First John 2:18-27 contrasts Christians with Antichrists. Verse 18 says, "Ye have heard that Antichrist shall come, even now are there many Antichrists, by which we know that it is the last time."
That verse introduces a term that is very familiar to Christians: Antichrists. This is the first time it appears in the Bible. The only writer to use the word is John, and then only in his epistles.
It appears again in verse 22: "He is Antichrist, that denies the Father and the Son." First John 4:3 says, "This is that spirit of Antichrist, of which ye have heard that it should come, and even now already is it in the world." And 2 John 7 says, "This is a deceiver and an Antichrist."
The Spirit of the Antichrist
The Bible teaches that when the Antichrist comes in the end times, he will try to be the Christ that men are looking for. I believe he will take advantage of the turbulent times in which we are living and bring about a false sense of peace. Later he will turn against Christ.
Then the Bible also speaks of a “spirit of Antichrist.” The spirit of Antichrist has always been in the world. It has manifested itself both in open opposition to Christ and in subtle attempts to replace Christ.
* The spirit of Antichrist was in the Garden when Eden was deceived into disobeying God and eating of the forbidden fruit.
* The spirit of Antichrist was in Egypt when the Egyptians made the Israelites slaves and attempted to kill all the male children of Israel.
* The spirit of Antichrist was in Persia when Haman was filled with wrath as he saw that Mordecai did not bow or pay him homage. It was the spirit of Antichrist that moved Haman to destroy all the Jews.
* The spirit of Antichrist was in Judea when Herod sought to kill Jesus by putting to death all the male children two years old and under who were in Bethlehem.
* The spirit of Antichrist was in Germany when Hitler sought to exterminate the Jews by killing millions of them in what we know as the Holocaust.
* The spirit of Antichrist is still prevalent in places like Indonesia and other Islamic countries where Christians and Jews are being murdered at an alarming rate.
* The spirit of Antichrist is still prevalent in our own country where the Bible and Christians symbols are being removed from our courts and parks and schools and books and flags and seals in an attempt to erase from history the biblical and Christian roots of our nation and society.
* The spirit of Antichrist is still alive and active. John writes in verse 18 of our text, "Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many Antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour."
Mankind has always sensed there is a power in the universe that is against God. Apart from the Bible's teaching on Satan, men know there is good and evil in the universe.
Hollywood has often illustrated the struggle of good against evil in the movies and on television.
* The westerns have both lawmen and the outlaws.
* Dramas have cops and robbers
* The popular Star Wars series depicts a good force and a dark side of the force.
* There is the Agent Smith of the movie The Matrix
* The Power Puff Girls are constantly battling with MoJo-JoJo
Hollywood has often illustrated one’s struggle to obey God or go against him by depicting a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other.
But the spirit of Antichrist was present long before Hollywood’s depictions.
1. The Babylonian legend
One of the earliest written records of conflict between good and evil comes from Babylonian history. The Babylonians believed that the earth was created. This legend held that there was a god named Marduk who conquered an evil sea monster named Tiamat. But Marduk did not kill Tiamat.
The Babylonians taught that a final battle would occur in the end times when Tiamat would wake up and fight against Marduk. That legend gives credence to the human understanding that good and evil continue to co-exist and will engage in ultimate conflict.
2. The Old Testament acknowledgment
The Old Testament acknowledges the existence of such legends by its use of similar imagery.
a) Isaiah 51:9--In referring to the arm of the Lord, Isaiah said God wounded a sea-monster (KJV, "dragon"). To make his point, Isaiah was borrowing from the pagan belief that a monster represented evil in the world.
b) Isaiah 27:1--"The Lord with his hard and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan, the piercing serpent, even leviathan, that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the sea- monster that is in the sea."
Again Isaiah is teaching that God will destroy evil.
From these verses as well as the Babylonian legend we can see how the concept of a serpent representing the evil force in the world originally came from the biblical record of Adam and Eve in the Garden, where Satan took on the form of a serpent (Gen. 3:1, cf. Rev. 12:9).
Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?"
The spirit of Antichrist has always been in the world. It has manifested itself both in open opposition to God and in subtle attempts to replace God.
There is an anti-God force in the world, and that force is Satan. Quite often that force has taken human form.
There were times when Isaiah and Ezekiel addressed kings in their writings but were also addressing the devil working through these kings. The kings were simply manifestations of the spirit of Satan.
Ezek 28:11 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Ezek 28:12 "Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
Ezek 28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, Beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes Was prepared for you on the day you were created.
