Antichrist



Satan entered Judas, an apostle or leader of the church. Church leadership is the last place where we think Satan is

First published on the 4th of March 2023 — Last updated on the 4th of March 2023

That spirit of antichrist

There is no “The Antichrist” in the Bible.

Antichrist is not a man but a spirit or a lot of spirits.

I JOHN 2:18   Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

I John 4:3   … and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

Churches are looking for "The Antichrist" as if he is a political leader from somewhere in the old Roman Empire, like the president of the EU (European Union). As if such a political ruler will rise to rule the world. But the Bible never says "The Antichrist" but it does say the "man of sin" or the "son of perdition" (the child from hell). "Sin" and "perdition" are words used in the church. So, the final evil ruler will come forth out of the church. When Satan is cast out of Heaven, he will usurp the position of the Pope as that is the most powerful and most wealthy position in the church. He will immediately have power over the 1.3 billion Catholics. That is equal to the number of people in China. But the Catholics are spread all around the world which immediately gives the final Pope, the man of sin, a world-wide following.

II THESSALONIANS 2:3   Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

The Roman Catholic church fell away in the Dark Ages and the Pope ruled Europe by means of force and pagan superstitions.

Then Martin Luther in Germany revealed and exposed the Pope as the ruler of Darkness.

53-0508  GOD COMMISSIONING MOSES

Remember, our troubles my brother, sister, I'm telling you now, is not coming from communism, and the outside world,

it's right on the inside of us. The antichrist is a religious spirit. It started in seed back yonder, in Genesis, through Cain.

Cain offered the same kind of a sacrifice. He knelt down and he prayed. He done everything religious that Abel done. Yes, sir. And Jesus said, "The two spirits in the last days would be so close it would deceive the very elect, if possible." Is that right?

And watch what Paul said, "The Spirit speaks expressingly that in the latter times, some shall depart from the faith," on went ahead telling them what they'd be: "heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God."

The antichrist spirit is established inside the church. It is established inside human beings.

53-0609   DEMONOLOGY RELIGIOUS REALM

You see what I mean about demons? They are working. They're very religious, just as religious... Oh, they go to church every Sunday, repeat the Apostles' Creed, and sing the "Doxology," oh, my, just as religious as they can be. "Brother Branham, you mean that's the truth?"

That's the kind of a spirit that hung Jesus Christ to the cross. And Jesus said, "You're of your father, the devil."

Now, some of them said, "Oh, Russia's the antichrist." Never. Russia's not the antichrist. The antichrist's going to be so religious that it'll fool the very elect if possible. Remember, God takes His men, but never His Spirit; the devil takes his men, but never his spirit.

The antichrist spirit is very religious. But it does not stay with Scripture. It will use unscriptural words like, “Trinity”, “God the Son”, “Christmas”, “25 December”, “Good Friday”, “The pastor is the head of the church”, “The tithes belong to the pastor”, etc.

If you believe anything that is not written in the King James Version of the Bible then you are allowing that spirit of antichrist to influence you.

53-1110  I WILL RESTORE

In the ark there was a crow and a dove. And they both set on the same roost. And one of them was of the antichrist, and the other one of the Christ. The only way you could judge them is by their nature, by their habits. The crow was willing to eat the old dead carcasses of the world, and stay out there, but the dove had to come back. Why? The dove didn't have no gall. Something had happened to him. He couldn't digest the old rotten things of the world.

And so is it with every man that's borned of the Spirit of God, that's elected, can't digest the things of the world. He will come to the Father in faith.

54-0514  THE SEAL OF GOD

And they were given power to go out and preach the Gospel, and to cast out devils, and to heal the sick. Judas Iscariot, Matthew 10, was mentioned among them.

And they went out and cast out devils, and preached the Gospel in such a way till sinners repented and devils left. And they come back rejoicing, and shouting, and having a big time, like a little, holiness camp meeting. And Judas was right with them. That's exactly right, right along with them. But= when it come time for Pentecost, Judas showed his colors.

There's where the holiness church showed its colors, right there, went right around

and denied the very Holy Spirit that was leading them into deeper water;

turned right around and denied It.

God can pour out supernatural power onto people who have the wrong spirit.

MATTHEW 7:22   Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

:23    And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

That antichrist spirit can perform wonderful works, so how do we know that it is the wrong spirit?

It does not want to learn deeper Bible truths. The Scriptures that people cannot explain, they dismiss as details that are of no real importance, when that spirit influences them.

54-0515  QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

And the Bible said that he'll be setting in a church, or a place, or a church that sets on seven hills in Rome, and his power will go to all the world. And he's called the antichrist.

