The Antichrist Defined by Level of Power

[veteran]

In the following Scriptures, we are forewarned about a specific false one coming to deceive, using all power and signs and lying wonders, and miracles in the sight of men, even able to bring lightning down from the sky. It is by that level of power to do those signs that distinguishes the Antichrist as a supernatural type person, and not just some flesh born man. Someone on the earth with that level of power could very easily deceive the world into thinking he is Christ having returned.

II Th 2:3-4
3 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;
4 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.
(KJV)

Apostle Paul says that false one will set himself up on the earth in place of God. And he then reveals the LEVEL of power that false one will work upon the earth to deceive with...

II Th 2:8-10
8 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:
9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
(KJV)



In Rev.13:4, it is the "dragon" the world will worship which is who gives power to the kingdom first beast of Rev.13:1.

Rev 13:4-5
4 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?
5 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.
(KJV)


Towards the end of Rev.13, we're shown that same "dragon" given power to do miracles and great wonders on the earth, including making lightning ('fire' from heaven) come down upon the earth in the sight of men. That's to show us this "dragon" will be upon this earth doing those miracles.

Rev 13:11-15
11 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.
12 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.
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
14 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.
15 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.
(KJV)


When our Lord Jesus was upon the Mount of Olives with His disciples overlooking the complex of buildings upon the Temple Mount, He pointed out the coming of the "abomination of desolation" from the Book of Daniel, it involving something standing in the "holy place", which is put for inside the temple. Rev.13:14-15 revealed that as an "image to the beast", an idol for false worship.

Christ then went into further detail about that same false one ("dragon") Rev.13 spelled out, and also who Paul was speaking of in 2 Thess.2 coming to sit in the temple, and doing signs and lying wonders.

Matt 24:21-26
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
23 Then if any man shall say unto you, "Lo, here is Christ, or there"; believe it not.

That 23rd verse is singular in tense, about a specific one some will be proclaiming as Christ. They'll be saying, "Lo, here is Christ, or there." Per the examples of the previous Scriptures, we should well understand this is not... about some flesh born man of history, nor of today, nor of that time when this will happen.

It's because the level of power of these acts no flesh man has ever done before, except our Lord Jesus at His first coming on earth. And I call to your memory that our Lord Jesus did miracles and wonders on earth prior to His crucifixion, and also wonders on earth in His Heavenly resurrection body (John 20:19; John 21).


Matt.24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

The 2 Thess.2:3-4 is about a singular false one; the Rev.13 "dragon" is about a singular false one; the Matt.24:23 verse just covered is about a singular false one some will proclaim as Christ. So should this KJV "false Christs, and false prophets" throw you off the trail? No. It's because the KJV phrase "false Christs" is actually 'pseudochristos' in the Greek, which means 'a pseudo Christ'. In the 26th verse Christ repeats His warning about a singular false one being proclaimed as Christ instead of Him.

Rght here with this Matt.24:24 verse, we're given the same information of the type of 'acts', and level of power, the false Christ is to work on the earth to deceive the world; that of "great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."

(Will you let the KJV insertion of "they" in that also throw you off track about this coming false Christ? Since the translators rendered the Greek to "false Christs", making it plural when the context of Matt.24:23 & 26 is actually singular, they had to put that "they" pronoun in there too.)

Here's the question. Just what LEVEL of power would be required by a false Christ in order to almost... deceive Christ's own elect?? Our Lord Jesus reveals it is not possible for His elect to be deceived, with that "insomuch that, if it were possible." Christ's elect are sealed by The Holy Spirit and cannot be deceived into falsely worshipping anyone; they will only worship The Father through His Son. So what type and level of power would be required to ALMOST be able to deceive Christ's elect? That's the point.


Matt.24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, "Behold, he is in the desert"; go not forth: "behold, he is in the secret chambers"; believe it not.
(KJV)

Just to make sure... we get this straight about a singular false one coming to work great signs and wonders on earth that would almost deceive Christ's elect, our Lord repeats this warning of a coming false Christ. Our Lord Jesus doesn't repeat Himself for no reason. It means, Listen Up! Pay Attention!

So, a close study of the Scripture reveals the coming of a 'false Christ' that will do acts that no flesh man has had power to do (excepting our Lord Jesus Himself). And if one appears with that kind of power of miracles on the earth, the majority of the world will definitely be presupposed to believe that one is God, of any religion in the world today. That's how we know the difference between mere flesh men that only can say they are Christ, vs. a false one coming to work a show of miracles on earth to make it appear that he is Christ.

 

[Doppleganger]

This may help shed some light on the subject - Bullingers:

Luke 4:13 And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed [of his own accord]
from Him until a convenient time.

13 until a convenient time. See Matt. 4:11.
Returning again and repeating the three temptations in a different order and under different circumstances. See Ap.116.

