An Easy Antichrist
In the first article of this series [1], we introduced the topic of conspiracy speculation and spoke of its dangers to those theologically conservative Adventists who find themselves drawn to it. In the present article we will compare the inspired description of the prophetic and eschatological Antichrist forces with the perception of these forces as found in most conspiracy theories of what we are calling the “New World Order” genre.
An Irony Both Fascinating and Disturbing
An irony both fascinating and disturbing is the fact that theologically conservative Adventists have often issued warnings—and I believe justifiably—to fellow church members regarding the tendency of certain ones to look outside the denomination for theological and spiritual guidance, church growth techniques, and other insights. The Questions on Doctrine fiasco of the 1950s, the Celebration worship movement of the 1990s, along with the interest of many in more recent times in such constructs as “spiritual formation” or practices like “contemplative prayer,” have often evoked such warnings. No one is saying or has said, of course, that non-Adventists have nothing valuable to say on religious subjects, only that the theological and spiritual worldview they represent often stands at odds with the teachings of Scripture and the writings of Ellen G. White, the latter often called the Spirit of Prophecy.
But yet, some who have issued these very warnings have themselves gone to sources outside of Adventism in their pursuit of conspiracy speculation. And whether they realize it or not, they too—like those they have often expressed concern about—have thus partaken of a worldview quite out of harmony with the written counsel of God.
Let us again consider what I’ve called the Berean principle, articulated in the following Bible and Spirit of Prophecy statements:
These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so (Acts 17:11).
To the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them (Isa. 8:20).
Only those who have been diligent students of the Scriptures, and who have received the love of the truth, will be shielded from the powerful delusion that takes the world captive [2].
Men may get up scheme after scheme, and the enemy will seek to seduce souls from the truth; but all who believe that the Lord has spoken through Sister White, and has given her a message, will be safe from the many delusions that will come in these last days [3].
It can’t be stated often enough. The written counsel of God, both Scripture and the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy, must become and remain our supreme authority in all matters spiritual.
Identity of the Antichrist
The Bible is clear, in both Old and New Testaments, that a power is to arise—both in the course of history and at the end of time—which will stand against God and persecute His people.
Various chapters in Daniel and Revelation, as well as II Thessalonians, chapter 2, speak of this power, which the evidence of both Scripture and history identifies as the Roman papacy. Revelation further depicts this power as a threefold union standing in defiance of God and His church in the final moments of the great controversy.
And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth, and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty (Rev. 16:13-14).
Ellen White, under divine inspiration, identifies the partners in this union:
When Protestantism shall stretch her hand across the gulf to grasp the hand of the Roman power, when she shall reach over the abyss to clasp hands with Spiritualism, when, under the influence of this threefold union, our country shall repudiate every principle of its constitution as a Protestant and republican government, and shall make provision for the propagation of papal falsehoods and delusions, then we may know that the time has come for the marvelous working of Satan, and that the end is near [4].
What is clear from this passage, and from other inspired statements, is that the threefold union described in Revelation 16 will not only be religious, but professedly Christian in nature.
This becomes clearest when we read what II Thessalonians, chapter 2 has to say about this power:
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped, so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God (II Thess. 2:3-4).
When we study Paul’s writings, what does the phrase “temple of God” refer to?
Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? (I Cor. 3:16).
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God, as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people (II Cor. 6:16).
Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and with the household of God:
And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone;
In whom all the building fitly framed together growth unto an holy temple to the Lord (Eph. 2:19-21).
The Church Supreme Over the State
So the temple of God in the above passages clearly refers to the professed church of God. And so, when Paul describes this future “man of sin,” and says he will sit “in the temple of God,” this means he will establish himself within the professed Christian church.
Here is where we see a fundamental difference between what other conservative Christians believe about the coming Antichrist system, and what Seventh-day Adventists believe, based on Scripture and the writings of Ellen White. And this difference helps us understand why these conspiracy theories we hear so often, most of which focus on alleged coalitions of secret and powerful persons who are either openly godless or avowedly worshiping Satan, do not harmonize with what Scripture and Ellen White teach regarding the last days.
