Paul McKenzie

Memory Verse, Tuesday, July 21, 2 Thessalonians 2:4

"who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God."

Here we get a little more info on the final Antichrist. There were prior antichrist wanna-bes, but this is the real thing. There were instances where a couple awful tyrants blasphemed the temple, but they were simply precursors to what will happen after the "falling away".

It is the culminating "fig leaf", which will result in the full outpouring of God's wrath after the end of the "times of the Gentiles". This "beast" has been mentioned in Daniel, in the apocalyptic sermons by Jesus, here, and in Revelation. He is not some metaphor, but will be literally fulfilled, just as the instances preceding the First Coming of Christ.

And if he is to come literally, be assured that there will be another Temple in the future. Some say it has to be built where the "Dome of the Rock" exists, but others say that the foundation of the original temple is next to that building, which means it actually could be built without tearing the other down.

That would be interesting, and even probable when you see that the beast is at first to bring world peace. It could be a symbol of the syncretistic religion that will happen in those days: both religions "co-existing" in peace under the mighty beast and his "false prophet", who seems to be a miracle-working religious leader while the beast is a master economic and political genius that somehow brings the whole world together.

For a very short time, that is. For it will not be long in his reign that he will force the whole world to worship him as god. The system could have already been in place, very likely a "chip" locater system implanted in people, like they are doing right now in pets, and is seriously being promoted throughout the world as the "safest" way to protect one's money and prevent identity theft.

He could probably have this brand-new temple built, and after a period of actual sacrifice, put a stop to it and force the sacrifices to be to himself. And then there will be bloodshed like never before. Those who defy him will be killed. And coupled with that, all who take the mark will be subjected to the plagues of the wrath of God, from the seals, trumpets and bowls, each increasing in intensity.

Not a happy place to be. And to the generation that will see this, Jesus says: "But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:34-36).

When you read through the plagues of Revelation, you see many times where God is still offering repentance to the world. Some will endure to the end, and will be those who first walk in the Millennial Kingdom.

Personally, I suggest that you turn to Christ today, so you can be among those which: "I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth" (Revelation 3:10b).

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

Memory Helps

"who opposes and exalts HIMSELF
against every so-called GOD
or object of WORSHIP,

so that he takes his SEAT
in the temple of GOD,
proclaiming himself to be GOD."

This is a rather long verse, so I divide it initially into a pair, each set containing three lines.

Then I take the last word of each line and learn them first: "Himself/God/Worship", and "Seat/God/God".

They work well because the tell the story in brief if you think about it.

Then I 'll learn the first of the pair slowly back-tracking:

"and exalts HIMSELF", "so-called GOD, "object of WORSHIP", until I finish that segment.

When that is memorized, I move to the second segment. Seems like a tedious process, but it keeps you focused and, since the mind learns better with small bits or chunks, you will pick up the verse more quickly.

Linking verse numbers:

And if you want to further link numbers to it, here is a way: We continue with the 2 Thistles representing 2 Thessalonians, and the "New Two Price Tags" to remind us that we are in chapter 2 (N=2 in the phonetic alphabet, vowels fillers).

Now we add our "memory character" for verses 4, which has to be an "R" word. I use my friend "Ray". You may have a friend "Roy", or if you remember the old cowboy "Roy Rogers", he might work for you. Anyway, I have Ray hiding in fear of this beast as sits in the Temple of God proclaiming that he is God. There are "TWO NEW" price tags on the "Temple", since it was "NEWly" built. Ray is a believer, so he knows what is coming! This is all I need to link 2 Thessalonians 2:4 to the beast. If you need more, add more.