Thursday; December 17
We throw around a lot of religious words – some of which society understands others are a bit more obscure. Typically, people grasp the concepts of faith, forgiveness and peace – and many even capture the nuances of love. Yet, there is another word that many people tend to misunderstand, and that mix-up has caused quite a bit of confusion. The word is the antichrist. Often, when people imagine the antichrist, they either envision some mythical monster with 666 tattooed on their forehead or an evil influence armed with the purpose and power of destroying the God’s people. Yet, when we look at the New Testament use of the phrase, the imagery is a bit less intimidating, but a lot more deceptive. The word “antichrist” is used exclusively in the writings of John (in I and II John) and is applied both singularly and plural. It is used of those who will come the future, as well as those who were influencing the world during John’s day. Yet, maybe one of the most significant applica