Participants:
Series Code: AU
Program Code: AU000021S
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00:00 - From Nigerian money scams
00:02 and phony IRS communications in your email inbox 00:06 to Trojan horses and computer malware, 00:09 we now live in a world of dishonest people 00:12 who really don't care what price you have to pay 00:15 for their dishonesty. 00:17 So today on "Authentic," 00:18 we're going to take a look 00:20 at these modern day digital predators. 00:22 [chill introspective music] 00:43 During the Roaring Twenties, times were pretty good 00:46 and there was a lot of cash changing hands very quickly. 00:49 In fact, it was really the first time 00:51 a lot of people had managed to accumulate 00:53 a lot of real wealth. 00:56 So of course, that got the attention of scammers 00:59 and conmen all over the planet. 01:01 And maybe the most notorious of them all 01:03 was Count Victor Lustig, 01:05 who actually managed to sell the Eiffel Tower, 01:08 not once but twice. 01:11 And I know it doesn't seem possible, 01:12 but here's how he did it. 01:14 He posed as a businessman 01:16 and showed up in the city of Paris back in 1925, 01:19 when Western Europe was still recovering 01:21 from the devastation of the First World War. 01:23 Lustig made an appearance at a high flying hotel reception 01:26 and after meeting a number 01:28 of wealthy and influential people, 01:30 he sent out letters stating that the Eiffel Tower 01:32 was plagued with engineering mistakes 01:34 and the government couldn't afford to repair it, 01:37 so it would be sold for scrap, demolished. 01:41 Lustig put it up for bids and the offers started rolling in 01:44 and eventually he sold the tower for millions of dollars 01:48 to a guy by the name of Andre Poisson. 01:51 And one of the reasons he got away with this 01:54 was the same reason that conmen 01:56 almost always get away with it. 01:58 Poisson was so embarrassed that he'd been deceived 02:02 that he never told anybody what happened. 02:04 And so Lustig was free to sell the tower again 02:07 a second time to somebody else just one month later. 02:13 Of course, Mr. Poisson never had to cough up 02:15 the millions of dollars, because, well, 02:17 the tower was never really for sale. 02:20 But Lustig pretended to be a bureaucrat who could be bribed, 02:24 and so he walked away with a $70,000 cash payment 02:30 and Poisson obviously wasn't about to tell anybody 02:33 he'd been trying to bribe government officials. 02:37 Lustig's most famous con was a wooden moneymaking box, 02:41 a contraption about a foot square 02:43 with brass knobs and handles. 02:45 And he would insert $100 bills into one end of this box, 02:49 or sometimes even $1000 bills, 02:52 then he would turn the knobs and dials 02:54 and it would look like a perfect copy 02:57 came out the other end. 02:59 So of course, less than honest people were very interested 03:03 in buying a machine that could do that. 03:06 So he managed to sell the box over and over and over again, 03:10 getting as much as 10, 20, $30,000. 03:14 Sometimes even more. 03:17 In fact, at one point he even convinced 03:20 a local sheriff to buy this box. 03:22 And of course the officer was furious 03:24 when it didn't actually work, 03:26 but Lustig simply told him 03:28 he'd been turning the dials in the wrong order, 03:30 and he even gave back his money to calm him down. 03:34 Except that what Lustig gave back was all counterfeit bills. 03:40 According to Victor Lustig, 03:41 he even managed to swindle the mob boss Al Capone, 03:44 who supposedly never knew he'd been taken. 03:48 What Lustig did was borrow $50,000 from the famous gangster 03:52 and promise that he could double the money in two months. 03:56 After two months went by, 03:57 he went back to Capone's office 03:59 and explained that the scam he'd been planning 04:01 had gone, well, horribly wrong, 04:04 and he failed to double the money. 04:06 And Al Capone was so impressed with his honesty 04:10 that out of sympathy for a fellow criminal, 04:12 he gave him 5,000 on the way out the door. 04:17 But of course, as usually happens, 04:19 Mr. Lustig got a little too confident 04:22 after a long streak of successful cons. 04:25 He got greedy 04:27 and he started spreading counterfeit bills 04:29 at such an alarming rate 04:31 that it actually threatened the stability of the US dollar, 04:34 which means that he ended up on the radar 04:36 of the Secret Service, 04:38 and eventually they arrested him in Pittsburgh 04:40 and gave him a 20- year stint in Alcatraz 04:43 where he finally died in 1949. 04:47 Now, here's what I want you to think about. 04:50 Apart from the fact that we all kind of admire a conman 04:53 for being so clever, 04:54 I mean, if we're really honest about it, 04:57 what is it that actually makes these guys successful? 