This stands in strong contrast with the focus on the present seen in verse 7 which is brought out more forcefully in the translations of the NIV and the NASB. The NIV has, “For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way” (emphasis mine). Note the words “already” and “now.” “Already” is ede, an adverb of time meaning, “now, already.”⁵³ “Now” is the Greek arti, another adverb which may refer to the present time in general, “now, at the present time.”⁵⁴ The point is that the mystery of lawlessness is now at work and the Thessalonians were facing suffering because that lawless system was already at work, but the man of lawlessness—one of the vital evidences for the Day of the Lord—could not be revealed until the restrainer is removed.

But who or what is the restrainer mentioned by the apostle in verses 6 and 7? While we know God is at work restraining evil in general, the exact identification of the restrainer has always baffled expositors with multiple solutions offered. It’s clear that Paul told the Thessalonians what or who the restrainer was for he says, “you know what holds him back,” but he does not tell us in this or in any other of his letters. What he does tells us is that the restrainer is now at work until he or it is no longer present. Before tackling the identity of the restrainer, let’s look at some of the details of verses 6-7.

Literally, verse 6a reads, “And now you know what holds back (or restrains).” “Now” is nun, an adverb which may be understood in a temporal sense, “now, at the present time.” Taken as such it would modify “holds back” as in the translation of the NASB, “And you know what restrains him now.” Or nun may be taken in a logical or resumptive sense in which case it modifies “you know,” as in the NET Bible, “And so you know,” or “as it is (in view of the previous teaching) you know.” The word order and flow of the argument seems to fit the logical sense better.

“What holds back” is to katechon, from the verb katecho, “to hold back, hinder, check, restrain.” Grammatically, it is a present neuter substantival participle which means, “you know that which is restraining” or “the restraining thing.” Katecho occurs again in verse 7, only there it occurs in the masculine, “he who” or “the one who restrains.” It should be noted the object restrained is actually not mentioned in verse 6 or 7. Most translations have something like, “restrain him” referring to the lawless one, but it could just as easily be the mystery of lawlessness that is being restrained. This restraint naturally hinders Satan’s end-time plans from developing and so also the historical arrival and revelation of the man of lawlessness as verse 6b explains, “so that he will be revealed in his own time.” It will be then (tote), and not before. “Time” is kairos which looks at a definite future and fixed time, but primarily from the standpoint of the characteristics of that period when he will be revealed, not the date. Only God knows the date, but we can know something of the characteristics of this time of lawlessness as it is described in other portions of Scripture like Revelation 6-19 and portions of Daniel, for instance.

While verse 6b draws our attention to the intended result or purpose of the restraint, “so that he (the man of lawlessness) will be revealed in his own time,” verse 7 focuses the reader on the present state of affairs, “for the hidden power (mystery) of lawlessness is already at work, only the one who restrains will continue to do so until he (the restrainer) is (taken) out of the midst.” The restraint of this present spirit of lawlessness will continue according to God’s sovereign purposes until things are ripe for the lawless one himself to be fully developed and revealed.

But what is meant by the mystery of lawlessness? “Mystery” is musterion, which in the New Testament is something that lies beyond man’s natural reach and can only be known by divine revelation.

The word “mystery” can be summarized as follows:⁵⁵ The term mystery as it is used in the New Testament is a translation of the Greek word musterion from meuo, “to initiate into (the mysteries),” i.e., to make known special secrets. Thus, musterion meant a secret rite or teaching which the initiate knew but no one else could know; something not publicly disclosed. The root idea then is information known only to those on the inside, but hidden to those who are without (Mark 4:11). Most often in the New Testament, though not always, it refers to information which has been kept secret or veiled, but has now been disclosed by God’s revelation (see Rom. 16:25-26).

The term mystery does not refer to something mysterious in that it eludes all comprehension or explanation. Rather, as used in the Bible, it refers to God’s secrets, His counsels, purposes, and other truths not naturally known to man apart from His special revelation in Scripture or by His prophets (see Dan. 2:18-23; 27-30).

In the context of 2 Thessalonians, the mystery of lawlessness refers to the continuation and gradual build up of the state of lawlessness (see 2 Tim. 3:1-13; 1 Tim. 4:1; 2 Pet. 3:3) which will culminate in the man of lawlessness once the restrainer is removed. Musterion, because it has the article, points to something specific and well known to the readers, obviously by the teaching of Paul and the missionary team. But in what sense is this a mystery? It is a mystery in the sense that humankind does not recognize the insidious forces of Satan at work behind the scenes to create a state of lawlessness the world over. And we should note that this lawlessness is not necessarily confusion and disorder or even the absence of law. The man of lawlessness will invoke all sorts of hideous laws through his tyrannical governmental system by which he seeks to control mankind. Lawlessness, then, refers to the presence of rebellion against God’s established rule and purposes. It speaks of the aim of Satan and his hosts of wickedness in spiritual places to overthrow the human government as ordained by God and other institutions like marriage and the family that God has designed for the blessing and protection of mankind.

Finally, referring again to the restrainer, most translations have something like, “until he is taken out of the way” or “removed” (cf. NASB, NIV, KJV, NET, and NRSV). Literally, however, the text simply has, “until he comes (ginomai, “to be, come to be, happen”) to be out of the midst (ek, “out of,” + mesos, “middle, midst”).” The possible significance of this will be suggested in the discussion regarding the identity of the restrainer.

Who then is the restrainer? Multiple suggestions have been made, but ultimately, it seems it must boil down to what or who is powerful enough to restrain Satan’s activities and who or what would do so. Most expositors commenting on these verses in their commentaries list a number of proposed solutions with perhaps most identifying the restrainer as the Roman Empire of Paul’s day or even government in general as a divine institution (Rom. 13:1f) since government is designed to hold back evil by its system of laws. The problem with this view is that it is government and specifically, the revived Roman Empire that the lawless (anomos) one will use in the last days. Government does not restrain him. Rather than a restraint to the mystery of lawlessness and so to the antichrist, government will become the very vehicle he will use to propel his system into existence.

To identify the restrainer, then, certain requirements need to be met.

1. The restrainer must be able to fit the description of the neuter (to katechon, “that which restrains”) and the masculine (ho katechon, “he who restrains”).

2. The restrainer must be both powerful enough and willing to restrain or hold back Satan because the mystery of lawlessness lies under Satan’s control.

3. The restrainer should be one who is seen in other portions of Scripture as engaged in the restraint of the mystery of lawlessness.

4. The restrainer must be able to fit the description of someone or something that “comes to be out of the midst.”

So who or what fits these requirements? Regarding some of the proposed identifications of the restrainer and especially the view that it is the Roman Empire, Thomas writes:

Proposed identifications of to katechon have been multiple. Because of inability to explain the neuter-masculine combination, such suggestions as the preaching of the gospel, the Jewish state, the binding of Satan, the church, Gentile world dominion, and human government are improbable. To identify to katechon with a supernatural force or person hostile to God is difficult in a paragraph such as this because the restrainer is limiting Satan (vv. 7-9), not cooperating with him (Best, pp. 298-301). A popular understanding since early times has been that this is a reference to the Roman Empire (neuter) and its ruler (masc.) (See George Ladd, NT Theology [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974], pp. 530, 560). Paul had several times benefited from the intervention of the Roman government (Acts 17:6 ff.; 18:6 ff.). In other writings he limits the role of human government to its dealing with wrong-doing (Rom 13:1, 3) (Milligan, p. 101). Though preferable to some other solutions, this explanation is disappointing in several ways. To predict the demise of the Roman Empire (cf. v. 7) is very uncharacteristic of Paul (Frame, p. 260). Then too, the Roman emperors sometimes precipitated anti-Christian activities rather than restrained them (Auberlen and Riggenbach, p. 139; Hogg and Vine, p. 260). Elimination of this solution is sealed when we remember that the Roman Empire has long since ceased to exist, and the appearance of Christ or the lawless one has yet to take place (Hogg and Vine, p. 259).⁵⁶

The restrainer must be God Himself and particularly as the Godhead operates through the power and ministry of the Spirit of God. This is supported by the following:

(1) This fits well with the reality that in the final analysis only God is able to hold back Satan and his activity. As Ryrie points out,

Ultimately a decision as to the identity of the restrainer will be made on the basis of answering the question, Who is powerful enough to hold back Satan. The obvious and only answer to that question is God. Therefore, the restrainer must be God Himself. In this view the neuter in verse 6 would remind us of the power of God in general, and the masculine in verse 7 would point to the person of God.⁵⁷

Thomas adds the following helpful comment on this issue of the power needed to accomplish the restraint.

It is evident that the restrainer, to accomplish his mission, must have supernatural power to hold back a supernatural enemy (v. 9). God and the outworking of his providence is the natural answer (Ladd, The Blessed Hope, p. 95). Reference to God is favored by the restrainer’s harmony with divine purpose and a divine timetable (“at the proper time,” v. 6) (Hiebert, p. 313; Delling, TDNT, 3:460, 461).⁵⁸

(2) This view that the restrainer is God as the Godhead operates through the ministry of the Spirit also fits well with the way Paul varied the gender in his description of the restrainer and in the way the Holy Spirit is referred to in Scripture. The Greek word for Spirit is neuter, but on several occasions masculine nouns or pronouns are used for the person of the Spirit as in John 15:26; 16:13-14 and Ephesians 1:13-14.

… Either gender is appropriate, depending on whether the speaker (or writer) thinks of natural agreement (masc. because of the Spirit’s personality) or grammatical (neuter because of the noun pneuma; see John 14:26; 15:26; 16:13, 14) (Robertson, RHG, pp. 208, 209). This identification of the restrainer with deep roots in church history (Alford, 3:57, 58) is most appealing. The special presence of the Spirit as the indweller of saints will terminate abruptly at the parousia as it began abruptly at Pentecost.⁵⁹

(3) This view also fits well with the activity of God as previously illustrated in Genesis 6 and God’s activity to restrain the evil intentions of pre-diluvian man. The Holy Spirit who is omnipresent and always at work in the world is also present and at work in the church to accomplish God’s purposes. Since the day of Pentecost (Acts 2) and in keeping with both Old and New Testament promises, this age has been known as the age of the Spirit. It is a time characterized by the fact of the indwelling of the Spirit in the body of Christ (John 14:16-17; 16:8f; 1 Cor. 6:19; Eph. 1:13f; 4:30, etc.). So obviously, much of the Spirit’s ministry of restraint is now being accomplished by the work of the Spirit in the body of Christ in ways far beyond our imagination.

(4) While the Spirit cannot be removed from the world as the omnipresent one, there is the sense in which He can come to be out of the midst as described in verse 7 through the removal of the church, the body of Christ. With the absence of the church, the Spirit’s ministry will then revert back to that of the Old Testament times when the Spirit was with believers in some special way, but was evidently not in them the way He is today. Jesus spoke of this difference when He told the disciples, “Then I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept, because it does not see him or know him. But you know him, because he resides with you and will be in you” (emphasis mine) (John 14:16-17 in the NET Bible). Thus, while the Spirit will not be taken out of the world, a reference to His presence (otherwise no one could be saved in the Tribulation and millions will be), He will come to be out of the midst, a reference to His special residence in the church. This removal of His residence will allow Satan to quickly bring about the great rebellion and reveal the man of lawlessness.

… every person of the Godhead has been, is, and always will be present in the world simply because God is omnipresent. But the persons of the Godhead and particularly the Holy Spirit have not always been resident within the hearts of God’s either permanently or universally (see John 14:17), … Today God has bound Himself to be resident within the hearts of all of His people and always … Thus, to say that the restrainer is removed is not to say that the presence of God is taken away from the earth, nor is it to imply that God (or specifically the Holy Spirit) will cease to work in the world in any way including the work of regeneration. Many will be saved in the tribulation period (cf. Rev. 7:14), and God will be the One who accomplishes that work just as He did in Old Testament times. God’s universal and permanent residence in His people is a distinctive relationship in this day of grace, and certainly the removal of His residence (including those believers in whom He resides) does not mean the withdrawal of His presence or the cessation of His activity. No other interpretation does full justice to all the facts and implications of this passage.⁶⁰

The Destruction of the Lawless One (2:8)

By the temporal adverb, “then,”⁶¹ verse 8 shows the unveiling of “the lawless one”⁶² will not occur until the restrainer is removed or is no longer resident in the midst as a restraining force in the church. Thus, verse 8 functions as a kind of transition to the next section, verses 9-12. These verses focus on the rise of the lawless one and so also on the Day of the Lord as the product of Satan’s work or activity of deception in the world. But before the apostle moves to that subject, he calls our attention to the sure destruction of this one who is the product of Satan’s work. Though hideous beyond belief, the rise and activity of the lawless one, and so also his governmental and religious system, will be short lived. The temporary nature and sure end of the rule and life of the lawless one is brought out by two statements of the apostle which stress the action accomplished and the means employed: (1) “whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth,” and (2) “wipe out by the manifestation of his coming.” While such details are not mentioned in this passage, verse 8 spans the seven-year reign of the antichrist from the time he makes a covenant with Israel (Dan. 9:26-27) following the rapture, until his destruction by the true Christ at His glorious return at the end of the Tribulation (see Rev. 19:11-21).

Thus, verse 8b strongly focuses us on God’s sovereignty, the Lordship of Christ, and His absolute power. The world will stand in awe of the lawless one, but he is not even a feather in the wind when compared to the Lord Jesus.

The First Statement of the Demise of the Lawless One: “whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth.”

The action against the lawless one: “Destroy” is anaireo, “to take away, remove, destroy.” The word was mostly used of “killing by violence, in battle, by execution, murder, or assassination.”⁶³ Revelation 19:19-20 describes what is meant by “destroy.” The lawless one will not be annihilated, i.e., cease to exist, but removed and thrown alive into the lake of fire.

