The answer to this question will reveal the single greatest identifier of the antichrist who is the lawless one spoken of in 2 Thessalonians 2:-7.
-
If loves opposite is hate, what is the best biblical example of love?– Jeremy St. GermainApr 2, 2021 at 9:19
-
1Welcome to BH. Please see the Tour and the Help (below, bottom left) as to the purpose and the functioning of the site.– Nigel JApr 2, 2021 at 9:40
-
2The question has not established how, exactly, determining the opposite of love will 'identify' the lawless one (it is ανομοσ, anomos). And it is a matter of opinion what the opposite of love is, in any case. It could be hatred, murder, selfishness or other things. I think the question needs focus and clarity, myself to get it away from mere opinion.– Nigel JApr 2, 2021 at 11:16
-
Satan and other devils his rank are evil spirits. Lesser devils are called unclean spirits, because they are not chaste. Both evilness and uncleaness are anti God. Satan will survive the end times and not succumb until the end of the millennium. The spirits of the beast and the false prophet looks like frogs, and are therefore unclean spirits.– ConstantthinApr 2, 2021 at 23:09
2 Answers
The opposite of love is selfishness:
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Php 2:1–11, ESV)
-
Amen, very well put. What does this tell of the nature of the antichrist? Apr 2, 2021 at 9:14
-
@Perry you might also want to quote Romans 2:7-8– user35803Apr 2, 2021 at 14:42
For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous. [1 John 3:13 KJV]
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. [John 8:44 KJV]
The wicked one, 1 John 3:13, of whom was Cain, is here characterised by Cain's slaying of his brother.
And the devil (diabolos), John 8:44, is here characterised by, firstly, murder and, secondly, by lying (to Eve, as a means to the murder of humanity in the beginning).
I would say that the opposite of love is murder - the negation of another rather than love to that other. The emotion is hatred ; the activity is murder.
... he that hateth his brother is a murderer. [1 John 3:15 KJV]
John, here, equates the two. One might say hatred is the opposite of love, but then hatred is the same as murder. There is an equivalence between the two. They are interchangeable.
And this murderous hatred is what characterises the Wicked One who shall be manifest, on earth, in humanity, in the last times.
The murder upon which he will be intent is the murder not of humanity generally, for humanity is that which he indwells. It will be the murder of the saints, God's people, the true Church, on which he will be focused.
This is already evident in certain parts of the world, today.
-
Love is John 3:16. Based on this, what one word would you use to describe the character of God, and what is the opposite of that word? Apr 2, 2021 at 9:30
-
1@JeremySt.Germain I would not dream of attempting to describe the character of the Lord God almighty with just one word. God's attributes and characteristics are dealt with in many ways, throughout the history of scripture, by multiple (appointed and qualified) authors. We need to imbibe all of that to understand, appreciate and believe in the One who is revealed in his Own word.– Nigel JApr 2, 2021 at 9:37
-
If I may share what He told me about his character that is found in John 3:16. This verse is the DNA of YHWH, it is the quintessential definition of Love and the revelation of the character of YHWH. Love is giving to the point of sacrificing self for the benefit of others. The word that most completely describes a nature such as this is, selfless. The opposite of Love then is selfishness. Selfishness is also the most defining characteristic of man due to the influence of the strongest human instinct-self preservation. Apr 2, 2021 at 9:49
-
1@JeremySt.Germain John also says that 'God is Light'. You need to bear that, also, in mind. It is also said (and repeated) that 'our God is consuming fire'. That, also, needs to be borne in mind. There is also nothing inherently wrong in self-preservation. That is why we procreate : to preserve the species. It is only when self-preservation contradicts the will and purpose of God that self-preservation becomes a sin. But that matter is resolved when 'I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me'. Amen.– Nigel JApr 2, 2021 at 10:01
-
Yes indeed He is all of those things but none of those describe His character. God is Love, Love is his character and the nature of Love is to give. We don’t procreate to preserve the species, we procreate to preserve our own genetic heritage-self preservation. This instinct always opposes the will and purpose of God. Scripture says in Romans 8:7 the flesh is enmity against God, this is the source of the carnal mind. It is rooted in self preservation, here is where you find the very worst of humanity. Greed, corruption, gluttony, fear etc... Apr 2, 2021 at 10:19