Category: antichrist / man of sin / son of perdition

A Naughty Tongue! #7

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

“A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips; and a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue” (Proverbs 17:4 KJV).

In today’s world of widespread social media, “wicked doer,” “false lips,” “liar,” and “naughty tongue” are all appropriate nouns!

Moving into “the ages to come” (Ephesians 2:7) Bible Books, Hebrews through Revelation, we see Israel’s prophetic program accomplished. Whatever evil work Satan began in the Earth with Adam and man’s Fall 6,000 years ago, he continues that labor until Jesus Christ returns to destroy the lie program and establish a new world system, one of truth and righteousness.

Re-read James 3:1-8. The peak of Satan’s lie program is man repeating the falsehoods his evil world system originates. Just as God communicates His truth, so Satan counterfeits it with erroneous information. When God’s messengers speak, the Devil commissions his preachers to contradict and discredit. Once the Antichrist arrives, man’s “naughty tongue” will literally be “singing his praises.” Jewish believers in Jesus Christ will be disparaged, wrongly accused of teaching error because the Antichrist will be seen as the true Messiah. Here are the “wise,” “righteous,” and “good” of Proverbs. Additionally, the Antichrist’s followers will be believing and spreading his deceit. These are the “fools,” “sinners,” and “wicked” of Proverbs.

Now, read some of James’ parallels. “Not rendering evil for evil, or railing [criticism] for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew [avoid] evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it” (1 Peter 3:9-11). “But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;…. For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error” (2 Peter 2:12,18). “These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage” (Jude 16).

Even as members of the Body of Christ, we should guard our tongues….

A Naughty Tongue! #5

Monday, July 13, 2020

“A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips; and a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue” (Proverbs 17:4 KJV).

In today’s world of widespread social media, “wicked doer,” “false lips,” “liar,” and “naughty tongue” are all appropriate nouns!

Earlier, we looked at Ezekiel chapter 28. (Re-read the first two verses, and then recall how verses 11-19 describe Lucifer’s transformation into Satan.) God is addressing the evil spirit operating through “the prince of Tyrus” (verse 2ff.) and “the king of Tyrus” (verse 12ff.). That spirit is none other than Satan, a “cherub” or spirit creature of the fallen angelic host (verse 14). These two wicked men from Tyre are historical figures, but they are also typical of the Antichrist, the zenith of Satan and sinful man’s sinful speech.

Turn to what the Prophet Daniel penned in Daniel 7:8,25: “I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things…. And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” Now, consider the Apostle John’s words in Revelation 13:5: “And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.”

Finally, read what the Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 2:3,4: “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” True to his name, the Antichrist will falsely claim to be Christ (Greek) or Messiah (Hebrew). Here is Satan’s attempt to replace Jesus, the genuine Christ, thereby redirecting worship from the Creator God and placing it on the creature. Man’s “naughty tongue” is worse still….

Our latest Bible Q&A: “‘Ye have the poor always with you?’”

A Storm Is Coming! #7

Monday, June 29, 2020

“And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all” (Luke 17:26,27 KJV).

Storms are a common theme in the prophetic Scriptures, but rarely is their connection recognized and their inclusion understood. If we are to appreciate them as Almighty God intended, we must delineate and examine their respective passages.

Concerning the Great Flood of Noah’s day, an old world was destroyed, cleansed of all unbelievers, and replaced with a new world. A believing remnant on an Ark survived, just as Israel’s Little Flock outlasts Daniel’s 70th Week (the seven-year Tribulation). In the case of Jonah’s tempest, rebellious Israel (who refused to be God’s preachers to the Gentiles) is now converted in the Tribulation. In the Millennium, Israel reaches the world with God’s Word (as reformed Jonah ultimately preached to Nineveh).

As touching the storm of Matthew chapter 7, Jewish unbelievers are spiritually destroyed under the Antichrist, while Messianic Jews (believers in Jesus) are spiritually saved to enter Christ’s 1,000-Year Kingdom. Regarding the tempest of chapter 8, Christ is present with Israel’s Little Flock during their time of testing (Daniel’s 70th Week). He ensures their safety “to the other side:” they enter His kingdom and enjoy blessings of physical and spiritual healing. Satan is removed from Earth! Concerning the storm of chapter 14, Jesus is away, His return postponed. Then, believing Israel sees His Second Coming, when He tramples their enemies (unbelievers, especially the Antichrist). The nation confesses Jesus as the Son of God: there is spiritual healing, God’s righteousness imputed to Israel.

