Revelation NOW!

Bowing to the Beast

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

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Series Code: RNAF

Program Code: RNAF200014S

00:03 Hello, friends, 00:05 would you like to hear an amazing fact? 00:07 The tallest statue in the world is now in Western India. 00:11 And it's 600 feet tall, 00:13 four times taller than The Statue of Liberty. 00:17 It was designed after 00:18 one of the founding fathers of India, 00:19 Sardar Patel. 00:21 And the idea was to help bring the country together. 00:24 It's called The Statue of Unity, 00:27 and it's four times taller than The Statue of Liberty, 00:31 can be seen from 20 miles away. 00:34 And, you know, the Bible tells us that 00:36 there's going to be a big image in the last days. 00:38 Stay with us, we're going to discuss this more 00:40 in this edition of Revelation Now! 00:58 Good morning, friends, and welcome again 00:59 to Revelation Now! 01:01 Everything is about to change. 01:02 We'd like to welcome those 01:04 who are joining us across the country 01:05 and around the world 01:06 for this very special Sabbath morning presentation. 01:10 Today, our presentation is entitled 01:12 Bowing to The Beast, 01:13 and it's sort of part one of a two-part series 01:17 dealing with this power spoken of in Revelation as the beast. 01:20 We'll be talking about the mark of the beast this evening, 01:22 so very important presentation. 01:25 I'd like to remind you, 01:26 if you'd like to watch this in Spanish, 01:28 you can just go to the Amazing Facts, 01:30 AF Latino Facebook page, 01:32 or the YouTube channel. 01:34 You can also find it 01:35 at the Revelation Now Spanish website. 01:38 Also at the Revelation Now website, 01:40 we do have signing for the deaf. 01:42 So if that's going to be of help to you, 01:44 make sure that you check it out. 01:46 Now, we'd like to thank those who have contacted us 01:48 from around the world, telling us 01:50 that you there and you're watching. 01:52 And we just got an email from some folks in Japan 01:54 and they say they tune in and they watch the program 01:56 as well as Bulgaria. 01:58 So we'd like to greet those watching in Japan and Bulgaria. 02:01 We also had an email from Janet in South Africa. 02:04 She says, 02:06 "We've been tuning in faithfully 02:07 and have been very blessed by these messages." 02:10 Len from Switzerland says, 02:12 "We are praising God for this series. 02:14 Thank you so much." 02:16 And then Jamie from California, 02:19 she is actually hosting a Zoom party 02:22 there in Moreno Valley, California. 02:25 And she says, 02:26 "We are enjoying these presentations 02:28 and we're looking forward to the upcoming lessons." 02:30 And I think you'll see a picture of them 02:31 on the screen. 02:33 I'd like to greet those there that are watching 02:35 on Jamie's Zoom party on that connection there. 02:38 So again, welcome. 02:39 Thank you for being a part of the series 02:41 as mentioned very important presentation this morning. 02:44 Following the presentation, 02:46 we will be taking your Bible questions 02:48 as we normally do. 02:49 So if you have a Bible question, 02:51 you can just type it in the comment section 02:52 on Facebook. 02:53 We have a lesson 02:55 that goes along with our presentation this morning, 02:57 it's entitled Bowing to The Beast. 02:59 It's the same title actually as the presentation. 03:02 And you can download this for free 03:04 at the Revelation Now website. 03:06 Just Revelation Now, 03:08 click on the link that says resources, 03:09 and you'll be able to download that. 03:11 Our free offer is a study guide 03:14 and our Amazing Fact Study Guide series, 03:17 it says, who is the Antichrist? 03:18 That's the title. 03:20 If you'd like to receive this study guide, 03:22 you can text the word Reveal to 40544, 03:26 and you'll be able to get a digital download of that. 03:29 Now, if you're outside of North America 03:31 and you're unable to text, 03:32 just go to the revelationnow.com website. 03:35 And again, you can download the study guide, 03:38 who is the Antichrist? 03:39 I'd like to invite Pastor Doug to come forward 03:41 and again trying to give you as much time, 03:43 Pastor Doug, as possible, a very important, 03:45 deep prophetic subject to that. 03:46 I've been looking forward to this. 03:48 And I know many of those who are watching 03:50 have also been looking forward to this study this morning. 03:52 So let's start with prayer. Amen. 03:54 Dear Lord again, we are so grateful 03:56 that we're able to gather together 03:57 and open up Your Word 03:59 and talk about these end time issues. 04:01 And it seems as though 04:02 Bible prophecy is being fulfilled 04:04 as we look at what's happening in the world today. 04:06 So we do pray for Your Spirit to guide us 04:08 and give us understanding in Jesus' name. 04:10 Amen. 04:12 Amen. Thank you, Pastor Ross. 04:14 And once again, Pastor Ross will be coming back 04:16 following our presentation and we're going to be taking 04:19 your Bible questions. 04:20 I expect we'll have 04:21 some interesting Bible questions today 04:23 because we're going to be talking about, 04:25 who is the beast of Revelation 13 04:27 and or the Antichrist, 04:29 and just go to the Facebook page, 04:31 send them into us. 04:33 And so that is our title, Bowing to the Beast 04:37 for today's study. 04:38 But when you talk about the beast 04:40 or the mark of the beast, 04:41 we decided to go out on the street. 04:43 I thought it'd be fun to find out, 04:44 what do some of our average citizens 04:46 out there in America 04:48 have to say about this subject? 04:52 Who or what is the Antichrist? 04:55 To me that is Satan himself 04:58 or anybody who follows his teachings and his beliefs. 05:01 The Antichrist is Satan, the father of lies. 05:04 The Antichrist is a group of people 05:06 who like either don't believe in God 05:09 or like misbehave towards him. 05:10 I guess the Antichrist is just, 05:13 I don't know, the opposite of, I don't know, 05:15 it's like evil, I suppose. 05:17 I don't think we should be looking 05:18 to one individual as the Antichrist, 05:21 but I think it's a spirit of the Antichrist. 05:24 You got the one worldwide system, 05:25 which we are sadly approaching 05:28 up on this one worldwide system of the Antichrist system. 05:32 You won't be able to buy, sale or eat 05:34 or do anything unless you take on the mark. 05:36 But I believe God always take care of people. 05:38 I believe God will have an Underground Railroad system 05:41 where His people are taken care of. 05:44 All right. 