Will there be a great apostasy during the end times?

Answer

The Bible indicates that there will be a significant apostasy during the end times. The “great apostasy” is mentioned in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. The KJV refers to it as the “falling away,” while the NIV and ESV describe it as “the rebellion.” An apostasy is essentially a rebellion, signifying an abandonment of the truth. The end times will involve a widespread rejection of God’s revelation, further exacerbating the already fallen world.

Paul wrote to the Thessalonians to address some of the misconceptions about the end times that had been spread by false teachers. Among these falsehoods was the belief that “the day of the Lord has already come” «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. », (2 Thessalonians 2:2). The Thessalonian Christians were fearful that Jesus had already returned, the rapture had occurred, and they were now in the tribulation. Paul had previously explained the rapture in his first letter to them (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). In his second letter, Paul reassures them that, contrary to what they had heard and despite the persecution they were facing, the “day of Christ” had not yet arrived.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:3, Paul clarifies that the day of the Lord, a period of global judgment (Isaiah 13:6;Obadiah 1:15), will not occur until two events take place. First, the falling away, or great apostasy, must happen. Second,

Indeed, the “man of lawlessness” must be revealed, he who is called the “son of perdition,” also known as the Antichrist. Once this individual reveals himself, the end times will have truly arrived. Various speculations about the identity of the man of sin, dating back to the first century, have included Caligula, Caius Caesar, Mohammed, Napoleon, and several Roman popes. None of them turned out to be the Antichrist.

According to 2 Thessalonians 2:4, the man of lawlessness is the one who “will oppose and exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.” Clearly, this event has not yet occurred; no one has claimed to be God in the Jewish temple since Paul’s time. Two thousand years have passed since the epistle was written, and the “day of the Lord” is still pending. Paul assures us that it will not happen until the falling away occurs first.

The Greek word translated as “rebellion” or “falling away” in verse 3 is apostasia, from which we derive the English word apostasy. It denotes a general defection from the true God, the Bible, and the Christian faith. Every era witnesses its defectors, but the falling away in the end times will be total and global. The entire planet will rebel against God and His Christ. Every rebellion needs a leader, and the Antichrist will emerge into this worldwide apostasy. We believe this will happen after the church has been raptured from the earth.

Jesus cautioned the disciples about the final days in Matthew 24:10–12: “At that time, many will turn away from the faith, betray and hate each other, and false prophets will deceive many. Due to the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.” These are the hallmarks of the great apostasy in the end times.