Please read before watching:
When Shane talks about “the beast” of Revelation, and he gives practical context for what was going on when John was writing Revelation, he is answering a question directly related to the “antichrist” and the beast, and HE IS NOT saying that Jesus is not coming back. What he is saying is that history already accounts for much of what Revelation is referring to.
Our church fully affirms the second coming of Christ.
Where we also fully affirm the history that Shane gives in this answer, we do maintain our belief that there is a prophetic nature to the book of Revelation that was not mentioned in his particular answer. Like Shane said, sermons are not meant to be “agreed” with, declarations are. (i.e. - Jesus is Lord!) - sermons are meant to be wrestled with. We are posting this video because it has caused a lot of wrestling, and we like that around here.
We also want to make sure that it is known that the word “antichrist” does not at any point appear in the book of Revelation, it is a word used exclusively in the 1 and 2 Epistles of John to describe something or someone(s) that “takes the place of Christ.” - there is no denying that there are many antichrists, not just one, and they are in our world today. For a more detailed talk on the antichrist we read about in John’s epistles, click here.
So as I personally wrestle with what Shane says here, I find that I differ on his short answer, but affirm his long answer, and encourage you to wrestle with this one just like everything else.
-jacob.