Mark and Luke agree in stating that the temptations continued all the forty days (Mark 1:13. Luke 4:2); they are described as follows :-

I. (Luke 4:3,4) "The devil said to Him, 'Speak to this stone that it become a loaf.' "

This appears to be the first temptation: and there is no reason whatever why it should not have been repeated in anotherm form ...


II. (Luke 4:5-8) "And the devil, conducting Him, shewed to Him all the kingdoms of the habitable world, or land, in a moment of time." Nothing is said about "an exceeding high mountain".

The devil claims to possess the right to the kingdoms of the world, and the Lord does not dispute it. Satan says : "To Thee will I give this authority (exousia) and all their glory,for to me it has been delivered, and to whomsoever I wish I give it. Therefore, if Thou wilt worship before me, all shall be Thine." Nothing is said here about "falling down", as in Matthew. Here only "authority" is offered; for all the critical Greek texts read "pasa" (not "panta") feminine to agree with exousia.


III. (Luke 4:9-12) "And he conducted Him to Jerusalem, and set Him upon the wing (or battlement) of the temple, and said to Him, "If Thou art the Son of God, cast Thyself down hence, for it is written, that to His angels He will give charge concerning Thee, to keep thee.

It is stated that having finished every form of temptation, "he departed from Him for a season".
Note that the devil departed of his own accord in Luke 4:13, while in Matthew the Lord summarily dismissed him, and commanded him to be gone. (Matthew 4:10).


IV. (Matthew 4:3, 4) After the "season" (referred to in Luke 4:13), and on another occasion therefore, "he who was tempting Him, having come said, "If Thou art the Son of God, say that these stones become loaves".

Not "this stone", or "a loaf", as in Luke 4:3. Moreover he is not plainly called "the devil", as in Luke 4:3, but is spoken of as the one who had already been named as tempting Him; and as "having come" (proselthon).


V. (Matthew 4:5-7) "Then (tote)" - in strict succession to the preceding temptation of the "stones" and the "loaves" -"Then the devil taketh Him unto the holy city, and setteth Him upon the wing (or battlement) of the temple..

Nothing is said here about the angels being charged to "keep" Him (as in Luke 4:10); nor is there any reason why any of these three forms of temptation should not have been repeated, under other circumstances and conditions.


VI. (Matthew 4:8-10) Here it is plainly stated that the second temptation (Luke 4:5-8) was repeated : for "Again the devil taketh Him unto an exceedingly high mountain, and sheweth to Him all the kingdoms of the world, kosmos (Appendix 129. 1), not oikoumene (Appendix 129. 3), as in Luke 4:5, and their glory, and said to Him :

"All these things, not "all this authority", as in Luke 4:6, will I give to Thee if, falling down, Thou wilt worship me". Here, in this last temptation,the climax is reached. It was direct worship. Nothing is said in Luke about falling down. Here it is boldly and plainly said, "Worship me". This was the crisis. There was no departing of Satan's own accord here. The moment had come to end all these temptations by the Lord Himself. "Go! said the Lord, Get thee hence, Satan ... Then the devil leaveth Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him".

This angelic ministry marked the end. There is no such ministry mentioned at the end of the third temptation in Luke 4:3-12; for then Satan "departed" of his own accord, returning (in Matthew 4:3) after "a season" (Luke 4:13). True, the Lord had said "Get thee behind Me, Satan" (Luke 4:8); but He did not, then, summarily dismiss him, nor did Satan depart : he continued with his third temptation, not departing till after the third had been completed.

There were temptations continuous during the whole of the forty days (Mark 1:13.Luke 4:2), they culminated in six direct assaults on the Son of man, in three different forms; each form being repeated on two separate occasions, and under different circumstances, but not in the same order.

 

[brionne]

i think you are both wrong for 1John 2:18 says that antichrists were already in the world in the first century:

Young children, it is the last hour, and, just as YOU have heard that antichrist is coming, even now there have come to be many antichrists; from which fact we gain the knowledge that it is the last hour.

Christians need to stop looking at the antichrist as an 'individual' and realise that the antichrist is any person or group of people or organizations who deny Christ is Lord.
2 John 7 For many deceivers have gone forth into the world, persons not confessing Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist

 

[Doppleganger]

I was just trying to relate what Christ went through when he was being tempted by the one and only Devil. There can be only one Devil, there are many anti-christ's and temptations along this path. The Devil didn't stop his attempts at breaking christ, nor does he do it with us. In fact often times he use the same thing in a different form at a different time, with a new twist on it! Ultimately there will be only one final Anti-Christ; who is the true false messiah. There can only be one of these.

 

[Shirley]

I find it interesting that they worshiped the beast by saying Who can make war with him! I wonder when it says he makes fire come down if it could be talking about a bomb.

 

[Doppleganger]

Of course fire was called from heaven a few times by Solomon, Elijah and the Boanerges, etc ...

