Lawlessness will be the culture of Last Days; it will be the backdrop to the Lord’s return on that day.
“Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.”
– 2 Thessalonians 2:3 ESV, emphasis mine
If reading lawlessness as mystery novel today, we would be nearing the end of the book as the author begins solving the secret whispered in chapter one.
“For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.”
– 2 Thessalonians 2:7 ESV
“In most cases in the New Testament it [lawlessness] means not the absence of the Law, but the violation of Law, i.e., transgression or lawlessness. In the NT, it places stress, not in a subjective law that we ourselves create for our convenience, but chiefly in a divinely instituted Law.” [1]
Even with that fundamental definition, there is a common thread that weaves man’s laws and God’s laws together. That thread is justice.
When justice fails lawlessness rules.
We who are looking for that day must not limit our idea of lawlessness to what’s depicted in Hollywood’s apocalyptic movies where ruthless vigilantes roam the land. Rather, a more subtle lawlessness (and subtlety is our adversary’s modus operandi) takes place when legal systems are in place; yet, no justice is served.
Jesus gave us an example of such in Luke 18,
“Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, saying, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man.’”
– Luke 18:1-2 NASB
“An evil man such as this would serve as judge for but one reason: personal advantage. He cared only for his own enrichment, so quite often the person with the largest bribe would win the case. This man dispensed judicial decisions based upon bribery and personal favors. There was no justice to be found at his bench.
“When you cannot find justice at the seat of justice—the courts of the land—where do you turn? As the Scripture says, ‘If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?’ (Psalm 11:3). When justice does not reside at the seat of judgment, the land inevitably falls into social anarchy. Thus, Jesus was describing a land ruled by lawlessness.”[2]
We who are looking for that day have now turned the page to lawlessness’ concluding chapters, reading and recognizing lawlessness while it is still day, for it will not overtake us as a thief in the night!