05:45 Well, we've got some interesting ideas out there 05:48 about what the beast is and what the Antichrist is. 05:50 We're going to go to the Bible and as always, 05:53 we think it's a good idea 05:55 to look at the stories in the Bible 05:56 to understand what the theology and the teachings are. 06:00 The story we're going to consider, 06:01 you find in the Book of Daniel. 06:03 And some of you remember 06:05 when we studied Daniel Chapter 2, 06:08 and Daniel was interpreting 06:10 the dream for King Nebuchadnezzar 06:11 of this tall image 06:13 that outlined the major empires of the world 06:16 from the time of Daniel 06:17 until the Lord returns and sets up His kingdom. 06:20 And he said that the head of gold 06:22 represented King Nebuchadnezzar, 06:24 but then the king didn't like so much 06:26 when Daniel continued with the interpretation 06:29 and he spoke about the arms of silver. 06:31 And he said, "After thee shall arise another kingdom." 06:35 And Nebuchadnezzar liked being the head of gold. 06:38 He did not like the idea 06:39 that his kingdom would not last. 06:41 So he began to think, 06:43 if Babylon is symbolized by the head of gold, 06:46 what if I make an image, 06:47 something like the one I saw in my dream, 06:49 but make it all gold. 06:51 Maybe I can overthrow or confound the vision 06:53 so that Babylon will last forever. 06:56 And I don't know, maybe some of his wise men 06:58 or astrologers or sorcerers gave him this idea, 07:02 but that's what he did. 07:04 He made a massive statue on the Plains of Dura 07:07 there in Babylon. 07:09 And he hoped to bring his whole empire together 07:12 through common worship, 07:14 because he had all these different cultures 07:16 and religions and nations. 07:18 So he set up this tall image of gold 07:21 and the Bible tells us that this image is 07:24 60 cubits by 6 cubits. 07:28 And a number of Hebrew scholars say that 07:30 if in Hebrew dimensions, 07:31 if they give you the width 07:33 and they don't give you the depth, 07:34 the depth will be the same as the width. 07:37 Which means it was 60 by 6 by 6, 07:40 which I think is very interesting. 07:42 Then he gave a command. 07:44 He said, when you hear the sound of the music, 07:47 they were going to unveil this majestic image. 07:50 And there would be glinting in the rising sun. 07:54 Everybody was to fall down and worship it. 07:57 But that created a problem for three of the Hebrews 08:00 that were in the king's cabinet, 08:01 because there is a commandment that specifically says, 08:04 do not bow down to graven images. 08:07 It's called idolatry. 08:09 Well, the king knew that some might resist. 08:11 He said, 08:12 "Whoever does not fall down and worship the same hour 08:15 he will be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace." 08:20 And the furnace they had used to smelt the golden image 08:23 was not far away and probably still smoldering. 08:26 So they played the music 08:28 and those three brave Hebrews 08:31 Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah 08:34 sometimes known as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. 08:37 The same individuals would not bow down. 08:41 When the king heard some advisors said, 08:44 you realize that there's some people 08:45 that don't observe your law. 08:47 And they're not bowing down 08:48 to the image that you've set up. 08:50 And the king said, 08:51 "Bring them here. There are done for." 08:53 When he saw it was these 08:54 three bright good-looking Hebrew young men 08:56 that he had said in Chapter 1 08:58 were 10 times wiser than his wise men. 09:01 He didn't want to execute them. 09:02 He thought I'll give him another chance. 09:04 So maybe you didn't hear the command. 09:06 Maybe you didn't understand. 09:07 I know Chaldean is a second language for you 09:10 and I'll play the music again. 09:12 See the devil wants nothing more than for us to compromise. 09:15 He'll give us a few chances to compromise. 09:18 But they gave a very courageous answer 09:20 and they said, 09:22 "You don't need to play the music again 09:23 because we understood and we're not bowing down." 09:27 And he said, 09:28 "Be it known unto thee, O King," 09:30 one of the young men answered 09:32 it doesn't say which one, 09:33 "that we will not serve thy gods 09:36 or worship the golden image that you have set up.' 09:40 Well, when the king heard this, he just about blew a gasket. 09:45 He commanded the soldiers. 09:47 They heat up the furnace, but not just heat it up, 09:50 to heat it up seven times hotter 09:52 than it had ever been heated before. 09:54 Then he got the strongest soldiers 09:56 in his empire 09:57 and he had them tie up. 09:59 Didn't even strip off their clothes, 10:00 just had them wrapped them up 10:02 in a cocoon of rope and said, 10:06 "Toss them into the middle of this raging inferno." 10:11 Now the Bible tells us 10:12 that the furnace really was heated 10:14 seven times hotter than it should have been heated 10:16 because as the soldiers ran forward to throw them in, 10:19 you got two soldiers they grab hold of the arms 10:21 and legs of Shadrach and they run up. 10:23 They even meant the fire was so hot 10:25 it killed the soldiers that threw them in. 10:28 Can you imagine being the second group of soldiers? 10:31 Nebuchadnezzar says next one. 10:34 This is a tough job, but they obeyed the king. 10:38 They ran up to throw him in 10:40 and they landed in the middle of the furnace. 10:42 But the soldiers died in the process. 10:44 I would have been very discouraged 10:46 if I was the third pair of soldiers 10:47 that had to throw in Mishael or Azariah, 10:50 but they obeyed the king. 10:52 They went and they threw Azariah 10:56 into the middle and they died. 11:00 Now, it's interesting, the Egyptians had followed 11:02 the children of Israel across the Red Sea. 11:04 God performed a miracle to deliver them, 11:07 but that same miracle destroyed the enemy. 11:10 The Bible says that the lions that did not eat Daniel 11:14 did eat the accusers of Daniel. 11:17 It's interesting how God sometimes 11:19 even things out 11:20 during these stories of miracles and judgment. 11:24 But then the king looked, 11:26 says the men were cast 11:27 into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 11:29 They didn't fall near the edge. 11:31 And if you wonder if it was really hot, 11:33 it's not like these fires 11:35 that some magicians walk over to do a trick. 