XII



I. an introduction

A. The Antichrist is the second most prophesied about character in the Bible. Clearly the Father is trying to prepare the earth for his advent, and has given the church plenty of material, that when he arises we should not be offended.

For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead you astray, if possible, even the elect. See I have told you beforehand. – Matthew 24:24-25

B. The people who prophesied most clearly about the Antichrist were Daniel, John, and Paul. Let us consider them for a moment. Daniel – the man greatly loved (Daniel 9:23, 10:11) and incredibly wise, beyond all of his peers (Daniel 1:20). John – the beloved disciple (John 19:26, 21:7, 20) the one who was entrusted with taking care of His mother (John 19:27), the one who rested against His chest at the last supper (John 13:23), among those who saw Him transfigured (John 17:1-7), and the one who received the revelation of Christ Jesus Himself (Revelation 1:1-2) And Paul – the one commissioned by God, who received a personal revelation of Christ Jesus (Galatians 1:12), set apart before he was even born (Galatians 1:15). Thus we see that those who are, in many ways, closest, wisest and most intimate with the Lord, were among those who received insight into this enemy. This isn’t a subject relegated to the obscure or “lesser saints” (as if such a thing existed), rather, we find some of the most prominent players in the Bible privy to its mysteries.

C. Antichrist means both against Christ and another Christ. When he manifests he will both oppose the Father and Son and will attempt to replace the Son’s role as savior and god-man. The danger he poses is not just in the persecution and destruction he brings, but also in the deception. He will be what the world had longed for in Messiah... the king they asked for. For did they not say of Christ:

They said, “When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?” – John 7:31

Oh, when he comes he shall give the people what they have craved: dramatic signs and a form of supreme human wisdom. For it is said:

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. – 1 Corinthians 1:18-25

This Antichrist shall be the best candidate the world has to offer, however, the world’s greatest strength is infinitely less than the weakness of Jesus and His cross.

II. the looming enemy – the spirit of antichrist

A. Just as the Messiah’s advent was the necessary conclusion of the woman’s seed, thus, even from the Garden of Eden, that enemy was a long way coming, waiting for his hour to manifest:

The Lord said to the serpent… I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. – Genesis 3:14-15

B. Just as the woman’s seed received down payments in the form of righteous men like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, David and so forth until it ultimately manifested in the person of Christ, in the same way there is an expectation that the serpent’s seed would ultimately be realized in a single man, although it too has received down payments in kind: Cain, Nimrod, Pharaoh, Sennacherib, Antiochus IV, Herod, Judas and so forth. Thus the full expression of enmity between woman’s seed (Jesus) and serpent’s seed will be found in Antichrist.

C. John speaks of the antichrists that are and have come, and the one that shall be:

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know it is the last hour. – 1 John 1:18

D. John then reveals that this enemy is a bit more abstract, not just summed up in men, but in spirit:

Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son – 1 John 1:22

and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is [itself] not from God. This is the spirit of antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. – 1 John 4:3

E. This spirit of antichrist is surging forward, heading towards a culmination. This is what Paul references when he speaks of the mystery of lawlessness and the manifestation of the lawless one:

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of His mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of His coming – 2 Thessalonians 2:7-8

III. the emergence and rise of the antichrist

A. The following chart demonstrates the progressive fleshing out of the Antichrist and also how his actions help formulate a timeline for the end of the age events. We start with Paul’s writing, the most didactic and straightforward. From his conclusions we work backward, letting each additional passage be organized by the previous one’s conclusion.

|Progressively Developed and Comparative Timeline |

|2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 |The return of the Lord |And the man of lawlessness is|His coming shall be in accordance |The lawless one will be |

| |(1) will not come unless|revealed (3) who will take |with the power of Satan and |destroyed by the breath of His |

| |the rebellion comes |his seat in the temple (4) |supernatural signs (9) |mouth at His coming (8) – which|

| |first (3) | | |also involves the rapture (1) |

|Matthew 24:3-31 |Lawlessness abounds, the|The abomination, spoken of by|Time of great tribulation, |After the tribulation there are|

| |love of many grows cold,|the prophet Daniel, is |unparalleled trouble. False christs |supernatural signs in the |

| |while the gospel is |standing in the holy place |and false prophets manifest (21-26) |heavens. Then Jesus will appear|

