For many years I have questioned how the entire world could be deceived into worshipping Satan and believing that he is God. Multiplied millions of people have seen and heard enough about the Biblical God to surely know better. Whatever idea or appearance of this strange god-like manifestation must be Satan’s masterpiece of deception. For the devil to be able to pull off this final act of rebellion against the Great God of Eternity will require his best great act of masquerading powers.

Remember, Satan is the master deceiver who started a rebellion in the very heart of the heavenly temple and in the center of the angelic domain. Ezekiel paints a breathtaking picture of this beautiful creature that was created by Jehovah God and how his dwelling in the Heavenly domain was glorious until he sinned. Read this story carefully.

“Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.” (Ezekiel 28:12-18).

After this picture, no one can doubt after this picture of the corruption which Satan is capable. This great rebellion did not take place in some dark region of the sin cursed earth, it took place in the very temple of God. Satan showed that he was capable of fomenting a rebellion so breathtaking that one third of the angels joined her foray. The Holy Ghost inspired the prophet Ezekiel to say of Satan, “Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.” No, my dear friend, he does not look like a dragon, that is his character; he looks absolutely perfect in his beauty. His great skill at presenting himself and deluding others (angels or humans) is called by this prophet, Ezekiel, “the multitude of thy merchandise.” The Spirit clearly describes this merchandise of Satan as having “filled the midst of thee (Satan) with violence.”

Satan Wants to be God Above All Else
Satan’s entire rebellion appears to have begun with the desire to replace God. That was his beginning of sin. He said “I will” five times as recorded by Isaiah. “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.” (Isaiah 14:12-15).

Because of man’s continuous sins and rebellion against God, Satan is going to be allowed his last great act of masquerading the Father’s likeness. Satan is the master at trying to imitate the Heavenly Father. Every false religion is established on some false premise or false promise. These religions usually started with some lofty experience or with some great expression of compassion, but quickly descended to just another wilderness of despair. Satan is hopelessly the master of failure and sorrows. Ezekiel said, “Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.” (Ezekiel 28:18). Yet, with all of Satan’s failures he will not give up until he is judged after this great display.

A God that Unholy Men Can Worship
Satan is the only god that unholy men can worship. Every expression of pagan religions, cults, or any distorted form of Christianity is a religion of Satan. Whatever the god of these religions may be called, behind that god is Satan. Even when men debauch the Christian faith and preach another gospel, the true personality behind the form is Satan. No wonder Jesus said, “For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:5).

Satan has no qualms at presenting himself behind the name of Jesus. That is probably his greatest act of masquerading when he can hide in the “greatest and sweetest” name of all human existence. I believe this end time deception must be done under the umbrella of the name of Jesus. Satan will present himself as God, but he will hide in the process behind a hybrid form of what will be called Biblical Christianity. John the Revelator saw this deception and recorded it beautifully in the Book of Revelation. No wonder Satan hates the Book of Revelation and has caused a multitude of preachers to reject, deny, or distort this final revelation of Holy Scripture.

Before we look at Satan’s “Unholy Trinity” that he will masquerade before the world, let me list four major reasons men reject the Holy Bible as the final revelation. Every form of deception will begin with one or more of these rejections.

The world hates the cross of Jesus Christ. The cross is the opposite of carnal and self-centered living. The flesh is always uncomfortable around the cross.
The world hates a narrow Christianity that claims exclusiveness. All expressions of the faith must be honored equally.

The world hates a book that is perfect and uncompromising. They want a Bible that the scholars can doctor or one they can play pick and choose with.
The world hates holiness. They want a religion that does not require separation from the profane and the worldly.

God the Father is going to give them what they want . . . “for a short season of seven years”.

Do not question for a moment that our Great God is sovereign. Satan will be allowed his final expose’ of delusion or masquerade, but it is God the Father that gives him this rope on which to hang himself. No one painted a more breathtaking picture of Satan’s last hurrah than Zechariah. Even as this prophet spelled out the end times, he stated clearly as he quoted His Father, “I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.” (Zechariah 5:4).

