When the Restrainer is Removed

[Momof3angels]

2Thessalonians 2:6-7:

And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he may be revealed. 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.

We as believers are so used to the Holy Spirit that we tend to take Him for granted. Ever since the day we asked Jesus into our lives, He has been a part of us, and as we study the Bible, pray and grow in the Lord, His thoughts become our thoughts and He becomes so enmeshed in our lives, that we start to think that all godly thoughts and actions are ours alone, and not the working of the Holy Spirit.

In John, chapter 14, Jesus said he was sending the Helper, and He also told his disciples they would do even greater things than He did. That quickly became evident on the day of Pentecost.

Think of this: When Christ walked on the earth, He drew about 100 to 200 disciples to Him the entire time He was there, and that was our Lord!. But the day the Holy Spirit came, Peter spoke to the crowds and led 3,000 souls to Christ. When our Lord was walking on the earth, He touched people individually to heal them. But after the Holy Spirit arrived, all people had to do was have Peter's shadow fall on them (Acts 5:15) to be healed.

The point I'm making is the Holy Spirit is far more powerful than we often give Him credit for. He moves on people and leads them to Christ. Coming to Christ while He is here is easier than it has ever been or ever will be in the history of mankind.

Which leads me to wonder what life will be like when the restrainer is removed and the Holy Spirit is no longer working so freely on this earth. While I loved the Left Behind series by La Haye and Jenkins, it made it sound like it would be just as easy to become a follower of Christ after the Rapture as it was before, but will it be? Just think of all the stupid things folks in the Old Testament used to do. Without the Holy Spirit gently tapping on our shoulder 24/7 we, too, would be doing all sorts of idiotic things.

Time is running out for those who are lost! For those of us (and I'm just as guilty) taking comfort in the notion those who aren't yet saved will come to Christ during the tribulation, maybe we should rethink those thoughts. The time to lead the lost to Jesus is now, today, this moment. Before it is truly too late.

Your thoughts?

Susan

[micah719]

This is what it will be like. Note that The Lord's Spirit is still there, but permitting things that would be multiplied today without His grace and mercy. Oh praise and thanks be to The Lord, forever!

Micah 7:1-10
1 WOE IS me! For I am as when the summer fruits have been gathered, as when the vintage grapes have been gleaned and there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig for which my appetite craves.
2 The godly man has perished from the earth, and there is none upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; each hunts his brother with a net.
3 Both their hands are put forth and are upon what is evil to do it diligently; the prince and the judge ask for a bribe, and the great man utters his evil desire. Thus they twist between them [the course of justice].
4 The best of them is like a brier; the most upright or the straightest is like a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen, even of [God's] judgment and your punishment, has come; now shall be their perplexity and confusion.
5 Trust not in a neighbor; put no confidence in a friend. Keep the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your bosom.
6 For the son dishonors the father, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law--a man's enemies are the men (members) of his own house.
7 But as for me, I will look to the Lord and confident in Him I will keep watch; I will wait with hope and expectancy for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.
8 Rejoice not against me, O my enemy! When I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light to me.
9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against Him, until He pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold His righteous deliverance.
10 Then my enemy will see it, and shame will cover her who said to me, Where is the Lord your God? My eyes will see my desire upon her; now she will be trodden down as the mire of the streets.

[mikhen7]

This is what it will be like. Note that The Lord's Spirit is still there, but permitting things that would be multiplied today without His grace and mercy. Oh praise and thanks be to The Lord, forever!

