But now in his Second Epistle, he thought it imperative to explain to the Thessalonian Christians very clearly — that they should not even expect a soon return of Christ at all. Instead, they should now rather work hard and long to advance His Kingdom right here on Earth — even in spite of numerous then-increasing persecutions.
In this Second Epistle to the Thessalonians, written in about A.D. 51 soon after the First Epistle, Paul does at least three things. First, amid the persecution and tribulation of the Christian Church in Thessalonica — he stresses the certainty of the ultimate and far-future Final Coming of the Lord. Second, he explained the nature of the increasing opposition to the Gospel — which the Christian Church would ultimately overcome before Christ would come in
