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Series Code: WHO
Program Code: WHO210041S
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00:25 Hello, friends, and welcome to 3ABN Worship Hour.
00:28 We are so thrilled 00:29 that you are joining us again for another hour 00:32 in which we can worship the Lord, 00:33 indeed, as the Bible tells us in spirit and in truth. 00:38 And there's no doubt in my mind that we are indeed 00:40 going to have the Holy Spirit 00:42 working through us on our hearts and minds 00:44 as we present a very special message today. 00:47 And, of course, the truth of God's Word, 00:48 I hope will penetrate 00:50 each and every one of our hearts, 00:51 because this is an hour that we can reflect, 00:54 that we can be with Jesus, 00:55 that we can be together with each other, 00:57 open the Word of God and allow it to speak to us. 01:00 Again, I want to thank you for joining us today 01:02 and you know what? 01:03 We're going to get right into our message 01:05 in just a moment 01:07 that I've entitled 01:08 "Beast Mode 2.0." 01:11 That's right, Beast Mode 2.0, 01:15 and this is actually going to be a two-part series. 01:19 As I was preparing for this message, 01:22 the Lord had laid so much on my heart 01:23 and I had so much information. 01:25 I thought there's no way 01:26 I'm going to be able to get through this 01:28 in just one sermon. 01:29 So, we're going to have a two-part series. 01:31 We're going to do part one today, 01:32 and then at a future time, 01:34 given the opportunity, Lord willing, 01:36 we're going to do part two, again, 01:38 Beast Mode 2.0. 01:40 And I'm going to explain that in just a moment 01:42 as to that title. 01:43 But before we go any further, 01:45 we should always invite the Holy Spirit to be with us 01:48 and for Jesus Christ 01:49 to open our heart, our mind, our eyes 01:51 for His Word today. 01:53 So let's do that right now. 01:54 Father in heaven, Lord, You are so wonderful, 01:57 and we want to praise You, Lord, 01:59 as we are gathered together to worship You 02:02 all around the world, 02:03 Lord, as this message is reaching homes 02:07 all over the globe. 02:09 Lord, we know You are with Your people, 02:11 and today as we open Your Word 02:13 and we consider a very time sensitive message, 02:16 a message that is most definitely 02:19 for such a time as this. 02:21 Lord, we pray that 02:22 Your Holy Spirit will cover us, fill us 02:25 to open our eyes, give us the spiritual hearing, 02:28 the spiritual mental perception to be able to understand 02:32 and to rightly divide Your word of truth. 02:35 Lord, we thank You for this opportunity 02:37 that we still have to worship You 02:39 and to preach the gospel before the world, 02:41 because we know that You have promised us that 02:43 when this gospel goes to all the world, 02:45 then the end will come. 02:47 We know we are fast approaching that time. 02:49 And so, Father, prepare the soil of our hearts. 02:52 And right now may you draw us 02:54 to the uplifted Savior Jesus Christ. 02:56 We ask in Jesus' name. 02:58 Amen, amen. 03:00 Beast Mode 2.0 Strange title. 03:05 I liked strange titles 03:06 because strange titles often get the attention, right? 03:09 And it gets you to thinking. 03:10 Hmm, I wonder why it's entitled that. 03:12 I actually, I have to give a little bit of credit 03:14 to one of my brothers in Christ, 03:16 friends in ministry, 03:18 Pastor Ivor Myers, he's a wonderful dear brother, 03:20 and I love him so much. 03:21 I love his ministry. 03:23 And he actually for over the past three or four years 03:25 has presented the concept of, 03:26 you know, these, you know, this beast, 03:29 this prophetic beast in Daniel and Revelation 03:31 going beast mode. 03:32 More specifically, the United States 03:34 as they have entered full on beast mode, right? 03:38 And so, I actually did some research. 03:40 He didn't actually entitled any of his messages that, 03:42 but I have to say he certainly inspired me 03:44 because I myself have for a few years now, 03:47 when talking about Bible prophecy, 03:49 when talking about those beasts, 03:50 I've often kind of jokingly, 03:52 but yet on purpose said, you know what? 03:55 We have entered as a nation full on beast mode. 03:58 And so that kind of sparked and inspired 04:01 the title of this sermon, Beast Mode 2.0, 04:04 and you'll see what it means by that 04:06 as we get through our series 04:08 and progress through this message, 04:09 but you have often heard it said that we study history, 04:15 we learn history, we teach history 04:17 because we want to learn 04:19 from the mistakes of the past, right? 04:22 We don't want to be making those mistakes over again. 04:25 We learn from the past 04:26 so that we don't repeat those mistakes. 04:28 And in this message, we're going to see that 04:31 even though we often hear that saying, 04:33 and even though we often try to live 04:35 according to that particular expression, 04:37 we know that the truth is as we study Bible prophecy 04:41 and we come to learn the times that we're living in 04:43 that indeed some of us 04:45 have not actually learned from the past. 04:48 And that is true for the stages that we see in Bible prophecy, 04:54 as well as what we are seeing manifest itself today, 04:58 as far as the nation 04:59 of the United States of America. 05:01 Now, many people don't believe that 05:03 the United States of America is mentioned in Bible prophecy, 05:06 but we're going to see that that's not the case 05:08 that the United States of America 05:10 is indeed mentioned in Bible prophecy. 05:13 And so, we're going to be grounded 05:15 to taking you on a journey. 05:16 We're going to, we're going to journey together 05:18 as we move through the scriptures. 05:21 And we're going to approach 05:22 these last scriptures in prophecy. 05:26 Revelation Chapter 13, 05:28 where it speaks about 05:29 this second beast that comes up out of the earth. 05:32 And you know what? 05:33 The reason why I'm kind of locking in 05:35 on this particular topic 05:37 that we are looking into 05:38 and investigating this beast mode 05:41 that the United States of America has entered, 05:43 is any of us who have paid attention 05:46 to the last few months 05:47 and what has transpired 05:48 in the United States of America. 05:50 There's no doubt 05:51 that Bible prophecy reveals to us 05:53 that America would take on a change. 05:56 In fact, kind of as a subtitle 05:58 or a subheading of this message, 06:01 Beast Mode 2.0, 06:02 I would even say a subheading or a subtitle could be 06:05 the spiritual decline and fall 06:08 of the United States of America. 