Morning Trekson,
I don’t believe that Islam will be the vehicle of the antichrist. They will, in fact, ultimately go to war against each other. The anti in antichrist does not mean against Christ, it means instead of Christ. The antichrist’s goal will not be to destroy Israel but to take the praise and worship due to God and have the Jews worship him instead as foretold by Christ in John 5:43 - I have come in my Father's name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. Israel will believe the a/c is their prophesied Messiah since they did not accept Christ and are still looking for another.
I believe you are 'sincerely' reading too much into the above or repeating what you have been taught by another.
Anti-Christ would mean to be against anything he taught and that means against anything the Father taught.
In John 5:43, Jesus us speaking about 'authority'. He was not speaking of his own authority like the others. Speaking from his own personal self. God himself was the authority speaking through Christ.
The people did not believe he was speaking for God. " He came unto his OWN and his own received him not."
Satan is not a creator but he does copy or mimic the things of God to deceive people. Much of his and the a/c’s time on earth will be spent duplicating as closely as possible Jesus Christ in order to convince the world that he is Christ and to convince the jews, he is their messiah. We christians have our Holy Trinity consisting of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Satan has his unholy trinity. In this unholy trinity, Satan wants to replace God, the a/c will be the acting god the son (even mimicking his death and resurrection in Rev. 13:3) and exercising the power of the Holy Spirit will be the false prophet, (compare Acts 1: 8 with Rev. 13:14). Satan will even have an equivalent archangel to Michael, his name is Abaddon or Apollyon as given in Rev. 9:11. They will excel at deceit as Matt. 24:24 points out. Only the elect, those who are born again with a knowledge of what to look for in the latter days, will be able to see through this deception.
How would Satan do the above?
The truth makes us free. The fact remains that Satan is not like God. He is not Omnipresent... not in all places at all times.
The bible shows us that God alone is everywhere and nowehere in creation can we get away from him.
Psalm 139. He knows the end from the beginning. But Satan doesn't he isn't in all places at once.
God is Omnipotent. So God is all-powerful.
There is nothing God cannot do. He brings down powerful nations. He was there in the miracles that our Lord Jesus
performed. He is the creator of all men and the judge. He can subdue every force of evil by himself.
Satan failed and has been judged already. He is not and never will be all-poewrful.
God our Father is Omniscient. Knows everything.
His knowledge is such that he tells us he fills heaven and earth. There is no plae hidden from his sight.
He even knows our thoughts and the words weill utter before we speak them.
Satan doesn't. God's knowledge is eternal and Satan proved with Christ that he is not the same as God
and cannot produce anything even similar to God. Our God knows all our secret thoughts and desires
but Satan doesn't.
God is not a prisoner of time and space. He above all of the earthly things and he is unchanging and eternal.
Now in Rev. 6, we have the starting point of the seven year covenant that the Anti-Christ (a/c) will sign or agree to; that begins the 70[sup]th[/sup] week as mentioned in Dan. 9:27. The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke parallel Rev. 6 with amazing accuracy. Compare these scriptures:
False christs
: Matt. 24:4-5, Mark 13:5-6, Luke 21:8, Rev. 6:1-2
This is the first seal. The rider on the white horse signifies the false religion personified by the Anti-Christ who conquers by deception. Dan. 7:20 in various trans-lations describe him as one "whose look was more stout" and possessing a "fierce countenance". Dan. 8:23 calls him a “stern-faced king and a master of intrigue“. 2 Thess, Cp.2 speaks of him as the “Man of Sin, Wicked One, Son of Perdition” and is described as “working wonders, opposing God and lawless.” In all he will be an imposing figure. There is one area in which he will differ from Christ. His spokesman, the false prophet, will come after him and will build him up, much like an athlete’s or an actor’s agent does. A type of John the Baptist but after the fact and not before. Here's something else to consider. The verse in question is Rev. 6:2 - I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest. (NIV)
I have absolutely no idea where the thought that this is the weapon called a "bow" that shoots arrows is derived from but it is not that kind of bow!!!!
From the Strong's Concordance, "5115 - toxon, from the base of 5088. a bow (appar. as the simplest fabric):-bow - 5088, tikto a strengthened form of a prim. teko, (which is used only as alt. in certain tenses) to produce (from seed, as a mother, a plant, the earth, etc., lit. or fig.:- bear, be born, bring forth, be delivered, be in travail.
As you can see, nothing in either of these definitions comes close to describing a weapon such as a bow. I think the problem comes from the way the old English used it in times past. Here is a better and I think more accurate definition.
I believe the rider is carrying a multi-colored fabric banner and John was using the word bow as a shortened version of the word rainbow. According to the Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, Greek, 2463 - iris, as a symb. of the female messenger of the pagan deities, a rainbow. Now after God destroyed the earth with a flood He put His "bow" in the sky as a promise that He would never destroy the earth by water again. The word "bow" in the Strong's, Hebrew, 7198, as well as referencing a literal bow, the weapon, also uses iris. 7198 takes us to a root word in 7185 and one of the definitions is to be cruel or be fiercer, make grievous. Another modern day definition could also des-cribe a rainbow as "an illusory hope", as in "chasing rainbows". In my dictionary there are two interesting definitions of the word "iris". One is "a rainbow or rainbow like display of colors" and the other is "the goddess of the rainbow and messenger of the gods".
