Letters to the Church

A key point of the  Letter to Hebrews  is the victory of the Son on behalf of his people, and consequently, his exaltation to the “ right hand ” of God as their High Priest “ after the order of Melchizedek .” He secured what none of his predecessors could. Through his self-sacrificial death, he “ achieved the purification of sins ,” then he “ sat down ” in the “ true and greater Tabernacle ” in God’s very presence where he now intercedes for his saints.

Paul provided the Assembly in Thessalonica with instructions on how believers must live in anticipation of the “ Day of the Lord .” It will not overtake them since they “ are not in darkness .” They are the “ Sons of Light ” and the “ Sons of the Day .” Unlike the unrighteous of this fallen age, the watchful believer who lives in the light of the Gospel will not be caught off guard by that Day’s sudden arrival.

Foundational to the believer’s future hope is the bodily resurrection of the righteous dead when Jesus arrives in glory .  Paul’s description of the “ arrival ” or ‘ Parousia ’ of Jesus in his first letter to the Thessalonians was written to comfort the Assembly concerning the fate of their compatriots who died before that event could take place. They needed not to sorrow “ like the others ” since the righteous dead would be resurrected when the Lord “ arrived ” from Heaven.

The “ Mystery of Lawlessness ” is active in the world, and especially so in the Body of Christ as it prepares hearts and minds for the “ arrival ” of the “ Man of Lawlessness ” and the “ Apostasy .” It will continue to do so until the appointed time when this “ Lawless One ” will “ come out of the midst ” and be unveiled in the “ Sanctuary of God .” Moreover, he then will employ “ lying signs and wonders ” to cause those who refuse the “ love of the truth ” to betray the Apostolic faith.

Many saints will apostatize when the Lawless One, the Son of Destruction, seats himself in the Sanctuary of God . As the Apostle Paul explained to the Thessalonians, the “ Day of the Lord ” would not arrive until the “ Apostasy ” occurred and the “ Man of Lawlessness ” was unveiled, the one who would seat himself “ in the Sanctuary of God .” Paul also labeled him the “ Son of Destruction ,” but is there any additional significance to this second designation?