06:10 I'm going to take us through that journey, 06:12 but in order for us to get to the talking 06:14 about the actual nation of America 06:17 and its spiritual decline and fall. 06:19 We're going to first need to go back 06:21 and learn a little bit from history, 06:22 because there are a couple of other major nations 06:26 that are mentioned in scripture that I believe very much 06:29 teach us a little bit about 06:31 why America takes on the progressive movement 06:36 and the progressive occurrences that it does in Bible prophecy. 06:40 Of course, the two nations that I'm speaking about 06:42 is none other than Israel, the nation of Israel, 06:45 as well as the nation of Rome. 06:49 So Israel, Rome, 06:51 and the United States of America, 06:54 those three nations play a significant, 06:57 a very significant role in Bible prophecy. 07:00 And so we're going to be gravitating 07:02 toward the United States. 07:03 But first, I would like to take you on a journey. 07:05 Let's go back and study a little bit 07:07 on what the Bible teaches us 07:08 in reference to some significant 07:11 historical occurrences tied to the nation of Israel. 07:15 Now I think it can be said very clearly 07:17 as we studied the Bible 07:19 that the bulk of the Old Testament story, 07:22 if we were to simply talk about or try to tell someone 07:26 of the story of the Old Testament. 07:28 We would see that it's really all about 07:30 God's relationship with this nation of Israel. 07:33 God wanted to be the King of Israel. 07:36 He wanted Israel to be His chosen people, 07:39 His chosen nation 07:40 to take the gospel to the rest of the world. 07:43 He wanted them to be His beacon of light 07:46 to all of this dark world around them. 07:49 And we see kind of an expression of this 07:51 in Isaiah 49:3 and 6. 07:56 Notice what the Bible says, Isaiah 49:3 and 6, 07:59 The Bible says. 08:00 It says, 08:02 "And He said to me, 08:03 'You are My servant O Israel, 08:05 in whom I will be glorified. 08:08 It is too small a thing 08:10 that You should be My servant 08:12 to raise up the tribes of Jacob, 08:14 and to restore the preserved ones of Israel, 08:18 I will also give You as a light, " 08:20 there it is, 08:22 "a light to the Gentiles, 08:23 that you should be My salvation to the ends of the earth." 08:29 Now you might be asking, why are we talking about Israel 08:31 if this message Beast Mode 2.0 08:34 is all about the United States of America 08:36 and its current state 08:39 and future state in Bible prophecy? 08:41 Well, I believe that the United States 08:43 as we will see the track that it has taken, 08:45 the choices it has made 08:47 the state in which it has fallen. 08:49 We will see that it takes on very much a similar course 08:54 that of Israel and Rome. 08:56 And I believe there's something that we can learn 08:58 from the previous nations before, 09:00 as we got ourselves 09:02 into this study of the United States. 09:03 We see very clearly 09:05 that Israel was supposed to be a beacon of light. 09:08 God had chosen them 09:09 to basically turn the world right side up, right? 09:12 He wanted them to be His champions of the world 09:16 and bringing this gospel 09:18 and reflecting the character to all of the world. 09:21 And so, we see that 09:23 God made a covenant with Israel, 09:25 a special agreement. 09:26 He says, look, if you want to be My people 09:28 and I indeed want you to be My people, 09:30 but in order for you to be My people, 09:33 we need to cover a few things. 09:34 We need a, you need to understand 09:35 what I'm about 09:37 and you need to represent Me rightfully before the world. 09:39 And so in Exodus Chapter 19, 09:41 we see that God had formerly 09:43 after they had, after the nation of Israel 09:45 had been in more than 400 years of bondage in Egypt, 09:48 he makes that special covenant agreement with them 09:50 in which he says there in Exodus 19:5-6. 09:55 Notice what the Bible says, Exodus 19:5-6. 09:58 It says, 09:59 "Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice 10:02 and keep My covenant, 10:03 then you shall be a special treasure to Me 10:06 above all people, for all the earth is mine. 10:10 And you shall be to me a kingdom of priests 10:14 and a holy nation." 10:16 So just reflecting on the previous two texts, 10:19 Isaiah 49 and Exodus Chapter 19, 10:22 it's very clear that God's intended plan 10:25 was for the nation of Israel 10:27 to shine the light of the love of God 10:30 to the rest of the world. 10:32 To represent God in such a powerful way 10:35 that the Gentiles and the nations around them 10:38 would see the wonderful character 10:40 of the people of Israel, 10:42 which we know ultimately was the character of God 10:44 and see how God had prospered them, 10:47 see how God had blessed them, 10:48 so that the rest of the nations of the world, 10:50 the heathen nations of the world would see 10:53 that the one true God 10:54 was the God of Jacob, and Isaac, and Abraham, 10:57 and the God of the Israelites. 10:59 And so that was God's plan for them. 11:01 But, of course, we know that 11:03 that kind of changed a little bit. 11:05 In fact, there's a few things in scripture, 11:07 few instances in scripture, 11:08 where we find that there was a major transition 11:12 in the history or in the course of Israel's history. 11:16 One of those is one that you don't hear often about, 11:18 and I want to highlight today 11:20 for the purpose of this message. 11:22 I want to take us back to 1 Samuel Chapter 8. 11:25 Now, just to kind of set the context 11:27 of what's happening here in 1 Samuel Chapter 8, 11:30 God had very clearly, 11:32 he's been on this journey obviously with Israel 11:35 and they're struggling, but he's not forsaking them. 11:38 He still has compassion on them. 11:39 He still wants them to be His people, 11:42 but there comes a moment 11:43 in which God basically establishes 11:45 these judges over Israel. 11:47 They were basically representatives, 11:48 overseers of the nation, 11:50 judges on behalf of God for the people, 11:53 but God was still to be their King. 11:55 It was not the plan of the Lord for any man 11:59 to rule over the nation of Israel as a king, 12:02 but God Himself would be their King. 12:04 That was the ultimate plan that God had for Israel. 12:07 But, of course, the course of Israel 12:10 transitions and changes dramatically 12:13 in the eighth chapter of 1 Samuel. 12:16 Notice what the Bible says in the first few verses, 12:19 this is verses 1 and 2 of 1 Samuel. 12:21 The Bible says, 12:22 "Now it came to pass 12:24 when Samuel was old 12:25 that he made his sons judges over Israel. 12:29 The name of his firstborn was Joel, 12:31 and the name of the second, Abijah, 12:34 they were judges in Beersheba." 12:37 And then verse 3, notice this, 12:38 "But his sons did not walk in his ways, 12:42 they turned aside after dishonest gain, 12:46 took bribes and perverted justice." 