2 Thessalonians 2
It was just over 70 years ago when the impossible happened. The impossible situation I am talking about were some of the worst atrocities ever committed in human history. They said it was impossible because mankind was now "civilized." We had reached the apex of our knowledge about science, mathematics, literature, history.
It all started with the destruction of the property of Jews on "Crystal Night." There was no protest, no outcry for the Jews. Hitler had his answer. No one would stand up for the Jews. Over the next years property damage lead to ghettos, to deportations, to mass murders, to the concentrations camps, to gas chambers. The holocaust claimed the lives of two thirds of Europe's 9.6 million Jews. 6 million Jews were exterminated, all of this occurring in the modern era of mankind. The Bible predicts that we have not seen the end of man's atrocities. The darkness will gather one more time on planet earth. Again the darkness will be the result of one man who is bent on opposing God. And by the way, the avenue by which this lie succeeds is the lack of knowledge of God's Word. There is nothing more important than daily reading and study of God's Word.
There is a sequence here and all of these are going to be convergent.
- A rebellion will occur.
- The Antichrist will appear on the scene.
- He will demand the worship of the world.
- He will set himself up in the Jewish Temple.
- Whatever is holding him back will be removed.
- He will have great power to do miracles.
- Jesus will return and defeat him.
The question we all must ask, is it possible for "modern" people to be so deceived that they follow a man and call him God? The answer is found in a story recorded in the Chicago Tribune a few years ago. The reporter recounted the story of a New Mexico woman who was frying tortillas when she noticed that the skillet burns on one of her tortillas resembled the face of Jesus. Excited, she showed it to her husband and neighbors, and they all agreed that there was a face etched on the tortilla and that it truly bore a resemblance to Jesus. So the woman went to her priest to have the tortilla blessed. She testified that the tortilla had changed her life, and her husband agreed that she had been more peaceful, happy, and submissive since the tortilla had arrived. The priest not accustomed to blessing tortillas was somewhat reluctant but agreed to do it.
The woman took the tortilla home, put it in a glass case with piles of cotton to make it look like it was floating on clouds, built a special altar for it, and opened the little shrine to visitors. Within months, more than 8000 people came to the shrine of Jesus of the Tortilla, and all of them agreed that the face burned into it was the face of Jesus. With the exception of the reporter who said it looked more like former heavyweight boxing champion Leon Spinks. When we don't stand for the truth we will fall for anything.
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