11:38 This fire was so hot, it killed the soldiers 11:40 that threw them in. 11:42 But then the king looked and he said, 11:44 "Did we not cast three men bound 11:47 into the midst of the fire?" 11:49 His advisor said, "That's true, O king." 11:51 He said, "What's going on? 11:53 I see four men loose walking 11:55 in the midst of the fire 11:57 and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." 12:00 Now, friends, you may go through fiery trials 12:03 for not worshiping the beast and the image in the last days. 12:06 But God promises in those fiery trials, 12:09 Jesus will be with us. 12:11 I think that Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah read the promise 12:15 in Isaiah, when God said, 12:16 "When you go through the fire, I will be with you." 12:20 And Jesus really did go into the fire with them 12:22 and He protected them. 12:24 And the only thing burned was the ropes that bound them. 12:27 And King Nebuchadnezzar said, 12:29 "Come forth Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah." 12:33 He said, "There's no God like this." 12:35 And the king issued a decree 12:38 that no one should speak against Jehovah. 12:41 See the Lord accomplished 12:42 through Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego 12:44 on the Plains of Dura that day, 12:46 what He had been wanting to do through the Hebrew nation 12:49 for about 1800 years. 12:51 He got them to finally stand up 12:54 and be a witness to the other nations 12:56 of the power of Jehovah. 12:59 And He's going to want a people that will do the same thing 13:01 in the last days that we will stand for the law of God 13:03 when everybody else bows down. 13:05 And look at their courage, 13:07 when that music played 13:08 and everyone else around them bowed, 13:10 they realized they were going to be party poopers. 13:13 They realized it was going to upset the king. 13:15 They knew they might lose their job 13:17 and lose their lives. 13:19 They could have said, well, let's just tie 13:21 our shoes right now, adjust our sandals 13:23 and we won't really pray to the image, 13:25 but let's not make a spectacle. 13:26 They stood tall when everyone else bowed down, 13:29 they would not even look like they were compromising. 13:31 God needs people like this in the last days 13:34 that will stand for the commandments 13:35 regardless of what the majority is doing. 13:38 So with that little background, 13:40 we're going to start going into our questions. 13:42 And the first question is, 13:43 how does our story relate to Daniel, 13:46 in Daniel Chapter 3 relate to Revelation? 13:49 Well, let's go to Revelation Chapter 13. 13:52 This is where you find the passage 13:53 about the beast and the mark of the beast. 13:56 And I'm going to read most of this, 13:57 just follow along. 14:00 "And I stood on the sand of the sea. 14:02 And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, 14:06 having seven heads and ten horns, 14:09 and on his horns ten crowns, 14:11 and on his heads, names of blasphemy. 14:15 Now, the beast that I saw was like a leopard 14:18 and his feet were like the feet of a bear. 14:20 And his mouth was like the mouth of a lion. 14:23 And the dragon gave him his power, 14:24 his throne and great authority. 14:27 And I saw one of his heads as it had been mortally wounded 14:30 and its deadly wound was healed 14:33 and all the world wondered and followed the beast 14:36 so that they worshiped the dragon 14:38 who gave authority to the beast, 14:39 and they worshiped the beast saying 14:41 who is like the beast 14:42 and who is able to make war with him? 14:44 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking, 14:47 great things and blasphemies. 14:49 And it was given him authority to continue for 42 months." 14:52 There's a time period that's given here. 14:55 "And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, 14:58 to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, 15:00 and them that dwell in heaven. 15:02 And it was granted to him to make war with the saints 15:05 and to overcome them. 15:06 And authority was given him 15:08 over every tribe, tongue, and nation. 15:10 And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, 15:12 whose names have not been written 15:14 in the book of life of the Lamb 15:16 slain from the foundation of the world. 15:18 If anyone has an ear, let him hear. 15:21 He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity. 15:25 He who kills with a sword, must be killed with a sword. 15:28 Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. 15:31 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth 15:35 and it had two horns like a lamb 15:37 and it spoke like a dragon." 15:39 Okay. 15:41 Right away, I want you to notice something. 15:42 When we talk about the last day beast, 15:44 there's actually two beasts in Revelation 13. 15:48 So you really need to say 15:49 the mark of the beasts in one sense, 15:51 because there's really two beasts 15:53 that are at play here. 15:55 And you know, maybe I'll stop right here. 15:57 I'll tell you what this represents. 16:00 Then I'll go back 16:01 and I'll spend some more time explaining it. 16:03 Now Paul says in the Bible, 16:06 am I your enemy if I tell you the truth? 16:09 I'm going to talk about some tough things today 16:11 that may not be popular. 16:13 And just about everybody's going to be impacted 16:15 in one way or another. 16:17 Revelation and these prophecies 16:19 talk about primary last day religions. 16:22 These prophecies are talking about everything 16:24 from Protestantism in America, 16:28 to Catholicism in the old world to Islam. 16:32 And that shouldn't surprise you 16:33 because largest church in the world today 16:36 is the Christian Church. 16:37 Largest denomination is the Roman Catholic church. 16:40 Second largest religion is Islam. 16:43 There are 2.2 billion Christians in the world 16:46 and about 1.7 Muslims. 16:49 And the Christian Church is largely divided. 16:52 At least it used to be 16:54 between the Orthodox and Catholic Church 16:56 and the Protestant churches. 16:58 All of these things are at play here 17:00 in this study on prophecy. 17:02 I believe the two beasts that are being represented here 17:05 in Revelation 13 17:07 is talking about Roman Catholicism 17:10 with its seat largely in Europe, 17:12 but then it spread globally. 17:14 And the United States, 17:16 which was at one time 17:18 the beachhead for Protestants in the world. 17:22 And so as we go on 17:24 and by the way, nothing I'm telling you is new. 17:26 I didn't think this up. 17:27 This is largely what the understanding 17:29 was of the Protestant reformers. 17:31 So we're going to go through our questions 17:33 and find out what the Bible says. 17:35 Question number one. 17:36 How does our story in Daniel 3 relate to Revelation? 