Maybe C. Well, if you have a copy of the Word of God this morning, I would encourage you to turn in the Scriptures to 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, New Testament, 2 Thessalonians, the second chapter is where we will be giving consideration this morning. I'm going to give time again to read the portion that's before us, the opening twelve verses of this passage. We have been going through this book. It's been a number of weeks since we've been here, so we're picking up again in our consideration of these verses. 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, reading from verse 1. Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed the son of perdition. who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he, as God, sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Remember ye not that when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth, that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work. Only he who now letteth will let until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that wicked be revealed, and the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming. Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness and them that perish, because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie, that they all might be damned to believe not the truth. had pleasure in unrighteousness. Amen. And may the Lord again instruct every one of our hearts by His Word this morning. Let us still our hearts again in prayer. Let's look to Him for His help as we come to this time as we consider His Word. Our God, we do come before Thee and recognize that we need Thee. Every hour we need the Lord. We pray in these days that Thou wilt give the help that we so desperately require and teach us to depend upon Thy strength. So often we're filled with a sense of our own abilities. God, destroy our self-confidence. and strengthen our faith that we may rest in Thee alone. Teach that to our young people. Even as we consider again Greg and Kristen, we pray, O Lord, that Thou wilt teach them to lean more and more upon Thee. Thou knowest all their needs, and I pray that Thou wilt meet every need. And Thou wilt be pleased to shepherd their hearts and their lives as they commence life together. Do it for all the young couples and all the young people and all the young families that are here, as well as for the older folks. We realize, Lord, that one week rolls into the next, and at times we have to rejoice with those that do rejoice and weep with those that weep. Continue then to bless those also that are mourning and grieving and sorrowing and those that are dealing with great difficulty. And may even Thy Word today, though it be an unusual passage in consideration of comfort, we pray that in some way Thou would comfort the hearts of all and bless Thy Word to our souls. So meet with us and fill us with Thy Spirit. May Christ be central. May His power be manifest. May it be unleashed for the glory of His name. For we pray in Jesus' name, amen. For those of you that may be visiting with us this morning, I issue an apology to you in relation to what we're dealing with this morning. We have come in our series through 2 Thessalonians to not just chapter 2, but to one of the most difficult portions of Scripture anywhere that you'll find in the Word of God. And certainly in the New Testament, 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 is one of the most contested and difficult and challenging portions of Scripture. And we have been endeavoring to work our way through it. This is the third part of a series of messages under the theme, The Man of Sin. We've called it that because, as you see from verse 3, there is this individual referred to as the man of sin that will be revealed, the son of perdition. So, we're dealing with the man of sin. or as most refer to Him also, the Antichrist. And therefore, there's a certain amount of interest in this subject, and yet as we come to this passage, it's not always clear to really understand what is going on, but we're endeavoring to do our best. But if you feel a little lost, let's just say that. If you feel a little lost this morning, I'm going to do my best so that you don't, but if you do, well, Partly it's to do with the passage, and partly it's to do with the fact that you're maybe coming in in the middle of our dealing with this. My intention as we've come to these verses, verses 3 through 12 specifically, was to deal with it in four messages. So, as I say, we're coming to the third message. The first message dealt with caution expressed. In relation to the man of sin, there is caution expressed in these verses. The second message dealt with circumstances anticipated. There are circumstances that are to be anticipated in relation to the man of sin, his arrival, and all that will unfold in relation to that. Today we're coming to characteristics detailed. We're looking at the man of sin himself and the characteristics that are given to us in this portion of the Word of God. Obviously it's helpful if you've been with us so far, but let me give a summary, since it's been a number of weeks since we've looked at this, a summary of what we've considered, trying to draw out certain bullet truths that we have looked at already in our consideration of this passage. First, we have noted that the last days, in relation to what Scripture refers to as the last days, is not the period just before the end But it is the period between the cross and the second coming of Christ. So, when people talk about the last days, you're living in the last days. People will say, we're living in the last days, and you can say, yes, we are, just like the apostles were. We are all living in the last days. That's the scriptural understanding of the last days. Secondly, when we're called to watch