And out of that church come forth little churches that was borned after that, and said she was a whore, and they were harlots that followed her. That's right. And there you are. 'Cause they organized in the same thing, and had their creeds and doctrines. Just a little less, not as powerful as she is, but they still have power. And "beast" means "power." There you are. The Catholics got the biggest power. The Methodists, and then there was Presbyterians, and then the Lutherans, and then the Baptists, and then so forth, and on down. Them was little, organized powers, "My church. My church. My church. My church."

But the true believer says nothing of that; it's, "My Christ. My Christ. My Christ." That's the difference. How do you know? The Holy Ghost bears witness with signs and wonders.

The antichrist spirit put the emphasis on the church, not on the King James Bible. Conforming to church traditions is their path to Heaven. Even though there are 45000 different kinds of churches and denominations.

55-0311  THE SEAL OF THE ANTICHRIST

If you'll notice, just about the time that Jesus came on the scene, Judas came on the scene, the antichrist, the one was against Christ. I want you to notice the natures of these spirits now. Judas, was a religious man. He was not an infidel. And all of us know that he was the antichrist. He worked the very closest hand to Christ, His right hand man.

Did you know that in heaven, that the devil was God's right hand man in the beginning, that Lucifer, the son of the morning, was given power? And the reason that he brought sin into the world, he was able to take something that God had created, and pervert it back into an evil thing, which started all this trouble in the beginning.

The devil started as God’s right hand man, but he wanted glory for himself and he perverted God’s Word by adding in a “not”.

God said that man would die if he ate from the tree of knowlege, but the devil said that man would not die.

Eve, as a typical human, believed what she wanted to hear. Something that would boost her vanity. Thinking that she was something, she introduced death.

55-0311  THE SEAL OF THE ANTICHRIST

Oh, brother, sister, if I've hurt you or offended you, I want you to forgive me. But don't you never go back and think that I haven't told you the truth, 'cause it come from the Word of God. And you can finally fix your ear in such a fix, till you will be sealed by the antichrist. Antichrist is against the real Christ, the real moving of the Spirit. And the thing so close, it's deceiving the very elect, under emotions, and worked up, and things.

The antichrist spirit works on our emotions, what we want. It does not focus on the Scriptures.

56-0715  THE MARK OF THE BEAST

And the spirit of antichrist come down through the religious teachers, down through Cain, Nimrod, and on down through each one, until it finally made itself manifested in a character called Judas Iscariot.

And just about the time that Christ was made manifest Judas come on the scene. And just the time that Christ went off of the earth hanging on a tree, Judas went out of the earth hanging on a tree. And just about the time the Holy Spirit come forth, on the day of Pentecost to the Church, the antichrist spirit followed it.

Saint John, or I John 1 says, "Beloved (I John 1:4), believe not every spirit, for that spirit of antichrist which was to come, is already in the world working among the children of disobedient.

Now, as they begin anew... They come and manifested, in A.D. 1. In the beginning they went out at the same time, and both spirits is working through the church calling out a church on either side. And both of them... Oh, don't fail to get this. Both of them are religious. Both of them are very religious.

Antichrist is a very religious spirit that was always in the church right from the beginning. It teaches unscriptural errors that people like. Believing something that is not written in the Scriptures is the mark of a false teacher who has been influenced by that spirit of antichrist.

60-0331  FROM THAT TIME

Now, if Jesus was here, tonight, in a visible form, then it would be wrong. If Jesus Christ stood on this pulpit tonight, the Jesus Christ of Heaven, stood on this pulpit tonight and claimed to be Jesus Christ, He'd be an antichrist. It's exactly He'd be. For when Jesus comes, the Rapture takes place. "As the light cometh from the east even to the west, so shall it be in the coming of the Son of Man."

Christ will not be seen in human flesh until the day that He catches His saints up to meet Him in the air. The only Jesus that we can meet today is to see Him walking through the pages of the revealed King James Bible. In the end we see Jesus as the revealed Word of God that we can understand.

 

60-0717  BE NOT AFRAID

If that blood will save people, what happened to the Blood of Jesus? It's taken away; it's the antichrist. There's no such a thing. Don't do no such a thing as that. That's antichrist. And what people believe little sensations, let them go ahead and believe it. But whenever you come, taking away or bringing an antichrist spirit in a Pentecostal church it's my business to stand up against it. That's right. Not against the person, but against the spirit that's bringing it in there. That's right.

Do not trust sensations. Trust Scripture only. The person dies but the spirit stays and jumps onto the next person.