Enoch, who lived before the Great Flood (Genesis 5:21-24), preached: “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him” (Jude 14,15). Christ’s Second Coming loops back to the Great Flood (cf. today’s Scripture). All these storms preview various aspects of the future “storm” of Israel and the world!

Our latest Bible Q&As: “Does Acts 7:14 have a mistake?,” “Does Acts 7:16 have a mistake?,” and “Does Acts 7:43 have mistakes?”

Without Hands #3

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

“Among the gods there is none like thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works” (Psalm 86:8 KJV).

Let us see what the Bible says about works made “without hands.”

The expression occurs one final time in Colossians chapter 2: “[11] In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: [12] Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.”

Once we trust Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for our sins, the Holy Spirit identifies us with Him and makes us members of the Church the Body of Christ: “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:13). Here is our “baptism”—and it is not water! Instantaneously, we are also spiritually circumcised, cut off from our identity in Adam and given Christ’s identity. Instead of being the work a Jewish rabbi, this circumcision was made “without hands.” Believing Israel has both an outward/fleshly circumcision and an inward/spiritual circumcision: “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God” (Romans 2:28,29).

It will take Almighty God Himself to defeat Israel’s enemies—no one else can do it. Here is one act done “without hands.” It will take Almighty God Himself to deliver Israel and the world from Satan and the Antichrist—no one else is able to accomplish it. Here is a second act done “without hands.” It will take Almighty God Himself to remove man’s sinful heart—no one else can do it. Here is a third act done “without hands.” Now, we close with today’s Scripture: “Among the gods there is none like thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.”

Without Hands #2

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

“Among the gods there is none like thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works” (Psalm 86:8 KJV).

Let us see what the Bible says about works made “without hands.”

Daniel chapter 2 covers Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and the Prophet Daniel’s interpretation. Israel’s God has given Nebuchadnezzar prophetic insight: he sees all the Gentile (non-Jewish) empires that will dominate Israel until Christ’s Second Coming. The Medes and Persians are to conquer the Babylonians, the Greeks will defeat Media-Persia, and ten mysterious kings will follow.

After all that, “a stone… cut out without hands… smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces…. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom…. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter…” (verses 34,44,45). The “stone cut out without hands” is Christ abolishing the evil world system and founding in its place His righteous, earthly kingdom.

Chapter 8 speaks of Israel’s last despot just prior to Christ’s Second Coming. Here is the Antichrist: “…a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.” Again, Christ personally returns to destroy him (2 Thessalonians 2:8)!

These are God’s works, not man’s efforts. Man will not be able to vanquish Israel’s oppressors. Also, man will not be able to dethrone Antichrist and Satan’s evil world system. Something more powerful than human hands must accomplish these ends—the hands of Almighty God! Now, let us see His labor as it pertains to us, members of the Church the Body of Christ….

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Without Hands #1

Monday, May 4, 2020

“Among the gods there is none like thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works” (Psalm 86:8 KJV).

Let us see what the Bible says about works made “without hands.”

Firstly, “[34] Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces…. [45] Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure” (Daniel 2:34,45).

Secondly, “[23] And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. [24] And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. [25] And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand” (Daniel 8:23-25).

Lastly, “[11] In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: [12] Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead” (Colossians 2:11,12).

The expression “without hands” describes that which Almighty God alone can do. No mortal man is able to fulfill these verses. As today’s Scripture shows us, there is no idol that can do what Israel’s God can do, what the God of Christianity can do, what the God of the Bible can do. Let us proceed to examining these passages within their contexts to see exactly what the one true God is working to achieve, both with us and the world in which we live….

Without Honour #9

Thursday, March 26, 2020

“But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house” (Mark 6:4 KJV).

What valuable lesson can we learn from Nazareth—a moral the Nazarenes deliberately failed to learn?

Read Matthew 8:20: “And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” The Lord said it another way in John 5:43: “I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.” He was “without honour” among His own family, “friends,” and neighbors (today’s Scripture; cf. Matthew 13:57). This Greek term is rendered “despised” in 1 Corinthians 4:10. In other words, His acquaintances, contemporaries, and peers spent so much time not appreciating Him that they now began to hate Him with an unparalleled passion. It was now impossible for them to hide their unbelief. Animosity was seething in their souls—and they responded most violently in Nazareth by trying to take His life (Luke 4:28,29)!

