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Here are five shocking facts about the Antichrist that few people know.
Among Christians today, there are many debates about who the Antichrist is. You’ve probably heard various theories.
Some claim it will be a world government before the Second Coming of Christ. Others, like the Adventists, claim it’s actually the Pope.
Still others say it will be a spiritual or ecclesiastical figure.
Today, we’ll talk about five very important and interesting facts. Most of you have probably never heard of them, even though they are clearly written in the Bible.
So, let’s get started.
Number One
The Bible does not predict or say anywhere that the Antichrist will rule before the Second Coming of Christ. This is not mentioned in a single verse of the Bible.
Of course, today we’ve heard and read such things—many theologians talk about it. But what exactly does the Bible say?
Interestingly, the word “Antichrist” is used only four times and only in John’s epistles. In Revelation—or the Apocalypse—there is no mention of the Antichrist at all, and the word never appears there.
Many people get confused because we’ve heard things here and there.
Once again: only John wrote about the Antichrist in his epistles. This is a bit different from what we often hear today about the Antichrist.
Number Two.
This is also a very interesting fact: John wrote that the Antichrist was already present in his time.
There are debates about when John wrote his epistles and Revelation—possibly around 70 A.D., some say no later than 90 A.D.
But we see that already in the 1st century, John declared that the Antichrist existed.
1 John 2:18:
"Children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. By this we know that it is the last hour."
John already said back then that they were living in the last days—2,000 years ago.
Christians of that time had heard that the Antichrist would soon appear, and now, John says, “many antichrists have already appeared.” This is the sign that the last days have come.
How should we understand this? How do we fit this into our theology?
John says that even in his time, in the 1st century, when the apostles were still alive, the Antichrist had already appeared. He clearly writes: “many antichrists have come.”
This is difficult to comprehend.
Some interpret this verse to mean that John was referring to Nero.
In fact, there is a viewpoint in Christianity that Nero was the Antichrist. The idea is that if you take Nero’s name and convert it into numerical value in Hebrew, it adds up to 666.
So, when John wrote in Revelation about the number of the beast, when he mentioned the Antichrist, many people at that time understood that he was referring to Nero.
Some people today believe that when John wrote about the Antichrist, he was likely referring to Nero. But what did he really mean?
You see, when John wrote his epistles, they were divinely inspired. God wanted to show us something through these verses.
John didn’t just use allegories or write thoughtlessly. His letters are God-breathed.
John clearly states that the Antichrist was already present in his time. Some today claim that the Antichrist will come at the end of times as a ruler, while others suggest that perhaps he will never appear at all.
Number Three.
Here’s an interesting thought: the Antichrist is most likely not a political leader but a preacher or spiritual leader.
Probably most Christians, if you ask them who the Antichrist is, will answer: “a global ruler to whom all nations will submit, who will introduce a world currency, and who will govern the entire world.”
But what does the Bible say about the Antichrist?
The fact is, the apostles did not refer to the Antichrist as a world ruler but rather as a false teacher or heretic.
Anyone in those times who spread heresy against Christ, against the Gospel, was called an Antichrist.
2 John 1:7:
“For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the Antichrist.”
John writes that whoever spreads heresy, whoever preaches something contrary to what Jesus taught, is a deceiver and an Antichrist.
John refers to people who spread heresy as Antichrists.
This is a very important and serious thought.
Today, many theologians argue that if there is an Antichrist in the last days, he will not be a political figure but perhaps a pastor, a mega-famous, influential preacher.
There’s an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times.
They quote a pastor, and I really liked what he said:
“The Antichrist will most likely be an influential pastor or preacher, someone who’s a pacifist and an environmentalist.”
In recent times, it’s possible that the Antichrist will be someone from within the Church—a pastor.
Why?
The word “Antichrist” comes from two Greek words: “anti” and “Christ.”
“Christ” means Messiah, and “anti” doesn’t just mean “against” in Greek—it can also mean “instead of.”
This means the person will present himself as Christ, in place of Christ. Do you see?
If it were some kind of “beast” or a global ruler, no one would say, “This is Christ! This is the Messiah!”
“Christ” means Messiah, and “anti” means instead of the Messiah. In other words, people will accept him as the Messiah.
Let me say this again:
If an evil ruler appears, forcing people to take chips on their hands and persecuting Christians—no one will see him as the Messiah.
Satan always comes as an angel of light.