Revelation 19:19-20 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to do battle with the one who rode the horse and with his army. Now the beast was seized, and along with him the false prophet who had performed the signs on his behalf—signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. Both of them were thrown alive into the lake of fire burning with sulfur.

The means used by Christ: “With the breadth of his mouth” is fundamentally a quote from Isaiah 11:4 (see also Rev. 19:15). Truly, as Martin Luther put it in the great old hymn, A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, “A word shall quickly fell him.” Whether “the breath of his mouth” is a figurative reference to a word spoken by Christ or to His literal breath, it highlights the ease by which He will remove the lawless one and his lawless and godless system from the earth.

The Second Statement of the Demise of the Lawless One: “and wipe out by the manifestation of his coming.”

The action against the lawless one: “Wipe out” is katargeo, which means (1) “to make ineffective, to nullify, make powerless, idle,” or (2) “abolish, wipe out, set aside.” The idea here is that the lawless one’s power, presence, and rule will be brought to an end and rendered impotent as far as the world is concerned. His fate is the lake of fire.

The means used by Christ: “by the manifestation of his coming.” The very manifestation and splendor (see Tit. 2:13) of the Savior’s presence when He arrives at the end of the Tribulation will render the antichrist impotent and defeated.

Though different words are used in the Greek text, there are two unveilings spoken of in verse 8, that of the man of lawlessness (the antichrist), and that of Christ Himself. For the manifestation of Christ, the apostle used the Greek word epiphaneia, “appearance, manifestation.” It was often used as a religious technical term in the sense of a visible manifestation of a hidden divinity, either in the form of a personal appearance, or by some deed of power by which its presence is made known.⁶⁴

The apostle used epiphaneia a number of times for the coming of Christ. In each case he used it to focus on some aspect of the purpose of Christ’s appearance or on the glorious nature of His appearing or both. These include the destruction of the man of lawlessness (2 Thes. 2:8), the fact of God’s sovereign rule (1 Tim. 6:14), of Christ’s first appearing to destroy death and give life (2 Tim. 1:10), the judgment of the living and the dead and God’s rule (2 Tim. 4:1), the awarding of crowns (2 Tim. 4:1), and the glorious nature of His appearing as an incentive to godly living now (Tit. 2:13). Here then, is a strong note of encouragement. Yes, there is a mystery of lawlessness at work now; and yes, the man of lawlessness (Satan’s man) will have his day of power and rule, but it will be short lived. The Lord Jesus, the Lamb who is also the Lion and the one who will have already come for the church, will return with His bride (Rev. 19) and His worldwide and glorious manifestation will become the very means of rendering powerless Satan’s man.

Conclusion

No wonder the author of Hebrews, warning his audience against going back into the legalism of Judaism, spoke of what Christ has accomplished and of what we have in Christ now and in the future as our “so great salvation” (Heb. 2:3). Our salvation in Christ not only frees us from the clutches of sin, both its penalty and power, and from the power of Satan, but it promises us a glorious future by the literal return of the Savior in great glory and power. First, as declared in 1 Thessalonians, He will come for us to deliver us from the wrath to come, but then He will come with us to defeat Satan’s end-time system and establish His glorious rule on earth. It is for this reason Paul speaks of this event as “the blessed hope and (or “even”) the appearing of our Great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” But lest we forget, it is a hope that not only gives comfort for the future, but strong instruction and motivation for godly living now.

2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. 2:12 It trains us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 2:13 as we wait for the happy fulfillment of our hope in the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. 2:14 He gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, who are eager to do good. 2:15 So communicate these things with the sort of exhortation or rebuke that carries full authority (Titus 2:11-15).

Further, as we reflect on these verses, we should never underestimate the way God is using the church today. As Wiersbe writes:

In spite of its weakness and seeming failure, never underestimate the importance of the church in the world. People who criticize the church do not realize that the presence of the people of God in this world gives unsaved people opportunity to be saved. The presence of the church is delaying the coming of judgment. Lot was not a dedicated man, but his presence in Sodom held back the wrath of God (Gen. 19:12-29).

There are two programs at work in the world today: God’s program of salvation, and Satan’s program of sin, “the mystery of iniquity.” God has a timetable for his program, and nothing Satan does can change that timetable. Just as there was a “fulness of time” for the coming of Christ (Gal. 4:4), so there is a “fulness of the time” for the appearance of antichrist; and nothing will be off schedule. Once the restraining ministry of the Spirit of God has ended, the next event can take place.⁶⁵

Whether one realizes it or not, through the preaching of the gospel and bringing people into a relationship with Christ, the church has been the cause of more transforming changes for good than any other source or movement in history. Perhaps, the following two illustrations will help to show this.

First, in his book, What If Jesus Had Never Been Born?, Dr. James Kennedy first gives an overview of a number of the awesome results of the life of Jesus Christ and then documents and explains how Christianity has impacted society in detail with illustration after illustration in the rest of the book. Today, many take these things for granted, especially in our country, but as Kennedy shows, things were by no means always like this. Here are a few of those transforming results summarized: (1) The development of hospitals which essentially began during the Middle Ages. (2) Universities, which also began in the Middle Ages. In addition, most of the world’s greatest universities were started by Christians for Christian purposes. (3) Literacy and education for the masses. (4) Capitalism and free-enterprise. (5) Representative government, particularly as it has been seen in the American experiment. (6) Civil liberties. (7) The abolition of slavery, both in antiquity and in more modern times. (8) Modern science. (9) The elevation of women. (10) Benevolence and charity; the Good Samaritan ethic. (11) The condemnation of adultery, homosexuality, and other sexual perversions. This has helped to preserve the human race, and it has spared many from heartache. (12) High regard for human life because people are seen as created in the image of God. (13) The civilizing of many barbarian and primitive cultures.⁶⁶

Second, I was recently reminded of this restraining influence of the church by Dr. Ted Baehr, author of The Media Wise Family and Chairman of The Christian Film and Television Commission/Good News Communications, who spoke at the church my wife and I attend. In his message as well as in his book, he gives statistic after statistic based on numerous polls and surveys that show the church is a lot more healthy than one might suppose in view of what is seen and heard via the media. The same applied to the morals of American people and that in spite of the fact that many movies and TV shows today promote morals that fall completely in line with the mystery of lawlessness. Though the church is far from what it should be, it appears the restrainer is at work regardless of the fact the Bible is not being proclaimed as clearly and with the depth as it should. For instance,

A USA Today / CNN / Gallup poll dealt with broader entertainment industry issues. This survey of 65,142 viewers found: 96% are very concerned or somewhat concerned about sex on TV. 97% are very or somewhat concerned about vulgar language on TV. (7% are very or somewhat concerned about violence on TV. 83% said the entertainment industry should make serious effort to reduce sex and violence in movies and music and TV. 68% believe that reducing the amount of sex and violence in movies and music and on TV would significantly improve the moral climate of the U.S. 65% felt the entertainment industry is seriously out of touch with the values of the American people… ⁶⁷

In another place, Baehr points out another interesting report.

The spiritual sea change in America is influencing the box office in some startling ways. Movies with strong Christian content are becoming extremely profitable at the box office. In 1996, movies with strong Christian content, such as Dead Man Walking, and not just movies with wedding or funeral homilies, earned 37. 5 million on average at the box office, …

… The shift in values and attitudes has left movies with excessive sexual content and violence in the dust. Therefore, much to the dismay of Hollywood executives, many big-budget porno-violent films have flopped at the box office.⁶⁸

What does all this show us? Again, even though there is a crisis in evangelical Christianity and though in some ways we have been losing the war, we can see that a church in whom the Spirit of God is resident is still having an impact of restraint. But a day is coming when the restrainer is going to be removed and I believe this is through the rapture of the church, and then that awful rebellion or apostasy will occur and the lawless one will be revealed.

Addendum:
The Word “Mystery”

The term mystery as it is found in the New Testament is a translation of the Greek word musterion from meuo, “to initiate into (the mysteries),” i.e., to make known special secrets. Thus, musterion meant a secret rite or teaching which the initiate knew but no one else could know. The root idea then is information known only to those on the inside, but hidden to those who are without (Mark 4:11). Most often in the New Testament it refers to information which has been kept secret or veiled, but has now been disclosed by God’s revelation (Rom. 16:25-26).

The Biblical Significance and Use of the Term

As mentioned in the body of this study, the term mystery does not refer to something mysterious in that it eludes all comprehension or explanation. Rather, as used in the Bible, it refers to God’s secrets, His counsels, purposes, and other truths which are not naturally known to man apart from His special revelation in Scripture or by his prophets (Dan. 2:18-23; 27-30).

In many cases in the New Testament it refers to church truth which was unknown in Old Testament times, but has been revealed in the New Testament revelation (cf. Eph. 3:1-9). The Old Testament revealed the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the salvation of the Gentiles, etc., but there was no mention of the church and certain aspects of the church age. These things Paul called mysteries (Rom. 16:25-26).

It is also used of spiritual truth revealed in Scripture (Old or New Testament truth) but which remains a secret or veiled to unbelievers because they cannot spiritually understand ideas due to their unregenerate condition. In this sense, it refers to truth that man cannot comprehend by experience, by trial and error, by human testing, or by his own reason or human philosophy (1 Cor. 2:6-14; Mark 4:11). Through the revelation of the Word of God, the new capacity given in the new nature, and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, the believer becomes the initiate of God’s mysteries (cf. Phil. 4:12 where Paul uses the Greek word mueo). For this more general use, compare also 1 Cor. 4:1 and perhaps Eph. 6:19; Col. 4:3; and 1 Tim. 3:9.

A Summary of the Mysteries of the New Testament

1. The mystery of the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 13). The mystery of the interim program of God between Christ’s first and second advents.

2. The mystery of the blindness of Israel and God’s purpose with Israel’s blindness (Rom. 11:1-25).

3. The mystery of the departure of the church at the end of this age (1 Cor. 15:51-57; 1 Thes. 4:13f).

4. The mystery of the church as the body of Christ where Jew and Gentile become one new man in Christ (Eph. 3:1-11; 2:11f).

5. The mystery of the church as the bride of Christ (Eph. 5:25-32).

6. The mystery of the indwelling of Christ as the hope of glory or spiritual deliverance by the power of the indwelling Christ (Col. 1:26-27; 2:2).

7. The mystery of lawlessness—the continuation and gradual build up of the state of lawlessness which will culminate in the man of lawlessness (1 Thess. 2:7). Lawlessness is not necessarily confusion and disorder or even the absence of law, but rather the presence of rebellion against God’s established rule and purposes. It speaks of the aim of Satan and his hosts of wickedness to overthrow the divine government and established ordinances of God as He designed them.

8. The mystery of godliness, or the process by which man becomes God-like in character through the person, work and life of Jesus Christ as He is faithfully proclaimed and defended by the church of Jesus Christ (1 Tim. 3:16).

9. The mystery of the church as the seven stars (Rev. 1:20).

10. The mystery of God, the answer to the age old question, why has God allowed Satan and evil to continue to exist (Rev. 10:7).

Please note that the answer to this is found in Scripture, it was preached to God’s prophets. There are two key parts to this answer: (a) To resolve the angelic warfare, to answer and demonstrate that Satan, the accuser and slanderer of God’s character is wrong in his accusations and that he is worthy of God’s judgment for his sin. (b) To demonstrate God’s patience and love and to provide ample opportunity for men to come to Christ (2 Pet. 3:7-8).

So when the angel of Revelation 10:7 says “time shall be no more” he means that once the seventh trumpet is sounded, this time of demonstrating God’s character and of demonstrating man and Satan for what they are, this time of allowing Satan and rebellion to continue, will be over; God will act swiftly now to establish His rule of righteousness on earth. This period of the patience of God is over.

11. The mystery of Babylon, the truth regarding the source of the ancient and godless mother-child cult (Rev. 17:5, 7).

---

51 The Hebrew word here is yadon, which has been translated “strive” is in question because it is found only here in the Old Testament. Some take it to mean “strive” in the sense of the Holy Spirit’s work of judging or executing judgment. Some take it to mean “protect, shield,” based on an Akkadian cognate. Others prefer the Septuagint translation of “remain” in the sense that the human spirit placed there by God would not always abide because man was doomed to death.

52 Allen P. Ross, Creation and Blessing, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, 1988, p. 183.

53 Walter Bauer, F. Wilbur Gingrich, Fredrick W. Danker, A Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979, electronic media.

54 Bauer, Gingrich, Danker, electronic media.

55 See Addendum for an overview of the meaning and use of mystery in the New Testament.

56 Thomas, electronic media.

57 Charles Caldwell Ryrie, First and Second Thessalonians, Moody, Chicago, 1959, pp. 110-111.

58 Thomas, electronic media.

59 Thomas, electronic media.

60 Ryrie, pp. 113-114.

61 “Then” is the Greek tote, used here to introduce that which follows in time.

62 The unveiling of the lawless one has already been mentioned in vs. 3, which is a sure sign of the presence of the Day of the Lord.

63 Walter Bauer, F. Wilbur Gingrich, Fredrick W. Danker, A Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979, electronic media.

64 Bauer, Gingrich, Danker, electronic media.

65 Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Ready, Victor Books, Wheaten, Illinois, 1979, pp. 139-140.

66 D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe, What If Jesus Had Never Been Born?, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, 1994, p. 3.