Micah 7:1-10
1 WOE IS me! For I am as when the summer fruits have been gathered, as when the vintage grapes have been gleaned and there is no cluster to eat, no first-ripe fig for which my appetite craves.
2 The godly man has perished from the earth, and there is none upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; each hunts his brother with a net.
3 Both their hands are put forth and are upon what is evil to do it diligently; the prince and the judge ask for a bribe, and the great man utters his evil desire. Thus they twist between them [the course of justice].
4 The best of them is like a brier; the most upright or the straightest is like a thorn hedge. The day of your watchmen, even of [God's] judgment and your punishment, has come; now shall be their perplexity and confusion.
5 Trust not in a neighbor; put no confidence in a friend. Keep the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your bosom.
6 For the son dishonors the father, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law--a man's enemies are the men (members) of his own house.
7 But as for me, I will look to the Lord and confident in Him I will keep watch; I will wait with hope and expectancy for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.
8 Rejoice not against me, O my enemy! When I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light to me.
9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against Him, until He pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold His righteous deliverance.
10 Then my enemy will see it, and shame will cover her who said to me, Where is the Lord your God? My eyes will see my desire upon her; now she will be trodden down as the mire of the streets.

Awesome Quote! Love it. Love the Word! Yes the Holy Spirit will still be on earth during the Tribulation. The Church will be removed.

I wrote an article on this on my latest blog entry if any want to view it.

Truth Inspires: The Awesome Restraint of God - Part Five the Restraint of the Church

God bless.

[Momof3angels]

Awesome article. Thanks for sharing!!

[micah719]

That line of reasoning falls over when you realise the roman empire collapsed under its own decadence long ago. The a-c hasn't been revealed yet, so something (Someone) else is restraining, else the beast would have been already. And considering how effective human agencies are in restraining evil, there is only One other Candidate. Hint: Romans 11:25 explains what we're all waiting for, and once that is complete, then the way is open for Israel to be brought to repentace and acceptance of their King. The a-c is a tool toward that end. The Lord is sovereign.

[Chris]

I have a curious question.

Where have we gotten the idea that the Holy Spirit is the restrainer anyway? I know I've heard this a lot, but I've never been able to find any Biblical support that the Holy Spirit is the restrainer. And why was Paul keeping it a secret what the Restrainer was? And why in 2 Thess 2:5 does Paul indicate that it is a secret, and does not just come out and tell his audience that it is the Holy Spirit?

From my research, all the early Church fathers (every single one of them) believed, and testified, that when Paul told them directly what the Restrainer was, he was referring to the Pagan Roman Empire through the power of the Caesars. In other words, it was the restraints of government holding back the Antichrist from rising up to full ecclesiastical supremacy, as found in the Papal See. Once the Roman impidement was removed, the Little Horn of Daniel 7 could sprout up its ugly head out of the Roman Beast. Protestant scholars as well unanimously agreed that the Restrainer was the Roman Empire that was holding back the Roman Church State from usurping full ecclesiastical and temporal authority. From my understanding, and according to several scholars, the reason why Paul did not tell them that the restrainer was the Roman Power in writing was because should the letter fall into the hands of the Roman authorities, the Romans would have found accusation against them that they were predicting that the Roman Empire would come to an end and be removed. Therefore, Paul said "Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?" (2Thess 2:5) In other words, it was imperative that Paul did not jeopardize the early Church by putting that in writing. Had he done so, it could have spelled disaster and persecution to the Church before the time.

Of course, in a sense, you could say that the Holy Spirit was "causing" or "using" the Roman Empire as the tool to hold back Antichrist.

You'll find a lot of helpful articles with scriptural backup here:

Restrainer | GraceThruFaith

[mattfivefour]

Clearly it could not have been the Roman Empire because that empire is long gone but the "man of sin" has not yet been revealed.

We have discussed this before here. I will try to find the thread for you. but a couple of things right now. There is no mystery about the 2 Thessalonians 2:5 verse ... at least to the Thessalonians. Paul was clearly referring to something he had already told them in person. So the mystery occurs only for us who were not party to that conversation. Secondly, the mystery that still exists is "the mystery of lawlessness". Lawlessness is a mystery because the world does not see its true root. It has not yet been revealed, though it shall be. When the Man of Lawlessness—the Antichrist—is revealed then shall the breadth and depth of lawlessness finally be fully understood. Until then, he is restrained. The only force capable of restraining Satan in his princeship of this world system is God Himself. A study of scripture indicates that the Body of Christ, the salt and the light of this world, indwelt as it is by the Holy Spirit acts as the instrument of His agency. Our presence, our prayers, our preaching all act as a light in the world; we are an acceptable savor unto God, a seasoning that purifies, preserves, and prevents the whelming flood of evil from submerging the world. This is not due to our presence in and of ourselves but rather to the presence of the Holy Spirit in each of us.

