Yesterday at 03:29 PM ephod said this in Post 32:
...I have a bit of trouble understanding the concept that Satan is going to try to convince us God is bad or unjust...
The Antichrist will try to redefine man's concept of God (Revelation 13:6), possibly by propagating some of the doctrines of Gnosticism, one of the earliest enemies of the church.
Gnostic teachings were rekindled in the early 1900's by a Madame Blavatsky and others and renamed Theosophy, the underlying doctrine of the New Age.
The Antichrist may say that YHWH is the name of an evil power who made the physical universe, bound up spirits in physical bodies, and made them live on the earth under his oppressive laws and go through reincarnations so he could watch the events on earth for his amusement, while he (the Antichrist) has now arisen to set mankind free from YHWH's laws and from "the prison of our physical bodies." One of the underlying assumptions of Gnosticism was that matter was evil. This is why they said Christ could not have come in the flesh (1 John 4:3).
Because of 2 Thessalonians 2:4-12 and Revelation 13:4-8, I believe the "strong delusion" will be that Satan and the Antichrist are God.
The Antichrist and his False Prophet may teach that Lucifer ("light-bearer") is the real hero and God of mankind and YHWH its oppressor. He may say that Lucifer tried to free Adam and Eve from YHWH's tyranny from the start and that he told them the truth of their spiritual immortality when he said "You shall not surely die" (Genesis 3:1-5), but YHWH has been able to oppress a duped humanity up until these end times, when the serpent will return in all his magnificent glory to lead humanity in its final great battle and victory over YHWH (Revelation 12:9, 16:14-16).
In the end times, counterfeit signs and miracles (Mark 13:22-23) will be performed through the power of demons. But because few people would willingly follow "demons," they will have to masquerade as something else (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). In ancient times demons masqueraded as "gods"; currently they're "Ascended Masters." In the end times they may also try to present themselves as rebel "aliens" liberated from YHWH's oppression who are now come to help us.
But the Antichrist's defeat at the return of Christ is clearly portrayed in scripture (Revelation 19:20), so how could he possibly deceive people into fighting Christ at his return? And how could he cause them to "take the mark" when Revelation warns so clearly against it? (Revelation 14:9-11)
First, worldwide, relatively few people read the Bible very much anymore. Even in the U.S., an entire generation is growing up knowing practically nothing of scripture. And many who do know the prophetic scriptures are now saying they aren't really that important for Christians to know because "we'll all be gone in a pre-trib rapture anyway." Others are saying that all the prophetic scriptures were already fulfilled in the past, while others are spiritualizing them away, saying they don't refer to outward events at all.
Second, the Antichrist may claim the Bible is only YHWH's propaganda sent to deceive people. He may do his best to rid the earth of every Bible he can find, and have great success (Amos 8:12).
Without the Bible, and completely deceived by the exciting powers given to the Antichrist's False Prophet (Revelation 13:12-18) by the "Ascended Masters" or allied "aliens," the world will be brought to the point where it will willingly and joyfully worship the Antichrist (Revelation 13:4-8) and even Lucifer himself in his true dragon form (Revelation 13:4, 12:3).
I believe scriptures such as Revelation 19:11-20:10 will be entirely unknown, forgotten, or rejected as lies by most of the world in less than 10 years from now. A small remnant of the church will have them in remembrance and will hold onto them while in hiding or in prison or in insane asylums. They will be willing to die for them and the truth of Christ's victory which they portray (Revelation 6:9, 20:4; Mark 8:35-38, John 16:1-4).