In contemporary literature, the word Antichrist is often used to describe the great opponent of Jesus Christ, yet in Scripture the word is found only in the epistles of John (I John 2:18; 2:22; 4:3; II John 1:7). We have been looking at the “man of sin” in II Thessalonians and “he” seems to fit the description of the Antichrist of John.
Antichrist
The Greek word anti has some flexibility of meaning. It can mean “for” as in “an eye for an eye” (Man. 5:38), “in the place of” as as “in the room of his father Herod” (Matt. 2:22) or “on behalf of” as in “give unto them [the tax] for me and thee” (Matt. 17:27).
As a prefix, it often means “against” as in “speak against” (Luke 2:34). The man of sin is truly one who opposes Christ. While claiming to be on behalf of Christ, he makes himself equivalent to Christ and acts in the place of Christ. “He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshipped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple [rightful place of dwelling], proclaiming himself to be God” (II Thess. 2:4 NW).
In this era of amicable “christian” co-existence, many Christadelphians do not appreciate the power the Catholic church has wielded, the evil it has committed and the sacrilege of its doctrines and practices.
Growth of the papacy
Augustine (A.D. 354-430), a Catholic philosopher and writer, claimed supreme authority for the Church on earth: “The ground claimed of her infallibility is not that she is guided by infallible scripture…the infallibility of the scripture [is based] upon the testimony of the Church” (from “Confessions,” as cited in The Story of the Faith, pg. 220, Wm. Gifford).
Pope Gregory VII, elected Pope in 1073, stated, “The Roman Church was founded by God alone; the Roman Pope alone can with right be called universal; he alone may use the imperial insignia; his feet only shall be kissed by all princes [cf. Psa. 2:12]; he may depose the emperor; he himself may be judged by no one; the Roman Church has never erred, nor will it err in all eternity” (A History of the Christian Church,” pg. 169, Lars Qualben).
Pope Innocent III (A.D. 1198- 1216) insisted that “the pope was not merely God’s deputy or representative on earth; he was vicarious Christi; and while the Pope was inferior to God, he was superior to men” (Ibid., pg. 181).
In 1870, the Vatican Council decreed the Pope as infallible when speaking ex cathedra on faith and morals.
Strong delusion
“For this reason, God will send them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie” (II Thess. 2:11 NIV). This declaration has interesting implications and raises many questions.
Deceit, falsehood, rejection of the Truth is referred to several times in chapter 2 (vs. 3,4,9,10,12). The “lie” seems to refer to the false claims of the “man of sin,” accompanied by “counterfeit miracles,” “and every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing” (vs. 9,10 MV). The strong delusion is evidently an effective deceit working by divine influence among those who choose to be deluded by false claims rather than holding to the Truth.
A similar reference is found in I Kgs. 22:19-23. There we read of Micaiah, a prophet of Yahweh, and the false prophets who were speaking falsehood in the name of God. A close reading of that passage indicates that Micaiah is using highly picturesque language to present the problem before the king. Ahab did not want to know what God had to say, especially if the truth was unpleasant. Therefore, the false prophets were not speaking truth but what the king wanted to hear. Micaiah’s claim is that God had deliberately deluded the false prophets so that Ahab would be fooled.
To what extent does God have anything to do with the various “miracles” and “signs” which have deluded many in the Catholic church (e.g. Lourdes, Fatima)? What of the exorcisms that have reportedly taken place down through the ages?
God has firmly presented the truth regarding the non-existence of demons and devils. In addition, He has clearly stated that no person has ascended to heaven (John 3:13). Therefore Mary is dead, in the grave, awaiting the resurrection; she has not appeared to anyone or given anyone any messages. Have the angels made it appear to be so? Does God allow the innermost desires and superstitions to become real to the person? Would that be consistent with what God has revealed of His ways?
We might paraphrase II Thess. 2:11 thusly: “For this reason [you believe] God has sent these marvels and wonders which are effectively deluding you.” They get what they want. God has not stopped the delusion. He has allowed it to spread. In accordance with this reasoning, most nominal Christians reject the identification of the Roman Catholic system as Antichrist and look for a future Antichrist to arise. This is a trend among protestants, no longer protesting against the Catholic apostasy.
We must not allow ourselves to be fooled. The time is coming when the great Euro-Soviet-Papal system, the eastern/western Roman power will seek to gather her elect to fight the Lamb and those who are with him. There will be one victor. Our cry must be, “Come out of her my people…for her sins are piled up to heaven and God has remembered her crimes” (Rev. 18:4,5 NIV).
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One