for the Lord's coming, this is not because of the immediacy, but more because of the inevitability. So, when the apostles were told to watch, sometimes people interpret that as meaning, obviously then Christ must be coming right in their time, so therefore the Lord must delay His coming, as some have said, and even in the first century that was noted. Yet it's not so much about immediacy as it is about inevitability. Christ will return, and so we watch for that day. Thirdly, there is a spirit of lawlessness already at work in the first century when Paul is writing these words. It's called the mystery of iniquity in verse 7 of this passage. This is an anti-Christian spirit which seeks to hinder the true confession of Christ, and yet it has not yet reached its height. because we're waiting for, or they were at least at that time, waiting for the last great apostasy that is referred to in verse 3. Fourthly, the reason that it has not yet reached its height is because the man of sin is being restrained by first something, verse 6, and someone, verse 7. We understand that as well. You may not understand what I mean by that at this stage, but that helps us understand something of what's being dealt with here that is both something and someone that is restraining and preventing the revelation of the man of sin. Fifthly, Paul had been explicit on who the restrainer was, verse 6, when he had been there. Now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. He had spoken about that when he was dealing with them in person. when he was speaking to them and instructing them, therefore the cryptic nature of his letter may indicate an unwillingness to be explicit because it related to the Roman Empire and its emperor." That was a suggestion that we put out that part of the difficulty of this passage is the cryptic nature of Paul's language, and that may be to prevent anyone bringing the accusation that was already leveled at him. If you go to the founding of this church in this city, you will find that in Acts chapter 17 what they're leveling to try and prevent the forward movement of the church is that he says there's another king, even Jesus. And so, that would be perceived as trying to supplant the empire and would get them in trouble. While that was not the case, it wasn't his main motive, but he was saying there was another king. But in order to try and prevent the undermining of the work, he may have been more careful in writing what he would write. Sixthly, apostasy is something that can only happen among those that have been exposed to the truth. Apostasy is not something that happens in the heathen world. Apostasy is not something we expect to occur among those that don't believe or have no outward expression of belief, we might say. Apostasy is something that happens to those that are exposed to the truth, profess to follow the truth, but defect from the truth either in doctrine or in practice. And so when it speaks of a falling away first, verse 3, or an apostasy that will come, it is dealing with something that relates to the visible body of the church. Seven, there has always been apostasy in the church, whether in the Old Testament or in the New Testament, but the apostasy of this passage is the apostasy. There is a greater apostasy which is to come that's expected by the apostle. This is the last great apostasy. Eighth, this last great apostasy of 2 Thessalonians 2 is primarily a religious apostasy, and it is not connected to the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. And so this, particularly among some of the postmillennial camp, especially those of partial preterism, they will say that there is a fulfillment of this in A.D. 70. But then when they're dealing with the man of sin, they're dealing with someone that wasn't religious and not part of the church. And there's where I find a problem, that it doesn't fit with that. So, it's not connected to the fall of Jerusalem, this apostasy. And there are other reasons as well we could give. Ninth, the temple of God is not a physical temple, but the visible church, which is the institution through which the man of sin will be revealed and in which he will enthrone himself. And then tenth, the events of the final apostasy, the revelation of the man of sin, and the second coming of Christ that are dealt with in this passage do not need to be immediately consecutive to one another. But it seems likely that the apostasy precedes the man of sin, who then precedes the coming of Christ. That we know for sure. So these are things we've already dealt with. That's me summarizing two sermons to you, for whatever help it may or may not be to you this morning. But we're coming then to the characteristics that are detailed in relation to the man of sin. And I want us to see a number of things here. First, the characteristics are seen in his biblical titles. The characteristics are seen in his biblical It appears that in seeking to illustrate the nature of this forthcoming power, Paul adopts terms that were already familiar to certainly the Jews. So, we find in verse 3, at the end of that verse, he refers to him as that man of sin. Now that's not him plucking out a term that had no historical significance. This was a term that had already been given historically to Antiochus IV or Antiochus Epiphanes. And so, if you're reading Jewish literature, the Jews were very familiar with this term in its application to him. In fact, Scripture deals with him. His career and his character are prophetically described by Daniel in Daniel chapter 11. He killed many of the Jews in great cruelty and gave rise to the Jewish Maccabean Revolt. This is a significant part of Jewish history and the years leading up to the arrival of the Lord Jesus Christ. So when Paul uses this term and speaks of the man of sin, certainly