Anti-Christ and Anti-Christs
1 Jn. 2: 18 – 27
Introduction
Christmas and New Year is over so we continue our exposition on the 1 Epistle of John. Last time, we
talked about the command not to love the world, and I mentioned about the three infernal enemies
of Christians which is the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Well we have more
enemies which I will present here. Again, John address his readers as little children meaning new
Christian but it surely applies just as urgently to all Christians. The term” last time here” in our text
means that we now living in the end of this age, so its very important for us to watch out and be
vigilant for we are facing lots of powerful and deceptive enemies.
I. The other enemies. (1 Jn. 2:18)
A. The Anti-Christ
1. Antichrist refers to the man who will arise in the world to make one final
attempt to destroy Christ’s work and people before Jesus returns from Heaven
(Rev. 13).
2. This is the coming final world ruler who would be energized by Satan.
3. He will come just after the rapture of the church (2 Thess. 2:7-9).
4. The prophet Daniel foretold of a “little horn” which would come into the world
and do terrible things. Jesus said this “little horn” is yet future and will come
during the tribulation period just prior to His coming (Mt. 24:15-29; Dan. 8:11;
9:27; 11:31; 12:1). The “little horn” in Daniel, the “man of sin” in 2Thess. 2, and
the “beast” in Rev. 13 refer to the same person.
5. According to Rev. 13:7, all nations, kindred and tongues will worship the
antichrist (beast). His religious policy will be very simple: Everyone must worship
the beast and have his mark (666). Refusal results in beheading. For the first
time in history, there is a super church, a one-world religion, and Satan
incarnate will receive the world’s worship.
6. The Antichrist will have a helper—”the False Prophet” (Rev. 19:20; 20:10). He is
the “second” beast of Rev. 13. This world religious leader will actively promote
the worship of the Antichrist as God (Rev. 13:12). And with the power of
punishment by death and economic control, the false prophet succeeds. The
Antichrist is deified as god.
7. Thus, we see an Unholy Trinity—Satan, Antichrist, False Prophet—at work
during the final 7 years of earth’s history
8. Bible names for the Anti-Christ
a. Little horn (Dan. 7:8; 8:9).
b. King of fierce countenance (Dan. 8:23).
c. Prince that shall come (Dan. 9:26-27).
d. Man of sin (2 Thess. 2:3).
e. Son of perdition (2 Thess. 2:3).
f. That wicked (2 Thess. 2:8).
g. Antichrist (1 Jn. 2:18).
9. The Anti-Christ is a prophecy which is still to come or happen in the future. In
contrast to the Anti-Christs which is at that time a reality and is already
spreading their false doctrines.
10. We will have more lessons about the Anti-Christ in the future (if the Lord wills). I
cannot put all the facts about him here because I honestly think the Apostle
John wants us to be more aware of the Anti-Christs in this Epistle. I would give
you 2 important information about him on the following 2 illustration.
Illustration 1: Is Antichrist Present Now?
Here are some pointers:
1. A citizen of a country on top of the old Roman Empire (Europe).
2. Possibly Jewish (Daniel 11:37 “the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women”).
3. Start small and insignificant (“little horn”).
4. A godless person with semblance of religiosity.
5. Extremely manipulative and cunning, with great skills in concealing true motives.
6. If Rapture is soon, surely at least age 20 (as Europe would most likely not accept a teenager).
Illustration 2: Character of The Antichrist
The personal character of the Antichrist may be described as follows:
1. High intelligence—Rev. 13:18; Daniel 7:8.
2. Great speaking ability—Daniel 7:8; Rev. 13:5.
3. Crafty political talents—Daniel 9:27; Rev. 17:12-13, 17.
4. Strong physical appearance—Daniel 7:20.
5. Military genius—Rev. 13:4; Rev. 17:14; Rev. 19:19.
6. Morally, the worse personage
a. Materialistic—Daniel 11:38
b. Blasphemer—Rev. 13:6
c. Against the Law—2 Thes. 2:8
d. Selfish ambition—Daniel 11:36-37; 2 Thess. 2:4.
e. Tries to change prophecy and history—Daniel 7:25
f. Substitutes self for God—Daniel 11:36; 2 Thess. 2:4.
Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations: Signs of the Times.
B. The Anti-Christs
1. The term Anti-Christ, refers to a singular person, Anti-Christs (plural) refers to
many individuals or many persons.
2. John uses the plural to identify and characterize the false teachers who are
already planting and scattering false doctrines to Christian churches at the time
John is writing this short letter.
3. They are deceivers. They had pretended to be believers but were false, and had
left the company of true believers.
4. Their turning away from the truth showed they were liars, having no spiritual
life.
5. Another proof that they were never believers were lack of love and
perseverance. True believers will persevere in the midst of difficult times.
6. There are many antichrists.” And who or what are they? They are all persons
and things that are opposed to Christ and His people and His cause. And how
can they be enumerated? Infidelity is antichrist, and pours contempt upon the
truth. The scoffer is antichrist, and scorns the truth. All ungodly men are
antichrists, and while they resist the truth themselves, they tempt others to
deny it. False prophets, false Messiahs, heretics, and corrupters of the truth are
all Anti-Christs including the popes of the Roman Catholic Church, the Islamic
world, and those we know as cults.
Illustration 3: 72 Heavenly Wives
Every Muslim according to the Koran who lives a righteous life on earth will receive eternal rewards
befitting a king when he dies and goes to Paradise. There, after a feast of 300 courses, he will be
endowed forever with the health and vigour of a young man and then given a palace with 80,000
servants and 72 gorgeous wives possessed of perpetual youth and beauty, whose virginity is
renewable at pleasure. Moreover, if an offspring is desired, it will grow to full maturity in an hour.
Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations: Signs of the Times.
Illustration 4: The “Virgin Mary Revolution”
In A.D. 431, the first official doctrine was issued honoring the virgin Mary as “Theotokos,” God’s
Mother. Now, many Catholics are hoping that Pope John Paul II will elevate Mary to “Co-Redemptrix,
Mediatrix of All Graces and Advocate for the People of God.”
In 1854, Pope Pius IX declared her born without original sin. In 1954, papal dogma declared her
bodily assumption to heaven. The Pope has received 4 million-plus signatures by 1997, pushing for
an “infallible” pronouncement that Mary shared in the redemption accomplished by Jesus, although
the movement has invited “blistering criticism” from other Catholics and non-Catholics.
The 20th Century has found Mary with a face that, “like a mirror, reflects the age” both socially and
religiously. Feminists view her as a “free woman.” Over 400 Mary sightings have led followers to
believe that this “millennial Age of Mary will produce a final dogma that confirms her ongoing
maternal mediation between God and humankind.”
These New Age-type visions often picture a Mary who’s predicting end-time doom for a world that
can only be spared, believers say, through papal authority. —Current Thoughts & Trends
II. Their False belief or false doctrine
A. They deny apostolic authority
1. In John’s day, these people associated with the apostles and other believers.
2. Soon, they left and discontinued their fellowship and association with the
apostles.
3. Thus, proving that they were not “of us”, not real believers
B. They deny Jesus is the Christ (vs. 22-23).
1. They deny that He is the Messiah, the anointed one
2. They deny the truth. They deny the Father and the Son. To deny Christ is to deny
the Father also
3. He who refuses to bow to either One, rejects the deity of Christ.
4. Faith accepts both the Father and the Son, because they cannot be separated
one from the other. They are eternally linked.
5. Denying that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came in bodily form
and died for our sins is a very big mistake. He who does this is not a Christian but
an anti-Christ.
Illustration 5: “Firstborn of Every Creature”
A Christian minister once had a member of a well-known Jehovah’s Witness cult in his audience who
constantly interrupted the meeting by shouting and heckling. “You cannot prove that Jesus is the
eternal Son of God,” he said. “He was the FIRSTBORN of every creature; so, He could not be deity.
The eternal Father must therefore be older than His Son; and if Christ is not as old as His Father,
then He is not eternal, if He is not eternal, He cannot be God.”
The preacher carefully considered the statement, “A father must be older than his son”; then he
gave this withering reply: “While you might make such a point concerning an earthly parent, it
certainly does not apply when we speak of God. I will prove that to you by your own words.
“You have just called God the eternal Father. But how can God be the eternal FATHER (not just God)
without having an eternal Son? Eternal FATHERHOOD demands eternal SONSHIP! When did your
own paternal parent begin to be your father? At the very moment you became his son, and not
before! While time must elapse before one can become a human father, this is not true of God. He is
the eternal Father, and therefore He must have an eternal Son!” The critic fell silent as he pondered
the preacher’s words. (cf: Psalm 2:7; Acts 13:33)
Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations: Signs of the Times.
Illustration 6: No Saviour in Hinduism
A Calcutta paper relates that a young Brahman came to the house of a missionary for an interview.
In the course of the conversation, he said:
“Many things which Christianity contains are found in Hinduism, but there is one thing which
Christianity has and Hinduism has not.”
“What is that?” the missionary asked.
His reply was striking: “A Saviour.” (Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations: Signs of the Times.)
III. Our safeguard against the Anti-Christs
A. John speaks of the anointing which ye have received.
1. The anointing refers to the resulting stability which the Holy Spirit’s enlightening
of the heart and mind to the gospel brings to believers.
2. The Holy Spirit dwells in us and will always be with us.
3. The Holy Spirit is our protection against false teachings or unbiblical errors.
4. Because of the Holy Spirit, we can know and understand God’s Word.
5. He guides us into all truth.
B. We have the Word of God
1. The Bible is the “Sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6:17)
2. It is our absolute standard of truth. All beliefs are to be tested by the Bible (Isa.
8:20; Jer. 8:9; Ps. 119:104,128,142).
3. The Scriptures must be obeyed above human tradition (Mk. 7:9-13).
4. The Scriptures cannot be broken (Jn. 10:35). This refers to the power and
authority and absolute truth of the Bible. Everything it says, even the most
seemingly obscure statements, is absolutely true and binding.
5. From here we can say that sincerity is not enough. Somebody can be sincere yet
be sincerely wrong. (See the sincerity of Jehovah’s Witnesses that Jesus is not
God, the sincerity of the Catholics regarding Mary worship)
6. 2 Tim. 3:13-17 gives us the summary of what the Bible claims about itself and
what it can do to us.
7. It is our duty to read the Bible diligently, prayerfully, and apply God’s Word into
our lives. That way we can never be misled by the deceptions of the anti-Christs.
IV. Conclusion:
Anti-Christs are everywhere, and so many of them. They pretend to be godly but in
reality, they are wolves in sheep’s clothing. The time is coming when the man of sin will
finally be revealed. My prayer is that when that time comes, you won’t be here
anymore. Repent from your sins and receive Jesus Christ as your personal savior before its too
late.