The Heavenly Father is going to allow Satan to masquerade his “unholy trinity.” This act by Lucifer will be similar to his rebellion that occurred in Heaven. Nothing that Satan has ever produced will be more deceiving than what he is now planning. It will be his closest acts to the picture we saw in Ezekiel 28. Satan will present himself as God; he will produce his own “false christ” and his own “false spirit.” It will be such a perfect reproduction of the true trinity that the world will wonder after the dragon. As you consider this thought, let us read II Corinthians for a picture of Satan’s power to transform himself and his false apostles and prophets. “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).

This passage is breathtaking truth. It gives a picture of how Satan can metamorphous himself and his preachers into a distorted view. Here is the meaning of the phrase transforming themselves (It is one word in the original Greek): “to transfigure or disguise.” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, Greek Dictionary Of The New Testament, p. 47.)

Do not underestimate the power of Satan to present himself as an angel of light and even as “God Himself.” As the Father allows Satan his final masquerade, the world will be swept off its feet just like one third of the angels were deceived thousands of years ago.

Satan and his Unholy Trinity
The world wants a “god” that unholy men can worship, and Satan will be allowed to give it to them. Satan has already begun this master plan and the groundwork is well-progressing. The key word in most theological thought today is “tolerant” or “unity”. Coupled with the attitude of tolerance and unity is a new interpretation of many wonderful Biblical truths. My article on the “Roots Of The New Wave” presented in the last edition of this publication is a picture of these new theologies. There is a major shift to these false theological ideas gripping the church world. This is Satan’s groundwork in preparing the church for his schemes.

He will be Cast Down to the Earth
The angels of God will cast Satan out of the mid-heavens almost as soon as the Rapture occurs. Let us read several verses from this graphic picture of war in heaven.

“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” “Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Revelation 12:7-10,12,17).

This incredible picture leaves Satan angry beyond measure and he is said to immediately plan war against the remnant of the sun-clothed woman’s seed, which are then identified. They are those people left on the earth that now “keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Revelation 12:17).

The very next verse reveals Satan’s immediate acts. A beast rises up out of the sea (geographical area of the Mediterranean) with all the types of Antichrist. The appearance of this beast is clearly connected to the dragon himself. It is his doing and he is now preparing his masquerade. He cannot present himself to the world as the dragon and convince the world to worship him. He must have a face that the world is expecting. All the world and all major religions are looking for a christ, an enlightened one, a great messiah, and a charismatic leader. Satan must have his christ, his son, even as God the Father sent the only begotten Son.

Satan Presents to the World his False Christ
Satan is going to have his false trinity as his final act of masquerade. He must begin by presenting the false christ to the world. Watch the Holy Scripture describe Satan’s master stroke. John saw this vision of revelation as he apparently stood on the seashore from his isle of exile. He was actually standing on the Mediterranean seashore. Here are his words. Read them carefully!

“And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?” “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” (Revelation 13:1-4, 8).

The Scripture clearly states that the dragon (Satan) gives this beast (beast in only his character, not his appearance) his power, his seat, and his great authority. The beast or the Antichrist is a clear production of the devil. The Antichrist is Satan’s partner and will be his identification to the world as a replica of what Jesus Christ was to His Father. We see the Father as the express image seen in the Son and the brightness of His glory. (Hebrews 1:2-3). Satan is going to masquerade this same idea as part of his deception.

As we see the Antichrist “wounded to death” and then “his deadly wound is healed”, we are witnessing what Satan will accomplish to make the Antichrist a world marvel and wonder. The Scripture gives little detail of how this will occur. It will undoubtedly be a marvelous miracle and probably a kind of reproduction of the crucifixion and resurrection. When you couple this idea with the Protestant/Charismatic return to the Catholic idea of the Mass, it becomes a striking picture that this will be an appearance of this false christ masquerading as Jesus Christ. Then he presents a reproduction, a graphic drama of death and resurrection where men literally handle and consume the bread and the wine as Catholics do daily in their “Mass”.

Please note that this prophecy states that “all the world wondered after the beast.” The beast or Antichrist is careful to give glory to the dragon because verse four states, “And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast.” These Scriptures clearly state that the world wondered after the Antichrist, but worshipped the devil, the anti-god. Satan’s schemes to this point are gloriously successful. He has hidden himself behind this false christ and allowed the false christ, with all of his facade of charismatic glory to hide the real face of Satan. The world has gone insane after this false expression of true Christianity. It is a hybrid form of all the church world has loved and because they left the “love of truth”, the deceiver has wrought his masterpiece. But it does not end there, Satan has more.