05:00 Why do con games work? 05:04 Well, the answer's kind of related to your smartphone. 05:07 You've probably noticed that once in a while, 05:09 you'll get a message telling you 05:10 to update your operating system 05:12 because they've discovered a vulnerability, 05:14 some kind of weakness that a hacker can exploit 05:17 to steal your personal data. 05:19 And the reason con jobs work is kind of related to that. 05:24 They work because of vulnerabilities 05:26 that most people have in their character, 05:30 weaknesses that dishonest people know how to leverage. 05:34 And one of those weaknesses we have is painfully obvious. 05:38 The reason that this Victor Lustig 05:39 was so incredibly successful 05:41 was because he was willing to exploit 05:43 our human tendency toward dishonesty. 05:47 People were willing to shell out big bucks 05:50 for a moneymaking box 05:51 because they planned to use it dishonesty. 05:55 And of course people were willing to bribe him 05:57 to win the contract for scrapping the Eiffel Tower. 06:01 And because the most effective scams 06:04 usually appeal to a sense of dishonesty 06:06 or our appetite for easy gain, 06:09 a lot of the victims never tell anybody what happened 06:12 because, well, it would implicate them. 06:16 Now, if there's one thing we know about scammers, 06:19 a lot of them love to brag about what they've done 06:22 because it's usually pretty clever 06:24 and they want someone to realize how smart they are. 06:28 Victor Lustig didn't really fall into that category 06:31 most of the time. 06:32 He was incredibly careful. 06:34 He even published a ten commandments for scamming people. 06:39 Let me show you some of his commandments. 06:41 Number one, be a patient listener 06:44 because it's not usually the fast-talking con artist 06:47 who gets the big money. 06:48 What you wanna do, Lustig said, 06:50 is let other people do most of the talking 06:53 because, well, that has a way of making them trust you. 06:57 His second commandment, never looked bored, 07:00 because of course most people's 07:01 favorite subject is themselves 07:03 and you don't wanna give the impression 07:05 that you're not listening to people, 07:07 but if you give people the impression 07:09 that they are the center of the universe, 07:12 they're gonna be less likely to notice 07:14 what you're trying to do to them. 07:16 Commandment number three, 07:17 let the other person reveal his or her religious views 07:20 and then suddenly have exactly the same ones. 07:24 And of course he did the same thing with political views 07:26 and it's easy to see why this works. 07:28 The word conman is short for confidence man. 07:32 It's a scammer who tries to make you trust him. 07:36 And nobody trusts a person 07:37 who isn't on the same ideological or religious page. 07:41 So a conman intentionally mirrors your beliefs. 07:48 His eighth rule, I'll just skip down to it. 07:49 We won't read them all. 07:51 Rule number eight said never boast, 07:54 just let your importance be quietly obvious. 07:58 This is a pretty big one and it makes a lot of sense 08:00 because nobody likes or trusts a person 08:03 who is trying to demonstrate how important they are. 08:06 But if you make people suspect you're important 08:09 and you're trying to keep it a secret, 08:11 suddenly it becomes their idea to approach you. 08:15 And if you can hesitate and make believe 08:17 that you really don't want to let them in on a good thing 08:20 that you've got going, 08:21 they're gonna be proud as all get out 08:23 when they apparently talk you into taking their money. 08:29 So what Victor Lustig has given us with his rules 08:32 is some decent insight into how human nature works, 08:35 how our minds are basically wired. 08:39 Unfortunately, 08:40 sometimes this kind of learning comes from people 08:42 who have very bad intentions 08:44 because they have to be careful. 08:46 They have to know what they're doing. 08:48 I mean, if you're gonna walk into Al Capone's office 08:51 and talk him out of cash, 08:54 you'd better know human nature 08:56 or the price is gonna be much higher 08:57 than just a prison term. 08:59 In that case, 09:01 Lustig defied another criminal's expectations 09:03 by appearing incredibly honest. 09:07 Now, it's not just the flaws in our character 09:09 that make us vulnerable. 09:11 Sometimes these people also exploit our positive traits, 09:14 such as the desire most of us have to trust. 09:17 And so there are plenty of innocent victims 09:19 in addition to those who are just hoping for easy riches. 09:23 And of course, Lustig lived back in the 1920s, 09:26 well before the internet, when times were simpler. 09:30 Now the game has gotten much more sophisticated, 09:33 even though the principles are pretty much the same. 09:35 So don't go away. 09:37 I'm coming right back to talk about Facebook. 