We find the word only in the writings of the Apostle John. The Greek word term ἀντίχριστος is transliterated as "antichristos." That is where we get the English word "antichrist," the one who is known as "the adversary of the Messiah."
Only three brief passages in the entire New Testament contain descriptions of the antichrist and his spirit. Let's take a quick look at all of them.
1 John 2
18 Children, it is the last hour. And as you have heard, “Antichrist is coming,” even now many antichrists have come. We know from this that it is the last hour.
...
22 Who is the liar, if not the one who denies that Jesus is the Messiah? This one is the antichrist: the one who denies the Father and the Son.
23 No one who denies the Son can have the Father; he who confesses the Son has the Father as well.
In our first passage, we see that being antiChrist refers to a rejection of the belief in the unity of the Father with the Son and the Son with the Father. One cannot believe in the Father only, or in the Son only. One must believe in both equally because, as Jesus said, "The Father and I are One." (John 10:30). In short, the antiChrist rejects the teaching of the Trinity.
This co-equality of Father and Son was affirmed by the Lord Jesus when He said,
23 "... all people will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him." John 5
A portion of 1 John 4
from Papyrus P9, dated circa early 200 AD
Our next two passages contain the same definition for the antichrist and his followers, so let's tackle them together:
1 John 4 (italics mine)
2 This is how you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit who confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God.
3 But every spirit who does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist; you have heard that he is coming, and he is already in the world now.
2 John
7 Many deceivers have gone out into the world; they do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.
The key phrase here is "Jesus Christ has come in the flesh." Since all mankind comes in the flesh, the point is obvious. In the first chapter of his Gospel, John writes this about Jesus:
1 In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
...
14 The Word became flesh
and took up residence among us.
We observed His glory,
the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth. John 1
There are no two ways about it.
1 In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
...
14 The Word became flesh
and took up residence among us.
We observed His glory,
the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth. John 1
There are no two ways about it.
Jesus is GOD.
Recapping what our three passages teach, we see that the antichrist and his followers:
1) deny the unity of Father and Son as YHWH God, and consequently, their co-equality in the Triune Godhead
2) reject the deity of Christ
So, if you deny that the Father and the Son are one God, or if you reject the fact that Jesus Christ is God, then by biblical definition, you are antichrist, an adversary of the Messiah.
The good news is that there is still time to repent and seek the Lord's forgiveness for rejecting Him (text in brackets mine).
2 "For [YHWH] says: I heard you
in an acceptable time,
and I helped you in the day of salvation.
Look, now is the acceptable time;
now is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 6
Come home to Jesus!
in an acceptable time,
and I helped you in the day of salvation.
Look, now is the acceptable time;
now is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 6
Come home to Jesus!
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