Has the "Powerful Delusion" Now Arrived?

With the tsunami-like onrush of Artificial Intelligence a high-tech mogul is now speaking on the Antichrist.

Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 2 Thess. 2:3

The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie. 2 Thess. 2:9

For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie. 2 Thess. 2:11

AI and the Antichrist

THE rapid expansion of knowledge and technology, as referenced in Daniel 12:4 (“many will go here and there to increase knowledge”), is often cited as a sign of the prophetic times and a reason for vigilance regarding the uses of AI.

While not suggesting that AI itself will be the Antichrist, some warn that AI could be perceived as a “false god” or even mistaken for a messianic figure by those seeking technological salvation or transcendence.The more widely accepted concern is that AI could be harnessed by malevolent leaders, institutions, or networks to enable deception on a global scale, suppress truth, and erode moral and spiritual discernment1 – central themes in biblical prophecy about end times.

A high-tech investor looks at the subject

Now the Christian-based Acts 17 Collective, is partnering with American gay billionaire and tech investor Peter Thiel in bringing together a private four part sold-out lecturer series about the Antichrist at a club in San Francisco. The series will explore "the theological and technological dimensions of the Antichrist" in four sessions running across September and October dates.
The lectures will remain off-the-record, with no transcripts or recordings made public, but they will "draw upon the work of René Girard, the French philosopher who profoundly influenced Thiel during his Stanford undergraduate years, along with thinkers like Francis Bacon and Carl Schmitt."

Thiel is the 57-year-old gay co-founder of PayPal and Palantir. He is one of the original 'Pay Pal mafia' along with 'Dark Maga' Elon Musk. According to Forbes his worth is estimated at $20.8 billion. Meanwhile, the Acts 17 Collective is a nonprofit oganisation aimed at reaching influential leaders in the tech and entertainment industries - especially those in Silicon Valley - with the message of Christianity. The organisation's goal is to engage society's most powerful and culturally-influential individuals.

The Rapture of the Saints

In the midst of all of this, the internet is awash with predictions that the rapture of the saints may occur on 23/24 September 2025 to coincide with the Jewish Feast of Trumpets. (Google it an see.) Within the biblically-faithful Christian community there are differing views on the timing of end-time events.Certainly the dates of the Jewish feasts is highly significant in terms of the outworking of biblical and world events (Note 1), but how reliable is the belief of the invisible return of Christ prior to the appearance of the antichrist? (Note 2)
In 'even-handed' fashion and over a period of years the ChristiansTogether website has hosted differing views on the subject. (Note 3) However it is getting almost essential in the purposes of discernment and a biblically-based understanding of end-time events for each believer to come to a view. It's 'make our minds up time'.

Some thoughts on the issue

The recording below is a short address to a regular online prayer/fellowship gathering of members of the ChristiansTogether website. (insert note no) The passage in view is the second chapter of Paul's 2nd letter to the saints in Thessalonica.
The verses speak of the sequence of events relating to Christ and the pseudo-christ as outlined by the apostle. As AI barrels into every sphere of life, the present-day level of deception has never been greater.

For full quotation see 2 Thess. 2:1-10

EXTRACT of AUDIO RECORDING BELOW
(includes initial scene-setting remarks and see Notes 2 - )

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Notes:
1. The first coming of Christ took place around the Spring feasts/festivals; there are good biblical reasons to think that his second coming will take place around the Autumn feasts/festivals.
2. The pre-tribulation invisible rapture view mushroomed first in the USA following a period of revivals in the late 19th century but is now to be found across the Christian spectrum. It teaches that Christian believer's will be removed from the earth prior to the appearance of the antichrist figure. In the subsequent discussion a reference was made to the Scofield Bible notes and the dangers of confused recollections of sources failing to separate out the words of men from the Word of God.
3. Over a period of years the ChristiansTogether website has hosted a number of articles on the 'Rapture' question. Some of these can be found here, here, here and here.
4. The sequence of end-time events is disputed but the differing views are not cause to break fellowship.
5. A look at the Greek words in 2 Thess. 2:7 gives a more accurate translation of the passage than is found in most bibles.
6. For an excellent booklet on the Great Tribulation you can download Philip Wren's booklet here.

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The Editor, 05/09/2025