67 Ted Baehr, The Media Wise Family, Chariot Victor Publishing, Colorado Springs, CO, 1998, pp. 31-32.

68 Baehr, pp. 42-44.

Introduction

In strong contrast to the future of the perishing as just described in verses 10-12, Paul and his team give thanks for the drastically different and glorious future of the Thessalonian believers now described in verses 13-14. Here the believer’s future is described both from the standpoint of God’s sovereign activity and man’s personal responsibility. In these verses we see a beautiful balance that is so often missed as theologians discuss the issues of God’s sovereign election in salvation versus man’s responsibility. In these two verses the apostle shows us the necessity and fact of both in man’s salvation. The unfortunate tendency is man’s bent to swing the pendulum from one extreme to the other so that the whole of God’s truth is not only missed, but one side is blown out of proportion into such a grotesque caricature that the other side is completely overshadowed. Scripture teaches both truths and this passage among others is one of the proofs of that fact.

Can we understand it? Not really, for the more profound a truth is, the greater the difficulty finite man has in understanding it. What is needed is the humility to face this as a part of our own finiteness. For what is the Bible? It is the divine and special revelation of the mind of an infinite God, which means the human reader is often brought beyond the limits of his own intelligence, beyond his capacity of comprehension. Unless we come to recognize that our own wisdom and intelligence are not enough, we will continue to distort what Scripture teaches on such difficult issues. We must be ready to listen to God’s greater wisdom. Jesus alluded to this when He prayed to God, “you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children” (Luke 10:21). Too often men take the position of the wise and seek to use or apply their own human logic to these difficult concepts of Scripture like divine sovereignty and human volition, the trinity, and the divine/human natures of Christ united in one person. As a result, they end up either rejecting, or misinterpreting, or distorting the plain teaching of the Bible on these truths. They become as gods and act as though they have become God’s instructors. But may we be reminded of the words of Isaiah.

Isaiah 40:13-14. Who has understood the mind of the LORD, or instructed him as his counselor? Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge or showed him the path of understanding? (NIV)

Consequently, having assured these believers that they were not then in the Day of the Lord and having contrasted their glorious future with that of the unbelieving world, the apostle returns to matters at hand in verses 14-17, namely the present danger of failing to hold to what they had been taught so that they might find their comfort and strength in that truth for fruitful living in this present world. In this we see the necessary balance between prophecy and practical Christian living.

Paul was a balanced Christian who had a balanced ministry; and we see evidence of this as he brought his letter to a close. He moved from prophecy to practical Christian living. He turned from the negative (Satan’s lies) to the positive (God’s truth), and from warning to thanksgiving and prayer …

Paul’s emphasis was on the truth of God’s Word in contrast to Satan’s great lie which Paul discussed in the previous section …⁷⁹

The Believer’s Position and Deliverance
(2:13-14)

2:13 But we ought to give thanks for you always, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 2:14 He called you to this salvation through our gospel, so that you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Thanksgiving of Paul and His Associates (2:13a)

“But we ought to give thanks for you always.” In characteristic fashion of a man who understood the grace perspective of life, the apostle again gives thanks to God for the Thessalonians (see 1 Thes. 1:2, 2:13; 3:9; 2 Thes. 1:3) whose very salvation was, of course, the result of the love of God. But as in 1:3, the apostle expresses this as a constant moral obligation that arises out of the nature of God’s saving grace. As in 1:3, he again combines the present continuous tense of opheilo, “to owe, be indebted,” with the adverb pantote, “at all times,” to stress the point of our obligation to recognize the gracious and loving work of God in the salvation of men.

The apostle then describes them literally as “brethren, beloved by the Lord.” To do this he used the perfect passive participle of agapao, “to love.” The participle is appositional (an explanatory equivalent) to “brethren.” As brethren, they are “beloved by the Lord.” Contextually, this is what we would call an intensive perfect because it stresses being loved as an abiding state resulting from past action. As believers in Christ, having been loved by God in the past, we are the constant recipients of God’s love in the present (see Rom. 8:39). Whatever has been done for us in Christ springs from the eternal love of God, but as God’s children we continue to remain recipients of that love. It was at the cross that God proved His love for sinners (Rom. 5:8).

With the word “because” (hoti, used here as a causal conjunction, “because, since”), Paul described the stages of salvation as the outworking of His love.

God’s Sovereign Activity in Salvation (2:13b, 14a)

(1) He chose them from the beginning for salvation (2:13b). In this statement, as it springs from God’s eternal love, we see the ultimate cause and source of our salvation in Christ—divine selection. “Chose” is from the verb aireo, “to pick, take,” but in the middle voice it means “to choose.” The form of the verb (an aorist indicative middle of past action) plus the words, “from the beginning,”⁸⁰ point to the pre-temporal choice of God which the apostle usually places alongside their historical call (vs. 14). This choice was not on the basis of their love for God (1 John 4:10) or any merit on their part, but because of God’s love for them. The middle voice (an intensive middle, “he chose for or by Himself) stresses this truth. The next clause, however, will expand on this. The words, “for salvation,” express the purpose or goal. What is stated here is said in contrast to those who are perishing because they have no love for the truth (vs. 12). Thus, Paul states that the goal is salvation for those chosen by the sanctifying work of the Spirit and belief in the truth, the gospel. “Salvation” is soteria, “deliverance, salvation.” But again, the New Testament teaches us that our salvation in Christ has three phases or aspects. The past, saved from the penalty of sin, the present, being delivered from the reign and power of sin, and the future, being in the presence of God throughout eternity. This salvation is a matter of present confidence, enjoyment, and future anticipation in contrast to those who will go through the Day of the Lord.

(2) He sanctified them (set them apart) by the Spirit (2:13c). Exactly how God chose them for or by Himself is now amplified. First, it was “through the sanctification by the Spirit.” “Sanctification” is the Greek hagiasmos from hagiazo, “to consecrate, set apart, sanctify.” It carries the idea of a “setting apart” from the secular to that which is holy or reserved for God’s special purposes. In this there is the present, progressive sanctifying work of the Spirit designed to bring believers to spiritual maturity and conform them into the character of Christ. But in the context here, Paul refers to the preliminary work of the Spirit to illuminate, convict, and lead a person to faith in Christ (cf. John 16:8f; Acts 1:8; 16:14; 1 Pet. 1:2). This reminds us of the principle that we may (and should) sow and water the seed of the Word, but ultimately, it is God who brings the increase or enables the seed to germinate and sprout up in the heart of those to whom we witness.

The second means God uses is “faith in the truth.” This will be covered below under “Man’s Responsibility in Salvation.”

(3) He called them to this salvation through the Gospel (2:14a). Literally, the Greek text reads, “unto which (referring to salvation, the main idea of verse 13) He called you through our gospel.” “Our gospel” naturally refers to the message about the person and work of Jesus Christ. This is also “the gospel of our Lord Jesus” (1:8). In verse 13 Paul spoke of God’s pre-temporal choosing of the Thessalonians for salvation. Here he speaks of the actual work of bringing them to Himself by calling them through the message of the gospel. “Call” is aorist of the verb kaleo, “call, invite.” The aorist tense looks back to the time when the missionaries visited Thessalonica and they heard the gospel in what the missionaries preached.

(4) He gave them the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ (2:14b). “So that you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus” points us to the ultimate goal—sharing in the glory of eternity with the Lord Jesus. Here we see what began in His past eternal councils finds its ultimate fulfillment in eternity future. However, as seen in 1:10, sharing in the glory of Christ will begin with His parousia when He comes with the church to be glorified in His saints (see also 1 Thes. 5:9).

… What begins with grace always leads to glory. This is quite a contrast to the future assigned to the lost (2 Thes. 1:8-10). Believers already possess God’s glory within (John 17:22; not the past tense in Rom. 8:30— “glorified”). We are awaiting Christ’s return, and then the glory shall be revealed (2 Thes. 1:10; Rom. 8:17-19).

When sinners believe God’s truth, God saves them. When they believe Satan’s lie, and reject the love of the truth, they cannot be saved (2 Thes. 2:10-12). Being neutral about God’s truth is a dangerous thing. It has tragic eternal consequences.⁸¹

Man’s Responsibility in Salvation (2:13d)

As pointed to above, this is brought out in the words, “… and faith in the truth.” As the God who ordained the end and chose us for salvation and the possession of the glory of Christ, so likewise He has ordained the means as it pertains to man’s responsibility. This responsibility is linked, of course, to the sanctifying work of the Spirit. That responsibility is faith in the truth as it is found in the gospel message of the person and work of Jesus Christ. Repeatedly, the apostle has referred to the personal faith of the Thessalonians (see 1 Thes. 1:3 with 1:9; 2:13; 2 Thes. 1:10). God’s election in no way bypasses the need of personal faith in Christ. These two must be held in balance.

It is dangerous to engage in idle speculation about divine sovereignty and human responsibility. Both are taught in the Bible. We know that “salvation is of the Lord” (Jonah 2:9), and that lost sinners can never save themselves. We must admit that there are mysteries to our salvation; but we can rejoice that there are certainties on which we can rest. We must not use the doctrine of election to divide the church or disturb the weak, but to glorify the Lord.⁸²

The Believer’s Practice and Responsibility
(2:15-17)

Hold Firmly to the Truth (2:15)

2:15 Therefore, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold on to the traditions that we taught you, whether by speech or by letter.

Paul now turns to a practical responsibility that flows out of all that has been said in verses 1-14. They are called on to stand firm (1) because of the glorious deliverance that awaited them at the coming of the Lord (2:1), (2) because of the false teaching that had disturbed them (2:2-3), and (3) because of Satan’s working of error and the tragic future of those who had not believed the truth (2:9-10).

“Therefore” is ara oun. Ara is a coordinating or inferential conjunction, “so then, consequently,” but here it is strengthened with oun, another conjunction (inferential and transitional) meaning “therefore, then.” Ara points to the inference drawn from the preceding context and oun to the transitional focus or exhortation that should result.⁸³

Even though they were not in the Day of the Lord and could never be because they had not been appointed to wrath, but to deliverance (1 Thes. 1:10; 5:9), still they, as all believers in the church age, are living in a time when the mystery of lawlessness is always at work. In this regard there is a present danger of deception and a growing apostasy (1 Tim. 4:1f; 2 Tim. 3:1f). Thus, believers must stand firm and hold on with a strong grip to the truth Paul and his associates had taught them. With the words “stand firm” we have the call for stability in contrast to being shaken or disturbed (2:2). With the words “hold on to the traditions …” we have the means to maintain the needed stability.

Both “stand firm” and “hold on” are in the continuous present tense and the imperative mood, the mood of command. In this context, where some had been shaken from their composure (2:2), it carries the force of “begin and continue to stand firm and hold on.” The verb “stand firm” is steko, “to stand,” but it is used figuratively in the sense of “standing firm” or “being steadfast.” It calls for believers to become spiritually stable because of the many and strong winds of false doctrine that always blow across the landscape of human history (see Eph. 4:14). The means for stability is found in the command to “hold on.” “Hold on” is the verb krateo, which first means, “to be strong, mighty,” hence, “to rule, be master, prevail.” From this it came to mean “to hold on to something strongly or tightly so that it cannot be lost or taken away.” The focus, of course, is on the object to be held tightly, “the traditions that we taught you” because this provides the source of stability like a sailor clinging to the mast of a ship in rough seas.

“Traditions” is paradosis, which is literally, “a handing down” or “passing on.” The verb form, paradidomi, “to hand over,” and its noun cognate, paradosis, should not be taken lightly. They do not mean tradition as it is often understood in modern English in the sense of mere human customs that one can simply accept or reject. It refers here to “a tradition of teaching, that which is passed on to others,” but the nature and value of the tradition depends on the context.

Negatively, paradosis is used in the New Testament of the teaching of the Jewish Rabbis (Matt. 15:2-6; Mark 7:5, 9, 13; see also Gal. 1:14). In Matthew 15 and Mark 7, the Lord rebuked the Pharisees because they had raised their religious traditions above Scripture so that they had nullified the authority of the Word of God itself. Paul uses it in Colossians 2:8 to describe the Colossian heresy, of human traditions, of that which had its source in man’s ideas.

Positively, however, paradosis and paradidomi are often theologically rich and in essence refer to the God-breathed teachings of God’s Word through the apostolic traditions received from the Lord Himself (see John 16:12-16; 1 Cor. 11:2, 23; 15:3). Thus, here and in 3:6, it is used of the teachings handed down by the apostle and his missionary team which in turn had been handed down to them by the Lord (1 Cor. 11:23; 15:3). The important point here is that Paul’s use of this word points to its divine authority in contrast to the mere human traditions as in the Colossian heresy (Col. 2:8) or to any other teaching contrary to what they had received from Paul. Paul’s teaching and that of his associates did not originate from man, but had its source in God Himself, “through revelation from Jesus Christ” (see 1 Thes. 2:13; Gal. 1:12). Thus, whether through Paul or through the other Apostles, these traditions had their source in God Himself by divine revelation and constituted “the faith … once for all delivered (paradidomi) unto the saints” (see Jude 3).

It is these traditions of divine revelation that he had passed on to the Thessalonians, “whether by speech or by letter.” Thus, they were to cling to these as the source and means for standing firm against not only all forms of false teaching but against the various storms of life, regardless of their source.

Practice the Truth (2:16-17)

2:16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, 2:17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good thing you do or say.

Before moving on to other practical matters, Paul concludes his exhortation with a short but powerful prayer as part of their appeal for practical compliance and as an expression of the desire or wish of the apostolic team. The reason for the prayer is threefold: First, believing and holding on to the truth should lead to its practice. Second, Paul and his team knew that only the Lord Himself could effectively bring about the needed encouragement and stability, the kind that would lead to the practice of the truth in word and deed in the midst of a pagan environment. And third, such a wishful prayer is appropriate and possible because of what God the Son and the Father have done for us by grace in the person of His Son. Verse 16, then, becomes the basis for the specific request in verse 17.