| |preached to all nations |(15) | |and the rapture will occur |

| |(9-14) | | |(29-31) |

|Daniel 9:24-27 |Covenant is established |After 3.5 years an end is |Desolations continue until the end |The end is poured out on the |

| |by the future prince for|brought to the sacrifice and |(27) |desolator (27) and all the |

| |7 years (27) |offerings. The abomination is| |decrees concerning the Jews and|

| | |set up (27) | |Jerusalem are realized (24) |

|7 YEAR TREATY ESTABLISHED |FIRST 3.5 YEARS | |LAST 3.5 YEARS |END OF 7 YEARS |

| | |CENTER POINT | | |

|Daniel 11-12 | |Abomination set up (11:31, |Invasion of Israel (11:40) and many |King (antichrist) shall come to|

| | |12:11) |other countries (44), power of holy |an end (11:45). Physical |

| | |Michael stands up and a time |people completely crushed |deliverance and resurrection |

| | |of great trouble begins | |occurs |

| | |(12:1) | |(12:1-2) |

|Daniel 7 | | |Horn (antichrist) blasphemies against|King destroyed by being cast |

| | | |God, and conquers saints for 3.5 |into the fire (11, 26) the Son |

| | | |years (25) |of Man coming on the clouds |

| | | | |(13), the everlasting kingdom |

| | | | |being established (14, 18, 27) |

|Daniel 8 |Transgressions in the |The daily sacrifice being |Truth cast down (12) Deceit prospers |He shall rise against the |

| |process of reaching |brought to an end and the |(25) he shall act in power, but not |Prince of princes, and be |

| |their fullness (23) |sanctuary being cast down |by his own (24) |broken without human means (25)|

| | |(11) | | |

|Revelation 12 |God brings Israel into |Michael and Satan have a war |Satan rages against the Israel, | |

| |the wilderness where she|in heaven and Satan is cast |unsuccessfully for 3.5 years (13-16) | |

| |will be nourished for |down (7-9) |and then goes to make war with the | |

| |3.5 years (6) | |Christians (17) | |

|Revelation 13 | |Satan empowers beast (2) |The beast blasphemes for 3.5 years |Patient endurance required (10)|

| | | |(5) and makes war against the saints |to make it to the end |

| | | |(7) and receives worship (4, 8) | |

|Revelation 17 |The beast arises with | |The beast and his ten kings will hate|The beast will make war with |

| |the Harlot (3) | |the Harlot and make her desolate (16)|the Lamb but shall be destroyed|

| | | | |(14) |

|Revelation 11 | | |Outer courts of the temple trampled |The witnesses are killed by the|

| | | |by the Gentiles for 3.5 years (2). |beast (7), but they are raised |

| | | |Two witnesses prophesy for 3.5 years |up (11) right before the final |

| | | |(3) |trumpet is blown (14) |

|Revelation 16 | | |God’s judgments are poured out on the| |

| | | |beast’s kingdom (9, 11, 21). They | |

| | | |blaspheme and assemble an army to | |

| | | |battle the Lord (14-16) | |

| | | | | |

|Revelation 19 | | | |Army destroyed/beast cast into |

| | | | |lake of fire (19-20) |

B. A summary of the antichrist’s activities based on the above chart:

As the end of the age approaches the gospel is progressively preached while, simultaneously, wickedness comes to its full expression. As the falling away climaxes in the establishment of Babylon, the Antichrist arises as a seemingly peaceful and stable ruler, establishing a 7-year peace treaty with Israel and others. As the peace treaty approaches its center point there is supernatural warfare in heaven between Michael and Satan, resulting in Satan being cast out of heaven. Satan, full of wrath, empowers the Antichrist, who at last reveals his wicked intent by breaking the 7-year covenant and entering the temple where he declares himself to be god, desecrating it. He then begins to make war against the nations of the earth, subduing them to himself. He demands worship from the inhabitants of the earth and compels them through military power and supernatural signs. As the saints reject his overtures he persecutes them successfully. His kingdom is progressively plagued by God’s judgments, provoking him to gather arms against the Lord Himself. As he invades Jerusalem from the plain of Armageddon the Lord descends from heaven, gathers the resurrected and living saints to Him, and destroys the antichrist army, capturing the Antichrist himself. The antichrist is thrown alive into the lake of fire and Jesus establishes his kingdom, initiating the millennium.

