Opposing Spirits - Daniel 5-7 and II John
There has always been two opposing spirits in this world. The Holy Spirit of God is present in this world and so is the spirit of Antichrist. We see the results all around us. Daniel saw it clearly in his day. Belshazzar displayed the spirit of Antichrist very blatantly at his feast, in which he used the Temple vessels to worship idols and have a drunken party. He was spitting in the face of God, and God brought his reign to an end after writing his fate on the wall. Daniel, on the other hand, exhibited the Spirit of God in his faithfulness to pray and trust God, even while being thrown to the lions. He was not arrogant or hateful. He was simply true to His Lord, and God rewarded him for having the Spirit of God control his life. He gave Daniel a vision about the future and about the Antichrist who would come in arrogance to reign in this world until Jesus comes to set up His kingdom. The little horn, the Antichrist, will be the epitome of Satan himself. We are not there yet, but we see around us several earthly rulers who have a strong spirit of Antichrist, don't we? We must remain faithful to the Lord and follow His Spirit like Daniel no matter what happens in our lifetime. We must not allow ourselves to follow after the spirit of Antichrist.
II John deals with this very issue. John exhorts the believers, the church, to walk in truth and to show genuine love for one another. This was a challenge then, as it is today, because of the deceivers and antichrists all around us. It may be a politician, a professor, or just a neighbor, but we all have run into people with the spirit of Antichrist. We must not lose what we have worked for by being swayed by them. We must press on by God's Spirit to receive the full reward He has for us. We must not compromise with the doctrines created by the spirit of Antichrist that would doubt the inerrancy of God's Word, the virgin birth, the creation of the world, or the incarnation of Jesus. We must hold fast to the truth by the power of God's Spirit like Daniel did.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Daniel 8-10 and III John.
II John deals with this very issue. John exhorts the believers, the church, to walk in truth and to show genuine love for one another. This was a challenge then, as it is today, because of the deceivers and antichrists all around us. It may be a politician, a professor, or just a neighbor, but we all have run into people with the spirit of Antichrist. We must not lose what we have worked for by being swayed by them. We must press on by God's Spirit to receive the full reward He has for us. We must not compromise with the doctrines created by the spirit of Antichrist that would doubt the inerrancy of God's Word, the virgin birth, the creation of the world, or the incarnation of Jesus. We must hold fast to the truth by the power of God's Spirit like Daniel did.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Daniel 8-10 and III John.