This prayer also reveals a great deal about Paul’s theology, especially his Christology and Trinitarian perspective of God or the Godhead.

… Addressing his prayer to the first two persons of the Trinity, Paul names the Son before the Father (contra 1 Thess 3:11), probably in line with the Son’s worthiness of equal honor with the Father and his special prominence in the chapter’s emphasis on future salvation and glory. Yet the two persons are one God as shown by several structural features in vv. 16, 17: (1) The pronoun autos (“himself,” v. 16) is singular and probably should be understood as emphasizing both persons— “our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father himself” (cf. 1 Thess 3:11). (2) “Loved us and ... gave us” (v. 16) represents two singular participles whose actions are applicable to both the Son and the Father. The singular number is explained by Paul’s conception of the two persons as one God. (3) “Encourage and strengthen” (v. 17) are likewise singular in number though they express the action of a compound subject. This grammatical feature is attributable to the oneness of essence among the persons of the Godhead (cf. John 10:30). Paul conceived of Jesus Christ as God in the same full sense as he conceived of God the Father. No other explanation of this unusual combination of grammatical features is satisfying.⁸⁴

The statement, “who loved us,” points in general to the work of God the Father and the Son and forms the basis or foundation for the eternal comfort and good hope that God (Father and Son) are able to give. Compare the following verses of Scripture.

The love of God the Father is seen in this, that He sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins, I John 4.10, and in that He quickened us with Him, and raised us up with Him and made us to sit in the heavens in Christ Jesus, Eph. 2.4-6. The love of the Son is seen in this, that He laid down His life for us, I John 3.16.⁸⁵

Having loved us, God also give us two wonderful gifts:

(1) Eternal Comfort. “Eternal comfort” puts the future of the Thessalonian believers (and all believers) in strong contrast with those previously described as perishing (2:10-12). “Comfort” is the Greek paraklesis, which means in this context “comfort, consolation, encouragement.” This comfort is, of course, not simply for the future but something which we may know now through the Scripture (Rom. 15:4f; 2 Cor. 1:3-7). But that this comfort is called “eternal” reminds us that all our present affliction is temporary while our recompense and future glory is permanent (see 2 Cor. 4:16-18). Whatever we may face in this life will pass, but our comfort is here to stay. Of course, our present enjoyment of that comfort can only occur as we hold tightly to the promises of God’s Word (Rom. 15:4).

(2) Good Hope. In our modern setting, people often think of hope as a kind of unsure optimism. The modern idea for hope is “to wish for, to expect, but without much certainty, to desire very much, but with no real assurance of getting your desire.” But such is not the New Testament concept of “hope.” The Greek term used here is elpis, which refers to a confident expectation and generally has a future focus. Hope may refer to the activity of hoping, or to the object hoped for, the content of one’s hope. By its very nature, hope stresses two things: (a) futurity, and (b) invisibility. It deals with things one cannot see or hasn’t received or both (cf. Rom. 8:24-25).

Biblically, from the standpoint of the object hoped for, hope is somewhat synonymous with salvation and its many blessings as promised in Scripture—past, present, and future. This is true, it would seem, even with what we have already received as believers because such blessings come under the category of what we cannot see with our physical eyesight. We may see some of the results, but it still requires faith and hope.

As an illustration, we do not see the justifying work of God, the imputation of righteousness to our account. We did not see the indwelling of the Holy Spirit when we were saved or the baptizing work of the Spirit which joined us into union with Christ. We believe this to be a reality, but this is still a matter of faith and hope—the confident expectation in its reality. We believe in the testimony of God in the Word like Romans 6 and hope for the results in our lives—victory over the flesh.

Hope is the confident expectation, the sure certainty that what God has promised in the Word is true, that it either has occurred or will occur in accordance with the sure promises of His Word. Such a hope, then, naturally flows out of the eternal comfort and is also a present possession of those who rest in the sure promises of the Word. The focus in the word “hope” is generally, as in this context of 2 Thessalonians 1 and 2, on the future glory and rest already mentioned (1:7; 2:14). For a similar thrust and connection of “comfort” and “hope” see Romans 15:4f.

Finally, we should note that this hope is described as “good.” This is the adjective agathos. Agathos refers to what is morally and practically good because it is beneficial. The implication is that there are other kinds of hope—those that are evil because they will not come to pass or are based on that which is futile, like the hope mankind will have in the promises of the lawless one or in man’s ideas of a great society or the hopes men have in false religious systems. I can remember when there was the hope that the atomic bomb would bring an end to war because of the military dominance it would give this nation, but that was a false hope.

Finally, following the word order of the original Greek text, the apostle concludes with the words, “by grace.” All that we have—being the objects of God’s love and the recipients of comfort and hope—is by grace and never by what we deserve, no matter how faithful we might be. It’s all a matter of God’s amazing grace.

With the preceding as the basis for Paul’s prayer and desire, he moved to the specific requests in verse 17 for encouragement and strength, “… encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good thing you do or say.” The Thessalonians needed comfort and encouragement (the verb “encourage” [parakalesai] suggests both “comfort” and “encourage”; sometimes it means “urge” as in 1 Thes. 4:1, 10; 2 Thes. 3:12) in view of their recent anxiety created by false information concerning the day of the Lord. “Strengthen” is the verb sterizo, “set up, fix firmly, establish, support.” From this it came to be used figuratively in the sense of “confirm, establish, strengthen” (it was used in 1 Thes. 3:2, 13). It carries with it the idea of stability.

But certainly the concluding words, “by grace,” are significant for the need of encouragement and strength. Nothing can encourage the heart and bring stability like a firm grasp on God’s grace. It is grace that saved us, it is grace that keeps us, and it is grace that will enter us into God’s presence. In keeping with the words of verse 17, I am reminded of the exhortation of Hebrews which reads: “Do not be carried away by all sorts of strange teachings. For it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not ritual meals, which have never benefited those who participated in them (Hebrews 13:9, emphasis mine)

Strange teachings, those not based on the Word and the amazing grace of God and His finished work in Jesus Christ, must of necessity lead to a false or evil hope. Not only can they not truly comfort, but they cannot strengthen the heart or give true biblical stability in the face of all that life may bring.

Verse 17 records Paul’s desire and prayer for the Thessalonians and stands as a model of concern for all of us. He wanted God to encourage their hearts and strengthen them in their spiritual lives in every good thing they might say and do (i.e., in word and work or in talk and walk). Again we see the practical pastoral heart of the apostle and his team seeking to encourage and strengthen them as a father does his children (1 Thes. 2:11). Thus, encouragement and strengthening (or establishment) are two themes repeated in the Thessalonians epistles.

When Paul was with them, he encouraged them individually as a father does his children (1 Thes. 2:11). He sent Timothy to encourage them (3:2), and Paul himself was greatly encouraged with Timothy’s report of their faithfulness (3:7).

Paul encouraged them to walk to please God (4:1), and to grow in their love for others (4:10). He taught them about the rapture of the church in order that they might encourage each other (4:18). To calm their fears, he explained the Day of the Lord to them (5:11). In addition to his teaching, he urged them to minister to each other (5:18).

Establishment in the Lord is also an important theme. Paul sent Timothy back to Thessalonica that he might establish them in their faith (1 Thes. 3:2); and Paul prayed that God might establish them (3:13). The child must be taught to stand before he can learn to walk or run.

It is God who establishes, but He uses people to accomplish His work. A great need in our churches is for Christians who will take time to establish the younger believer. Group Bible studies are very valuable, as are the public meetings of the church; but individual discipling is also important. Paul encouraged the Thessalonican believers on a one-to-one basis, and we should follow his example.⁸⁶

But let’s not forget the aim of these two themes which is expressed in the clause, “in every good thing you do and say.” This focuses on two aspects of the believer’s life, his or her words and walk. Both of these should manifest the character of the Lord Jesus and be consistent with one another. But for that to be so, the believer must think with the truth of God’s Word as one who holds firmly to the “traditions,” the teachings of the Word. The aim here is expressed by the psalmist in Psalm 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer” (NASB). Of course, we are never saved by works (Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:4-5), but part of the aim of our salvation is unto good works and ministry in a world in need of the Savior.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them.

Titus 2:11–3:7 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. 2:12 It trains us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 2:13 as we wait for the happy fulfillment of our hope in the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. 2:14 He gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, who are eager to do good. 2:15 So communicate these things with the sort of exhortation or rebuke that carries full authority.

3:1 Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work. 3:2 They must not slander anyone, but be peaceable, gentle, showing complete courtesy to all people. 3:3 For we too were once foolish, disobedient, misled, enslaved to various passions and desires, spending our lives in evil and envy, hateful and hating one another. 3:4 But “when the kindness of God our Savior appeared and his love for mankind, 3:5 He saved us not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy, through the washing of the new birth and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, 3:6 whom he poured out on us in full measure through Jesus Christ our Savior. 3:7 And so, since we have been justified by his grace, we become heirs with the confident expectation of eternal life.”

Conclusion

Life is certainly filled with tests or trials of every sort and size and this includes being confronted with false doctrine as were the Thessalonians and the unsettling effects this can cause when we are not anchored solidly in the Word. These tests, however, can be a source of growth and a means to experience God’s strength for spiritual stability, or they can cause us to become uneasy and shaken in our composure. The difference depends on how well we know and are holding firmly to God’s truth and resting in His matchless grace.

Anyone who has lived or worked in a skyscraper knows tall buildings sway in the wind. There’s no danger; the engineers know it will happen, but the sway is uncomfortable for people inside. When engineers and architects designed Citicorp Center in New York, they decided to do something about it.

At the top of the fifty-nine story building, they installed a machine called a tuned mass damper. The machine, writes Joe Morgenstern in New Yorker magazine, “was essentially a four-hundred-and-ten-ton block of concrete, attached to huge springs and floating on a film of oil. When the building swayed, the block’s inertia worked to damp the movement and calm tenants’ queasy stomachs.”⁸⁷

When the winds of life gust all around us, we too have a source of stability in the sure promises and truth of the Bible which can calm our spiritual queasiness.

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79 Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Ready, Victor Books, Wheaton, 1979, p. 151.

80 There is some debate over whether the text should read aparchen, “first fruits,” or ap’ arches, “from the beginning.” “Some manuscripts (B F G 33 1739 al) read “as a first-fruit” (i.e., as the first converts), but this is more likely to be a change by scribes who thought of the early churches in this way. Paul would not be likely to call the Thessalonians “the first-fruits” among his converts. The reading in the text is supported by ? D Y Byz.” (Textual critical note from the NET Bible, The Biblical Studies Press).

81 Wiersbe, pp. 153-154.

82 Wiersbe, p. 153.

83 Walter Bauer, F. Wilbur Gingrich, Fredrick W. Danker, A Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979, electronic media.

84 Robert L. Thomas, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, New Testament, Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1976-1992, electronic media.

85 C. F. Hogg and W. E. Vine, The Epistles to the Thessalonians, Pickering & Inglis LTD, London, 1914, p. 278.

86 Wiersbe, p. 157.

87 Craig Brian Larson, Contemporary Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers, and Writers, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, 1996, p. 273.

Introduction

If left untreated, disorder in the church, like physical ailments, will only increase causing greater and greater sickness and pain. Because of a wrong response to the imminent return of the Lord, the problem of idleness touched on briefly in 1 Thessalonians, seems to have only grown worse. There were those in the church at Thessalonica who had evidently stopped working and were running about in excited idleness from house to house in anticipation of the Lord’s return at any moment. This wrong response to prophetic truth not only led to idleness and the lack of ability to support oneself and family, but it had resulted in becoming busybodies. It appears they also expected the church to support them. It is entirely possible that it was this group that had been spreading some or perhaps all of the false teaching discussed in chapter 2 of this epistle. Further, they were probably guilty of spreading rumors or gossip about others in the church. As Wiersbe puts it, “They had time on their hands and gossip on their lips, but they defended themselves by arguing, ‘The Lord is coming soon!’”⁹⁴

In the previous epistle, Paul had warned these busybodies to stop such idleness and get back to quietly working with their own hands (1 Thess. 4:11-12). He later urged the believers there to admonish the unruly or undisciplined (ataktos, “out of order, disorderly, undisciplined”). In view of this chapter, it is clear that either they had not heeded Paul’s admonishment or they had not listened to the admonishments from the church body.

This is a sad illustration of either wrong interpretation or wrong application of biblical truth. The New Testament does teach the imminent, any-moment possibility of the return of the Savior for His church; it is imminent, but no one know when He will return. It could be today, but it might not be, as has been the case for hundreds of years. The principle is that we are to live as though it will be today while working and continuing on in life as though it won’t be for years to come. We must hold both truths in proper balance. As seen previously, the coming of the Lord with all that it means to believers is to be a strong motivation to godliness and obedience to the directives of God’s Word through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Misinterpretations and misapplications of the truths of God’s Word can cause endless trouble. History records the foolishness of people who set dates, sold their possessions, and sat on mountains waiting for the Lord to return. Any teaching that encourages us to disobey another divine teaching is not Bible teaching.⁹⁵

The Exhortations of the Apostolic Team
(3:6)

3:6 But we command you, brothers and sisters, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from any brother who lives an undisciplined life and not according to the tradition you received from us.

