JUL 17

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
Memorise John 16:7-14
“the Spirit of truth … will shew you things to come”

WHICH COMING ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO?

What prevents the Antichrist from appearing right now is the work of the Restrainer. 2 Thessalonians 2:6 says, “And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time,” and verse 7b says, “only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way”.

Who or what is this Restrainer? It is difficult to identify who or what the Restrainer is. There are several views: the Law of God, the Archangel Michael, the Holy Spirit. The popular view is that it is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is presently doing this work of convicting the world of sin, of righteousness, of judgment (John 16:8). He is not only active in the Church, but also in the World in restraining evil, from letting evil run amok. So once the Lord withdraws His restraining hand, this sin-cursed world will take its natural course, and wickedness will reach its height with the Wicked one leading the way.

Know that there will be two comings: (1) the coming of Christ, and (2) the coming of the Antichrist. Antichrist will first come shortly before Christ returns. And when Christ returns He will destroy all His enemies by “the spirit of his mouth”, and “brightness of his coming” (v 8).

For which coming are you waiting? Whose side are you on? Christ or Antichrist? May you be found on the Lord’s side, for it is the winning side. Those who attack our Perfect God and His Perfect Word today are on the losing side. “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (vv 11-12).

If you are still not a Christian, I plead with you dear reader to believe in Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.

Thought: Do not delay, believe on Jesus today.
Prayer: Ask God for forgiveness, confess your sins, and believe on Jesus Christ who died for your sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again from the dead according to the Scriptures.