the Jews that were there, and there were Jews in this church because when we read in Acts 17, Jews had been converted, so they would be able to explain what he is meaning, or at least the familiarity of this term, the kind of characteristics then to expect in this rising individual as he might be similar to Antiochus who had come before. Thomas Manton, the Puritan, notes that the Jews called Antiochus the man of sin, quote, because he sought to alter the religion of the people and by cruelty to introduce a change of worship and idolatry and such laws as he would set up. So Paul's giving this title to indicate something similar that's going to take place. Someone's going to arise who will seek to alter the religion of the people and by cruelty introduce a change of worship and idolatry. Paul would then have us look for someone, yes, that's in the church, but also someone of great wickedness, someone who will subvert the true worship with false worship, who will attack the true people of God. He will eventually seek to destroy the true people of God and set them aside or ostracize them from the body of Christ, or at least the visible body of Christ. Those who are noncompliant to his whims will no doubt suffer. So he's called a man of sin, and I can't take any more time to deal with the historical character of Antiochus. You can read of that yourself, and you'll get a sense that when he's using that, what you know about Antiochus, there's something about that. The essence of his character is being transposed into this person who's to come in the future. But he also calls him the man of sin, or rather, pardon me, the son of perdition, the son of perdition. Again, look at verse 3, the son of perdition. Perdition means destruction or ruin. So here you have the son of ruin. If you were to look at various portions, whether it be Romans 9, 22 or Philippians 3, 19, it talks about whose God is their belly, whose end is destruction. It's the same word that's being used here. But the title here, Son of Perdition, to those of you familiar with your Bibles will know it's been used before in the Scriptures with reference to Judas Iscariot. You find it in John chapter 17 verse 12 where he is referred to as the Son of Perdition. And again, Paul is being very deliberate here. He is taking a title, a term, a designation that was familiar and then saying that the person that's coming has similar characteristics. He's called the son of perdition, not just because of what he did, but also because of where he will go. Judas went to his own place. He went to the place of eternal ruin, of destruction, of everlasting judgment. Remember, women as long As the Word of God is before us, we understand and we believe that there is an eternal judgment for those who reject Christ. It doesn't matter what the culture says, and it doesn't matter what the church begins to say. The unpalatableness of telling people that God will judge them forever and ever and ever and ever in a place called hell. That place exists. It was prepared for the devil and his angels, and anyone who rejects the Son of God ends up there. Judas went there, and this man who is to come also will be identified with that. But in giving him this title, Paul would have us look for certain characteristics that we see in Judas Iscariot, a professed disciple of Christ therefore, a leader in the church we might say. But also, as we would pry a little more into his character, we'll discover that he's covetous. Judas was a covetous man. He had the bag. He was the one who handled the givings of the people. The people would contribute to the cause of Jesus Christ as He moved around in His ministry, and people would give and try to support materially. They would all then be passed on to Judas, who would hold on to that and help in the distribution of funds. But Judas was covetous, and Judas was siphoning off money from the bag, and he, we see that exhibited whenever Mary comes and breaks the alabaster box before the Lord Jesus, and she's offering this in worship to him, and immediately we're told when you pull all the record of Scripture together that it's Judas who begins to say, could this not have been sold for 300 pence and given to the poor? And then the comment, the inspired comment is this he said, not because he cared for the poor, but because he had the bag. He wanted, he was a thief. He was trying to siphon off some of it, and he saw that expensive item that could have been sold, and he saw a little portion of it that he could have had for himself. And he was frustrated and angry, but then it tells us that they all murmured against her. But it's exactly at that point, it's exactly at that point, after three years of the religious leaders looking for opportunity to get hold of the Lord Jesus Christ and take Him away. It's at that point when she offers that in sacrifice, and he's lamenting at what he missed out on, it's at that point he goes off to the religious leaders and betrays Christ for thirty pieces of silver. I always see that as Judas, his response to that, that I should have had a portion of that. Well, I'm going to get my piece. I'm going to betray Christ. This is the kind of character that we should expect, covetousness and of course betrayal, one who will lead others astray. And this is why I have a distinct problem with those who see the man of sin as Nero or any Caesar. Again, the partial preterists will see it, certainly the full preterists, but then they're heretical so we don't want to listen to them anyway. But the partial preterists, those who believe a lot of the prophecies in Matthew 24 and even in the book of Revelation that are fulfilled at AD 70 or leading up to AD 70, when they say that the man of sin is Nero or some other Caesar, I think they fail to see some of the characteristics that must be