People love to admire themselves and their church

60-0911   FIVE DEFINITE IDENTIFICATIONS OF THE TRUE CHURCH OF THE LIVING GOD

Now, Christ is the Head of this; Christ is the Head of this Messianic Kingdom. And you cannot organize a Kingdom of which Christ is the Head. You cannot denominate a Kingdom which Christ is the Head. Because Christ is King, and you cannot take the intellectuals of a man and make an organization to which Christ will govern. Therefore, any companies, any peoples, any groups of men, that tries to organize the Kingdom of God is going contrary to the King. And if they're going contrary to the King, it would be against the King. So if it's against the King, it would be an antichrist. That's pretty rough. If I had just a little more voice, we'd make that clearer. It is a antichrist. And if you'll bear with me a few minutes, I'll prove that.

An antichrist spirit tries to take a people and call them from organization to organization, organizing them together, which never was the will of God. People has always fussed at me because I struck so hard at organizations. It isn't the people in there that I'm striking at;

it's that dominating spirit that makes the people think that "We are the people."

People love to admire themselves and their church group.

Then they try to dominate others to be in subjection to themselves and their “special” church.

CHURCH AGES   CHAPTER 10   A RESUME OF THE AGES

Thus at this very moment we are in the complete fulfillment of Matthew 24:24 "insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect." And who is it that shall attempt to deceive the very elect? Why, the spirit of antichrist in the "false anointed ones" of this last day. These false ones have already come in "Jesus' Name" claiming that they have been anointed of God for the last day. They are the false Messiahs (anointed ones). They claim that they are prophets. But are they one with the Word? Never. They have added to it or taken from it. No one denies that the Spirit of God manifesting in gifts is upon them. But like Balaam they all have their programs, make their appeal for money, exercise gifts,

but deny the Word or bypass it for fear that a controversy might diminish their chances for greater gain.

Yet they preach salvation and deliverance through the power of God, just like Judas, with a ministry imparted by Christ. But because they are wrong seed, consequently they have a wrong spirit motivating them.

Religious? Oh my! They outshine the elect in effort and zeal, but it is Laodicean, not of Christ, for it looks for big crowds, big programs and startling signs amongst them. They preach the second coming of Christ, but deny the advent of the prophet-messenger, though in power and signs and true revelation he eclipses them all.

Ah yes, this false spirit that in the last day is so close to the real, can be distinguished only by its deviation from the Word,

and whenever it is caught in being anti-Word, it falls back on the one argument we have already shown to be false: "We get results, don't we? We have to be of God."

The antichrist spirit is very religious and exceptionally zealous. They are very pushy and can outwork genuine Christians.

They want to be noticed and admired.

They seek to be bigger and better than other churches.

They can manifest supernatural gifts but cannot prove many of their doctrines from Scripture. They leave out doctrines that offend so that people will support them.

False doctrines dominate church organizations

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

The locust, cankerworm, caterpillar and palmerworm have eaten all but the root and a small bit of the stem. Now we are told that all these insects are all one and the same in different stages. That is right.

They are the antichrist spirit manifested in organization, denomination and false doctrine through the ages.

And that poor little root and stalk is going to be restored. God isn't going to plant a new Church, but is going to bring His original planting back to original seed. He is doing it as stated in verse 23, by the teaching, or "former" rain. Next will come the harvest rain or rapturing faith.

Antichrist spirits organize the church.

They denominate by forcing people to believe what they teach.

They have certain basic truths but also get many doctrines wrong as they cannot prove them just from Scripture.

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

See how that Judas spirit came back as a rider on a white horse. It was white. So close to the real, just as Judas was so close to Jesus. A crown was given to him (white horse rider). How? That spirit was now in the leader of the Nicolaitane system and he was a triple crowned pope who sat as God in his temple, calling himself the vicar of Christ. If vicar of Christ means 'instead of Christ' or 'in place of' or 'on behalf of God' then the pope was calling himself the Holy Ghost, or deposing the Holy Ghost, acting for Him. That was the Judas spirit in him doing that. See how he conquered--going forth conquering and to conquer. Christ did not do that. The only ones that came to Him were already predestinated by the Father. And so on and on went that spirit and one day it will become truly incarnate in a man who will head up the World Council of Churches, just as we have been saying. And by his gold (remember Judas held the bag) he will control the whole world, and that antichrist system will own everything and try to control everybody. But Jesus will come back and destroy them all with the brightness of His coming. And their end will be the lake of fire.

Christ is the Head of the church.

EPHESIANS 5:23   For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church:

That antichrist spirit is always trying to push some man to be the head of the church “in the place of” Christ.

