The AntichristIs George Bush the mysterious Antichrist? Some have attributed this term to Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, and a host of other prominent political leaders. Why does this name create so much fear and mystique for students of the Bible and in general alike? We do not have all the answers, but we are certain that we have some that help clarify the real issues. A Sign of the Last DaysIt seems clear that the activity of this "man of sin" belongs to a period in the Bible described as the last times. The last days set the stage chronologically for the endtime events to occur. Confusion enshrouds not only the subject of the Antichrist but also that of the last days. Which period defines the time of the end?Most generally believe the “last days” is found in Revelation. The phrase never occurs in that book. However, that is not to say that it does not describe endtime events. More interestingly, it is in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, where the term last days first occurs. In chapter 49:1, the phrase is used to describe what would happen to the sons of Jacob (Israel). Key to this prophecy is that the scepter (symbol of regal authority, i.e. the right to David's throne) would not depart from the tribe of Judah until Shiloh (Christ, the Messiah) returned. Thus, we have the days of Biblical Israel as the setting for the last days, hence those who deny the arrival of Christ (Messiah) in the flesh. Is it any surprise then that Christ's return to gather his people (Genesis 49:10) is closely associated with the coming of this last days sign of the sinful one? Within eleven verses, John's epistle ties together the end of the world, 2:17, the Antichrist, 2:18; and the Parousia - presence or coming of Christ, 2:28. . Such occurs today but they are too far removed from the first century to be considered a sign of an imminent end. Time is the KeyThe confusion about the identity and time of this "mysterious" one lies in a glossing over of key temporal signposts usually found in the very passages mentioned. Such is the case with our subject. "Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour." (1 John 2:18).The text is emphatic. Note, "it is the last hour." How could this be at such an early stage of history? In fact, less than 40 years after Christ appeared on earth, the world entered the last hour. That signals a time shorter than the last days. What was the proof? The Antichrist already had come! In fact it was not one but many. They interacted with the church of the first century, continuing with them only for a short while. They left to make it known they were of a different spirit. This widely known fact versus the secret mystery concept of today alerted the early church to know the last hour had arrived in their day and time. Already in the World in the First CenturyJohn writes, "And every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world." (1 John 4:3)What time would "now" be when John wrote to his readers? Would it be 2000 years later? What time would now be if John wrote the same thing today? Would now be 2000 years in our future? When he said, they were coming, but now were already in the world, he informed his readers that they (not us) were living in the last hour. Sign of the Last HourThe Antichrist signaled the last hour but not the end of time. In summary, these first century church infiltrators were not a single individual. It is not George Bush, Saddam Hussein or any other individual. It is not someone or something that is current in our day. The Antichrist belongs to a period in the first century described in Genesis as the last days of Jacob's sons, or old covenant Israel.They came in the first century generation but now are a matter of past history. It does not belong to our future. Let the masses stop living in fear of the "non-arrival" of the "men" who did not confess that Jesus had come in the flesh, (2 John 2:7). First century disciples lived in the last hour, experienced the the coming of Christ and the end of the Old Covenant world.
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