When was or will the Holy Spirit be taken out of the way?
by Dr. Ken Matto
One of the questions which many Christians have today is concerning the
Holy Spirit and when will he be taken out of the way, or has He already been
taken out of the way? The Scripture which we will look at is 2 Thessalonians
2:7 along with surrounding verses which we will look at.
(2 Th 2:7 KJV) For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he
who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
The primary focus is on the highlighted words, “the way.” There is no
doubt that there will be an end to the work of the Holy Spirit in this
present world. The question, is when will that end? Before we can determine
that, we must first look at the two-fold mission of the Holy Spirit. Below
are four verses which give us the insight into the first reason God will be
giving the gift of the Holy Spirit. The first group is
John 16:8-11
John 16:8 KJV
And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of
righteousness, and of judgment:
The first task the Holy Spirit will perform will be to “reprove the
world of sin. The word “reprove” is "elencho" which means to convict or
convince. The Holy Spirit will be convicting the world while He is
convincing the believer of sin, righteousness, and judgment. Only the people
that the Holy Spirit applies the word to will be convinced, the unbelievers
in the world will be convicted on the last day by the word.
John 16:9 KJV
Of sin, because they believe not on me;
The first conviction is the unbeliever will not believe on Christ
because they were not chosen unto salvation. They will be convicted of their
sins, and will spend an eternity in Hell.
John 16:10 KJV
Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;
The Holy Spirit is going to convince the believer of the righteousness
of Christ and this will be proven because God the Father will accept the
finished work of His Son on Calvary and afterwards receive Him back into
Heaven to once again sit on His throne and reign over the church. This
convincing will come through indwelling because all will be by faith since
the Lord Jesus Christ will go back to heaven and the next time He will be
seen is when He will appear on the last day. On Judgment day the unbeliever,
will be convicted on this charge of denying the substitutionary atonement of
Christ.
John 16:11 KJV
Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.
The unbeliever will be convicted of denying the judgment of Satan and
also denying there would be a judgment at the end of time where all those
not in Christ will be judged for their sins. If you follow Satan, you will
be judged as Satan is judged. Just like the verse which states that if you
give a cup of cold water in the name of a prophet, you will receive a
prophets reward. In other words, you are sharing in the ministry of that
prophet. If you do works in the name of Satan, you will receive Satan’s
reward.
We saw that conviction and convincing are going to be the initial
ministry of the Holy Spirit. Now let us look at the second reason that God
will be giving the gift of the Holy Spirit. We see that in the following
verse.
(John 16:13 KJV) Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he
will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but
whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things
to come.
Once the person has become saved and has received the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit, His next mission is to guide the believer into all truth. This
means that the Christian will not be easily deceived or deceived at all. He
will open up the Scriptures to the searching Christian and He may close them
to those who are abusing the Scriptures, thus allowing them to go deeper
into apostasy. It is also possible for the Lord to remove the candlestick of
truth from a believer. He did it with Solomon, and He can do it to any
Christian who strays from the truth and refuses to objectively study the
Scriptures. After all, where does apostasy start?
Does it start with everyone in the congregation of a church
hermeneutically abusing a Scripture? No! Apostasy comes into the church or a
ministry by means of one person and then it spreads. How does it spread?
(2 Pet 3:16 KJV) As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these
things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are
unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto
their own destruction.
If you think that the above warning does not apply to Christians, then
hold on to your spiritual hat. Look at the following verse:
(John 15:1-2 KJV) I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
{2} Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away:
and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth
more fruit.
Did you see it? He didn’t say, “any branch!” He didn’t say, “every
branch!” He said, “Every branch IN ME.” If you are a Christian, you
are in Christ. “In Christ” is used 77 times in the New Testament, 74 times
by the Apostle Paul. God reserves the right to remove (take home) any
Christian who is abusing the true interpretation of Scripture and causing
others to do the same. (Mat 18:6 KJV) But whoso shall offend one of these
little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone
were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the
sea. This verse is not teaching about children, unless they are
Christians. Christ was showing that the children of God are likened to the
children in the world. Christ is saying that if anyone offends just one of
His children, they may be in danger of judgment and may have never been
truly saved.
Just to summarize this first section, we see that the Holy Spirit will
be serving two basic functions. He will convict the world and convince the
believer. He will then guide the Christian into all truth. Now let us go to
2 Thessalonians and apply what we have learned so far.
2 Thessalonians
In my section “Does God judge the Local Church?,” I have proven beyond
the shadow of a doubt that God indeed judges congregations but He does this
judgment by individual congregation and not as a blanket judgment. Each of
the churches in Revelation had a different problem except Philadelphia. Did
God say He was going to judge Thyatira for the sin of Sardis? No, He planned
on dealing with each individual congregation according to their faithfulness
or faithlessness. Did God judge the Northern Kingdom and Judah together? No
He didn’t! He judged them individually as shown openly by the 135 year
period between the captivity of Judah and Israel. The blanket theory does
not even exist in the Old Testament, let alone the new. All verses from the
King James Version.