“In the place of” is VICARIVS in Latin.

The man who, unscripturally, called himself the head of the church was called Vicar, or Minister, or Bishop, or Pastor.

In the New Testament, the local church was ruled by a group of the local elders.

They never put a vicar, or minister, or pastor, or bishop as the one-man-head of the church.

I PETER 5:1   The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:

:2   Feed the flock of God

which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

The false vine bans Scriptural Bible teachers

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

This may seem far fetched to some but actually it is very plain for all to see because right now the churches are controlling politics and at the opportune time will manifest exactly how great is that control. This ecumenical move will end up with Rome at the head even though the people did not envision it that way. This is so because in Revelation 17:3-6 it states that the whore, Mystery Babylon is seated on the beast. She is controlling the last, or fourth empire. This Roman Church is doing that. With the world church system under her Rome will be controlling, and this image (church system) will be obedient to Rome because Rome controls the gold of the world.

Thus, all the people have to belong to the world church system or be at the mercy of the elements for they cannot buy or sell without the mark of the beast in the hand or head. This mark in the head means that they will have to take the doctrine of the world church system which is trinitarianism, etc., and the mark in the hand which means to do the will of the world church. With this great power

the church systems will persecute the true bride. This image will try to keep the bride from preaching and teaching, etc. Her ministers will be forbidden to give comfort and truth to the people who need it.

But before the antichrist (in person) takes over this complete world system of churches the true church will be taken away from this world to be with the Lord. God will catch away His bride for the great Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

That antichrist spirit wants full control of the church and insists that all opposition must be removed.

The true bride will not be wanted in the churches as they ask too many awkward questions concerning the Bible. Churches will focus on human quotes as their people become more and more Bible-illiterate.

Bible teachers will be banned by message-churches who have an unscriptural pastor as the head of the church.

“The tithes belong to the Pastor” is the unscriptural quote that controls the money in the church.

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

The deeds and doctrines of the Nicolaitanes, the doctrine of Balaam, and the teaching of the false prophetess, Jezebel,

do not constitute three spirits or make three spiritual principles. These three are but the various manifestations of the same spirit as it goes from depth to depth. What it all is, is the antichrist spirit of organization in its three various stages. Once the clergy separated themselves and organized themselves they oppressed the people by leading them into, and binding them to organization also. This organization was based upon the creeds and dogma which they taught the people instead of the pure Word of God.

Ritual and ceremony was given an increasing part in worship, and soon this whole system was a militant and diabolical power that did its best to control all through the persuasion of discourse or literal force. It received its energy from its own false prophecies and not the Word of God. It was now absolutely antichrist though it came in Christ's Name.

Today, the preachers try to establish a five-fold ministry between the people and God. This resurrects the Aaronic priesthood back into the New Testament church. That is completely wrong. The Aaronic priesthood failed dismally at Calvary and was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70.

But in the New Testament, all born-again believers are priests. No priest is above another priest. Only the High Priest, Jesus Christ, is above a priest.

I PETER 2:9   But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood,

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

For the clergy to organize themselves with one rank over another until they are finally headed up by a president is a manifestation of the antichrist spirit, regardless of how wonderful and necessary it may seem. It is nothing but human reasoning taking the place of the Word. And any person who is in the organized denominations is right in the midst of an antichrist system. Now let me say this and make it very plain. I AM NOT AGAINST THE PEOPLE. I AM AGAINST THE SYSTEM.

Every organized church with a man as its head is wrong.

That is the wrong leadership structure. Thus, Bible teachers cannot function in that structure.

PERGAMOS represented the third church age.

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

The third age revealed by the Spirit of prophecy that the worldly church would adopt Nicolaitanism as a doctrine. The separation of the clergy from the laity grew from the Biblical truth of the elders (shepherds of local flocks) ruling the flock by the Word, to the 'deeds of Nicolaitanes' wherein the clergy set themselves in ranks one over the other, which unscriptural formula then evolved into a priesthood that placed the clergy between man and God, giving the clergy certain rights all the while denying the laity their God-given rights. This was usurpation. In this age it became a doctrine. It was established in the church as the assured word of God, which indeed it was not. But the clergy called it the Word of God and therefore the doctrine was antichrist.

Because human government is politics pure and simple, the church became involved in politics.

This involvement was welcomed by a dictator-emperor who joined church politics with state politics and

by force established the false church (Satan's false religion) as the true religion.

And through various edicts by various emperors

we find the false church with state power destroying the true vine even more avidly.

The false church always wants to destroy their opponents by character assassination.

They cannot prove their doctrines wrong so they condemn the person and do not want to say anything good about the person.