Now, starting with this more realistic look at this passage let me show you how I interpret it. The first rider is Anti-Christ and he comes carrying the banner of "peace and safety" (temporary and illusory) and the multi-colored fabric or "bow" represents the unity he brings to the world, and the peace he will bring to Israel, probably at a time when they are facing certain annihilation. The crown represents his leadership and he comes conquering by deception, not war.
For the Jews to accept him as their Messiah, there are some things that will need to fall into place. He will need to prove himself as coming from the line of David and thus will be of Jewish descent. He will likely come from the tribe of Dan as suggested in Jer. 8:16, and that is why Dan is not listed as one of the tribes in Rev. 7. Israel would never accept an Islamic as Messiah. He will probably be Turkish in nationality via Rev. 2:13 as that is the area where Pergamum was.
When he comes against the woman in Rev. 12, he is not coming against all of Israel but only those whose eyes are opened at the abomination of desolation and have now become believing Israel and reject him as Messiah and turn to Christ per Zech. 12:10. They will most likely include the 144,000 of Rev. 7.
Some confusion undoubtedly arises from misinterpreting the sequence of Ez. 37 & 38. As Daniel does in chapter 9 where he goes from speaking of the Messiah and then immediately leaps ahead thousands of years to speak of the a/c, Ezekiel does the same thing. Chapter 37 has pre-millennial significance but chapter 38 has post millennial significance and is the same prophecy that is repeated in Rev. 20:8. These are the only two places where Gog and Magog are mentioned together.
In Rev. 16:13-14 - Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. The three frogs go to the kings of the East (China and her allies), North (Russia and her allies) and South (the Moslem nations). The a/c is more than likely allied with an American/European confederation.
Another point I’d like to mention is that some people give more credence to a Quran type document then is deserved. The fact is, regardless of how similar any other religious “prophetic” document is, if it is not scripture it shouldn’t be given any consideration whatsoever. If one is going to do that then you might as well consider the prophecies of Nostradamus to be a “lost” part of the bible.
So to sum up, the a/c will be Jewish, not Islamic.
He will fight against the Moslems as protector of Israel, not with them against Israel. His cohort, the false prophet could possibly be a pope and the a/c’s goal is not to destroy the church or Israel but to steal the worship that should be God’s; unto himself and thus in a manner of speaking, spit in God’s eye.
Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word, that proceeds from the mouth of God.
2 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
[sup]2 [/sup]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.
[sup]3 [/sup]Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
[sup]4 [/sup]Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
The temple of God is not a building it is people. The New covenant we see Christ says. " Tear down this temple and I will rebuild it in three days." Then Christ says' "
[sup]20 [/sup]Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
[sup]21 [/sup]Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
[sup]22 [/sup]Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
[sup]23 [/sup]But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
[sup]24 [/sup]God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
[sup]5 [/sup]Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
[sup]6 [/sup]And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
[sup]7 [/sup]For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
[sup]8 [/sup]And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
[sup]9 [/sup]Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
[sup]10 [/sup]And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
[sup]11 [/sup]And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
The only way the anti-Christ can deceive people is if they do not have a love of God and therefore his truth.
Whose power, signs and lying wonders?
Revelation 13:2
King James Version (KJV)
[sup]2 [/sup]And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
What authority, seat and power has Satan got?
John 16:8-11
King James Version (KJV)
[sup]8 [/sup]And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
[sup]9 [/sup]Of sin, because they believe not on me;
[sup]10 [/sup]Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;
[sup]11 [/sup]Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.
The true temple of God are those who are now the true worshippers who worship God in Spirit and Truth.
Satan, already knows he can do nothing to these people. The gates of hell shall not prevail against the true Church.
Christ said, "Do not fear those who kill the body but rather fear God, who after to death has the power to cast both body and soul into hell."
Satans power relies on fears and lies.
Revelation 13 (King James Version)
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Revelation 13
King James Version (KJV)
13 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
[sup]2 [/sup]And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
[sup]3 [/sup]And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
[sup]4 [/sup]And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?
[sup]5 [/sup]And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
[sup]6 [/sup]And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
[sup]7 [/sup]And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
[sup]8 [/sup]And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
[sup]9 [/sup]If any man have an ear, let him hear.
[sup]10 [/sup]He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
[sup]11 [/sup]And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
[sup]12 [/sup]And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
[sup]13 [/sup]And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
[sup]14 [/sup]And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
[sup]15 [/sup]And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
The choice is life or death. Christ or the anti-Christ? Love is the way of Christ and they have nothing to fear from death.
But the way of the anti-Christ is a forced choice from fear and deception. Do as he says and live but lose your life.
If you want to save your life you will lose it. But if you lose your life for Christ you will save it.
We all have choices for good and bad. To love God is trust him and what he tells us.
To obey his word.
A love of truth can save people. Tell them the truth that they should choose God and life.