The seriousness of this exhortation is seen in the use of the word “command,” in Paul’s appeal in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the nature of the command “to keep away.” “Command” is parangello, “give orders, command, instruct with authority.” It is was used for various directions given from persons in authority like human rulers, Jesus, and the apostles. Paul used this strong word in connection with the idle busybodies in the first epistle (4:11 and the noun form, parangellia, in 4:2) and in this epistle in 3:4, 6, 10, & 12. Parangello was a military word often used of a command by a superior officer. The lesson here is simple: the church is engaged in spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:10ff) with each believer a soldier whom God has enlisted into His army. When we fail to follow the directives of the Savior, it leads to disorderly conduct which hurts our effectiveness (see 2 Tim. 2:3-4; 1 Tim. 1:18). Thus, the apostle used another military term to describe the problem at Thessalonica. Some of the saints were “undisciplined,” literally, “out of order” or “out of rank.” “Undisciplined” is ataktos, an adverb meaning “disorderly, out of rank” (see also 3:11 and the verb form, atakteo, in 3:7). This family of words was used of soldiers who were out of step or moving in disarray. For another passage that uses military metaphors, we might compare by way of contrast two words the apostle used in Colossians 2:5 when he wrote, “For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, rejoicing to see the order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.” (emphasis mine) Here the apostle was thankful for the orderly way the Colossians had closed ranks and presented a solid front of soldiers in standing for the cause of Christ. “Order” is taxis, “a fixed succession or order.” It was a military term used of a rank or orderly array. “Firmness” is stereoma, “a solid body,” and so “steadfastness, firmness.” But this too was a military word and continues the military metaphor and means, “a solid front,” a closed phalanx as it was used of Roman soldiers marching shoulder to shoulder with their spears pointing forward.

In this regard, Paul appealed to the Thessalonians in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Commander-in-Chief of the army of God. In essence, then, these commands came by the authority of Christ. Paul was passing on authoritative instructions as an apostle, one sent by the Lord Jesus to plant or establish churches and to lay the biblical foundation for the body of Christ (Eph. 2:20). To disobey Paul’s directives was to disobey the Lord.

“To keep away from any brother who lives an undisciplined life and not according to the tradition you received from us” spells out the specific command. “To keep away” is the middle voice of the verb stello. It originally meant “to set, place, arrange, fit out as an army for an expedition”; hence “to prepare, equip.” Then it came to mean “to bring together” or “to gather up” as when one furls the sails of a ship (so used in Homer). Hence, “to shrink back, to restrain, check,” and in the middle voice, “to restrain or withdraw oneself, hold aloof, avoid.”

“From any brother” or literally, “from every brother” stresses the principle and need of impartiality. The tendency in exercising church discipline is to show partiality to some because of their standing in the community or in the church, or because of financial status, or simply because they are very likable people, but such cannot purify and toughen up God’s army for spiritual warfare. As we are warned in 1 Corinthians 5, a little leaven eventually leavens the whole lump.

“Who live an undisciplined life and not according …” pinpoints the specific problem. “Who live” is literally, “walking in a disorderly way.” “Walking” (present continuous tense of peripateo, “to walk about”) is a common idiom for one’s way of life or conduct in general. “Undisciplined” is the adverb ataktos, mentioned previously, a vivid word that describes the nature of their behavior. “… The word means to play truant. It occurs, for instance, in the papyri, in an apprentice’s contract in which the father agrees that his son must make good any days on which he absents himself from duty or plays truant. The Thessalonians in their excited idleness were truants from duty and from work.”⁹⁶ Such truant behavior was foolish because of the natural consequences and because no one knows when the Lord will return. But it was more than just foolish, it was rebellion because it was contrary to the tradition of truth handed down to the Thessalonians previously (1 Thess. 4:11, 12; 5:14) and to the teaching of the Word in general. In essence, this constituted walking in disobedience to the Word of God. This was rebellion and no excuse could justify such behavior. So strong measures were needed.

What does the Bible teach about manual (or mental) labor? For one thing, labor was a part of man’s life before sin entered the scene. God gave Adam the job of dressing and guarding the Garden (Gen. 2:15). Although sin turned labor into almost hopeless toil (Gen. 3:17-19), it must never be thought that the necessity for work is a result of sin. Man needs work for the fulfillment of his own person. God created him to work.

Have you noticed that God called people who were busy at work? Moses was caring for sheep (Ex. 3). Joshua was Moses’ servant before he became Moses’ successor (Ex. 33:11). Gideon was threshing wheat when God called him (Jud. 6:11ff), and David was caring for his father’s sheep (1 Sam. 16:11ff). Our Lord called four fishermen to serve as His disciples, and He Himself had worked as a carpenter. Paul was a tentmaker (Acts 18:1-3) and used his trade to support his own ministry.

The Jews honored honest labor and required all their rabbis to have a trade. But the Greeks despised manual labor and left it to their slaves. This Greek influence, plus their wrong ideas about the doctrine of the Lord’s return, led these believers into an unchristian way of life.⁹⁷

Later, the apostle will show that the issue here was ultimately one of unwillingness. The circumstances of life (sickness, loss of a job, economic conditions) sometimes keep people from working, so the question was not one of inability but unwillingness (see vs. 10, “if anyone is not willing to work, …”).

The Example of the Apostolic Team
(3:7-10)

3:7 For you know yourselves how you must imitate us, because we did not behave without discipline among you, 3:8 and we did not eat anyone’s food without paying. Instead in toil and drudgery we worked night and day in order not to burden any of you. 3:9 It was not because we do not have that right, but to give ourselves as an example for you to imitate. 3:10 For even when we were with you we used to give you this command: “If anyone is not willing to work, neither should he eat.”

The apostle was always deeply concerned about his own example of Christ-likeness for he knew that a student will become like his teacher (Luke 6:40). His great concern for this is evident in his statement in 1 Thessalonians 1:5 when he said, “… for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved (literally, “came to be”) to be among you for your sake.”

In these verses, then, Paul was able to turn to his own example and that of his team. “Imitate” is the Greek mimeomai from which we get our word “mimic.” As mentioned previously (see exposition on 1 Thes. 1:6-7), this word has no negative connotation as the word imitate sometimes does in our language. As a quick review: The idea of this word is that of modeling, becoming like, or following after another. It stresses the nature of a particular kind of behavior modeled by another that we are to follow. In the New Testament, it has a spiritual, ethical or moral emphasis and is generally linked with an obligation to a certain kind of conduct or character as a product of faith in the directives of the Bible and the example of the apostles or other leaders who were also following the Lord Jesus as our ultimate example. It is linked to certain ones who are living examples for the life of faith and the character of Christ.

This the apostle states is a moral and logical obligation. He said, “you must imitate us.” “Must” is the impersonal verb dei, “one must, ought, it is necessary.” It may refer to the compulsion of duty, of law, of custom, or of an inner necessity that grows out of the situation. Here it is the moral necessity that arises out of the fact these men were their spiritual mentors who followed the Lord Jesus and who had provided them with a godly example.

Thus, Paul added, “because we did not behave without discipline among you, …” As always, though they had the right to receive support from the Thessalonians, they set aside that right in order to provide a fitting example of Christ-like behavior (see vs. 9). This not only provided an example to new Christians, but was a way of answering the false accusations of their accusers (see exposition of 1 Thes. 2). “Without discipline” is atakteo, “to be out of order, out of line.” It’s the verb form of the word used and discussed above in verse 6.

Paul himself was not idle. His readers could verify this claim (“you yourselves know,” v. 7; cf. 1 Thess 2:1; 3:3; 4:2; 5:2). In imitating Paul, they would be imitating the Lord himself (1 Thess 1:6) because Paul’s life was so carefully patterned after his Lord’s. He did not loaf at Thessalonica (v. 7b), nor depend on others to supply him with free food (v. 8a). He supported himself in spite of much fatigue (“laboring,” v. 8) and many obstacles (“toiling,” v. 8; cf. 1 Thess 2:9) in order to relieve the new Christians in Thessalonica of the burden of maintaining him.

Paul did not have to exert himself so tirelessly. As an apostle, he had “the right to such help” (v. 9; cf. 1 Cor 9:4 ff.; 1 Thess 2:7) from his converts. He decided, however, to forego this privilege and leave an example for them to imitate.⁹⁸

With verse 10, the apostle reinforced their example by reminding them of their previous instruction as it pertained to working and supporting oneself and family. As mentioned previously, the instruction here is aimed at those who are “unwilling to work.” Also, this instruction was not just a matter of some cultural tendency they may have noted in the Thessalonians, but of a fundamental biblical principle. God is Himself a worker. After all, He is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. As such, He designed a working vocation as a necessary part of life even before the fall and He expects each of us to be involved in some form of vocation that we might support ourselves, find a sense of significance and destiny in our labor, and be a productive member of society. Thus, denying support to those who are unwilling to work is not cruel, but becomes a basic form of discipline to force idlers into reality and into the responsibility of becoming productive people. This kind of discipline is tough love and provides a protection to both the individual and to the society.

Further Exhortations of the Apostolic Team
(3:11-15)

3:11 For we hear that some among you are living an undisciplined life, not doing their own work but meddling in the work of others. 3:12 Now such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and so provide their own food to eat. 3:13 But you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary in doing what is right. 3:14 But if anyone does not obey our message through this epistle, take note of him and do not associate closely with him, to put him to shame. 3:15 Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

In verse 11, the apostle first mentions the reports they had received regarding those who were leading an undisciplined (idle) life. Two things characterized their behavior: doing no work at all and as a further result, meddling in the affairs of others; they became busybodies rather than busy self-supporting workers engaged in a productive occupation. By working they would become a blessing to themselves and to others, but their idleness had led to the opposite. The Greek word for “meddling” is periergazomai, from peri, “around,” and ergazomai, “to work, labor.” It literally means “to work around or in a circle.” It thus came to mean “to do something useless, to be busy, but accomplishing nothing.” You have heard people say or perhaps said this yourself, “I feel like I have been going in circles.” What we mean is obvious. We mean that, though busy, we feel like we have been getting nowhere fast. Though not mentioned here, 1 Timothy 5:13 describes the results of such behavior, “And besides that, going around from house to house (perierchomai, “to go around or about”) they learn to be lazy; and they are not only lazy, but also gossips and busybodies (periergos, “a meddler, busybody,” the noun form of periergazomai), talking about things they should not.

Almost every culture has its saying about idleness. The Romans said, “By doing nothing, men learn to do evil.” Isaac Watts wrote: “For Satan finds some mischief still, for idle hands to do.” The Jewish rabbis taught, “He who does not teach his son a trade, teaches him to be a thief.”⁹⁹

My mother and grandmother use to say to me, “Idleness, Hampton, is the devil’s workshop.” And of course, they were right. Now, based on the reports mentioned in verse 11, the rule of verse 10 is reinforced in verses 12-15 with three more instructions.

First, in verse 12 and with the words, “in or by the authority of the Lord Jesus,” Paul specifically addressed the idle meddlers who are commanded (parangello) and urged (parakaleo, either “to comfort, encourage,” or as here, “to exhort, appeal to, urge”) “to work quietly and to provide for their own food to eat.” This instruction gives us further insight into the behavior of these idlers. First, their false views about the return of Christ had evidently led them into a kind of feverish excitement which they were seeking to spread from person to person as they went about from household to household. Second, they eventually ran out of money and food and began to expect others to support them. Thus, Paul commands and urges them to settle down and then to go back to work.

But what if these idlers again refuse to follow these instructions (see 1 Thes. 4:11-12; 5:14)? With this possibility in view, the apostle gives instructions to the rest of the Thessalonian Christians to show them how they should deal with idlers who might not obey these instructions (3:13-15).

(1) They are urged to not grow weary in doing what is right. “Grow weary” is the verb enkakeo, “to become tired, weary,” and then “to loose heart, despair.” One is often the result of the other. In struggling with a matter one often becomes weary which may then lead to loosing heart. This suggests that some might lose heart in struggling with their idle brothers. Doing what is right would include remaining examples themselves by working, by reprimanding the disorderly idlers of verse 10, and by refusing to support those who refused to work. To continue to support those who refuse to work is wrong for all concerned.

(2) The apostle speaks to the matter of church discipline (verse 14). This is a subject that is too often avoided today, but not without serious consequences to the body of Christ. It is applied here to those who refused to obey their instruction, which clearly illustrated a rebellious spirit and a wrong relationship to the Savior Himself. Thus, specific and tough measures were needed. First, they were to take special note of such people. “Take note” is the Greek semeioo, “to mark, note.” It’s in the plural and in the middle voice which suggests “note for oneself,” with the implication that all the members of the congregation were to take responsibility for following these instructions. Church discipline will have little effect if not followed by the whole body. Second, they were not to associate closely with an idler, one who refused to work. The verb here is sun-ana-mignumi, a triple compound word meaning “to mix up together,” and then “to associate closely with.”

There is a difference between acquaintanceship, friendship, and fellowship; for fellowship means “to have in common.” For obedient saints to treat disobedient Christians with the same friendship they show to other dedicated saints is to give approval to their sins.¹⁰⁰

In essence, these idlers were to be ostracized from intimate fellowship with the believers of the assembly as a means of shaming them into repentance and change. This should not be confused with formal excommunication as in Matthew 18. Rather it appears to be more a matter of group disapproval and social ostracism. In our country today, Christians will often just change churches to avoid such discipline, but this was a serious thing for believers at that time in a heathen society and the same would apply to many countries today where believers are faced with serious persecution for their faith.¹⁰¹

(3) They are not to be regarded as enemies, but to be admonished as brothers. That this was not total excommunication is suggested by the third instruction given in verse 15, “Yet do not regard (hegeomai, “to think of, consider, regard”) him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.” “Not as an enemy” means “not as one who is opposed to Christ.” “But as a brother” could be taken to mean “as though he were a brother,” but the idea is “because he is a brother, i.e., a fellow member of the body of Christ.” This draws our attention to a couple of important principles in church discipline. First is the fact that the goal of church discipline is never punishment, but tough actions of love done with a view to reformation and restoration to fellowship with Christ and the body of Christ. Second is the issue of extremes. Rather than being balanced as with the Lord Jesus who was full of “grace and truth,” people tend to go to extremes—they are either too lenient or too harsh. Thus, Paul stresses they were not to be treated as enemies, but admonished as brethren, as fellow believers.

