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. 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. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:6)
I’ve been thinking about this passage a lot lately, in the context of the Great Divide that has opened up over Covid-19.
I used to think that the “truth” referred to here was the truth about Jesus. I still do, but now I think there’s more to it.
There are two versions of “the truth” about Covid. The first, the “official” narrative, is the one perhaps the majority of people believe (who knows?) This is the narrative that is pushed by government, media, and health officers, aided by large helpings of censorship from Big Tech companies such as Facebook and Twitter who remove or mark as “misinformation” anything that contradicts it.
This official narrative could be summed up like this: Covid-19 is uniquely dangerous to everyone, regardless of age or health status. Its spread can be stopped by masks, social distancing, and lockdowns. Its spread can REALLY be stopped by vaccines, which are both extremely safe and effective, but somehow leave you in danger from people who don’t have them. OK, they can’t stop the spread, but my vaccinated covid breakthrough case would DEFINITELY have been worse without them. Governments, bodies such as the WHO, CDC, and FDA, pharmaceutical companies, and public health officials all have our best interests at heart and money and power have nothing to do with it. Anyone who does not believe any part of this narrative is uniquely dangerous and selfish, a spreader of misinformation, an anti-vaxxer, a granny-killer.
On the other hand, you have people who believe that Covid has a greater than 99% survival rate; those who succumb to it are mainly the very old and infirm who would be in danger from any seasonal flu; masks, social distancing, and lockdowns have little effect on its spread and have far more harmful consequences than benefits; Covid-19 vaccines are neither safe nor effective and in fact have killed or injured hundreds of thousands of people; there are cheap, safe, and effective early treatments that are being suppressed; and the people pushing the “official” narrative have sinister motives.
Both believe they have “science” on their side. Well, the first group believes they have “The Science” on their side, which they define as mainstream public health officials, agencies, scientists, and doctors. This group believes they cannot read or understand scientific studies or data for themselves, so they rely on trusted “experts” to do so for them. This is not being intellectually incurious, it is noble. Thinking for yourself or going outside of approved sources is dangerous.
This group gets their news from mainstream media and believes it is truthfully reported without conflicts of interest, even if it is funded by pharmaceutical companies and governments.
The second group believes that science - as in real-world data, studies, and the scientific method - supports their conclusions. They believe that people who have been slandered, defamed, persecuted, fired, and banned from social media for their perspectives may be more truthful than those who are getting large payouts from pharma companies. They can’t understand what ulterior motive people might have who are losing money, jobs, reputations, and credentials for speaking up.
One set thinks the truth depends on how recognized, prestigious, and socially popular the people speaking it are. The second thinks the truth is the truth no matter who says it and no matter what platform it might be published on.
The two groups couldn’t be further apart and while both think they are looking at the same facts and coming to truthful conclusions, this is obviously impossible. Both can’t be right.
So what’s going on?
I think this is more than a battle of misinformation and good-faith individuals who are really trying to get it right but just haven’t got quite enough data to make the jump from one side to the other.
If you haven’t guessed, I belong to the second group. I started out, like all of us, not knowing how dangerous Covid was, but thinking it might be really so, based on false information coming out of China. I wasn’t enthusiastic about masks and lockdowns, but they seemed to make logical sense. However, the longer things went on and the more I read, the less sense the “official” narrative began to make. It was obvious the media and government were very invested in pushing fear and panic - to what end?
This isn’t the time to go into that, but I have noticed something curious: of the people I talk to, those who are invested in the “official narrative” are the most closed-minded, incurious, unable and unwilling to look at or consider any information that goes against their beliefs. They refuse to watch or read anything that provides a different perspective. They have an improbable explanation for everything you share with them, such as “VAERS [the CDC system for reporting vaccine adverse effects] is useless” to explain away the unprecedented numbers it is showing since the Covid-19 vaccine rollouts.
Secondly, inevitably, those I know who are most invested in the official narrative are also my friends who are not Christians and who are even vehemently anti-Christian. They are people I’ve shared my faith with, but with whom I’ve had to agree to disagree. They are the people who are most closed-minded to Christianity and refused to read or watch anything about the Gospel or go to church with me. They had improbable explanations for the stories I shared with them of my supernatural experiences that brought me to faith.
Sound familiar?
On the other hand, I’ve noticed that my fellow churchgoers are the ones most likely to be suspicious of and see through the “official” narrative; and freedom movement members, as well as doctors, nurses, scientists, and many others speaking out against the Narrative, are Christians in very high numbers.
I’ve come to the conclusion that this is something spiritual.
There is a “strong delusion” at work, that those who “refuse to love the truth” are falling for. This is a judgement. God is actively blinding the eyes of those who rejected him and instead chose unrighteousness, so that they are dazzled by “the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders”. They think it’s the real deal.
I have come to believe that nothing else can explain the worldwide inability to see the man behind the curtain; the dogged persistence in falling for narratives which make no sense; the total inability to absorb contrary information - than Satanic delusion, on a mass scale.
Of course not everyone who sees the truth about what’s going on is a believer, and many so-called believers have fallen for the narrative (although I think this may reveal something about the genuineness of their faith). But there’s a high correlation.
If you don’t love and pursue truth in the spiritual realm, you will no longer be able to perceive it, even in the earthly realm. You will become a person of lies, bound up in lies, led astray by lies, impervious to truth. When the “strong delusion” comes along, you will be swept away by it.
This process is also described in Revelation 13, the famous chapter which includes the “mark of the beast” without which no one can buy or sell, which even many non-Christians are connecting to “vaccine passports”. I encourage you to read it - it’s very relevant to what’s happening today.
So what?
If you’re not a believer in Jesus, but you’re seeing that something isn’t right with what’s going on in the world, maybe it’s time to investigate whether the story of Jesus might make more sense and contain more truth than you previously realized. That seems to be happening widely - people are returning to their faith or finding it for the first time, as this Great Unveiling strips away societal illusions of peace, prosperity, and freedom and they start to realize that only the Eternal is a solid rock to stand on. Maybe that will be you, too.
Maybe this is more real than you think. Maybe Jesus really is coming back, and it’s time to get right with him before then. Maybe he really does offer Truth for living and dying.
Unfortunately many who are following the public narrative ARE believers. I am in conversation with. Three have ADVNCED medical degrees. Two MDs and a PA. On the other hand the FOUR of us who held out on the shot at work were believers. One however was young. She wants to go to school. Sadly she capitulated. One, also sadly, decided enough was enough and retired. The two remaining. We encourage each other.
I’ve been rereading Matthew. Had gotten to chpts 6-7. While ALL scripture is useful, for some reason dovetailed perfectly with message. And every single verse rich with application to the current world situation , including even the call to be careful about judging anyone, even the “most” evil. I know that’s an obvious truth but bears repeating: “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness” “why do you look at the speak of sawdust in your brothers eye, and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”