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

1 Corinthians 13:13 says, “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” Over the years I have asked young couples who have come to me for pre-marital counseling, why Love is greater than faith and hope. After they have pondered this question through their homework, I share with them, that is because Faith will one day become sight, hope will one day be realized, but love endures forever. Love is the greatest of these not only because it is eternal, but because even in this temporal life, love is supreme. Love already is the greatest, not only because it will outlast the other virtues, but because it is inherently greater by being the most God-like. We must remember that love is first of all and primarily a choice! The “feelings” associated with love come as we do loving acts, infatuation is centered around our feelings, but true love is built on the loving acts we share with others. It is no wonder that the first characteristic of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23 is love. Without the enablement of the Holy Spirit we would never be able to love the way … READ MORE