View source for Page:Man-of-sin-1930.djvu/7

<noinclude><pagequality level="1" user="" /></noinclude>SEPTEMBER 15, 1930 
words the suggestion is made that these will increase 
in number and power of opposition; that they will 
claim that the Society and those connected with it are 
all wrong; that they will make the claim for them- 
selves that they are God’s ‘‘eleet and anointed’”’ and 
therefore will fulfil the place of the false Christ fore- 
told by Jesus and that they will ‘sit as a god in the 
temple of God, showing himself that he is a god’,.— 
Diaglott. 
26 Verses five to seven show that even in Paul’s day 
there were some who had responded to the call to the 
kinedom and looked forward to the time that they 
might have the power of the kingdom for their self- 
ish purposes, and that they were unlawful workers 
and hence were called ‘workers of iniquity’. Because 
the holy spirit was then operating in behalf of all 
who had responded to the eall, that holy power held 
back the enemy Satan from organizing the opposition 
and bringing forth the ‘‘man of sin’’, That restrain- 
ing power being taken away when the Lord comes to 
his temple, then the wicked one is quickly organized 
and begins the opposition to God and his anointed 
and is revealed as ‘the man of sin, the son of perdi- 
tion’. 
27 Verses nine to eleven disclose that the ‘‘man of 
sin’’, or organized opposition to God, is like that of 
Satan and uses fraud, lying and deceit and appears 
with all deccivableness and unrighteousness, Know- 
ing Satan’s methods we may expect much hypocrisy 
to be connected with such a movement. The apostle 
further discloses that the ‘‘man of sin’? will deceive 
others ‘‘because they receive not the love of the truth, 
that they might be saved’’, In other words they must 
receive the love of the truth in order to be saved and 
be of the kingdom. This docs not mean love for the 
truth, but clearly means what it says, ‘‘the love of 
the truth.’’ 
28 Many have received the truth but have received 
it with a selfish desire and used it with a selfish mo- 
tive, whereas those that will be saved are saved be- 
cause they receive the love of the truth; that is to 
say, they unselfishly devote themselves to the truth 
that the word and name of God might be glorified. 
Many have looked forward to the kingdom that they 
might have the great honor, power and glory of rul- 
ing, and have had much pride in the prospect of such 
honor, power and glory. Such has been the moving 
cause that induced them to embrace and confess the 
truth. They have assumed the attitude of being more 
holy than their brethren and have been haughty and 
proud and severe in their criticism of their brethren. 
The truth of God’s kingdom did not produce in them 
an unsclfish devotion to God which is the love of the 
truth. For this reason they are open to deception 
by Satan and are deccived; and all who are looking 
fur the kingdom with such selfish desire or motive 
will be deceived by the ‘‘man of sin’’. It is stated 
Te WATCH TOWER 
279 
that ‘God shall send them an energy of delusion that 
they may believe a lie’. (Diaglott) This would indi- 
cate a quick and energetic action on their part in 
their opposition to God and to his work. And, being 
unrestrained, they will make many extravagant 
claims and practice deeeption. All those who have 
been ‘negligent, or have refused to work lawfully and 
have worked unlawfully, or have declined to work 
at all, will be deceived. 
*® This clearly means that only those will be taken 
into the kingdom who unselfishly devote themselves 
to God and his cause of righteousness that they might 
see the kingdom of rightcousness established and God’s 
name and word completely vindicated. Such is per- 
fect love, and those who have perfect love will have 
boldness in the day of judgment in proclaiming the 
truth. (1 John 4:17,18) Only such receive the love 
of the truth. All others who have accepted the truth 
and look to the kingdom for some other reason are 
open to the deception of Satan’s instrument, the 
“man of sin’’. 
°° Let the anointed of the Lord be on guard, and 
they will not be deceived. We know from the Serip- 
tures that Satan is making his last desperate stand 
because he knows that his time is short. He is bring- 
ing to bear every force at his command to destroy 
the remnant because these composing the remnant 
have the testimony of Jesus Christ and are giving it 
out in obedience to God’s commandments. There is 
no instrument that Satan could use so effectually to 
accomplish his wicked purpose as the one made up of 
a class of people who have once received a knowledge 
of the truth but who have lost the holy spirit and 
have turned against God and his work. They are bet- 
ter equipped to make the attack than any others. They 
are more ready instruments of Satan than any others. 
=. The ‘‘man of sin’’ once had the truth and still 
holds a mental understanding thereof. When the Lord 
removed the restraining power and protection from 
such, then the Devil puts before them his special de- 
lusion and gathers them together, and they will con- 
stitute an effective instrument in his hands, They will 
not be gathered together or united in doctrine or in 
the conduct of their internal affairs, They will be 
united in opposition to the Lord's work and to his 
people who are doing that work now on the earth. 
They are now attacking that work and make the 
claim that the Society and its work and those active- 
ly engaged therein are wrong and should be destroyed. 
Doubtless such opposition will grow stronger and 
many who are not fortified because they have not re- 
ceived the love of the truth will be deceived by the 
‘‘man of sin’’ and fall to that deception. That delu- 
sion will be so strong that it will carry many off their 
feet and they will be induced to believe the lie in- 
stead of the truth, 
%? The greatest of all truths is that concerning God’s 
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