2 Thessalonians 2:1
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and by our gathering together unto him,”
The chapter opens with Paul setting the theme for the following set of
verses. We read that Paul is speaking of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ
and the rapture of the believers which is our gathering unto Him. Paul sets
the theme as the events which will happen just prior to the return of
Christ.
2 Thessalonians 2:2
“That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit,
nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at
hand.”
Paul was assuring the Thessalonian church that the day of the Lord has
not happened and they did not miss the gathering of the saints. There must
have been false teachers bellowing forth false teachings at Thessalonica and
scaring all the Christians that the Lord returned and they were left behind
or that the final days of earth’s existence were upon them. There may have
been someone faking Paul’s signature and this is why these Christians were
upset and confused. 2 Thessalonians was written about 10-15 years before the
first major persecution of Christians began under Nero. There would have
been no outside evidence to conclude that the day of the Lord had come. It
was just convincing letters and arguments which confused these Christians.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come,
except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the
son of perdition; {4} Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is
called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple
of God, showing himself that he is God.”
Before the Lord Jesus Christ will return and gather all His Saints to be
with him, some things must take place first which give a sign that the
coming of the Lord is near. In these two verses, we are made aware of them.
Falling Away
What does this mean? The word in the Greek for “falling away” is one
that is extremely applicable to our day. It is the word “apostasy.” Now the
word “apostasy” means “departure or rebellion.” It basically means that one
has departed from the long-established proper teachings of Scripture. Paul
says that in the days prior to Christ’s return there will be a departure
from the teachings of Scripture. Walk into any Christian book store and you
will find departure written on almost every book. False Bible versions have
departure written on them. Many churches have departure written on them.
Many radio, TV, and Internet ministries have departure written on them.
Every cult has departure written on them. In the day we live, it is hard to
find a faithful church but they are out there because the Lord said: (Mat
24:35 KJV) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass
away. His words are found in a true church and the true Bible, the King
James Version. So we see that prior to the Lord’s return, there will be a
great departure from biblical truth.
Man of Sin, Son of Perdition
In the Scriptures, “Son of Perdition” is mentioned twice. Once here to
describe Satan and the other to describe Judas. (John 17:12 KJV) While I
was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest
me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the
scripture might be fulfilled. Now we see in Verse 3 that the son of
perdition will be revealed or disclosed. Who will he be disclosed to and how
will we know it is Satan? The key is the progression of this verse. First,
there must come apostasy in the Christian community and the only ones who
are going to know when there is a departure are those who are truly saved.
Even Jesus said the Elect cannot be deceived. Didn’t the Holy Spirit come
into the world to guide the true believers into truth? Satan as the false
teacher will be revealed to Christians through the false teachings he
brings. We cannot physically see him but through his evil works, we know he
is there. A church that teaches truth in 1992 and then in 2002, does not
teach truth, has slowly succumbed to the teachings of Antichrist. The term
“perdition” may also be understood as “destruction, ruin, or waste.” Is not
this a proper description of the works of Satan?
(2 Th 2:4 KJV) Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is
called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple
of God, showing himself that he is God.
(Isa 14:13-14 KJV) For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into
heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon
the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: {14} I will ascend
above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
In these verses in Isaiah we have almost an exact parallel to 2nd
Thessalonians 2:4, of Satan’s desire to be like the Most High or God
Himself. Satan said he is going to exalt his throne above all the stars of
God. I doubt that he is speaking of stars in space, he is obviously speaking
of the believers since the next phrase is that he going to sit upon the
mount or above the congregation. Satan has a lust to be worshipped. What
better place to assault for that worship than the local church? So then how
does Satan get to control the church? He does it through the false teachings
which are prevalent in many churches. Go to some main line churches and you
will hear more sympathy for a whale than a soul. Why should the question
even come up as to whether homosexuals should be ordained? What about signs
and wonders churches? The abomination which makes desolate are the works of
Satan in the churches. When Satan’s minions have been successful to destroy
truth in a congregation, they go on to the next one.
Satan receives worship by means of the acceptance of his false gospels
both in and out of the church. In the last days, Satan and his ministers
come as an angel of light to deceive. That is the method Satan uses to gain
worship or adoration. There will never be a time, even in a dead church,
when Satan will get direct worship. It will always come through deceit. This
is how he shows himself to be God. He takes over congregations and diverts
them from the truth, then the Lord Jesus removes the candlesticks of truth,
and there you have a desolate congregation.