Put simply, other conservative Christians are looking for a secular, openly godless Antichrist. Seventh-day Adventists, by contrast, believe the coming Antichrist power to be outwardly and professedly Christian. Other Christians are looking for a secular-dominated government to take over the churches and restrict their rights. Seventh-day Adventists, by contrast, believe the ultimate threat to religious freedom in America will come from the Christian community itself.
Let the principle once be established in the United States that the church may employ or control the power of the state, that religious observances may be enforced by secular laws; in short, that the authority of church and state is to dominate the conscience, and the triumph of Rome in this country is assured [5].
In another statement in the same book, Ellen White is clear that this is how the image to the beast will be set up in America—by the church controlling the government, not by the government controlling the church:
In order for the United States to form an image of the beast, the religious power must so control the civil government that the authority of the state will also be employed by the church to accomplish her own ends [6].
American Sovereignty Under Threat?
Let’s look at another distinction between classic Adventist prophetic interpretation, and these popular “New World Order” conspiracy theories. Most of these theories—particularly those that focus on allegedly secret international conglomerates and alliances—focus on the danger of American sovereignty being subverted. Often you hear these people talking about “globalism” as the great threat to the United States. This is one reason advocates of these theories insist that man-made global warming is a hoax, and why they oppose international trade agreements. Anything, in the eyes of these conspiracists, which calls for international cooperation and the pursuit of global rather than merely national interests, is paving the way for the alleged global subversion of both American power and the unique Western, Christian worldview.
While it isn’t the purpose of this article or series to address the reality of global warming or the merits or lack thereof in recent international trade agreements, what we need to clarify from Bible prophecy is that America at the end of time is going to be the leading world power, and is not at all depicted as losing her national sovereignty.
Let’s turn to Revelation, chapter 13. Speaking of the lamb-like beast, which Seventh-day Adventists believe represents the United States of America [7], the ancient prophet writes:
And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, and to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name (Rev. 13:15-17).
Notice carefully that this power, represented by the lamb-like beast, is not forced by some larger, secret power working behind the scenes to yield to some international authority. We don’t even read here that the first beast forces the second beast to do anything. Rather, it is the power of the lamb-like beast that makes an image to the first beast—that is, a replica of medieval intolerance.
And it is the power of this second beast which forces the world to go along.
So if we understand this second beast to represent America, we can’t possibly believe that in the last days, America is going to lose her sovereignty to some secret international conspiracy. Moreover, what is clear from the inspired pen is that the final anti-God coalition of the last days will consist of Catholicism, apostate Protestantism, and spiritualism [8], and that this coalition will accomplish its goals in the United States through a grassroots movement which will constrain political leaders to comply [9]. There is no mention in either Scripture or the Spirit of Prophecy writings of any secret conspiracy or cabal, operating in the shadows, that will usher in the final events.
There is nothing in the inspired writings anywhere about the Illuminati, the United Nations, the Trilateral Commission, the Rockefellers, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Bildebergers, or any other secret group with supposedly vast powers, working against God’s people at the end. Nor does the inspired pen say anything about some evil, worldwide conglomerate abolishing Christianity or reducing America to submission. The only entity described as establishing the power of the threefold union at the end of time is the United States of America. Reading the inspired writings, it becomes clear that whatever influence or power any other alliance or organization might possess in the last days will be deployed solely at America’s behest. Even today, the only power held or wielded by the United Nations exists only because of the United States. Were America to withdraw her support from the UN, the latter would be impotent.
Bad Logic, Bad Sources
As we noted in our last article, a major problem with promoting these “New World Order” conspiracy theories is the kind of logic and material that is so often used to support their existence. To tell one’s audience that you and your ideological acolytes are the only ones telling the truth and that everyone else is lying to them, that the mainstream media and standard historical sources are all part of the supposed conspiracy and thus can’t be trusted, isn’t likely to persuade many intelligent truth-seekers. Thoughtful inquirers with even a modicum of historical awareness will understand that such an allegedly airtight stranglehold on the course of human events is fanciful and absurd. To associate such a paradigm with Bible prophecy and the proclamation of God’s last message to the world is simply ruinous to the credibility of the gospel.