12:50 Now, the reason why we start in that particular, 12:52 those particular texts 12:54 is because one could argue that perhaps maybe 12:57 similar to the situation with Eli, a previous judge 13:00 and his bad sons, 13:02 we see that Samuel was a good man, 13:03 but yet here, you know, 13:05 he really didn't have a hold of his sons. 13:06 His sons were more made judges of Israel. 13:09 They were given significant leadership roles, 13:12 but they did not do 13:13 what was right in the sight of the Lord. 13:15 And so perhaps it can be made... 13:16 The point can be made that the nation of Israel, 13:19 the elders of Israel basically decided that, 13:21 you know what, we need, and we need new leadership. 13:23 We need a new change in leadership. 13:26 But the request that they make 13:29 indeed would launch Israel into a state of sin 13:33 and would forever change and alter their course forever. 13:37 Notice what the Bible continues to say, 13:38 of course, we're starting at verse 4 13:41 of 1 Samuel Chapter 8. 13:42 Notice what it says. 13:43 It says, 13:45 "Then all the elders of Israel gathered together 13:46 and came to Samuel at Ramah, 13:48 and said to him, 13:50 'Look, you are old, 13:52 and your sons do not walk in your ways. 13:54 Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.'" 14:01 But the king... 14:02 No, excuse me, 14:03 but the thing displeased Samuel, 14:05 when they said, give us a king to judge us. 14:09 "So Samuel prayed to the Lord. 14:11 And the Lord said to Samuel, 14:14 'Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you, 14:18 for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, 14:23 that I should not reign over them. 14:26 According to all the works 14:28 which they have done since the day 14:30 that I brought them out of Egypt, 14:32 even to this day 14:34 with which they have forsaken Me 14:36 and served other gods, 14:38 so they are doing to you also. 14:42 Now therefore, heed their voice. 14:45 However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, 14:48 and show them the behavior of the king, 14:50 who will reign over them." 14:53 So let's just pause there for a moment 14:54 and just make the point and clarify, 14:56 what has just happened? 14:58 The elders of Israel come to Samuel the prophet, 15:01 and they say to him, 15:03 we don't want 15:04 to have a leader like you and your sons 15:07 and the judges anymore. 15:08 We want our own king. 15:10 We wanted man to be elected king 15:13 and to rule over us. 15:15 And, of course, Samuel didn't like this 15:17 because he knew it that man, he prays to the Lord. 15:19 He says, Lord, what do I do? 15:20 And God says, you know what? 15:21 Give them what they want 15:23 because ultimately 15:24 they're not necessarily rejecting you, 15:26 they're rejecting Me. 15:28 My friends, this is significant. 15:29 This is really, really significant 15:31 because we know ultimately the children of Israel 15:35 because of their apostasies, then worshiping other gods 15:37 and not keeping the commandments of the Lord 15:39 and obeying the Lord in love. 15:41 We know that that was the ultimate course they took 15:43 that brought them to their demise. 15:45 But I'm going to submit to you today 15:47 that this is one of those 15:48 significant transitions in their history. 15:50 One of the things 15:52 that would launch them on a path 15:53 that would forever change them forever and ever. 15:56 Of course, what am I saying 15:58 just what we're looking at here. 16:01 They're rejecting the Lord as their leader. 16:05 They're rejecting God as their King. 16:08 Essentially what they're saying is, 16:10 as a nation, 16:12 among other nations in the world, 16:14 we don't want God to rule over us anymore. 16:16 We want a man to rule over us. 16:19 We want a man to be our king. 16:21 We want a man to lead us and guide us. 16:23 And we want to have elected officials 16:25 of our own choosing and our own devising. 16:27 And we want these men to rule over us, 16:30 like all of the other nations. 16:31 Did you catch that in the text? 16:33 They said, we want to be like the other nations around us. 16:37 Of course, these are the heathen nations 16:39 that God had sent them into the world 16:41 that he'd raised them up 16:42 for the purpose of witnessing to and now, 16:44 instead of the church 16:46 affecting the world in a positive way, 16:48 the world has affected them in a negative way. 16:51 And they're wanting to reflect that of the system 16:53 of the world. 16:55 And so they say, we don't want God as King anymore. 16:57 We want our own manly king. 17:00 And so God says, give it to them, 17:03 but remind them 17:04 of what it is they're going to go through 17:05 if they take this path. 17:07 And so we pick up in that same passage, 17:10 of course, 1 Samuel Chapter 8, beginning with verse 10. 17:13 Notice what the Bible says. 17:15 It says, 17:16 "So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people 17:18 who ask him for a king. 17:21 And he said, 17:22 'This will be the behavior of the king 17:25 who will reign over you: 17:27 He will take your sons and appoint them 17:30 for his own chariots and to be his horsemen, 17:34 and some will run before his chariots.' 17:38 He will appoint captains 17:40 over his thousands and captains over his fifties, 17:44 will set some to plow his ground 17:47 and reap his harvest, 17:49 and some to make his weapons of war 17:51 and equipment for his chariots. 17:54 He will take your daughters 17:56 to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers. 18:00 And he will take the best of your fields, 18:03 your vineyards, and your olive groves, 18:05 and give them to his servants. 18:08 He will take a tenth of your grain 18:10 and your vintage, 18:12 and give it to his officers and servants. 18:15 And he will take your male servants, 18:16 your female servants, 18:18 your finest young men and your donkeys, 18:20 and put them to his work. 18:23 He will take a tenth of your sheep 18:25 and you will be his servants. 18:27 And you will cry out in that day 18:29 because of your king 18:30 whom you have chosen for yourselves, 18:33 and the Lord will not hear you in that day." 18:37 Let's just pause there and take this in. 18:39 So he's basically lining and he's gonna, 18:40 let me tell you 18:41 the course that's going to happen. 18:43 If you decide that you want a man rule over you, 18:46 rather than God. 18:47 He's going to manipulate you. 18:49 He's going to steal from you. He's going to take from you. 18:52 He's going to take from your families 18:54 and from your resources 18:55 and all that is yours that God has blessed you with 18:58 and given to you, 19:00 he's going to manipulate you. 19:02 He's going to think, he's going to steal from you. 19:04 He's going to wreak havoc upon you. 19:06 Are you sure this is the course that you want to take 19:08 because this is the heart of the man, 19:10 not of the Lord? 19:13 And what was the response of the people? 