17:41 "As many as would not worship 17:42 the image of the beast should be killed." 17:45 Now, does this mean in the last days 17:47 that there's going to be a great big statue 17:49 everyone is going to be told to pray to? 17:51 No, not necessarily. 17:53 Remember, there's symbols that are used in Revelation. 17:56 You come tonight, 17:57 we'll be talking more about that, 17:59 but it's all about worship. 18:02 Notice something else that you have in Genesis, 18:07 two brothers Cain and Abel, 18:09 they both worship, 18:10 one worships correctly, 18:12 one worships with man-made worship, 18:14 his own idea. 18:16 One is worshiping looking to grace. 18:18 One is worshiping his own works. 18:21 The one who is worshiping wrong 18:23 kills or persecutes 18:24 the one who is worshiping right. 18:25 That same scenario plays out in the last days. 18:30 What are the three angels' messages 18:32 of Revelation 14? 18:33 Now, if you have your Bibles, 18:34 you turn with me to Revelation 14, 18:36 and I'll tell you why that's so important to look at this. 18:39 Right after Revelation 13, 18:41 when it talks about the beast, the mark of the beast 18:43 and the number of the beasts that we haven't gotten to yet. 18:46 You go to Chapter 14 in Revelation, 18:48 and you'll notice that it talks about, 18:51 for instance, if you look in Revelation 14 18:54 and you can see, 18:57 it tells us here about verse 14, 19:00 "I looked and behold a white cloud, 19:03 and on the cloud one sat like the son of man 19:06 having on his head a golden crown." 19:07 So here we have a picture of Jesus coming. 19:10 But before Jesus comes, starting with verse 6, 19:12 it tells us that there's these angels 19:14 that take a particular message to the world, 19:18 calling people to return to God 19:20 and avoid worshiping the beast and his image. 19:23 So this is the message that is actually going out now. 19:26 We want to look at these three angel messages 19:28 that you find in Revelation 14. 19:30 First one, Revelation 14:7, 19:33 "Fear God and give glory to Him, 19:35 for the hour of His judgment is come." 19:39 We did a study earlier this week 19:40 that helped us realize 19:42 we're entering that last phase 19:44 in the plan of salvation, 19:45 where there is a heavenly judgment taking place, 19:48 Before Christ comes, 19:50 some investigation takes place 19:52 because Revelation says, 19:53 "Behold, I come and My reward is with Me." 19:55 So in order to give out His reward, 19:57 when He comes, 19:58 there must be a judgment before He comes. 20:01 And it says, 20:02 "Worship him that made heaven and earth and sea 20:05 and the fountains of waters." 20:08 So notice this is an excerpt from the fourth commandment, 20:11 where it says, 20:12 "For in six days the Lord made 20:13 the heaven and the earth and the sea 20:16 and the fountains of waters." 20:18 And so, it's a reminder to go back 20:20 to the God of creation in a world 20:22 that largely believes now evolution. 20:25 And so it's a message also to remember the Sabbath. 20:28 That commandment God says remember 20:30 has been forgotten by most Christian churches. 20:33 So there'll be a revival of primitive Christianity 20:36 that's going to take place again in the last days. 20:39 And it's a global message. 20:41 It's a message of worship. 20:43 So you've got the contrast of those who worship God 20:46 and then remembering the Sabbath commandment 20:49 with those who worship the beast 20:51 and the laws of the beast. 20:53 So once again, in Revelation, 20:54 it's about who do we worship. 20:55 True or false worship 20:57 is the issue that's at stake here. 21:00 In the Sabbath, commandment here's a quote of it. 21:02 Exodus 20:8, 21:04 "For in six days the Lord made the heavens 21:06 and the earth, and the sea and all that is in them, 21:09 and He rested the seventh day. 21:11 Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day 21:13 and hallowed it." 21:14 Made it holy. 21:16 There'll be a return among the people of God 21:18 to recognize and respect the things 21:20 that God has pronounced to be holy. 21:23 And then, you go on now to the third angel's, 21:25 our second angel's message, says, 21:27 "There followed another angel saying, 21:29 'Babylon is fallen, is fallen that great city 21:33 because she made all nations 21:35 drink the wine of the wrath of her fornication.'" 21:39 I was in the studio the day 21:40 we took the picture of this model. 21:41 We dressed up a model like the Babylon whore 21:45 you see in Revelation 17. 21:47 And I felt so bad. 21:48 She was a good Christian girl, 21:50 and we had to dress her up that way 21:51 to get these pictures. 21:53 But it depicts what you see in Revelation 17, 21:57 Babylon, the mother of harlots is sort of the conglomeration 22:01 of counterfeit religion that you see in the last days. 22:04 We'll talk more about that. 22:05 We have a lesson on Chapter 17 of Revelation. 22:09 So it's a warning about Babylon, 22:10 this counterfeit religion, 22:12 and God's people are being called out of Babylon. 22:15 And then the third angel's message, 22:18 "If any man worships the beast and his image, 22:21 and receives his mark in his forehead, 22:23 or in his hand, 22:24 the same will drink of the wine of the wrath of God 22:28 that is poured out with that cup in the... 22:31 poured out without mixture 22:32 into the cup of his indignation." 22:34 It's the most fearful curse in the Bible 22:37 is here in Chapter 14, 22:39 that comes upon those 22:40 who worship the beast and its image 22:43 and receive his mark. 22:44 And so we need to know what these things are, friends, 22:46 because God is telling us 22:48 it can be a major deception in the last days. 22:50 And it will all look like it's really worshiping Christ, 22:55 but it's going to be counterfeit worship. 22:58 What happens immediately after these messages 23:00 go to the world? 23:01 I behold, and one comes, 23:03 he's the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven 23:05 is pictured here. 23:07 So these are the messages that go to the world 23:09 just before Jesus comes. 23:10 And by the way, these are the messages 23:12 going to the world now, 23:14 not only through our program here, 23:15 but all over the world, this is taking place. 23:19 So we're talking about the mark of the beast. 23:22 We've learned there's two beasts in Revelation 13. 23:25 What is a beast? What does that mean? 23:27 Does that mean that there's some monstrosity 23:29 crawling around the world in the last days? 23:31 You go online, well, no, I don't recommend you do that, 23:34 but you know, if you type in the Antichrist or beast, 23:37 they've got all these monsters depicted 23:39 or these diabolical looking creatures 23:41 and demon possessed people and it's not like that at all. 23:44 Let's let the Bible explain itself. 