Paul McKenzie

Memory Verse, Wednesday, July 22, 2 Thessalonians 2:5

"Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?"

Many days I wish I was sitting in on those conversations Paul had with this new church so long ago. So many questions would be answered, and so many arguments would be ended. But, in God's great Providence, we are left with pieces of evidence and what is necessary for us to maintain our hope that there will be a sure and final end. And that end will include a beast, and a "falling away" within the church.

We also know of a time from the first letter when Paul told the believers that they will be instantly changed, and they were gonna "fly" to Jesus, whether alive, or "asleep". They will at that time have "resurrected" bodies, not just a bunch of spirits floating around, but real people, spiritual and glorified. Our new natures will be complete, and all the old, sinful nature will be eliminated.

However, that is still "pie in the sky", and we are here, looking up with great anticipation for the day when He will set up His kingdom on earth. And we see that there is much to be accomplished, though the Rapture itself could occur at any time.

One thing I think however, as I mentioned a few days ago, is that the coming of our Lord should be a foremost tenet on our minds when explaining the gospel. It is so integral to the gospel message that it should be mentioned right along with the opportunity for salvation.

And I also hinted that the reason I think it is not, is because people have developed over the centuries a selfish salvation, where God's whole purpose is centered around them and their salvation.

But if you really look at the Bible, you see that we are just one cog in the overall plan of God. God has created a beautiful universe, and put us in charge of caring for it. We blew it, trying to be our own little gods, corrupting the earth and marring its wondrous beauty. And in whatever way it does it, the universe groans and travails because of it.

So, God the Father has called out a people to Himself. He did it through the Christ, God the Son, whom we see as the Second Person of the Trinity. He was the means to the reconciliation and through Him the world will be restored. And then God's plan will again be continued, and those who have been called to Him will reign with Him, and glorify Him as part of His creation, the ones whom He blessed with His image, the caretakers of the glorious work He made.

And the Holy Spirit, whom we know as the Third Person of the Trinity, has been calling these saints throughout the earth for two millennia. And this remnant is being called out from the great evil, an evil that has been crawling through God's creation like a cancer, eating away at the truth, corrupting and destroying all goodness in its path.

It will culminate here, in the period to which Paul is referring. Christ predicted it, equating it with birth pains, and every woman understands that far more than a man. Which made me think of a passage in 1 Timothy 2:14-15: "and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control."

They transgressed through deception. Adam knew what he was doing. And through the pain of childbearing they are constantly reminded that salvation comes through their seed. Though this world is wracked with pain, joy comes in the morning.

And we long for that morning, as does the whole creation: "For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now" (Romans 8:22). Even until now. "But we ourselves, who have the firstfuits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for the adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we are saved" (Romans 8:23-24a).

Believers who do not live with this hope are not looking up. They miss the key ingredient, the key purpose of life—Jesus is Coming Back! It's not about you, it's about you being with Jesus! To be servants of the Most High! To live in the Glory of God! Here is where the Living Water lies. Jump in!

Today if you hear His voice, harden not your heart.

Memory Helps

"Do you not remember
that when I was still with you
I told you these things?"

A simple verse. I can use a "memory stick", called a flash drive by most, as a word picture for "remember". Picture the apostle Paul giving you a memory stick with "these things" stamped on it. That should be plenty to help you remember, and the idea of Paul giving you a flash drive should be unique enough to help it stand out in your mind.

And if you want to link it to the verse numbers, I do that on my web site because it can get pretty windy.

Linking verse numbers:

We have been using "2 Thistles" and "Two New Price Tags" for 2 Thessalonians, chapter 2 (N=2 in our phonetic alphabet, so New can represent Two. We use "two" of them to reinforce that). Now, my regular "memory character" for verses 5 has to contain only the consonant "L", since we use that phonetic sound to represent the numeral 5. We remember that by raising our "Left" hand (L for a left, "five" fingered hand) and see the L showing itself with the index finger and thumb.

I use my buddy "Lee" as my memory character for all verses 5. He is in every verse 5 I memorize. And of course, the Apostle Paul is "handing", with his "5" fingered-hand, the "memory stick" labeled "These Things" to Lee, saying, "Do you remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?" Now they are standing on two thistles, and the memory stick has two tags on it saying "brand New". Hear the "crunch" the thistles as they stand on them, and see the price tags on the memory stick as well. Or you could put the two thistles on the price tags themselves. This way you can link 2 Thessalonians 2:5 to the verse contents.

We're Gonna Fly