A Type of the Antichrist in History
1 John 4:1-3
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, 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.
The Apostle John writing many years ago said that we are to test the spirits, and he gives us a simple test to employ. John says that any spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God, and he adds that if a spirit will not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, it is the spirit of the Antichrist. Even in John’s day, the spirit of Antichrist was already in the world.
If you are a Bible student and a student of eschatology, you know the Antichrist will come on the scene after the Rapture, but the spirit of Antichrist is here now, and history has presented us with several types of what the Antichrist will be. I could list them forever: Adolf Hitler, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Charlemagne the Great, and Joseph Stalin Those are obvious, but I came across an article the other day on History Collection. Yes, I am one of those former history teacher nerds that likes to look at history websites. The article was titled 25 Unpleasant Facts About the Jonestown Massacre. When I read the article, it became rather obvious that Jim Jones was a type of the spirit of Antichrist that John described in 1 John 4.
If you are not familiar with Jim Jones, he led a cult called the Peoples Temple, and on November 19, 1978, he convinced over 900 men, women, and children to drink poisoned Kool-Aid. Now, I am not going to share all 25 facts the article shares about Jim Jones because you can find the article on History Collection, but I want to point out a few things that show me that Jim Jones was possessed with the spirit of Antichrist.
First, the Peoples Temple sought people who were in need. Jones preyed on the needy, and he knew one of the best ways to get followers was to do it through a “church.” The Peoples Temple looked like any other church in the community reaching out to help those in need, but dear friend, the Bible tells us to beware and to test the spirits.
Matthew 7: 15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”
Jim Jones was that wolf in sheep’s clothing. He needed a following to do what he wanted to do, and the needy were the most vulnerable.
Second, the Peoples Temple was socialistic. Idols of Jim Jones included Joseph Stalin, Karl Marx, and Adolf Hitler. Hitler was infamous for national socialism. Marx and Stalin established communism with the government being god. Dear friend, socialism and communism are both of the spirit of Antichrist, and socialism/communism will be the vehicle that the Antichrist rides to power. Look at these verses and see if you do not see centralized authority in charge.
Revelation 13:16-17
He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
During the Great Tribulation, rich and poor will be on the same economic footing. In the Peoples Temple, everyone, it seemed, was on the same economic footing, but there is a little fact that socialists/communists want to hide. Those in leadership positions in those styles of governments are not equal with the masses. Those leaders enjoy the pleasantries of life. Jim Jones did the same. Jim Jones took what he wanted, gave to the congregation as he saw fit, and he kept the rest. The Antichrist of the future does the same.
Revelation 6:5-6
When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.”
When the world is going to hell in a hand basket, there will be some that will live off the wealth of the land while others barely survive. It is a perfect description of socialism/communism. Make no mistake about it friend. The government of the end will not be concerned with personal liberty. Socialism/Communism will rule the day after the Rapture and before Christ returns at Armageddon. Jim Jones gave his people crumbs while he enjoyed the best of the Peoples Temple.
Third, Jim Jones staged miracles. One of the ways to get the people so “hooked” was the performance of miracles by Jones. Dear friend, the Antichrist will do the same thing.
Revelation 13:13-14
He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived.
The Antichrist and his chief lieutenant, the False Prophet, will perform such amazing miracles that the world will do anything they ask or say to do. The Peoples Temple was deceived in much the same way. If Jones did perform miracles, it was not from God. It was through the power of the devil. Why do I say that?
John 20: 30-31
And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
The focus of God’s Word is Jesus Christ, God’s Son, not Jesus Christ the miracle worker. Dear friend, you need to be careful when it comes to miracles. God still heals, and miracles still happen, but do not just believe the “miracle” came from God until you test the spirit. The Peoples Temple so followed after Jones that over 900 of them drank the poisoned Kool-Aid. Mothers gave the Kool-Aid to their babies. It is just unbelievable how distorted someone’s mind can become when they do not trust in the Jesus Christ of the Bible.
Dear friend, I challenge you to go to History Collection and read the article, but in the meantime, I urge you to test the spirits. The spirit of Antichrist is present in this world, and that spirit is looking to lead you to hell if you are lost. If you are lost, you cannot test the spirits, but you can if you trust in Jesus. Jesus Christ died for you so that you can have eternal life in Him. All you have to do is admit that you are a sinner, believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God resurrected on the third day, confess Him as Lord of your life, repent, and you will experience the new birth.
I would be glad to answer any question that you might have regarding salvation. Leave your question in the comments section, or email it to me at jclendenin37@yahoo.com