23:47 What is a beast? 23:49 We'll go to Daniel 7. 23:50 Revelation talking about beasts 23:52 is drawing from where Daniel used these beasts 23:54 to talk about nations. 23:56 Daniel 7:17, 23:58 "These great beasts, which are four, 24:00 are four kings or kingdoms. 24:03 The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom 24:05 upon the earth." 24:07 So what a beast represent? 24:08 We talked about this before, 24:10 you know, if you say eagle, 24:12 what country do you think of? 24:14 United States. 24:15 If you say dragon, 24:18 think of what? 24:20 China. 24:21 And so we still do that today. 24:23 The bear is the ruskies in Russia. 24:28 You look in Daniel 8:20, 24:29 "The ram you saw having two horns, 24:31 they are the kings of Media and Persia." 24:33 One on the, was a Medo-Persian. 24:35 The other horn was a little smaller, 24:38 or the smaller one was Media, bigger ones was a Persia. 24:43 The rough goat, another beast that shows up, 24:45 he's the king of Greece. 24:47 All right. 24:48 So when we talk about the beast in the last day, 24:50 we're talking about a power, 24:51 but it's not just a political power, 24:53 this one is compelling worship. 24:55 So it is a religio-political power in the last days. 25:00 How does the Bible identify the beast? 25:04 It says, "I stood upon the sand of the sea," 25:05 now we're in Revelation 13 notice, 25:07 and it says, 25:09 "I saw this beast rise up out of the sea." 25:11 You read in Revelation 17, 25:12 the sea represents 25:14 multitudes of peoples and nations. 25:16 It's a highly populated area of civilization. 25:19 This beast comes up 25:21 from a densely populated civilized area 25:23 where there's multitudes of peoples 25:24 and nations and tongues. 25:26 And it says that 25:28 the sea is actually kind of stormy. 25:30 This beast comes up. 25:32 And what does the beast look like? 25:33 Having seven heads and ten horns. 25:35 We saw a beast like that in Daniel. 25:38 You'll also see it in Revelation Chapter 12, 25:41 and 10 crowns upon its heads. 25:43 The Roman Empire divided into 10 kingdoms 25:47 that were ruled by kings at first, 25:49 they're not ruled by kings anymore, 25:51 most of them. 25:52 And with names of blasphemy, 25:56 they're blaspheming God. 25:57 Now the beast I saw 25:59 was like a leopard, look at this. 26:00 This beast is now a composite of Daniel 7. 26:04 Daniel 7, it says, there's a lion, 26:06 there's a bear, there's a leopard. 26:08 And then there's this strange non-descript beast. 26:10 Here it says, leopard his feet... 26:13 It says the beast like a leopard, 26:14 his feet like the feet of a bear, 26:16 his mouth like the mouth of a lion. 26:18 And it says the dragon is giving him his support, 26:20 his power and authority. 26:22 Someone said, 26:24 well, in Daniel it's lion, 26:27 bear, leopard, Rome, 26:30 and this beast, it's looking the other way. 26:33 It's got the beast, and then it's got the leopard, 26:35 then it's got the bear, it's got the lion. 26:37 Why is that? 26:38 Well, because John, when he has the vision, 26:40 he's not looking back at the kingdoms, 26:42 when Daniel had the vision he was looking forward. 26:44 So it's actually in the exact order historically 26:47 that the prophet would be viewing them. 26:50 So those kingdoms, 26:51 of course, Babylon was the lion, 26:54 Medo-Persia was this bear. 26:56 The four headed leopard was Alexander. 26:58 He died. He had the four generals. 27:00 So then it gives us, 27:01 we got about eight criteria here 27:04 that are given in this passage 27:06 that are identifying marks to help find the beast. 27:09 If I said, all right, 27:11 you've got to have a secret password 27:12 for your computer 27:14 and you only get to pick one digit. 27:16 Your options are how many? 27:18 If you're using numbers, you got 10 options, 27:21 zero through nine, one digit, right? 27:24 If I say, you can use two digits, 27:26 well, that's greatly increased the different options 27:28 up to a 100, oh, no 99. 27:32 Three digits. Your options really increase. 27:35 When you get up to eight digits, 27:37 it is very hard for me to guess your password. 27:41 We're going to find eight criteria 27:44 that all line up 27:45 that help us to identify without any doubt, 27:48 what is the beast that's being talked about 27:49 in these prophecies? 27:51 Now, and here, it says, well, let me back up. 27:53 It says rises from the sea, 27:55 the power and seat come from the dragon, 27:57 that was Rome ruling 28:00 the world back then, the devil ruling through Rome. 28:04 A worldwide power. It's a global power. 28:06 It's guilty of blasphemy. 28:10 It rules for 42 months. 28:11 It gives us a time period 28:13 and it then has a deadly wound, 28:15 but the deadly wound heals and it comes back. 28:18 It persecutes God's saints. 28:19 It's a persecuting power. 28:21 Then it's got a mysterious number 28:22 to help identify it. 28:24 And that number is what, 666, right? 28:27 All right. 28:28 Now let me just tell you 28:29 what I'm sharing with you is not original. 28:31 All of the Protestant reformers, 28:34 and I'll be repeating this later 28:35 because not everybody sees every program. 28:37 Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Wesley, Charles Spurgeon, 28:42 Zwingli, Melanchthon, Tyndale, Whitfield, Cranmer. 28:46 I mean you can name 28:48 any of the great Protestant reformers. 28:49 By the way most of them were Catholic priests 28:51 that were trying to reform the church. 28:53 Listen to what they said, 28:55 Martin Luther, who was a Catholic priest. 28:56 Said, we've got to reform the church. 28:58 In reading the Bible he said, uh-oh, 29:00 he said, "Our church is the beast." 29:04 The epistles of Saint Paul, Peter St. Jude, 29:08 that the reign of Antichrist predicted and described 29:11 in the Bible was the papacy. 29:13 That's the teachings of Martin Luther 29:15 from the history of the reformation. 29:17 Here's one from Calvin. 29:18 He was that great Presbyterian leader. 29:21 Most Baptists are Calvinistic. 29:24 What was his teaching? 29:25 Some persons think us too severe and censorious 29:28 when we call the Roman pontiff, 29:30 that means the pope, Antichrist. 29:32 Now, by the way, Calvin was a Catholic priest 29:35 that ended up reforming or protesting 29:37 against what was happening. 29:39 But those who are of this opinion 29:40 do not consider that 29:41 they bring the same charge of presumption 29:43 against Paul himself. 