The Antichrist Of Scripture

THE ANTICHRIST OF SCRIPTURE

The kingdom of the world belongs to Satan. (Luke 4:6)

This includes every nation on earth.

The Antichrist comes from this kingdom.

As Christ Jesus, The Son Of God, came from God Almighty,

So, The Antichrist, The Son Of Satan, comes from Satan.

As Christ Jesus is the Savior of the world for those who believe;

So, The Antichrist is the false savior of the fallen world.

Those who receive Christ Jesus as Savior receive Eternal LIFE.

Those who receive the Antichrist as “savior” receive eternal death.

Scripture gives the Antichrist two additional names:

“The Beast” and “The Man Of Lawlessness.”

A predominant characteristic of the Antichrist is that he and the ten kings,

Who give their authority to him, make war against the Lamb, Christ Jesus.

(Revelation 17:14)

I believe that the Antichrist will be unknown until he is revealed

And there is no mistake as to who he is.

Just as Judas was unknown as a betrayer of Christ Jesus

Until Satan enter into him at The Last Supper. (John 13:27)

The prophet Daniel sees the Antichrist waging war against the saints

And defeating them. (Daniel 7:21)

'He (the Antichrist) will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints

And try to change the set times and the laws.

The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time.'

(Daniel 7:24-25)

He (the Antichrist) will become very strong,

But not by his own power (the power of Satan).

He will cause astounding devastation and will succeed in whatever he does.

He will destroy the mighty men and the holy people.

He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior.

When they feel secure, he will destroy many

And take his stand against the Prince of princes (Christ Jesus).

Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power (by Christ Jesus).

(Daniel 8:14-25)

And he shall speak words against the Most High [God],

And shall wear out the saints of the Most High,

And think to change the times [of sacred feasts and holy days]

And the law;

And the saints shall be given into his hand

For a time, two times and half a time [Three and one-half years].

(Daniel 7:25 AMP)

The Man Of Lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)

Concerning the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ

And our being gathered to him, we ask you brothers,

Not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter Supposed to have come from us,

Saying that the day of the Lord has already come.

Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come,

Until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed,

The man doomed to destruction.

He opposes and exalts himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, And even sets himself up in God's temple, 

Proclaiming himself to be God.

Don't you remember that when I was with you 

I used to tell you these things?

And now you know what is holding him back,

So that he may be revealed at the proper time.

For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work;

But the one who now holds it back will continue to do so

Till he (the Holy Spirit) is taken out of the way.

And then the lawless one will be revealed,

Whom the Lord Jesus will over throw with the breath of his mouth

And destroy by the splendor of his coming.

The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan Displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders,

And every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing.

They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion

So that they will believe the lie

And so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth

But have delighted in wickedness.

According to the apostle Paul,

The Great Day Of The Lord will not come until The Man Of Lawlessness,

The Beast, The Antichrist is revealed.

At that time the Holy Spirit is taken out of the way

And Satan has complete rule over mankind.

Just prior to this, the rebellion within the Church occurs,

And the Beast sets up his “image” in the Church of God,

Claiming to be God and deceiving mankind

With counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders.

God allows this powerful delusion for those who have delighted in wickedness.

THE BEAST OUT OF THE SEA

Revelation 13

And I saw a beast coming out of the sea.

He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns,

And on each head a blasphemous name.

The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear

And a mouth like that of a lion.

The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne

And great authority.

One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound,

But the fatal wound had been healed.

The whole world was astonished and followed the beast.

Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast,

And they also worshiped the beast and asked,

'Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?'

The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies

And to exercise his authority for forty-two months.

He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name

And his dwelling place and those who live in heaven.

He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them.

And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.

All the inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast--

All whose names have not been written in the book of life 

Belonging to the Lamb

That was slain from the creation of the world.

He who has an ear let him hear.

If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go.

If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed.

This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.

The apostle John sees a Beast coming out of the sea;

He sees the son of Satan coming out of the masses 

Of the people of the earth.

As Christ Jesus is to God the Father so the Beast is to Satan.

The Beast is The Man Of Lawlessness

That the apostle Paul speaks of in 2 Thessalonians 2.

He has ten horns and seven heads, 

Representing nations and heads of authority.

The Beast has ten crowns on his horns, 

And on each head a blasphemous name.

The crowns are representative of authority over a specific people group

And the heads have a name that speaks against God.

This Beast is a composite of the beasts that Daniel is shown in Daniel 7:2-7,

Resembling a leopard with feet like a bear and a mouth like a lion.

The dragon (Satan) gives the Beast, the Antichrist his power, throne

And great authority,

Just as the God gave Christ Jesus His power, throne and authority.

One of the heads of the Beast seemed to be fatally wounded,

But the fatal wound was healed,

Causing the whole godless world to be astonished and to follow the Beast,

Ultimately to Hell.

This is Satan's attempt to mimic the death, burial

And resurrection of Christ Jesus.

The whole world worships the Dragon (Satan) and the Beast.

The world cannot comprehend anyone

Who can come against the power of the Beast.

They have completely forgotten the God of Heaven, the Almighty.

Satan gives his Beast a mouth to utter proud words and to malign God,

Calling what is good evil and what is evil, good.

They slander the name of God, Christ Jesus, Heaven itself,

And those who live in Heaven.

God Almighty gives Satan and his Beast three and one-half years

To wreck havoc on a world that has disavowed the true and Living God.

They are also given power to make war against the remaining saints

And to conquer them.

