“And this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” (1 John 4:3)

The four passages in the New Testament that use this term are unique to the apostle John (1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 1:7). The term itself is a transliteration of the Greek compound word anti plus christos, meaning one who is “against” Christ. (1)

John distinguishes between “the” Antichrist (1 John 2:18) and the legions of antichrists against whom we are continually fighting today throughout the church and society. The spirit of antichrist is not the Antichrist (the “man of sin” in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-10) but the attitude or character and nature of antichrist which we must discern. Those who have this spirit are liars (1 John 2:22), mainly because they refuse to accept the truth that Jesus is the Christ:

“Children it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore, we know that it is the last hour.” 1 John 2:18. “Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist-denying the Father and the Son.” 1 John 2:22

Further rejection of that truth centers around denial of the incarnation of Christ, that Jesus is the Creator God (Gen. 1; John 1) come in human flesh (1 John 4:3; 2 John 1:7). Those who would deny those truths embrace the very core of all lies and become anti-Christ, with some even denying their souls and openly worshipping Satan:

"The most devastating thing...that biology did to Christianity was the discovery of biological evolution. Now that we know Adam and Eve never were real people the central myth of Christianity is destroyed. If there never was an Adam and Eve, there never was an original sin. If there never was an original sin there is no need of salvation. If there is no need of salvation there is no need of a savior. And I submit that puts Jesus, historical or otherwise, into the ranks of the unemployed. I think that evolution absolutely is the death knell of Christianity." (Frank Zindler, American atheist, in a debate with William Craig, Atheism vs Christianity video, 1996, from "Homeschooling parents demand evolutionary textbooks," Lita Cosner, 13 June 2013 (2)

"At the very least, the acceptance of evolutionary theory requires that the first two chapters of Genesis be read merely as a literary rendering that offers no historical data. But, of course, the injury does not end there. If evolution is true, then the entire narrative of the Bible has to be revised and reinterpreted. The evolutionary account is not only incompatible with any historical affirmation of Genesis, but it is also incompatible with the claim that all humanity is descended from Adam and the claim that in Adam all humanity fell into sin and guilt. The Bible's account of the Fall and its consequences is utterly incompatible with evolutionary theory. The third chapter of Genesis is as problematic for evolutionary theory as the first two." (Creation vs. Evolution – The New Shape of the Debate, Dr. Mohler, February 1, 2011) (2)

“There is no God and no soul. Hence, there are no needs for the props of traditional religion. With dogma and creed excluded, then immutable (unchangeable) truth is also dead and buried. There is no room for fixed, natural law or permanent moral absolutes.” (John Dewey, The Unseen Hand, A. Ralph Epperson, p. 298)

“Satan and his rebellious host will thus prove to have become the direct Saviours and Creators of divine man . . . It is Satan who is the God of our planet and the only God. Satan (or Lucifer) represents the Centrifugal Energy of the Universe, this ever-living symbol of self-sacrifice for the intellectual independence of humanity.” The Secret Doctrine, Helena Blavatsky

“Hope and faith in The Most Radiant One (Lucifer) will be restored…. In the years to come each soul on Terra will be touched by this energy…The choices are simple – one selects either peace, harmony, love, and Light, or fear and darkness. There is no middle compromise…Those who journey into the Light will move with us … Those who choose to stay in the lower vibrations will be provided for accordingly also. The Earth will be cleansed in the next decade, for the purification must be complete….” (Spiritual Politics, Corinne McLaughlin, a Theosophist and task-force coordinator for President Clinton’s Council on Sustainable Development, p 240)

When John wrote his letter he suggested that within the context of the predominant evolutionary pagan and pantheist worldviews – Atomism (today's evolutionary materialism) and Stoicism (today's mystical pantheist worldviews (3) such as Buddhism, Hinduism, and Luciferian New Age), there were horned serpent gods and goddesses and other diverse evil spirits at work in the world teaching false doctrines: anti-creation origin accounts, mystery religions, transmigration, reincarnation and evolution, spiritual experiences, plus many false variations of Gnostic Christianity that were emerging at the time:

“The devils put forward Marcion of Pontus (a Gnostic teacher), who (teaches) men to deny God is the maker of all things in heaven and on earth, and that the Christ predicted by the prophets is His Son, and preaches another god…and likewise another son.” Justin Martyr, 2nd century A.D., Apology 58

GB Caird, Dean Ireland's Professor of Exegesis of Holy Scripture tells us that not only was the entire pagan world order under the power of fallen powers and principalities but so was the Jewish religion. Today's Jewish religion includes genocidal, Christ-hating Bolshevism and Leftism:

“There can be little doubt that ‘principalities and powers’ included powers of state…the Jewish religion and…the whole natural order (were), under..demonic reign…”. Domination includes “the pagan world order…”. (GB Caird in his book, “Principalities and Powers, p. 16)

The spiritual and worldview atmosphere of that time is very much like the one operating throughout apostate America and the West today where the modern new pagan and new pantheist world order denies that Jesus Christ (John 1) is the Creator of all things in heaven and earth, thereby separating men from God and dooming them to hell.