Excerpts from Bullingers' and his Commentary on Revelation

The Dragon, the Beast and the False Prophet form the Devil's [Un]Holy Trinity. The former is Political, the latter is Religious. [The Beast is the King and his kingdom] It is infernal, as the other is Divine. The Dragon is the anti-God; the Beast is the anti-Christ; the False Prophet is the anti-Holy Ghost.

Rev. xiii. 12. And he exerciseth all the authority of the first Beast before him (i.e., in his presence), causeth the earth and those who dwell therein that they shall worship the first Beast, who was healed of his deadly wound.]

"The earth and they that dwell therein" is a figure of speech called Pleonasm, or redundancy; a Hebrew figure characteristic of this book. The sphere of activity of the first Beast will be Political; of the second it will be Ecclesiastical. The basis of the worship will be his miraculous resurrection. People are induced to pay him divine homage. The False Prophet reduces it to a system.

There is nothing in all this that is beyond our faith ... Herod received Divine homage and took it as his right (Acts xii. 21-23).

In the new religion that is coming, God will be entirely left out [or perhaps transformed in some peoples mind], and man exalted. It will be a combination of wisdom, science, progress, and philanthropy, combined with all that panders to the lowest [base] instincts of fallen [sinful, unrepentant, arrogant and deceiving] humanity.

Given all this, plus [a supernatural agency] ... what is here described is easily possible, and what is more — it is [a certainty].

Rev. xiii. 13. And he worketh great signs (i.e., miracles), so that he causeth even fire to come down out of heaven to the earth before men,] That these are real miracles there can be no doubt, since that very same word is constantly used of the miracles wrought by Christ.

Revelation 13:
12 And he used all the power of the first beast in his sight, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein in order that they shall worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire [also] come down from the sky on the earth in the sight of [before] men,
14 And he decevieth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles.

14 he deceiveth.
For miracles of themselves are no proof of a Divine mission. The Lord’s miracles were “signs” for His people to ponder. The miracles here are to impress credulous unbelievers.

Christ's miracles, as miracles, were no evidence of His Divine mission. The real evidence was that the miracles which He wrought were the very miracles which the Prophetic Word had declared He should work, and which were on that account the sign and seal of His ministry, and formed His credentials from on high. This is clear from Matt. xi. 1-6. It was not that they were mere miraculous acts, but that they were what God had foretold, and the essence of their testimony was to the truth of God's word, rather than the power of Christ. Hence it is that they are so generally called "signs,"

2 Thessalonians 2:
8 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:
9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Here we have two accounts of the same being and his work. In 1 Tim. iv. 1-3 we are told of the times coming on the earth when "deceiving spirits" (i.e., evil angels) should be teachers, and "teachings of demons" should be taught and received. We are in those days already, and these lying spirit-teachers are at their awful work.

http://www.christian...post__p__134263

 

[veteran]

i think you are both wrong for 1John 2:18 says that antichrists were already in the world in the first century:

Young children, it is the last hour, and, just as YOU have heard that antichrist is coming, even now there have come to be many antichrists; from which fact we gain the knowledge that it is the last hour.

Christians need to stop looking at the antichrist as an 'individual' and realise that the antichrist is any person or group of people or organizations who deny Christ is Lord.
2 John 7 For many deceivers have gone forth into the world, persons not confessing Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist

There's one of those doctrines of men I was talking about in my original post. Notice failure to address the 'singular' "antichrist" phrase in the 1 John 2:18 verse above.

I Jn 2:18
18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
(KJV)

Question: just where and when... had those already heard "that antichrist shall come"? Where was John pointing to when he said that to them?


It should be obvious there are groups of people on this earth that intentionally deny the coming of a singular Antichrist. There's several reasons why those do, depending on who they represent today:

1. Orthodox Judaism is instead planning to build another temple and bring salvation to Jerusalem for the whole world. Instead of preparing for the tribulation with the coming of the Antichrist, they are expecting salvation too early. They will be deceived by the coming Antichrist.

2. One-world globalists also align with orthodox Judaism's plan. Those globalists are made up of deceived Christians, atheists, agnostics, etc. They will be deceived.

3. The Communist International has plans to form a one-world government in control over all nations. Their support of religion is purely political, only as a tool to use to help bring about their end goal.

4. Occultists also are on the plan for a one-world Utopia for this earth, with Lucifer as the head, whom they also worship.

5. Some so-called Christian organizations are on the plan for a one-world government, such organizations actually serving as subversive fronts of the three previous groups. One can easily see this with a Communist controlled Christian 'state' church in places like Russia and Red China.


Those are five main groups that I can think of that have reason to deny the coming of a singular Antichrist. Because their designs for this world do not align with Christ, it's pretty easy to fathom a deceived Christian Church that denies God's Word about the coming Antichrist as a singular person also.