Really, when we consider their detestable attitude, it would have been far better had they never known the truth. It would have been far better had they never lived with Jesus Christ for 30 years. Having so much opportunity to know the truth—and yet squandering that time by vehemently rejecting it—their accountability before God is increased considerably. Recall those somber warnings of Christ spoken in John 12:48: “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.”

Second Thessalonians chapter 2 says of these very people: “[10] And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. [11] And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: [12] That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” They fervently rejected Christ, but they will gleefully receive Antichrist!

Let us summarize and conclude this devotionals arc….

Bible Q&A #705: “Who was ‘Herod?’”

The More Powerful Words #6

Thursday, October 10, 2019

“By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth” (Psalm 33:6 KJV).

Sinful man needs to learn the lesson of today’s Scripture!

While we better understand our world than our predecessors did, that does not (!) mean we can explain everything with perfect, irrefutable knowledge. Through additional experimentation, scientists daily refine their views: the scientific method is faulty because our minds are imperfect. In light of new evidence, even scientists disprove and discard their own long-held ideas. They do not have all the answers. Consequently, friend, never (ever, ever, ever!) let them convince you “science has toppled the Bible’s authority.” Instead of commenting on Someone else’s work and then denying His existence, since we are “god” (in our mind), perhaps we had better prove our existence. Let us go beyond merely describing God’s work, and actually repeat it!

Genesis chapter 1: “[1] In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. [2] And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. [3] And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. [4] And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. [5] And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

“[6] And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. [7] And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so… [9] And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.”

Finish reading Genesis chapter 1, the more powerful words. The God of the Bible spoke everything into existence, friends! God did not take preexisting atoms to make everything; through His spoken word, He created the atoms themselves from nothing, and then used them to form specific matter (today’s Scripture).

Is sinful man grateful for his Creator? No….

Standing Up But Going Down #3

Monday, September 9, 2019

“And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand” (Daniel 8:25 KJV).

Who is he who will “stand up” to go down?

Read Psalm 83. Israel’s Little Flock, her believing remnant, cries out to Almighty God for help. The Antichrist ruthlessly persecutes and mercilessly slays them. Notice the final seven verses: “[12] [The Antichrist and his ally nations] Who said, Let us take to ourselves the houses of God in possession. [13] [Believing Israel prays] O my God, make them like a wheel; as the stubble before the wind. [14] As the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame setteth the mountains on fire; [15] So persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm. [16] Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O LORD. [17] Let them be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let them be put to shame, and perish: [18] That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.”

Paul the Apostle summarizes God’s reply and the Antichrist’s swift defeat: “And then shall that Wicked [Antichrist] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming” (2 Thessalonians 2:8). Here is Christ’s fiery Second Coming, what chapter 1 already mentioned: “[7]… when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, [8] In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: [9] Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power….”

Today’s Scripture says the Antichrist “shall be broken without hand.” This phraseology “without hand” indicates Divine intervention as opposed to human efforts. God, not man, is acting (see especially Christ’s Second Coming and Israel’s subsequent kingdom of Daniel 2:34,44,45; cf. Mark 14:58 and Colossians 2:11). Indeed, the Antichrist will stand up against the Prince of princes… and go down violently, suddenly, and permanently! Amen!

Standing Up But Going Down #2

Sunday, September 8, 2019

“And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand” (Daniel 8:25 KJV).

Who is he who will “stand up” to go down?

Turning over to Daniel chapter 11, we learn more about the Antichrist: “[36] And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. [37] Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.”

He is a “willful” king, egocentric and determined to accomplish his goals. Ecclesiastes 8:11 applies to all sinners, but will especially be true of “the man of sin, the son of perdition:” “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.” For at least seven years, the Antichrist will occupy—usurp—David’s throne. He will take Christ’s place over Israel, and apostate Israel will love to have it so!

Psalm 83:1-4 is believing Israel’s prayerful cry for help: “Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee [the LORD God!] have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy [!] people, and consulted against thy [!] hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee [the LORD God!]:….”

By siding against Israel, these nations aligned with the Antichrist are indeed God’s enemies. Antichrist leads them to oppose Jesus Christ, “the Prince of princes.” Believing Jews pray, “Return, Lord, and deliver us from our enemies—destroy Your enemies!” Let us see and hear the Lord’s reply….