Ezek 28:14 "You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
Ezek 28:15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.
Around 168 B.C. a man by the name of Antiochus Epiphanes came to the forefront of Jewish history. Epiphanes means "the great one." He gave himself that name. The Jews called him Antiochus Epimanes, which means "the madman."
Antiochus was the king of Syria.
* He wanted to eliminate Judaism from the earth, so he invaded Jerusalem, killed thousands of Jews, and sold others into slavery.
* He instituted the death penalty for anyone who circumcised a child or owned a copy of the law.
* He erected an altar to Zeus in the courts of the Temple.
* He sacrificed a pig on the altar in defiance of Jewish law.
* He turned the Temple chambers into prostitution lairs.
All these actions were deliberate attempts to desecrate the Temple and God. These actions also provide an appropriate picture of the coming Antichrist. Some of Daniel's prophecies of Antiochus actually refer to the future Antichrist (e.g., Dan. 11:31).
(Dan 11:31 NIV) "His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation.
Many have tried to guess who the Antichrist is. This guessing game has a long tradition, going back to the time right after Jesus' death. The early church fathers Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Cyprian, and Augustine all believed that this person would be present immediately prior to Christ's return.
During the Middle Ages, some churchmen identified the Antichrist as a Muslim, such as Saladin, but others pointed to a Jew, and some even pointed to the Pope. During the American Revolution it was popular to cast King George III in the role of Antichrist, but the Earl of Bute and British general John Burgoyne also got nominations.
Other familiar names to be included in this long list of suspected Antichrists are Napoleon, the British Parliament, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Joseph Stalin.
Since World War II, the Pope still makes the list as does the late Jewish leader Moshe Dayan, the assassinated Egyptian leader Anwar el-Sadat, Spain's King Juan Carlos, and Korean cult leader Sun Myung Moon. For some, Mikhail Gorbachev and Saddam Hussein are naturals for the job.
There are others who believe that the Antichrist isn’t a person but an organization like the Roman Catholic Church because this religion claims to be God’s authority in the world. And, the world always seems to make the Pope the bona fide leader of Christianity.
But the Bible teaches there will be one great and final form of Antichrist; this form will be an actual person.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4--"Let no man deceive you by any means; for that day [the day of the Lord] shall not come, except there come the falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped, so that he, as God, sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God."
In 2 Thessalonians Paul writes to encourage the believers in that city who had gotten a false message that the Day of the Lord had come and they were left behind to face the wrath of God poured out on a wicked world.
Paul wrote to tell them that the day of the Lord--the time of the final judgment when Christ returns--would not occur until the Antichrist is made known during what is called The Great Tribulation.
In Matthew 24:21, Jesus tells of events that will take place before His second coming. He says, "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be."
Let me briefly share with you the events that take place during the Tribulation Period.
Antichrist signs 7-year peace with Israel. Known as the covenant of death. This begins the 7-year tribulation period also known as: The 70th week of Daniel's prophecy and the time of Jacob's trouble.
Dan 9:27 - And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
During this 7 year period God judges the earth. The judgments of the book of Revelation are poured out on the earth. These judgments are: The 7 seals, the 7 trumpets, and the 7 bowls of the wrath of God.
During this 7-year period the following judgments will hit planet earth:
Seal judgments:
-1st Seal: White horse (Antichrist) to conquer
-2nd Seal: Wars on earth
-3rd Seal: Worldwide economic troubles
-4th Seal: Death released. 1/4 of the world's population to die by plagues, disease, beasts of the earth etc.
-5th Seal: Persecution and killing of God's people worldwide
-6th Seal: Massive earthquake
-7th Seal: Silence then the 7 trumpet judgments
Trumpet judgments
-1st Trumpet: Hail, fire, and blood. 1/3 all grass and trees burned up
-2nd Trumpet: Great mountain hits sea. 1/3 all ocean becomes blood. 1/3 all sea life dies and 1/3 all ships destroyed.
-3rd Trumpet: Wormwood star hits earth. 1/3 all freshwater poisoned.