In verse 4, the word “so” means, “for this reason or in order that.”
This is the conjunction which gives us the key to this verse. Satan opposes
and exalts himself in order that he may sit in the temple or the local
church. His reason for opposing God is to gain the adulation of his people.
True believers will not accept false teachings and therefore will not give
Satan worship. So the true believers leave the dead church and go to another
one which has not been adulterated with false teachings. While Satan has his
emissaries in every congregation, he will not be ruling in every
congregation. For not every congregation is dead.
2 Thessalonians 2:5
“Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these
things?”
Obviously when Paul was with them there may have been much discussion
concerning the return of the Lord. This is probably owing to the fact that
he mentions the rapture of the Saints.
2 Thessalonians 2:6
“And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his
time.”
Paul resumes his teaching on the subject of Satan. Paul now introduces
the reason that Satan will never have absolute power on earth or in the
churches. This is because he is being restrained. Since there is no human
being which can restrain or withhold Satan, this is definitely speaking of
the Holy Spirit who is eternal God Himself. Now there is another aspect
which must be considered although minor in comparison to the work of the
Holy Spirit Himself. Whenever the truth is proclaimed, then Satan is being
restrained. Whenever a true believer brings the gospel to someone and they
become saved, Satan has been restrained. Now Pre-tribulationalism believes
that the Holy Spirit will be removed when all true believers will be
raptured before the great tribulation begins. This theory falls flat because
they also claim there will be some who will be saved during the final
tribulation period. How can a person become saved unless the Holy Spirit
will be present to apply the word to one of God’s chosen?
I am not speaking of this type of situation. I am saying that if a false
teaching is rampant in a church and then someone comes in and teaches the
truth and displaces the false teaching, then Satan has been restrained, but
not by human effort. It was done through the power of the Holy Spirit
confirming the work of the word of truth in that place. We can safely
conclude that only the Holy Spirit is powerful enough to restrain Satan.
2 Thessalonians 2:7
“For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth
will let, until he be taken out of the way.”
The word for “the way” is the Greek word “mesou." This word may easily
be translated “midst” and this is how the proponents use it. In translating
it this way, does it hurt the case for true interpretation? The answer is
no! For the Bible is speaking here that there is going to be a time when the
ministry of the Holy Spirit will be at an end. The word “work” in this verse
is a present tense verb which means the mystery of iniquity was already
working in the churches in Paul’s time. So that means that the mystery of
iniquity is going to work simultaneously with the work of the Holy Spirit
until an appointed end. (Wheat and Tares) The question then, is when is the
end? Is it the present? Or is it something else? The answer to our question
is found in the next verse.
2 Thessalonians 2:8
“And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume
with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his
coming:”
Notice this verse starts with “and” just like chapters 4-22 in
Revelation. This is a continuing thought not a separate one. The Holy Spirit
will be active in all the world, including the churches, saving all the
elect until the last one is saved. Then the Holy Spirit will be removed from
the midst because His salvation work is done. Verses 7 & 8 are speaking of
the last day when Satan will be destroyed upon the return of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Let us look at the following verses which puts a confirming edge to
this.
(Isa 14:15-17 KJV) Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides
of the pit. {16} They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and
consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that
did shake kingdoms; {17} That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed
the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?
Here Satan is spoken of as a man as in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. He will be
revealed as the man of sin upon his destruction. The Bible speaks that he
has already been judged so his sentence is now being carried out. In
comparison to the might of the Lord Jesus, Satan will be looked on as a
defeated, weak foe. When the last one of God’s elect is saved, this will
usher in the last day. The Christians will be taken to Heaven, Satan will be
taken to Hell, the unbelievers judged, and the Universe will be remade by
God. This is when the Holy Spirit will be removed, simultaneously with the
removal of every last Christian on earth. Remember how Paul started the
chapter, with speaking of “our gathering to the Lord Jesus Christ?” Well
that is the context of these verses. Let us go back to the John verses. What
was the Holy Spirit’s two-fold mission? To convict the unbeliever and
convince the believer by bringing them into all truth. Once the last one is
saved, these two ministries will have ended.
Summary
We have openly seen that these eight verses in 2 Thessalonians are
dealing with the end of the world, namely the last day. We have seen how the
context flows uniformly concerning the return of the Lord Jesus Christ and
we did not even allegorize or over-spiritualize one verse. We have safely
concluded that the Holy Spirit will be taken out of the midst of the world
on the last day and not before. If God’s elect, which haven’t been summoned
yet, are still in the world, in false religions, in cults, in dead churches
and other places. Once they are all called out and saved, then the end shall
come and the Holy Spirit will be taken out of the way.