Kingdom Disciples

The Beast of Revelation embodies the ancient imperial power that has stalked the saints since the Tower of Babel incident . History is littered with the remains of past attempts by tyrants and empires to dominate peoples and territories. Each new imperial power may experience initial success. However, all past empires have floundered, declined, and collapsed in the end. The Babylonian kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar and Caesar’s imperial realm, for example, ceased to exist thousands of years ago .

The subject of the Antichrist raises common questions. Who is he? When will he appear? How will we recognize him? What is his “ mark ” or “ number ”? In popular preaching, he is a global political leader who uses military might to subjugate other nations and attack Israel in the Middle East. However, if Satan is truly cunning, why would he do the very thing we expect?

Throughout the present age, the Church is being plagued by deceivers from within who are sent to destroy the Body of Christ . The Greek term translated as “ Antichrist ” in English versions of the New Testament is found only in two of John’s letters. In his first epistle, John warns his audience: “ It is the Last Hour; and just as you heard that Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come .” John did not deny that an individual “ Antichrist ” would come. His point was that many “ antichrists ” were (and are) active in the Church.

Jesus will not “ arrive ” to gather his “ elect ” until two events occur - The “ Apostasy ” and the “ Revelation of the Man of Lawlessness ,” and they are inextricably linked. It is not just the presence of this figure but his unveiling in the Assembly that will signal the imminence of the “ Day of the Lord .” Not only will he cause many to apostatize, but his identity will be unveiled when he “ sits down ” in the “ Sanctuary of God .”

Paul warned of the coming Apostasy and linked it to the unveiling of the Man of Anarchy when he seats himself in the Assembly . Paul responded to false reports about the “ Day of the Lord ” by pointing to the expected Apostasy and the “ Man of Lawlessness .” Jesus will not “ arrive ” until the “ Apostasy ” occurs and the “ Lawless One ” is revealed. Rumors claiming that the “ Day of the Lord had set in ” were circulating in Thessalonica, disrupting the Assembly – (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12).

Jesus declared that “ violent men are seizing the Kingdom of God .” Was he referring to malevolent men from the outside who attempt to take control of the Kingdom through force? Should his disciples “forcefully seize” the promises of God and otherwise vigorously “press into” the Kingdom and the “spirit realm”? Or must it advance in the world through forceful action? In the passage, Jesus is discussing the ministry of John the Baptist, and how he was rejected and abused by the leaders of the Jewish nation.