at play in this person. So, he's called the man of sin, he's called the son of perdition, he's also called, in verse 8, that wicked or that lawless. He's a man who has his own laws. The laws of Christ are secondary and subservient to his own ways, and so he will establish his own laws to the ruin of the souls of others. He will elevate his own status and his own wisdom. We'll see more evidence of this as we proceed. So, when we consider the characteristics that are detailed in this passage, we have to first see the biblical titles, which we've considered. We have the man of sin, we have the son of perdition, we have that wicked. These are titles that are given to him in this portion. But note also then the characteristics are seen in his diabolical influences, not only in his biblical titles, but his diabolical influences. Verse 9 speaks of his signs. Look at verse 9. Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders. These signs are definitely satanic. The rise of the man of sin will be notable because he is aided by Satan. You see that. His coming is after the working of Satan. There is a satanic working there. There's a sense in which He is being influenced, just like the son of perdition, Judas Iscariot. We read of Judas Iscariot in Luke chapter 22, verse 3 and following, then entered Satan into Judas, surname Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve. And he went his way in communion with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him unto them. So this is the kind of man we are dealing with, someone with signs that are satanic. Judas was able to perform signs. Now, he was doing it under the clothing of the power that Christ had given to him in his office as an apostle. But here you have a man in Judas, and we can make some again transposing influences or things. Judas moved around, walked around, performed miracles, healed sick people. No one suspected for a moment that he was any different to Peter, James, and John and the rest. He was clothed with the power. This man also will be clothed with a power, not Christ's power, but a satanic power will certainly be working in and through him. The signs are also possibly supernatural. They are possibly not only definitely satanic, but they're possibly supernatural. Three terms are given to describe what he will exhibit, all power and signs and lying wonders. So you have power, signs, and wonders. These terms are found elsewhere in the New Testament. And they are used to describe the miracles of the Lord Jesus Christ and the apostles. For example, in Acts 2, 32, 2 Corinthians 12, verse 12, Romans 15, verse 19, Hebrews 2, verses 3 and 4. So, the language used then makes us anticipate that something of what He will do will make Him look like an apostle. He'll appear just as Jesus Christ did in that fashion, that there will be certain powers. Now, I don't know whether they are definitely supernatural, because look at the way they're described in verse 9. At the end of it, it speaks of lying wonders, and some have, looking at the grammatical construction, have suggested that lying could really be put in front of all the terms that are given here, lying powers, lying signs, lying wonders. They were all deceiving. So the question arises then, well, is He actually doing miracles, or did they just appear to look like miracles? And I don't know. I don't know whether their intent is as He does actual miracles, then they lie, they deceive, they lead people astray, or the actual miracles themselves or apparent miracles are also deceptive. But really it doesn't matter. It actually doesn't matter. The material difference isn't there because the point is people get deceived. Whether or not they're actually supernatural or not doesn't matter if they're having the desired influence and impact upon men, which they have. That's what's prophetically said. There are going to be signs and wonders and powers that are shown that deceive people, lead them astray, make them believe that this person should be followed. So multitudes are going to be deceived. And this is why we must be very careful about following people and movements by the things that appear to occur by those people and movements. Turn for a moment to Deuteronomy 13, Deuteronomy chapter 13. This is a very important passage, and if you keep it in mind, it will aid you in what the Scripture calls you to in 1 John 4 verse 1, to try the spirits whether they be of God. Because that's what this passage is dealing with. It is an encouragement to testing of what's going on when you see certain things transpire. So Deuteronomy 13 verse 1, if there arise among you, this is in Israel. These are people who arise within the body, within the visible assembly of the saints. If there arise among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them. Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. for the Lord your God proveth you," or tests you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Now, this will become even more relevant next week, God willing, when we see the deception that goes on, but I wanted to read it to you today. I want you to see what's happening here. God sovereignly permits individuals to arise within the professed body of Christ, and they arise up with a word to speak, something to prophesy upon or to say, perhaps even have along with that a certain wonder. There's a certain kind of miraculous thing going on with what they say and do. There's something that appears to be supernatural. It is sufficient in its power that it could lead people astray. But here's what the Lord warns. This will test you. It will test you whether or not you will give yourself to their words or to my word. And what you need to be wary of, what you need to be concerned about is if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. In