A RESUME OF THE AGES  -  CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.10

As all Israel is NOT Israel, so all Christians are NOT Christians. Thus we learned that the church is made up of two vines, the true and the false. The two vines are motivated by two kinds of spirits; one has the Holy Spirit while the other is endued with the spirit of antichrist. Both claim to know and be known of God. Both purport to speak for God. Both believe certain very basic truths and differ on others. But since both bear the name of the Lord, being called Christ-ians, and by such name-bearing obviously claim a relationship to Him (God calls it marriage), God now holds them both responsible to Him and therefore speaks to each.

We further learned that these two vines would grow side by side until the end of the ages when both would come to maturity and both be harvested. The false vine would not overcome and destroy the true vine, but then, neither would the true vine be able to bring the false vine into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.

We learned the most amazing truth that the Holy Spirit could and would fall upon the unregenerate false vine Christians and manifest powerfully in various signs and wonders, even as Judas had a definite ministry in the Holy Ghost though he, himself, was pronounced to be a devil.

With these principles in mind we start to trace the church through the various seven ages.

The birth of the church was at Pentecost.

People who rely on supernatural miracles to prove that they are right, have got it wrong.

You can only be right with God if you are Scriptural.

The wrong vine will always try to destroy the good vine.

Human opinions will replace Scripture in the churches.

THE CONSUMMATION OF THE GENTILE AGES  -  CHURCH OF THE LAODICEANS   CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.9

Now I said a moment ago that the false vine came into full fruition in this age. Her fruit would mature and ripen. That is correct. This evil-spirited church, full of iniquity, will be revealed as the mustard seed that grew into a tree wherein lodged the fowls of the air. At her head will be the antichrist, the mystery of iniquity. All this is true. And if this is true, then it must also be true

that the Bride Church will mature, and her ripeness shall be an identification with her Lord by means of the Word,

and her Head Who will come to her is the Mystery of Godliness, Which indeed is Christ.

And as the false church with all cunning and diabolical power made up of political force, physical force and demons of darkness come against this true vine,

the true vine with the fullness of the Spirit and the Word will do the very acts of power that Jesus did.

Then as she nears her Headstone, becoming like Him through the Word, Jesus will come that the bride and Groom may be forever united as one.

Demons of darness are the fruit of that antichrist spirit that launch vicious personal accusations against the true vine because the false vine cannot disprove the Bride's beliefs from Scripture.

Today, the Bride does not see Jesus as a Man. We see Jesus revealed in the mysteries of His Word that can finally be understood at the end time. That is what makes them the wise virgins.

DANIEL 12:10   ... but the wise shall understand.

Jesus is not in any of the churches

THE CONSUMMATION OF THE GENTILE AGES  -  CHURCH OF THE LAODICEANS   CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.9

"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the CHURCHES." So this is the message to the church of the last age. This is the condition of the Laodicean church as its end nears. It is not a personal message to one person; it is the Spirit telling us where Jesus is.

CHRIST HAS LEFT THE CHURCH.

Is this not the logical result or end if the Word is put aside for creed, the Holy Spirit deposed for popes, bishops, presidents, counselors, etc.,

and the Saviour set aside for a works program, or church joining, or some type of conformity to a church system?

What more can be done against Him? This is the apostasy! This is the falling away!

This is the open door to antichrist,

for if One came in His Father's Name (Jesus) and was not received, but rejected, then there will come another with his own name (liar, a pretender) and him they will receive, John 5:43. The man of sin, that son of perdition will take over.

JOHN 5:43  I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.

That is why message-people who follow William Branham are so keen to find a new name for Jesus.

But different message-groups have come up with different new names. The final irony is that the Bible says that He has a name that nobody knows. So all their so-called new names are fake news.

REVELATION 19:12   … and he had a name written, that no man knew,

But that antichrist spirit will claim to know His new name.

That spirit of antichrist is very zealous to make the church believe unscriptural things.

JOHN 2:17    The zeal of thine house hath eaten Me up.

THE CONSUMMATION OF THE GENTILE AGES  -  CHURCH OF THE LAODICEANS   CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.9

But it is a wrong zeal. It is for the house of their own building.

It is for their own creeds, dogmas, organizations, their own righteousness. They have put the Word out for their own ideas. They deposed the Holy Ghost and made men into leaders. They have put aside Eternal Life as a Person, and make it good works, or even church conformity rather than good works.

