As soon as the word antichrist is mentioned, all kinds of questions come to mind.

Could the antichrist be alive somewhere in the world today?

Could he be a child, or perhaps a teenager, a college student, or even an adult waiting in the wings to emerge as a world leader?

Could one of today’s well-known political leaders be the antichrist?

What will this individual be like?

As I point out in my recent book 40 Days through Daniel, Christ and the antichrist are significantly antithetical to each other: 

• One is called the man of sorrows (Isaiah 53:3); the other, the man of lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:3). 
• One is called the Son of God (John 1:34); the other, the son of destruction (2 Thessalonians 2:3). 
• One is called the Lamb (Isaiah 53:7); the other, the beast (Revelation 11:7). 
• One is called the Holy One (Mark 1:24); the other, the lawless one (2 Thessalonians 2:8). 
• One came to do the Father’s will (John 6:38); the other will do his own will (Daniel 11:36). 
• One performed miracles and signs (John 2); the other will perform counterfeit signs and wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10). 
• One was energized by the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:14); the other will be energized by Satan, the unholy spirit (Revelation 13:4). 
• One submitted Himself to God (John 5:30); the other will defy God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). 
• One humbled Himself (Philippians 2:8); the other will exalt himself (Daniel 11:37). 
• One honored God (Luke 4:16); the other will refuse to do so (Daniel 11:37). 
• One cleansed the temple (John 2:14,16); the other will defile the temple (Matthew 24:15). 
• One was slain for the people (John 11:51); the other will slay the people (Isaiah 14:20). 

I also want you to notice that the antichrist takes on the character of the very one who energizes him—Satan (2 Thessalonians 2:9): 

• Satan proudly sought to exalt himself to godhood (Ezekiel 28:17; Isaiah 14:13-14). The antichrist likewise “exalts himself… proclaiming himself to be God” (2 Thessalonians 2:4). 
• Satan is a masterful deceiver (John 8:44; Revelation 12:9). The antichrist will likewise come with “all wicked deception” (2 Thessalonians 2:10). 
• Satan persecutes God’s people (1 Peter 5:8). The antichrist will likewise “make war on the saints” (Daniel 7:21; Revelation 13:7).

Of course, the good news is that this is not the end of the story in the antichrist’s ultimate showdown with Christ.

The antichrist, like Satan, is a finite creature; Jesus Christ, by contrast, is God—He is called the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). The antichrist’s kingdom will collapse like a house of cards (Revelation 18); Christ’s kingdom will last forever and ever (2 Peter 1:11). The antichrist, like Satan, will be eternally quarantined in the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20); Christ, by contrast, will personally fellowship with His people in heaven for all eternity (Revelation 21–22). Glorious!

My advice: Keep your eternal perspective strong. As Bible scholar F.F. Bruce put it, “We are refugees from the sinking ship of this present world order, so soon to disappear; our hope is fixed in the eternal order, where the promises of God are made good to his people in perpetuity.” Amen!

Learn more about the antichrist and the end times in 40 Days Through Daniel.