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Most preachers tend to avoid prophecy like the plague. I'm not one of them. I think that the study of prophecy -- if it's done from a purely scriptural standpoint and understanding that we will not be able to know everything about the future -- is good and profitable just like ALL the other verses of scripture (2 Timothy 3:16). Some people err badly in their teachings of prophecy because they interpolate and sometimes replace the teachings of scripture with their own opinions. And some people can't understand that sometimes the answer to a question is simply "we don't know."

There are some things about the future that we can be relatively sure of because God goes out of His way through dozens and even hundreds of verses of scripture to reveal them to us. And one thing can be certain is that there will be a man, a world leader, who will rise in the last days before the second coming of Jesus Christ to Israel who will claim to be the savior of the world when in fact his power will be from the opposite direction of heaven! He will deceive many and the Apostle John gave him his name which has stuck with us all of these years: the Antichrist. He will claim to be the savior of Israel but really will be out for their destruction. He will claim to be the "prince of peace" and to have the answer to end all wars on earth and yet will cause wars because of his opposition to God's ways and beliefs. He will institute a one world, universal religion for the earth that perfectly blends every common belief together into one mass. He will be an ordinary man who falls into the trap of the plan of Satan and ends up being the devil's greatest pawn.

I'm not here to give you some of the wild theories that people have dreamed up to sell magazines and such. I don't think that Bill Clinton is the Antichrist, nor do I think that it is Mikhail Gorbachev. I remember hearing a preacher who obviously was of the Democratic persuasion preach that President Ronald Reagan was the Antichrist because each of his names, "Ronald Wilson Reagan," had six letters each! That was obviously wrong because now President Reagan is dead and Jesus still hasn't come back!

I want to present some things to you from scripture. Both Daniel and John teach extensively about the Antichrist and from their teachings we can learn some interesting things. Some of these things might be more suited for a prophecy conference and we'll certainly cover them in more detail in that setting, but for the sake of where we're going let me share with you some points and facts about the Antichrist that we can be relatively certain of from the Word of God:

Daniel 7 prophesies that the Antichrist will be an ordinary man who will arise from a union of ten kings or ten kingdoms. Because of this we know that he will undoubtedly be a familiar face in the political world. He will probably be, at least at first, unaware of his role in the grand scheme of the end times. Also in Daniel chapter 7 we find that the Antichrist will gain his place of power by uprooting or "overthrowing" three kings. We also know from Revelation 17:10-11 that he will be the eighth king in a lineage of whatever kingdom he arises from. As to his physical appearance, the Antichrist will obviously be very striking to look at. Daniel 7:20 says that his look will be more "stout than his fellows" and Daniel 8:23 describes him as a "king of fierce countenance." He apparently will be perceived as having a brilliant mind because Daniel 8:23 also says that he will "understand dark sentences" or solve hard to understand riddles. Daniel 7:8 ways that he will have a "mouth speaking great things." I want you to understand that the Antichrist will not appear as some ugly monster from hell but will be a normal human being with a message of peace and who appears to have all of the answers for the world governments and problems such as famine, natural disaster relief, and avoiding wars. When you first see him, you will be drawn to him as a leader that could be trusted.

The scriptures also tell us that he will come with a partner, a "prophet" who preaches and does many miracles and signs and wonders. In scripture this partner is known as the False Prophet and in Revelation 13, we find that he will call fire down from heaven in front of the crowds and will heal people and will cause little statues of the antichrist' image to come to life and speak and perform miracles. The scripture says that he will come in the appearance of a "lamb" but his mouth will be that of the "dragon." In other words many people are going to be fooled because of his demeanor and miracle working into thinking that he is from God, but really his mouth will be full of the lies of Satan! It will be Satan's ultimate deception to use a false, miracle-working preacher to get people to buy into the plan of the Antichrist and if nothing else my preaching this morning ought to confirm in you that it does matter your doctrine and what you believe and that you cannot allow yourself to be swayed from truth just because of what you see. I don't care if a minister heals the sick and sees great signs and wonders and calls fire down from heaven and seems anointed, if his message of what he's teaching doesn't lead you to exalt Jesus to the highest point of your life, and doesn't match the scripture, you'd better beware!

The scriptures say that the Antichrist will "honor the God of forces." In other words, he will use military strength to get the world in line with his belief and will trust in his own ability to make things happen. Daniel 11:37 says that he "will not regard the desire of women." Because of that verse, some people believe that he will be a homosexual, but more likely it means that he will implement forced birth control in overpopulated areas of the world because the common "desire of women" is to have children. The scriptures say that he will introduce a new religion and bring a "strange god" to the world presenting religion in such a way that has never been done before. His method of implementing this will be to "change times and laws" and old, established norms such as taught in the Bible as things right and wrong will be invalid in his kingdom. And people who hold onto to such "old fashioned" ideas as scripture will be persecuted for their beliefs.

And, of course, the one aspect of his reign that sticks in most people's name will be the implementation of a universal, one world currency and economic system. And the number associated with this system will be 666. That is the number of a man, according to scripture and probably refers to a numbering system of the entire earth, sort of like a redoing of the social security numbers only in a six digit - six digit - six digit format so that the system (the antichrist thinks) will last for thousands of years. Getting a number also will require worship to the Antichrist and pledging allegiance to his system and the scripture says that those who do so will be eternally lost with no hope for God's mercy. However, in the areas of the earth under the Antichrist's rule, you will not be able to buy or sell if you have not received this numbering system and pledged your loyalty to the Antichrist. And lest I scare you too bad, let me throw this in -- the Antichrist will claim to control every nation on the earth, but he will not have complete control because Daniel 11 teaches us that the Antichrist will fight at least four wars against those who will not bow. If he's in complete control as some teach, then why will he be fighting wars?

And so we have a scriptural portrait from Daniel and John of a man who will deceive many into being lost. And it will be his kingdom which God will overthrow in His second return to earth. He'll claim to be the Messiah of the Jews, their Christ, but instead of being a savior, he will lead people to hell. The name is fitting, then, that John uses for him -- Antichrist. He is the exact opposite of the true Christ Jesus.

Instead of being a king from some earthly, man-made system, Jesus came to reign on the throne of David! The scriptures that he was nothing special to look at but that "when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him" (Isaiah 53:2). That's a direct quote from the Bible. Jesus Christ was brilliant, but He came preaching parables of humility and submission. And many said that He preached "hard things" because they demanded obedience and discipline. Instead of honoring "the God of forces" and making people to do His will, Jesus -- the Anti-Antichrist -- showed us by example how to please God and was a shepherd, leading us into what we should be. If someone wanted to walk away, even today, Jesus still will let them, because He is looking for a willing sacrifice! Jesus didn't come to change "times and laws" but came to fulfill God's plan and teach that the way of morality and God's code is still the right way to do things and that old fashioned ways such as the scripture teaches is the right way no matter what!

Like the Antichrist, Jesus has established one religion for the entire world, but it is not an all encompassing one, but an exclusive one. You are either a part of His Kingdom or not! He is the door and all other ways into the sheepfold are thieves and robbers! And like the Antichrist, there is a mark that is placed upon true believers of Jesus Christ and it is the mark of His name at Baptism! And that mark entitles you to eat at the Master's table and to fellowship with Him everyday! And getting that mark first involves you pledging your allegiance to the Lamb of God at an altar of repentance!

Jesus has some "prophets" or "preachers" even today that preach to get people to give their allegiance to Him. Their preaching still calls fire down from heaven, but it's the fire of the Holy Ghost that is raining down! Their preaching still leads people who were created and formed "in the image of Christ" to speak, but now it's in a heavenly language and with powerful testimonies! And rather than frowning and limiting on childbirth, Jesus Christ wants us to see people "born again" as much as possible! Jesus is the Anti-Antichrist!

And the best part is that while the Antichrist's system leads you to hell and everlasting damnation, the Christ -- Jesus' system -- will lead you on a path to everlasting righteous and streets paved with gold! It may seem that Jesus in your life is causing wars and persecution right now, but know that the end result will be peace for everlasting! And so Jesus taught that you are either "for us or against us." What "Spirit" are you of today? Are you building your own kingdom and attempting to make a name for yourself in this world, or are you following in the steps of the lowly Jesus! As for me I will choose the Christ! The true Prince of Peace!

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So who is the Antichrist? I have no idea, right now. But I can tell you that there is a specific event that Jesus told us to watch out for which when we see happen will be our sign that we have seen the Antichrist. It's called the "abomination of desolation" and it was spoken of by Daniel (Daniel 9:27), Jesus (Matthew 24:15) and Paul in our text (2 Thessalonians 2:4). Let me sum it up for you. Essentially, the Antichrist will make a covenant with Israel regarding the temple mount and there will be a new temple built in Jerusalem again. There is not a temple there today nor has there been one since A.D. 70, but there will be another one again. The Jews will begin to offer sacrifice according to Moses' law again. And for three and a half years, there will be peace on earth and in Jerusalem.

But then after three and a half years, the Antichrist will walk into the Jewish temple and entering the Holy Place will announce that he is their long awaited for Messiah. This event is called in scripture the "abomination of desolation" and when we see such a political leader go into the rebuilt Jewish temple and announce that they no longer have to sacrifice there because he is their Messiah, then we will know without a shadow of a doubt that he is the Antichrist. We have three key scriptures that detail this event. Jesus said, in Matthew 24, that he would "stand in the Holy Place." Daniel said in Daniel 9:27 that he would cause the "oblation" or "worship" and "sacrifice" to cease. He would say

"you don't need to offer any more sacrifices any more in the temple of God." In our text, Paul said that:

He will claim to be God and he will exalt himself above all that is called God. He goes on to say that this is the "mystery of iniquity:" why a man would try to make himself God. And so from all of this we get a three-fold portrait of what defines the Antichrist. First, he will deny that Jesus was the Messiah and Lord. Second, he will cause the worship and sacrifice in the temple to stop. Third, he will exalt himself above anything that God has established and try to make himself God. This event with these three thing revealed will launch what Jesus called "the Great Tribulation" which will be three and a half years of the worst persecution that the world has ever seen. And, of course, many people will believe the Antichrist, particularly the Jewish people because when he goes into the most Holy place, God is not going to kill him as the Old Testament says because God no longer dwells in temples that are made with hands, but now our bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost! Jesus, the true Christ, the true Savior, has died on the cross and paid the price for our sins, and fulfilled the law, but to those who reject Jesus Christ, the Antichrist standing unharmed by God in the Holy Place will be pretty convincing to their unbelieving minds. Combine that with the false prophet's signs and wonders and the majority of people today who don't have time to study scripture and put God first, will be easily fooled! But they will be following not the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, but the Antichrist, the one who exalts himself against God Almighty!

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I have not really come to you just for the sake of teaching on prophecy alone. What I wanted to bring to your attention was that the Antichrist is a literal man who will lead the world astray in the future and who is yet to come. But I also wanted to point out a phrase in our two texts which is a sobering thought indeed. We find it first referred to in our text in 1 Thessalonians. After talking about the Antichrist and how he will be revealed in the temple, Paul makes this statement:

That's an interesting statement. Paul is saying that the attitude of the Antichrist, the mystery of iniquity was already at work in the world when he wrote that letter to the church of Thessalonica in A.D. 51! And then compare that with the statement made by John later in about 90 A.D. while speaking of false teachers that we read as our other text:

What an intriguing statement for John to make! "this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that is should come; and even now already is it in the world." True, the Antichrist, himself, is still yet to come. But the spirit or the attitude of the Antichrist was already at work in the Early Apostolic Church fighting against God in Paul's time and in John's time! If that's true, then even though the Antichrist is yet to come today, the spirit of the Antichrist is working now trying to deceive people and pull them away from God, even right now. If the "spirit of the Antichrist" was already prevalent in the Apostle's time, then it follows that it's still here today.

It's a sobering thought but possible that somebody could live and never see the Antichrist's debut and yet die eaten up by his spirit and attitude toward God! The same spirit that will drive him to rebel against God's authority and lead many in the future from the merciful hand of God is the same spirit that is trying to grab ahold of people's lives today. The Spirit of the Antichrist doth already work! Both Paul and John said "as I write about the future, I can already see people bound by the same things today!" The man of sin may not have arrived, but his spirit is already alive and well!

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My point is this: "which spirit does your actions show that you are following?" If you are going to surrender to a spirit, then you want it to be the true Spirit of Christ. You want the Holy Spirit to be the spirit that is in operation in your life. But we must guard ourselves lest in our worship, we find ourselves affected and moved on by the spirit of the Antichrist! It's not hard to tell or identify the spirit of the Antichrist. The same chief three characteristics that will identify the man of sin, are also the chief characteristics that will identify this false spirit. Let me finish this sermon by preaching them to you lest you be infected unaware:

I could preach on this a while. When the Antichrist goes into that temple proclaiming that he is the Messiah of the Jews, Paul said that He will claim to be "God." The Jews rejected Jesus Christ not because of the great miracles, but because of His claim that He was Jehovah God come in flesh (see John 10:30-32 for one example). And so for the Antichrist to claim that he is the Messiah, that means that he doesn't believe that Jesus is God Almighty either!

When John wrote our text in the book of 1 John, he was writing to combat a growing false doctrine called Gnosticism that demoted Jesus to a "junior God" and didn't present Him as God Almighty. They claimed that Jesus was not "God in flesh." This, according to John, was the spirit of the antichrist already at work. Because to John, Jesus was God. He wrote in his Gospel:

John understood who Jesus was! Let me preach to you that the Son, Jesus Christ is God manifested in flesh! He is the Almighty Jehovah God of the Old Testament come in the New Testament to save us! He is not some member of a mystical, man-made trinity. He is not some junior God who answers to another. But He is "the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6)!

John wrote in 2 John about this belief:

Did you catch that? "He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son." If you've got Jesus then you've got everything that God is! Because He is both the Father and the Son! And those who teach otherwise, according to John, are not holding on to some harmless little personal opinion but rather are "deceivers" and of the "spirit of the antichrist!" You'd better get a revelation of who Jesus Christ really is!