29:45 After whom we speak, whose language we adopt, 29:48 I shall briefly show 29:49 that Paul's words in 2 Thessalonians 2 29:52 are not capable of any other interpretation 29:56 than that which applies them to the papacy. 29:59 So all of them taught this. 30:00 You don't hear much about it now 30:02 because it's very incorrect politically, 30:04 but this is what the reformers taught. 30:06 And I should mention here, 30:10 there are lovely people in many different churches. 30:12 Yeah. I'm going to talk about American prophecy. 30:14 I'm a loyal American. 30:16 I am happy with the privilege 30:18 of being a member of this country, 30:20 but I'm going to talk about American prophecy 30:22 and the future is not flattering. 30:24 I went to two different Catholic schools growing up, 30:26 a lot of Catholic friends, 30:28 going to talk about Catholicism, 30:29 going to talk about Protestantism. 30:32 Be clear, there are good people 30:33 that you're going to find in heaven 30:35 from all of these different churches. 30:38 But we got to tell you what the Bible says. 30:40 So I hope I can do it gracefully. 30:42 By the way I don't know if I said hello to our friends, 30:45 you know, right across the parking lot. 30:47 We have a number of our church members 30:48 that are gathered 30:50 in the Granite Bay Hilltop Church. 30:51 We just want to say, we know you're over there. 30:52 We're waving, hope you're waving back right now. 30:54 And God bless you. 30:56 We know there's a lot of other people 30:57 watching on 3ABN and AFTV and online, 31:00 but I wanted to greet our local church next door. 31:03 We just needed to record this meeting 31:05 here in the studio for consistency. 31:08 All right. So question number five. 31:10 We're going to look at the different criteria now, 31:11 so bear with me. 31:13 This beast arises from the sea. 31:16 What does the sea or the water symbolize? 31:19 We read there in Revelation 17:15, 31:21 'The waters that you sawest 31:22 are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." 31:26 The angel tells us what that symbol represents. 31:30 Did the papacy rise up from the midst 31:32 of a densely populated area? 31:34 Yes, the Roman Empire was the center. 31:37 All roads lead to Rome back then. 31:40 And it was a center of that population. 31:41 And compared to North America and other countries, 31:45 it was very densely populated. 31:47 It was great civilization. 31:49 Number six. 31:50 Who gives the beast its power and position? 31:52 It says, 31:54 "And the dragon gave him his power, 31:56 and a seat, and great authority." 31:58 Now, I want you to understand, who's the dragon here? 32:00 Well, the dragon we know is Satan, 32:01 but Satan was working through a particular kingdom. 32:04 If you look in Chapter 12 of Revelation, 32:07 it says the dragon tries to devour the man-child Jesus, 32:11 as soon as it was born. 32:13 But he was caught up to God's throne. 32:15 What nation did the devil use 32:18 to try to destroy Jesus when He was a baby? 32:21 Herod working through the Roman power. 32:23 And so what we're talking about is 32:25 the devil working through Rome 32:27 is the one who seeds or gives this seat, 32:30 this very position to the papacy. 32:33 Well, there's a reason 32:35 it's called the Roman Catholic Churches 32:36 because it grew up right there in Rome. 32:38 You ever wondered, 32:40 how did the leadership of the Christian Church 32:42 go from Jerusalem to Rome? 32:45 Now they fought many crusades and tried to get it back, 32:47 but that never worked, but there is something 32:49 that was done very deliberately. 32:52 The dragon in Revelation 12 32:54 is the devil working through pagan Rome. 32:57 Pagan Rome is Rome ruled by Caesars. 32:59 It's not Rome being ruled by popes. 33:02 So it says, the dragon, pagan Rome 33:05 gives him his power, seat and great authority. 33:08 And this is exactly what happened historically. 33:11 Now notice the big change that took place. 33:14 For years, the devil tried to destroy Christianity 33:17 through persecution and you have, 33:21 you know, there were some of the most severe persecutions 33:23 happening during the time of Nero, 33:25 Diocletian, 33:27 very intense for 10 years from 303 to 313 AD. 33:33 And you've heard about the Christians being fed 33:35 to the lions in the Coliseum, 33:36 and they were burnt at the stake 33:38 and they were wrapped up in leather bags 33:40 and fed to wild animals. 33:41 And I mean it's just terrible what they did. 33:43 They put them in the mines in North Africa 33:47 and they worked them to death. 33:48 You can go visit 33:50 some of those ancient mines in Northern Africa 33:51 where the Christians were being punished for their religion 33:56 and on the wall of the mines they wrote vita, vita, vita. 33:59 We have life, even though they were being persecuted 34:02 and martyred, they had life. 34:04 Look in the catacombs all through Rome. 34:06 It was an illegal religion. 34:08 They call it religio illicita, forbidden religion, 34:12 and they took the religion underground, 34:15 but the church kept growing. 34:16 The more they tried to persecute Christians, 34:19 people saw these Christians in the Coliseum 34:21 dying with faith, dying with courage. 34:23 They died singing 34:25 and they said, they've got something 34:26 that our religion doesn't offer. 34:28 And the Christian Church exploded. 34:30 So the devil thought, 34:31 well, I'm going to have to go to plan B, 34:33 plan A is not working. 34:34 The more I persecute the Christians, 34:35 the more they grow. 34:37 About 300 AD along came a Roman emperor 34:41 by the name of Constantine, 34:43 sometimes known as Constantine The Great. 34:45 And he said, 34:47 you know, the Christians aren't really hurting anybody 34:49 and his own mother converted to Christianity. 34:53 And he said they're really pretty peaceful people. 34:56 We are fighting enemies on the outside right now. 34:59 And we need to just make peace with them. 35:01 And he basically legalized Christianity. 35:03 What he did is he was fighting in a battle 35:07 of the Milvian Bridge Battle with Maximilian 35:10 and he claimed to have a vision 35:12 where he saw in the sky the sign of the cross. 35:14 And he took that to mean, he was supposed to now fight 35:16 under the banner of Christianity 35:18 because Rome had a whole pantheon 35:19 of different gods 35:20 and he won the battle. 35:22 And all of the sudden Christianity overnight 35:24 became very popular 35:25 because when it was popular in the palace, 35:27 everybody wanted to be a Christian. 