In the near future, Satan will attempt to impersonate Jesus and counterfeit His return to earth. But God's people need not be deceived. When the disciples asked Jesus for the sign of His coming and the end of the world, the very first thing He told them was to be on guard against impostors. He said, "Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many." (Matthew 24:4, 5).
Christ then proceeded to give His followers a wealth of information about His second coming so there would be no doubt as to how He would return. Jesus wants us not only to know that He is coming and that He's coming soon, but also to understand the manner of His coming.
The reason this is so important is that Satan will soon attempt to personate Jesus and counterfeit His return. To pave the way, Satan has introduced a strong delusion to the Christian world that has been almost universally accepted in mainline churches. I am referring to the popular teaching regarding a "secret rapture." The secret rapture theory was designed to lull God's people into a false sense of security and to prepare them for this final master deception.
The devil knows that Jesus is coming back and that his remaining time is short (Revelation 12:12). He has been sharpening his skills of deception for 6,000 years, and his last masquerade will be his masterpiece.
In fact, God warned that Satan will do such a convincing job that, if it were possible, even the very elect would be deceived. Jesus said to His disciples, "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 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." (Matthew 24:23, 24).
Satan is not an ugly, grotesque, bat-winged creature wearing a red leotard. He's an angel - a beautiful, powerful angel. And the Bible makes it clear that he is able to transform himself and appear in different forms. "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:13, 14). We must not underestimate how convincing and overpowering Satan's final deception will be. I'm sure he will even quote Scripture, as he did while tempting Christ in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-6). The devil also has the ability to create the illusion of miracles. You will remember that when Moses went in before Pharaoh to plead for the children of Israel, the magicians of Egypt were able to duplicate the first few signs from God (Exodus Chapters 7, 8). Satan is in the business of deception, and we know that he is saving his greatest deception of all for the last days. We need to know how Jesus is coming, or we will be deceived.
The Bible is very clear that when Jesus comes back, His feet never touch the ground. It says the righteous will be caught up to meet Him in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17). This is why Jesus emphatically warns us, "Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, he is in the desert!' do not go out: or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of man be." (Matthew 24:26, 27 NKJV).
Satan cannot replicate a worldwide, cataclysmic event the magnitude of the real second coming. However, if he can seduce Christians into believing the secret rapture theory, he won't need to. He can simply show up around the world in various places, perform great miracles, make television appearances, and thereby deceive the entire world.
Every general knows that the key to victory in battle is to maintain an element of surprise. Many battles have been won because of a clever diversionary tactic. While one army was distracted and looking at the diversion, the enemy came up from behind to conquer them. In the devil's final assault, he will do the same thing. The archdeceiver has always wanted to be God. Now he knows that he is doomed, but his last taunting gesture against heaven will be to personate Jesus and receive the worship of a lost world.
Satan's deceptions will be strong and convincing, but Christ has given us ample information in order to help us discern truth from error.