09:42 - [Announcer] Dragons, beasts, cryptic statutes. 09:46 Bible prophecy can be incredibly vivid and confusing. 09:51 If you've ever read Daniel or Revelation 09:53 and come away scratching your head, you're not alone. 09:56 Our free Focus on Prophecy guides are designed 09:59 to help you unlock the mysteries of the Bible 10:01 and deepen your understanding of God's plan 10:04 for you and our world. 10:06 Study online or request them by mail 10:08 and start bringing prophecy into focus today. 10:12 - If you've been the victim of a scam, 10:14 you shouldn't feel too bad 10:15 because most of us fall for something 10:18 at some point in our lives. 10:19 And if it's just a few bucks, you tend to, well, let it go. 10:23 So for example, 10:25 I'll admit that I went for the envelope stuffing scam 10:28 when I was in my early twenties, 10:29 even though my gut kind of told me 10:32 it seemed too good to be true. 10:34 Now, if you're too young to remember the envelope scam, 10:36 here's how it worked. 10:38 Someone would put an ad in the classifieds 10:40 claiming that you could work from home. 10:42 You would be stuffing envelopes. 10:44 And back in the day, 10:46 it seemed like a perfectly reasonable proposition. 10:48 Direct mail advertising was a really big deal, 10:51 and so there was no reason somebody couldn't or shouldn't 10:54 be stuffing envelopes from home. 10:57 So because our income was tight, 10:59 and who wouldn't like a little extra spending money, 11:02 I sent away for their package. 11:05 What you got in return was a letter 11:07 explaining that they had three tiers of participation, 11:09 $5, $10 and $20. 11:12 And you had to choose which level you wanted up up front. 11:15 Now, at that point I knew this was likely a scam 11:18 because anytime you have to pay up front, 11:20 that's usually the case. 11:22 So I knew, I knew something was wrong, 11:25 but my curiosity got the better of me 11:27 and I sent away for the cheapest package, five bucks, 11:30 because I figured I could afford to lose those $5 11:33 and I really wanted to see what happened. 11:37 What I got in the mail was a letter explaining 11:39 that I should take out an ad in the classifieds 11:41 and when people responded, 11:42 I should stuff an envelope with a letter 11:44 explaining they could ask me for the 5, 10 or $20 package. 11:48 And I guess what they were doing was technically legal 11:52 because they actually delivered what they said they would. 11:55 I mean, they were still lying, but technically it was true. 12:00 So I guess I'm saying don't be embarrassed 12:03 if something like this has happened to you 12:04 because I pretty much knew it was a scam 12:07 and I sent them five bucks anyway, you know, just in case. 12:12 But now with the advent of the internet, 12:14 it's a completely different game. 12:16 Online predators have more immediate access to people 12:19 and they can pretty much pose like anybody they want to. 12:23 They can steal profile pictures 12:24 and pretend to be somebody else. 12:26 They can hack into your friend list 12:28 and start scamming people looking as if they're you. 12:32 Or they can just friend you 12:34 and patiently win your confidence over time. 12:38 Maybe one of the more despicable forms of internet scams 12:41 is the one that now preys on lonely people. 12:45 A single person, maybe a widow or widower, 12:47 meets somebody online who appears to be their soulmate. 12:52 After months of going back and forth 12:53 and even falling in love, 12:55 suddenly this love of their life 12:57 says he got a massive medical bill 12:59 or that he's about to lose his house 13:01 and he timidly asks for money. 13:04 "I'm so embarrassed to ask," he says, 13:06 "but I really need your help." 13:08 People have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars 13:11 to these online predators because they managed to exploit 13:14 one of the most fundamental needs a human being has: 13:17 love and companionship. 13:21 So again, you can learn a lot 13:22 about how human beings think and operate 13:24 from the people who prey on us. 13:27 And honestly, 13:28 you don't have to be on a platform like Facebook 13:30 for more than a few days 13:31 to figure out that online predators 13:33 are multiplying like crazy and keeping themselves very busy 13:37 in a world that has billions of potential victims. 13:43 So now let's think about some of the more common rackets 13:46 that pop up in your social media feed. 13:49 One of them a little while ago 13:50 would appear to send a direct message from a friend, 13:52 and it had a video file attached with the question, 13:55 "Hey, is this you in this video?" 13:58 And of course, a lot of people panic, 14:00 wondering if somebody caught them 14:02 doing something embarrassing, 14:03 and so they click on the link 14:06 out of a desperate need to save their reputation. 