Cornelius ~
I know it upsets doctrine, but why cling to doctrine, if the Word tells us something different ?
Whose doctrine are you saying your teaching is going against? I do not understand why you would bring down doctrine, the bible does not.
Certainly you are not against Paul's doctrine...
But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra--what persecutions I endured. And out of[them all the Lord delivered me.
...But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:10-16
Nor Solomon's doctrine?
For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law. Proverbs 4:2
Nor Jesus' doctrine?
Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. John 7:16
Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 2 Thes. 2:3
This is the antichrist, he is a man, he will be possessed by Satan himself. Why preach that there is no literal man who is antichrist?
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. 1 John 2:18
This man of sin is a prominent figure in the Bible, and the ultimate personification of the spirit of the Antichrist spoken of in 1 John 4:2-3. He will no doubt live many years before the Great Tribulation, but he will only be revealed as the man of sin during that period. The idea behind the title man of sin is that “Sin has such absolute domination over him that he seems to be the very embodiment of it.†To call him the son of perdition means his character is marked by this destruction... the
doomed one.
John lived in the constant expectancy of Jesus’ return, regarding his time as the last hour. Was John the apostle wrong? No, this is an expectancy that we should also have, knowing that the Lord’s return can come at any time. From my perspective... Seeing the nature of our times and what the Bible says about the end times, we should regard ourselves as being in the last few minutes.
Thank God that Jesus is coming soon, with this world on edge and Christianity so hated! :nod
The Antichrist is coming: John here refers to an individual who has captured the imagination of many people, including those who don’t even know the Bible. The name Antichrist is important to understand. The prefix anti can mean “the opposite of†or “instead of.†The Antichrist is the “opposite Jesusâ€Â; he is the “instead of†Jesus.
Most people have focused on the idea of the “opposite Jesus.†This has made them think that the Antichrist will appear as a supremely evil person. They think that as much as Jesus went around doing good, he will go around doing bad. As much as Jesus’ character and personality was beautiful and attractive, the Antichrist’s character and personality will be ugly and repulsive. As much as Jesus spoke only truth, the Antichrist will speak only lies. This emphasizes the idea of the “opposite Jesus†too much. The Antichrist will instead be more of an “instead of Jesus.†He will look wonderful, be charming and successful. He will be the ultimate winner, and appear as a angel of light.
But I see your point in one way... You wonder if this Antichrist will be an individual or a political system. But this is not a significant distinction, because it will
in a sense be both a person and a political system. To a large extent, a man does represent and personify an entire government or system; when we think of Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, the figures of Hitler as an individual and Nazi Germany as a state are virtually the same.
Is Antichrist just a spirit? No, the bible teaches otherwise.
The Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come: There is a distinction between the Antichrist and many antichrists. There is a “spirit†of antichrist, and this “spirit†of antichrist will one day find its ultimate fulfillment in the Antichrist, who will lead humanity in an end-times rebellion against God. In other words, though the world still waits to see the ultimate revealing of the Antichrist, there are little “previews†of this man and his mission to come. These are the antichrists with a little “a.â€Â
By which we know that it is the last hour: This indicates that John expected that the presence of many antichrists ~ of many people who offer a false, substitute Christ ~ is
evidence of the lateness in the hour before Jesus’ coming. John writes that this was true in his day; we could say
it is even truer in our own.
Essentially, the Antichrist is a world dictator who leads humanity in what seems to be a golden age, until he shows his true colors - and the judgment of God is poured out on him and his empire immediately before the return of Jesus. the world is looking for him, with bated breath my brother. They have longed for his appearance, for his evil rule that will give them power and false glory.
We should take notice as God's children, because the world stage is set for a political and economic “superman†to arise, a single political leader to organize a world-dominating confederation of nations. National leaders speak of a
new world order,
a global economy, but no one has been able to really define it, much less lead it. But thier leader is coming.
This Antichrist will have surrounding him the kind of
personality cult we are conditioned to accept today. Not only in America do we practice a sick worship of celebrities, but around the world, nations of hundreds of millions of people have been induced to worship a person ~ like Lenin, Stalin, or Mao. This shows us just how strong a personality cult can be when the government gets behind it wholeheartedly, just look at Hitler! All these developments should make us understand that the Antichrist is ready to be revealed when the moment is right.
God make us watchers and keep us in prayer, with our hearts ever looking for the Appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ! :yes
In Him... bonnie
:halo :P