“Admonish” is noutheteo, “to admonish, warn, instruct.” The fundamental idea is to put sense or biblical wisdom into the mind so that it changes behavior. It includes an admonishment to change through instruction regarding the principles, consequences of sin, and godly aims, etc. “To sum up, the recalcitrant idler was not to be treated as an enemy cut off from all contacts, but was allowed to continue in a brotherly status. So lines of communication were kept open for continued warnings about his behavior.”¹⁰²

The Necessary Enablement of the Lord
(3:16-18)

3:16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all. 3:17 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand, which is how I write in every letter. 3:18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

The Prayer for Peace and the Lord’s Presence (3:16)

With these words the apostle not only brings the epistle to a close, but these words also remind us that spiritual change in the lives of men, or ministry to people of any kind that effectively brings peace at all times (continually) and in every way (in all circumstances) is not something we can do or experience alone. It requires the supernatural and gracious hand of the Lord Himself. “Himself” is emphatic and stresses this very point. Here the Lord—a reference to the Lord Jesus (cf. vs. 18)—is called the Lord of peace. They, as all believers, had come to have peace with God through faith in the Lord Jesus (Rom. 5:1). Further, faith in Christ also means the capacity for peace with one another (Phil. 4:9; Col. 3:15), and in one’s own heart through the gospel message that brings people into a vital relationship with the Savior, the Prince of Peace, the Peacemaker (see Phil. 1:7; Eph. 2:14-17). Here the Lord Jesus is called “the Lord of peace” because He is the author and source of peace. If they or we are to know real peace, we must walk in intimate fellowship with the Savior and be in obedience to His commands (see John 14:27). Interestingly, in Paul’s concluding remarks in the first epistle he used the phrase, “the God of Peace” (1 Thes. 5:23) and now he concludes with “the Lord of Peace,” which certainly demonstrates his estimation of Christ as being Himself God.

The closing emphasis or focus here on “peace” and “at all times and in every way” also reminds us that life is loaded with trouble and circumstances that can unsettle us, as it had occurred in the church at Thessalonica. But whether it is trouble brought about from false doctrine or from undisciplined believers, it is the Lord Himself who gives us peace and such will only occur when we allow Him to have the place of Lord and reign in our lives.

In the statement “the Lord be with you all,” Paul was praying that they might experience the power and blessing of the Lord on their lives for spiritual growth and well being. There is a sense in which the Lord is always with us. He has in fact promised that He is always with us and will never leave nor forsake us (cf. Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:20), but we may ignore His presence and fail to experience it. So the apostle prays that this might not be the case.

The Personalized Benediction (3:17-18)

With verse 17, the apostle picked up the pen of his amanuensis (the one writing the letter as Paul dictated it to him) and closed with this personal greeting and sign of authority and authenticity.

3:17, 18 Paul was dictating to an amanuensis up to 3:17 (cf. Rom 16:22; 1 Cor 16:21; Col 4:18). At this point he took the pen into his own hand to add a closing greeting. Though he undoubtedly did this quite frequently, he has called attention to it only here, in 1 Corinthians 16:21, and in Colossians 4:18. The greeting in his own hand, “which is the distinguishing mark” in all his letters (v. 17), includes also the benediction of v. 18. Apparently Paul followed this practice consistently, expecting churches where he had served to recall his distinctive handwriting. It was particularly needed in this Epistle as a deterrent against any future attempt to forge a letter in his name (cf. 2:2). The practice was customary in ancient times (Frame, p. 312). When Paul says “in all my letters” (v. 17), he does not mean just the letters previous to this, for he was also to follow this procedure later. Neither is the expression to be limited only to books found in the NT, because he is known to have written other Epistles besides these (cf. 1 Cor 5:9). The handwriting furnished a key by which his Thessalonian readers could recognize a spurious Epistle bearing his name.¹⁰³

With verse 18, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all,” we are reminded of (1) the necessity of the grace of the Lord Jesus for the Christian life, and (2) with the word “all,” God’s desire that all Christians experience this in life. He had commended some and censured others, but his final benediction was upon all. There is here a final appeal for unity, obedience, and blessing including, of course, the idlers.

Conclusion

Both 1 and 2 Thessalonians have stressed the return of the Savior and shown us how this should and should not impact our daily lives. The fact that the Savior is coming again and could come today should promote godly living and give great peace, comfort, joy, and encouragement to endure the trials of life. Such stability is one of the key purposes of prophecy. By contrast, it should never lead to the kind of idleness or to a kind of idle feverishness as had occurred with some at Thessalonica. When this occurs, it hurts the cause of Christ by causing ridicule from the world and unrest within the body of Christ.

When believers act like the idlers at Thessalonica, they become disobedient soldiers who are out of rank and a poor testimony for the Savior. It shows they are indifferent, if not walking in direct rebellion against the specific instructions of the Word and the commands of their Savior. As disorderly Christians, they are a cause of disorder in the church, but church problems are always individual problems and can only be solved when Christians start listening to the instructions of Scripture.

The Lord is coming again and He is coming for His church, the bride of Christ. May we live properly in the light of His any moment return, which means obediently to Scripture. Come quickly Lord Jesus.

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94 Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Ready, Victor Books, Wheaton, 1979, p. 164.

95 Wiersbe, p. 164.

96 William Barclay, The Letters to The Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians, The Westminster Press, Philadelphia, 1^st edition, 1954, p. 252.

97 Wiersbe, p. 166-167.

98 Robert L. Thomas, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, New Testament, Zondervan, Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, Grand Rapids, 1976-1992, electronic media.

99 Wiersbe, p. 169.

100 Wiersbe, p. 173.

101 For a concise study on the issue of church discipline, see the study on our web site entitled, Church Discipline under the “Bible Studies / Theology / Ecclesiology” section.

102 Thomas, electronic media.

103 Thomas, electronic media.

Outline Review

I. Doctrinal: The Person and Work of Christ (1:1-23)

A. Introduction (1:1-14)

1. Paul’s Greeting to the Colossians (1:1-2)

2. Paul’s Gratitude for the Colossians (1:3-8)

Introductory Remarks

Verse three presents the main assertion of verses 1-8,⁴⁶ namely, Paul’s thanksgiving for the Colossians, but it also demonstrates the circumstances and character of his gratitude. Verses 4-5 then express the cause and underlying conditions that formed the powerful stimulus for such thanksgiving. According to Vaughn, “…Appeals for thanksgiving run through Colossians like the refrain of a song (cf. 1:12; 2:7; 3:15, 17; 4:2). This passage, which expresses the apostle’s own gratitude, shows that what he enjoined upon others he himself practiced.”⁴⁷

The Circumstances and Character of Paul’s Gratitude
(1:3)

1:3 We always give thanks to God, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,

As we move into the body of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we again get a glimpse of the prayer life of the apostle that is evident in all of his epistles. Somewhere in the early portion of his epistles, Paul begins with either thanksgiving or with praise to God, Galatians being an exception. His prayer life clearly demonstrated a God-dependent attitude and a perspective that formed the foundation and source of the apostle’s ministry, indeed, his very existence. And this becomes even more significant when you stop to realize that Paul wrote this letter while chained daily to a Roman soldier in his own house. His attitude of thanksgiving forms an instructional illustration for us today.

The apostle begins with “we always give thanks” and not “I give thanks.” While some have argued that this is simply an epistolary plural, it is more in keeping with Paul’s team spirit (cf. 1 Thess. 1:2; 1:3; 3:9) that the “we” is a reference to his prayer life in the company of others like Timothy with whom he regularly prayed.

In addition, Paul’s God-dependent perspective in life is seen in the fact his thanksgiving was addressed to God. While the apostle’s thanksgiving followed the pattern of expressions of gratitude found in intimate letters of the Hellenistic period, his thanksgiving, as with his greeting, was flavored through and through with Christian theology. Typically, his thanksgiving illustrates how he saw himself as but an instrument in the hand of God (2 Cor. 4:6-7). Wonderful things had occurred in the Lycus Valley, but rather than congratulate themselves for a job well done or the Colossians on their faith, love, and hope, they (Paul and Timothy) raised their voices in thanks to the heavenly Father for it was all the work of God. Paul expresses the principle in 1 Corinthians 3:5-9.

3:5 What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us. 3:6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused it to grow. 3:7 So neither the one who plants counts for anything, nor the one who waters, but God who causes the growth. 3:8 The one who plants and the one who waters are united, but each will receive his reward according to his work. 3:9 We are coworkers belonging to God. You are God’s field, God’s building.

Carson has a timely word when he writes, “In a day when Christians too easily slip into the worldly attitude of glorifying men, even though they be godly men, here is a salutary reminder of a basic principle of Scripture: ‘My glory will I not give to another’” (See Is. xlviii.11.).⁴⁸

There is some question regarding the adverb “always.” Because of the lack of punctuation marks in the Greek text, “always” could be taken with “we give thanks,” even though several words separate them. It would then mean “We always give thanks for you when we pray.” But “always” could also be taken with “we pray,” i.e., “we give thanks, always praying for you.” Though difficult to decide, the adverb should probably be taken with “we give thanks.”⁴⁹ Regardless, the persistency of his prayer life is suggested by the word “always” and the fact the words “give thanks” and “praying” are in the present continuous tense in the Greek text. Paul’s prayer life was regular, persistent, and faithful. He was a man who, because of his sense of inadequacy and dependence on the Lord (see 2 Cor. 2:16 & 3:5), prayed without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17). God was real to Paul. God was no vague or mere intellectual concept to the apostle, an idea he clung to just in case. His absolute confidence in God and his own sense of inadequacy drove Paul to his knees—he was a God-dependent man.

Some thoughts on praying persistently. It means:

• To pray daily in scheduled times either alone or in the company of other believers: Christians are never to give up the practice of praying. We are to pray regularly regardless of the opposition or circumstances whether good or bad (cf. Ps. 5:1-5; Neh. 1:6). We must remember that prayer is not for emergency use only.
• To pray spontaneously: to be quick to go to the throne of grace. Our lives are to be filled with prayer and thanksgiving (cf. Neh. 2:4).
• As already seen, it means to pray corporately, as a part of a team; it means to join with others at regular times to seek the face of God.

“To God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” points the reader to the person to whom Paul prayed. Paul’s prayers were never ambiguous or lacking in biblical clarity and accuracy. Theology or biblical truth guided every aspect of his life. He did not pray to the man upstairs or to the big guy in the sky or some such nonsense. Being confident of God as his spiritual Father through Jesus Christ (vs. 2), he prayed personally to God who is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We can know God and pray to Him confidently with access into God’s presence because God has revealed Himself in the person of His eternal Son. Who can better reveal God than His own Son who shares the Father’s heart, purposes, and character (Heb. 1:2-3; John 14:8-10; 1:14,18; so cf. Heb. 4:16; 10:19)? The fact that God is the Father of the Lord in no way depreciates the absolute and total deity of Christ as Paul will make clear later on in this epistle.

The Cause for Paul’s Gratitude
(1:4-8)

The Condition of the Colossians Spiritually (1:4-5a)

1:4 since we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints. 1:5 Your faith and love have arisen from the hope laid up for you in heaven…

“Since we heard of your faith…” explains why they could give thanks for the Colossians since Paul and Timothy had evidently never been to Colossae and did not know the church personally (cf. 2:1-2). Paul expresses gratitude for the Colossians because of the good report he received regarding their love, faith, and hope. The Christian triad of faith, hope, and love appears often in Paul’s writings with either one or more of the three as a basis for thanksgiving or motivation or exhortation (Rom. 5:2-5; 1 Cor. 13:13; Eph. 1:15; 1 Thess. 1:3; 5:8; 2 Thess. 1:3).

First, Paul naturally begins with thanksgiving to God for the faith of the Colossians. Faith, as used here, includes their initial trust in the person and work of Christ. This formed the root and that which brought them into a living relationship with Christ through the Holy Spirit.

A depositor’s money is not safe in proportion to the depositor’s faith in the bank in which the money is deposited. It is safe in proportion to the bank’s solvency. So, the Christian is not a Christian because he possesses faith, but because he possesses faith in Christ. It is not simply faith that matters; it is faith and its object.⁵⁰

But it is important to also note that their faith is defined as “in Christ.” “In” is the Greek preposition en, which may point to the object of their faith,⁵¹ but it most likely points to the sphere in which their faith lived or resided and acted since it is not at all certain that en with pistis (faith) refers to the object.⁵² This may be a matter of splitting hairs since one’s faith cannot reside in Christ if He is not also the object of that faith. But a faith that resides in Christ would stress not only the past initial act of trust in Christ, but also the present focus of the faith of one who seeks to live by virtue of who and what Christ means to believers. Regardless, the issue is not just the presence of faith, but of a faith that resides in Christ. “It gives the thought of reliance going forth to Christ, and reposing on Christ, so as to sink as it were into Him, and find fixture in Him; as the anchor sinks to the floor of the sea, and then into it, that it may be held in it.”⁵³ The apostle will deal with this concept in more detail in 2:6-10.

