Page 131 - Satan in the Sanctuary

The Antichrist—"War I Give unto You" 133

Obviously the Antichrist will gain world recognition by
this event.
Supernatural power? Possibly. John notes that the Anti-
christ "doeth great wonders" (Rev 13:13), and "he maketh
fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of
men" (13:13). "All the world wondered after the beast"
(13:3). "Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war
with him?" (13:4).
Satan is identified loud and clear as the source of the
Antichrist's magic in Revelation 13:4: "And they wor-
shipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast."
Recognizing the Antichrist before he steps forward with
his "Seven-Year Plan" is not easy. Whereas Jesus' birth-
place was clearly given—Bethlehem was named in the
Scriptures—the Antichrist's origin is unclear. It is certain
that his political dominance is with Rome (or Europe as a
new Roman Empire). Daniel 9:27 identifies him as the
future prince of the people who would destroy the second
Temple, and we know that Rome did this (A.D. 70).
There is a less clear intimation that the Antichrist will
originate out of the Middle East; Daniel stops in the midst
of his prophetic vision of the ultimate end of the Helleniz-
ing powers (Greco-Syrian) to describe a "king of fierce
countenance" who sounds like a first-class Antichrist (Dan
8:23-24).
We might say that the Antichrist will have some Middle
Eastern background and will rise in power on the European
political scene.
He might even be alive today.
Why not? The Middle East is certainly ready for solu-
tions to its problems. The European confederacy isn't hard
to spot. The Tribulation Temple, which the Antichrist will
desecrate, is in the offing.