"The Man of Lawlessness"

“For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” (2 Thessalonians 3-4 ESV)

Throughout history, people have been saying this world is so bad that Jesus must be coming. They thought so in Thessalonica, which is why Paul wrote this letter to the church there. It is the very same thing we hear today. For some Christians, this is a proclamation that brings fear. Granted, looking around us, we see many things that cause us great spiritual concern. But is it a sign?

Who is this “man of lawlessness?”

Examining today’s verses, we can gain insight into several key points. First, the man of lawlessness is a man. He is not a spirit, a demon, or Satan himself; he is a man. The man of lawlessness comes from the world.

The second thing that is made clear is that this man of lawlessness will make himself above the law. He violates the law but denies the law applies to him because he exalts himself above the eternal lawmaker, our God,  claiming to be God himself. He will reject Jesus Christ and claim to be God on earth. This occurs when the temple has been rebuilt. For this to happen, there would need to be peace in Israel, and Israel would need to retake possession of the Temple Mount. It is then that feigned peace will be revealed as a deception by the man of lawlessness.

Thirdly, we can see that before the man of lawlessness comes, there must be a great rebellion against God. This means that until this great rebellion occurs, until the world rejects Christ. The man of lawlessness will not appear. Christ told us in Matthew 24:10, “and then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.” Until there is complete rejection, the man of lawlessness will not come forward. We see this in Revelation 13: “The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.”

Next, we know from our text that this man of lawlessness was born for destruction, as Jesus called Him the son of destruction. The whole purpose of this man is to destroy whatever he can, especially every person whose name is not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life (Rev 21:27).

Lastly, we know that the man of lawlessness will have supernatural powers, the power of Satan. This is not sleight of hand, nor trickery, but true satanic power. The greatest of many false prophets and teachers, the man of lawlessness, will display his demonic power to the world.

Pretty frightening, yes? But why, if you are in Christ? This is what we look forward to happening. The second coming of Jesus Christ will be our prize, our removal from sin and destruction. It is when we will be called to meet Christ in the air. Fear not, for God is a promise keeper, and every promise Christ made in the New Testament will be fulfilled.

Promises like, “In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2) Jesus also said, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”(John 14:3) or,  “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. (Matthew 25:34).

Our God is faithful and patient. If you do not know Jesus Christ, seek him now. The scriptures reveal what awaits those who are outside of Christ. I pray that it is not what awaits you. Is Jesus coming? Yes. Is He coming soon? Only the Father knows that answer. However, when comparing what we see in the world around us to scripture, it seems possible. Come to Christ and have no fear in the future; instead, welcome it with the faith and hope of eternal life through grace and by faith in Jesus Christ our Savior.

Grace and peace.