November 5, 2006
"Apostasy: How Easily Are You Deceived?"
God is Not Slow in Keeping His Promise —Part 6
Selected verses
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
—2 Peter 3:9
1. As the "End Times" approach, many will abandon the faith.
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains."
—Matthew 24:3-8
...However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?
—Luke 18:8
2. How are Christians led astray?
But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.
—2 Corinthians 11:3-4
For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
—2 Timothy 4:3-4
3. How do we combat heresy and keep it from creeping into our faith?
...Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
—John 8:31-32
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
—2 Timothy 2:15
4. What are the essentials of the faith?
- The Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, are the inspired word of God, the complete revelation of God's will for the salvation of men, and the final authority for Christian faith and life.
- The Lord our God is one, creator of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- Jesus Christ is true God and true man; He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus died on the cross, a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus Christ arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven where He is now our High Priest and Advocate.
- The ministry of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and during this age to convict men, regenerate the believing sinner, indwell, guide, instruct and empower the believer for godly living and service.
- Man was created in the image of God but fell into sin and is therefore lost, and only through regeneration by the Holy Spirit can salvation and spiritual life be obtained.
- The shed blood of Jesus Christ and His resurrection provide the only grounds for justification and salvation for all who believe, and only those who receive Jesus Christ are born of the Holy Spirit and become children of God.
- Jesus Christ will come again to the earth-personally, visibly, and bodily-to judge the living and the dead, and to consummate history and the eternal plan of God.
- The bodily resurrection of the dead; of believers to everlasting blessedness and joy with the Lord; of the unbeliever to judgment and everlasting conscious punishment.
Application
Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
—Acts 17:11
"Understanding The Times"
Personal and Small Group Study
Getting Started
- If you were to write a job description for your pastor, what might it contain? (Read 2 Timothy 2:23-26 after answering this question.)
- At what stage in life were you rebellious? What memory, painful or humorous, is associated with that time of conflict?
Digging Deeper: Read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17
- What must have been happening in Thessalonica that led Paul to write this?
- How much time was Paul able to spend with the Thessalonica believers? (See Acts 17:2) How might this affect their willingness to believe rumors about Christ's return?
- Who do you think is the restrainer of the lawless one? How is this restraining taking place?
- What is God's ultimate purpose in allowing the man of lawlessness to deceive people? What signs signal his appearing?
- How will those who refuse Christ respond to this lawless one? How does the delusion sent by God differ from the deception of this evil man?
- How and why will God save His people? (See verses 13 and 14) In response to God's initiative and Paul's ministry, what are people to do?
Applying It To My Life
- In contrast to verse 10, what do you think would be the result of choosing to love the truth?
- What do we need to do today to be morally alert?
- What encouragement do verses 13 and 14 give you as you face hard times? Where do you need encouragement and strength from God right now?
- Put the prayer of verses 16 and 17 in your own words for one another this week.