Satan Presents his “False Anointing” or “False Spirit”
Once Satan has reproduced a masquerade of the Lord Jesus Christ, he then proceeds to do the same with the truth of the Holy Ghost. Please remember we are simply watching the final form of this deception. It has already begun. The foundation of deception began with the apostasy of truth. The great apostasy has affected the liberal churches for at least 100 plus years, but the Evangelical/Pentecostal/Charismatic apostasy is in its third decade. Presently, it is overshadowing almost everything the church as a whole represents and appears to be very close to its crescendo.

Let us watch the Revelator John, share the enfolding drama as it was shown him. “And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.” (Revelation 13:11-16).

A second beast now appears from Satan’s masquerade. This person is his false spirit of false anointing. He is said to be like a “lamb with horns”, “pious, humble, but arrogantly vicious.” What a picture of false anointing. This very type is now being acted out by a multitude of “New Wave” leaders. They are humble when you agree with them, but immediately vicious when you disagree. This false anointing falls upon people like a rock, causing them to act in ways that express the nature of a dragon. Instead of beautiful worship in ecstasy of Calvary and the Holy Spirit, it is an anointing more like an army preparing for slaughter. In fact, they admit the same and call themselves “Joel’s Army.”

Please note that this “anti-spirit” exercises “all the power of the first beast.” This again is the masquerade. This false anointing is doing for the false christ what the Holy Ghost has done for Jesus Christ. It is all a replica of the Trinity of God. He even causes the people to worship the Antichrist, not himself. Notice that he magnifies the “deadly wound” that the false christ has experienced and uses that to induce the worship of this first beast.

Then, the false spirit begins his masquerade of the supernatural. He is not supernatural, he only masquerades supernatural powers. He does great wonders and miracles and deceives all the earth. He even gives power to an image of the Antichrist and requires everyone to worship him. It is not the Antichrist that requires the world to take the mark of the beast, but the false anointing or the anti-spirit.

That should arrest all of your attention. While the world is identifying the mark that may indeed use the bio-chip or some infrared mark on the skin, they are paying little attention to the false anointing that is preparing men for the real mark. I believe there will be a mark on the forehead or the right hand, but I believe that much deeper is the religious preparation to worship Satan as God. The mark will reflect a heart commitment to identify with the “false trinity” and to worship Satan.

There will be a baptism, an initiation of religious nature that will accompany the actual mark. When we try to identify the mark, we are acting ahead of God’s revelation. The mark will be so deceitful that no one will recognize it as being satanic. The same is true of the Antichrist. Many have tried to identify who this person is and if he is now alive. Such foolishness would be laughable if it did not play so well with Satan. Satan will identify this man only after he himself has been cast out of heaven following the Rapture. Satan might have some idea, but the Antichrist must accept that offer when Satan extends it to him. When such a person accepts Satan’s offer, then and only then Satan will give them their seat, authority, and power.

The False Trinity
This will undoubtedly be the master work of the fallen prince of darkness. He has produced many dark moments, but this will eclipse them all, maybe even his original rebellion before the throne of God. The kings of earth will gladly sell their souls to him. The church that has rejected infallible truth will joyously cling to his false Pentecost and its fleshly products. The remnant church never expected, nor desired the world’s favor, but the present church sees success and pomp as the final word and is willing to cloud truth for a temporary kingdom. Men have longed for a “god” that the unholy can worship and serve.

As you study church history, it is clear that every deception and apostasy in the church had its roots in the search for a “god” where unholy men could stop and worship. The Father has compassionately called His church back from the multitudes of backsliding. He has wooed a reluctant church to His glorious altar and forgiven our many errors of the way.

Finally, the Father will give the world and the church what it has so arrogantly sought. The Father will give the world a God that unholy men can abandon themselves to serve. This false god will have an unrestrained time to present his false trinity to a gullible world. The results will be that Satan, once he has received the false church and her worship, will hate her and destroy her with his false fire that was first used to deceive her.