Know the Enemy of God

"And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed" (2 Thess. 2:6-8a). "And now you know" (v. 6a) indicates that they had already been told what keeps the Antichrist from taking over. Most likely God Himself, as "He who now restrains" (v. 7b) would indicate. No angel or human, not even the church as a whole, can restrain Satan. Obviously, God is the One at work holding him back.

Restrain means "to hold back," "to hold down," or "to suppress." Only God could possibly "hold back" the purpose of Satan for his Antichrist. As a result, he will "be revealed in his own time" (v. 6b). Satan finds himself on God's timetable. God will release him when God is good and ready.

Remember, however, that "the mystery of lawlessness is already at work" (v. 7a). That is why you must know the enemy. Evil, immorality, false religion is everywhere. You see it everyday. It is all around you. It will get worse as time goes on, culminating in that time when the Antichrist is revealed. But note, even while we are still here on earth, the evil around us is growing. Satan seeks to deceive us and lead us away from God. That is why you must know the enemy. The more you understand what you are up against in this world, the more you will rely on God and His Word to fight your battles for you. Trust Him and He will do it.

Remember also, that ultimately Satan and his Antichrist will be defeated. "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming" (v. 8).

"The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish" (vs. 9-10a). The Antichrist's power comes from Satan. He will operate on Satan's energy. He will do signs and wonders so as to deceive. Unbelievers will be deceived. Believers will not. Know the enemy, and even now, when Satan sends false teachers your way to try to deceive you, they will fail, because you remember the Word of God and understand the things of God. Amen.