No doubt Israel will declare the ark of the covenant found. However, those who know their Bible, know where the ark of the covenant is. Search all you want to on earth – it isn’t here.
 
Listen, it won’t be long before some crazy folks in the middle east are going to “find” the ark of the covenant, and there is probably going to be some miraculous sign attached to that.
 
Please trust me on this…no don’t trust me, just know your Bible. There is a reason the Bible contains what it contains – so that you will not be deceived.   
 
Revelation 11:19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple.
 
This will be good for you, say this out loud. THE…ARK…IS…IN…HEAVEN.
 
It’s a sham! The whole rebuilt temple is bogus because the true Arc isn’t even on earth. Besides that – again if you know your Bible, the Levitical system that requires the blood of animals was declared obsolete by Jesus when He said, “It is finished” on the cross. This new temple is man’s idea, not God’s.
 
The Sham Man (Antichrist) has to have some iconic religious system to usurp. So many people are going to be swept up in this bogus religious smoke and mirrors.
 
The Bible helps understand truth, what is real and what is not real.   
 
1 Corinthians 6:19 …do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?
 
So, the son of perdition, the Antichrist is going to take his seat in a bogus temple in an attempt to deceive the world…not so you! He is going to declare himself God, all the while he is a sinner just like you and me.
 
Nothing special about him, except that he will have a special time with Jesus toward the end of his life…that would be when Jesus vaporizes that man with a breath from His mouth.
 
2 Thessalonians 2:8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.
 
Special time indeed. And I think we will have a front row seat to watch.
 
2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time.  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.
 
This next verse is quite remarkable. Here we have an indicator of the separate cataclysmic events at the end revealed in the Bible. There is presently on earth a restraining power that holds back the working of the Antichrist.
 
You might think it is angels, but that is not what is presented in the text. There is a specific phrase that bears investigating, “Only he who now restrains will do so until he is out of the way.”
 
Let me bring in another passage of the Bible that points to who this is.
 
Ephesians 6:1-13 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
 
The might of God lives in you. The power of the cross is alive, and you have become His temple. On the day that we are taken from the earth, the further working of the Lord on earth through the church is finished.
 
“Why?” you are asking? Because the working of the Holy Spirit will be removed from the earth, because His vessel will be removed from the earth…you!
 
God has been using the church to do His work for a long time. When the church is taken home to be with Jesus – God ceases His work through the church. He will begin again to deal directly with earthlings.
 
This is why there are many global miracles before and after the church. You do not see world wide miracles during the church era because God is using each person and their gifts to do His work. This is why we are called the Body of Christ.
 
When the body of Christ is taken out of the way, the restraining power of God holding back the Antichrist will be removed and he will be freed to pursue his perditious aim. Let’s thank the Lord this morning for His plan. And let’s also ask the Lord to affirm our role in His plan.
 
Holy Father, You are great and You deserve all praise and glory. You have established Your ways on earth and all that You have done is good. Who can rise up against You? What can shake their fist at You and succeed? There is an appointed time for everything under the sun. And God, just because You do not act immediately, does not mean You are incapable. Far from it! Everything has its time before You. You are not threatened or moved by man’s pride. All will stand before You and face judgment. What a day that will be. So, Father, thank You for loving us and giving Jesus as a sacrifice for our sin. Today we ask that You would affirm our role as saints of the most high God. Show us our place and roles as we await Your Son Jesus. Thank You Father!
 
Blessings,
Pastor D