(tm)Those who worship Antichrist

A third group of people are those who worship Antichrist. They will suffer exceedingly severe torment in the last days.

And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. (Revelation 14:9-11)

And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image. (Revelation 16:2)

To worship Antichrist will be to drink of the wrath of God without mixture, that is to say, without any addition of mercy. There will be extremely intense suffering both in this world and in that which is to come.

To not yield to Antichrist will be to experience suffering in this world (except as God protects) but love, joy, and peace after physical death.

Christian people are not nearly prepared today to stand up against Antichrist. To yield to Antichrist, obtaining a momentary respite from suffering, is to bring a much greater torment on one’s self when the wrath of God is poured out on the earth.

Those who stand against the darkness, keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, come to that place of death in the Lord where they are able to find rest in the Lord’s Person. They enter the pavilion of the Lord even while they yet are alive on the earth. Their works follow them. They bear the fruit of Christ who is at rest in them. The Lord Himself is tabernacling in them and has become their strength and their song.

Revelation 14:9-11 warns of the terrible consequences of succumbing to Antichrist. Then comes the promise in the following two verses.

Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from the heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. (Revelation 14:12,13)

The reason the promise comes immediately after the warning is that it is the rest in God that is our protection from Antichrist and the spiritual perils of the closing days of the Church Age.

The spiritual fulfillment of the Old Testament feast of Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:39-43) is the coming of the Father and the Son to dwell in the personality of the believer (John 14:23).

John 14:15-23 speaks of the Fullness of the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, dwelling in and with the believer.

The heirs of the rest of God, of the "Tabernacles" experience, are those who patiently keep the commandments of God and hold steadfastly to the faith of Jesus. They do not walk in the flesh. They do not attempt to take a shortcut to the fulfillment of the vision God has given them. They do not participate in the faith or prosperity messages or in any other self-realization technique, or follow their own spiritual ambitions. Instead, they wait on the Lord. They "die in the Lord."

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit find Their rest in the personality of each saint who dies in the Lord. It is the Godhead dwelling in and with the faithful saint that is his perfect and complete protection during the last days.

This does not mean the saint will not experience suffering, torture, or martyrdom. He may. We must through much tribulation enter the Kingdom of God. Rather, the Godhead is the saint’s protection against deception, against spiritual seduction and eternal injury.

We can overcome the deceptions of Antichrist only by the indwelling Presence of God.

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. (I John 4:4)

The pressures of the last days will be unbearable. All mankind will be victimized by the spiritual forces that will be unleashed on the earth. The only manner in which the believer can overcome the Antichrist is by patiently keeping the commandments of God and holding fast to the faith of Jesus until the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit come to dwell with Him in his personality, making him a part of the eternal Temple of God. Only then will he be able to serve God and bring forth the fruit of good works during the darkness that is beginning to fill the earth.

We must give all our heart and strength to attaining to that to which the Lord Jesus has called us. We can walk with the Lord in the last days if we so choose. Or we may prove to be among those who suffer the torment of fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. The Christians of today are far too confident, being in deception. They do not realize the churches already have been overcome by the antichrist spirit and are approaching even greater deception.

The antichrist spirit is the spirit of lawlessness. Until the Christian believer surrenders his will to the Lord, takes up his cross, remains patiently in the prison in which the Lord places him—until this full surrender is made the believer is under the influence of Antichrist.

As long as King Self is on the throne of our personality we are antichrist. We are still part of the great rebellion against the Father even though we have received the blood atonement and have been baptized with God’s Holy Spirit. Make no mistake about this.

God’s wants people who will keep His commandments sternly and diligently. Nothing less than this is acceptable. Obedience is better than sacrifice.

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