BELIEVERS SHOULD
BE ESTABLISHED IN THE WORD
But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you,
brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you
to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the
obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ [2 Thess. 2:13–14].
I
believe these two verses give the total spectrum of salvation. In other
words, they give you salvation “from Dan to Beer-sheba”—all the way from the
past, the present, and down into the future.
1. “Chosen you to salvation.” This is so clearly taught
in Romans 8: “And we know that all things work together for good to them
that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. [Dr. R.
A. Torrey used to say that this verse was a soft pillow for a tired heart.
It surely is that.] For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be
conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many
brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom
he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also
glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can
be against us?” (Rom. 8:28–31).
That is exactly what Paul is writing here in 2
Thessalonians: “God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation.” That
looks back to the past. All I know is what it says, and I believe it. Do you
mean to tell me that God chose us before we even got here? Spurgeon used to
put it something like this: “I am glad God chose me before I got here,
because if He had waited until I got here He never would have chosen me.” It
simply means that you do not surprise God when you trust Christ. But there
is another side of the coin: “Whosoever will may come.” The “whosoever
wills” are the chosen ones, and the “whosoever won’ts” are the nonelect.
Jesus said, “… If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink” (John
7:37). That is a legitimate offer of salvation—a sincere, definite offer
with no complications attached. If you don’t come, the reason is
not because you are not
elected. Not at all. The reason you don’t come is that you’re not thirsty;
that is, you don’t think you need a Savior. If you are thirsty, then come to
Christ.
2. “Through sanctification of the Spirit.” “Chosen you to
salvation” looked back to the past, and now sanctification by the Spirit
looks to the present. You are sanctified both as to position and as to
practice. When you accept Jesus Christ as your own Savior, you are
in Christ—that is
positional sanctification; that is the past tense of salvation. Then there
is also the practical side of sanctification which concerns your life.
Through the Spirit of God you are to grow in grace.
3. “Belief of the truth.” That means that a believer is
going to study the Word of God. That is the way he is going to grow and
develop.
4. “To the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ.” This is future. This refers to the Rapture. “Beloved, now are we
the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know
that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he
is” (1 John 3:2). Then there is the statement in Colossians 1:27, “To whom
God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among
the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” That looks forward
to the future. What a glorious, wonderful prospect we have before us!
We see that these two verses have given us the full
spectrum of salvation: we have been
saved, we are being
saved, we shall be
saved. It is all the work of God.
Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the
traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle [2
Thess. 2:15].
Paul is referring to what he had taught them when he was
with them. It is the Word which enables the believer to stand and be stable.
Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our
Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and
good hope through grace,
Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good
word and work [2 Thess. 2:16–17].
The Lord Jesus Christ brings comfort and consolation to
our hearts. He does this through His Word. That will establish us in every
good word and work. The study of the Word of God will lead to the work of
the Lord.
Not only will the Word of God “comfort” us, but it will
also edify us. “Stablish you” means we are to be rooted and grounded in the
Word of God so that we are not carried away by every wind of doctrine. Our
minds and hearts will be centered on Him. That will keep us from going out
after every fad of the day and reading every new book that comes off the
press. Nor will we be running to little study courses here and there to be
built up for the moment. We need to be
established in the faith.
It is the Word of God then that will lead you to do the
work of God. In chapter 3 we will see that believers should also be
established in their walk and in their work down here. You see, it is rather
deceitful (to yourself and others) to talk about how much you love the
coming of the Lord if you do not study His Word. Then your belief does not
manifest itself in your life and it doesn’t make you work. If you really
believe Christ is coming, you’re going to be busy working for Him. You are
going to give account to Him someday. If He is going to be here tomorrow, we
want to be busy today. We shouldn’t have our noses pressed against the
window looking for Him to come, or to be always looking up into heaven for
Him. Instead, we should be looking around doing the work of the Lord down
here. That is the greatest proof that we believe in His coming.
McGee, J. Vernon: Thru the Bible
Commentary. electronic ed. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997,
c1981, S. 5:416-418