The modern pagan and pantheist worldview includes but is not limited to the following demon influenced teachings, anti-origin accounts, worship of matter and energy, occultisms, and ideologies:

"Perennial Philosophy, naturalism, modernism, Darwinism, the god-molecule, atheism, green environmentalism; postmodernism; Teilhard’s pantheist evolutionary conception; population reduction schemes; Critical Race Theory, neo-Marixist Woke, Revoice, transgenderism, Pride, Gaia, Secular Humanism; Transhumanism; the Singularity; evolutionary materialism; cosmic pantheism; the New World Order concept; higher and lower Biblical criticism; Biblical deconstruction; demystification of the Bible; evolutionary theism; Illumined Masonry; the Third Eye; nihilism; Satanism; death wishing, centering prayer; Mindfulness meditation; spiritism; human sacrifice; occultism, ancient and modern Mystery Religions; Luciferianism; monism; the Void; serpent power; ouroboros; chaos magic; extraterrestrials, Space Brothers, Hathor of the UFO of God; Baphomet; death of God theology; progressivism; communism, socialism, Mormonism, and the scientific neutrality principle:

“The origin of the neutrality principle is the Garden of Eden. Its’ father is the Evil One who tempted Eve to approach the question of eating from the forbidden tree in a neutral, unbiased fashion. He slyly suggested she adopt a neutral position in order to decide who was right, God or the snake. Like modernists of our own age Eve doubted and therefore rejected God’s Word as authoritative and conclusive. As a true neutralist she determined for herself which choice to take.” Gen. 3:4-6. (Modernist Christians in a Man-Centered Universe: Scientific Neutrality and Biblical Deconstruction, Linda Kimball)

"(In Mormonism) Jesus is merely an elder brother who like other spirit-children enter physical bodies for their turns upon Earth, each experiencing the pains and joys that will ultimately help them in their progression toward becoming God. Indeed, in Mormonism, Jesus is merely a spirit brother of Lucifer who was conceived in heaven by a celestial Mother and came in flesh as the result of the Father having sex with the Virgin Mary. Moreover, while Christians believe that God is spirit (John 4:24), Mormons hold that "God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens!" Mormonism also holds to a plurality of gods and contends that "as man is God once was; as God is, man may become." (Do Near-Death Experiences Provide Accurate Information on the Afterlife? Hank Hanegraff)

Then there are the following popular teachings and occultisms:

“A Course in Miracles, Alchemy, American Indian Quest, Ancient Mythology, Arkashic Record, Aryuvedic Medicine, Astrology, Bahai’i Unity, Buddhism, Buddhist/Christian Dialogue, Chakras, Channeling, Christian Monastic Mysticism, Crystals, Divination, Dream work, Druidism, Eastern Meditation, Eckankar (soul travel), Ecofeminism, Enneagram, EST, Feng Shui, Gnosticism (ancient and modern), Goddess worship, Hare Krishna, Hermeticism, Higher Self, Hinduism, Holism, Human Potential Movement, Hypnosis, I Ching, Iridology, Jungian Transpersonal Psychology, Kabbalah, Karma, Mandalas, Mantras, Mind-altering drugs, Parapsychology, Past Life Regressions, Reiki, Re-incarnation, Religious syncretism, Rolfing, Sacred Technologies, Santeria, Scientology, Shamanism, Sufism, T’ai Chi, Tantrism, Tarot Cards, Teilhardism, Therapeutic Touch, Tikkun, Transcendental Meditation, Ufology, Urantia Book, Visualization, Wicca, Yoga, Zen.” (One or Two? Dr. Peter Jones, pp. 40-41)

Teachers of these satanic lies are not limited to new pagan sages, philosophers, gurus, ideologues, Oprah Winfrey, and 'scientists' but include many 'Christian' evolutionary theists and seminarians. All together they are the spirit of antichrist.

From such as these we are to turn away (2 Timothy 3:5).

Let us pray:

Lord Jesus, we know it is the last hour and even now many antichrists have come. By their coming we know it is the last hour. Many of them say they are Christian but have gone out from us because they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

The enemy of our souls, the spirit of antichrist, has made itself manifest and by this we know our apostate civilization and church are being prepared by Satan to eventually receive the false messiah, the Antichrist, when his time has come at the end of history. Already, much of the church from the Roman Catholic to Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Protestant has been infected with demonic teachings to prepare the way for Antichrist and this demonically infected church attacks the Lords faithful church just as our demonically infected society attacks all who worship God the Father, and desire justice, morality, and truth.

"The weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of the world. Instead, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul’s Apostolic Authority

This is our time and our call for battle. The spirit of antichrist, the enemy of our souls, has risen against us and does not allow us to rest in peace. Your faithful children Lord, ask that You equip us with strength, courage, discernment, and hearts for Truth that we not be deceived by the spirit of antichrist and that we might boldly enter into the battle against that evil spirit and its deceptive teachings in church and society. Lord, help us to discern Truth from demonic deceptions and demolish strongholds of the mind by tearing them down in the knowledge that Truth sets free. Strengthen us in Your Word that we can courageously take our stand on the Rock against the deceit of the spirit of antichrist. All this we ask and pray in the name of the Crucified Risen Christ. Amen