As a follower of Jesus Christ, we are not who we were, nor are we who we are, we are becoming new in our heart, through the renewing of our minds. 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “If anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” The “new” that is spoken of here does not mean new in the sense of “renovated” but new in terms of species. I am not what I was (1 Corinthians 6:11), He transforms me from the inside out, and that transformation will manifest itself in what I do and say. I am different, I no longer live for myself, and the deceitful lusts that tempt me to live for this world. I am a pilgrim and stranger in a place, that God uses to conform me into the image of His glorious Son! I am not just a cleansed person, I am a new type of person, I am declared holy before God, and righteous before men, not because I am a better person than those around me, but because of the work of Jesus Christ through his death, burial, and resurrection. The … READ MORE

In 2 Thessalonians 2:7 we see that, one day the restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit will be removed. But that leads to some questions. Does that mean that the Holy Spirit will be removed from the world? If not how can that removal happen? This phrase “taken out of the way” does not refer to the removal of the Holy Spirit from the world, but rather to the cessation of HIs restraining work. One of the clearest passages to look at to understand this is Romans 1:18-25, where the wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness. When we think of God’s wrath, we think of lighting, storms, and devastation. Interestingly, in the Bible the wrath of God is usually accompanied by God withdrawing himself from mankind and allowing them to move in the bent of their own thinking. Since men are sinners by nature, they do what is natural and sin against one another. The manifestation of this is a downward spiral of society and culture toward evil. Often what we see is that people call good evil, and evil good! The Bible clearly indicates this event will occur during the tribulation period, and will allow the rise … READ MORE

We live in difficult days, and the more we attempt to stem the tide of evil that is present in our society the more frustrated many of us become. It is in the midst of this chaos that we turn to 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7. allow me to paraphrase that passage, “Now you know what restrains [the antichrist] now, so that in His time he will be revealed. For the mystery of lawlessness is already working; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. As we struggle to understand why we cannot stem the tide of wickedness in the world, we need to understand that it is not us that does the work it is the Holy Spirit that holds back the flood of evil. Romans 1 reminds us that the “wrath of God” is revealed, not through the manifestation of disasters, but by simply removing His influence from the world. At the same time passages like Job 1:10-12 and Job 2:4-6 reminds us that Satan can not affect us unless God permits it. What a comfort it to realize that in the battle of good vs evil, God has already won, and … READ MORE