When the Church is raptured, all of the vessels in which the Holy Spirit lives will instantly vanish from the earth. The Holy Spirit will no longer be indwelling any of those remaining on the earth. Thus the man of lawlessness will no longer have the restraining influence of the Church indwelt by the Holy Spirit to hinder him from finally bringing his age-old schemes to fruition.

But bear in mind that Scripture lets us know that, while the believers in whom the Holy Spirit dwelt on this earth are gone, the Holy Spirit Himself will not leave; else were He to do so then nobody could get saved from that point on. The Bible is clear that it is the ministry of Holy Spirit who draws people to Jesus, performs the saving work in them and sanctifies them, conforming them into the image of Christ. And since we also know from Scripture that countless people from all nations will get saved during the Tribulation period, then He clearly remains to do His supernatural work.

Nevertheless, He will not indwell believers in the same way as He does in this age, and thus they will suffer great things in order to remain faithful to Christ as their redeemer. In fact they will be martyred, and only those who remain faithful to the end will be saved. This may seem harsh, but it is the path that those who chose to ignore the Age of Grace will have chosen. Why God has chosen to do things this way, I am not exactly sure. But I have come to the point in my 66+ years that I no longer debate God on why He does things a certain way. I have learned simply to accept them. If I need to know something, I rest in faith that He will reveal it in due time. And He always has.

[josua]

I have been stumbled accross different thoughts on the the restrainer a few times too. There are different opinions around. Some say it is the holy spirit, some say it is the archangel Michael, some say it is Jesus himself. And EACH one backs up its own theory and debunks other theories with some matching scriptures.

At least I think that during Daniels 70th week, there will be many believers:

Then one of the elders asked me, "These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?" I answered, "Sir, you know." And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, "they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
Revelation 7, 13-17

I take it for granted that these people can still rely on Gods mercy and help during their final run.

[mikhen7]

I have been stumbled accross different thoughts on the the restrainer a few times too. There are different opinions around. Some say it is the holy spirit, some say it is the archangel Michael, some say it is Jesus himself. And EACH one backs up its own theory and debunks other theories with some matching scriptures.

At least I think that during Daniels 70th week, there will be many believers:



I take it for granted that these people can still rely on Gods mercy and help during their final run.

Just because the Indwelled by the Holy Spirit Church is raptured does not mean the Holy Spirit disappears from the earth. God is omniscient, always aware, and omnipresent, always here.

The world fears the church. Politicians fear the true evangelical Church. Liberals fear the evangelical church.

Matt excellent reply!

God bless.

[Momof3angels]

Clearly it could not have been the Roman Empire because that empire is long gone but the "man of sin" has not yet been revealed.


Why God has chosen to do things this way, I am not exactly sure. But I have come to the point in my 66+ years that I no longer debate God on why He does things a certain way. I have learned simply to accept them. If I need to know something, I rest in faith that He will reveal it in due time. And He always has.

Amen, and amen again! God is so good, faithful and true!

[Thoughtspaz]

Matt,

Thanks for that post on the work of the Holy Spirit. That was one of the clearest explanations I've read so far.

[Robert]

Clearly it could not have been the Roman Empire because that empire is long gone but the "man of sin" has not yet been revealed.

We have discussed this before here. I will try to find the thread for you. but a couple of things right now. There is no mystery about the 2 Thessalonians 2:5 verse ... at least to the Thessalonians. Paul was clearly referring to something he had already told them in person. So the mystery occurs only for us who were not party to that conversation. Secondly, the mystery that still exists is "the mystery of lawlessness". Lawlessness is a mystery because the world does not see its true root. It has not yet been revealed, though it shall be. When the Man of Lawlessness—the Antichrist—is revealed then shall the breadth and depth of lawlessness finally be fully understood. Until then, he is restrained. The only force capable of restraining Satan in his princeship of this world system is God Himself. A study of scripture indicates that the Body of Christ, the salt and the light of this world, indwelt as it is by the Holy Spirit acts as the instrument of His agency. Our presence, our prayers, our preaching all act as a light in the world; we are an acceptable savor unto God, a seasoning that purifies, preserves, and prevents the whelming flood of evil from submerging the world. This is not due to our presence in and of ourselves but rather to the presence of the Holy Spirit in each of us.

