“Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith.” 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2.

One thinks of a rapid river or stream with the term “free course”; no dams, no logjams, just swiftly flowing water.

Indeed, it is most important that the word of God goes out quickly and freely, both then and today. In some ways America is worse off than the world was in the Apostle Paul’s day.

Gentiles of his day were suffocating in the bondage of paganism and the gospel of Jesus Christ was a great light in an evil darkness, so many of them could easily see the difference.

Today many Americans, particularly millennials think they are throwing off the chains of four hundred years of Christianity in America (Plymouth Colony 1620) and embracing the freedom of godlessness and paganism.

“Jesus answered them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.’” John 8:34-36.

In our study, the apostle is not only asking for prayer that the gospel that he preached run swiftly, but that it should, “…be glorified, just as it was with you”.

God is glorified when people accept Christ and lives are turned around.

Nothing shouts out the glory of God louder than changed lives and people living in freedom from superstition and a terror of the unknown.

Godless men and women look into the void and seeing nothing, they draw back in fear. They put on a brave face and tell themselves that there is no God and no punishment, but in their heart they know better, so they live in dread.

Even if they do convince themselves that there is no God, they must fear dying like a dog, and ceasing to exist; or worse yet falling into the hands of something more terrifying out there in the dark, alone.

Because we forget, and God has so changed our perspective, it is difficult for anyone who has been a Christian for any length of time to remember in their heart what it was like living in a superstitious world that had long ago abandoned God and embraced demonic delusions.

Let me remind you. It is a dismal confused place with ghosts, goblins, vampires, demon possession, witchcraft, voodoo, mind reading, mind control, curses, human sacrifice, mysterious places like the Bermuda Triangle, caves leading to hell or the underworld, cases of lycanthropy (werewolves), grave robbing, and yes zombies.

If a person is religious, what do they choose, which is the true religion? Is it Islam, which everyone is fawning over, with its mutilation and defilement of women and murderous and genocidal reputation as a religion of peace?

Can it be Hinduism with its countless reincarnations and millions of gods, many of whom are feared by the people?

Could it be Astara, Astrology, Scientology, Bahaism, Rosicrucianism, Spiritism, Spiritualism, Theosophy, Swedenborgianism, Unification Church, Taoism, Unitarian Universalist Association, or the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (Hare Krishna)?

If there is a bit of Christian church in a person’s background they might be more comfortable with those who come to their door with a false gospel like the Jehovah’s Witnesses or the Mormons (yes, they are a cult); if they are intellectual, Christian Science or any liberal pseudo-Christian church will do.

All of these false religions have one thing in common; you have to do something to get to heaven, Elysium, Nirvana, or some sort of god consciousness.

As in the case of Hinduism, we are seen as many drops which enter the stream of consciousness. How is that for a complete loss of identity?

If these things are not enough; how about the dark creatures that lurk in the night and prey on your worst fears?

There is the Chupacabra (goat sucker) of which there have been numerous sightings since 1995 with descriptions of it from rat-like with a ridge down its back, to some which seem quite demonic with a vile odor of sulfur and hypnotic red eyes, while other descriptions are similar to those describing aliens.

These creatures are credited with sucking all the blood out of livestock; particularly goats (hence the name), where they were first sighted in Puerto Rico.

Since then they have been reported in many South and Central American countries, which also includes Mexico, and up into the southern United States, and as far north as Maine.

Scientists have explained a lot of this, but not all, and folks who have seen the Grunch in New Orleans, the Peuchen in Chile, and the Sigbin in the Philippines may argue with them.

There are others with which you are very familiar, Big Foot, Sasquatch, the Yeti of the Himalayas, and the Fouke Monster, a Big Foot like creature which has been sighted around Fouke Arkansas since the 1950s, spawning a docudrama called Legend of Boggy Creek.

We cannot leave out UFOs, and alien abductions, which include rape, so-called scientific experiments and loss of memory. All alien contacts are traumatic, yet folks want to meet these sinister creatures in the hope that they can help earthlings.

Many of these misconstructions and demonic lies were around long before Darwin’s “The Origin of Species” was published on November 24, 1859.

