THE ANTICHRIST COUNTERFEITS THE PREROGATIVES OF GOD—TO BE HOLY, TO BE GOD, AND TO FORGIVE SINS by Pastor James Wright

THE ANTICHRIST COUNTERFEITS THE PREROGATIVES OF GOD—TO BE HOLY, TO BE GOD, AND TO FORGIVE SINS

God alone is inherently, perfectly, and intrinsically holy. In Scripture, holiness defines God’s complete separation from sin and His transcendence above all creation in heaven and on earth.

We will discuss three vital attributes of God that the Antichrist counterfeits.

1. HOLINESS

Passages such as Revelation 15:4 testify to God’s holiness:

“Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.”

Revelation 15:4

GOD ALONE IS HOLY, AND HE ALONE DESERVES TO BE WORSHIPPED.

Lucifer, who became Satan, was one of God’s created beings. He attempted to usurp the authority of Christ and asked Christ to worship him. This leader of the rebellion received a scathing rebuke from Christ in the wilderness of temptation:

“Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”
Matthew 4:10

David, writing in Psalm 111:9, speaks of the redemptive, covenant-keeping God:

“He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name.”
Psalm 111:9

Therefore, the conclusion is this: God alone is holy, God alone is reverend, and God alone deserves worship.

Any man, church, organization, society, or club that claims to be holy and reverend, and requires worship from its members, has borrowed this blasphemous idea from Satan himself. It is antithetical to Christ and falls under the banner of Antichrist.

2. WANTING TO BE GOD

The second attribute of God counterfeited by the Antichrist is the claim to be God.

God declares through His prophet who He is:

“Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,

Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.”
Isaiah 46:9–10

Jesus declared Himself to be the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob:

“I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”
Matthew 22:32

So, in plain sight, who is this Antichrist power that claims to be God? Who is this mortal man whom presidents, prime ministers, kings, queens, sultans, and others address as God?

Why have men of faith and practice declined to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth as it is found in the Word of God?

LET THE ANTICHRIST POWER TELL YOU WHO HE IS IN HIS OWN WORDS.

The “Catholic Mirror” reportedly stated in July 1895:

“The Pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ Himself, hidden under veil of flesh.” [1]

Pope Leo XIII wrote in his encyclical letter dated June 20, 1894:

“We hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty.” [2]

The Latin phrase “Dominum Deum Nostrum Papam” is translated into English as:

“Our Lord God the Pope.” [3]

Honest, Bible-believing Christians know that there is no divinity in a mere mortal such as the pope. Like everyone else, he depends upon the God of heaven for the life-sustaining elements of oxygen, water, and food.

The Bible says:

“The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season.

Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.”
Psalm 145:15–16

3. CLAIMING THE AUTHORITY TO FORGIVE SINS

The Antichrist power counterfeits another attribute of Christ: His authority to forgive sins.

Jesus declared:

“But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.”
Luke 5:24

The Bible also says:

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
1 Timothy 2:5

And again:

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 1:9

But in defiance of the plain utterances of Scripture, the Antichrist power has usurped Jesus’ authority by claiming to possess the power to pardon sin.

The “Catholic Encyclopedia”, Volume 12, 1913 edition, page 265, states clearly:

“This judicial authority will even include the power to pardon sin.” [4]

The book “The Catholic Priesthood”, page 78, states that the Catholic priest has the power to pardon or not to pardon sins. [5]

ONLY JESUS POSSESSES THE POWER AND AUTHORITY TO FORGIVE SINS. ANYONE ELSE CLAIMING THAT AUTHORITY IS AGAINST CHRIST AND HAS BECOME ANTICHRIST.

James 5:16 declares:

“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

The instructions are very clear. James 5:16 tells us to confess our faults to one another.

First John 1:9 teaches that only Jesus can forgive us of our sins when we confess them to Him alone.

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

[1] The Catholic Mirror, July 1895. Citation preserved as supplied in the pastor’s original manuscript.

[2] Pope Leo XIII, Praeclara Gratulationis Publicae, June 20, 1894.

[3] Ellen G. White Estate, Appendix to The Great Controversy—historical reference to Dominum Deum Nostrum Papam.

[4] The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 12, “The Pope”—statement concerning judicial authority and the power to pardon sin.

[5] The Catholic Priesthood, p. 78. Citation preserved as supplied in the pastor’s original manuscript; the author and edition were not provided.

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