#206

Chasing The Trail Of The Antichrist

We Know He’s Coming

Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. 4 He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God.

5 Don’t you remember that I told you about all this when I was with you? 6 And you know what is holding him back, for he can be revealed only when his time comes. 7 For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way. 8 Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.

9 This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. 10 He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. 11 So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. 12 Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth. (2 Thess 2:3-12, NLV)

As the Apostle Paul assured the Thessalonians way back in the beginnings of the early church, the Antichrist wasn’t around, but would show up after the Church at the time is taken out of his way. However, believers in every generation since have mused about figuring out if the son of perdition was living in their times. The early church pointed to a few of the Roman leaders, such as Nero. And throughout history quite a few of the Popes, including the current one have gotten scrutiny by Antichrist detectives. Napoleon was a popular choice, at least by the Tsar of Russia at the time. Any of a handful to American Presidents names got votes for being the Antichrist, names like FDR, JFK, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama, who appears to still be a viable candidate even after leaving office. Also, in my lifetime, quite a few names have been bandied around, names like former Secretary of State of America, Henry Kissinger, and Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev. So is the man of sin living among us now? I’ll leave that question for later, but many won’t like my answer.

The New And Chic Answer

You may not know it, but the theory of a Muslim being the Antichrist is being pushed by a lot of people and they are using some clever thinking to push it. It’s not a new theory, mind you, but it’s getting a lot of play on social media. What is the new angle you ask? Well, it’s the Aramaic words for “666” that some are using since the actual letters look a lot like the letters on headbands worn by Muslim terrorists. It’s an interesting concept, but the Bible and the Koran are not both correct even if they both mention a last days Messiah. However, by showing what the Greek and Aramaic letters for “666” look like they make the case. As I said, it’s clever and well thought out, but are these “theologians” onto something here? And, more importantly, should we care? While I certainly can make a case for a Muslim antichrist, I can and have picked that logic apart on a few occasions. But really, what does it matter to Christians now?

John Described What He Saw

I’ve also made a pretty big deal about Revelation and why it’s important to keep in mind that John actually saw the mark of the beast and even the Antichrist himself. That’s pretty important to note but there will be an actual mark on people, a visible depiction of his name and number as the Greek word used is the same as a tattoo. But John also knew exactly what it meant and Islam wasn’t going to be around until after he died, so the connection to Islam is a tad suspect on this point. As I said before, a lot of effort went into this belief and it does make a lot of sense overall, but did John write to warn us about the lawless one so we would recognize him when we saw him? I mean, did God intend for us to figure out who the Antichrist really is in our lifetimes? What value is there in knowing that? How does it make our Christian walk better and prepare us for the end times? As our man Shakespeare would say, ay there’s the rub. We need to understand who this mystery was written for and why.

Simply Put – We Won’t Be Here

You see, the antichrist is revealed only after the Church, the Body of Christ is taken up in the Rapture. Some my argue with me about that point, but we act as the restrainer mentioned in the opening verses from 2 Thess 2:3-12, and if that restraining is taken away, so are we. Coming back to how important is it for us to nail down exactly who the Antichrist is, I’d have to say not very much. Yes, it is a fun and interesting intellectual endeavor and it does give us some enjoyment in saying we solved the mystery set up for by John the Apostle, but in the overall scheme of things, how does it make a better believer? If Jeopardy had a category for it, it would probably be the daily double or perhaps the final jeopardy answer of the day, however, it is mere folly to be right. Simply put, nothing is gained by knowing or, in our case, being able to tell people who it is. Why do I say that? We’d most likely be wrong. It is shear guess work and those who can unequivocally confirm it will be living in the Tribulation period, possibly because we didn’t do a good job of sharing the Gospel with them. Can you say ouch?

What Good Does It Do, Then?

It confirms that we are a restraining force in the world and should encourage to help hold the Antichrist spirit from doing as much as it wants to do. In short, it inspires us to good works all by itself. And it gives more reasons to be salt and light in a dark and perverse world since that demonic spirit is more than itching to dominate the globe. And it makes us stand out so people who see us living righteously will want to know how and why we are the way we are. Another good thing is that we are studying the Bible more earnestly so getting into that habit is always helpful. The only caveat to it is knowing when it becomes a waste of our time. And on that point I really want us to recognize when we are spending too much time trying to prove we know, but also arguing with each over something neither of us can confirm with any certainty. And one last reason it may be useful is knowing that we are living very close to the return of Jesus and by extension the Rapture and we need to work harder during the day since there will be a time when we won’t be here to witness to those in our circle of influence. And there you have it, the good, the bad, and the ugly about obsessing over who the Antichrist really is. And we’re walking…