BECAUSE THEY RECEIVED NOT
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there be a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition. And with all deceivabless of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved. That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
(2 Thessalonians 2: 1-3,10,12)
Punishment is not a word used much these days, and this is because hardly anyone believes that punishment actually works. The trend is toward a humanistic approach which has permeated just about every aspect of our lives, starting with the Educational System which has long been high-jacked by secularism and philosophy where the young and impressionable minds of our children have been bombarded with doctrines and theories attributed to the ‘great thinkers’ of our day with catastrophic results. I say catastrophic because it is very plain to see that they are not working!
They are taught that there are no absolutes, when there are. There is little or no respect for authority, when there should be, and there is no moral or spiritual guidance taught when it should be the corner- stone of our whole society. Sadly this aspect of life is foreign and almost an unknown amongst their school teachers, and the young are taught and encouraged to define their own lives, and make their own decisions, just as long as it does not affect others. Mothers and Fathers, who should know better, have thrown aside the Holy Scriptures and are encouraged to find themselves, with self-love, self-esteem and a host of inward looking training courses, books and DVD’s which fill library shelves and book shops, with the result that their newly found knowledge rubs off on their offspring and before long no-one even wants to listen to the truth.
Is it any wonder then that the Word of God is ignored and is it any wonder then that when our Creator speaks of punishment and retribution taking place, it is scorned and ridiculed.
Our portion of Scripture today tells us a different story and we would do well to heed it:
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Note the word because: They received not the Word of Truth. It was their own choice. It was not because they could not is was because they would not.
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They believed not the truth: And what’s more, they had pleasure in their unbelief.
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In verse 8: We are told of Destruction.
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In verse 10: We are told of Deception.
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In verse 11: We are told of Delusion.
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In verse 12: We are told of Damnation.
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In verse 14: We are told that we are called by the Gospel, which is the Good News of what Jesus did for us on the Cross and that if we respond to it by accepting and believing, then and only then, are we chosen to Salvation.
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We choose Salvation by believing.
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We choose Damnation because of our unbelief.
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There are two classes marked for retribution:
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Those who do not know God because they have rejected the knowledge of the true God as revealed in creation and in the conscience.
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And those who do not obey the Gospel of Jesus Christ, meaning those who have heard the Gospel and have rejected it.
We must remember that the Gospel is not just a list of facts to be believed, it is a Person who is to be obeyed. A very big difference!
The choice is yours.
The result is eternal.
May our Heavenly Father help you to decide, right now, for Jesus. Accept Him into your life and seek His forgiveness for sin, and let Him take control.
If there is any way that I can be of help, or if you don’t understand something, please contact me and I would count it a privilege to assist you.