Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world (1 John 4:1-3).
The spirit of antiChrist is already busy on earth today. It manifests as a spirit of religious tolerance and religious inclusiveness. The idea is that all religions lead to the same God. It is rapidly gaining ground in the social and political discourse and ideology in our nation. It already dominates Europe. And the elites of our nation and the educational institutions are now under its’ diabolical control.
In the period to come, believers in Jesus will be more and more persecuted, labeled as extremists and castigated form the public social dialogue as harboring a belief that segregates, divides, and demeans. The idea is that all religions are good and that we must not speak against any of them, nor should we seek to proselytize anyone from another system of belief.
The idea of tolerance and inclusiveness is now part of the workplace, and is the norm in public schools and in colleges and universities. It’s the reason for the push for Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. It’s the reason that a hundred years of traditional Christmas songs and displays are being sidelined when the public refuses to protest.
We’re entering a dark period culminating in a severe worldwide test from Almighty God called popularly called the tribulation. And it’s coming fast; perhaps faster than we think. The only restraining force holding back this antiChrist surge and keeping it in check is the church!
Question – are you personally willing to be persecuted for what you believe. Or are you one of the people that will kowtow to the spirit of the age. Are you willing to be vilified, marginalized, and ridiculed for your faith? If we are not, then we may well be consumed by the spirit of the age, and lose our witness.
I want to give you the promises of God for the persecuted. These promises will guide you in the days to come and will give you boldness and strength to stand undeterred in confrontation with this antiChrist spirit as it works through people and institutions.
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you (Matt 5:11-12).
Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets (Luke 6:22-23).
If you are censured and suffer abuse because you bear the name of Christ, blessed are you — happy, fortunate, to be envied, with life-joy, and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of your outward condition, because the Spirit of glory, the Spirit of God, is resting upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or any sort of criminal, or as a mischief-maker (a meddler) in the affairs of others [infringing on their rights]. But if one is ill-treated and suffers as a Christian which he is contemptuously called, let him not be ashamed, but give glory to God that he is deemed worthy to suffer in this name (1 Peter 4:14-16 – Amplified).
Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution (2 Tim 3:12).