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The man of sin or the sin of man
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Hi all,
We do well to take heed of the words of the Lord in 2 Thess 2:3-10 re the coming apostasy first and the revelation of the man of sin before the return of our Lord Jesus. I have taken these excerpts from Rick Joyner's book, "shadows of things to come" so that we may know where we are at this point of time in the history of the church prior to the soon return of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
First, we must understand why the book of Rev, which is the "revelation of Jesus Christ," contains so much about the the Antichrist. The Antichrist is also called the "man of sin" in Scripture because he is the personification of the sin of man. When we view the evils of the Antichrist, we see the true nature of every man who is not transformed by the saving power of the Cross. In a sense, the man of sin is all of us without Christ. There is so much contained about him in the "revelation of Jesus Christ" because the Antichrist shows us how desperately the world needs Christ.
As the apostle John wrote in 1 Jn 4:3, the spirit of the Antichrist was present in the first century and thereafter. Each Antichrist is a revelation of the increasing depravity of man who tries to live apart from Christ. However, some of the most diabolical antichrist figures in history lived during the Middle Ages, and they did their evil in the name of Christ! Just as was prophesied this man, or system of men, took its seat in the very temple of God, the church, and declared itself to be God (see 2 Thess 2:1-4).
Some of you may have already recoiled at the sight of this huge mine. Am I calling the Roman Catholic Church during this time the antichrist? No, though that was the position of the Reformers. However, as we study this period we must conclude that just as Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, the antichrist spirit did for a time take its seat in the "temple of God," the church, but it was not the church itself.
The antichrist spirit has seldom come in blatant opposition to Christ but rather as a substitute for Him. This happened at times in the Roman Catholic Church during the Middle Ages and it has happened, to some degree, in almost every church movement since. That is why we must understand it. Not to point a finger at the Roman Church, but to identify the spirit that still seeks entry into our churches today.
At times in history this impostor has seemed to be in almost total control of the church. Then there is a battle against it, the false spirit is revealed and removed to some degree- until later when it comes back stronger and more deceitful than ever. This cycle will obviously continue until the end. As we see in the Scriptures, we can expect the ultimate evil the real Antichrist - to be revealed them. However, the church's greatest glory will also be at the end of time, as the bride of Christ is made pure and spotless. This purity will probable come, at least to some degree, by the conflict of the times.
But how can both of these events, the purifying of the church and the revealing of the man of sin in the church, happen at once? This is an understanding that we must have.
We must recognise that fear, and especially the extreme fear of paranoia, are the most deadly enemies of the church and of truth. There are many today who promote extreme fears, which lead to extreme accusation, against fellow Christians. Some of these have a significant influence in the church and are used to do more damage than all of the cults combined. However, I went through a period when the same things gripped me, so I am not trying to cast a stone at any fellow believers who are now so bound by the enemy. This revelation about myself caused me to lay down the ministry and go through 7 years of soul-searching in a spiritual wilderness. I did not even do that successfully, and in some ways I felt I came out of this wandering no better than I went in. Then the Lord had mercy and showed me the way to my deliverance. He simply told me to agree with my accuser! Now, when an accuser comes to tell me how terrible I am, I quickly agree. I know that there is no good thing in me, that is, in my flesh. However, my righteousness is in the cross of Jesus Christ. Only His cross could deliver me from this "body of death." We are all carrying around the same baggage, but we also have the same escape - simply abiding in Christ. I have therefore determined not to consider any man my enemy, as we do not war against flesh and blood.
As we proceed into these dark times, we will also see the glory of the Lord. Even so, our main goal is not just to see the darkness of the glory then, but now. How does the same darkness have a grip on our lives? How do we behold the glory today of the One who is the same today as He was then? How can we displace the antichrist spirit that still manifests itself in our churches?
Rick Joyner concluded in this manner.
To His great credit, Pope John Paul II has repeatedly highlighted church mistakes in history, and apologised for them. This is unprecedented. Such humility and devotion to truth build trust and should bring conviction on our Protestant and evangelical counterparts. This is certainly a positive step toward helping the whole church get out of this deadly minefield. However, our only escape from this corruption is the transforming power of the cross. When rituals and false doctrines remove the truth of the Cross from our lives, then religious men seem to be the most prone to the most diabolical evils, just as the most religious men of the times crucified the Lord Himself. This is just a partial selection from the book of Rick Joyner. I hope you will have a glimpse of the things to come and how we can stay alive by abiding in Christ to live out the troubled times. Care to comment? Let Christ be formed in us,
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Correction: In the concluding paragraph of excerpts, "To His" should read as "To his". eom. by Ivan, 2001, Nov 01 
Antichrist and apostasy. by prophet, 2001, Nov 02
On Rapture by Ivan, 2001, Nov 14
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