Second, Paul also thanks God for the love of the Colossians, a love that was being expressed toward all the saints, to believers in Christ. Here the focus is certainly on the present outworking of an active faith that resides in Christ and all that He means to believers. It is the fruit and evidence of fellowship with the Lord Jesus through an active faith in His blessed life (John 15:1-9; 1 John 3:14, 23). A faith that resides in Christ and a love for others are twins that should walk together in life. It is also important to note that “…such love was directed toward all the saints, not to those of the same social class or intellectual stratum. It is to all the saints without exception that true Christian love is shown. The communion of saints means, not a series of loosely related cliques, but an all-embracing and self-abnegating fellowship.”⁵⁴

Finally, Paul was thankful for the hope of the Colossians, but rather than coordinating hope with faith and love as in 1 Thessalonians 1:3, it is set forth as the cause or motivating factor in the spiritual welfare of the Colossians. While this phrase may be taken with the main verb as the ground of the thanksgiving,⁵⁵ it is better to take it with the words “faith” and “love” as seen in the NET Bible’s translation, or with “love” only, which is favored by word position. “Hope,” which is the Greek elpis, refers to a “confident expectation or prospect.” Both the noun elpis and the verb elpizo were used by the apostle to refer to the act of hoping and to the object, the content of hope. Hope is oriented to that which is both future and not immediately seen. The exact content of hope is defined variously by the context. Here are a few illustrations:

• “The hope of salvation” (1 Thess. 5:8). In the context, this is deliverance from the coming wrath of the Tribulation.
• “The hope of righteousness” (Gal. 5:5). This may refer to imputed righteousness or, because of the context, to the Spirit-produced character of righteousness described in 5:16-26.
• “The blessed hope” (Tit. 2:13). This is the confident expectation of the imminent return of the Savior as described in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.
• “The hope of the glory of God” (Rom. 5:2). This is undoubtedly a reference to ultimate glory in God’s presence with a resurrected and glorified body (cf. 1 Cor. 15:19, 52-55).
• “The hope of glory” (Col. 1:27). In the immediate context, this may refer to the confident expectation of a changed life as one learns to trust in who he or she is in Christ rather than looking to the substitutes offered by the false teachers (cf. 1:28-2:23). It could also refer to the ultimate hope of Romans 5:2 and Colossians 3:4. Perhaps both are envisioned.

Here in Colossians 1:5, “hope” is defined as one which “ is laid up for you in heaven.” “Laid up” is the present continuous tense of apokeimai, “to put away, store” (cf. 2 Tim. 4:8). Though centered in the person of Christ Himself (1:27), the place of storage is heaven, a place of security and protection where the corruption and sin of this present world cannot touch it. Peter gave a three-fold description of this. It is (1) a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, (2) a hope that is an imperishable, undefiled, and an unfading inheritance, and (3) that is kept by the power of God (see 1 Pet. 1:3-5 and Matt. 6:19-20). This includes the whole of our salvation—being in God’s presence at home with the Lord immediately after death, eternal glory, a future resurrected body at the resurrection of the just, and eternal rewards (2 Tim. 4:8). In other words, the “hope laid up” includes all that goes with the gift of eternal life and the blessings of the eternal state according to the many promises of Scripture. Here is a hope that cannot be compared to any earthly hope no matter how exquisite.

The point we must not miss is that when Christians live by a faith that resides in Christ, that faith will produce love for others that may result in losses and crosses, but the Christian’s expectation goes far beyond this life into the eternal future. As Barclay expresses it:

Think of it this way. Loyalty to Christ may involve a man in all kinds of loss and pain and suffering. There may be many things to which he has to say goodbye. The way of love may seem to many to be the way of a fool. Why spend life in selfless service? Why not use it “to get on” as the world counts getting on? Why not push the weaker brother out of the way? The answer is—because of the hope that is set before us.⁵⁶

In a context that speaks of sufferings for the sake of others, the apostle Paul expressed it this way in 2 Corinthians 4:

4:14 We do so because we know that the one who raised up Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus and will bring us with you into his presence. 4:15 For all these things are for your sake, so that the grace that is including more and more people may cause thanksgiving to increase to the glory of God. 4:16 Therefore we do not despair, but even if our physical body is wearing away, our inner person is being renewed day by day. 4:17 For our momentary light suffering is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, 4:18 because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal (2 Cor. 4:14-18). (emphasis mine)

Some see an appeal to rewards as selfish and therefore carnal, but true self-centeredness or selfishness is preoccupation with self at the expense of others and God’s will in one’s life. This kind of behavior is carnal and inconsistent with the leading of the Spirit. But we should not ignore the fact that Christ often motivated His disciples with the prospect of eternal rewards. He warned them that they should lay up treasures in heaven where their treasures would have complete security and an eternal rate of return. He told them “Do not accumulate for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.” (Matthew 6:19-20).

The Character and Power of the Gospel (1:5b-6)

1:5b …which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospel 1:6 that has come to you. Just as in the entire world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, so it has also been bearing fruit and growing among you from the first day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth.

With these verses, Paul covers a number of issues that describe the character and power of the gospel of the New Testament.

First, the gospel is good news. The term gospel is found ninety-nine times in the NASB and ninety-two in the NET Bible. Gospel is the translation of the Greek noun euangelion (occurring 76 times), “good news,” and the Greek verb euangelizo (occurring 54 times), “to bring or announce good news.” Both words are derived from the noun angelos, “messenger.” In Classical Greek, a euangelos was one who brought a message of victory or other political or personal news that caused joy. In addition, euangelizomai (the middle voice form of the verb) meant “to speak as a messenger of gladness, to proclaim good news.”⁵⁷ Further, the noun euangelion became a technical term for the message of victory, though it was also used for a political or private message that brought joy.⁵⁸

That both the noun and the verb are used so extensively in the New Testament demonstrates how it developed a distinctly Christian flavor, use, and emphasis because of the glorious news it represents. As the angel told the shepherds, “Do not be afraid; listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news⁵⁹ that brings great joy to all the people: Today your Savior is born in the city of David. He is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11). The gospel announces the only genuine salvation and victory over sin and death. This God offers to man through the person and accomplished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. But the good news does not stop there. Its power and eternal value are proven by Christ’s resurrection, ascension, and session at God’s right hand. In the New Testament these two words, euangelion and euangelizo, became technical terms for this message of good news offered to all men through faith in Christ.

Second, the gospel is truth. In Colossians 1:23, the apostle spoke of “the hope of the gospel,” i.e., the hope which comes from the gospel or which the gospel gives. This is now the focus of verses 5-8 and introduces a key point that Paul sought to emphasize to the Colossians. The words, “which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospel” reminds them that the means by which they came to this hope was faith in “the truth, the gospel” as they heard it before they began to listen to false teachers. These teachers may have been denying the future hope of believers, but it is certain that they were distorting the grace character of the gospel itself (cf. vs. 6b with 2:6-23). Thus, verse 5b sets forth the essential nature of the gospel they heard; it is the truth. Truth is the very essence of the gospel, but Paul was referring to the gospel as they originally heard it from Epaphras (vss. 7-8). This is the gospel, the truth that is based on factual historical evidence in the birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.

This is very relevant for us today because we live in a day when people worship at the idol of an uncritical tolerance. This is the claim that all religions can be equally true. From the standpoint of religion, what is true for you may not be true for me, but that’s okay since truth, especially religious truth, is strictly personal. Everyone can make up his or her own rules for what is true. But this is absurd and illogical.

When Christ claimed that truth exists, of necessity He also implied that falsehood exists. Your personal opinions about religion may be true; but if so, they are also true for everyone else. If you meet a friend who says, “Christ is true for you, but not for me,” tell him lovingly, ‘You are entitled to your own private opinion, but you are not entitled to your own private truth!

Mathematics is transcultural; it is foolish to say that 2 + 2 = 4 is simply a Western idea. Science and technology also rely on universal principles that apply in every country, in every era. When an astronomer finds a new star, he has not changed the nature of the universe; he has only found something that was already there. Truth exists objectively outside ourselves. We do not create it; we can only discover it.

Does this objectivity also apply to religion, or is religion purely personal and subjective? Logic requires that if there is one God then there are not two, three, or ten. If what Christ said was true, then what Bah llh said was false. You may live next door to a fine Mormon family, but Mormonism and Christianity cannot both be true. Both may be false, but both cannot be true. And if one religion of the world is objectively true, it is true for everyone. The issue is whether we have committed ourselves to a religion that reflects the way things are in the universe.

We must resist the modern notion that there is a sharp distinction between the world of objective facts (mathematics, science, etc.) and the realm of religion, which many believe should be relegated to the private world of personal opinion and individual preferences. Religion, if it is worth the name, claims to make factual statements about spiritual reality. This means that every religion has the responsibility of giving evidence for its truth claims. Such evidence should be accessible to believers and nonbelievers alike.⁶⁰

The New Testament emphatically presents Jesus Christ as not only the truth (John 14:6), but as the one and only Savior by whom people might be saved.⁶¹ Thus, “The last phrase of verse five sets forth the essential nature of the gospel. It is the true word from God. Ultimate truth is not found in the sciences, or philosophy (such as had now penetrated Colosse). The truth of the gospel is the only truth able to span the grave and reveal the hope which lies beyond it.”⁶² “All previous religions could be entitled ‘guesses about God.’ The Christian gospel gives a man not guesses but certainties about God.”⁶³

Third, the gospel is universal. It is for all men. This is seen in the words, “which has come to you, just as in all the world.” Paul was not saying that it had been preached in every town and village all over the world, though it had already made amazing advances in the ancient world. This statement does, however, point to its universal design by God and, in keeping with the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20, it is surely prophetic of the penetrating course and power of the gospel around the world. With its universal appeal, the gospel

…is not confined to any one race or nation, nor to any one class or condition. Very few things in this world are open to all men. A man’s mental calibre decides the studies he can undertake. A man’s social class decides the circle amidst which he will move. A man’s material wealth determines the possessions he can amass. A man’s particular gifts decide the things he can do. But the message of the gospel is open without exception to all men.⁶⁴

Fourth, the gospel is alive and fruitful. The words “is bearing fruit and growing” stress that the gospel is alive and fruitful. “Is bearing fruit and growing” stresses the continuous activity of the gospel due to its inherent power. With the temporal indicator that follows, “from the first day you heard,” the construction here stresses the past as well as the present fruitfulness of the gospel.⁶⁵ In addition, “bearing fruit” is in the middle voice (an intensive middle), which again stresses the inherent power of the gospel. “The Gospel is essentially a reproductive organism, a plant whose ‘seed is in itself.’”⁶⁶ The combination of the two participles, bearing fruit and growing, is probably designed to stress both the inward (bearing fruit) and outward (growing) activity of the gospel. With the accompanying ministry of the Holy Spirit, the gospel not only has the power to break through the darkness to bring men into a relationship with God through Christ, but it transforms and energizes their lives. Those who receive this truth should become fruit-bearers as the Word works within them (cf. 1 Thess. 2:13). Such fruitfulness is a mark of its authority, authenticity, and superiority over all other religions of the world. Thus, this gospel is a message that is alive and powerful because it is the living and enduring Word of God (Heb. 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23). “The fruit, which the Gospel bears without fail in all soils and under every climate, is its credential, its verification, as against the pretensions of spurious counterfeits.”⁶⁷

Fifth, the gospel is a message of grace. The words, “understood the grace of God in truth,” declares the fact that the gospel in all aspects (justification and sanctification) is a message of grace. Indeed, grace is nothing less than a synonym for the gospel. Any message that fails to proclaim the grace element of the gospel of the New Testament is no gospel at all (cf. Acts 20:24, “the gospel of the grace of God).” “Grace” refers to the free, unmerited favor of God; to the favor or kindness given to those who can never deserve or earn it by anything they do or refrain from doing. As Swindoll aptly puts it, “Every time the thought of grace appears, there is the idea of its being undeserved. In no way is the recipient getting what he or she deserves. Favor is being extended simply out of the goodness of the heart of the giver.”⁶⁸

To know the gospel as the grace of God in truth is to trust in the Lord Jesus and His work on the cross for our sin apart from human merit of any sort and to live by virtue of that grace as the means of the sanctifying power of God.

…This grace is absolutely free (Rom. 6:14; 5:15; Eph. 2:8), and it is that which conquers sin both in its penalty and its power (Rom. 5:12-21; 6:1-23). When that grace which was revealed in Christ is received by the believer, it then governs spiritual life by compounding favor upon favor. It equips, strengthens, and controls all phases of his life (II Cor. 8:6; Col. 4:6; II Thess. 2:16; II Tim. 2:1). Consequently, the Christian gives thanks (charis) to God for the riches of grace in His unspeakable gift (II Cor. 9:15). Throughout the New Testament, then, the predominant thought is the grace of God in Christ which redeems us, governs us, and gives us everlasting consolation and good hope.⁶⁹

This reference to the gospel as “the grace of God in truth” is naturally aimed at the false teachers who were seeking to add some form of religious works to the gospel in a meritorious sense. The apostle will deal with this in chapter two.

Sixth, the gospel must be humanly transmitted or proclaimed. The reference to hearing the gospel (vs. 6) and to learning it from Epaphras (vs. 7) also reminds us that the gospel is a message that God has chosen to be humanly communicated. It is a message that must be proclaimed by other believers in the body of Christ whether by personal testimony or the written word. In the Tribulation as detailed in the Book of Revelation, God will at times use other methods to communicate the gospel (cf. Rev. 8:13; 14:6), but even then, God has chosen the human channel as His primary method for communicating the gospel.

…There must be a human channel through which the gospel can come to men. And this is where we come in. The possession of the good news of the gospel involves the obligation to share it. That which is divinely given must be humanly passed on. Jesus Christ needs us to be the hands and feet and lips which will bring his gospel to those who have never heard it.⁷⁰

The Confirmation of the Man, Message,
and Ministry of Epaphras (1:7-8)

1:7 You learned the gospel from Epaphras, our dear fellow slave—a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf—1:8 who also told us of your love in the Spirit.