35:29 But instead of this being a blessing 35:31 that turned out being a curse. 35:33 Because what happened is 35:36 all over Rome, they had all of these priests 35:40 that were worshiping pagan gods. 35:42 When they realized that the emperor now 35:44 was legalizing Christianity, 35:45 they said, "Oh, yeah, we can be Christians." 35:48 And they kept a lot of their customs. 35:50 And they ostensibly said, 35:52 "Yeah, we'll be Christians too.' 35:54 And they took some of the pagan temples. 35:55 They started calling them churches 35:57 and they had statues all over Rome of Jupiter, 36:01 and Apollo, and Mercury, and Venus. 36:03 And they said, 36:04 "What do we do with our statues?" 36:06 And some of the Christians began to compromise. 36:07 They said, "Well, we don't want to anger all these pagans. 36:10 We might get more pagans to join the church 36:12 if we let them rename their statutes." 36:15 So they started calling their idols, 36:17 Peter, James, John, and Mary, 36:19 and they started praying to statues of saints. 36:22 And the Bible forbids this very clearly 36:24 as we saw from our story today. 36:27 And what you ended up with 36:29 is you ended up with a milkshake. 36:31 That was a potluck, 36:33 a stew of Christianity and paganism. 36:37 So in legalizing Christianity, 36:39 the devil was able to do more harm from the inside 36:42 because all this compromise suddenly came in. 36:44 It didn't happen overnight. 36:46 It happened gradually, but the real turning point 36:49 was with the, at least 36:51 ostensible conversion of Constantine. 36:53 He wasn't even baptized until the time of his death. 36:56 But, everything began to change. 36:59 Notice here from Abbott's Roman History, page 236. 37:01 Now, of course, the Bible ends in Revelation. 37:04 So to see the fulfillment of Revelation, 37:07 you have to look at history, right? 37:09 So you look in Roman history here, 37:11 Abbott's Roman History, page 236, 37:15 "The transfer of the emperor's residence 37:17 to Constantinople, named after Constantine, 37:20 was a sad blow to the prestige of Rome." 37:23 The city of Rome thought, 37:24 oh man, they're moving the capital out of the city. 37:26 What's going to happen? 37:27 We're going to lose our prestige. 37:28 But, 37:30 "At that time one might have predicted 37:31 her speedy decline. 37:32 But the development of the Church, 37:34 and the growing authority or power of the Bishop of Rome, 37:38 or the pope, 37:39 gave her a new lease on life, 37:41 and made her again the capital, 37:43 but now the capital, 37:44 the religious capital of the civilized world. 37:48 To the succession of the Caesar's came 37:52 the succession of the Pontiffs in Rome or the popes. 37:55 When Constantine left Rome, he gave his seat." 37:58 This is what history tells us. 37:59 He basically said, look, I'm giving you my palace. 38:02 I'll give you my seat. I'm going to give you an army. 38:04 I'm moving out of town. 38:06 And there's this transfer from pagan to papal Rome. 38:09 And it went from just political power 38:12 to religious political power. 38:14 This is a very clear transition, 38:16 you can show in the history books. 38:18 It says, the beast would receive its power. 38:20 Remember beast doesn't mean monster. 38:22 It means a political power, religious power. 38:24 It receives its power, seat and authority from Rome. 38:27 Now the church stopped being just a religion. 38:30 What started happening is 38:31 the church became a government agency 38:35 because the emperor of Rome 38:39 at this point, it was Justinian. 38:40 He gave an army to the pope to enforce religion. 38:44 So it went from just being a free religion 38:47 to being a political, religious power. 38:49 How far reaching is the influence of the beast? 38:53 And all the world wondered after the beast. 38:56 Probably one of the most popular popes 38:57 is the current pope we have, 38:59 Pope Francis, he's traveled widely all over the world, 39:01 and he's one of the most recognized figures 39:03 in the world. 39:05 And so it's a global power, and authority was given him 39:09 over every tribe, tongue and nation. 39:14 The word Catholic actually means universal, 39:17 nothing wrong with the word Catholic, 39:18 but it says it's a universal church 39:21 and it is without a doubt, 39:22 you know, one of the... 39:24 It's the largest denomination, 39:25 Christian denomination in the world. 39:27 And they've only got five levels of structure, 39:31 but they're able to manage this international operation. 39:33 It's one of the richest organizations in the world 39:35 because the real estate that they own, 39:38 you know, the Catholic Church, 39:39 the Vatican actually holds title to this real estate 39:42 and all over the world, 39:44 the priests and the Jesuits often 39:46 were the first ones into new civilizations. 39:48 And they would get the best place in town 39:50 in the middle of the town. 39:51 If you go through South America, 39:53 the middle of the town, 39:54 they've got the plaza and the church, 39:56 they own a lot of real estate, 39:57 not to mention all the gold and silver 39:59 that's in the relics and the statues 40:01 around the world, very wealthy organization. 40:04 They had to pay out a lot of money 40:05 in recent years because of lawsuits. 40:07 But you probably already know about that. 40:10 And it says, what comes out of the mouth of the beast? 40:12 And this is where it gets a little intriguing. 40:15 He opened his mouth in blasphemy against God 40:19 to blaspheme his name. 40:22 Now, blasphemy means 40:24 a person puts himself in the position of God 40:27 claiming prerogatives that belong to God. 40:29 The Bible defines blasphemy 40:32 as when you claim to have prerogatives of God 40:35 or that you should be worshiped as God. 40:37 2 Thessalonians 2:4. 40:39 And this is a verse that makes a lot of people think that, 40:41 well, they must be rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem. 40:43 It says, 40:44 "Who opposes and exalts himself 40:46 above all that is called God or that is worshiped 40:49 so that he sits as God in the temple of God 40:52 showing himself that he is God." 40:55 I don't know if you can see all of this picture on the screen. 40:57 This is Pope Francis. 40:59 He's one of the more humble popes. 41:00 He doesn't like sitting in this throne 41:02 because on that throne, 41:03 he's actually sitting between the two cherubim, 41:05 which is the position of God according to the Bible. 41:08 That mercy seat is where God appeared to His people 41:11 between the two angels. 