Understanding the Antichrist

“Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour… Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.” (1 John 2:18,22 NASB1995)

“For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.” (Matthew 24:24 NASB1995)

What if the antichrist, in claiming to be God, doesn’t actually verbalize the words, “I am God”? But his claim is more in how he presents himself as though he is God, as though he is a supreme being to be worshipped above all else, who has golden statues of himself made and put on display for the world to see. For he is egotistical, loud mouthed, hateful, blasphemous, arrogant, immoral, and crude, and he boasts of how great he is and of all his many accomplishments, and how he is better than everyone else. For he thinks he owns the whole world, and that the world should all bow to him.

For, remember, he is a man of deception and trickery. And remember how the Scriptures describe false teachers/prophets as those who are “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” What if the antichrist, in order to fool the people of the world, disguises himself as a Christian, and as one who believes in Jesus and in the one true God of this world? And what if he fakes worship of Jesus and the one true God in order to deceive Christians into thinking he is one of them so that they will follow him? For they will assume a profession of faith constitutes genuine faith in Jesus, and then he will have their support.

And what if “taking his seat in the temple of God” (see Revelation 13:1-10), has to do with him faking Christianity in order to place himself in a position of superiority within the gatherings of the church, i.e. among all who profess faith in Jesus Christ? And so the majority (perhaps) of those who claim to be Christians end up following him blindly, almost in a worshipful way, as though he is a god to be worshipped and/or as though he was sent by God as some kind of a “savior” for all of mankind, who can do no wrong. And so they believe everything he says, and support him no matter what.

So, you say, the antichrist is the one who denies the Father and the Son, which is true (1 John 2:22). But then how do you think he will deceive even the elect? Certainly the elect will not be fooled by someone who verbally denies God the Father and God the Son, Jesus Christ. But he is a deceiver who disguises himself, initially, in order to gain followers, just like the “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” For denying Christ doesn’t have to be verbal at all if one denies him by their lifestyles, by their words, their deeds, their actions, and their behaviors. Many who profess Jesus deny him in action.

And this is where it gets interesting. In Revelation 13 we read about two beasts, one coming out of the sea, and another from the earth. And this second beast (with two heads, which I believe could be representative of the church in a marriage relationship with the government, i.e. the institutional church) makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. So what if a false prophet who also claims to believe in Jesus, who is highly regarded in the Christian community, is promoting this first beast, which is then getting “Christians” to follow him?

We have to not have blinders on so that we miss all of what is happening in our present age in fulfillment of the prophesies of the Scriptures, so that we end up worshipping the beast instead of (in place of) God – Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit. For there is so much deception going on in our day. So many liars and deceivers and wolves in sheep’s clothing all over the place teaching lies to the people and convincing so many to believe the lies and to reject the truth of the gospel taught by Jesus and his New Testament apostles, taught in the correct biblical context, and not out of context.

For Jesus Christ taught that to come to him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, in his power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).

So, please understand that the antichrist is not going to be obvious. Otherwise he loses his power to deceive. But also realize that the Scriptures teach that there are many antichrists and that all who deny Jesus as the Christ (in action, not just in words) are the antichrist. So the antichrist (one person or many people or a group of people) is not going to be wearing a sign saying, “I am the antichrist.” So don’t assume you are going to easily spot him, for even the elect will be deceived by false christs and false prophets who claim to be speaking for God, in his name (Matthew 24:24).

[Matthew 7:15-23; Matthew 24:11-24; Luke 6:26; John 10:1-15; Romans 16:17-19; 2 Corinthians 11:3,13-15; Ephesians 4:11-16; Philippians 3:2; 2 Peter 2:1-22; 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22; 1 Timothy 1:3-7; 1 Timothy 6:3-10; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; 1 John 2:18-22; 1 John 4:1-6; 2 John 1:7; Jude 1:1-25] 

For Our Nation  

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Recording Via Gerry Peters, music producer and arranger

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

https://vimeo.com/379406352

Understanding the Antichrist

An Original Work / February 11, 2026

Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love