That’s why there’s a theory that the Antichrist will be a famous preacher who preaches his own version of the gospel.
But as I mentioned earlier, apostles like Peter and John said that the Antichrist is someone who brings false teaching.
So this mega-famous preacher will start spreading heresy.
It’s hard for us to grasp this today.
More and more well-known preachers are beginning to spread absolute heresy.
The devil’s goal is to destroy the Church from within, to make the Church lose its “salt.”
When the devil attacks the Church from the outside—through persecution, oppression, and similar things—the Church actually becomes stronger and more united.
But the devil’s goal is to destroy the Church from the inside.
How does he do this?
He waters down the Gospel, makes it soft, easy, and non-confrontational.
Perhaps, in the last days, a mega-preacher will rise up and say that we shouldn’t judge people for their sins.
We’re already seeing many famous preachers doing exactly that.
I’m not just talking about Baptists, Pentecostals, or Charismatics—I won’t even mention Lutherans and Methodists.
Many well-known pastors are starting to say that abortion is not a sin, that officiating same-sex marriages or allowing LGBTQ individuals to serve in ministry is not a sin—that it’s completely normal.
A famous Baptist pastor with a congregation of 20,000 in Atlanta recently said in a video that we’re being too harsh in judging same-sex marriages.
He even said he would be willing to officiate his granddaughter’s wedding if she decided to marry another woman.
This is a pastor of a huge evangelical Protestant church saying this isn’t wrong.
He says: “You’re mistaken. You’re being too judgmental.”
Notice the spread of the spirit of the Antichrist throughout churches recently!
Today, you’re not allowed to speak against immorality. You can’t condemn sin. All people want to hear is encouragement.
“Did the pastor go astray? No problem—let him continue serving.”
Do you see what’s happening?
This is the spirit of the Antichrist!
The Antichrist means “instead of” Christ.
He will say, “Christ judged people, but I’m a little kinder than Christ. I won’t send anyone to hell. Everyone will be saved. Do you pray to your god? That’s fine—you’ll be saved!”
This is the essence of an ecumenical religion.
Probably, some mega-famous preacher will emerge, spreading heresy while silencing anyone who speaks against him:
“Don’t judge the anointed one, or you’ll sin. You’re not allowed to criticize. Look at my success! I fill stadiums! I’m famous!”
And he’ll start pushing his false teachings aggressively.
The spirit of the Antichrist is already present today.
We see sin infiltrating the Church—sins so blatant that you think, “Wow, how is this even possible?”
For example, the Methodists openly appoint clergy who are in same-sex relationships.
But how can this be reconciled with Christianity?
If you want to live in sin, go and do it—but why bring it into the Church?
This is the spirit of the Antichrist. This is the spirit of the Antichrist.
Once again: it’s nearly impossible to destroy the Church from the outside.
When there’s persecution, the Church unites and grows stronger.
The devil has devised a new method—to destroy the Church from within, through the Antichrist: an influential preacher, pastor, priest, or anyone in a position of spiritual authority.
Just like the devil approached Eve, saying:
“Did God really forbid that? It’s not a sin. You’re misunderstanding.”
Today, it’s the same:
“You’re misunderstanding Romans. We need to love everyone. We can’t judge anyone.”
Do you see? This heresy is spreading rapidly through many churches.
When I speak out against sin, when I post videos, I hear some leaders say:
“Oh, you’re being too judgmental. You’re too harsh. You’re too extreme…”
This is the heresy of the spirit of the Antichrist:
"You can't criticize anyone. Did he go astray? Is he living in sin? Don’t say anything—he’s an anointed one!"
This mindset will likely continue to grow. We’ll see more and more of this propaganda, and more people will defend it.
Number Four:
John says that the Antichrist is not just one person—there will be many.
1 John 2:18:
"Children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared."
John emphasizes this point again—it’s not a mistake, and he wasn’t misspeaking. When John wrote his epistle, it was divinely inspired.
God wanted to communicate something important through these verses.
John warns: “Many antichrists!”
How many? One, two, three, five? We don’t know.
There’s an opinion that every generation has its own Antichrist.
In John’s time, as I’ve mentioned, the Antichrist was already present.
And in every generation, there are some antichrists.
How can we summarize this?
Perhaps in every generation, there are small “antichrists,” these little “anti-types,” and at the end of times, there will be one major, ultimate Antichrist.
Maybe. It’s a theory—not a doctrine.