other words, it doesn't matter what they appear capable of doing. or what they might even be able to predict will transpire. Prophecies that they may give and issue and say they must be of God, they have seen the future. God has spoken to them, and what they've said has come to pass. They have a history of right predictions. The Lord says this is a test. It is a test. Do you care about what they say or about what I've said? And if you don't get back to the Word of God, then you're going to go astray. The deception is going to be used to prove that you don't care about the mind of Christ. Now, this happens every single day. It's always going on. Every single day, people see things going on, prophets arise, they call themselves apostles, they call themselves prophets, they predict things will happen, they then say, I said this would occur, or they do other things that appear to be miraculous, And yet they're not of God. They're of a different spirit. We have oneness Pentecostalism, for example, that's perceived to be part of the visible body of Christ. Oneness Pentecostals are just another Christian church or denomination, but they're wrong in the person of Christ. They are wrong in the Son of God. This is not some secondary issue. This is heresy, and it's an ancient heresy. It's not a new heresy. It's one that the church dealt with years and years and years ago. And we've established already that their understanding of God and the Trinity is false. Not false in the sense that I don't know exactly the timing of the Lord's return, or we have different opinions on who should be baptized, or what's the best mode of baptism, sprinkling, pouring, or immersion. That's not the decision. This is on the person of Christ, and they are wrong. And yet people act like they're part of the Christian church, but they are not. And they're there on your television set. People, they watch us, it's on CBN or whatever it is, or TBN, I don't even know, I don't even have it, so whatever that Christian preaching channel is, and they see them as part of the church. And they're not. But people listen to what they say and they see what they do. Oh, look, they have a massive church, they must be of God. Or they put their hands on someone and apparently they got healed. This is exactly what Deuteronomy 13 is dealing with. If you're led astray by what they say, or what they apparently have done, and you're not coming back to the Word and saying, hang on a minute here, this is not a Christian spirit. This is not Christianity. This is moving away from the fundamentals of the faith. And the person that will arise person that will come to the fore that is dealt with in 2 Thessalonians 2 will be like that. As I say, I don't know whether it will be supernatural or not, whether it is supernatural or not. I don't know what the intention here is in the text, but as I say, it doesn't really matter. The impact is the same. It deceives people, and the reason it deceives people is because they elevate what they see and what they hear from them over what is given in the Word. And the Lord uses it as a test, as we'll see next week, not just in Deuteronomy 13 where it's spoken to Israel, but He is saying the same thing is going to transpire in relation to this person. So this is serious business. We must not lose sight of the importance of staying close to the Lord and knowing His Word and elevating that beyond everything even that we may see with our own eyes. So His signs, know also His sermons, verse 10, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish because they receive not the love of the truth that they might be saved. Now, this is by implication. And the implication is seen here that those that are deceived are turning away, they receive not the love of the truth. In other words, the truth is being put before them. They're hearing the truth and they won't receive it. What are they receiving? They're receiving the sermons of the man of sin, the instruction of the man of sin. They have turned their ears from those preaching the truth, and they're giving themselves to the one who is being dealt with here in this passage. As a result of the apostasy and the arise of this satanic-empowered force called the man of sin, He brings a message that leads people astray, that is accepted rather than what is declared by the faithful preachers of the Word. They receive not the love of the truth, they're receiving something else. So they don't receive what will save them, they receive what will damn them. That's not their intention, by the way. These aren't Satanists in the explicit outward sense. These are people sitting in church. These are people baptized. These are people that are part of the body, that have a testimony, that grew up in it, that have their Bibles in their hands, that have an interest in spiritual things. That's what we're dealing with here. The Bible tells us, warns us, that they are going to not receive the truth. They will receive not the love of the truth. The Bible speaks of those who have itching ears, and they will heap to themselves teachers because they have these itchy ears. In other words, they have ears that they want to be tickled. And in order to make sure that the preacher tickles their ears and their fancy, they heap to themselves teachers. They actually request it, demand it, elect them, raise them to position. The fact that there is all these bad teachers on television, these huge churches in America, is just a sign of what Americans want. It's not like Joel Osteen comes and kind of creates the market. The market's already there. This is what people want. They want Osteen. They want these TV preachers with all their promise of health, wealth, and prosperity. That's what they want. And so they see they're like a good salesman, they're like a good entrepreneur, if