Steadfastness in the Light of the Lord's Imminent Return

“The Introduction of the Antichrist”
2 Thessalonians 2:1-17

   In 1^st John 2:18, the Apostle wrote, “Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.”

• The term “Antichrist” is used five other times in the New Testament; twice in 1^st John 2:18, once in 1^st John 2:22, 4:23, and 2^nd John 1:17.
• “Antichrist” means one who is “against Christ.” It can also mean “pseudo or false christ,” one who claims to be Christ.
• John said there had been many ‘antichrists,” but there is also coming the Antichrist.
• While the Apostle Paul never used the term “Antichrist,” he referred to the same person as:
  • The lawless one – the most destructive human being to ever walk on the earth.
  • The son of perdition – the culmination of all the Satanic forces that have arisen before him.
• He will be given control over the 10-nations of the Old Roman Empire, which is now called the European Union, and through false treaties and war, he will become the ruler of the world during the Tribulation.

   This soon-coming world leader has 33-different names in the Bible, not to identify him as a person but to illustrate his evil attributes and horrifying actions.

• At first, he will be exalted as a great leader; even a man of peace, but he will be revealed as Satan’s counterfeit Christ, a lying, vicious, bloodthirsty beast that will deceive the people with his sensational powers, and slaughter billions of people to prove his power.
• He will lead the world into war against Israel, but will be defeated when Jesus comes again.
• Over the centuries, many men have fit the characteristics of the Antichrist, including Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Hussein, and even some Catholic Popes.
• However, the Bible says the identity of the Antichrist will remain unknown until the middle of the Tribulation.

The Antichrist has been at work in the world since the day God promised Satan the Seed of Eve would destroy him.

• Satan tried to corrupt all mankind by creating a demon-human being who would produce demon-human people who were unredeemable, and God had to cleansed the world of every living being, except Noah and his family.
• Through Pharoah, Satan tried to destroy the male children in Israel to eradicate the Messianic Seed Line.
• Through Herod, Satan tried to destroy the newborn King by killing the baby boys, two years of age and under, who were born near Bethlehem at same time as Jesus.
• Satan tried to get Jesus to allow the people to crown Him king without going to the cross.
• The people of Nazareth tried to throw Jesus off a cliff.
• Even the Apostle Peter became the voice of Satan when he tried to divert Jesus from His appointed assignment.

   The spirit of Antichrist is with us now. But in the last days, the Antichrist himself will take his position as the leader of the New World Order, and in less than three years, he will attempt to destroy the world. Finally, he will be cast into hell to experience death forever, world without end.

   Paul’s second letter to the church at Thessalonica was divided into three chapters.

• Chapter one – Paul addressed the level of persecution the believers were suffering because they had allowed the gospel to make such a difference in their lives.
  • In his first letter, (1:6-10) Paul said they became devoted followers of Christ, even turning away from their idols to serve the living and true God, but they also became witnesses to the people in every city, and such evangelistic fervor had stirred up persecution against them.
  • However, since they had received Paul’s first letter, the level of persecution had increased. So, in the 1^st chapter of his second letter, Paul reminded them of the comfort and consolation of the second coming of Christ, who will repay those who persecute Christians with eternal tribulation.
• Chapter three – Paul addressed the issue of defiance. Some who had professed their faith in Jesus Christ had questioned what Paul had taught them about how they should be living, and they were rebelling against him and the church.
  • In chapter 3:13-15, Paul urged them to disassociate with those who were rebelling, that they might be ashamed of their behavior, but to treat them as brothers and not as enemies.
• Chapter two – Paul addressed the issue of eschatology. Even though Paul taught them about the “Day of the Lord,” because of the severity of the persecution, some began to believe they had missed the rapture, that they were already in the Tribulation, and the bowls of God’s wrath were being poured out on the earth.

   Whether we are alive or dead when that trumpet sounds, we will not miss the rapture of the Church. Every true, born-again believer in Christ, from the Day of Pentecost to the last day of the church-age, will be raptured from this earth to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

• In 2^nd Thessalonians 2:2ff, the Apostle Paul admonished his readers not to be shaken in their mind or troubled in their spirit, regardless of how severe the suffering may be.
• The next event on God’s prophetic calendar is the rapture of the Church, for God has promised to deliver His Church from His wrath, which is to come.
• However, the “Day of the Lord” will not come until:
  • The Great Apostasy – those who once embraced Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord turn away from the truth of God’s Word and embrace Satan’s lies.
  • The appearing of the antichrist – first as a man of peace who wants to bring peace to a troubled world.
  • The revealing of the antichrist – as he enters the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem and desecrates it.
  • The foolish pride of the antichrist – he removes every semblance of God and proclaims himself as God.

1. The Great Deception – Vs. 3 – “Let no one deceive you by any means.”

   Satan is the great deceiver, and he will use any and all means to achieve his goal.

• John 10:10 – “The thief cometh to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.”
• Even within the churches, Satan disguises himself as the “angel of light.” His false ministers dress up his lies in the vernacular of theology and proclaim them as if they were the true word of God.
• However, Satan cannot destroy a true believer, for our God can deliver us from evil, including the very power of Satan himself.
• John 10:20 – “‘My Father, who has given the believers unto Me is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

2.  The Strong Delusion – Vs. 11 –      “And for this reason, God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

   Throughout the Scriptures, God urges His people to remain faithful to the truth of His Word so as not to be led astray.

• However, when people deliberately reject Him and His truth, God will harden their hearts and turn them over to a deluded mind to wallow in their unbelief until the day they are cast into eternal damnation.
• Notice the step-by-step falling away:
  • Apostasy – the deliberate rejection of the truth of God’s Word and embracing Satan’s lies.
  • Deception – believing a lie so strongly it is accepted as truth.
  • Delusion – God turns them over to a reprobate mind from which there is no return.
• When a person hears the truth but they refuse to obey it, their heart gets harder toward that truth, until the day they cannot hear it at all.
• When one knows the truth but refuses to obey it, he is also vulnerable to Satan’s lies and deception.
• According to 2 Timothy 3:13, one of the signs of the end of the age is that evil men will grow even worse, “deceiving and being deceived,” as the antichrist spirit increases until the antichrist appears.

3.  The Deliverance of God’s People – Vs.16-17–“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.”

   While the days ahead will be filled with times of angst and anxiety, we should allow the truth of God’s Word to comfort our hearts and assure us of His presence and His power.

• While we must expose what the Bible says about the man called Antichrist, our focus should be upon the imminent return of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Maranatha!