Leslie M. John
There is a description of Antichrist in Revelation Chapter 13. This Antichrist is not revealed to the world until the Church is taken away by the Lord and Holy Spirit is withdrawn from this world. Antichrist promises peace in the world and makes many other promises to please men. At the end of his three and half years of rule he breaks all the promises that he made and brings in hardships on the people. These hardships are the 'great tribulation'. This will last for three and half years and his regime ends.
Jesus warns in Matthew 24:4-7 about Antichrist and he instructs his disciples to be careful about the false prophets, false teachers, and also asks that they need to pray that their flight may not be in winter. He instructed them that they would hear of wars, rumors of wars, but all those things must come to pass, but still the end is not yet.
esus tells them in John 16:33 that he spoke unto them these things, so that they may have peace, because in this world they would have tribulation. These tribulations are not similar to the ‘great tribulation’ that the Jews and the left-behind will face during the Antichrist regime. These tribulations are the ones, which every Christian will face in his/her life, when he/she is in this world. Jesus asks all of us to be comfortable because Jesus had overcome the world and he had successfully faced these kinds of tribulations on this earth.
The ‘great tribulation’ is different from the usual tribulations we face in our lives. Great tribulation is universal; it is not limited to a local place. It is as the world has never seen before. It would be more severe than the one that had passed by in AD 70, when many Jews were crucified upside down on the walls of Jerusalem.
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come ; and even now already is it in the world ”. (1 John 4:1-3)
John wrote about those who oppose Christ, but the description given in Revelation Chapter 13 is of the one who tries to take the position of Christ. That is of the one who would try himself to substitute in the place of Lord Jesus Christ.
For those who are left behind this ‘man of sin’, also known as the ‘son of perdition’ will appear, and he will rule over them. This Antichrist is worshipped by all thse who are loyal to him and also by those who can not tolerate the 'Great Tribulatioin' during that period. His number is “666 ”. He forces his dictatorship to such an extent that no one can sell or buy any thing unless he has a mark on his right hand or on his forehead this mark of the beast. This is one world economy. But then, there will be those who disobey him and call upon the Lord to save them. Jews will call upon the Lord to save them and the Lord helps them. These are those who are saved during great tribulation period, but they are not part of the Church and they will not have the blessings of the Church.
“Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man ; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six ”. Revelation 13:18)
There are those who say that they do not worship any god but they will worship this beast the ‘man of sin’ who is also known as ‘the son of perdition’. What a shame that atheists who say that they do not have god and do not worship any one, but will worship this man, and consider him as God. There have been some shadows of this kind in the form of some religious leaders, whom people worshipped ; but the real religious leader under one government in the world is yet to come. And that man can not be seen by the Church because before his appearance the Church would have been ‘caught up’ into the mid-air to be with the Lord for ever and ever. The Church is the precious bride of Lord Jesus Christ and we, who are the members of the Church, will not have to see this Antichrist. Thanks to God. Note here when Antichrist and false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire! It is before the devil that deceived!!!
Does the Scripture say any body is thrown into the lake of fire before Antichrist and false prophet. No, not at all!
At the end of the seven-year period Lord Jesus Christ with his bride, which is the Church, descends and steps on the Mount of Olives. Then follows sheep and Goat Judgment; one-thousand-year-reign of Jesus Christ; Satan being released from abyss; satan going Gog and Magog to gather from the nations armies for himself to fight against Jesus; fire from heaven coming down and defeating Satan and his fallen angels; the resurrection of the unsaved; great white throne judgment; and casting off death, hell, satan and his fallen angels, and all those who have not accepted Jesus as their savior into the 'lake of fire'.
"And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Revelation 20:10). Notice that when the devil was cast into the lake of fire, the Antichrist and the false prophet were already there in the lake of fire. These are only the ones who will be in the lake of fire before the ‘Great White Throne Judgment’ (Revelation 16:16 and Revelation 20:8-10)