George Bush, is he the Antichrist? Some have attributed this term to Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, and a host of other prominent political leaders. Why does this name create so much fear and mystique for students of the Bible and in general alike? We do not have all the answers, but we are certain that we have some that help clarify the real issues.

The Antichrist Is A Sign of the Last Days

It seems clear that the activity of the Antichrist belongs to a period in the Bible described as the last days. The last days set the stage chronologically for the end-time events to occur. Confusion enshrouds not only the subject of the Antichrist but also that of the last days. Which period defines the last days?

Most generally believe the last days is found in Revelation. The phrase never occurs in that book. However, that is not to say that it does not describe end-time events. More interestingly, it is in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, where the term last days first occurs.

In chapter 49:1, the phrase is used to describe what would happen to the sons of Jacob (Israel.) Key to this prophecy is that the sceptre (symbol of regal authority, i.e. the right to David's throne) would not depart from the tribe of Judah until Shiloh (Christ, the Messiah) returned.

Thus, we have the days of Biblical Israel as the setting for the last days, hence the Antichrist. Is it any surprise then that Christ's return to gather his people (Genesis 49:10) is closely associated with the coming of the Antichrist? Within eleven verses, John's epistle ties together the end of the world, 2:17, the Antichrist, 2:18; and the Parousia, -presence or coming of Christ, 2:28.

Time Is The Key

The confusion about the identity and time of the Antichrist lies in a glossing over of key temporal signposts usually found in the very passages mentioned. Such is the case with our subject. "Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour." (1 John 2:18).

The text is emphatic. Note, "it is the last hour." How could this be at such an early stage of history? In fact, less than 50 years after Christ appeared on earth, the world entered the last hour. That signals a time shorter than the last days. What was the proof? The antichrist had come! In fact it was not one antichrist, but many.

The Antichrist interacted with church of the first century, continuing with them only for a short while. They left to make it known they were of a different spirit. This widely known fact versus the secret mystery concept of today, alerted the early church to know the last hour had arrived in their day and time.

The Antichrist: Already In Their World

John later describes the Antichrist. "And every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world." (1 John 4:3)

What time would "now" be when John wrote to his readers? Would it be 2000 years later? What time would now be if John wrote the same thing today? Would now be 2000 years in our future? When he said, the Antichrist was coming, but now was already in the world, he informed his readers that they (not us) were living in the last hour.

The Last Hour - Not The End of Time

Consequently, the last hour is not the end of time as millions believe. The last hour marked the end of the exclusive covenantal system God had with Israel. Now he has a more inclusive covenantal arrangement extending beyond the blood line of Israel to include all nations who believe by faith qualifying them as sons of Abraham, hence of Christ. (Gal. 3:29)

In summary, the Antichrist is not a single individual. It is not George Bush, Saddam Hussein or any other individual. It is not someone or something that is current in our day. The Antichrist belongs to a period in the first century described in Genesis as the last days of Jacob's sons, or old covenant Israel.

The Antichrist came in the first century generation and is now a matter of past history. It does not belong to our future. Let the masses stop living in fear of the "non-arrival" of the Antichrist. First century disciples lived in the last hour, experienced the Antichrist, the coming of Christ and the end of the old covenant world.