But God is calling for another zeal. It is the zeal to cry "I AM WRONG". Now who is going to say that he is wrong? What is it that all these denominations are based upon?--the claim to originality, and that of God,--the claim that they are right. Now they ALL cannot be right. In fact NOT ONE of them is right. They are whited sepulchres, full of dead men's bones. They have no life. They have no vindication. God has never made Himself known in any organization. They say they are right because they are the ones that are saying it, but saying it does not make it so. They need the vindicated "Thus saith the Lord" of God, and they don't have it.

Now let me say this here. I don't believe that God is calling only to the false church to repent.

In this verse He is talking to His elect. They have some repenting to do, too. Many of His children are still in those false churches.

They are those of whom it speaks in Ephesians 5:14, "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." To be asleep is not to be dead. These are sleeping amongst the dead.

They are out there in the dead denominations. They are floating along with them. God cries out, "WAKE UP! Repent of your folly." Here they are lending their influence, giving their time and their money, actually their very lives to these antichrist organizations, and all the while thinking it is all right. They need to repent. They must repent. They need to have a change of mind and turn toward truth.

That spirit of antichrist makes us refuse to believe that we could be wrong.

We will stubbornly hang on to a doctrine that is wrong. That antichrist spirit fills us with too much pride to repent. That false spirit makes us ignore, contradict, or change certain Scriptures. Or do unscriptural things like Christmas or Good Friday.

GOD’S DIAGNOSIS  -  CHURCH OF THE LAODICEANS   CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.9

Here is a people who say that they are of God and know God and have His Holy Spirit, and yet they are naked and blind and don't know it. They are ALREADY DECEIVED. THEY HAVE THE WRONG SPIRIT. THE ELECT CANNOT BE DECEIVED, BUT IT IS EVIDENT THAT THESE OTHERS ARE. These are they who have become blind because they refused the Word of God. These are they who have stripped themselves naked by leaving God's care and protection and sought to build their own way of salvation, their own tower of Babel by organization.

Oh, how lovely and beautiful dressed they appear in their own eyes as they formed their general assembles, and their councils, etc. But now God is stripping it all away and they are naked, for these organizations have but led them into the camp of antichrist, into the field of tares, right up to their binding and burning. Objects of pity indeed they are. Yes, pity them, warn them, beseech them, and still they go their way headlong to destruction, wrathfully turning away any and all attempts to save them as brands from the burning. Miserable indeed they are, yet they know it not. Calloused and beyond hope, they glory in what is actually their shame.

Defiant against the Word,

yet one day they shall be judged by it and pay the price of its awful indictments.

That antichrist spirit will always deviate from Scripture somewhere as it focuses on an impressive church show.

Religious showmanship and "Holier than thou" are key elements in their competitive Christianity as they stress unscriptural doctrines.

SALUTATION  -  CHURCH  IN PHILADELPHIA    CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.8

What a far cry from reality is this church age in which we live. And one day soon these men that even now purport to speak for the church will be rising up in

the ecumenical move to place a living antichrist at the head of their organization which deposes the Lord and we will find Him (Christ) outside the church saying,

REVELATION 3:20   Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.

If Christ, the true Head, is outside the church then the man or woman in the church who claims to be the head is inspired by a false spirit.

Come out of the churches My people

REVELATION 18:4   And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people,

PROMISE TO OVERCOMER -  CHURCH  IN SARDIS    CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.7

But once the tares are bound the rapture can take place and does so at

some time between the binding and the revelation of antichrist.

… Jesus said that a certain group would accept one who came in his own name.

That one is the antichrist. And that is exactly what it says of them in Revelation 13:8, and 17:8. These were ordained of God but not unto election. And with this group is such that are as Pharaoh.

REVELATION 13:8   And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

REVELATION 17:8   The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

… Those who stay true to God and keep their garments clean from the defilement of this 'world-system' of church orders will be physically bereft. There will be presented to them a great temptation to give in. Preachers will give in with the excuse that they will serve God within the framework of the antichrist beast-system. They will give in to the flatteries and blandishments of the hierarchy. And the people will follow these false shepherds right into the slaughter. But in the judgment they will all be found naked. They will not be given those white robes; neither will they walk with Him. You can't walk in the spotted garments of the world, holding hands with the devil here, and then expect to be with God.

It is time to wake up and hear the voice of God crying, "Come out of her (organized religion) My people,

that ye be not partakers of her sins, that ye receive not of her plagues." Amen. God is speaking.

Shun the religions of this world like you shun the plague.

Leave off walking with the world and make your garments white by repentance and the blood of the Lamb. But do it now, for tomorrow may be too late.

Being in the churches of today is a threat to your soul. On the outside the sign says Redemption. But on the inside the business is all about deception.

