By Douglas V. Gibbs
The prophet Daniel warned of a coming deceiver who would “speak pompous words against the Most High” and “persecute the saints of the Most High,” while initially appearing to bring peace and prosperity to a world desperate for both. In our current era of unprecedented deception, where truth is increasingly called falsehood and falsehood is celebrated as truth, we would be wise to heed this warning. The deception has become so profound that twenty-five years after 9/11 – an attack most attribute to Islamic extremists – New York City now has a Muslim mayor who has suggested America brought that tragedy upon itself. We witness the bizarre spectacle of figures like Hassan Piker proclaiming solidarity with Islam while simultaneously championing causes diametrically opposed to Islamic teachings. Most strikingly, when Israel responded to the October 7, 2023 attacks, the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, the world somehow managed to frame the Jewish state as the aggressor committing genocide against people who openly vow their annihilation.
This brings me to what I believe was a significant error by Pastor Jack Hibbs in a video I recently watched.
Let me be unequivocally clear: I hold Pastor Jack Hibbs in the highest regard. I have never previously found myself in disagreement with his teachings. We’ve met on several occasions, most recently last November when I served as title sponsor for a pastor’s appreciation breakfast in San Diego where he was the keynote speaker. We shared breakfast and conversation for perhaps twenty minutes. Nearly half of the attendees from my Constitution Class in Chino, California are members of his congregation, and my wife and I have worshiped multiple times at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills, which he so faithfully leads. Pastor Hibbs is an exceptional teacher, a devoted shepherd of God’s Word, and a compassionate man whose impact on both faith and constitutional understanding in America has been profound. I am deeply grateful for his ministry.
Nevertheless, I must respectfully challenge a statement he made in that recent video.
“Will Israel be accepting a Muslim antichrist? I don’t think so,” Pastor Hibbs stated with conviction.
Like all of us, I cannot claim to know the future with certainty. However, I have studied deception extensively; its methods, its effectiveness, and its devastating consequences. I understand through observation and history how masterfully Satan employs deception to achieve his ends. Consider our current reality: Tel Aviv ranks among the world’s most homosexuality-friendly cities. A mere two decades after “Never Forget” became our national mantra regarding Islamic terrorism, a Muslim mayor presides over New York City. We see homosexuals and transgender activists marching in solidarity with “Palestine,” while feminists praise an ideology that, in places like Afghanistan, proudly denies education to girls and common rights to women. We witness Christians embracing false doctrines like preterism and replacement theology, while openly homosexual individuals lead churches in God’s Name. In this climate of spiritual and moral confusion and insanity, I cannot definitively declare that Israel would never accept an openly Muslim world leader. In fact, given Satan’s track record of deception and the current political and cultural landscape, I would argue that a Muslim global leader operating with Israel’s blessing is not as improbable as many might assume.
Again, I do not claim special insight into eschatological events. While I believe Islam will play a key role in the end-times, I don’t know who the antichrist will be or if he’s Muslim, Gentile, a mixture of both, part Jewish, or something else entirely. I am neither a prophet nor a prophecy expert. But as a constitutionalist, historian, and political observer who has spent decades studying how deception operates in human affairs, I have learned one fundamental principle: when it comes to Satan’s deceptions, never say never.
— Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
