IS ‘ANTICHRIST’ YET TO APPEAR ACCORDING TO EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS? Part II

FROM YOUR PASTOR’S DESK:

IS ‘ANTICHRIST’ YET TO APPEAR ACCORDING TO EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS? Part II

“These prophecies [of John, 1 John 2:18,22; 4:3; 2 John 2; 1 John 2:18 and Paul, Acts 20:29,30; 2 Thess. 2:3-7) point out clearly that the ‘elders’ (later called bishops) would ‘draw away’ people from the truth of the Bible, to follow men, and this ‘falling away’ [meaning of apostasy], which had ‘already’ begun in Paul’s day, would develop until a ‘man’ would exalt himself to take the place of Christ in the church.

“Every thoughtful student of prophecy can see that this points unmistakably to the Papacy, and it accords exactly with the significance of the name ‘antichrist.’

Dr. James Strong [author of Strong’s Concordance which is based solely on the KJV Bible] says that ‘antichrist’ comes from two Greek words, ANTEE and KHRISTOS, and gives the following definition of ANTEE: ‘Opposite, I.e., instead or because of…..for, in the room of. Often used in composition to denote….substitution.’- Exhaustive Concordance Greek Dictionary. Thomas Sheldon Greene says: ‘Anti, prep, over against; hence, in correspondence to; in place of.’ Greek-English Lexicon, p.14, Boston: 1896.

“The meaning, therefore, of ‘antichrist,’ as it is used in the New Testament, is a RIVAL TO CHRIST or one who attempts to take the place of Christ as His ‘VICAR.’

“This significance of the prefix ‘anti’ is also seen in the word ‘antipope.’ [Note: there was a 40-year period in the Roman Catholic Church euphemistically called the Western Schism where three different lines of the papacy were warring against each other, each claiming to be the legitimate pope and accusing the others as ‘antipope’]. (For further information in this point see ‘The Papacy is Antichrist,’ by J. A. Wylie, pp. 2-18. Edinburgh. George M’Gibbon).

We shall now see that this is exactly which Roman Catholics claim for their pope, that he holds the place of Christ on earth: Rev. T.L. Kinkead says: ‘Our Holy Father the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, is the vicar of Christ on earth and the visible head of the Church.’ – ‘Explanation of the Baltimore Catechism,’ p. 130. Benziger Bros. (Sanctioned by Cardinal Gibbons, five archbishops, nineteen bishops, and other dignitaries).

“Rev. William Humphrey, S.J. [Jesuit, says: ‘A vicar is put in the place of him whom he represents. He is invested with his power, he is furnished with his authority. He personages his principal….The master by appointment of his vicar, binds himself to ratify his vicar’s acts, and to recognize them as his own.’ – ‘The Vicar of Christ,’ p. 4 New York: Benziger Bros., 1892.

“Thomas Morell, D.D., and Prof. John Carey, L.L.D., say: ‘Vicarius a, um. adj. That is instead, in place of another; that supplies another’s room; a deputy….One who performs the office, or duty, of another; a deputy, a substitute.’ – ‘An Abridgement of Ainsworth’s Latin Dictionary, Designed for the Use of Schools, p. 604. London: 1826.” – Facts of Faith, ‘The Antichrist,’ p. 198.

(To be continued). Bless all, NMF