When the Church is raptured, all of the vessels in which the Holy Spirit lives will instantly vanish from the earth. The Holy Spirit will no longer be indwelling any of those remaining on the earth. Thus the man of lawlessness will no longer have the restraining influence of the Church indwelt by the Holy Spirit to hinder him from finally bringing his age-old schemes to fruition.

But bear in mind that Scripture lets us know that, while the believers in whom the Holy Spirit dwelt on this earth are gone, the Holy Spirit Himself will not leave; else were He to do so then nobody could get saved from that point on. The Bible is clear that it is the ministry of Holy Spirit who draws people to Jesus, performs the saving work in them and sanctifies them, conforming them into the image of Christ. And since we also know from Scripture that countless people from all nations will get saved during the Tribulation period, then He clearly remains to do His supernatural work.

Nevertheless, He will not indwell believers in the same way as He does in this age, and thus they will suffer great things in order to remain faithful to Christ as their redeemer. In fact they will be martyred, and only those who remain faithful to the end will be saved. This may seem harsh, but it is the path that those who chose to ignore the Age of Grace will have chosen. Why God has chosen to do things this way, I am not exactly sure. But I have come to the point in my 66+ years that I no longer debate God on why He does things a certain way. I have learned simply to accept them. If I need to know something, I rest in faith that He will reveal it in due time. And He always has.

Excellent work, bro! :

Yes, if the Holy Spirit were not the restrainer, whom else could it possibly be? The Church? No, because there is nothing good about any of us, save that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. As for it being the angels of heaven: we have to remember that Gabriel himself was detained by demonic forces until Michael came to assist him when he was sent to Daniel:

“But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia." (Daniel 10:13, NASB)

It took one of the chief angels of heaven to remedy this; if this is the case, how is it that angels are supposed to restrain human evil? They can act in certain situations, but they are not omniscient. Only God is uniquely qualified to act in this capacity.

[mikhen7]

Excellent work, bro! :

Yes, if the Holy Spirit were not the restrainer, whom else could it possibly be? The Church? No, because there is nothing good about any of us, save that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. As for it being the angels of heaven: we have to remember that Gabriel himself was detained by demonic forces until Michael came to assist him when he was sent to Daniel:

“But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia." (Daniel 10:13, NASB)

It took one of the chief angels of heaven to remedy this; if this is the case, how is it that angels are supposed to restrain human evil? They can act in certain situations, but they are not omniscient. Only God is uniquely qualified to act in this capacity.

I agree! And the visible tool He uses to do His divine work is the Church. We are removed and all hell breaks loose. When I say church I am talking about those pesky evangelicals that witness to the lost and vote for God's ways in elections. Those that stand tall in the face of persecution. Those who in large numbers rebel loudly against the corruption in this world. Those who stand for truth and are persecuted for it at every level. Those that would blow the whistle on who the AC is if he were to rise up while we are still here. That is the church I am talking about. The blood bought, Spirit Baptized and filled, walking in the Spirit, God glorifying Chuch. The one gates of hell will not prevail against! Praise God.

Again when we are gone all Hell will break loose. Praise Him that He called and you listened. Thank Him for the privilege of being counted worthy to bear His name and do His service!

He is the restrainer and He uses us as His visible presence of that restraint.

God Bless.

[Meg]

Clearly it could not have been the Roman Empire because that empire is long gone but the "man of sin" has not yet been revealed.