Prior to this time they did not have this power;

They were constrained by the Holy Spirit.

Satan and his Beast are given by God,

Authority over every tribe, people, language and nation

Because they have turned away from the God of Heaven.

Every person on earth worships the Beast,

All those whose names have not been written in the Lamb's Book of LIFE.

The Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world,

To save all those who turn to Him in faith.

Satan now has the worship he wanted from the time he fell from God's grace.

He masquerades as an angel of light and seduces the whole world,

Except those who belong to Christ Jesus.

If anyone can hear the voice of God, let him hear and respond.

Now is the time to give your heart to the One

Who holds the keys to death and Hell.

To the One who is the Way, the Truth and the LIFE;

The One who offers eternal LIFE to those who repent and turn to Christ Jesus.

Everyone else is lost and destined for Hell.

Those saints who find themselves in The Great Tribulation

Must patiently endure what lies in front of them.

They will be killed, but their faith, and their willingness to die for Christ,

Will save them from eternal death.

THE BEAST OUT OF THE EARTH,

THE FALSE PROPHET

Revelation 13:11-18

Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth.

He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon.

He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf,

And made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast,

Whose fatal wound had been healed.

And he performed great and miraculous signs,

Even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men.

Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast,

He deceived the inhabitants of the earth.

He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast

Who was wounded by the sword and yet lived.

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.

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,

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.

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.

The False Prophet Enters the Scene

The Apostle John sees another beast coming out of the earth.

He had two horns like a lamb, but speaks like a dragon.

He is the False Prophet of the Beast and has all his authority.

The False Prophet forces the people of the earth worship the Beast,

Whose fatal wound had been healed.

The False Prophet gives breath to the “image” of the Beast,

So that the “image” can speak.

He also requires that all who refuse to worship the “image” of the Beast

To be killed.

The False Prophet forces everyone,

Regardless of social status, rich or poor, free and slave,

To receive the “mark” of the Beast on their right hand or forehead.

This “mark” signifies the complete ownership of the person,

Body, soul, mind and spirit, by Satan.

Now, no one can buy or sell anything unless he has the “mark,”

Which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.

This Calls For Wisdom

The apostle John pauses and says this calls for wisdom.

He says that if anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast.

This number has only to do with man deceived by Satan

And nothing to do with God.

The number itself is an affront to God, as Satan intended.

It is man glorifying himself and bringing damnation upon himself

As Satan intended.

Just as Christ Jesus identified Himself with mankind for their salvation,

So Satan identifies himself with mankind for their damnation.

Where Does the Antichrist Come From?

If one believes, as I do, that we are near the end of “Time,”

Then it would seem obvious that the USA would play a role in it.

The USA is most likely the Babylon of the Book of Revelation,

Because “Babylon” must of necessity be the greatest of the nations;

The nation with the greatest influence over all the other nations.

Babylon, the City, would be New York City, “The Big Apple,”

The “Woman” riding the Scarlet Beast in Revelation 17

And additionally described in 18 and 19.

It is the only city in existence today that meets these descriptions.

Who is like the Beast? Who can make war against him? (Revelation 13:4)

Today, who is the greatest military power? The USA.

It is most likely that the Beast comes from the USA.

The Beast, then, combines the supernatural empowerment of Satan

And the military might of the USA.

Today, we see the USA leading the NATO Alliance in battle.

NATO could well represent the 10 Kings of Revelation.

From Daniel Chapter 7 verse 8:

I considered the horns, and behold,

There came up among them another horn, a little one,

Before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots;

And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man,

And a mouth speaking great things.

From Daniel Chapter 7 verse 20:

And concerning the ten horns [representing kings] that were on its head,

And the other horn which came up LATER

And before which three of the horns fell,

The horn which had eyes and a mouth that spoke great things,

And which looked greater than the others.

The USA came out of the European nations, later.

In its beginning, it was virtually insignificant.

Then, by the hand of God

It defeated the greatest nation on earth of that time, England.

Later the USA wared against France and Spain and won.

Today, the USA calls itself the greatest nation on earth,

The only super power, greater than all the other nations.

The USA also fits the allegory of unfaithful Jerusalem of Ezekiel 16;

By the hand of God, the USA was made great; the wealthiest nation on earth.

However, it then trusted in its own beauty and became a prostitute.

It began to sacrifice its own children to the idol of “self.”

The USA forgot that it was God 

Who brought it from nothing to its current state.

If the Time Of The END is at hand,

The USA is the only nation that fits the description 

Of the “little horn” of Daniel and Babylon of the Book of Revelation.

The USA becomes more godless every day.

There is apostasy growing in The Church of God;

It's government is godless, it's education system is godless,

It's businesses are godless, it's media is godless and we could go on and on.

The righteous are fighting against this godlessness but are loosing the battle.

When the foundations are being destroyed what can the righteous do?

(Psalm 11:3)

It is also important that the Lord warns His people to come out of Babylon;

Come out of her religious, social, political and economic morass.

Christ Jesus, speaking of The Time Of The END:

'Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong;

Let him who is vile continue to be vile;

Let him who does right continue to do right;

And let him who is holy continue to be holy.' (Revelation 22:11)

The Spirit and the Bride say, 'Come!'

And let him who hears say, 'Come!'

Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes,

Let him take the free gift of the Water of LIFE. (Revelation 22:17)

'Yes, I am coming soon!' (Revelation 22:20)

As God has written, so shall it be! Hallelujah! Maranatha!