you like. They see the market's already there, and they give them what they want. And the people heap it up. They love it. So, well, it's going to be, as this passage deals with it, it will rise to a new level. I believe Daniel 7 is prophesying of this man. I don't have time to turn there today, but we're told in Daniel 7, 25, he shall speak great words against the Most High and shall wear out the saints of the Most High. This is what he will do. He will wear them out. He's speaking against God. He's turning against the truth. We've noted that already in verse 4. He'll oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped. But it won't appear to be that way for many. It will only be for those who are discerning and prioritize the truth that will see it and discern it. The greatest apostate that is prophesied here will, of course, occur within the visible church. And he arises because there is a moving away from, again, the basics of Christian living. People want a gospel without repentance, discipleship without sacrifice, atonement without the cross. That's what they want. So, the false teacher comes in and says, well, here's the new rules. Here's the new gospel. The man of sin is the master of a new gospel. He will lead men to reject the true Christ and put himself in the place of Christ and claim the worship that ought to be ascribed to Christ alone. For this reason, John calls him Antichrist in 1 John 2.18. He will be in the place, not just against Christ, that's not the sole way of interpreting Antichrist, but also in place of Christ. That's the objective. That brings us then thirdly to this. The characteristics have resulted in an historical suspect. Not only is it seen in his biblical titles and his diabolical influences, but it has resulted in an historical suspect. There have been many views as to who this man of sin is. As I've noted already, some look back and they see Nero or another Caesar as fulfilling the role that is spoken of here in 2 Thessalonians 2. Others, they have a tendency to look at their own day and some particular wicked individual arises and they say, that's the man of sin. So, we've had Hitler and we've had other individuals that have arisen even in recent history that have had this placed upon them, this title given to them. But there has been a dominant view, a dominant view among the Reformers, the Puritans, and those that follow in their track. Luther, Calvin, Tyndale, Knox, Cranmer, etc., etc., etc. The list is almost endless. It goes right to Spurgeon and beyond. of those that have a particular understanding as to who this man of sin is. It was a common view not only in Europe from the Reformation onwards, but also in early America, and it was found in our confession of faith, the Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter 25, paragraph 6. There is no other head of the church but the Lord Jesus Christ. Nor can the Pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof, but is that Antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition, that exalteth himself in the church against Christ and all that is called God." That has been the view of the church since the days of the Reformation, even before the Reformation. pre-Reformation Reformers could see it. But in recent years, it has fallen out of favor. In recent years, it is no longer popular. And there are a number of reasons for that, no doubt, liberalism and modern scholarship, as well as other factors that the breaking of the power of the Church of Rome because of the Reformation and because of events like the French Revolution have, I think, caused people to look elsewhere. So, when you read modern commentaries, they do not favor this view, but I have yet to come across a view that carries more weight. And I think there's like very safe ground to be in the ground of whether it be Martin Luther, or John Calvin, or William Tyndale, or John Knox, or St. Spurgeon, or any of the other great men that have gone on before us, both on the other side of the Atlantic as well as on this side. In accordance with this passage then, the mystery of iniquity that was at work in the days of the apostles in verse 7 continued to work With the rise of Constantine in the 300s came the civil acceptance of Christianity. Constantine then moved the seat of power from the great city of Rome to Constantinople to leave a legacy of his existence. But of course that created a vacuum in Rome, which was over time filled by the papacy. And this is how many have understood verse 7. There is this mystery of iniquity already at work. Only he who now letteth will let until he be taken out of the way. There is a removal of the Roman Empire from one place, and then there's arriving of the man of sin into the place, filling a gap. And as he arrives, as he comes into power, historically we see his influence. why the Roman Empire was a restraining influence upon some of the things that were going on that Paul deals with. With it removed, it gave rise to a succession of antichrists that sit on a throne, claiming ever more power, more adoration from their subjects, and to be the very vicar of Jesus Christ, which is another way of saying antichrist, in the place of Christ. So then, do we still agree today that the papacy is the man of sin? I say yes. Is it the final Pope? More to the point, is the man of sin this final Pope? Maybe, maybe not. At this stage of my understanding, I think we can just really leave it with both. It will be the papacy as an organization as well as an individual that no doubt will be at the head of it at a certain point in time in history who will lead into a great apostasy at the end just before the coming of Christ. But it's already at work. It's already here. Each pope reflects one of the many antichrists spoken of in 1 John 2. The final one will no