whom the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of His mouth.”[1] There you have, my dear brethren, a short description of Antichrist as a forerunner and precursor of the last terrible day of judgment, according to the prophets and apostles in the holy Scriptures, and to the holy Fathers of the Church and the commentators on Holy Writ. What do you think of this? What lesson should we draw from it for the good of our souls? That we shall see in the
Second Part.
We now think that under such circumstances we should remain faithful to Christ. What would you think, I ask again, if, as might easily be the case, Antichrist were to be born soon, so that we should live in his time? For no man knows when that time is to come, as God has reserved the knowledge of it to himself alone. Let us at all events imagine that the cruel man is really in the world, and that we hear and see all that has been said about him; what should we do? Should we dare to renounce Christ and to side with that monster? Should we allow ourselves to be marked with that odious sign: “I deny Christ”? What! each one of you will say, deny Christ? Side with the demons? God forbid that I should think of such a thing! I would rather die a thousand deaths than be untrue to my Saviour and God, or abjure His faith in which alone salvation is to be found! I would laugh at the pretended miracles, and trample on the proffered delights of the flesh, the honors, and riches; I would heroically resist the torture, no matter how terrible, with the divine assistance; all this I would readily do in order not to lose my one immortal soul and the eternal joys of heaven. Oh, truly, that is a beautiful and Christian resolution! And such should be the determination of each one of us even under such terrible circumstances.
But there is reason to fear that we should be deluded by the promises of Antichrist. But, alas! poor mortals that we are with all our resolutions and professions! God of goodness! take me, take me out of the world before those fearful times come! Alas! what would become of us! It is easy for us to say that we would trample on the proffered riches, honors, and pleasures. Now while we are living in peace and quietness and have every opportunity of considering the matter duly, the least temptation is often enough to make us transgress most shamefully and renounce the friendship of the God who is so worthy of our love. How then can we dare to say
- ↑ Et tunc revelabitur ille iniquus, quem Dominus Jesus interficiet spiritu oris sui.—II. Thess. ii. 8.