But the pseudo-scientific myth of evolution has become an ingrained part of the world consciousness and is the mainstay which holds up many of these mysteries and beliefs, making them at once believable, and contradictory.

Do you remember now Christian what you came out of?

Many of us do and still are not moved to weep when we see a young girl in a black dress wearing a spiked dog collar, black lipstick and nail polish.

Goths are often involved in witchcraft or Satanism. The young men are usually the same with black nail polish, and a dead hopeless heart.

Many others are just party animals; since we are nothing more than highly developed mammals that have no right to rape the planet and kill other lesser animals for sport or to eat.

In fact, they become more outraged if you kill an animal, even in self-defense, than they would be if you kill a man or a baby.

Satan has done his job well with these last few generations since they have forgotten God.

He has been able to spin homes into chaos by removing the father, permeating them with drugs, alcohol, sex, and removing hope and purpose in life through evolution and vain, confusing philosophies.

Replacing God with hedonistic (pleasure or happiness is the highest good) insatiable greed.

The schools have been training them all up to be good socialist robots teaching them to accept any form of perversion and emphasizing their need to be cared for by the state.

They have ceased teaching them the basics, such as math, reading, writing, and true science which is not based on mythology.

They have also ceased to teach something else, how to think logically. Many young people cannot reason out whether a statement is true or false unless they are told by someone who is an entertainer, or sports celebrity, or if it agrees with the dogma they have been taught.

Satan knows that a population that does not know how to reason things out is easier manipulated, so these are kept in constant confusion.

As a result of this worldview God is never glorified for His mighty works because everything is just the result of time, plus chance, plus the impersonal.

Satan has managed to completely rob God, except in one area, Christians who love and praise Him, and those who are rescued from superstition, an eternity in hell, and given a purpose in life.

“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’” John 8:31-32.

As for the Christian, think of something to praise and glorify God for, even if it is just for blue skies and green grass, and then ask Him to bring other things you have forgotten or not noticed to mind.

And no, I am not being naïve, like many of you I have been sick, unemployed, depressed, or fearful, but God never deserted me, and He will never desert you; praise Him for that. God is faithful.

“…and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith.” 2 Thessalonians 3:2.

These unreasonable men are called “perverse, improper” in one commentary. Likewise “the wicked are actively, deliberately harmful.”

These unseemly men are “more than ordinarily bad” according to another expositor.

The experiences of the apostles on their missionary journeys and in the book of Acts testify of the villainy in which the Jews engaged in against the gospel.

Often these unreasonable men were against the gospel because of jealousy, not because of doctrinal differences.

Many of you have experienced the unreasonable while discussing the word of God with an atheist or an evolutionist.

Many of you have been vilified by wicked men who are being deliberately harmful.

Many other Christians have been persecuted, imprisoned, tortured, or murdered by this same sort of corrupt people in other countries. Do not fool yourself; they will do it here if things are allowed to go downhill much farther.

“…for not all have faith” verse 2 last phrase. Very often when a Christian accepts Christ as Savior, they get excited and go tell someone about it thinking that this is so simple anyone would understand and accept Christ too. Just as often the person they are talking to treats them as if they had gone insane.

Sometimes after many years of prayer and living righteously before their friend or loved one they do get it and they too accept Christ, but this will not happen with everyone, because all do not have faith.

It might be added that even though they do not have faith, they often have animosity. Try not to be too disheartened though, because the animosity is not toward you, it is toward God.

“Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm. May the Lord repay him according to his works. You also must beware of him, for he has greatly resisted our words.” 2 Timothy 4:14-15.

Jesus, God the Son, had a similar problem with the Pharisees when He healed a man on the Sabbath (Saturday).

“And He said to them, ‘Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?’ But they kept silent. So when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.” Mark 3:4-6.

More so, even today we have an unhinged populace who hate God, especially in government there are officials with debased, reprobate minds, minds that do not work, see all of Romans 1:18-32.

“And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind [reprobate mind that does not work], to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents…” Romans 1:28-30.

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27.

Not All Have Faith, 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2 taken from godisrevealed.com posted on 11-13-13, updated on 3-14-21.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version, copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission, all rights reserved.