Please permit me to say that it is not "What the Bible says." Rather, it is what The Son of God says. Many keep slapping and disobeying God's command given at Luke 9:35 to "Listen to" his Son.
None should care about what the Prophets of old say. They were sent to the people in their day. The Most High God has sent us His Son and commanded us to listen to his Son. How in the world did a book (and even religious organizations) take on that role? The Bible - contrary to what many have been taught is NOT the Word of God. The Son of God is The Word of God. There are NOT two Words of God. The Bible is NOT Scripture. Scripture is anything God "breathes" or speaks. Since Christ is Gods Word, then what ever he speaks is Scripture.
Jesus said at Matthew 4:4, "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." That mouth today is Christ, the Word of God.
How can one claim that they are listening to Christ when it is "The Bible" that gets mentioned. Very few say, "Christ teaches" or "Christ says." Instead they say, "The Bible says" or "The Bible teaches."
They are not thinking. A book has superceded a living person: The Christ. The ONLY Word of God. (Rev 19:13)
With that said, what does Christ say about the man of lawlessness. This is very easy to know if Christ is "listened to."
At Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus identifies them:
"Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’"
The "Man of Lawless" are persons CLAIMING to be followers of Christ and professing faith in him. The Man of Lawlessness are persons so sure that they KNOW Christ. No one can convince them otherwise. They are certain they have the truth. The Man of Lawlessness are persons who make prophetic utterances (1914, rapture, for example) in Christs name. The Man of Lawlessness are persons claiming claiming to have special powers to expel demons and perform miracles as humans. The Man of Lawlessness are persons who think they are doing God's will but are not. For example, preaching a Good News of the Kingdom message when no such message has been given to humans to preach. An angel will be commissioned to preach it in very distant future. (Rev 14:6) Because they do their own thing (their own will) and NOT God's, they are evildoers as far as Christ is concerned and he will not recognize or acknowledge them as his disciples even though they make self-proclamations that they are.
The entire world today is in captivity to religious organization and their is where their loyalties lie. They are are NOT in captivity or membered to Christ even though they freely use the name and carry Bibles.
The Man of Lawlessness is 99.9% of the world today. That is how far this rabbit hole of deception is. With more than 41000 contending Christian denominations in the world and each claiming they know and follow Christ. They each have their own respective rituals and rules and regulations that their membership must abide by and this gives false sense of being godly and doing God's will. It is doing "man's will."
Many who are in the category of The Man of Lawlessness are not aware that they are. They think they are in God's favor.
The bottom line is this: If you are membered with ANY religious organization on earth today, you are a "Man of Lawlessness." Why? Because God NEVER told us to be membered to anything "human" or "angelic." Our membership or attachment is to be ONLY to his son as his disciples.
The Man of Lawlessness is marked by the very man-made name he bears in the religious organization he is membered with. Did God or Christ tell anyone to be called Seventh Day Adventist, Jehovah's Witness, Catholic, Mormon, or even Christian, etc.
By virtue of taking upon oneself a name or title Christ did not authorize or give us makes one an adulterer in God's eyes. How so?
If one claims to be membered or married to Christ they would bear the name he told us to be known as. What name is that? Disciples. Nothing more, nothing less.
To take upon oneself other names and titles marks the person as to who they are membered or married with. If you take upon yourself the name Jehovahs Witness, for example, that name shows who you are membered or married with. It shows who directs you as Lord.
Is adultery evil and unlawful? Yes it is!
That is why Jesus called persons claiming to know him workers of lawlessness (evildoers) because they bear names and titles other than the one he told them to be known as.
If one were TRULY a disciple of Christ they would TRULY know him as their Lord (owner) and NEVER take upon themselves the name of another. They would insist upon being known as "Disciples."
For Christ to look upon persons bearing any of the names I mentioned above and the many others, Christ "would not recognize" them as his. Why? They do not bear the"his name", they bear someone elses.
Many will reject this, I know. But one must think: Did Christ tell anyone to be known as "Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Seventh Day Adventist, Quakers, Catholics, Lutherans, Baptists, Christians, etc.
No he did not!
If he did not, who did?
Men!
Men today are following men while making it "appear" that they are following Christ.
That is what Christ is referring to at Matthew 7:21-23 and this following of men as Lords is what makes one The Man of Lawlessness.
It is not easy to be a disciple of Christ in this world.
It is more than Uncle Sam wants you, "Religious organization wants you."