Years ago I saw a newsletter which promoted this “New World Order” strain of conspiracism, printed on cheap paper and costing its subscribers $180 a year! It doesn’t take a mathematical genius to figure out that one publishing such a newsletter is likely to make himself unbelievably rich. All such a one would need is a thousand subscribers to generate an income far beyond the earning capacity of most people. And quite likely, many more than a thousand out there are subscribing to the above newsletter.
By contrast, when Adventist evangelists preach on the end-time coalition against God’s people as presented in Scripture and the writings of Ellen White, they don’t need to use obscure sources and strange logic to buttress their claims. If one wishes to demonstrate the growing alliance in American politics between Roman Catholics, conservative evangelicals, and numerous others in seeking to demolish the wall between church and state—exactly how Ellen White depicts the events leading to the enactment of a national Sunday law in the United States—all one need do is consult mainstream, accessible network news and commentary in order to build a case for the inspired eschatological forecasts.
This isn’t to say mainstream news sources are always reliable and non-mainstream sources always untrustworthy. But when publicly explaining Bible prophecy and its past and future fulfillment, mainstream sources are always best, as they are the most accessible. And it so happens that the inspired end-time scenario needs no fringe sources to sustain it. Whoever does or does not control the mainstream media is notably failing to censor multiplying evidence that what Scripture and the Spirit of Prophecy foretell about the last days is rapidly coming to pass.
Looking for an Easy Antichrist
But perhaps the most dangerous aspect of these popular conspiracy theories is that they set up what I have called an easy Antichrist. Such theories abound in suppositions which too easily arouse the ire of conservative Christians. Secret gatherings where world leaders and prominent public figures worship the devil and engage in moral debauchery. Shadowy conglomerates quietly controlling world events, pulling humanity along on puppet strings. Strange and powerful syndicates conspiring to steal America’s paradise. Marxist, atheistic agitators allegedly responsible for public protests and an aroused recognition of deeply-rooted injustice.
These targets are easy for white, middle-class, culturally conservative Americans to despise. But that’s not the way the Antichrist of Bible prophecy is portrayed. The Biblical Antichrist is depicted in the inspired writings as neither secret nor overtly anti-God. Rather, it is a professedly Christian power which will seduce the world with the trappings of godliness without the genuine transformative power the Biblical gospel provides (II Tim. 3:5). The apostle Paul elaborates on this reality in the following passage:
And no marvel, for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works (II Cor. 11:14-15).
Read Ellen White’s description of Satan’s impersonation of Christ at the end of time [10], and you’ll see how Christian and Christ-like the adversary will come across. This is the trouble with these popular theories which offer us an enemy easy to revile. The devil doesn’t work that way. Since Eden, he has recognized that the subtle approach is the most effective (Gen. 3:1-5). And while he preoccupies people with an Antichrist easy for the vast majority of Christians to hate, the real apostate system clothes itself in angel robes, and catches the professed Christian world unawares.
Jesus said it best in Matthew 24:
For there shall arise false christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect (Matt. 24:24).
We can thank God that it is not possible! But only for those who, as the modern prophet declares, “have been diligent students of the Scriptures, and who have received the love of the truth” [11].
REFERENCES
1. Kevin D. Paulson, “Seventh-day Adventists and Conspiracy Theories,” Part 1: A Gospel of Intrigue” ADvindicate, June 12, 2020 http://advindicate.com/articles/2019/9/20/paulson-draft-1-s88fl-6mlnf-tyf95
2. Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 625.
3. ----Selected Messages, vol. 3, pp. 83-84.
4. ----Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 451.
5. ----The Great Controversy, p. 581.
6. Ibid, p. 443.
7. Ibid, pp. 440-442.
8 . Ibid, p. 588; Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 451.
9. ----Prophets and Kings, p. 606; The Great Controversy, p. 592; Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 451.
10. ----The Great Controversy, pp. 624-625.
11. Ibid, p. 625.
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan