Written by Steve Papale 12/1/2022
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. John 10:10(a)
A theologian once said the Christian must go through life with the bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other. For the Christian, watching the news these days is both troubling and encouraging.. Troubling in that we are seeing Romans 1 and the strong delusion that precedes judgment in 2 Thessalonians 2:11 play out in real time.
Who would have thought even 10 years ago that we would be seeing a redefining what men and women are, cities calling for the removal of police, open borders into our country, the shutting down of free speech, the elevation of feelings above truth, the burning down and looting of cities in America without challenge and the celebrating of killing babies in the womb up to and even past birth.
Dark as this is, for the Christian it is not unexpected. Scripture says that evil must increase before the return of Jesus Christ. In this the Christian takes strength and hope. So here are a few things we Christians can keep an eye out for as we get closer to the return of Christ:
Apostasy of the Church – 2 Thessalonians says there will be a falling away or rebellion within the Church, an abandonment of truth. This will eventually lead to a one world religion. From greed and sexual sin within the leadership, to churches going woke, moving to a social gospel, playing to the favor of culture and the abandonment of truth, this is going on everywhere and increasing.
The Spirit of Antichrist/lawlessness – the antichrist hates the things of God. This includes the Word, the traditional family, the Church and authority. These spirits are evident today and can manifest in violence, destruction, hatred, obsession with self, arrogance, sexual deviation and lies. The product of antichrist is lawlessness. In fact, in 2 Thessalonians 2:8 the antichrist is referred to as the lawless one. If God says it’s right the world says it’s wrong and vice versa. “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness” Isaiah 5:20a,b
Strong Delusion – Romans 1:28 states “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do things which are not fitting.” These people are no longer in their right mind but fully believe the lies of Satan. What we are seeing today in the culture are those that not only engage in sin but love the sin. At this point God abandons them and gives them up to what they want. They are under divine judgment. Ultimately this will lead to their destruction.
As Christians we are called to be salt and light. In a world that proclaims tolerance, that any love is good love, consent over morality, imagination over reality, we continue to stand and watch. The Christian knows how this all ends. We just wait on God’s timing.
