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

People’s sinful nature needs changing, but only God, working through His Holy Spirit, can transform the sinful human heart, through the power of His Word. In 1 Peter 1:3 we are reminded that God, “has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” At death a believers hope becomes reality as they enter the glorious presence of God and the full unhindered, joyous fellowship with the Trinity, the angels, and other saints (Romans 5:1-2) The means of appropriating this living hope and eternal inheritance is spiritual birth, and the power for that appropriation was demonstrated by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Christ rose from the dead, forever securing His children’s living hope in heaven by finally conquering death (cf. 1 Corinthians 15). We need to recognize that as a follower of Jesus Christ we become a new creation, and while we cannot change our spots, God make us something new! We must learn to live in that newness as we experience a metamorphosis from this life to the next.… READ MORE