A Brief Theology Of Satans Dark Dominion
Its critical not to underestimate the evil ones power. His entry into the world , his wielding of great influence in heaven and on earth , and Gods provision for spiritual warfare all warn us Satans clever strategy.
Satan stole the kingdom from Adam, but lost it through the power of Jesus Christ, the Second Adam. Jesus not only died to redeem His people for Himself but relegated Satans temporary region of control to the earth. In a great tremendous effort, involving much planning Satan, the dragon of old will, through Antichrist, display his horrid, deathly power.
Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 provide symbolic teaching on how Satan, due to his pride from being Gods most extraordinary creature was cast out of Gods presence. The evil one swayed others to follow him, And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode . These angels are often called demons or evil spirits.
Paul stated that his mission was to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me . People without Christ live, mostly unaware, under the dominion of the evil one. The Christian is loosened from indentured service to Satan and death by the pardon of the cross, freeing the believer to live for Christ and His kingdom.
Sign : An Amazing Healing
I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast .
John uses Revelation 13 to identify the beast and warn us. A sense of amazement and wonder surrounds this sign, which convinces all to follow the beast. The meaning of the healing is not clear, though the result isdeception.
The meaning indicates one head, king or dictator, has fallen from power, or physically died from a mortal wound, but he or his power revived. People typically dont get excited over the return of a dictator to powerthough we must not rule it out. People tend to get much more excited at an amazing physical healing.
Though this sign looks straightforward, the as if it had been slain leaves us curious that it was all planned and staged, surreptitiously convincing the people.
What Is An Anti
The word anti means to be opposed to or to be the opposite of. You could say that anything that has the prefix anti on it is against what it is attached to. The word anti literally means to be opposed too. Like the word antibacterial means that the substance attacks bacteria or is against bacteria. So the anti-Christ attacks anything about Christ His message, His person, His character. There are many anti-Christs out there today and there always have been since the time of Christ on earth. This is nothing new today. The fact that there are anti-Christs, lower-case a, has nothing to do with the Anti-Christ, upper-case A. There are many anti-Christs but there is only one Anti-Christ.
You May Like: How Many Verses Are In Psalms
The Wolf In Sheeps Clothing
The book of Revelation presents the conflict between good and evil in symbolic language, in chapters 12-14. In Chapter 12, the two sides are described as the dragon and the woman. Essentially, the dragon is the devil , who is waiting for the woman to give birth to her child. The description of the child is done in Messianic terms , so the picture refers to the attempt of the forces of evil to kill Christ. Because this attempt fails , the dragon pounces on the woman , a symbol of the church. The picture here accurately reflects the many centuries of bloodshed, during which Christs followers paid with their lives for the faith they embraced.
The last verse of chapter 12 announces the final conflict: Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspringthose who keep Gods commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus . The phrase the rest of her offspring refers to the followers of Christ .
In Scripture, the concept of remnant refers to the few who remain loyal to Christ. Given the course of the vision so far, we would expect the dragon to continue in the same violent way. But things change.
In Revelation Chapter 13 we see a change in the dragons attitude and strategy. He transfers his prerogatives to a great beast, which is described using a language which is incredibly similar to the way Jesus is portrayed in the New Testament.
Heres an example of the many similarities:
kevron2001
Things That The Bible Says About The Antichrist
Photo from christianity.com
It gets a lot more troubling as the scripture describes what the antichrist will do and what awaits the people during the end times. Here are some of the highlights:
Like Christ, the Antichrist is said to come to Jerusalem the epicenter of eschatology. He will confirm a covenant of peace with the people of Israel and deceive many by breaking the promise .
Interestingly, this case indeed shows how the Antichrist is the opposite of Jesus Christ. Unlike Jesus Christ himself, the Antichrist is hailed by the Jews because of this promise of false peace.
The bible says that the Antichrist will set himself up in Gods temple, proclaiming himself to be God. His reign, based on the tribulation prophecies will be for seven years, but will impose reveal himself as the evil one and impose The Mark of the Beast during the middle of the tribulation .
He will be given a crown and conquer , change the set times and the laws , and utter blasphemies against God . He was given power to wage war against and conquer Gods people, and given authority over nations .
One of the most controversial topics related to the antichrist and causes quite the fuss is the mark of the beast, or 666. As per the bible, it is believed that the Antichrist has a name or a mark expressed through the number 666.
You May Like: Does The Bible Say Fear Not 365 Times
Conflicting Theories About The Antichrist
The term antichrist only appeared three times in the bible, with references in John I and II. Ironically, the term never appeared in the Book of Revelation where the worst imagery and acts of the antichrist are described. Instead, other biblical references like rider on a white horse , or beast are used to refer to the Antichrist.
Meanwhile, passages outside the Book of Revelation traditionally interpret him as the man of lawlessness and abomination of desolation . However, others say they are not the same, resulting in debates on whether these concepts truly point to the same Antichrist as translated by many Christians.
There are also arguments on whether the bibles antichrist is a real person or a symbolic manifestation. In the epistles of John, the antichrist has also been described in singular and plural forms:
Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichristdenying the Father and the Son.
I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.
Based on these points, it can be argued that the Antichrist can be a physical embodiment of a physical figure as interpreted by many. But it could also be a metaphor to label someone with an extremely evil tendency equating to denying Jesus Christ.