Verses 7-8 inform us how the Colossians heard the gospel. A faithful servant of the Lord named Epaphras brought the gospel to the City of Colossae. Paul had just spoken of the fruitfulness of the gospel and here we have an example of the process involved in its fruitfulness. First, it touches the lives of men and brings them to God through Christ. Then, through fellowship with the Savior and the enabling work of the Spirit, the gospel changes those men or women by transforming them into willing servants who use their gifts and abilities for the Savior.

But the purpose for mentioning Epaphras is his approval or the confirmation of his message and ministry. This demonstrates the need and importance for biblical confirmation of a man, his message, and his ministry. This has some very clear applications for today because of the dangers facing the body of Christ. Scripture warns us against several things that are relevant to the context and historical background of this passage. For instance:

1. Christ warned the disciples, “Take care what you listen to” (Mark 4:24). This warning concerns the messenger, his message, and his ministry. Does the man, his message, and ministry line up with the Word?

2. Christ also warned, “Therefore take care how you listen” (Luke 8:18). This warning concerns the motives and manner in which one listens. Are we really hungry or are we apathetic or biased against the truth? Do we have ears to hear? Are we seeking the spectacular or sensational, the new and entertaining? Do we simply want to be stroked and made to feel good? What are we seeking? Is it God or some form of self-gratification from our worship while we withhold our hearts from God and His Word? (cf. Isa. 29:13)

3. As seen in 1 and 2 Corinthians, Scripture also warns against false standards of judgment by which congregations or people tend to evaluate and respond to men, their messages, and their ministries. This especially includes eyes on personalities and style rather than biblical substance and teaching that is truly in accord with the Scripture. As a result, people end up seeking and listening to everything from watered-down messages (sermonettes) that cater to the whimsical trends of the time to various levels of heresy. They become sitting ducks for anything that appeals to their self-centered appetites (2 Tim. 4:3-4).

Understanding this makes this passage tremendously significant because in it we have Paul’s seal of approval on Epaphras—the man, his message, and his ministry. What counts with God? How does Paul confirm this man to the Colossians? What does he call attention to?

The Message of Epaphras (vs. 7a)

Literally, the Greek text has, “just as you learned it from Epaphras.” “Just as” is a conjunction that, in this context, lays stress on the source where they learned “the grace of God in truth.” This not only highlights the ministry of Epaphras and puts Paul’s approval on his ministry, but also contrasts it against the destructive heresy that was being taught by the false teachers. It is also significant that Paul used the verb “learned,” the Greek manthano, “to learn from someone as a teacher, to be a disciple.”⁷¹ The use of this verb “…probably indicates that Epaphras had given them systematic instruction in the gospel rather than some flimsy outline and that these Colossians had committed themselves as disciples to that teaching (cf. 2:6, 7).”⁷² What the Colossians had heard and learned from Epaphras was God’s truth; it was in accord with the true Word of God as the Lord had revealed it through the apostles. In other words, the content of his message was biblical. This is the first requirement. Does a man’s message line up with the Word, God’s index for truth? (cf. 1 Tim. 1:10-11; 4:1-6; 6:3; 2 Tim. 2:14-19; 3:14; Tit. 1:9).

The Ministry of Epaphras (vss. 7a, 8; 4:12)

First, the clause, “just as you learned” (kathos emathete) suggests that Epaphras was a disciple maker. “Learned” is the Greek word manthano, “to learn” especially through instruction. When we consider 2:7, “just as you were instructed” (kathos edidachthete), it seems clear that Epaphras had systematically taught the Colossian believers as his disciples (mathetes). While the Great Commission involves several responsibilities for the church, the main one is to “make disciples.” The Great Commission does not stop with evangelism or the salvation of the lost. We are to make disciples. A disciple is one who is devoted to following Christ in obedience to His Word. This requires teaching and spiritual growth. Epaphras was a disciple maker, one who was committed to building men in Christ and in the Word. Naturally, disciple making begins with evangelism, but for a ministry to be confirmed by the Bible, it needs to be committed to building men and women in the Word of God so they mature in Christ (cf. Col. 1:28).

Second, he labored in prayer for his disciples (cf. 4:12). As a disciple himself, Epaphras had grasped the grace perspective of the apostle and knew that spiritual growth and progress are deeply dependent on the blessing of God.

Third, his disciples were productive—they grew and changed (vs. 8). This is evident by Paul’s statement, “who told us of your love in (by) the Spirit.” Believers can, of course, labor in unproductive soil. This is one of the points of the parable of the sower, the seed, and the soil in Mark 4. The fact of love manifested by the Spirit was a proof that God had not only prepared the hearts of the Colossians for the gospel, but it demonstrated the quality of Epaphras’ message and ministry among them. It had changed their lives and demonstrates something of the content of what Epaphras was teaching. He had not only taught them about the Savior and His redemption, but he had taught them how to live the Christian life in the power of the Spirit.

The Man Epaphras (vs. 7b)

The name “Epaphras” is undoubtedly a shortened form of Epaphroditus and may be related to the word Aphrodite, which denoted charm and loveliness. His name is mentioned again in 4:12-13 and in Philemon 23. This Epaphras should not be identified with the one mentioned in Philippians 2:25 and 4:18 who was apparently from Macedonia. The Epaphras of Colossians was not only a resident of Asia but also a faithful minister of the gospel who had brought the gospel to the Lycus Valley (4:12-13).

Paul describes him in a three-fold way. First, he is called “our dear fellow slave.” “Fellow slave” is the Greek sun-doulos. The prefix is sun is a preposition that expressed “association, fellowship and inclusion.” The inclusion of this prefix stresses the truth mentioned in Phil. 1:27; all believers in Christ are to be working together for the faith of the gospel, which lays stress on the community aspect of our lives together as believers in Christ. It reminds us that we need each other, that we are a team, and that the cause of Jesus Christ is sorely hampered when we do not act accordingly—when we do not use our gifts and talents to work together and strive to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

“Slave” stresses his relationship and attitude to Christ. The second part of the word is doulos and means not merely a servant, but a bondslave. A bondslave was one owned by another and so completely that he was dependant upon his master for everything in life—for his daily supply of needs, where he lived and how, for his vocation or area of service, and for the supplies needed to do his work. It shows his submission and who controlled his life. His life was not his own, he had been bought with a price. He was the Lord’s possession who guided his life and supplied his needs.

But he was not just a “fellow slave,” but “our dear fellow slave.” “Dear” is agapetos, a verbal adjective that means “beloved.” This description not only demonstrated Paul and Timothy’s love for this man, but also pointed to him as their approved and trusted representative, a fact expressed even more in the next description.

Second, Epaphras is described as “a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf.” “Faithful” is the Greek word pistos, which may be used in the active sense of “believing” or in the passive sense of “faithful, reliable.” The basic idea of Scripture is that the faithful person is a person who is also full of faith. That which makes a person faithful is his or her trust and faith in the Lord and His sovereignty, love, provision, and support. A man or woman of faith is faithful because he or she is resting in God’s sovereignty and knows their work is never fruitless (1 Cor. 15:58).

“Minister” is diakonos, “servant, attendant, helper.” It is used technically of the office of “deacon” and generally of some form of service for the sake of others. Other New Testament synonyms like doulos, “bondservant,” therapon, “a servant” who acts voluntarily, and huperetes, “servant, attendant,” by etymology suggesting subordination, all imply a relationship to a person while diakonos represents the servant in relation to his particular work.⁷³ As seen previously, his work was that of training and building the Colossians in Christ (cf. 2:6-7), but in that work, he was first “a servant of Christ.” This means that he served under the authority of Christ and for His glory. As Wiersbe points out:

…we who disciple other believers must be careful not to get in the way. We are not to make disciples for ourselves, but for Jesus Christ. We must relate people to Him so that they love and obey Him. Epaphras faithfully taught his people and related them to Jesus Christ, but the false teachers came in and tried to “draw away disciples.” (For Paul’s warning about this problem, see Acts 20:28–30.) Human nature has the tendency to want to follow men instead of God—to want “something new” instead of the basic foundational truths of the Gospel.⁷⁴

Also, Epaphras was “a servant of Christ on our (your) behalf.” “On our behalf” introduces us to a manuscript problem. Some later manuscripts read “on your behalf,” but the external evidence is somewhat superior for “on our behalf.” Both make good sense here and it is easy to see how copyists could have altered the text since “for us” and “for you” are so similar in the Greek text. It’s the difference between huper hemon (for us) and huper humon (for you). Scribes often confused the plurals of first and second personal pronouns, the e (h) and u (u). For a discussion of the issues, see the textual notes in the NET Bible on this verse. The context also seems to favor “on our behalf” since Paul is confirming the authenticity of the message and the messenger as his representative. Epaphras was acting on Paul’s behalf.

Paul has now given a third reason for thanksgiving. He first thanked God for the Colossians, for their faith, love and hope. He then thanked God for the gospel and its inherent power and fruitfulness. Now he thanks God for the faithful and trustworthy ministry of Epaphras. In this way, he gave further assurance concerning the source of their spiritual life as set against the deceptions of the false teachers and their teaching.

Finally, with “who also told us of your love in (or by) the Spirit,” Paul again called attention to the love of the Colossians, only now he linked it to the work of the Spirit. “In the Spirit” (en pneumati) is probably best understood as “love inspired or promoted by the Spirit.”⁷⁵ Their love for one another was a work engendered by the Spirit (cf. Rom. 15:30). This would again highlight the effectiveness of the teaching and ministry of Epaphras for it was through him that they had learned about the Spirit-controlled walk (see also Gal. 5:23). Too often, Christian teachers fail to communicate the truths of the Christ- centered, Spirit-controlled life and as a result, they end up in a mode where they try to force, browbeat, and manipulate people into Christian behavior.

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⁴⁶ Verses 1-8 form one long complex sentence with “we always give thanks) being the main assertion of these eight verses. The NET Bible breaks this long sentence down into several sentences for easier reading.

⁴⁷ Curtis Vaughn, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, gen. ed. Frank E. Gaebelein (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1976-1992), electronic media.

⁴⁸ Herbert M. Carson, The Epistle of Paul to the Colossians and Philemon, An Introduction and Commentary (Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 1960), 29.

⁴⁹ At least two reasons support this position: (1) this corresponds to the customary Pauline epistolary formulae (e.g., 1 Thess. 1:2; Phil. 1:3; Eph. 1:16); and (2) in NT Grk. an adv. generally follows the vb. it modifies (A Grammar of New Testament Greek, by J. H. Moulton, vol. III, Syntax, by N. Turner [Edinburgh: Clark, 1963], 227-228). See Murray J. Harris, Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament, Colossians & Philemon (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, 1991), 15.

⁵⁰ S. Lewis Johnson, “Studies in the Epistle to the Colossians, Part II,” Bibliotheca Sacra (Dallas Theological Seminary, vol. 118, #472), 338.

⁵¹ One would normally expect either eis or epi to express the object of faith.

⁵² Cf. C. F. D. Moule, An Idiom-Book of New Testament Greek (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1963), 81, and Peter T. O’Brien, Word Biblical Commentary, Colossians, Philemon, gen. ed., Glenn W. Barker, NT., ed., Ralph P. Martin (Word Books, Publisher, Waco, TX, vol. 44), 11.

⁵³ C. F. D. Moule, “The Epistles of Paul to the Colossians and to Philemon” in The Cambridge Greek Testament Commentary (Cambridge: University Press, 1957), 57.

⁵⁴ Carson, 31.

⁵⁵ This is unlikely since the ground of thanksgiving is stated in the words, “since we heard.”

⁵⁶ William Barclay, Daily Study Bible Series: The Letters to the Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians (Revised Edition), n.s. (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2000, c. 1975), electronic media.

⁵⁷ Colin Brown, general editor, The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1976), Volume 2, 107.

⁵⁸ Colin Brown, 107.

⁵⁹ “I proclaim good news” is euangelizomai, the middle voice of euangelizo.

⁶⁰ Lutzer, 53.

⁶¹ For a couple of excellent books setting forth evidence in support of these biblical claims, see Christ Among Other gods by Erwin W. Lutzer, a Moody Press publication, and The Case For Christ by Lee Strobel, a Zondervan publication.

⁶² Johnson, 339.

⁶³ Barclay, electronic media.

⁶⁴ Barclay, electronic media.

⁶⁵ “Bearing fruit (karpophoroumenon) and growing (auxanomenon)” are present participles. With the to be verb “is” (estin), this stresses continuos activity, but because of the temporal indicator that follows, this construction could be translated, “has been bearing fruit and growing.” See the translator’s note 11 in the NET Bible.

⁶⁶ J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul’s Epistles to the Colossians and Philemon (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1879 reprint, 1961), 135.

⁶⁷ Lightfoot, 135.

⁶⁸ Charles R. Swindoll, The Grace Awakening, (Word Publishing, Dallas, London, Vancouver, Melbourne, 1990), 9.

⁶⁹ Charles C. Ryrie, The Grace of God, (Moody, Chicago, 1963), 25-26.

⁷⁰ Barclay, electronic media.

⁷¹ Walter Bauer, Wilbur F. Gingrich, and Frederick W. Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979), electronic media. Here after referenced as BAGD.

⁷² Peter T. O’Brien, Word Biblical Commentary, Colossians, Philemon, gen. ed., Glenn W. Barker, NT., ed., Ralph P. Martin (Word Books, Publisher, Waco, TX, vol. 44), 15.

⁷³ G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (T. & T. Clark, Edinburgh, 1973), 108.

⁷⁴ Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Complete (Victor Books, Wheaton, Ill., 1986), 26.

⁷⁵ The en plus pneumati, the dative case of pneuma, is best taken as a dative of means or instrument pointing to the means by which their love was produced.