19:16 Notice verse 19 of 1 Samuel Chapter 8, 19:19 it says, 19:20 "Nevertheless the people refuse to obey the voice of Samuel, 19:26 and the response," 19:27 here it is, 19:29 "and they said, 19:30 'No, but we will have a king over us, 19:35 that we also may be like all the nations 19:41 and that our king may judge us 19:43 and go out before us and fight our battles." 19:49 This is huge. 19:52 So in doing this, Israel would never be the same. 19:57 If you read the rest of the story 20:00 about the nation of Israel, 20:02 from this point forward, 20:04 you see them kind of start out what may be appears to be. 20:08 They're still struggling right 20:09 in with the leadership of Saul and David 20:12 and most people would consider King David, a good man, right? 20:14 King David was a good king, probably the only good king, 20:17 really good king that they had in their early stages. 20:21 But nonetheless, 20:22 this began the spiritual and physical decline 20:27 and fall of the nation of Israel 20:31 when they ultimately rejected God as their King. 20:34 And they would rather have a man to rule over them. 20:39 When they pushed God out, 20:40 they offered into their own house, 20:44 into their own camps, 20:45 into their own empire, their own kingdom 20:48 for the devil to set up camp 20:50 and to have his way with them in more ways than one. 20:53 The history reveals the sad decline of Israel 20:57 from this point forward. 20:59 And you know, it was never God's plan 21:03 for the nation of Israel to be divided. 21:06 But if you study the history of the Old Testament 21:08 and you ultimately look at the course that they take, 21:11 they ultimately end up dividing. 21:13 In fact, not too long after King David, 21:15 because probably under David 21:17 and, of course, Solomon his son, 21:19 Israel prospered the greatest, 21:21 but even in the latter stages of Solomon's reign, 21:25 Solomon made some very bad choices. 21:26 And, of course, his son Rehoboam 21:29 would take the kingdom up on his death. 21:33 And ultimately we see that from Rehoboam own word, 21:36 the kingdom becomes divided. 21:38 Of course, we know into the Northern kingdom 21:40 and the Southern kingdom, 21:42 10 tribes to the North, two tribes to the South, 21:45 Israel in the North, Judah in the South, 21:47 this was never God's plan for Israel to remain divided. 21:52 In fact, if you consider both the unified 21:55 and divided stages of Israel, 21:57 there were about 42 kings 22:00 that served within the nation of Israel, 22:03 Northern and Southern kingdoms, 42 kings. 22:05 But get this, only seven of the 42, 22:09 the Bible says did right in the sight of the Lord. 22:13 That should tell us something. 22:15 In fact, you read the story over and over, 22:17 go read 1 Kings and 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, 22:21 parts of Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, and even into Daniel, 22:24 we see that the ultimate course that took 22:27 was because these men 22:29 whom Israel had chose to rule over them, 22:31 launched them inevitably in a course 22:34 away from the Lord, not to the Lord. 22:36 Now where there some good kings? 22:37 I just mentioned it. 22:39 Seven of them, the Bible says actually did right 22:40 in the sight of the Lord, 22:41 but that seven out of 42. 22:44 So we see that God knew what was best. 22:46 He knew that if they chose man as their king, 22:49 that this was going to be the inevitable end 22:52 in the decline and fall of this nation. 22:55 Of course, we know that 22:56 a few of these kings started out okay, 22:58 but ended up forsaking the way of the Lord. 23:01 And, of course, the vast majority 23:02 of the kings of Judah and Israel, 23:04 the Bible describes as doing evil 23:07 in the sight of the Lord. 23:10 And, of course, all of this 23:12 would bring the divided kingdom to its demise. 23:17 The Northern kingdom would fall to the Assyrians 23:20 and we know the history of the Southern kingdom. 23:23 For more than 840 years, 23:25 the nation of Israel had rejected the Lord. 23:28 It was approximately 1446 BC 23:31 when God had delivered the tablets of stone 23:34 containing the Ten Commandments. 23:36 And also during this time 23:37 that God had made this special covenant agreement 23:40 with the nation of Israel 23:41 to become His beautiful chosen people, 23:43 His beacon of light, 23:45 His royal priesthood for the rest of the world, 23:48 but 840 years of rebellion followed 23:51 until the final, 23:53 and you know, 23:54 the Southern kingdom, the final kingdom, Judah 23:56 would fall to Babylon. 23:58 And, of course, it's interesting 24:00 because Babylon would conduct a seven year siege on Jerusalem 24:05 between the years 612 BC and 605 BC 24:09 ultimately claiming lives of so many people. 24:13 And it resulted in the complete destruction 24:15 of Jerusalem 24:16 and 70 years of Babylonian slavery and captivity 24:22 of the Jewish people. 24:25 This was not God's fault. 24:28 This was not because of the Lord, 24:30 the Lord allowed it, 24:31 but it was not His plan 24:33 for the nation of Israel to take this course. 24:35 Then we see ultimately that God had compassion on Israel. 24:40 He did give them a second chance. 24:44 Upon the completion of the 70 years 24:46 of Babylonian captivity, 24:47 God had compassion on them once more 24:49 and He says, I want you to be My people. 24:52 And so I'm gonna give you a second opportunity. 24:55 And we find the specifications 24:58 of this probationary time period 25:00 and what the nation of Israel must do 25:03 in order to reclaim God's trust in them 25:05 to be His holy people. 25:08 And, of course, we find the specifications of this 25:10 in Daniel 9:24. 25:12 We know this as 25:13 the specifications of the 70 weeks prophecy 25:16 found in Daniel Chapter 9. 25:18 Daniel 9:24. 25:19 Notice what it says? 25:21 It says, "Seventy weeks are determined for your people 25:23 and for your holy city, 25:25 to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, 25:28 to make reconciliation for iniquity, 25:30 to bring in everlasting righteousness, 25:33 to seal up vision and prophecy, 25:36 and to anoint the Most Holy." 25:39 My friends, all of this, 25:42 yes, God was telling the nation of Israel, 25:45 this must be completed. 25:46 You must adhere to these specifications, 25:49 these conditions 25:51 in order for you to regain my trust 25:52 and being my special chosen people 25:54 before the world. 25:55 But what's amazing is 25:57 this all could only be accomplished 25:59 within the context of Israel 26:02 receiving the coming Messiah. 26:05 If you study the 70 weeks prophecy, 26:07 then you know that 26:08 it really is all about Jesus Christ, 26:10 the arrival of Jesus Christ as Messiah. 