DENUNCIATION -  CHURCH  IN SARDIS    CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.7

There is only one life, but Death comes to us in a thousand forms. There is only one Christ, but a thousand Antichrists... So thou knowest, O Christendom, what is the one thing needful. Either thou turnest back to Christ or thou goest to destruction like the Antichrist. If thou art wise and wilt live, follow the Leader of Life.

SENTENCE AGAINST THE HARLOT -  CHURCH  IN THYATIRA    CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.6

As the original Eve brought death to mankind so now organization has brought death, for organization is the product of the double corrupters, Nicolaitanism and Balaamism, propagated by the prophetess Jezebel.

Now Eve should have been burned along with the serpent for their awful deed. But Adam intervened,

taking her quickly to himself so that she was saved. But when this Satanic religion has gone the full course of the ages, there will be no one to intervene, and she will be burned with her seducer, for the whore and her children and the antichrist and Satan will all find their places in the lake of fire.

Now a woman is not meant to have an iron disposition. She is, according to the Holy Scripture, to be submissive to the male. That is commanded of her. Woman who is truly female, all female, will be of that disposition. Not a doormat. No real male makes a female a doormat.

But she will want to be under authority and not rule over the male, for he is the head of the house. If she breaks that image that God made for her, she is perverted.

Any male that lets the woman take authority has also broken that image and he is perverted. That is why a woman CANNOT WEAR THAT WHICH PERTAINETH TO A MAN OR CUT HER HAIR.

She is never to wear garments that pertain to a male or cut her hair. When she does she is intruding into the male domain taking authority and perverting herself.

And when a woman invades the pulpit which it is COMMANDED SHE MUST NOT DO, she shows what spirit she is of.

Being a dominating female is antichrist and the seeds of the Roman Catholic Church are in her

though she may deny this ever so vehemently. But when it COMES TO THE WORD, Let God be true and every man's word a lie. Amen.

The church is in the age of the dominating woman. So, women wear pants as if they are males. This has led to gender change increasing. Wives cut their hair short to show their authority and husbands grow their hair long to show their submission to their wives.

Church doctrines dominate the thinking of the people.

Conforming to church beliefs is regarded as faith.

Faith can only be built on Scripture.

ROMANS 10:17   So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

DOCTRINE OF NICOLAITANES -  CHURCH  IN PERGAMOS    CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.5     ERROR!!!!!!

This Mother of the daughter-churches is called a whore. That is a woman who was untrue to her marriage vows. She was married to God and then went off fornicating  with the devil and in her fornications she has brought forth daughters that are just like her. This mother and daughter combination is anti-Word, anti-Spirit and consequently anti-Christ. Yes, ANTICHRIST.

This quote is wrong. Fornication means the Roman church was never married to God.

If she was married, she would be accused of adultery.

THE SYNAGOGUE OF SATAN   -  CHURCH  IN PERGAMOS    CHURCH AGE BOOK  CPT.5 

That antichrist spirit is growing.

“Fornication” describes sex amongst unmarried people.

REVELATION 17:1 … the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

:2   With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication,

God uses the word “fornication” to show that He was never married to the Roman Catholic church. If He was married to her, He would accuse her of adultery.

God became a Man in order to be the Head of the church

CHURCH IN SMYRNA  -  CHURCH.AGE.BOOK  CPT.4

The group that inched its way ever so slowly into the church by its DEEDS (Nicolaitanism) no longer fears exposure but is openly organized in a group of its own assembling and

is coming against the true church in undisguised hostility.

Now when I say this was an organized antichrist church I am giving you the truth from authenticated history. The first church founded in Rome (we will trace its history in the Pergamean Age) had already turned the truth of God into a lie by introducing a pagan religion with Christian names and meaning. By the second age it was so pagan (though claiming to be the true church) that Polycarp came about 1500 miles at a very old age to plead with them to turn back. They would not do it. They had a solid hierarchy and a solid organization, and a complete departure from the Word. This then, is Satan's synagogue, full of blasphemy, in which were already the seeds of the doctrine of Nicolaitanism, and which would shortly be the actual seat or power of Satanic religion.

Just as the early church started out under the pure ministry of the Holy Spirit with signs and wonders and manifestations such as prophecy, tongues, and interpretation, wisdom, knowledge and healing, so in the days of Israel when they left Egypt, they were under the leadership of the Spirit of God manifesting in gifts.

God was the leader of the people. Actually He was their King. He was a Father-King. He took care of Israel like a man cares for his family.

He fed them, fought their battles, smoothed away their difficulties and settled their problems. He just busied Himself over them. They were the only nation to which He was truly God. But one day they got to looking around,

and they saw the Philistines and other nations with kings over them.

