Persuaded

April 14

As a Christian, don't be surprised if a lot of your friends think you've gone off the deep end when you speak of a literal antichrist. Many people in our world today are very dismissive of the Bible and what it teaches, so any inclusion of a basically Biblical message into your thinking may be misunderstood by some, even among your friends who profess faith in Christ. They well might conclude that you've become a bit fanciful in your thinking.

But I believe you are honing in on the 'bulls-eye' of today's woes and of the horrific time that is prophesied in Scripture when you affirm your expectation that an evil entity, the antichrist, will appear on the world stage.

I don't agree with the opinion of some people that the 'antichrist' is a world view rather than a man for a couple of reasons.

First, and perhaps foremost, the evil one, the devil, satan, lucifer, whatever you want to call that wicked entity who has poised himself against everything that is God, has stated, "I would be like the Most High," Isaiah 14:14. From his fall, when he led a rebellion in heaven that saw a third of the angels follow him to perdition, he has evidenced that fact.

He was an angel, perhaps an archangel, right up there with Michael and Gabriel; he was not content to be the chief musician of heaven (perhaps his former role explains why some kinds of music can have such a profoundly negative influence over people--but that's another point.)

The evil one wanted to be 'like God,' not in goodness, not in mercy, not in honor or character or...any other good thing. No, he wanted two things:

1. to exert the power of God

2. to receive the worship due only to God.

False religions give him both of these things and, in my estimation, it will therefore be through an existing fallacious belief system that he will endeavor to enslave the whole earth. Old slewfoot wants to control the world and he wants the world to worship him; religions that direct men away from Jesus Christ and Him crucified give him this to a degree, but he wants it all.

Second, he endeavors to imitate God. God came to earth as a MAN to redeem man from the sinful clutches of satan. The Holy One came to earth as a baby who matured into the fullness of what manhood was originally intended by God to be when He fashioned Adam. Indeed, Jesus is referred to in Scripture as, "the Second Adam," I Corinthians 15:45 says, "The first man, Adam, became a living being." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit."

To my thinking, then, satan will, because he imitates God to deceive men, come in the form of a child who grows up to to assume his evil purposes. The evil one wants "to be like the Most High." Therefore, he will purport himself to be Christ at His second coming; he will purport himself to be good and to be the world's 'problem solver.'

If I understand Scripture correctly (and I may be wrong) he will be so effective in his deception that the Jews will think he is their awaited Messiah. The antichrist will reign from Jerusalem. The Bible says that "If it were possible, the very elect would be deceived," Matthew 24:24 and Mark 13:22. That scripture tells me that lucifer will be very convincing--BUT--it won't be possible for him to deceive true believers in Christ. The specificity of word-use in the Bible is amazingly accurate; since it says, "If it were possible..." that little word 'if' is a powerful indicator that deceiving 'the elect' will not be possible.

It all makes sense if you believe. If you don't, it's nonsense. As the Bible says, "The preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but to those who are saved, it is the power of God," I Corinthians 1:18.

In I Corinthians 1:25, Paul goes on to write, "The foolishness of God (that one Man could die for the sins of all men) is wiser than men and the weakness of God (Jesus being crucified and dying for us--a seeming triumph of the devil!) is STRONGER THAN MEN!"

The Biblical account indicates that half way through the time that is allotted to him, the antichrist will reveal his true character. The slaughter will begin. The antichrist and his henchman, the false prophet will not tolerate anything but complete allegiance to and worship of the evil one.

This time of unprecedented evil will continue until Jesus Himself destroys the antichrist and his false prophet and his wicked intent. May we pray to be among the elect who cannot be deceived, and may we ever keep our hope fixed on the One in whose promises we trust.

Let us not be among those who say, “Where is the promise of His coming? Since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation,” II Peter 3:4. Let us rather be among them who say, “I know Whom I have believed and am persuaded that HE is able to keep all of that which I have committed to Him against that day,” II Timothy 1:12.