1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
Even though the antichrist spirit was working among them at that time,which is people that deny that Jesus is come in the flesh the antichrist shall come in the future,which can only be by physical entity.
It was spiritual that the antichrist spirit was working,but one day it shall be manifest in a human body that will deceive the world.
The antichrist spirit has been working in the world ever since Jesus resurrected to heaven,but the antichrist is a physical entity that shall happen in the future.
And what is the purpose for this that the antichrist shall come in a physical entity.
It is because God is love,and loves all people,and will not give up on the world,until the world gives up on Him,so He will allow the world 7 years to have their way,and cause all people that does not love Him to follow a kingdom that is based on the occult,nature worship,witchcraft,spiritual evolution through nature,and people can still evolve,and do not acknowledge a personal God,but honor the God of forces,or the power of nature as their higher power,and believe the man of sin,New Age Christ,will harness the power of nature and obtain power,evolve,and will share this power with all who follow him.
Which is the way people of the world believe that they can be greater that is by the power of nature,for the powers that be want to establish evolution,and people can still evolve as the true religion in the world,and will go against all people that are contrary to that.
God has to one day end this sin business on earth,and has allotted mankind a certain amount of time to take a people out of the world that love Him,and has to allow the wicked to be as wicked as they can be so they will rebel against Him,and He can put them down.
God is not forcing anybody to follow the beast kingdom,but He is allowing the wicked to have their way for 7 years so He can put them down,and the wicked will do what the wicked will do,and that is to exalt themselves,and since God is allowing them to have their way they will be more wicked than they have ever been.
Th 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2Th 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
2Th 2:5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th 2:6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed(antichrist in physical entity) whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
2Th 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2Th 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
2Th 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
2Th 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Dan 8:12 And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.
God only allows humans to go so far in their wickedness,and only allows the devil to be able to deceive them so much,for His ways will prevail on earth,but one day that restraint will be gone because God is allowing the world that does not love Him to be as wicked as they want to be,which they will exalt themselves highly,and say,I am and there is none else beside me,and will allow the devil to be able to deceive them as much as he wants,for it is the time to end this sin business on earth,and God will not give up on the world until they give up on Him.
God wants the Gospel to be preached in the world,and the Bible to be proclaimed in the world,but one day He is allowing them to go against it,and prevent it from being taught in the world as all nations come together to try to establish peace on earth by their own ways,a human,fleshy,no good thing dwells in the flesh,kind of endeavor,for it is the end.
God never allowed this in the past,but will allow it in the future,for He is not going to allow mankind to keep dwelling on earth sinning,but must wrap it up one day,and it is not too far away,because the world knows about each other,can communicate with each other,travel to each other,so it is close.
The 7 years period will begin when the man of sin establishes peace in the Middle East,which will cause all Jews to go to Israel,for God said He is not leaving them in the nations anymore,which the man of sin wants them all in one area,but God means it for the good of Israel,and the Gentile nations come together and try to establish peace on earth.
The first three and one half years repentance,and salvation,are available to the world,but the world failed at obtaining peace on earth,so they turn to the man of sin,New Age Christ,as the solution to have peace on earth,and when they follow the beast kingdom,and take the mark of the beast,which has to do with technology,then repentance,and salvation,is no longer available to them,and God will put them down.
Scriptures of the antichrist.
Dan 7:8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
Dan 7:11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.
Dan 7:20 And of the ten horns that were in his head(the world split in to 10 sections with a leader in each section), and of the other which came up(the antichrist), and before whom three fell(the 3 sections that cover the Arab nations,the religion of Islam that the beast takes down); even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.
Dan 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
Dan 7:26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
Dan 8:8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great(Greece): and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven(when Alexander the Great died his kingdom was split in to 4 sections and a general ruled each section).
Dan 8:9 And out of one of them came forth a little horn(the antichrist), which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.
Dan 8:10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them(the fallen angels when Lucifer led the rebellion).
Dan 8:11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.
Dan 8:12 And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression(when the man of sin establishes peace in the Middle East,Israel will rebuild their temple,and go back to animal sacrifices with no hassle from the Palestinians), and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered(the time God is allowing the devil to deceive the world).
Dan 8:23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full(at the end of the first three and one half years when they do not turn to God when the ten horn kingdom fails at obtaining peace on earth,and the world clashed with Islam,and one third of the population died,and they turn to the man of sin so God gives them the man of sin to rule over them), a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up(the antichrist).
Dan 8:24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power(gets his power for Satan for he controls the man of sin for the man of sin is the most rebellious and arrogant person that ever lived): and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
Dan 8:25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand(witchcraft,which the false prophet does miracles in the sight of people to convince them that the New Age Christ did harness the power of nature,and shared this power with the false prophet,and will share this power with all who follow him); and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many(the devil is trying to get the world together by a false peace agenda,League of Nations,United Nations,organizations promoting peace among the nations,with WW3,the world against Islam which will cause the beast kingdom to come about,and the New Age Christ to rule over them): he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes(Jesus); but he shall be broken without hand(of course,without a doubt,nothing wavering,antichrist does not have a chance,that Jesus will defeat him).