doubt be worse than all that precede him. And this has been the belief of the church largely. Orthodox men have believed this. And as I say, it's fallen out of favor, but even perhaps the greatest theologian of America's history, Jonathan Edwards, was absolutely convinced of this. I mean convinced. He gives a helpful presentation of his belief in his work titled, A History of the Work of Redemption. And in a particular section, he's arguing for the divine authority of the Scriptures. And as he argues for the divine authority of the Scriptures, as he is arguing for the fact this is dependable, you can trust the Word of God. He has two arguments. The first relates to the preservation of the church, the fact that there have been so many occasions both in Israel in the Old Testament and then in the New Testament in which the church has been sought to be extinguished and destroyed. The fact that she's still there and as powerful as ever and as present as ever is evidence of the reliability of Scripture. But the second argument relates to Antichrist. And he gives sixteen marks of scriptural fulfillment that relate to the Antichrist. I don't know. I don't really have time. I really don't. I have them before me. I have them here. You can find this, and if you can't find it, you can let me know. I can send it to you. But he gives sixteen arguments, and he just goes through Scripture and how the papacy so particularly fulfills what it is that is being prophesied of in 2 Thessalonians 2. And instead of me giving time to that this morning, which is, I was hoping to give some time to it, but instead of me doing that, I want us then to get back to what always is my goal every time I preach is, so what? So what? What is the big deal with this? Why deal with this? And what is the relevance of being able to identify and say that the papacy, the Roman Catholic Church in every age fulfills what is dealt with here in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2? Why is that significant? And why would it be so significant that in the breadth, now if you take yourself back and see the Westminster divines as we call them coming together in the 1640s to agree on a confession of faith, to say that this is what we believe, these are the areas of agreement, that in that, as all these various minds wrestle together with how to state truth in a way that is sensitive to the peculiarities of each man, because that's the thing, you get any two people together and start to define doctrine and understand teaching, there are going to be nuances that you have to say, well, I differ with you there, brother. But here you have a room full of brilliant men giving themselves over to a confession, and they are all endeavoring to agree on these various points of doctrine. And they're all able to agree to the fact that the papacy is that man of sin, the son of perdition. He is the Antichrist. He fulfills what is expected. They agree. And all those that follow to a man, except in recent days, agree. Now, it has become uncommon, and it is frightful actually to see what is happening today. Most churches today do not have an historic confession of faith. They have moved away. They don't want to be Presbyterian, have a Westminster confession of faith. They don't want any of the old confessions, London Baptist, or any of them. They don't want any of them. And so they pull together their own confession of faith, which is fine. That's up to them. But you will find few, if any, that will address this. Who's the Antichrist? Who's to come? What's the great dangerous spiritual influence in the world that must be avoided at all costs and opposed? at all cost. They will not have a line that deals with the Roman Catholic Church. Well then, the men who write these confessions of faith may be perfectly okay with it. They may understand the problem, but they don't include it. But their children don't understand. Now, you will know that I support, and I'm using this as an example because you'll remember it, and it will stick. because it hits home. You will know I have every desire to see Bob Jones University continue on in the work that they're doing, and that the Lord's favor would be upon that institution. You know that. But when two years ago they had a Walk for Life on the campus of the university, and I was there. In fact, I was partly involved. I offered a prayer on that occasion. When I got to the end of the walk, there were various stalls that were there, various groups that deal with pro-life issues. And I saw one of them, immediately I knew, Forty Days for Life. I'm almost 100% certain that it was run by Romanists. And then there was another one, Sidewalk Advocates for Life, which I had never heard of, but I talked to the lady that was there. I said, tell me, who's involved with your organization? Would it be mostly Protestants or Roman Catholics? And she said, about 50-50. I said, who would be in charge? Well, most of the ones that would be kind of over the whole thing would be Roman Catholic. And they're sitting on the campus of Bob Jones University. They invite Abbie Johnson as well, unplanned, the movie, trying in all their best efforts to promote a pro-life perspective and, of course, what we agree that we should defend, the rights of the unborn. But Abbie Johnson is not just a Roman Catholic. She is a zealot for Rome. At any given opportunity, she'll be turning you away from your Baptist background or your Presbyterian background to the glories of the Roman Catholic Church. She's not quiet about it. She's not shy. My warning to you, beloved, this morning is that the defenses are down. And we're looking at issues, and there are always going to be ethical issues. There always will be ethical issues and causes where we will say, well, they're Christian. Oh, look at the great onslaught of