There are many misconceptions on who the anti-christ is, and his roll in the end times prophecy's. What or Who is an Anti-Christ? The accepted view is such; An enemy of Christ. In Greek the word means; instead of Christ.
The epithet of the great antagonist who was expected by the early Church to set himself up against Christ in the last days before the Second Coming. A false Christ. Here it seems to describe any false teacher or false prophet or corrupter of the Christian faith, but sometimes also seems to indicate a specific person or a single spirit of deception that motivates false teaching, and whose presence is a sign of the end times. Many Christians identify this particular Anti-christ with the man of sin or son of perdition mentioned in 2nd Thessalonians 2, and with several figures in the Book of Revelations including the Dragon, the Beast, the False Prophet, and the Whore of Babylon.
The Anti-christ is variously understood to be a consummately evil system of government or leader, a false religion or religious leader that sets up false worship in place of the worship of Christ, the incarnation of Satan, a son of Satan, or a human being under the liege of Satan.
In Christian belief, a person who will represent on earth the powers of evil by opposing the Christ, glorifying himself, and causing many to leave the faith. He will be destroyed by Jesus at the time of the Second Coming. 1 John 2.18-22; 4.3; 2 John 7; and Rev. 13. Similar ideas are expressed in Judaism (e.g., Ezek. 38.1-39.29) and in Zoroastrianism. Christians have often identified enemies of their faith with the Anti-christ; e.g., with early Christians it was Nero, with some Protestants the pope. Which this is representative of the spiritual ant-christ.
I was watching a special on the History Channel the other night, it was called, "The Anti-Christ." This show was interesting but full of misconceptions and false truths. Many of these fallacies came from religious leaders and theologians that were denighing the very fact that the prophecy's of the anti-christ were, instead of being future prophecy were rather in the past tense . Many religions today, that try to use prophecy, are prophesying, then waiting for events to match what they have written.
The Bible prophecy's, give specific details of its prophecy's years before the events. So it is with the prophecy of the anti-christ. Scollars today speak of only a few passages in scripture that mention the word anti-christ as an excuse to denigh the existence of a physical person. But lacking the understanding of the Bible, miss words that relate directly to him, "the man of sin," "The son of perdition", "The Assyrian", & "The Beast".
There are some main line religions that also denigh the existence of an anti-christ, saying that it is a metaphor (a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity) describing the state of inward man. The Bible states clearly that the grand adversary of Christ, "the man of sin," from, 2Th.2:3, is the anti-christ, spiritual and physical. It was not, Nero, Ceaser, Hitler nor any other human being that we are to look for but a man of deception and peace. Satan is not the main player in the destruction of the world neither is he the designer of the actions of the 7 year peace treaty with the Land of Israel. On The contrary Satan plays his last fight after the Battle of Armageddon and the 1000 year reign of Christ, as spoken of in the Book of Revelations. Many Bible theologians, try to line up past events with the Bible to justify what they are trying to teach, but they miss the truth of the word, when these events don't prepare people for the future of the Church and the world in General. Many past events, do fulfill prophecy, that is the reason that we, as Christians, Believe that Jesus of Nazareth, was the Son of God. But the fulfillment of prophecy, must be completely fulfilled for it to become fact.
In other words, Nero, Ceaser, Hitler, Stalin, nor any other person from the past ever fulfilled any of the prophetic words concerning the anti-christ. These were all men of hate and probably were possessed by the spirit of anti-christ or by Satan himself. The prophecys of the Bible are approximately 70 to 80 percent fulfilled, prophets such as Daniel, Isaiah, Ezekiel and John. Jesus spoke many times about the signs of the times, Theologians are trying to follow signs and follow prophetic similarities between the real anti-christ and those that almost, but not completely, fulfill scripture. The future anti-christ is being prepared. The problem with men understanding prophecy and interpreting it, is that many are blocked by what they have been taught in the past and what they see in the present. Many are afraid of "Rocking the Boat." Pre-existing conceptions of what prophecy is saying, hinders the Holy Spirit from reveling the true meaning to many. We must look at prophecy with a clear mind, as to what is past, present and future.