*Cover Photo/Thumbnail Photo from Pexels
- TAGS
What Does The Bible Say About The Antichrist
- General Biblical Studies, Interdenominational Christian Training Center
The Bible speaks of a mysterious character called the Antichrist, the false Christ, the man of lawlessness, or the beast. Scripture doesn’t specifically name the Antichrist but does give us several clues as to what he will be like. By looking at the different names for the Antichrist in the Bible, we gain a better understanding of the kind of person he will be.
Recommended Reading: What Does The Bible Say About Saving Money For Retirement
There Will Always Be False Teachers
False teachers have plagued the church since the very beginning.
Acts 20:29 states, “I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock.”
We will not escape the grasp of false teachers infiltrating the church until Jesus comes again. But we can make sure to ready ourselves as much as possible whether we combat false teachers or the Antichrist himself.
In addition to consulting the Scripture, I suggest going to the Lord in prayer. I also suggest consulting Christians who may have the spiritual gift of discernment. This gift allows someone to differentiate between false teaching and one that aligns with Scripture. But make sure to do this step after prioritizing Scripture and prayer, as even those with discernment may be prone to error.
According to this Bible Study Tools article, we do have even more ways of diagnosing a false teacher, “Paul provides us with some diagnostic tools to recognize false teaching. He instructs us to observe their character, their tactics , and their motivation .”
As believers, we must always be watchful and vigilant, placing our trust in the Lord rather than our trust in men. We cannot tolerate false teaching in the church and must do our best to turn to what the Gospel says.
Related articles
What Are The Characteristics Of The Antichrist
We’ve touched on some of this briefly in the previous section. The Antichrist lies and comes against the people of God. We also know from the Daniel passage that the Antichrist will attempt to change the laws, calendars, and the timing of things. But what else do we know about this figure from the End Times?
Daniel 7:8: “I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things.”
These horns have crowns on them . In other words, the Antichrist will rule over a great deal of land. We hear the phrase “One world order” tossed around a lot these days in Christian circles. This essentially means that the Antichrist will falsely unite the nations under the guise of peace. However, he will wage war against the people of God.
Revelation 13:13-14: “It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived.”
Great signs and wonders will be performed to lead people astray. We should also note that people will find the Antichrist to be attractive, appealing, likable. He will sway them with their false words and empty promises.
Also Check: Omer Bible
Denial That Leads To Lawlessness
In 1 John 2:22, we learn that any liar who denies the central truth that Jesus was and is the Christthe prophesied Messiah and Savior is an antichrist, an enemy of both the Father and the Son.
In 1 John 4:3, John again acknowledges that you have heard was coming. But he goes on to say that antichrist is already in the world. Johns main point is that every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichristthe spirit from Satan that is in the false prophets . It is evil to deny either Jesus deity or His full humanity during His earthly ministry and at the time of His death .
The power that Jesus Christ received through staying close to the Father is the same power available to usthe Holy Spirit. God offers us this great gift when we repent and commit our lives to Him . By His Spirit, God gives us more spiritual understanding and insight , gives us peace and joy , and makes us into His very children, heirs of the Kingdom of God .
To read more about the gift of the Holy Spirit, read our free Beyond Today Bible study aid The Power of the Holy Spirit .
The teaching of antichrist is thus a doctrine of lawlessness. Indeed, the man of sin or the lawless one in 2 Thessalonians 2is the head of what Paul refers to as the mystery of lawlessness .
Bible Verses About Antichrist
While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts.
Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction,who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts.
Read Also: Meaning Of Sanctified In The Bible
Sign : Sign Of Extreme Arrogance And Blasphemy
There was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him .
The beast is infatuated with himself and so displays it with arrogant words along with blasphemies, the latter an expression of disdain for the true God and King Jesus. We see the same in Daniel 7 and 11.
8 While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts .
25 He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time .
32 By smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action .
36 Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done .
Holiness As A Mark Of Those Who Are Born Again
John, in 1 John 2:28-29, gives the mark of the holiness of those who are born again. In 1 John 2:28, John teaches for the second time in his letter that his readers and Christians today must abide in Jesus.
To abide in the Lord Jesus, according to 1 John 2:28, refers to the practice of personal righteousness to which 1 John 2:27 emphasizes the foundation of when it says that to abide in Christ is to believe apostolic doctrine. Biblical doctrine informs right living, and right living corroborates with biblical doctrine .
The personal righteousness John is speaking of assures the people of God of their salvation because it reflects the character of God the Father. In 1 John 2:29, John uses him, which is a reference to God the Father. It is only those who practice righteousness who have been born of God. Just as children resemble their parents, so too will there be a resemblance between the Father and His children in the heavenly Father.
1 John 2:28 helps readers understand that Christians will not be ashamed at the Second Coming if they abide in Christ. Our efforts do not get us into heaven, but they do reflect that we have been born of God. Furthermore, they give confidence to Christians knowing that they are in Him and He in them.
If you are not confident today of the final judgment, ask yourself if you neglect the righteousness of God. If so, repent and endeavor to walk in holiness just as God is holy.
Recommended Reading: What The Bible Says About Loneliness