14:09 And if you have been doing something wrong, 14:11 the scam is all the more effective 14:13 because guilt and the need to save face, 14:17 well, those are very powerful motivators. 14:20 There's also another scam 14:22 where somebody sends you an email 14:23 claiming to know what you've been doing on your computer. 14:26 And they say they're gonna post it 14:27 for the whole world to see 14:30 unless you pay them a substantial sum of money. 14:33 I've actually had this one land in my work email inbox, 14:36 and so I returned the favor. 14:38 I sent them a note telling them, 14:39 "Man, I can't wait 14:40 for you to publish this video you have 14:42 because man, I can't wait to be internet famous. 14:45 So please put it online as soon as possible. 14:49 Of course I never heard back 14:50 because they didn't actually have anything. 14:53 But afterwards, as I was thinking about this, 14:56 it occurred to me, 14:57 the people who do these kinds of things 14:59 are just playing a numbers game, 15:00 counting on the fact that enough people 15:02 do use their computer for embarrassing activity 15:05 that somebody out there is going to pay the ransom. 15:11 So again, we have another scam 15:13 that works by cashing in on vulnerabilities. 15:16 And if someone happens to be immoral 15:18 or fails to develop an upstanding character, 15:21 they're going to be an even bigger target. 15:24 So it seems to me that while nobody is perfectly immune, 15:27 I mean a lot of people do fall for these things innocently, 15:31 people who value things like morality or good character 15:35 are less likely to become victims. 15:38 I mean, it's not perfect, 15:40 but it certainly does better your odds. 15:43 Enough of these scams are built on the idea 15:45 of easy or dishonest gain 15:46 that simply being honest in life 15:49 might be the best protection you could hope for. 15:52 Now again, I wanna be careful. 15:54 I'm generalizing because we all fall for something 15:56 at some point, 15:58 and it's not necessarily an indication 15:59 that you have some kind of serious moral flaw. 16:02 But at the same time, 16:04 the way that a lot of these scams appear to work 16:06 certainly indicates that it doesn't hurt to be honest. 16:11 The other day, I found a short article 16:12 on how to protect it yourself from Facebook Messenger scams, 16:15 which I understand are on the rise 16:18 because it never takes criminals long 16:21 to figure out how to use a new platform. 16:24 This comes from Lauren Cahn. 16:26 and it was published recently in "Reader's Digest." 16:29 She says, "The common thread is the scammer 16:33 either creates an account 16:34 impersonating an actual Facebook account, 16:37 or hacks into an existing Facebook account. 16:40 In either case, 16:41 the scammer then uses the fake hacked account 16:44 to send private messages to the account holder's friends 16:47 that elicit either money or personal information. 16:50 The messages vary, but all are designed to prey 16:53 on our human vulnerabilities, including..." 16:56 And then she goes on to list five common vulnerabilities. 17:00 And again, this gives us amazing insight 17:02 into what makes human beings tick. 17:05 Here are the five vulnerabilities that she provides. 17:08 First of all, the desire to be a hero. 17:12 So in other words, 17:13 the pleasure you derive from saving somebody else. 17:16 The desire to appear generous. 17:19 The desire to win free money. 17:21 The desire to be loved and admired. 17:23 The desire to avoid shame or punishment. 17:28 Now, you'll notice some of those are relatively harmless. 17:30 Some of them are things that most people want. 17:33 But the one thing they all have in common 17:36 is the appeal to self. 17:40 The online predator offers a shortcut 17:42 to the things that most people crave. 17:44 And this is one of the biggest vulnerabilities 17:46 that most of us have. 17:48 All of us, no matter how noble, 17:51 still see the world from the perspective of self. 17:54 And we have this powerful instinct 17:56 to preserve self above everything else. 17:59 And it's an instinct that's almost impossible to conquer 18:03 and criminals know it. 18:06 So now we're gonna take a little break 18:07 because it's about that time in the show. 18:10 But when we come back, 18:11 I'm gonna show you how to make $10,000 a month 18:13 without ever having to work. 18:15 And if you believe that, you should probably stay tuned. 18:21 - [Announcer] Life can throw a lot at us. 18:23 Sometimes we don't have all the answers, 18:26 but that's where the Bible comes in. 18:29 It's our guide to a more fulfilling life. 18:32 Here at the Voice of Prophecy, 18:34 we've created the Discover Bible guides 18:36 to be your guide to the Bible. 18:37 They're designed to be simple, easy to use, 18:40 and provide answers to many of life's toughest questions. 