26:14 So their final and ultimate test 26:16 is that they had to receive the Son of God, 26:21 whom they had rejected. 26:23 God whom they had said, 26:25 no, we don't want You to be our King anymore. 26:27 We want our own manly king. 26:30 We want to choose a man from our ranks to rule over us. 26:33 But now God is saying, the only way this can ever work 26:35 is if you receive Me again. 26:38 I'm going to send My Son. 26:40 I'm going to send you 26:41 the King of the universe, the Messiah, 26:44 He's going to come redeem you. 26:45 He's going to come and save you from your sins. 26:47 And if you receive Him as your King, 26:50 then we can be brought again once more 26:53 back into holy covenant relationship 26:55 and this can work properly. 26:57 But did that happen? 26:59 We know the story too well. 27:02 Jesus shows up, 27:04 and He has three and a half incredible years of ministry. 27:08 But those three and a half years 27:10 were not so easy years, 27:13 because while He did positively affect many people 27:17 and yes, His ministry would indeed go on 27:20 to change the world forever. 27:22 We know that in that last week as He's approaching the cross, 27:27 the cross is just right before Him. 27:30 Matthew 23:37 27:32 reflects the attitude 27:34 and the feelings of Christ Jesus 27:36 toward the nation of Israel as He says these words. 27:39 This is Matthew 23:37, 27:42 he says, 27:43 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, 27:46 the one who kills the prophets 27:48 and stones those who are sent to her! 27:52 How often I wanted to gather your children together 27:57 as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, 28:00 but you were not willing! 28:03 See! 28:04 Your house is left to you desolate." 28:10 And so we see there 28:11 that Christ is pouring His heart out to this nation. 28:13 Once more, they did not receive God. 28:17 They did not receive the one whom God had sent. 28:21 They did not want God to be their King. 28:23 They did not receive the Messiah 28:25 that would come and redeem them 28:27 and save them from the world. 28:29 In fact, Jesus would proclaim 28:32 a judgment upon Israel 28:34 because of its constant rejection 28:38 of Jesus. 28:39 Notice Luke 21:20-21. 28:45 Luke 21. 28:46 Notice what he says, 28:48 "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, 28:52 then know that its desolation is near. 28:55 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, 28:57 let those who are in the midst of her depart, 29:01 and let not those 29:02 who are in the country enter her. 29:04 For these are the days of vengeance, 29:07 that all things which are written 29:09 may be fulfilled." 29:11 Verse 23, 29:12 "But woe to those who are pregnant 29:16 and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 29:18 For there will be great distress in the land 29:21 and wrath upon his people." 29:24 And, of course, we know that 29:27 Jesus was foretelling some 39 years later 29:31 when in 70 AD, 29:33 the nation of Israel 29:35 because of its constant rejection 29:37 of the King of the universe, 29:40 the nation of Israel would fall in a seven-year siege. 29:46 Get that, 29:48 a seven-year Roman siege this time 29:51 because they fell to the Babylonians 29:53 who were once back in Daniel's day, 29:56 the champions of the world. 29:58 But now we are in the first century AD 30:02 and Rome are now the champions of the world. 30:06 And so God said, 30:07 if you're not going to receive Me 30:09 as the only true God, 30:12 then I will let you fall once again to a nation, 30:16 the nation that you so much want to be like. 30:19 I will let you fall to the nation 30:21 who serves all of the false gods. 30:23 And so in 70AD, 30:24 Jerusalem did fall to the Roman armies. 30:28 Now I mentioned that Rome, 30:30 I mentioned earlier in this, 30:31 that Rome plays a major role in the ultimate outcome 30:35 and bringing about 30:36 of the nation of the United States. 30:40 We're going to come back and tie this all together soon, 30:42 but I want you to continue to follow this track. 30:45 We see how much it impacted the nation of Israel 30:50 to reject God as their King 30:52 and to want to be like 30:53 all of the other nations around them 30:55 in allowing man to be their leader, 30:58 allowing themselves to serve men 31:00 and to walk after the ways of man 31:03 and the world rather than the ways of the Lord. 31:06 So now, we find ourselves in a time 31:09 in which Bible prophecy has already specified 31:12 and made it clear 31:13 that the next champions of the world 31:15 in the successions 31:17 of the great nations of this planet, 31:18 Rome will play a significant role. 31:21 The very nation that would come and destroy Jerusalem 31:26 and its precious temple in 70 AD. 31:29 Now, we see over a span of time, 31:31 a rather large, significant time 31:34 in which now Rome plays a significant role 31:37 in Bible prophecy 31:39 and the outcome and the ultimate end 31:42 of Bible prophecy as well. 31:44 Now, just to reference this, 31:45 I don't want to spend too much time on this, 31:47 but it definitely is going to help set us up 31:49 for the end of this presentation 31:50 and also provide us some clear understanding 31:53 for when we will get ready for part two. 31:55 But we see there in Daniel Chapter 2 31:58 as well as Daniel Chapter 7, 32:01 God has already specified, 32:03 as he knows the end from the beginning, 32:04 he knew who these nations were going to be 32:07 that would rise up in the world 32:09 and play a significant role in the outcome 32:11 and in the transitions of nations. 32:14 And we see that that's none other than Babylon, 32:16 Medo-Persia, Greece. 32:18 And, of course, we see Rome there in the end 32:21 playing the major role, 32:22 but I want to specify to you something clear 32:25 from the Word of God 32:26 that I believe we're going to see repeated 32:29 in some type of imagery within the very character 32:34 and very nature 32:35 of the United States of America as a nation, 32:38 something that's worth noting. 32:39 And I want to bring that out right now. 32:41 Speaking about the fourth beast of Daniel Chapter 7, 32:45 of course, if you've never studied this before, 32:47 and you're watching this for the first time, 32:48 I would encourage you to do some research 32:51 on Daniel Chapter 2, the four metals 32:54 and Daniel Chapter 7, the four beasts, 32:56 of course, they all represent the same four world empires, 33:00 Babylon, Medo-Persia Greece and Rome. 33:02 So we're talking about 33:04 that fourth beast of Daniel Chapter 7, 33:05 that fourth kingdom 33:07 that's represented by the iron of Daniel Chapter 2, it's Rome. 33:11 And there's no mistake in that it's Rome, 33:13 but notice the details that Daniel gives about Rome. 33:17 We're going to see much of these details repeated 33:20 when we get to Revelation Chapter 13, 33:22 and we start to look 33:23 into the spiritual decline and fall 33:25 of the United States of America. 