-4th Trumpet: 1/3 of sun and moon darkened
-5th Trumpet: locust beasts that sting and torment men loosed from the pit
-6th Trumpet: demons released and 200 million Eastern army kills 1/3 of the world's population
-7th Trumpet: Cries from heaven and 7 bowl judgments to be released on earth
Bowl Judgments:
-1st Bowl: Terrible and painful sores break out on all who worship beast
-2nd Bowl: Entire ocean becomes blood. All sea life dies
-3rd Bowl: Fresh water becomes blood. No more fresh drinking water
-4th Bowl: Sun increased in heat and scorches and burns people
-5th Bowl: Supernatural darkness on earth
-6th Bowl: Great Eastern army heads toward Armageddon in the Middle East for the final battle
-7th Bowl: Babylon destroyed, massive earthquakes, and 100 pound hailstones devastate earth.
Abomination of desolation. This event occurs exactly 3 1/2 years after the Antichrist signs his peace deal with Israel. The Antichrist goes into the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem and there claims to be God. He desecrates the temple, as he demands worship from all who dwell on the earth. The mark of the beast is applied where no one can buy and sell without this mark. The only way to get this mark is to worship the Antichrist. Those who accept the mark (666) will face the wrath of God. (Matthew 24; Revelation 14)
After hearing the news of the Erik Berg who was beheaded in Iraq last week and studying for this message I thought that perhaps we are closer to this time of Tribulation that we think. The Bible speaks of people who are beheaded for their faith in Christ during this time:
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. Rev. 20:4
Back in our text Paul goes on to describe three characteristics of this person. According to 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4:
He will oppose God
He will exalt himself above all that is called God or worshipped.
He will sit on God's throne, passing himself off as God.
Let’s look at the first characteristic:
He will oppose God
We are living in a time when opposing God is being “enlightened.” People who worship according to the New Age philosophy of life are educated. They have their yoga and crystals and astrologers. They are revered on TV, radio and in print.
Church “is for those who need a crutch and enjoy guilt trips.” “God is a thing of the past with no relevance for today,” they say.
In the Garden of Eden, Satan approached Eve not as a “badboy” but a nice guy and proceeded to deceive her away from obedience to God.
I believe that Satan in the person of the Antichrist will use this method during the tribulation period by lulling mankind into an all out rejection of God.
He will be a nice guy, an attractive guy, and have a charismatic personality. He will be intelligent and a demonstrated problem-solver.
He will rise up on the international scene because of his diplomacy. He will more than likely be praised by men for helping to solve the world’s problems.
* He will be the master negotiator and bring the warring nations of the world together for peace.
* He will convince all people of all faiths to be on one accord and live in harmony.
* I am told that there will probably be one common currency—we can see the world is headed that way now more than ever before in all of history. Antichrist will probably be the one who brings all this together.
As he brings order from the world’s disorder it will be nothing for a celebrity-crazed world to admire him and adore him and worship him.
He will be admired and worshipped for freeing mankind from the bondage of the Bible.
He will free the world from their guilt resulting from their failure to meet God’s holy and righteous standards.
In freeing the world from God’s intrusion, he opposes God.
He will exalt himself above all that is called God or worshipped.
Antichrist will not want to be worshipped along with everything else man worships; he will demand exclusive worship. Remember Satan’s words recorded in Isaiah 14:
Isa 14:13 You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.
Isa 14:14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."
Antichrist is Satan personified. He will exalt himself above all that is worshipped and to ensure that people worship him, he will connect the worship of himself to one’s livelihood and survival.
Rev 13:15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
Rev 13:16 He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead,
Rev 13:17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.
Rev 13:18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.
In order to function in the economy of the Anti-Christ you have to take the mark of the beast. The mark being the number of a man, Revelation 13, "666."
Six is the number of man. Seven is the number of perfection, and man always falls short of perfection. According to the Bible you take the mark on your hand or on your forehead.
We’re now moving fast toward the time when we’re going to have to do everything we do by some kind of ID card or number. The problem with a card is that you can lose it. Industry has already devised systems to put the number on your hand or your forehead where you go through a scanner and have the ability to buy and sell and your money is automatically deducted from your bank account.
If you want to do some research on the number 666 and how technology might pave the way for its implementation go to: http://www.av1611.org/666/
Antichrist opposes God. He exalts himself above all that is called God and thirdly, he, as God, sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
He will sit on God's throne, passing himself off as God.
This is what Jesus in Matthew 24 calls “The Abomination of Desolation.”
At the beginning of that period, the Antichrist will make a treaty with Israel to protect Israel. However, in the midst of the week—in the middle of that time, three and a half years—he will cause the sacrifice to cease.