The Anti-Christ.
1. Who is He? A Man of Jewish heritage and probably from the tribe of Dan.
1a. Why Dan? Dan is not mentioned in the Book of Revelations as having being sealed. The Tribe of Dan left God and fell into idolatry.
2. A man from the descendants of the old Assyrian Empire in present tense.
2a. Why from the Assyrian empire? Because of Gods promise that He would Destroy the Assyrian, Himself. (Isa 14:25 That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders. Isa 31:8 Then shall the Assyrian fall with the sword, not of a mighty man; and the sword, not of a mean man, shall devour him: but he shall flee from the sword, and his young men shall be discomfited.)
3. He will be Jewish?
3a. Because the Children of Israel are looking for another king David, a messiah of the genealogy of David, a Jew. This prophecy was delivered about 740 years before Christ, in the reign of Ahaz, king of Judah.
Many of the prophecy's of the anti-christ were not even mentioned, for the simple fact that, this program, along with many others, are not out to give facts but doubt as to the very existence of Jesus and the anti-christ.
1Jo 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that anti-christ shall come, even now are there many anti-christs; whereby we know that it is the last time. In this passage we see that John is warning us of the people in the end days, that don't understand prophecy, who will bring out many heresys (An opinion or a doctrine at variance with established religious beliefs) and false teachings.
1Jo 2:22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is anti-christ, that denieth the Father and the Son. John in this passage is narrowing down the people with the spirit of anti-christ, which according to his own words, singles out all religions that denigh the Son of God. There are many today that don't understand the gravity of their situation, they are appealing to all nations and religions to come together as one, so that peace on this earth will prevail. Peace is not what Jesus came to this earth to bring, but devision and a sword. According to John, if Christianity were to join in a union with any religious entity, we would then also become liars and separated from the Truth.
1Jo 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of anti-christ, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. This passage is showing the extent of the spirit of anti-christ in the world from Johns point of understanding. We must understand that there are two and not one anti-christ. The spirit or shall we say the actions of anti-christian beliefs and the other is the physical that Daniel describes. 2Jo 1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an anti-christ.
The son of, "perdition." is to mean, "To be lost" in the religious sense may mean "to be missing" and "to be ruined," In this verse, John is Stating that, no matter what you hear from others or the world, the anti-christ must complete prophecy before he is known to all mankind and he is explaining a spiritual being and not the physical. John is also stating that the "Spirit" of anti-christ has, and will, consume many people that will direct their efforts to discredit the Bible as Truth.
Many are made mad in their mind, because of the thought that there is
1. A life after Death,
2. That there is judgment after Death. and
3. A punishment for those that reject salvation through faith in Christ. This notion brings them into a complete denial of the truth of Scripture. 1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 1Co 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
As you see in 1st Cor. 1:18 & 2:14, foolishness is the key word for many that do not believe that the Bible is both, physical and spiritual. Foolishness is considered, by God, an evil. "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand." If we reject the truth, we seal our own perdition. Here we see the meaning of perdition as a total loss of our future happiness in Heaven and a destination to the sides of the pit of torment. We have to ability to change our future. Contrary to what many are teaching today there is no praying out of perdition, for its not a place but a state of being lost.
After death there is no chance to change ones mind either way. As a tree falls so shall it lay. If we reject the truth, we seal our own perdition or ruin. Isa 66:23-24, And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.
In the last days after the anti-christ is thrown into the lake of fire alive and Satan is defeated in the last battle of Gog and Magog, All those who are remaining upon the earth will be required to worship God. Those that doubt will be shown the lake of fire with its inhabitants, moaning in torment. ars
Temple of Spirit & Truth Ministries http://www.ourchurch.com/member/a/arsmithsermons/
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