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Before the day of the Lord’s second coming, the apostasy will come, and the man of lawlessness, Antichrist, will be revealed — 2 Thes. 2:3, 7:
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Sin is lawlessness, which is the living of a life outside of and not under the principle of God’s ruling over man — 1 John 3:4.
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The mystery of lawlessness is working today among the nations and in human society until Antichrist as the man of lawlessness is revealed; because the perishing ones do not receive the love of the truth, God sends to them an operation of error, an active power of misleading, that they might believe the lie — 2 Thes. 2:11.
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Thus, we can see that Isaiah 5:20 is fulfilled with the ones who believe the lie — “Woe to those who call evil good, / And good evil; / Who put darkness for light, / And light for darkness; / Who put bitter for sweet, / And sweet for bitter!”
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When the great tribulation, the last three and a half years of this age, is about to begin, Antichrist will set up an abominable idol of desolation, an image of himself, in the temple and make people worship both it and him (Matt. 24:15; Dan. 9:27; Rev. 13:14; 14:9, 11); this shows that the temple of God will be rebuilt before the Lord comes back (2 Thes. 2:4).
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The conditions of evil living that stupefied the generation of Noah before the flood portray the perilous condition of man’s living before the Lord’s coming and the great tribulation — Matt. 24:3, 21, 27, 37, 39; Luke 17:26-27; 21:34-36.
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A sign of the Lord’s second coming is a lack of faith among many of His believers — “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” — 18:8.
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Another sign of the Lord’s second coming is that “because lawlessness will be multiplied, the love of the many will grow cold” — Matt. 24:12; Rev. 2:4.
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A sign of the end times and of the Lord’s second coming is the over-accumulation of wealth — “You have stored up treasure in the last days” — James 5:3:
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In the last days before the Lord’s coming, men will accumulate wealth in an unprecedented way and will thus be unaware of their coming miseries and their miserable destiny of God’s judgment — Matt. 16:27.
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In the last days there will be a multiplication of material enjoyment and lustful indulgence with unprecedented hedonism — James 5:1-6; cf. Zech. 5:5-11.
Morning Nourishment
2 Thes. 2:3 …It will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition.7 For it is the mystery of lawlessness that is now operating, but only until the one now restraining goes out of the way.
11 And because of this God sends to them an operation of error that they might believe the lie.
Before the day of the Lord’s second coming, the apostasy will come, and the man of lawlessness, Antichrist, will be revealed [2 Thes. 2:3]. These things are signs of the Lord’s second coming. Although Antichrist has not yet been revealed, the mystery of lawlessness is already operating on the earth [v. 7], so the earth is filled with apostasy. This tells us that the day of the Lord’s second coming is not far off. (CWWL, 1932-1949, vol. 4, “Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 6,” p. 608)
Because the perishing ones did not receive the love of the truth, which God intended to give them that they might be saved (2 Thes. 2:10), God sends to them an operation of error, an active power of misleading, that they might believe the lie. (2 Thes. 2:11, footnote 1)
Today’s Reading
The prophecy spoken of through Daniel indicates that the abomination of desolation will occur in the “middle of the week” (9:27), the last half of the final seven years of the church age. In the middle of this week, Antichrist will set up the abomination of desolation in the holy place [Matt. 24:15]. According to 2 Thessalonians 2:4, holy place refers to the temple of God. Antichrist will set up an abominable idol of desolation, an image of himself (Rev. 13:14; 14:9, 11), in the temple and make people worship it. This shows that the temple in Jerusalem will be restored. When the great tribulation, the last three and a half years, is about to begin, Antichrist will set up his image in the temple. When this happens, the day of the Lord’s second coming will be very close….We should have no desire to be on earth to see the fulfillment of this prophecy; instead, our hope should be focused on being raptured by the Lord from the earth to His presence before the three and a half years of the great tribulation.Second Timothy 3:1-5 describes the condition of human society at the end of this age... [as] a sign of the Lord’s second coming…. In the last days men will love themselves the most, followed closely by money….There also will be boasting, arrogance, reviling, and the blaspheming of God….People today do not want to be restricted; they all do things recklessly and arrogantly under the guise of freedom. It is also a particular characteristic of people today to be lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God….These are all signs of the Lord’s second coming, and they should remind us that we must watch and be prepared for the Lord to come.
By the time of His second coming, many of the believers will have little faith [Luke 18:8]. A lack of faith among believers is a sign of the Lord’s second coming. (CWWL, 1932-1949, vol. 4, “Crucial Truths in the Holy Scriptures, Volume 6,” pp. 608-609, 605-607)
Before the Lord’s imminent coming, there will be clear signs. During this time, men will accumulate wealth in an unprecedented way….No other age will see as much wealth as the age immediately preceding the Lord’s return. Not only is there a multiplication of material enjoyment, but there is a multiplication of lustful indulgence. I am saying this to let all the brothers and sisters throughout the whole world know that the day of the Lord is approaching! We have to spend whatever we have on the Lord, while the money is still useful. (CWWN, vol. 61, “Matured Leadings in the Lord’s Recovery (1),” pp. 201, 203-204, 208)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1990, vol. 3, “The Up-to-date Presentation of the God-ordained Way and the Signs concerning the Coming of Christ,” chs. 6-7