In other words, he will allow them the freedom to worship in their temple—this is one of the reasons we believe Israel is going to rebuild the temple: because they will be worshipping during the tribulation. They will be worshipping in the temple; in the middle of the “week,” Antichrist swoops down, stops the sacrifices, stops the oblation; for the overspreading of abominations, he makes it desolate.
He comes in and just abominates or blasphemes, in their mind, the sacredness of that place. He wipes out their worship in the middle of the week. That is the abomination of desolations.
Now when that happens, that will be the trigger that will blow the whole rest of the three and a half year tribulation; that’s when it stops being tribulation and turns into great tribulation.
Jesus talks about this in Matthew 24. They’ll be getting along great, they’ll have this pact; a “false peace.” Three and a half years of the tribulation (false peace), then this Antichrist comes in, desecrates their worship, and that’s when the really ugly stuff starts to happen.
To better understand the Antichrist’s role, impact and influence we need to look at these characteristics in light of the fact that Antichrist will be made known on a worldwide level; so in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4, Paul describes the conditions of the world at this time.
There is first a falling away (vs. 3)
The word apostasy comes from the Greek apostasia, which is translated "falling away" in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
Apostates are those who fall away from the true faith, abandoning what they formerly professed to believe. The term describes those whose beliefs are so deficient as to place them outside the boundaries of true Christianity.
During Paul’s day there were people who once professed to follow Jesus Christ but now had abandoned that profession.
* We are living in a time when many are abandoning the faith.
* The Bible they once claimed to believe in they say it is not true and relevant.
* The Jesus they now claim to follow is not the Jesus of the Bible.
* The doctrines concerning salvation and righteousness and holiness that were once revered are cast off as too restrictive and archaic.
* The Bible, the Ten Commandments and prayer have been evicted from our schools. The ACLU is attacking and attempting to remove any remaining vestige of Christianity from society.
The apostasy has come and many who had once professed to honor Christ have fallen away from Him.
There is a restraining force keeping the Antichrist at bay (vs. 7)
Verse seven says the mystery of lawlessness is at work but is being restrained. During this time of tribulation things could be worse but they are not because there is a restraining force keeping things from getting worse.
Antichrist is now being held back by a restraining force.
Some understand this to be God indwelling His church by the Holy Spirit. According to this view it is the Christian who is the “salt of the earth” and “light in the world” that is retarding the spread of sin and deception. When Christians are removed from the earth at the Rapture (1 Thess. 4:13-18) the Antichrist will come out of hiding.
Others see human government as the restraint. According to this view, the Antichrist will no longer be restrained when once he overthrows human government.
Once the Antichrist makes his appearance during the 7-year Tribulation Period, God’s wrath isn’t far behind.
One very important fact about the Tribulation – the tribulation is NOT the wrath of Satan or the Antichrist – but the WRATH OF GOD. It’s not Satan persecuting Christians. It’s the wrath of a holy God "judging" this earth, Satan and Israel.
Rev 6:16 They called to the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!
Rev 6:17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?"
Rev 15:1 I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues--last, because with them God's wrath is completed.
Rev 16:1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, "Go, pour out the seven bowls of God's wrath on the earth."
God is not going to pour His wrath on His children.
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, 1 Thess. 5:5
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. Romans 5:9
And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. 1 Thess. 1:10
But notice who will experience the wrath of God.
He that believes on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believes not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides on him. John 3:36
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Romans 1:18
Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Ephesians 5:6
For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: Col. 3:6
As you study the Bible you can’t help to see that each time when there is a major pouring out the wrath or punishment of God on an unbelieving people, God takes great measures to remove His followers.
God rescued Noah. . . before the wrath.
Gen 6:7 - So the LORD said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth--men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air--for I am grieved that I have made them."
Gen 6:8 - But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.
God "raptured" Enoch. . . before the wrath.
Gen 5:24 - Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.
Heb 11:5 - By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.
God "took out" Lot. . .before His wrath was poured out on Sodom and Gomorrah.
Remember what the angel told Lot. . .
Gen 19:22 - But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it."
The angel could not pour out the wrath of God until Lot reached safety.
One day the Lord will appear in the clouds and rapture or call up those who are His to safety!
The wrath of God isn’t reserved for those who follow the Lord Jesus.
It is reserved for the wicked.
It is reserved for those who reject the Savior, God’s precious Son, Jesus Christ.
It is reserved for the devil and his false Christ, the Antichrist who is the beast, the man of sin.
Rev 19:19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army.
Rev 19:20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
Rev 20:10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
Do you know Christ? Does He know you? Have you trusted Him as your Savior?