IV. considerations

A. God’s purpose in sending this man:

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to believe the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. – 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12

B. The restrainer of 2 Thessalonians 2:

Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction… And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And the lawless one will be revealed… - 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8

1. The mystery of lawlessness will be replaced by the man. Thus the answer to the what that is restraining him is partly discerned by understanding the effect of its restraint: the restricting of lawlessness. Let us perceive Paul’s thoughts on the force that restrains evil:

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. – Romans 13:1-4

2. Paul perceived that governments (and their laws) where generally established by God to enforce order and law and to strike terror into wicked conduct. However, what if those same forces that ensure order cast off their restraint against the very God who empowered them?

Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and his Anointed, saying, “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.”– Psalm 2:1-3

3. Thus there shall come an hour, when transgressions have reached their fullness, when man’s wickedness parallels the days of Noah, and the nations collectively throw off the moral constraint and reason that has guided them through the ages, and thus the people give themselves fully to their own lusts and wicked desires (see Matthew 24:9-14, 2 Timothy 3:1-7, 2 Timothy 4:3-5, 1 Timothy 4:1-3). And at last, when man’s wickedness climaxes, the restrainer shall be removed and the Antichrist will manifest.

C. The power of Satan embodied in a man- fully man / fully demon

His power shall be great- but not by his own power – Daniel 8:24

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to believe the truth and so be saved. – 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10

I saw a beast rising out of the sea… And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. – Revelation 13:1-2

1. The Antichrist is not merely the fullness of mankind’s rebellion against God, nor is he merely the manifestation of the spirit of antichrist, he is also the figurehead, the embodiment, of Satan himself. Just as in Jesus the fullness of deity dwells bodily (Colossians 2:9) so to, in the antichrist, shall the fullness of Satan dwell. How though would a being of Satan’s pride ever subject himself to the lowly form of man?

2. In Revelation 12:9 Satan is cast out of heaven. Finding himself stranded on the earth he attempts to persecute Israel but, as a spirit, is unsuccessful (12:15-16). In rage he goes to make war with the rest of the saints, at which point, as a spirit, he is seen standing by the sea (12:17) that the antichrist arises from (13:1). Following his ascension Satan gives the antichrist his power, throne and authority (13:2). This is similar to his pattern of warfare displayed in the life of Christ. He first, as a spirit, attempts to defeat Jesus through the temptation (Matthew 4). When that doesn’t work he later briefly works through Peter (Matthew 16:22) and finally inhabits Judas (Luke 22:3) in order to “defeat” Jesus. In the same way he will give himself over to man at the end of the age to continue his war against the saints.

D. The False Prophet and the Image of the Antichrist

Then I saw another beast [false prophet] rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon [Satan]. It exercises all the authority of the first beast [antichrist] in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound had been healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people… - Revelation 13:11-13

1. The antichrist is accompanied by a false prophet, just like Jesus predicted (Matthew 24:21-26). His goal is to deceive people through supernatural demonstrations into worshipping the antichrist. By calling down fire from heaven he answers the challenge of Elijah in 1 Kings 18:24, effectively validating his message. The activity of the false prophet and his purpose is described in the Old Testament’s warning:

If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your God is testing you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul – Deuteronomy 13:1-3

2. The false prophet shall construct an idol marked by supernatural power:

… and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on the earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. – Revelation 13:14-15

3. This idol will probably be set up in the temple, just like Antiochus IV, a foreshadow of the antichrist, set up an image of Zeus in the temple, desecrating it. This challenge shall be exceedingly great for it is said of idols:

Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, awake; to a silent stone, arise! Can this teach? Behold it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it. – Habakkuk 2:19

4. This will be the ultimate battle of faith, for all of our senses are telling us that these signs are proof of the antichrist’s claim of godhood. We have to remember that the Lord is testing mankind, and is seeking those who really love Him with all of their heart.

E. The physical triumph of antichrist over the saints

Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them… here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints – Revelation 13:7, 10

He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change the times and the law, and they [the saints] shall be given into his hands for a time, times, and half a time – Daniel 7:25

... that when the shattering of the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished – Daniel 12:7

1. Although there will undoubtedly be pockets of mercy and supernatural deliverance, similar to that demonstrated in the lives of Daniel and his friends, we are generally to assume that martyrdom is guaranteed, for it is written:

And they conquered him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. – Revelation 12:11

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download