Islam coming in and the danger that that might bring. Let's join arms with Rome. Let's stand with her because we have a cause that we can unite upon, pro-life or some other political issue. And we're joining hands with the Antichrist. I have absolutely no time for Rome. I don't care if we agree on things. There are things, no doubt, the devil and I agree on. But I do not stand with them. We cannot, we cannot afford to let this slip and act like this is a secondary issue. We must maintain what our fathers taught us and what they understood, and even if they're wrong, even, even if Even if the man of sin is identified as someone else other than someone at the head of the papacy, even if that's the case, as Spurgeon said himself, that he should be arrested, the papacy should be arrested on suspicion. If he isn't the actual one dealt with in this passage, he has to be arrested. He must be perceived as certainly in cahoots with such a spirit. Because he takes to himself titles and names that indicate he is comfortable with being in the place of Christ, in the room of Christ, in a position of honor that should only be ascribed to Christ. And he has no conscience about it whatsoever. And he heaps it to himself. So as we progress through time. And various issues arise. Beloved, be very vigilant. As we will see next week, God willing, there is a deceit in this that is dangerous, highly dangerous. And it leads to the damnation of the soul. We cannot afford to trifle with eternal matters when Scripture is so explicit and when some particular body is so anti-gospel. We will not. Sproul had to point out to some, was it Chuck Colson or whoever it was, and the evangelicals and Catholics together, those that were trying to pull Rome and evangelicals together in the nineties. Sproul and MacArthur standing there, particularly R.C. Sproul, saying, we can't do this. Well, here's a statement of faith. They believe that justification is by faith. That's what it says. Justification is by faith. Yes, there's a problem there. They've always believed justification is by faith. Always. But it's missing one word. One word. Alone. Justification by faith alone. Martin Luther stood and was prepared to lay down his life for essentially one word, and all the Reformers were prepared to lay down their lives for essentially one word. And we're so ignorant and foolish today, we're ready to join hands with the arch enemy of the church because we're so theologically inept. We don't even know how to define our own understanding of the gospel. We are justified by faith alone. And anyone who preaches any other gospel, Galatians 1, is accursed. And right across Greenville, you have well-meaning Christians that do not see this. They don't see the issues. They don't understand. And I went over to Piedmont Women's Center, and I had really one question to ask the lady that's in charge over there. To what degree is the Roman Catholic Church involved in your organization? I came away convinced that it was really led by evangelical people, so at this present time I have no problem with it. But if Piedmont Women's Center becomes a zealot for Rome, they'll not get a cent of mine. We can't afford, let me put it this way. The honor of Christ and His gospel is more important than the life of the unborn. If that doesn't make the point clear enough for you, I don't know what would. This is what we lay our lives down for. And I want nothing to do with Rome at any level. in social issues, political issues, and certainly not ecclesiastical issues. For she is an harlot, the killer of the prophets of God. She is wicked to the core. Though her powers have somewhat subsided in recent times, give her an inch, she will take a mile. He still kisses the ground, believing that the lands belong to Him. He still believes that He is King of kings and Lord of lords. Not here. May God preserve us. Help us to understand just how important these issues are for His name's sake. Let's bow together in prayer. Let me underscore this morning as we bow before the Lord, this in no way is to be interpreted that there's animosity in my heart for Roman Catholic people. Far from it. I have witnessed to them. I don't know how many I've witnessed to. I've always told them the same thing I tell anyone else, their need is Christ. They need the gospel like anyone else. But the system, we can have nothing to do with it. The oversight is opposed to Christ. That which is the enemy of my Lord Jesus must be my enemy too. We always stand there, whatever the world might think of us. Lord, help us. Give us grace in these days. We pray that we will take up the mantle that our forefathers so valiantly took up. We pray that we would understand the gospel clearly and aright. Our problem is, Lord, we don't get it. We don't get the gospel. So many that inhabit pulpits today amidst their folly, they just don't see the issues. And just because the great enemy may be taking a nap, it in no way means that we are to cuddle up next to them as if they may do us good or be our friend. So we pray that Thou wilt graciously help us to discern the times and understand our calling. And we ask for Christ's sake that Thou wilt help us not only to run from the works of darkness, but to reprove them as Thy Word calls us to. So give us strength in this. Give us backbone. Give us courage. And may we chart a course for the honor of Christ. There are social issues. There needs to be a voice for the unborn. Help us not to compromise the gospel. in aligning with those that have no real appreciation for the purity of justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Hear our prayer, forgive our sins, remove the chaff even from this sermon, and sanctify the truth to every heart. And bring us back here again this evening to worship Thee we pray, in Jesus' precious name, amen.