“8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders,
10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.
11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false,
12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.
13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.
14 It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15 So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us.
16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace,
17 comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word.”
II Thessalonians 2:8-17 (Emphasis added).
First, how do we get the truth? Verse 10 tells us that we “receive” the love of the truth. Verse 13 tells us that God has chosen those for salvation “through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth”. Thus, we must recognize that our love of the truth is a gift from God.
Second, what happens to those who do not receive this love of the truth? Verse 10 tells us that they perish. Verse 10 also tells us that they are not saved. Verse 12 also tells us that they will be judged.
Third, what are we exhorted to do? Verse 15 tells us to “stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us.”
First, I would interpret “stand firm” to mean that we should value truth and seek truth as one who eagerly and persistently searches for hidden treasure. Proverbs 2:4-5 tells us to treasure wisdom (or truth): “If you seek her as silver And search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will discern the fear of the LORD And discover the knowledge of God.” Proverbs 23:23 tells us: “Buy truth, and do not sell it, Get wisdom and instruction and understanding.”
Second, I would interpret “stand firm” to mean that we should value and seek out both Scripture (“letters from us”) and sound doctrine such as our Reformed creeds and confessions (“word of mouth”). I also think “traditions” would cover both Scripture and our Reformed creeds and confessions.
In my lead article, “Calvinism is the true doctrine of salvation” at “My Other Web Site’s Home Page, I “push the envelope” to determine how important truth and doctrine are. Here is the link to that web site (although you can also see the link in the right margin) – Click here: Reformed Doctrine – Bill Hornbeck . Thank you.
Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions 