The Antichrist Won't Be What We Expect

He'll embody sin and rebellion, but there's no point in trying to identify him

I remember a conversation I had with an Israeli man some time ago. We were talking about Messiah. Many in Israel, of course, don’t believe that Jesus is their Messiah as we do. 

I said to him, “Well then, who do you believe the Messiah will be?” 

“I believe the Messiah will be a man of peace,” he replied, “and when he comes, he will help us rebuild our temple—and he will bring a peace agreement.” 

“Sir,” I said, “you have just described the Antichrist.” 

“Call him what you like. He will be our messiah.” 

That coming “man of peace” goes by many aliases, of course. The man of sin. The son of perdition. The little horn. The wicked one. The prince who is to come. The one who makes desolate. The beast. 

But most of us know him simply as the Antichrist. 

The Most Wicked Individual in History

Who is this man? What will he be like? Maybe not what you’d expect. He won’t be dressed all in black, with glowing red eyes and steam rolling off of him as he marches into a room with the Darth Vader theme song. 

I think this man will be suave, intelligent, well-dressed, well-read, engaging, magnetic—even charismatic. He might show up on the cover of Time magazine. His name will trend on Twitter, he will be all over social media, and he will probably have a podcast. But never doubt it—this man will be the most wicked individual who has ever walked the face of the earth. If Satan ever had a son, it will be this person that we call the Antichrist.

The Bible actually has quite a lot to say about him. There are at least 100 passages of Scripture describing the origin, nationality, character, career, kingdom, and his final doom.

Scripture describes him in a number of different ways. Paul describes him in 2 Thessalonians:

“Don’t be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun…Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God.”—2 Thessalonians 2:2,3-4 (NLT)

The Antichrist will be history’s vilest embodiment of sin and rebellion, though he’ll be no match for Almighty God:

“And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.”—2 Thessalonians 2:8

The Antichrist will oppose every law of God. He will not only be against Christ, but he will also come offering himself in the place of Christ. And as he becomes entrenched in power, he will show himself to be a bloodthirsty world dictator that would make Mao Tse-Tung, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Osama bin Laden look like lightweights in comparison.

But that’s not how he’ll begin.

Power, Charm and Shadows

He’ll effectively come onto the world scene singing, “All we are saying, is give peace a chance….” Swept off their feet by his power and charm and astounding abilities, the people of the world will happily join his parade. The evening news will be filled with his face and his words.

So when will he make his appearance? Might he already be in the world today, keeping his head down, lurking somewhere in the shadows?

It’s possible. But as I have said many times before, I do not believe that the emergence of Antichrist will be the next event on the prophetic calendar. That event, I firmly believe, will be the Rapture of the Church. I don’t think Antichrist can step into the world’s spotlight until the Church is removed. 

Why do I say this? Consider what Paul wrote:

“Don’t you remember that I told you about all this when I was with you? And you know what is holding him back, for he can be revealed only when his time comes. For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way. Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.”—2 Thessalonians 2:5-8

The restraining force in the world today is the work of the Holy Spirit through the Church. People like you. Godly men and women who let their light shine, speak up for what is right, and speak out against what is wrong—without fear of being “cancelled.” But once we are removed from this planet, then this wicked one, the Antichrist, can be revealed. 

For this reason, there is really no point in trying to figure who the Antichrist is. You won’t be able to. It would be a waste of time. Besides that, the Bible doesn’t tell you to look for the Antichrist. 

It tells you to look for Jesus Christ. 

Stand and Look Up

That is where we need to focus our attention and all our desires—right now and always. Hebrews 9:28 tells us, “Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him” (NLT).

Are you eagerly waiting for Him? Do you ever put your feet on the floor in the morning and say something like this? “Maybe today. I could actually see Him face to face today.”

Jesus said, “So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!” (Luke 21:28, NLT). 

Now that doesn’t mean we are all supposed to stand out on street corners and stare into the sky like a bunch of idiots. To “look up” means to live with a sense of anticipation and readiness. Be ready to go at any time, because the Lord is coming again. 

And please bear this in mind. If Antichrist is close, and I believe he is, then the coming of Jesus Christ is even closer.