33:28 Daniel 7:7, 33:30 notice what Daniel sees in his vision 33:32 about this fourth Roman beast. 33:35 He says, 33:36 "After this I saw in the night vision, 33:39 and behold, a fourth beast, 33:42 dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. 33:45 It had huge iron teeth, 33:49 it was devouring, breaking in pieces, 33:51 and trampling the residue with its feet. 33:53 It was different from all the beasts 33:55 that were before it, 33:56 and it had ten horns." 33:59 Okay. So let's pause there for a moment. 34:01 We're going to get into the little horn 34:03 in just a moment, 34:04 but I just want to make this very clear 34:05 that it was different from all of the nations before. 34:08 We're going to highlight that in just a moment again 34:11 for the sake of this presentation. 34:12 But I just want to highlight the fact 34:14 that this fourth beast of Daniel Chapter 7 34:17 is none other than Rome. 34:18 And, of course, it has the iron teeth. 34:20 Remember the iron legs of Daniel 2, 34:22 iron teeth in this beast. 34:24 It has the 10 horns 34:25 which represent 10 individual divided kingdoms 34:29 just as on the feet of Daniel 2, 34:31 there were the 10 toes 34:32 that represented the 10 different divisional kingdoms 34:35 within the Roman Empire and Roman influence. 34:38 Now I'm saying all of this to say that 34:41 when you get to this little horn, 34:43 notice what's happening in this little horn. 34:45 Daniel 7:8, 34:47 and we're going to come back to verse 7. 34:48 So notice verse 8, though. 34:50 It says, "I was considering the horns 34:51 and there was another little horn, 34:53 a little one, coming up among them, 34:55 before whom three of the first horns 34:57 were plucked out by the roots. 35:00 And they're in this horn, 35:01 were the eyes like the eyes of a man, 35:03 and a mouth speaking pompous words, 35:05 it was devouring, 35:07 notice verse... 35:08 Notice Daniel 7, again 7:7. 35:09 "It was devouring and breaking in pieces 35:11 and trampling the residue with its feet." 35:14 But notice this word I highlight here. 35:15 He says, 35:16 "It was different from all the other beasts 35:19 that were before it and that it had ten horns." 35:21 So notice this, 35:23 it's a different 35:24 from every other nation before it, 35:26 it's got this little horn, 35:27 which we know that little horn 35:29 to be none other than 35:30 the Antichrist of Bible prophecy, 35:32 this religio-political movement 35:35 that this beast ultimately becomes. 35:37 Now, you heard me say religio-political movement. 35:41 You see once Rome was just a civil governing power, 35:46 but now it has taken on a change. 35:47 That's why Daniel said he saw that it was different. 35:50 There was something different about this fourth beast 35:53 with this little horn leading out. 35:56 It's different than 35:57 all the other nations before it. 35:59 Now this reminds me 36:00 of what Daniel sees in Daniel Chapter 2, 36:04 because by the time Daniel goes down these legs, 36:06 its iron legs, iron legs, iron legs. 36:09 Then he gets to the feet. 36:10 And what does he see? 36:12 He sees feet 36:14 that is made up of iron and clay. 36:17 In other words, 36:18 this does the Roman influence continue into the feet? 36:22 Yes, it does. 36:23 You see the iron there very clearly, 36:25 but now it's different than what it was before. 36:29 Just as Daniel saw 36:30 that it was different than 36:31 all the other nations before it. 36:33 What is the difference? 36:34 What has happened to Rome that makes it so different? 36:36 This is key. 36:38 This is huge 36:39 because you're going to see this 36:40 come back up 36:42 in the second beast of Revelation 13. 36:43 You see the iron represents the civil government. 36:48 We're talking about the governing power, 36:51 the power, the governing might of Rome, 36:54 but the clay represents the church 36:57 and you can go read this in Jeremiah 18:5, 37:01 as well as Isaiah 64:8. 37:03 The clay represents the church. 37:06 So what happens when you take the government 37:10 and you amalgamate that with the church? 37:14 You have a church state union. 37:19 You have the amalgamation of church and state. 37:22 So why did Daniel say in Daniel 7:7, 37:25 that this was different than all the other nations before? 37:28 Because none of the other nations 37:30 was a religio-political amalgamation 37:32 of church and state. 37:33 It did not dominate. It did not conquer. 37:36 It did not rule 37:37 as a religio-political movement. 37:39 It was just simply a nation 37:41 with a powerful military 37:43 and the might of its government, 37:45 trying to conquer the new world. 37:46 But this new Roman culture, 37:50 this new Roman system is no longer 37:53 just a political system, 37:56 but it's also a religious system. 37:58 And so there, 38:00 we see that for more than 1,260 years, 38:06 we see 38:08 that this religio political system of Rome 38:11 would dominate. 38:13 Of course, we're talking about 38:14 the 42 prophetic months 38:16 mentioned in Revelation 13, 38:18 the time, times and a half of time 38:20 mentioned in Daniel 7. 38:21 Also the time, times and a half of time 38:23 mentioned in Revelation 12. 38:26 This is the same significant prophetic time period. 38:29 We're talking about a nation 38:31 that would rule for 1, 260 years. 38:37 And how would they do it? 38:39 From 538 AD to 1798 AD, 38:43 they would do it as an amalgamation 38:47 of church and state. 38:49 The church and the government would come together 38:52 and they would oppress everyone around them 38:55 in the name of God. 38:59 Had never been done before, 39:00 before the papal Roman system. 39:06 Of course, we know this 39:07 amalgamation of church and state, 39:08 as I just mentioned, 39:10 is none other than the Roman papal church state. 39:14 They were the supreme rulers 39:15 through what is known as the Dark Ages, 39:18 the Medieval Times. 39:19 And as we specified on the screen, 39:21 just a moment ago, 39:22 for 1,260 years, 538 AD, they became supreme 39:27 and they ruled the Roman papal church state 39:29 manipulated the kingly powers and the earthly powers 39:33 to get what they wanted 39:34 and to dominate the known world at the time. 39:37 That's why when Daniel saw that beast, 39:38 he said it's different. 39:40 There's something different about it 39:43 because the little horn is that its head 39:46 it's speaking for it. 39:48 It's reacting for it, it's commanding it. 39:51 And so it's interesting that 39:54 when you read about this little horn, 39:57 this church state system. 