And let me say this. You can know and have the revelation that Jesus Christ is the Almighty come in flesh and if He is not Lord of your life and chief in everything that you do, then you are denying Him! Jesus must be chief, or we are of a spirit that we do not want to be associated with!

And since I'm here, let me throw in this little tidbit. There is an interesting if exhaustive area of Bible study called "gematria" which takes the Greek Alphabet and numbers the letters of the alphabet. Alpha is 1, Beta is 2, Gamma is 3 and so on. And then they take a word of the Bible in the original Greek and add up it's numbers. That number is it's gematria. I don't have time to go into the nifty things that they have discovered, but let me say that are only two nouns in the entire Greek New Testament that add up to 666. One of them is the word for "tradition." If you are holding on to a false view of who Jesus Christ is just because it's a tradition in your family, then you are falling right into the trap of the Antichrist!

The other noun, is a word that is translated "wealth" and refers to wealth in conjunction with idolatry. And this brings us to our next point:

The scriptures say that when the Antichrist enters the temple of God, he will cause "the worship and the sacrifice" to cease. That will happen in the future, but let me say that the Spirit of the Antichrist is already at work, possibly even in our church. Because our bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost and when we come together to worship, God inhabits this building because we are here attuned to what He wants to do. But it's possible for people to claim to be Christians and to come to the house of God and sit through services and never really "worship" Jesus Christ! You come and "soak up" the atmosphere and even like what you feel and hear, but really you have not put the effort and taken up the actions to truly worship God. You have come to be blessed and not really to "bless Him!" That's the Spirit of the Antichrist -- to enter into the temple not to worship but for your own edification only!

And unfortunately, many people claim to live for God but the sacrifice has ceased in their life! They don't give of their money, but really money is a small part of serving God. They won't give of the most precious asset that they have, their time. They won't do without some worldly pleasures to please Him. They won't change some habits and lifestyles even if the Word of God says it, because they don't want to sacrifice. When the going gets hard, some of us are easily discouraged from serving God and being faithful. They let a little persecution get them turned aside. They want to be in the temple of God, but the sacrifice has ceased from their walk! That is the spirit of the antichrist already at work.

And remember this: in the Old Testament, a Godly altar had to have a solid foundation of stones, and had to have a heavenly fire, and it had to have a High Priest to offer it, but if they would have had all of that and no sacrifice, then all of it would have been in vain! Jesus is our High Priest, and you can have a revelation of who He is and what He's done for you and have a solid foundation of Biblical doctrine for your altar of prayer and worship, and you can even have the fire of the Holy Ghost burning in your life, but if all of this isn't combined with a sacrifice, then it's all in vain! And remember that Jesus Christ came to earth with one ultimate goal in mind: to be a sacrificial offering! Christianity without sacrifice is not Christianity at all, it's the spirit of the antichrist! You can't serve Jesus without sacrificing! You can't work toward your crown without a cross! There can't be a resurrection without a death!

The Antichrist will walk into that temple and tell everybody "I'm in charge here" and I don't need the men of God of the priesthood and I don't need your scripture and I don't need your old beliefs, but I'll do as I like.

And so the spirit of the Antichrist is already at work today. There are those who hang around the church and sometimes act like Christians but they reject all of God-given authority. They don't want the letters of the Apostles that we call the New Testament governing their lives. They don't want to submit to the men of God, the preachers and pastor that God has placed there for there salvation. They don't want anyone to correct them. They're in the temple of God, and maybe even have received the Holy Ghost at one time, but they want everybody to know including Jesus Christ, himself, "I'm the one in charge here." They'll do things their own way. They'll live their life as they want to live. And they will unknowingly follow in the path of the one who is to come who is everything opposite of what truth is. For that attitude is a sure sign of the spirit of the Antichrist already at work!

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In closing, let me once again remind you of the end of the Antichrist. He is referred to in Revelation 19 as "the beast" and the scripture has this to say about his and his prophet's end:

The Antichrist will not be saved. He will spend eternity in a lake of fire in torment. Why? Because his attitude and subsequent actions placed him in the opposite spectrum of God's mercy and caused him to be lost. And the Bible is clear that those in the end times who take the mark of the Antichrist and worship him, will share in his same fate:

Keeping all of that in mind, then what do you think will be the end of those, today, who before the Antichrist and his system has even appeared, take on the spirit of the antichrist!? If they do not repent and become like Jesus Christ, then they will end up in the same place because of who they have aligned themselves with. The spirit of the antichrist was already working in Paul and John's day and it's working even in modern times. As for me I will follow the spirit of the true Christ, Jesus of Nazareth! I will not allow the spirit of the Antichrist to influence my actions.