18:43 And they're absolutely free. 18:45 So jump online now, 18:46 or give us a call and start your journey of discovery. 18:51 - [Announcer] Here at the Voice of Prophecy, 18:52 we're committed to creating 18:53 top quality programming for the whole family. 18:56 Like our audio adventure series, "Discovery Mountain." 18:59 "Discovery Mountain" is a Bible-based program 19:02 for kids of all ages and backgrounds. 19:04 Your family will enjoy the faith-building stories 19:07 from this small mountain summer camp and town. 19:10 With 24 seasonal episodes every year 19:12 and fresh content every week, 19:14 there's always a new adventure 19:16 just on the horizon. 19:21 - So here's the interesting thing 19:23 about those online scams and all the con artists out there. 19:27 Generally speaking, they're taking advantage 19:29 of vulnerabilities that most of us have, 19:31 weaknesses in our character. 19:34 And if you understand that, you're already mostly inoculated 19:38 against what they're trying to do to you 19:40 because knowing is at least half the battle. 19:43 Now, the same thing is true 19:45 with the subject of moral temptation. 19:48 Knowing how the game works 19:49 and how it takes advantage of your vulnerabilities 19:52 is at least half the battle. 19:54 There's an interesting passage in the New Testament 19:56 written by James, the brother of Jesus. 19:59 And here's what it says. 20:01 "Blessed is the man who endures temptation; 20:05 for when he has been approved, 20:06 he will receive the crown of life 20:08 which the Lord has promised to those who love Him." 20:12 So there is something to be gained 20:14 from studying how con games work. 20:16 He continues, "Let no one say when he is tempted, 20:20 'I am tempted by God'; 20:21 for God cannot be tempted by evil, 20:24 nor does He Himself tempt anyone." 20:27 You know, that would probably make 20:28 a great topic for another day, 20:30 because I find it fascinating 20:31 how many people wanna give God credit 20:33 for the evil in this world. 20:35 But for now, let's stay with the topic we're looking at. 20:38 "But each one is tempted," he says, 20:40 "when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 20:45 Then, when desire has conceived, 20:47 it gives birth to sin; 20:49 and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. 20:52 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren." 20:57 Okay, so right off the bat, James tells us, 21:00 you don't have to be deceived. 21:02 There are ways to protect yourself against moral temptation. 21:06 In fact, this is what the Apostle Paul 21:09 says on the same subject over in the Book of 1 Corinthians. 21:13 He writes, "No temptation has overtaken you 21:16 except such as is common to man." 21:19 So on the one hand, the Bible suggests 21:22 you don't need to keep beating yourself up 21:23 for the mistakes you've made in the past, 21:25 because we're all in the same boat. 21:27 And I promise you, 21:28 you are not the only person to do what you did. 21:33 But then on the other hand, 21:34 we need to recognize that we don't have to do these things 21:36 because, well, Paul continues, 21:38 "God is faithful, who will not allow you 21:42 to be tempted beyond what you are able, 21:45 but with the temptation will also make the way of escape 21:48 that you may be able to bear it." 21:51 So while God doesn't tempt you, 21:54 He is on deck to save you, 21:57 which means that you and I don't have to fall for the things 21:59 that tend to destroy our lives. 22:01 And James provides us with a logical progression. 22:05 He says we are tempted when we are drawn by our own desires. 22:11 Then when we coddle those desires 22:12 and place our wishes at the center of the universe, 22:15 it leads to sin, which of course eventually leads to death. 22:22 So it's really the same vulnerability that conmen use: 22:26 the desire to put self first. 22:28 And we kind of know when we're faced with temptation 22:31 that what we're doing is wrong, 22:34 but there's a flaw in our mental process 22:36 that tries to pretend 22:38 that nobody's ever going to notice what you're doing, 22:40 that somehow you'll just get away with it 22:42 and God won't even notice. 22:45 There's a famous passage in the Bible 22:47 that appears more than once, 22:48 and it goes like this. 22:50 "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'" 22:55 Now, most people assume that's talking about atheists, 22:57 people who say God does not exist. 23:00 And some people like to use that verse 23:02 when they're arguing with the godless heathens 23:05 they come across on social media. 23:07 But honestly, that's not what the verse is talking about. 23:10 It's talking about people who behave 23:13 as if God doesn't exist, 23:14 as if He's not going to see what they're doing 23:17 or call them to account. 