The antichrist… a figure who has struck fear in the hearts of many people for thousands
of years.
A figure whose power and reach will cover the whole world.
Even you have heard of the antichrist!
What images come to mind when I say the word antichrist?
Do you see a devilish figure?
Perhaps a sly and slimy figure?
A powerful and malevolent sorcerer?
Or maybe someone more mundane?
Leave a comment bellow and let us know what you think about.
Personally, usually I can see and hear a politician when I think on the antichrist, a really charismatic
one who can get the crowd to really eat out of the palm of their hands.
But that’s just my feeling.
Because of such a wide range of views the term antichrist can be a rather confusing
one.
A quick look online shows that people have very, very different views on the antichrist
ranging from figures like Caesar Nero or Hitler to Xi Jinping, Donald trump and even Walt
Disney!
By the end of this video you will know what the term antichrist means and be able to decide
who the antichrist is.
There is a real obsession with the antichrist, which has led to a number of movies, books
and games which focus on the topic, so it is amazing how many misconceptions there are
about the term.
For one thing it is a common misconception that only Christians believe in the antichrist,
while versions of the anti-Christ also appear in Judaism and Islam, and the concept of an
antichrist is also believed by many people from other faiths and even those without faiths.
But how can this be?
We firstly it is important to break down and explain the word anti-Christ.
Antichrist is actually made up of two parts, the prefix anti- and the word Christ.
Anti- is a word with a lot of history, making its way from ancient Greek to Latin, to French
and finally joining the English language.
Anti has a number of meanings which have went practically unchanged from the words original
meaning thousands of years ago.
In Greek Anti means the following: Against
Opposite – as in opposing Instead or in the place of; as good as; for
the same price; These meanings can be seen in pretty much
any modern English definition of anti.
For instance, the Cambridge dictionary defines the prefix anti as meaning: opposed to or
against a particular thing or person There are likely to be no surprises within
the definition of anti, it is a word or prefix we use almost daily, but Christ on the other
hand is a little more complicated.
If I was to take a survey today of what people believe the word Christ means it would show
that it is a term many people simply don’t understand.
Many people today honestly believe that Christ is either a name for Jesus or simply Jesus
surname.
And if you are someone who believes that I am sorry to tell you that you have been taught
wrongly.
But pay attention as the next part might help your team win a pub quiz sometime!
Christ is not a name but actually a title with a lot of interesting history itself.
The word Christ comes from the Latin word Christus which comes from the ancient Greek
word Khristos.
And Khristos simply means anointed one.
Which incidentally is the exact same meaning as the Hebrew word messiah.
And an anointed person is a chosen person.
And in Christianity, Judaism and Islam an anointed person refers to someone chosen by
God.
Anointing is a concept we don’t really have anymore, but in ancient times it was common
for people to pour perfumes and oil on people in order to, as Wikipedia says, serve the
purpose of “health and comfort, as a token of honour, and as a symbol of consecration”
or dedication.
When kings or priests wanted to appoint someone to a position or give them a task, and to
honour an individual they held a ceremony and anointed the chosen person with oil.
(notably in ancient Egypt and the near east).
The anointed person in ancient Greek now received the title Khristos.
In scriptures there are two uses for the term Christ – we could call them small letter
Christ and capital letter Christ.
In the bible and Koran, the term anointed is used to describe prophets chosen by God.
These people are not the Christ, so they are small letter Christ’s.
They are chosen by god but are not the ultimate fulfilment of the position.
Meanwhile in Judaism there is a belief in a Christ who will come and re-establish the
kingdom of Israel.
And in Christianity there is the Lord Jesus who came to re-establish the kingdom of God
here on earth through his life – who they identify with the Jewish messiah.
This is the capital C Christ.
So, to summarise what we have found out so far:
Anti comes from ancient Greek and means against or instead of
Christ also comes from Greek and means anointed Anointing was a way of showing someone was
chosen or honoured.
The word for anointed in Hebrew is messiah.
And the is two types of someone who is anointed by god and then the person known as the anointed
one.
Jesus Christ in Christianity.
If the Christ is someone anointed than the anti-Christ is someone who stands against
or wants to replace the Christ.
Anti-Christ’s can also be smaller scale – they don’t have to be necessarily be
THE antichrist.
For example, someone who tries to turn people against Islam, Christianity or Judaism may
be seen as an antichrist in a lesser sense.
but not necessarily the individual known as the antichrist.
1 john 2:18 states that the world is full of many of these antichrists and it is here
where we will start looking at some scriptures.
Islam calls the antichrist “the false messiah” “the liar” and “the deceiver”.
Information on the false messiah comes from the hadith and he is described as one eyed,
a great speaker, with a hidden mark on his forehead identifying him as an infidel, he
will claim to be Jesus and he will work miracles.
There are also other traditions coming from various sources which states things such as
the fact he rides a donkey and may be part Jewish.
According to Islamic doctrine in the end times the deceiver will try to subdue the world
but he will be struck down by either Jesus or Mohammed – depending on the tradition.
What is striking about most of this is the fact that it is in many ways similar to the
Christian description.
But note that the Christian scriptures don’t mention what the antichrist will look like.
Sects of Judaism predicted, based on the book of Daniel and other extrabiblical writings
about an antichrist who would try to supress the Jewish people.
Many scholars have believed this to have been fulfilled by leaders of the Seleucid empire
or Rome the Roman Empire, for instance Nero.
Many Jews also naturally view Jesus as an anti-Christ as they reject the idea that he
is the promised messiah.
Next on the list is Christianity: Christianity is the religion with the deepest
views and doctrines on the antichrist.
With information about the antichrist and the end times spread throughout the whole
of the new testament.
Even at the start of the new testament in both Matthew and Mark, Jesus warns about fake
messiahs who he describes as deceivers but the specific anti-Christ.
But for the most part the new testament identifies groups as being antichrist in nature and not
an individual until the book of Revelation.
The book of revelation is where scholars nail down the concept of an individual antichrist
who will appear in the last days.
In Revelation 13 two beasts are described and one of these is usually identified as
the antichrist.
Variations of interpretation are without number, but generally the first beast is identified
by futurists as the final world ruler before the Second Coming of Christ, and the second
beast is considered a religious leader working under the political authority of the antichrist.
The antichrist will be recognised by the number 666, and he will bring peace to a world which
is in financial crises, experiencing wars and rumours of wars, loss of morality as well
as famines and other natural disasters.
The antichrist according to the bible will be a successful leader for the first part
of the 7 years of his reign before becoming a tyrant in the latter part.
He will control the economy, using a mark on the floorhead or wrist to distinguish friend
from foe.
There are other hints about the antichrist reign throughout scripture, for instance:
He is an imposing, boastful king of Daniel 7 who oppresses the Jews and tries to “change
the set times and the laws” (verse 25).
The leader who establishes a 7-year covenant with Israel and then breaks it in Daniel 9.
The king who sets up the abomination of desolation in Mark 13:14 (cf.
Daniel 9:27).
The man of lawlessness in 2 Thessalonians 2:1–12.
The rider on a white horse (representing his claim to be a man of peace) in Revelation
6:2.
The first beast—the one from the sea—in Revelation 13.
This beast receives power from the dragon (Satan) and speaks “proud words and blasphemies”
(verse 5) and wages war against the saints (verse 7).
Conclusion From scriptures people for generations have
attempted to figure out who the antichrist is, but this has led to some strange theories
and ideas.
Including ideas that the antichrist may be a clone, a homunculus, an alien or as I said
at the start of the video, possibly even Walt Disney.
Although some of the people who have been called the antichrist in the past, for instance
Hitler or Stalin, have definitely been a type of antichrist they where clearly not THE capital
letter Antichrist.
Will there really be an antichrist?
I am sure anyone with faith will say a definite yes, and time will tell.
To summarise: The antichrist is someone who positions themselves
in the place of Gods anointed – for instance someone claiming to be Jesus.
The antichrist appears in some form in Judaism, Islam and Christianity
The antichrist will commence religious persecution.
But in the end the antichrist will ultimately be defeated.