Don't Be Deceived By The Spirit of the Antichrist

Now, let’s come to the final manifestation of the spirit of Antichrist in the Antichrist.

We’ll turn, first of all, to Second Thessalonians, chapter two, which really is mainly given over to dealing with the appearance, revelation, manifestation of Antichrist. The final satanic act before the return of the Lord will be the Antichrist. In fact, Paul says,

“The Lord will destroy the Antichrist with the brightness of His coming.”

Anyhow, if we turn to Second Thessalonians, chapter two, beginning at verse one, I’m just reading through verse three.

“Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,”

that’s the theme of this passage. And the word ‘coming’ there is *parousia* in Greek, which is the word which is normally used for the second coming of the Lord Jesus.

“Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him,”

as the church, which is to be caught up to meet Him,

“we ask you not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled.”

Don’t be disturbed. Don’t be deceived, either by spirit, that is a false prophecy or a false teacher, or by word, as some prophetic message that circulates, like the one that’s been circulating recently that Jesus was coming on the 12th of September, was it? The 12th of September?

You know, I’m just amazed. I don’t know whether this circulated in Britain, but multitudes of Christians believed it in the United States. Shows to me the appalling, abysmal ignorance of, at least, American Christians. And I don’t know whether Christians in other nations are much better. I’m really not prepared to say. I mean, there were thousands of people who believed this teacher who said that Jesus was coming on Rosh Hashanah, which is the Jewish New Year.

I don’t suppose they’re really embarrassed that He didn’t come. That’s the amazing thing. They can still go on believing people after they’ve been totally wrong. Anyhow, I just understand why Paul wrote these words.

“Don’t be shaken or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us.”

See the nerve of Satan, that he was capable of getting people to write letters in Paul’s name, sign them with Paul’s name, as if they were written by Paul.

I had a friend once who, a minister, he’s still a friend of mine, in fact, and he used to circulate, he’s a very good brother. If I gave you his name, most of you’d know him. He used to circulate his own teaching tapes when he was pastor of a certain church. Well, a certain group who had a very erroneous doctrine got his tapes and, on the blank side, recorded their own teaching without saying anything, returned it to him. And after that, when the church lent out the pastor’s teaching, they were also lending out, on the same tape, this completely erroneous teaching. See? Don’t imagine that Satan doesn’t have nerve. He has endless nerve. There’s no limit to his nerve. All right, going on.

“Don’t be deceived as though the day of Christ had come.”

Some people were teaching it had already come even then.

“Let no one deceive you by any means.”

And I’d like to say that to every one of you. Let no one deceive you by any means.

“For that day will not come unless the falling away comes first.”

The word ‘falling away’ in Greek is *apostasia*. It means an apostasy. It means a deliberate rejection of revealed truth. And I think we are living in the days of apostasy. I’ll come to that a little later.

“Unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of sin or man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition.”

So there’s two further titles of the Antichrist. He’s the man of lawlessness. He’s the supreme embodiment of man’s rebellion against God and rejection of God’s laws. And he’s the son of perdition, the one who’s headed for a lost eternity.

It’s interesting, there’s only one other person in the New Testament who’s called “the son of perdition.” You know who that is? Judas. Judas Iscariot. And you see, he was a false apostle. So we see here again the implication that this person will start in association, in some way, with the Christian church. Personally, I think he’ll be charismatic. Super charismatic. I mean, I really mean that.

All right.

“Who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God.”

There we have now three different names for the same being: the Antichrist, the man of lawlessness, the son of perdition.