Because John writes: “Many antichrists have appeared.”
Will there be one mega-important Antichrist in the last days?
Maybe. Most likely.
But we should always refer to the Bible and present this as a theory, not as a dogmatic doctrine.
Number Five:
The beast from the Book of Revelation and the Antichrist from John’s epistles—these may be different figures.
John—the same apostle—wrote both Revelation and the epistles.
In his epistles, he uses the word “Antichrist,” but in Revelation, he mentions the word “beast” 32 times—and never uses the word “Antichrist.”
If the beast from Revelation, the one who will persecute Christians during the Great Tribulation, were the Antichrist, then why didn’t John, the same author, call him the Antichrist even once?
All those references to the number 666, the persecutions, the restrictions—“you can’t buy or sell without the mark”—none of these mention the Antichrist.
Only the “beast” is mentioned.
Most likely, the beast from Revelation will be a political or financial leader,
while the Antichrist will be some kind of spiritual leader.
Today, in Christianity, when people talk or write about the Antichrist, they mix everything together.
They combine all the Scripture passages and see the Antichrist in everything.
You make an interesting point.
In the Book of Daniel, when he writes about the end times, he doesn’t use the word “Antichrist” or even “beast.” Instead, Daniel uses the word “king.”
In Paul’s writings, he uses several expressions:
- “the man of sin,”
- “the son of perdition,”
- “the man of lawlessness.”
But Paul never once uses the word “Antichrist” in his epistles.
He also doesn’t use the term “beast.”
So, who is this figure?
Is “the man of sin” or “the son of perdition” the beast?
Is he the Antichrist?
Who exactly are these people?
John, as I mentioned before, describes this person.
In Revelation, he talks about the beast, and in his epistles, he mentions the Antichrist.
In the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, Jesus speaks about false Christs—not the Antichrist, but false Christs (plural).
So, we see different titles being used:
- “king” (Daniel),
- “man of sin” (Paul),
- “beast” (Revelation),
- “Antichrist” (John’s epistles),
- “false Christs” (Jesus in the Gospels).
Are these descriptions about the same person?
Or will there be two individuals in the last days:
- A political ruler (possibly the beast),
- A religious leader or false teacher (possibly the Antichrist), who, as John said, “carries lawlessness.”
Because, once again, it’s very important to understand:
The Antichrist means “instead of Christ.”
He won’t be an obvious tyrant.
He’ll be like a “little angel,” charming people, teaching, and convincing them that he is like Christ.
And the beast?
People will immediately recognize him as a beast.
He’ll likely be a tyrant, a persecutor.
People will quickly identify the evil in him—he won’t be “instead of Christ.”
So, it seems that the Bible might be describing the Antichrist and the beast as two different figures.
Because, again—
If John, when writing both the epistles and Revelation, wanted to describe the same person, wouldn’t he have called the beast the Antichrist?
But he didn’t.
Instead, he clearly distinguishes between these two terms.
You’ve summarized it well.
It seems clear that we need to be cautious of two key threats:
- The Antichrist, who will likely be a spiritual leader, presenting himself as a figure “instead of Christ,” deceiving many through false teachings.
- The Beast, who will be a brutal persecutor, attacking Christians from the outside with political and physical oppression.
An Interesting Thought:
When John said that the Antichrist was already present, he wrote this in the 1st century.
But today, many Christians claim:
“The Church won’t be here when the Antichrist comes because there will be a secret rapture.”
However, John clearly wrote that the Antichrist was already present in his time and that there were many antichrists.
So, the theory that the Church will be raptured before encountering the Antichrist raises questions.
Who, then, will the Antichrist deceive if the Church is already gone?
To whom will he present himself as “instead of Christ”?
After all, the very purpose of the Antichrist is to deceive believers.
Logically Speaking:
If the Antichrist’s role is to appear as Christ, but the Church is no longer on earth, then what’s the point of such deception?
Therefore, it’s possible that:
- The Beast will oppress Christians externally through persecution, control, and tyranny.
- The Antichrist will aim to destroy Christianity from within through false doctrines and spiritual deception.
But friends, once again:
This is a theory based on biblical passages.
We must be prepared for any scenario.
Our task is to remain faithful to the Gospel until the very end.
Paul said:
“But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:8)
Therefore, all of us as Christians must firmly adhere to the Bible.
No matter what happens, our foundation must be the unchanging truth of Scripture.
