It stands to reason that one cannot have an antichrist before the Church Age, since Jesus Christ came to earth to interrupt the Jewish Age and begin the Church Age. An antichrist is any person who preaches against Christ. Notice that the writer of 1 John is saying that "the last hour" is now. (This was written 2,000 years ago.)
The "last hour" means the Church Age. Any person (now) can consider this time "the last hour" because the end of this age and the rapture could happen at any time - and then the last seven years of the Jewish Age will play out, which is when THE Antichrist will become known. This is how we know right now that we are NOT in the Tribulation. And therefore, we should know and be confident that the rapture happens before the Tribulation and THE Antichrist's rise to power.
Until then, there are antichrists in the world already...
(1 John 2:15-25) Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
18 Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us. 20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. 21 I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. 23 Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also. 24 As for you, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.
25 This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life.
Until the rapture happens (or we pass away), we need to keep practicing righteousness so we may stand before Jesus with confidence. And for the person who has fear instead of love - that person may not even be a believer and never really understood what it meant to be a believer. There have many people in church who just go through the motions (acting like a Christian), and then later in life BECOME a believer after realizing the full Truth - realizing that it is NOT just a bunch of do's and don't's...
(1 John 2:28-29) Now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming. 29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him.
(1 John 4:15-21) Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us. 20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.As we remain faithful, we will be rewarded for that when we stand before Jesus at the Bema Seat...
(2 John 1:6-11) And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.
7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward. 9 Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; 11 for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds.
So that we are not led astray, we need to "test the spirits". This is simply knowing what God says, and seeing if what someone else says aligns with what we know is true...
(1 John 4:1-6) Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world. 4 You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
Today's takeaway: the spiritual battle will definitely intensify during the Tribulation, but there is a spiritual battle happening right now. For all believers, our salvation keeps us safe. Although we still need to "guard ourselves from idols" - as the last verse below says.
Idols can be our work, money, vacations, sports, other people... anything that comes before God is an idol. But then there are the symbols and overt idols of Satan: such as crystals, ouija boards, horoscopes, books or movies that glorify the power of the occult, etc. When anyone has something in their house which gives homage to the evil one, they open the door to demon activity. We should only be looking to God for our strength and protection...
(1 John 5:18-21) We know that no one who is born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him. 19 We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. 20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.
21 Little children, guard yourselves from idols.
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