Temple Baptist Church - 5-24-2026
2 Thessalonians 2:1-5; Hebrews 10:22-27
Introduction:
2 Thessalonians 2:1-5 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, (2) (Be not shaken) That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. (3) (Be not deceived) Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, (Be not except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; (4) Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. (5) (Let us be reminded) Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
Hebrews 10:22-27 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. (23) Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) (24) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: (25) (Let us be faithful to assemble) Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but (Let us exhort) exhorting one another: and so much the more, (Let us be watchful) as ye see the day approaching. (26) (Let us be obedient) For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, (27) But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
1 John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.
1. Just allow me to preach to us all this morning! We live at the end of the last days with rampant sinfulness all around us. I am not here to fix that this morning because it will wax worse and worse. My greatest fear is that we will allow the things of this present world to change us also.
2. I want to tie some phrases together this morning as I begin a series on the Church. “A falling away” in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 and “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together” in Hebrews 10:25. Both “falling away” and “forsaking the assembling” mean the same thing. You had to be somewhere to fall away and also to forsake something.
3. Now, for a good biblical example of these phrases, let's go to 2 Timothy 4:
2 Timothy 4:10a For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica…
4. This “present world” that drew Demas away from the Lord first and the Apostle Paul later continues to have an effect on both the pulpit and the pew! So, hang on for a little while as every one of us needs this message!
A. This November will be the Golden Anniversary of my salvation. Fifty years! I was once young (28 when I was saved), and now I am old (78 and counting). In my years of salvation, bible college, and pastoring, I have witnessed 2 Thessalonians chapter two, verses 1-5, come to fruition.
1. During the early years of salvation, Barbara and I saw the excitement of our home church as it was 1,000+ strong, hundreds coming in on the buses and making professions of faith. It was all new to us, so we sat and watched with awe. What we did not see but were quickly introduced to was the church's foundation, which was cracked. Great preaching and tremendous singing, but a church that was in the process of falling away. The pastor was soon to resign, and a power struggle raised its ugly head. And the huge crowd dwindled in a couple of years to about 85 people sitting in that massive sanctuary.
2. During those years, God began to groom Barbara and me by allowing us to step up and help the church stabilize. I was a babe in Christ, and Barbara was not yet saved (which took place in 1982). Driving a bus, teaching Sunday School, chairman of the board of deacons, school board, radio board, plumber-electrician-grounds keeper, but a soul winner.
3. Less than a year after Barbara was saved, God, in His infinite mercy, called me to preach. I did not know what He wanted me to do or where He wanted me to go. I only knew that God knew all the details, and my desire was to follow Him. I didn’t know where to go, but God led us in the way He wanted us to go.
4. I spent 4 years in Bible College with app 250 men of God that, like my family, brought their wives and kids in. Those were the glory days as God was calling and sending families around the world to once again turn the world upside down. I still did not know what God wanted me to do, but I was “bucking in the traces”. I wanted to do something for the glory of God because of what He did for Barbara and me! We owed a debt that we could not pay to the One who paid a debt that He did not owe.
5. God sent me to a faithful handful of people who loved God and loved the church. God used these few precious saints to stabilize the church and help it grow.
6. Over this past half-century, I have had many opportunities to quit and go back to the world from which Barbara and I came.
7. I said all that to say this: I have seen a generation that loves God and continually serves Him around the world today. But, throughout the years, I have also seen the decline in spirituality and faithfulness come to pass. The “falling away” has taken its toll upon the people of God, from the pulpits to the pews, as spirituality and faithfulness are quickly becoming a thing of the past.
B. There has been a serious decline in church attendance in the past few decades, and this decline is simply a fulfillment of Scripture. The days of Noah (eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage), Lot’s Day (they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded), and Demas’ Day (having loved this present world … departed unto Thessalonica). Pastors preach Hebrews 10:22-26 to little or no avail as more and more of God’s people have fallen in love with the world at the expense of the local churches. Decline in church attendance is a direct result of a decline in spirituality and a love for the world!
1. It has been prophesied that in the last days there would be a falling away, and we are in the middle of it. Normally, we classify the “falling away” as the spiritual apostasy that is certainly in full swing. But I have seen such a fearful change in believers and churches in general over these past 39 years.
2. I remember the faithfulness of God’s people here at Temple and the loss that we have suffered as we watched them grow older and pass on to heaven through the veil of death. Years ago, the crowds on Sunday night and Wednesday night, along with Sunday School, were virtually the same as on Sunday morning.
3. The older generation treated the Lord’s Day as the Lord’s Day. Though we still have families like that, across the Bible Belt, we find more and more churches canceling services each week or making them optional. They love the things of the world more than the things of God! That bothers this old preacher!
C. The “form of godliness” has permeated the ranks of the professing believers with little or no conviction or holiness of life. “As the manner of some is” has become the rule instead of the exception, with more and more of the once faithful now either slack in their faithfulness or completely out of church.
D. The Importance of God’s House. The phrase “The house of the Lord” is used 213 X in the Bible. The phrase “house of God” is used 87 times in the Bible. That is a total of 300 references. This does not include other references such as “temple” and “tabernacle.” God’s house is a place of great importance.
E. In Hebrews 10:25, we find the command of God to assemble. That in itself should be all that is necessary to get God’s children to be faithful, but faithful attendance will never be accomplished until we see the value of the church, along with having a love for the church. There is an old saying, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink!”
F. Hebrews 10:25 shows the importance of the assembly of the local church.
1. The Emphasis of God’s House - Hebrews 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. Why the emphasis?
a. It Is A Place Of Rallying. (When you are down.)
b. It Is A Place Of Relying. (When you are devastated.)
c. It Is A Place Of Renewing. (When you are defiled.)
d. It Is A Place Of Revival. (When you are defeated.)
2. The Exhortation of God’s House - Hebrews 10:22-25 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. (23) Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) (24) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: (25) Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
a. Let us draw near in holiness.
b. Let us draw near in faithfulness.
c. Let us draw near in consideration of others.
d. Let us draw near in exhortation.
3. The Excitement of God’s House - Psalms 122:1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.
a. What a Privilege.
b. What a Pleasure.
4. The Ecstasy of God’s House - Psalms 27:4 One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.
Psalms 55:14 We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company.
a. Ecstasy means an overwhelming feeling of great joy, delight, or intense emotional excitement.
b. The Joy of coming to church and worshipping God!
c. The Joy of coming to church and seeing the brethren.
d. The Joy of coming to church and leaving this old, sinful world behind for a while.
e. The Joy of serving God in obedience to His command.
Conclusion: Don’t let the things of the world draw you away from church. Let the Love of God draw you to church! Don’t let “falling away” be a vivid description of you. The Lord is coming, and we are leaving one way or the other soon.
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