One of the most prolific passages in regards to the end times is found in 2 Thessalonians. It speaks of what is restraining the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Take a look:
2 Thessalonians 2
1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.
All Christians should understand that the Lord Jesus Christ is going to come again.
3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
Christ will not come again until the man of sin, the son of perdition is revealed. He will be one who exalts himself as God.
5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time.
You should know what restrains the second coming of Christ – something not yet revealed - until the man of sin is revealed, He can not come back!
7 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.
He who restrains is also he who is taken out of the way – the man of sin unrevealed, restrains. The man of sin revealed opens the door for the second coming of Christ.
8 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.
The man of sin, the son of perdition, the lawless one – will be revealed and will be consumed and destroyed by the breath of the Lord at His second coming.
9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
Satan still has remarkable power in the world and the lawless one will draw on that power to deceive. This deception leads people to perish as they did not receive Jesus Christ, the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
These people who are deceived will be delusional, God will give them over to worshiping the man of Sin, who is under the power of Satan, by sending them strong delusion, that they all may be condemned. Why? They worshiped the darkness instead of the Light, the son of Satan instead of the Son of God. Their horrific worship leads them into God ordained delusion, having pleasure in unrighteousness, not believing the truth.
That which restrains the second coming is the fact that the man of sin is, as of yet, unrevealed.
