Two thousand years ago, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives with His disciples and gave them a warning…
He told them exactly what kind of deception was coming and that it would be widespread enough to fool people who should know better.
He was right.
And it is happening right now.
What He Said
His disciples had just asked Him what the signs of His coming and the end of the age would look like.
His very first warning before anything else was this:
“Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.” Matthew 24:4-5 (NIV)
He did not say a few would come.
He said many.
And then later in the same conversation, He raised the stakes even higher:
“For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.” Matthew 24:24 (NIV)
Not just ordinary people. Even the elect, those closest to God, would be targets of this deception.
Jesus was describing a global, ongoing, escalating pattern that would mark the period leading up to His return.
How This Has Been Fulfilled Through History
In recorded history, approximately 86 historical figures have claimed to be the Messiah or claimed to be the Christ.
That number only accounts for those documented.
The actual number is certainly higher.
Some of the most well-known examples from the last century alone:
David Koresh claimed to be the Lamb of God described in Revelation. He led the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas. Seventy-six of his followers died in the 1993 siege, many of them refusing to leave because they believed he was the Messiah.
Jim Jones claimed divine status and led over nine hundred people to their deaths in Jonestown, Guyana in 1978, the largest mass suicide in modern history at the time.
Sun Myung Moon of South Korea publicly declared himself the Messiah and founded the Unification Church, amassing millions of followers worldwide before his death in 2012.
These people made headlines.
They built movements.
They deceived thousands.
It Is Happening Right Now Around the World
The deception Jesus warned about is not limited to history books.
In Australia, Alan John Miller, known as A.J., claims to have detailed memories of his former life as Jesus including memories of the crucifixion.
His partner claims to be the reincarnation of Mary Magdalene.
Crowds gather regularly to hear him speak and some followers have given up their possessions and families to be near him.
In Siberia, Sergey Anatolyevitch Torop, known as Vissarion or the Jesus of Siberia, began proclaiming himself as Jesus reincarnated after being fired as a traffic officer in 1990.
He founded the Church of the Last Testament, which blends Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity, and has accumulated over five thousand followers whose words he collects in a ten-volume book.
These are not isolated cases. They are on every continent. They are active today. And they are growing in reach because social media gives false teachers an audience that would have been impossible in any previous generation.
What Makes This Warning Unique
Here is what separates Jesus from every false christ who has come after Him.
He warned us they were coming.
In advance.
In detail.
Two thousand years before social media made deception scalable.
No false messiah has ever predicted the rise of other false messiahs.
They all claim to be the only one.
They all present themselves as the real thing.
Jesus did the opposite.
He told His followers to expect imposters.
He described how convincing they would be.
He told them not to be fooled even when signs and wonders accompanied the claims.
And He gave them a simple test.
When His return actually happens, nobody will need to tell you about it.
“For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:27 (NIV)
No announcement needed. No gathering required. No podcast telling you He showed up somewhere.
The real return of Jesus will be unmistakable to every person on earth simultaneously.
Jesus is going to crack open the sky, and people worldwide who heard the gospel and rejected it will be without excuse.
Anyone asking you to come see Jesus in a room, a wilderness, a compound, or a seminar is fulfilling the exact warning Jesus gave two thousand years ago.
Why This Matters
The fact that false christs keep appearing is not evidence against Jesus.
It is evidence for Him.
He predicted it. It happened. It is still happening.
Every person who has ever stood up and said “I am the Messiah” has inadvertently confirmed that Jesus was telling the truth about what the world would look like before He returns.
The counterfeits only exist because there is something real worth counterfeiting.
And the One who predicted all of it is the same One who said He is coming back.
Not in the inner rooms.
“For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:27 (NIV)
This is not the only time Jesus predicted something, and it happened exactly as He said. Read the next fulfilled prophecy…
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