For many shall come in my name, saying, *I* am the Christ, and they shall mislead many.
The disciples had asked when the temple would fall and what would signal the close of the age. The Lord's first answer is not an event but a danger: people will use His name to pull others away, and many will fall for it.
Deception Comes First
The disciples asked for signs. The Lord starts instead with a danger they must guard against:
The Lord does not answer the disciples' question at once. Instead He warns them about the dangers they would meet in their service after He left them. Satan would raise up false Christs to deceive the Jews, and many would be taken in. They would have to be on their guard.
Who the Warning Is For
The warning fits people who are waiting for the Messiah to appear on earth. That is why commentators tie it to a faithful Jewish remnant rather than to the church:
The Epistles never really carry this kind of thought — a warning against false Christs — because they are written to Christians, and a Christian could not be fooled by a man's claim to be Christ... These disciples stood for the godly remnant of the nation, who were looking for the Messiah to bring in glory. So the Lord warns them: if anyone stood up among them saying, "I am Christ," they were not to believe him.
Another writer turns the point around. Their hope is right, and that is what leaves them open:
The godly remnant will be right to look for Christ to appear on the earth, so a report that He had come could easily fool them.
The Danger for Christians Now
Kelly then names the deceit Christians have to watch for instead:
The great thing that marks the Church out is the presence of the Holy Spirit. So the deceit we have to watch against is false spirits, not false Christs, though there are many antichrists... What gives Satan power over someone who claims the name of Christ is allowing sin. Satan has not one atom of power against a child of God who is looking to Jesus. But where self is allowed, it is an opening for Satan to come in.
Why the Deceit Succeeds
Refusing the real Messiah does not leave a person neutral; it leaves an empty place. One writer traces the deceit back to what the heart already wanted:
They received glory from one another. They did not seek it from God. They had not the love of God. So they would not receive the One who came in His Father's name. But that would hand them over to the Antichrist. He will come in his own name, doing his own will, and they will welcome him. It is a solemn thing to realize, and yet completely certain: everything that would displace Christ in the soul makes room for the Antichrist.
Where It Sits in the Prophetic Line
Daniel's seventieth week is a seven-year period named by the prophet Daniel. One writer places verses 5–8 in its first half, while noting that the same things show up more widely:
He warns them not to be fooled by the lies of the many who would come claiming to be Christ. These verses 5-8 apply in particular to the first three and a half years of Daniel's seventieth week. Yet of course similar things have appeared in our own age too... These things would be only the beginning of sorrows, signs of things more serious to come.
Already Proven True
History shows the warning was needed. One writer names an early case:
In A.D. 131 a fanatical deceiver, Bar-chobab, arose, giving himself out to be the promised Messiah.
Other imposters are less obvious. They never claim the title, yet they take His place:
Many have already come claiming to be Christ. Some of them do not use this exact title, yet they lift themselves into the place that belongs to the Lord Jesus alone. They have deceived many. These first words of the Lord's prophecy have already been fulfilled again and again.
The Safeguard
The Lord warned us ahead of time. So if a lie catches us, the fault is ours:
When it comes to prophecy there are countless deceptions. But if we are deceived, we are to blame, for God is not deceived. Honest fellowship with Him, staying under His Word, will keep us safe.
Summary
- Rejection — Turn down the true Christ, and the search does not stop. Whatever displaces Him in the soul makes room for the fake.
- Imitation — The deceiver borrows His name. Many come claiming the title, and others take His place without ever saying the word.
- Expectation — The warning fits people who are right to look for Messiah on earth. A true hope, aimed at the wrong man, is the deceiver's opening.
- Multiplication — "Many" come and "many" are led away. This is only the beginning of sorrows, and heavier things follow.
- Preservation — God is not deceived. Honest fellowship with Him, staying under His Word, keeps you. We were warned, so we have no excuse.