2 Thess. 2:15, 1615Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. 16Now 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, (2 Thessalonians 2:15‑16)
We are rapidly nearing the wind up of the last days, and the tendency of the moment is to remove from under our feet the foundations of truth. There is nothing that the enemy has not assailed in his supreme hatred of Christ, thank God, he has not in the most remote degree touched anything in this assault; the truth abides and shines even more brightly when the din of the attack is over; there is never any fear as to the faith, the danger lies in the direction of our not standing fast as to it, of our not having our feet, as it were, firmly fixed upon that firm foundation of God which abides. In the case of the Thessalonian believers, to whom the epistle was written, the words derive special force in connection with what had been spoken of in verses 11, 12, concerning the Antichrist—the “lie”—in which all previous delusions of Satan are consummated in view of his coming, the Holy Ghost through the apostle says, stand firm.
Again, he also says, “hold fast.” The great aim of the enemy is to induce us to surrender, whatever may be the plea or pretext; these are various and most skillfully adjusted to the particular time and occasion; the devil’s great effort is to seduce God’s people to let go what they have, for something supposed to be far superior; “clearer light” and “advanced truth” are, alas! too often the bait that cover his hook. Oh, may we be on our guard, watchful, not ignorant of his service, and seeking grace and strength from Him persistently to hold fast.
It is interesting to note that here, as well as in 1Cor. 15:5858Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:58); Col. 1:2323If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister; (Colossians 1:23), hope is the great incentive to steadfastness.
The last word which heads this paper is the sweetest and most precious to the heart that has known and believed His love; that word carries with it all the blessedness of a Person who is worthy to entwine all the affections of His people’s hearts—“Himself.” Ah, how well we know there is no other than He, Himself, “Jesus himself,” “Himself the Lord.” There is no coldness or distance in that unfolding, it is a revelation to the heart of a Person such as the heart alone can appreciate with delight. Yes, thank God, “Christ IS all things.”
That which adds to the tenderness of these words is the use the blessed Lord made of what is so connected with His own Person in His converse with His disciples, both during His blessed life on earth as well as after His resurrection; for instance, how comforting and soothing it must have been to the sorrow-stricken hearts of the poor disciples, to hear Him say to them in John 14:33And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:3): “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself.” Was not that just the very balm for their grief at that moment? How well we can conceive that one of the pangs that pierced their hearts at that moment were such questions as these, that would rise continually. Would they ever see Him again? Would that blessed intercourse of three years be ever resumed? Would there be recognition and association in the new and unknown world into which He was about to depart from them? They did not know where He was going: “Lord, we know not whither thou goest”; “Lord, whither goest thou?” These words tell the secret of the cloud that spread its cold damp over their broken hearts. He Himself, and He alone, knew how to meet that, and hence He says that if He went away, He would come again and take (B"D"8ZR@:"4) them to Himself—the very word for that moment for them was just that—“MYSELF.” Oh, how it would not fail to distill its own healing, soothing cheer; He would come again and take them to Himself. Observe the word rendered receive is really take, it is B"D"8ZR@:"4 from two Greek words, meaning ‘to take near with,’ or ‘to one’s self.’
It implies He would take them into all the nearness and affection of His own blessed Person. Further, observe what He says later on in this chapter as to manifesting Himself. To the faithful, dependent one He says, “I will manifest myself to him.” I dare not say a word as to my poor apprehension of all that is implied in that one blessed word, “manifest”; but I believe that it conveys this, that in manifestation all is gone but Christ Himself. Oh, how blessed that would be; the heart conscious of nothing but Himself. But after His great atoning work was finished and He was risen from the dead, we find the same thing. In Luke 24:3939Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. (Luke 24:39) we hear Him reassuring His poor disciples in these words: “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see me have.” How blessed to see Him in resurrection thus assuring His poor, timid, trembling ones in those blessed words, “it is myself”; so that before He departed out of this world to the Father, He tells His sorrowing ones that He would come again and receive them unto Himself; then having died and risen again from the dead, He stills their fears by pointing to Himself, and now while the church is still expectant, and His own who are devoted to Him in His absence eagerly look for the bright morning to dawn, the blessed Spirit announces the consummation of all true expectancy in these words: “Himself the Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord”—Himself (1Thess. 4:16, 1716For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:16‑17)).
“Now our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God even our Father, which hath loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.”