Falling Away

2 Thessalonians 2:3: “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day (Day of the Lord in the NASB, NIV, ESV, RSV,ASV) will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,”

After studying some other Bible translations and after reviewing writings of various Bible scholars/teachers, I believe (it’s ok to disagree with me) “that Day” in this verse is referring to the Day of the Lord—God pouring out His wrath on a Christ-rejecting world, or what’s commonly known as the Great Tribulation. In this verse, Paul says two things are going to happen before the Day of the Lord occurs. Number one, a “falling away” is referenced, and number two, the Antichrist (the man of sin/son of perdition) is going to be revealed. Who is the Antichrist? Here’s the long-awaited answer. Are you ready?—I don’t know. We can speculate all we want to, but truth be told, we really don’t know who the Antichrist is. In the past, people have believed that the Antichrist was Ronald Reagan, Walt Disney, and Mickey Mouse (I kid you not!). We’ve had a lot of Mickey Mouses running our country, but none of them have been the Antichrist.

It’s interesting that there’s only one other place in the Bible that “the son of perdition” is mentioned. In John 17:12 Jesus refers to Judas as “the son of perdition”. The Bible tells us that Satan entered into Judas Iscariot when he betrayed Christ. Just as there is a holy Trinity—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—there is also an “unholy trinity” mentioned in the Book of Revelation—Satan, the beast (Antichrist), and the false prophet. Just as Satan entered/indwelt Judas, Satan will indwell the Antichrist. Just as Jesus was God wrapped in human flesh, the Antichrist will be Satan wrapped in human flesh. Another attempt by Satan to try and counterfeit the work of God. Satan is the master counterfeiter, Amen?

This falling away is from the Greek word “apostasia” from which we get our word apostasy. “Apostasia” can mean falling away, rebellion, or defection. But “apostasia” can also mean “a departure/taking away”. Some Bible scholars believe that this falling away is talking about the Rapture of the Church because we’re going to be taken away/snatched out of here before the Great Tribulation takes place. Other scholars believe that this falling away means a falling away from the Lord. However, I don’t believe this is talking about true believers turning their backs on and leaving the Lord. I believe this verse is talking about those who are “playing church”. Perhaps they’ve been attending church for 30 years. They show up for church every Sunday and mid-week for Bible study. They have a worn out Bible and can quote 3,000 verses word perfect. They have all the Christian clichés down pat, they have the “Christian smile”, and they raise both hands during praise and worship. However, they have never repented of their sin and surrendered their lives to Jesus Christ. They have never truly been born again. There’s only two kinds of people in the church—The saints and the ‘aints. I truly believe in the security of the believer. But I also believe in the insecurity of the nonbeliever.

You’re probably asking yourself, “Well Brother, what do you believe. Do you believe the falling away is talking about the Rapture or those who turn their back on the faith?”

Taken in context (and context is vitally important in Bible study), I personally believe “the falling away” is talking about those nonbelievers who have been playing games with God who will turn their back on the faith after Christ has raptured His Church and prior to the Great Tribulation or the Day of the Lord. Paul makes this abundantly clear in 1 Timothy 4:1, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons. (I have to say that false teachers on “Christian” TV have done their jobs well in deceiving multitudes of gullible Christians!) You can do further study on this “falling away” in Matthew 24 and Mark 13. Every church, ours included, has always had people who come to church, seem to be on fire for the Lord, and then when things don’t go their way, they walk away from the faith. As soon as things start getting tough, as soon as God doesn’t heal them or make them a millionaire or give them that new Mercedes, they walk away from the faith. They bounce around from church to church to get their next emotional fix or to hear someone promise that God will give them health, wealth, and happiness if they’ll just have enough faith, tithe the right amount, or learn to speak in tongues.

 If Paul were talking about the Rapture of the Church, he would have used the Greek word “harpazo” just like he did in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 which means “caught up/snatched away/to carry off by force”. But as I previously mentioned, the Church will already have been raptured. If you disagree with me, that’s okay—we can talk about it on the way up!

Please hear my heart on this. Whether you believe in Pre-Trib, Mid-Trib, Post-Trib, Pre-Wrath, or Pan-Trib (it’s all gonna pan out in the end), as brothers and sisters in Christ, we shouldn’t get our “britches in a bunch” and divide/get mad when someone doesn’t agree with our rapture position. I don’t want to spend all my time arguing about/defending different views on the end times that have been debated by smarter guys than me for the past 2,000 years, and are still unresolved! I want to spend most of my time studying, learning, and obeying God’s Word and learning to walk closer with Him, don’t you? Don’t get so uptight because someone doesn’t agree with your particular Bible translation, the color of the carpet in the church, whether speaking in tongues is for today, or whether you should have long hair, short hair, or no hair. It doesn’t matter in light of eternity—it really doesn’t. The only thing that matters is that we’re sharing the love of Jesus with others, Amen? The ONLY thing we can take to Heaven are other people. The ONE thing that we’re not going to be able to do in Heaven is share the Gospel with non-believers, because they’re not going to be there! We need to show them how they can stay out of hell and get a new address called Heaven!

Believe me, I’ve struggled with these things and God is having to do a work in my heart because it’s hard to give up our sacred cows (beliefs we hold tightly to) that we’ve held onto for so long. By the way, sacred cows do make great hamburgers! I really have been asking the Lord to give me an open mind on several issues—I really have. It’s sometimes hard to teach old dogs new tricks, Amen?

In 1 Corinthians 16:13, Paul gives us good advice since we are living in the last days: “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.”

God Bless you all.