We have discussed this before here. I will try to find the thread for you. but a couple of things right now. There is no mystery about the 2 Thessalonians 2:5 verse ... at least to the Thessalonians. Paul was clearly referring to something he had already told them in person. So the mystery occurs only for us who were not party to that conversation. Secondly, the mystery that still exists is "the mystery of lawlessness". Lawlessness is a mystery because the world does not see its true root. It has not yet been revealed, though it shall be. When the Man of Lawlessness—the Antichrist—is revealed then shall the breadth and depth of lawlessness finally be fully understood. Until then, he is restrained. The only force capable of restraining Satan in his princeship of this world system is God Himself. A study of scripture indicates that the Body of Christ, the salt and the light of this world, indwelt as it is by the Holy Spirit acts as the instrument of His agency. Our presence, our prayers, our preaching all act as a light in the world; we are an acceptable savor unto God, a seasoning that purifies, preserves, and prevents the whelming flood of evil from submerging the world. This is not due to our presence in and of ourselves but rather to the presence of the Holy Spirit in each of us.

When the Church is raptured, all of the vessels in which the Holy Spirit lives will instantly vanish from the earth. The Holy Spirit will no longer be indwelling any of those remaining on the earth. Thus the man of lawlessness will no longer have the restraining influence of the Church indwelt by the Holy Spirit to hinder him from finally bringing his age-old schemes to fruition.

But bear in mind that Scripture lets us know that, while the believers in whom the Holy Spirit dwelt on this earth are gone, the Holy Spirit Himself will not leave; else were He to do so then nobody could get saved from that point on. The Bible is clear that it is the ministry of Holy Spirit who draws people to Jesus, performs the saving work in them and sanctifies them, conforming them into the image of Christ. And since we also know from Scripture that countless people from all nations will get saved during the Tribulation period, then He clearly remains to do His supernatural work.

Nevertheless, He will not indwell believers in the same way as He does in this age, and thus they will suffer great things in order to remain faithful to Christ as their redeemer. In fact they will be martyred, and only those who remain faithful to the end will be saved. This may seem harsh, but it is the path that those who chose to ignore the Age of Grace will have chosen. Why God has chosen to do things this way, I am not exactly sure. But I have come to the point in my 66+ years that I no longer debate God on why He does things a certain way. I have learned simply to accept them. If I need to know something, I rest in faith that He will reveal it in due time. And He always has.

Thanks for sharing this insight. Maybe some day I'll be that patient, that strong...

[GlennO]

Chris -

Thanks for the resource link! Solid!!

[Elijah's Mantle]

new stuff to explore

I know who- ever the restrainer is
when it does get removed

I dontwanna be here cause it will be so pandemonium

[Meg]

new stuff to explore

I know who- ever the restrainer is
when it does get removed

I dontwanna be here cause it will be so pandemonium

The Restrainer is commonly thought to be the Holy Spirit, and removed is commonly thought to be the Rapture. Mattfivefour gave the best answer to this question I have seen anywhere in this thread. I, for one, thank God I'm a Christian (and yes, it was His idea)

[Navyblue]

Perhaps, the term: 'that which restrains' references some'thing,' not some'one.' If the restrainer is a 'thing,' then it is possible that Holy Spirit is not removed, but the 'Organized Power' of Holy Spirit, the 'Church.'

Many would be turning to Jesus, and being filled with Holy Spirit, but by the time the new 'Tribulation Saints' are organized enough to be some degree of Restraining Force, it is too late, and the Beast is beyond restraint?

Just a thought, but makes sense to me.

In Messiah, Keeping the Watch, for the One who has the answer.

Arley

[mattfivefour]

Afraid not, Arley. The Greek is clear that the "he" is one subject, that the subject is male and that it is a person ... NOT a thing.

[Elijah's Mantle]

I am a little bewildered about some of this


The Holy spirit is God the Holy Ghost ,and Him Being God is als him being omni-present
meaning nothing just takes him in and out of the world because if that was true then he would no longer be omni-present right ?

ok well just because the Rapture does remove the believers ,how does one find from scripture that that would also mean the Holy Spirit ,the Holy Ghost , God ?