23:20 This is one of the biggest vulnerabilities that we have, 23:24 morally speaking, 23:26 the mistaken notion that we're operating 23:28 in some kind of vacuum 23:29 where we're never gonna have to face consequences. 23:32 Our capacity for long-range thinking suddenly gets shut down 23:36 by the overpowering desire to take a shortcut 23:40 or put self ahead. 23:42 I can't tell you how many people 23:44 have come through my office over the years 23:45 complaining after their marriage has been destroyed 23:49 that their brains just turned off 23:51 in a moment of selfish passion and, quote, 23:53 "One thing led to another and it just kind of happened." 23:58 Here's what I say to that. 24:00 No, it didn't just kind of happen. 24:02 That's a terrible excuse. 24:04 It doesn't work that way. 24:06 It didn't happen without your choice. 24:09 When you choose to feed your moral flaws 24:11 instead of deal with them, 24:13 you can't call what you did in accident. 24:15 I mean, let's be honest, you did it on purpose. 24:20 Now fortunately, 24:21 just like you can get security patches 24:23 for your laptop or your smartphone, 24:25 the Apostle James gives us a security patch 24:28 for moral weaknesses, the ones that always take us down. 24:32 I'll be right back to show you what those are. 24:37 [bright inquisitive music] 24:38 - [Announcer] Are you searching for answers 24:40 to life's toughest questions, 24:41 like where is God when we suffer? 24:44 Can I find real happiness? 24:45 Or is there any hope for our chaotic world? 24:48 The Discover Bible guides will help you 24:50 find the answers you're looking for. 24:52 Visit us at biblestudies.com 24:55 or give us a call at 888-456-7933 25:00 for your free Discover Bible guides. 25:03 Study online on our secure website 25:06 or have the free guides mailed right to your home. 25:08 There is never a cost or obligation. 25:11 The Discover Bible guides are our free gift to you. 25:14 Find answers in guides like 25:15 "Does My Life Really Matter to God?" 25:18 and "A Second Chance at Life." 25:20 You'll find answers to the things that matter most to you 25:22 in each of the 26 Discover Bible guides. 25:25 Visit biblestudies.com and begin your journey today 25:29 to discover answers to life's deepest questions. 25:38 - Right after James explains how selfish desires, 25:41 if you feed them, will steer you down a destructive path, 25:44 he offers this advice. 25:46 This is the security patch for your character. 25:49 He says, "Therefore, lay aside all filthiness 25:52 and overflow of wickedness, 25:54 and receive with meekness the implanted word, 25:58 which is able to save your souls." 26:02 What he's saying 26:03 is that we need to become aware of our weakness. 26:05 You need to understand how the con game works. 26:08 Once you understand how and why people fall for temptation, 26:11 you become far less likely to go for it. 26:15 Naming your enemy is the right first step. 26:18 And thence once you recognize 26:20 how feeding self can set you up for a world of hurt, 26:23 you can start identifying the problem areas in your life 26:26 and get rid of them. 26:29 But more than that, 26:31 it's important to start feeding your mind 26:33 the right information 26:34 so that your vulnerabilities start to shrink, 26:37 which is why James tells us 26:39 to receive with meekness the implanted word. 26:42 It's the thing that David says over in Psalm 17. 26:46 He writes, "You have tested my heart; 26:50 you have visited me in the night; 26:51 you have tried me and found nothing; 26:53 I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. 26:57 Concerning the works of men, by the word of your lips, 27:00 I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer." 27:05 Look, I know that some of you dismiss this book 27:07 as a collection of ancient fairy tales. 27:10 And I also know that a lot of seemingly religious people 27:13 have used this book 27:15 to con people out of their hard-earned money 27:16 like this is a con game. 27:18 I mean, just watch religious television on the weekend 27:20 to see what I'm talking about. 27:22 But here's what I want you to understand. 27:25 There are thousands of years of case studies 27:27 from very sincere and honest people 27:29 who took this book seriously, 27:32 and most of them went to their graves 27:33 not being victims like the rest of us. 27:36 Life is hard enough the way it is, 27:39 so if there's some chance 27:40 that you can mitigate the damage before it happens 27:43 simply by being aware of how it works, 27:46 well, that would seem to me like it would be worth your time 27:49 to take this book and check it out. 27:52 Thanks for joining me again this week. 27:54 I'm Shawn Boonstra and this has been "Authentic." 27:58 [chill introspective music] |
Revised 2021-09-02