40:00 Notice what Daniel 7:21 and 25 has to say. 40:04 He says, 40:05 "I was watching, and the same horn made war, " 40:07 notice, 40:08 "it was making war against the saints 40:11 and prevailing against them." 40:13 And then verse 25 says, 40:14 "He shall speak pompous words against the Most High. 40:17 And he shall persecute the saints of the Most High." 40:23 This religio-political system enforcing religion, 40:28 dominating the known world through the power of religion, 40:33 reached the point in when it started 40:36 persecuting the saints, God's people. 40:41 In fact, we see it again in Revelation 17:6 40:44 same system, 40:45 just to pick it a little differently. 40:47 Revelation 17:6, it says, 40:49 "I saw the woman 40:50 drunken with the blood of the saints 40:52 and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus?" 40:56 My friends, 40:58 for 1,260 years, 41:01 that same religio-political system 41:03 has now by the power of the devil by the way, 41:06 the devil is working through this system 41:08 and it is reaching out 41:09 and trying to crush out God's people 41:13 who keep the commandments of God 41:15 and have the testimony of Jesus. 41:18 But what's powerful is that the situation changes somewhat. 41:24 By the time you get to Revelation chapter 12, 41:26 because it's clear that the dragon, the devil 41:29 is after the woman. 41:30 And we know what a woman in Bible prophecy represents. 41:33 A woman in Bible prophecy represents a church. 41:36 So the devil is after God's church, 41:38 he's after this true religious movement 41:42 that God is going to use to change the world, 41:46 but he reaches out to persecute her 41:48 and notice what Revelation 12:13-14 say. 41:52 It says, 41:53 "Now when the dragon persecuted, 41:56 the woman who gave birth to the male child." 41:59 It says, 42:01 "But the woman was given two wings 42:03 of a great eagle 42:04 that she might fly into the wilderness 42:07 to her place, 42:08 where she is nourished 42:10 for a time and times and half a time, 42:14 from the presence of the serpent." 42:17 It says, 42:19 "So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth 42:22 like a flood after the woman, 42:25 that he might cause her 42:27 to be carried away by the flood." 42:30 But then notice verse 16, this is powerful. 42:33 It says, "But the earth..." 42:35 Okay, don't miss this point. 42:36 "But the earth helped the woman and the earth opened its mouth 42:42 and swallowed up the flood 42:43 which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth." 42:47 What is this talking about? 42:49 This is talking about the end of that 1798 period 42:55 around the end of those years 42:57 when there was so much persecution 42:59 being poured out upon the people 43:01 of Western Europe, Asia Minor, 43:03 parts of the Middle East and parts of Northern Africa, 43:05 all in that Northern, 43:08 that region that was ruled 43:10 by the empire of papal supremacy. 43:16 Through all of the persecutions, 43:21 the inquisitions 43:23 that was driving people out of the land. 43:25 Eventually 43:27 some of those people made a trip 43:30 across the Atlantic. 43:32 They looked for a new world away from the seas. 43:37 You see the sea in Bible prophecy 43:40 according to Revelation 17:15 43:43 represents multitudes of people, 43:46 mass populations. 43:48 So these people who are being persecuted 43:50 by this religio-political, 43:53 you know, church and state amalgamated system, 43:56 they wanted away from it. 43:57 They wanted to get away from it. 44:00 And so they took that trip across the Atlantic 44:03 and they found the new world. 44:07 It said here that the earth opened its mouth. 44:11 Of course, we know this to represent 44:13 a sparsely populated area, the earth, 44:17 they found a new place that was not as populated, 44:21 that had very little civilization. 44:23 So that they could flee Roman persecution. 44:26 They could flee church state persecution. 44:31 And so it's interesting. 44:34 And, by the time you get to Revelation 13, 44:36 there are two beasts presented in Revelation 13. 44:40 The first beast, there's no doubt who that is. 44:43 And in the second presentation, the part two, 44:45 we're going to talk a little bit about 44:47 the identifications of that first beast, 44:49 but there's no doubt that 44:50 that first beast is indeed that religio-political system, 44:54 that Roman papal church state system. 44:56 But remember Revelation 13 says that 44:59 that first beast receives a deadly wound. 45:02 And it just so happens 45:04 to be that as that deadly wound 45:06 is given around 1798, 45:11 there's a second beast in Revelation 13:11, 45:17 that is coming up out of the earth. 45:20 Notice what Revelation 13:11 says. 45:23 It says, 45:24 "Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth." 45:30 That's the same earth, 45:33 that opened its mouth to receive the woman 45:35 who was persecuted. 45:36 "Coming up out of the earth, 45:38 and he had two horns like a lamb 45:42 yet it spoke like a dragon." 45:47 Now, my friends, 45:49 we're gonna spent a significant time in part two, 45:51 looking at the identifications 45:53 and confirming the identifications 45:55 of this second beast. 45:56 But there's no doubt in my mind 45:57 that if you do a responsible research, 46:02 an intentional research, 46:03 an honest research on who the second beast is, 46:09 it can only fit one nation. 46:12 Now let's be reminded, 46:13 a beast in Bible prophecy according to Daniel 7 46:16 is a nation, a significant empire, 46:19 a world dominant power. 46:22 And we know that around 1798, 46:24 there was a significant world 46:26 dominant power that was arising to influence. 46:32 And, of course, this is none other than 46:34 the United States of America, 46:38 the land of the free, the home of the brave. 46:42 Now, I just, for the sake of time, 46:44 because we're coming down to our last few minutes here. 46:46 I just want to highlight 46:47 just a few of those identifications 46:49 so that you know where I'm coming from. 46:50 We're talking about the United States of America. 46:54 So if you look at some of these identifications. 46:56 Number one, 46:58 you'll notice that it's coming up 46:59 out of the earth. 47:00 If the sea, 47:02 according to Revelation 17:15 47:03 represents a mass populated area, 47:05 then the earth in contrast 47:07 would represent a sparsely populated area. 47:10 Does the United States 47:11 or did the United States of America 47:13 unlike all of the nations of Europe 47:15 rise up out of a sparsely populated area, 47:18 therefore coming up from the earth? 47:20 Absolutely. 47:21 It's the only nation that has done that. 47:23 Notice the second point. 47:24 Notice the timing of this arrival, 47:27 the arising to power, 47:28 the arising and the rising up of influence, 47:31 the United States of America. 47:32 As the first beast Rome is going down in 1798, 47:37 what other nation in history around 1798 is coming up? 47:40 It's only that 47:42 of the United States of America. 