As we see rebellion and lawlessness increasing in our world, both at home and abroad I encourage you to read the Word of God in the second Psalm:
"Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One. 'Let us break their chains,' they say, 'and throw off their fetters.'
The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 'I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.' I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, 'You are my Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.'
Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Psalm 2:1-12
We do not know the day or the hour of our Lord's return. But we are not in darkness as children of light. We can discern the times and the seasons. We are clearly in a time of world wide rebellion, including here in the United States, against the extraordinary blessings and influence of Christian civilization impacting the entire world since the Reformation. Added to the blessings of Christian civilization (popularly referred to as Western civilization) have been the remarkable blessings to the world of the Jewish people, even in their unbelief. The Jewish people have been a great blessing to the entire world in every field of science, medicine, business, law, and government. One amazing fact is that of the total of 543 Nobel Prizes that have been awarded since its inception in 1901, 165 have been awarded to Jewish men and women. That is over 30% of the Nobel Prizes awarded to a people, the Jews, who comprise less than 1% of the world's population. Actually only .2 of one percent. In stark contrast the Muslims of the world have a population of 1.4 billion (20% of the world population). They have won six Nobel prizes which is barely 1% of the awards. For most of you this is not new information, and you love the Jewish people, but there is increasing anti-Semitism in our world and Israel is the focus of intense hatred by all of its Arab neighbors. I occasionally (thankfully rarely) have received very anti-Semitic e-mail messages. May we resolve to always be very close friends and defenders of the Jewish people in these final hours of history.
The reason I'm sharing this is from my conviction that the increasing rebellion we are seeing throughout the world, and even here in America, is a rebellion against the Lord, and against the rule of law. It is also a rebellion against, and hatred for those who have been blessed by the Lord, both Jew and Gentile.
"This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous. Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death."
1 John 3:11-14
Also especially relevant to our time are the words of the apostle Paul in his second epistle to the church at Thessalonica, chapter 2. Notice the frequent references to the coming Antichrist as a "man of lawlessness, "associated with rebellion and lawlessness.
"Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
Don't you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.
But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word."
2 Thessalonians 2:1-17
Gratefully your fellow servant in Jesus Christ,
Court Wood