It caught their eyes and they decided that they ought to humanize their leadership, so they wanted a king.

Now God was going to humanize the leadership Himself, in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, but they got ahead of Him.

Satan knew the plan of God so he put it in the hearts of the people to get ahead of God (the Word).

That spirit of antichrist has always insisted that a man must be the head of each church. They called him a priest, a vicar, a minister, a pastor, or a bishop.

Having a man as the head of the church meant that when God became the Man Jesus, Who is the Word, then the Word of God cannot be the Head of the church. Thus Jesus, as the revealed Word, stands outside the church as the people inside the church cannot understand the mysteries of Scripture.

The human head of the church dominates the people with his own opinions.

RESUME OF AGES   CHURCH AGES BOOK  CHAPTER 10

But are they one with the Word? Never. They have added to it or taken from it. No one denies that the Spirit of God manifesting in gifts is upon them. But like Balaam they all have their programs, make their appeal for money, exercise gifts,

but deny the Word or bypass it for fear that a controversy might diminish their chances for greater gain.

Yet they preach salvation and deliverance through the power of God, just like Judas, with a ministry imparted by Christ. But because they are wrong seed, consequently they have a wrong spirit motivating them.

That spirit of antichrist only tells the people what they want to hear.

…. The deeds and doctrines of the Nicolaitanes, the doctrine of Balaam, and the teaching of the false prophetess, Jezebel, do not constitute three spirits or make three spiritual principles. These three are but the various manifestations of the same spirit as it goes from depth to depth. What it all is, is the antichrist spirit of organization in its three various stages. Once the clergy separated themselves and organized themselves they oppressed the people by leading them into, and binding them to organization also. This organization was based upon the creeds and dogma which they taught the people instead of the pure Word of God.

Ritual and ceremony was given an increasing part in worship, and soon this whole system was a militant and diabolical power that did its best

to control all through the persuasion of discourse or literal force.

It received its energy from its own false prophecies and not the Word of God. It was now absolutely antichrist though it came in Christ's Name.

People are pressurized and forced to accept the church beliefs. Otherwise, they are not wanted.

… Now watch this doctrine of Balaam most carefully. Notice above all, that it is the deliberate maneuver of a corrupt clergy to bind the people to them, by leading the people deliberately into the sin of unbelief.

The Nicolaitane doctrine was the corruption of the clergy as they sought political power amongst themselves,

while Balaamism is the subjection of the people to their system of creed and worship in order to hold them.

Now watch this carefully. What was it that bound the people to the nominal church and thereby destroyed them? It was the creeds and dogmas formed into church tenets. It was the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church. They were not given the true food, the Word. They were given the food that came from idol worship, Babylonian paganism wrapped up in Christian terminology.

Nicolaitans corrupted the preachers by promoting them above the congregation.

Balaamism makes you believe the church instead of the Bible.

And that very same spirit and doctrine is right amongst all Protestants and it is called DENOMINATION. Nicolaitanism is organization, humanizing the leadership of the church, and thereby deposing the Spirit. Balaamism is denominationalism which takes the church manual instead of the Bible. And right to this hour, many of God's people are caught in the snare of denominationalism and God is crying to them, "Come out of her My people, lest ye be partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not her plagues." You see they are ignorant. But if the rapture should take place at this moment, ignorance would be no court of appeal from the judgment of God for being in the wrong ranks.

… So Constantine invited the nominal Christian, First Christian Church of Rome, to help him get the Christians behind him, as they were a very large body. The outcome was the Nicene Council of 325. There the Christians, both true and nominal, came together at the invitation of Constantine. The true Christians had no business even going up to the meeting. In spite of all Constantine could do to unite them all, the real believers knew they were out of place and left. But to those who remained, Constantine gave of the state's treasury along with political and physical force. The people were introduced to idol worship and spiritism, for statues with names of saints were placed in the buildings and the people were taught to commune with the dead, or pray to saints which is nothing more nor less than spiritism. For the food that man truly needs, even the Word of God, they were given creeds, and dogmas and rituals which were also enforced by the state, and above all they were given three gods with the triple compound name of the One True God, and water baptism in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ gave way to the pagan baptism of three titles.

Constantine got the church leaders to believe pagan doctrines by offering them money and then giving them the political power to force people to believe as they did.

We humans easily sell out for wealth and power over others.

But we have to learn to submit to the absolute authority of the written Bible over our lives. That is the only way that Jesus can be our Head.

 

“The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.” — 1 Corinthians 16:23