Die Biblische und Islamische endzeitlehre im Vergleich

The Antichrist Spirit Of Islam

The Spirit of Antichrist

While we have already discussed the actual person of the Antichrist, the Bible also talks of an antichrist spirit. Apart from the one direct reference in the Bible to The Antichrist, there are four other times that the word is used in a more general sense by the Apostle John. Each time it is in reference to a particular spirit. This spirit is defined by its denial of some very specific aspects of Jesus’ nature and His relationship to God the Father. Following are the verses that describe this “antichrist” spirit:

This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. 1 John 4:2 -3

Who is the liar ? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist–he denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 1 John 2:22,23

Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 2 John 1:7

From these verses, we learn that the antichrist is a spirit that is identified as a “liar” and a “deceiver” which specifically denies the following:

1. That Jesus is the Christ/Messiah (The savior/deliverer of Israel and the World)

2. The Father and the Son (The Trinity or that Jesus is The Son of God).

3. That Jesus has come in the flesh. (The incarnation - that God became man)

The Antichrist Spirit Of Islam

The religion of Islam, more than any other religion, philosophy, or belief system, fulfills the description of the antichrist spirit. The religion of Islam makes it one of its highest priorities to very specifically deny all of the above points regarding Jesus and His relationship to the Father. In fact, it can very fairly be said that Islam literally is a direct polemical response against the above essential Christian doctrines. Regarding the above points however, Muslims will be quick to argue that Islam teaches that Jesus is indeed the Messiah. But this is really just trickery. While it is true that Islam does retain the title of Messiah for Jesus, when one asks a Muslim to define what the title “Messiah” actually means in Islam, the definitions given are always hollow and fall entirely short of containing any truly messianic substance. In Islam, Jesus is merely another prophet in a very long line of prophets. Biblically speaking however, the role of the Messiah, among other things, also entails being a Divine Priestly Savior, a Deliverer and the King of the Jews. As we saw in the earlier chapters about the Muslim Jesus, rather than being a Messiah that saves or delivers Israel and all of his faithful followers in any way, in the Islamic traditions, Jesus instead returns to lead Israel’s enemies against her in battle and to kill or convert all Jews and Christians. This would be the equivalent of calling Adolph Hitler, rather than Moses, Israel’s deliverer. For now, we see that the apostle John informs us that just before the final hour, a very specific “spirit” will dominate the earth. This spirit will deny many of the essential biblical doctrines regarding who Jesus is and what He came to do. Islam epitomizes this spirit perfectly.

Tawhid and Shirk

In order to properly understand the antichrist spirit of Islam, there are two doctrines that must first be understood. The first is called Tawhid. It is the most essential belief in Islam. Tawhid refers to the belief in the absolute oneness of God. Islam adheres to the strictest form of unitarian monotheism possible. In Islam, God is utterly alone. But in order to understand tawhid, one must understand that it is more than just a doctrine. In Islam, belief in tawhid is an absolute commandment. And if adherance to tawhid is the highest and most important commandment in Islam, then the greatest sin is called Shirk. Shirk is the opposite of tawhid. It is in essence, idolatry. From the “Invitation to Islam” newsletter published by a Muslim group from Toronto, we read a very telling statement, which helps us to understand exactly how shirk is viewed by Muslims: