Satan always has his counterfeits. I mean ALWAYS! This is why we should expect him to produce a counterfeit Antichrist, Babylon, false prophet, Tribulation, and Armageddon. He knows we are expecting these things, and has had 2,000 years to prepare. As long as the world is watching out for these things he can't sneak them in under the radar. In order for Christians and Israel to let their guard down, Satan will have to make them think the worst is over!
The Gog and Magog war will constitute a decoy Armageddon. The European Antichrist is actually a decoy to keep us from identifying the real Antichrist. I think it is likely that Rome will be destroyed during the Gog and Magog war, perhaps by a nuclear attack, and this will be identified as being the destruction of the Harlot of Revelation 17 and 18.
The whole thing will start with the Psalm 83 war, where the Arabs attack Israel. I expect this war to see nuclear attacks on cities like Damascus, Baghdad, Beirut, and Cairo. This war will likely end in some sort of peace treaty, brokered by the European leader, who appears to be the Antichrist. This peace treaty will include the right for Israel to rebuild the Temple, and will seal the doom of the European ruler. You can expect Satan to do his best to duplicate many of the prophecies of the book of Revelation at this time. The only way to find out which is real is to read your bible.
After Rome is destroyed, during the Gog and Magog war, the real Antichrist will show up from somewhere unexpected, and the world will think of him as a Savior! You can expect the real Antichrist to come from the nation "against whom the Lord hath indignation for ever"! Look up that phrase in your bible, and then search for every prophecy against that nation. There are a lot, and they are overwhelmingly timed for fulfillment during the End Times. You will have to search for synonyms for the name of that nation. They sometimes go by Seir, Bozrah, Idumea, Edom, Esau, and Paran. I have included a chapter on this nation in my book The Spirit of Prophecy.
It is in Satan's interest for you to keep looking in another direction!
You can find out more at my website www.thespiritofprophecy.ca
Dan Knezacek
How did we not see that coming?
People will wake up one day and ask themselves, “How did we not see that coming?” Since just before May, the European Union has been quietly expanding and growing into the super state the Bible predicts it would become. It is the new Roman Empire. EU officials are even calling it an empire. Here’s some of that “under the radar” activity that has taken place:
- EU gains special rights at UN
- Luxembourg Lies on Secret Meeting
- On the Way to a European Super State?
- The bailouts are building a federal state
- E.U. Official Urges More Unity
- Increase the role of the European Union says Verhofstadt
- New World Order and no mention of the USA
The driving force in all this change is the economy. Building wealth leads this, but behind that is a group of reformers who have the mission of reshaping worldwide values into the concept of a new world order. Normally, this would be very difficult to do, but with the fear of financial collapse of many nations, and other nations in financial default, the plan can easily be accelerated. That’s what’s happening.
The end time prophecy teaching that the Antichrist will be a Muslim and will rise out of an Islamic group has gained popularity and it’s been a fancy to kick around, but the old tried and true European power and the Antichrist coming out of that still fits the picture much better. Now that we see a lot of activity clinching this European authority makes us more confident that this is the way it’s going.
The following archived blog posts give further insight identifying the European Union as the prophesied New Roman Empire:
Everyone wants to know how close we are to the end times. Many ask if the Antichrist is now alive and well on planet earth. We can speculate all we want, and have fun doing so, but knowing the characteristics of this guy might help us.
- Daniel 8:9-12 Then from one of the prominent horns came a small horn whose power grew very great. It extended toward the south and the east and toward the glorious land of Israel. Its power reached to the heavens, where it attacked the heavenly army, throwing some of the heavenly beings and some of the stars to the ground and trampling them. It even challenged the Commander of heaven’s army by canceling the daily sacrifices offered to him and by destroying his Temple. The army of heaven was restrained from responding to this rebellion. So the daily sacrifice was halted, and truth was overthrown. The horn succeeded in everything it did.
- Daniel 11:21-35 “The next to come to power will be a despicable man who is not in line for royal succession. He will slip in when least expected and take over the kingdom by flattery and intrigue. Before him great armies will be swept away, including a covenant prince. With deceitful promises, he will make various alliances. He will become strong despite having only a handful of followers. Without warning he will enter the richest areas of the land. Then he will distribute among his followers the plunder and wealth of the rich—something his predecessors had never done. He will plot the overthrow of strongholds, but this will last for only a short while. “Then he will stir up his courage and raise a great army against the king of the south. The king of the south will go to battle with a mighty army, but to no avail, for there will be plots against him. His own household will cause his downfall. His army will be swept away, and many will be killed. Seeking nothing but each other’s harm, these kings will plot against each other at the conference table, attempting to deceive each other. But it will make no difference, for the end will come at the appointed time. “The king of the north will then return home with great riches. On the way he will set himself against the people of the holy covenant, doing much damage before continuing his journey.“Then at the appointed time he will once again invade the south, but this time the result will be different. For warships from western coastlands will scare him off, and he will withdraw and return home. But he will vent his anger against the people of the holy covenant and reward those who forsake the covenant. “His army will take over the Temple fortress, pollute the sanctuary, put a stop to the daily sacrifices, and set up the sacrilegious object that causes desecration. He will flatter and win over those who have violated the covenant. But the people who know their God will be strong and will resist him.“Wise leaders will give instruction to many, but these teachers will die by fire and sword, or they will be jailed and robbed. During these persecutions, little help will arrive, and many who join them will not be sincere. And some of the wise will fall victim to persecution. In this way, they will be refined and cleansed and made pure until the time of the end, for the appointed time is still to come.
What do we get out of that about him?
- He’ll rise from humble beginnings, but will gain great respect and rise quickly in power
- He’ll be very successful in all that he does
- He’s deceiving, conniving, but very charismatic
- He’s a master with military strategy
- He’s a master negotiator
- He’s anti-Semitic
That can fit a lot of people, and for the most part, these characteristics can fit many current world leaders. Paul adds to the description in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 where he says:
Now, dear brothers and sisters, let us clarify some things about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how we will be gathered to meet him. Don’t be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun. Don’t believe them, even if they claim to have had a spiritual vision, a revelation, or a letter supposedly from us. 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.
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. This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth.
The interesting thing that Paul discloses here is that this antichrist spirit of lawlessness is already at work but secretly and it will remain so until the unveiling or revealing of the antichrist. There have been a couple of antichrist prototypes, but the timing wasn’t right. Antiochus Epiphanies and Hitler certainly fit these descriptions. We know we are very close for several reasons, but technology has developed enough now to provide a couple of different possible scenarios for the mark of the beast. We can also now identify the European Union as the New Roman Empire, and the nations listed in Ezekiel that attack Israel still have some more positioning to take place, but that is all developing.
The best way to finish this blog posting is with Paul’s words following his description of the antichrist. If we take what he says and be about the Master’s business of seeking first and enabling the Kingdom of God on earth, winning people for Christ, and operating in the realm of God then the distractions of evil rising won’t dissuade us because we know when sin and associated evil abound, grace abounds even more.
With all these things in mind, dear brothers and sisters, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the teaching we passed on to you both in person and by letter. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope, comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say. 2 Thessalonians 2:15-17
PD
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Topic: How did we not see that coming?
Satan's Counterfeits
Date: 08/05/2011 | By: Daniel Knzacek