Jesus Christ’s Return

Jesus Christ’s Return

We often hear that Jesus is coming soon. Indeed, He Himself says that He is coming soon; but “soon” and “soon” are two different things. There is something that must take place prior to Christ’s return—namely, the falling away.

The Apostle says that we should not let ourselves be led astray or troubled in mind regarding Jesus’ second coming. A person can just drop everything, neglect to arm himself for battle against the evil hosts of wickedness and simply devote himself to waiting for Jesus’ return. This lack of vigilance gives Satan opportunity to carry out his schemes. At first glance, this seems so beautiful, but Paul says it is a deception.

We must not let ourselves be deceived, either by spirit, by word or by letter. 2 Thess. 2. The falling away must come first, and then the man of sin will be revealed.

Some people say that the man of sin, who is also called Antichrist, is the Pope. If he were the Pope, we must have had many antichrists. For that matter, the Pope does not deny that Christ has come in flesh, as the Antichrist will do. The Antichrist will set himself up in the temple of God and proclaim that he is God. The Pope, on the other hand, does not claim to be anything more than St. Peter’s successor.

The mystery of iniquity was already developing quickly in the days of the apostles—how much more so now.

The day will come when the daily sacrifice (the lamb of God) will be rejected. Dan. 12:11. However, if a person rejects Christ as the sacrifice, he rejects and thrusts away the Holy Spirit who speaks from heaven about this Lamb. People have taken this so far as to wave banners that say “Away with the Bible.” I wonder how long it will be before they say, “Away with Christ.”

This is the falling away we know is coming. The mystery of lawlessness increases daily, and the mysteries in lawlessness are so great that even the enforcers of the law are unable to put a stop to problems and situations which are in direct opposition to the law.

God gives people over to a reprobate mind, so they receive revelations in their deception, and the one who is most extreme is the most esteemed. He is regarded as a prophet by the masses.

People are swiftly returning to the days of Noah—giving and given in marriage again and again. People divorce and remarry with the approval of the authorities. But no one says where the authorities get this right. The government is beginning to overlook unrighteousness, and ultimately, unrighteousness will become the established norm.

Priests argue about the divinity of Christ, and young socialists want to get rid of Christianity because it hinders their agenda. People who want to live according to their fleshly lusts go back and forth between all the things that they see, hear and read. What they want the most is to be finished with as much of the law as possible.

All of this lawlessness paves the way for the Antichrist, even as John the Baptist, in the spirit and power of Elijah, paved the way for Christ. Satan’s greatest masterpiece will be to bring forth a “Christ”—that is to say, a “Christ” who is just what the flesh thinks and wants him to be.

When he who now restrains is taken out of the way, the unrighteous one will appear. Christ—the continual (daily) sacrifice—is the one who restrains. We see how terrible it was for the Jews after they rejected this sacrifice sent from God. Now the Gentiles are in the process of rejecting the sacrifice, and this is exactly what creates the environment for lawlessness. Even Christians are crying for as much freedom as possible. They are usually so strongly affected by the spirit of the times that they hate the truth, because it has its source in eternal laws.

We must take heed to these things and arm ourselves against them, because we know that the more Christ is rejected as a sacrifice, the more imminent His return.

We see clearly that many people are already deceived regarding Christ’s second coming, because they do not want to hear about cleansing and sanctification. They only want to hear about His return. That is because they nourish a secret hope that they will be able to enter into glory as easily as possible, so that the passage from earthly glory to heavenly glory will not be disturbed by the hardships of sickness and death.

The foundation for our glory with Christ when He appears depends on our death in the body of Christ, not on something vague or uncertain. Everything must have a foundation on which it stands.