This was a question recently posed to me. When I answered
“Yes!” you should have seen the eyes of the questioner.
You know the next question – don’t you? “WHO is it?”
This has been a question that has plagued not only our
generation but also every generation since the first century. We have head all
kinds of answers to this question. During the first century the Emperor Nero
was thought to be the antichrist. Martin Luther believed that the Pope of his
day was the antichrist. Back in the 1940s there were people who thought it was
Hitler. During my lifetime here are some of the more popular names that have
been bandied about Vladimir Putin, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, or Pope Benedict XVI.
Even leaders from America have been on the lists. I bet you can guess who some
of them are. They include a couple of our former presidents – Bill Clinton
& George Bush. Even our current president Barack Obama has not escaped this
title.
What does the Bible have to say about this?
Well 1 John 2 teaches that there are many antichrists in the
world today not just one.
The term Antichrist is never used in Scripture to identify a
particular person. Rather Paul uses a number of titles to describe this person.
Terms like “man of sin” and “son of perdition” the come from 2 Thessalonians
2:3 KJV. Other translations call him the “man of lawlessness” and the “son of
destruction.”
John in his book Revelation refers to two people (the false
prophet and the beast) who scholars have identified as the ultimate Antichrist.
So what do I believe on the subject of the antichrist?
There are a number of facts that come from my study.
The only Biblical writer to us e this term is John in his
epistles (think letters) to individual churches. You can check them out - 1
John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7
In the Greek the term “anti” carries two meanings “against”
and “instead of”
This spirit of antichrist has been present in the world
since Satan declared war on God and helped bring about the fall of mankind (see
Genesis 3). This person opposes and attempts to substitute for God.
There have been and will be many antichrists who embody this
spirit and teach false doctrine. Anyone who denies Jesus Christ is the Son of
God and has come in the flesh is an antichrist, regardless of how good of a
speaker or teacher they might be!
And finally there will be a single person who will head up
the ultimate rebellion against God and His Son in the last days and he could
certainly be called the antichrist since he will attempt to replace Christ in
the eyes and hearts of his followers.
Test the spirits and the teaching of those who come to you
with Biblical teaching. If they are not teaching the truth of Christ the
Apostle John calls them antichrists!
Teaching the truth
Pastor Val
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