47:44 The third point we see very clearly. 47:47 The first beast had horns 47:49 and it had crowns up on those horns, 47:51 10 horns, crowns up on those 10 horns. 47:54 Those crowns represent kingly monarchs, 47:57 kingly and queenly monarchs, 47:59 which they were ruled by kings and queens. 48:01 But notice this second beast while it has two horns, 48:03 it has no crowns up on those horns. 48:07 And so therefore, 48:08 did the United States start out 48:09 or has it ever been ruled by a king or a queen? 48:12 No, it has not. 48:14 Check, check, check, check. 48:15 It fits the bill. 48:16 Notice number four, horns. 48:19 These horns would represent two powers 48:22 on which it was established in its early stages. 48:25 What does this mean? 48:26 Let's go to the Great Controversy, 48:28 page 441. 48:29 It says, 48:31 "And he had two horns like a lamb." 48:32 And the lamb, notice, 48:33 the lamb-like horns indicate youthful innocence 48:36 and gentleness 48:37 fitly representing 48:39 the character of the United States 48:40 when presented to the prophet as coming up in 1798. 48:45 And then notice again, Spirit of Prophecy volume four, 48:48 page 277. 48:50 It says there, 48:52 "And the lamb-like horns, 48:53 emblem of innocence and gentleness, 48:55 well represent 48:56 the character of our government, 48:58 as expressed in its two fundamental principles, 49:01 Republicanism and Protestantism." 49:05 So those two horns 49:07 fit the character of this beast, 49:09 it's not ruled by kings. 49:11 It came up from the earth. 49:12 It comes up around the same time 49:14 that the first beast is falling. 49:15 It's fitting it all, my friends, 49:17 but then notice number five, 49:20 it eventually speaks as a dragon. 49:26 It starts out as a lamb, but it speaks as a dragon. 49:32 I wonder if there's any thing 49:35 perhaps in connection with the history of Israel, 49:40 in connection with the course 49:42 in which Rome took 49:45 that we can connect to the second beast. 49:48 Why does it start out lamb-like, 49:51 but yet end up speaking like a dragon 49:54 or talking about the spiritual decline and fall 49:57 of one of the greatest nations ever, 49:59 the United States of America. 50:01 We're living in times 50:02 we need to know this, my friends. 50:05 And I wanna appeal to you today 50:06 as we're preparing to hear a beautiful song by my brother, 50:08 Tim, pardon. 50:10 We need to focus our attention more than anything 50:13 on the King who allows these nations to exist. 50:18 We're going to set up for part two, 50:20 but I'm going to come back in a moment 50:21 and share with you some final thoughts. 50:23 Until then, let's listen to Tim. 50:31 I have searched to find 50:34 The meaning of this life 50:38 Something that would fill 50:41 My empty soul 50:46 Some believe a lie 50:50 Choose darkness over light 50:54 But I will stand 50:56 And let the whole world know 51:01 I choose Jesus 51:06 I choose Jesus 51:11 The One who first chose me 51:23 I stand unashamed 51:26 Trusting in one Name 51:30 'Cause I have seen the cross 51:33 And I believe 51:37 This choice comes at a cost 51:40 All other things are lost 51:44 No other love could mean so much to me 51:51 For I choose Jesus 51:55 I choose Jesus 51:59 The One who first loved me 52:06 I choose Jesus 52:09 I choose Jesus 52:14 For now to eternity 52:21 I choose Jesus 52:25 I choose Jesus 52:30 The One who first chose me 52:47 Praise the Lord. 52:49 Man, 52:54 do you choose Jesus? 53:03 God chose Israel. 53:08 He wanted them to be His people, 53:13 but in the end they didn't choose as a nation. 53:16 They didn't choose Jesus. 53:22 You could say the reason they didn't choose Jesus 53:26 is because they went full beast mode. 53:30 Not a good thing. 53:35 The nation of Rome 53:39 plays a huge part 53:42 in the events of Bible prophecy, 53:46 and eventually 53:48 the devil raises up this institution 53:50 to appear to the world as a Christian institution 53:56 when in reality, 53:59 it went full beast mode on the world, 54:03 the Dark Ages. 54:07 It's a perfect example of that. 54:11 Here we are now 54:13 talking about what most considered 54:15 to be the greatest nation ever, 54:19 the land of the free, 54:21 the home of the brave. 54:23 I'll be the first to tell you, I'm a patriot. 54:25 I love my country. 54:28 I love being a citizen of the United States, 54:34 but I'm also not blind. 54:37 I'm not blind to the fact 54:38 that God's word has spoken 54:42 that even though many believe that 54:44 this is a Christian nation 54:47 founded upon Christian principles. 54:50 And it certainly does have its lamb-like characteristics, 54:55 Bible prophecy tells us a different story 54:57 that it will speak as a dragon. 55:03 If you consider Revelation 13:12, 55:08 notice what it tells us. 55:10 Speaking of the second beast 55:12 United States, it says, 55:13 "And he exercises all the authority 55:15 of the first beast 55:17 in his presence, 55:18 and causes the earth and those who dwell in it 55:21 to worship the first beast, 55:24 whose deadly wound was healed." 55:28 My friends, this sets us up for part two, 55:32 but you know what? 55:34 Part two doesn't even matter 55:39 if you don't sense the leading and guiding power 55:41 of the Holy Spirit upon your heart. 55:44 Part two's going to be awesome. 55:45 It's going to be powerful 55:47 because we're going to reveal a lot of awesome things, 55:48 incredible things 55:50 about the times that we're living in, 55:51 the nation of the United States 55:54 and the course that it will take. 55:56 And, my friends, at the end of the day, 56:00 we have to learn from the past 56:02 and realize that 56:04 turning a blind eye to Christ, 56:07 desiring the world over God 56:10 never led anyone anywhere good. 56:15 Don't allow yourself 56:17 to be caught up in the state of beast mode, 56:24 but allow yourself 56:26 to be transformed by the Lamb of God 56:30 who takes away the sin of the world. 56:33 You see, that's ultimately what cost Israel, 56:37 what caused Rome its fall. 56:40 And as we will see ultimately 56:42 why this great nation will end the way that it will. 56:48 God has a people. 56:50 Are you a part of that people? 56:52 Do you know Jesus today 56:54 because Jesus is calling out to you. 56:56 And He's saying, 56:57 "Choose this day, whom you will serve." 57:00 It's so simple. 57:01 It's not a trivial or hard thing. 57:04 You just simply ask the Lord into your heart right now. 57:07 Let's do that as we close. 57:09 Father in heaven, 57:11 cleanse us, Lord, forgive us our sins. 57:15 Come into us, Lord, and transform us, 57:17 lead us to Jesus now, 57:20 that we may be more like Him in these last days, 57:23 preparing for the soon coming of Jesus. 57:27 That's our prayer. 57:28 And we ask it in Jesus' holy name. 57:32 Amen. Amen. |
Revised 2021-03-29