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2 Thessalonians 1:7
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7 And [kai] to you [humin] who are troubled [thlibo] rest [anesis] with [meta] us, [hemon] when [en] the Lord [kurios] Jesus [Iesous] shall be revealed [apokalupsis] from [apo] heaven [ouranos] with [meta] his [autos] mighty [dunamis] angels, [aggelos] KJV-Interlinear
7 and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, NASB
As we stated yesterday, the Lord (who is Jesus Christ), will be coming back to this earth. There are two more visits on the calendar of future events. The first is the Rapture. That date is set in heaven, but unknown to humanity.
With the Rapture, Christ will descend into the clouds, not to the ground, and call out His people (all believers from the Church Age, both alive when the Rapture occurs, and those who have already died during the history of our dispensation).
That event will be a very private event as far as the world is concerned, but a very public and wonderful event as far as believers are concerned.
Then there will be the Second Advent. But quickly recall the timetable of these events.
Currently we are living within our dispensation, which is often called the Church Age. It is also referred to as the Age of the Royal Family, or the Age of the Bride of Christ. These are all synonymous terms describing the various attributes of our dispensation as set apart from other dispensations in history.
Our dispensation began with the giving of the Holy Spirit at the Feast of Pentecost, which occurred fifty days after the Feast of Passover, which was the event of the Cross, over 1900 years ago.
Our dispensation ends with the Rapture, wherein all believers from our dispensation, will receive their (our) resurrection.
Note, that all unbelievers will remain on this earth for approximately seven more years and will live through the most horrifying set of events that will ever come to pass in human history. We call that seven year period the Tribulation.
At the end of the Tribulation, will occur the Second Advent of Christ, it is this event of which Paul is now speaking in our current verse.
The word for revealed, ‘apokalupsis,’ means apocalypse or the Day of the Lord, or the Day of Judgment. This will be the most violent moment, and literally it will last but for only a moment, in history, as the Lord will destroy all evil in a single fell swoop with the power of His will. This does not occur at the Rapture.
And so, Paul is saying to you, although your life may not be what you have wanted it to be, may not be what you dreamed it should be, may seem like all of the good and fun of life are going to those who do not deserve it, but then there is going to come a time when all will be set right.
Those (evil) who do not deserve what they have, will in fact receive that (judgment) which they do deserve.
Those (mature believers) who do not receive that which they should deserve (fun and blessings), will receive much beyond their imagination, which they certainly do not deserve (it is a gift from God), but will receive anyway.
There is going to be a judgment. There is going to be a reward.
Today, most folks ignore the truth of what is to come. Most folks reject God, Christ, doctrine, and their spiritual life. Most folks live within their own self defined rules and standards, generated from political or popular or personal views, and that is exactly why the world is heading downhill, but nobody sees the crash which is just ahead. And that is why, there is going to be a history as laid out by God, and of which Paul is going to paint the picture for us, very soon in this letter.
But first we have to understand the purpose of this letter, which is ‘sin.’
Why sin? Because the next prophetic event would never occur if sin were not the issue. But unfortunately the world is going to be overwhelmed by all manner of sin, and not realize it. Or better stated, it won’t care.
Remember that sin is a broad concept, and not restricted to crimes or gossips, but in fact the sins of arrogance will drive politics, celebrityship, social standards, and the thought patterns of nearly everyone on the planet, one day.
In Noah’s day, how many people boarded the Ark? Only eight. And out of a whole world population which could have easily numbered in the millions or even hundreds of millions. Paul is going to describe a very similar world, pattern wise, in our future. But first we need to finish painting the picture before we can see it.
When that day of apocalypse comes, then rest will come for all believers. Rest here is one that represents a person who has been doing very hard work for a very long time and finally is able to set down and rest. A hardship or toil or pressure which is finally completed or has run its course, and the burden is permanently lifted.
That is the rest, or a better rest, which awaits you now when you advance to spiritual maturity, and especially when that future date of judgment arrives.
