2 Thessalonians 2:11. “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:”
THE LIE. The world, as a whole, will have made a choice when God punishes sin with sin. They chose not Christ that they might be saved, so this man is allowed to deceive men. He says he is God, this antichrist who steps out on the world’s stage. Man wanted to live without God, so now the man of sin does them engage.
Grace has been spurned, and men farther have turned from right to go their own way. The pleasures of sin have gotten hold of them, and new sin arises each day. People wanted to live without God and restraint, to be like an animal set loose. So, the time has come when everyone can shed the morality they thought was a noose.
The existentialist who thought man is his own god now has found a god who is only a man. The sacrilegious man who thought Christianity was a joke is able to do what he can. The immoral among men take advantage of what he considers an open society The atheist and agnostic both can chuckle at what they consider a victory.
This man will hold sway as day after day he works his diabolical acts. People line up to take a number and think his promises are facts. God lets them believe the lie until the evil in their own hearts is exposed. And it will finally dawn on the world the kind of god they chose.
He started out crying, “Peace,” and people believed he would deliver on what he said.
They followed the lie, and in a short time, nearly half of the world was dead. The lie promised much, but like all lies, it deceives people into thinking all is well. It doesn’t take long for the lie to reveal that its origin comes from hell.
God will arrange that those who refuse the truth will be deluded by this infamous lie. When people choose wrong, there are consequences that follow: “The soul that sinneth it shall die.” First dead to God, then dead to righteousness, and physical death follows too. The principle remains, though “the lie” says, “No” – we reap the results of what we sow.
“Holy God, the thought of millions of people believing the lie sends thoughts of fear through me. I know there are those I talk to about salvation in the simplest possible terms, and they can’t seem to grasp the plainest things. It would appear to me that they have deliberately chosen sin and, until they repent of it, are incapable of reasonable thinking. I think Philip may be one of these. Be merciful to him, O God – stop him and save him. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”
The consequence of the deliberate refusal of truth is damnation. There is no salvation for those who will not believe the word of God. There is no salvation for those who want the pleasures of sin. They delighted in sin and will exist with its consequences. Those five reasons why those who reject the Gospel will not be saved are also acts of apostasy. When they turn their backs on light and "love darkness because their deeds are evil," when they mock righteousness and reject God, when they enjoy the fellowship of evil - they are forever lost. These all should be warnings to those who are careless today. There is no way such people will avoid the righteous judgment of God.
But we are thankful that salvation begins with God and ends with God. The Holy Spirit has set apart believers in Christ according to the sovereignty of God. He makes believers respond to the truth and be saved. Our Sovereign God is in control of everything. The Thessalonians need to remember they were saved from wrath through Him and are saved for glory with Him. We rejoice that God loves us and that we have been reached by the Gospel. How thankful we are for those the Lord has loved and chosen for Himself. God's method of reaching people hasn't changed today. Paul and those with him declared the Gospel to the Thessalonians so they could share in Christ's glory, so we do in our day with those to whom God has called us to preach the Gospel. The Holy Spirit brings salvation to happen through the Gospel and those through whom it is preached. God's message through God's messenger, preached in God's power, brings God's salvation for God's glory to be shared by God's people in God's kingdom.