Communism changed after Lenin, who originally still believed in a universal, stateless world system. Gradually under Stalin, and especially after World War II with the anti-colonial movements, Communism morphed into a many-faceted nationalist platform in which jingoistic nationalism was exalted for "oppressed peoples" and their religions championed against that of the "foreign devils," who were usually chrstians of one sort or another. I suppose this is why today our post-Marxist Gramscian Left exalts the shamans and spiritualities of "de, 'ow you say, indigenous pipples" every bit as often as it slams chrstianity with "science" and rationalism. Then there are some combinations of the two: the American Black church, for instance, worships in a fundamentalist style but its ideology and concerns are those of European naturalism.
At the risk of being misunderstood and causing offense (and it is not my intention to hurt or offend anyone here), there is a certain similarity between historical chrstianity and post-WWII, anti-colonialist, Third World Leftism: a "universal" ideology becomes inculturated to various ethno-cultures all over the world, is blended with the folk-beliefs that preceded it, and exalts a Jew (in this case, Marx) who becomes a universal nationalist symbol for every country and people on the earth except for Jews and rednecks.
No, what offense? You are exactly right. All leftism is a mirror-image of Christianity: a worldwide pseudo-religion where the state is worshiped, that picks the social tools of the Church and perverts them into service of its pagan gods.
The anti-Christ will be believed because people will confuse him with Christ. That's all by design.