41:13 And so, Francis has tried to avoid 41:17 some of the extravagance of other popes, 41:19 but, that's the position they hold. 41:22 They claim to be sitting over the church of God. 41:26 The Jews answered him in saying, they said to Jesus, 41:30 "For a good work we do not stone you, 41:31 but for blasphemy,' 41:33 this is the Bible definition of blasphemy, 41:35 "because you being a man make yourself God." 41:38 So when a man puts himself in a position 41:40 that really belongs to God, the Bible calls that blasphemy. 41:45 Now these are some quotes 41:46 from the Catholic Church itself. 41:48 And so you just have to decide on your own. 41:52 We hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty. 41:56 That's Pope Leo XIII. 41:58 When a man says, we hold the place of God. 42:01 When people go and they bow down 42:03 and they kiss the hand, 42:04 or they kiss the foot of a person, 42:06 that starts looking like a person is being deified. 42:11 I don't think any man should be treated like a God. 42:14 Jesus said, 42:15 "I've come among you as one that serves." 42:17 Jesus said, 42:19 "If I've washed your feet, 42:20 you ought to wash one another's feet." 42:21 So Christian leaders 42:23 ought to really be taking positions of humility, 42:25 not trying to be conspicuous 42:28 and adorned with gold and pearls and costly array. 42:31 "And the scribes and the Pharisees 42:33 began to reason saying, 42:34 'Who is this who speaks blasphemies? 42:36 Who can forgive sins but God alone?" 42:38 And they were right. 42:39 According to the Bible, only God can forgive sin. 42:42 But they had a problem with Jesus 42:43 because they did not respect that He was God. 42:45 Jesus said, "I can forgive sin." 42:47 The Son of man has power on earth to forgive sin. 42:50 That's Mark Chapter 2. 42:52 So one of the criteria, 42:53 it says the beast power would speak blasphemy 42:56 as it would claim the prerogative 42:58 to be able to forgive sin as well. 43:00 Let's find out if that's true. 43:02 This is from the book, 43:03 Dignities and Duties of the Priest, 43:05 volume 12, page 27. 43:08 "God himself is obliged 43:10 to abide by the judgment of His priests, 43:13 and either to pardon or not to pardon, 43:16 according as they, the priests, refuse or give absolution. 43:21 The sentence of the priest precedes, it goes first, 43:24 and then God must endorse it, subscribe to it." 43:28 Basically saying the priest deciding who is forgiven 43:31 and then God has to go along with the priest. 43:33 That is blasphemy according to the Bible. 43:35 When a man says, 43:36 I've got the power to forgive sin. 43:38 Only God can really forgive sin. 43:41 How long would this first beast rule? 43:43 It gives us a time period. 43:45 It says, "And power was given unto him 43:46 to continue forty and two months." 43:49 Now we learned from an earlier study 43:50 that in prophecy a day equals a year. 43:54 "The legally recognized supremacy of the pope 43:57 began in 538." 43:59 Make a little note of that date. 44:00 "538 AD when there went into effect a decree 44:05 of the Emperor Justinian, making the Bishop of Rome 44:08 the head over all the churches." 44:10 See it was a Roman emperor 44:12 that made this decision, not God. 44:14 A Roman emperor says, 44:15 "I want the authority of the church 44:17 to be a little closer, so I keep a hand on it. 44:18 I don't want it at some council in Jerusalem 44:20 or somewhere in Alexandria. 44:22 I'm moving headquarters here, and I will appoint. 44:24 The Bishop of Rome 44:26 is going to be the new head of the church. 44:27 And I'm going to give him an army to enforce his edicts, 44:31 that's what happened. 44:33 And the definer of doctrine and corrector of heretics, 44:36 and that was all set up by a pagan Roman emperor, 44:40 not by the church. 44:43 Vigilius ascended the papal chair in 538 AD 44:47 under the military protection of Belisarius. 44:51 And this is exactly when it happened, 44:52 so mark that date 538. 44:54 It really became a religious political power 44:56 and things changed. 44:58 What happened to the beast after 42 months? 45:01 A day in year, by the way, 45:05 there's a number keeps showing up in prophecy. 45:09 You find it in Daniel, you find it in Revelation, 45:11 you find it in Kings, 45:13 you find it in the teachings of Jesus, 45:14 its three and a half years. 45:16 The reason is seven is the perfect number for God. 45:18 Half of seven years is three and a half years. 45:21 Seven is a perfect complete cycle. 45:23 Three and a half is an interruption, a cutoff. 45:26 It represents in the Bible, 45:27 persecution, trouble, something happens. 45:30 Jesus teaches three and a half years. 45:32 He's crucified. 45:34 There's three and a half years of Elisha. 45:37 And then it tells us that fire comes down 45:39 from God out of heaven in that time period. 45:42 The disciples preached for three and a half years. 45:44 The first martyr Stephen is stoned. 45:46 And it tells us that you've got this time period 45:49 and then something happens. 45:50 There's usually some kind of tribulation, 45:52 some big change of power 45:54 that takes place after the three and a half years. 45:57 Three and a half years is a time that's one year, 46:00 a times that's two, two in one, 46:03 two means a couple or pair 46:05 and a half, 46:06 three and a half years as a time, 46:08 times and half, uses that phrase in Daniel. 46:10 Forty-two months, 1,260 days, it uses the same time period. 46:14 By the way the Jewish month had 30 days, 46:18 42 months is 1,260 days. 46:21 You can do that with your calculator 46:22 real quick. 46:24 So what happens 1,260 days, 46:26 or is it 1,260 years? 46:30 A day in prophecy is what? 46:32 It's a year. 46:34 "I saw one of the heads as it was wounded to death, 46:37 but the deadly wound is healed: 46:39 and all the world wonders after the beast." 46:41 So it tells us that after the starting point, 46:44 1,260 years, and it would receive 46:47 what looked like a mortal wound. 46:49 Here you have at 42 months, 1,260 years, 46:52 I have appointed the each day for a year, Ezekiel 4:6. 46:56 So that reaches then to 1798, if you start at 538. 47:01 What happened in 1798? 47:03 The very thing that God foretold. 47:05 You remember Napoleon, 47:06 I'm sure you've heard that name. 47:08 And he did things that nobody dare do. 47:10 The birth of atheism really started in France 47:13 and it says in 1798, 47:15 he, Berthier made his entrance into Rome. 47:18 They used the murder of a French man in Rome 47:20 as an excuse. 47:22 He abolished the papal government 47:24 for the first time in 1,260 years, 47:26 they lost their authority 47:27 and he established a secular one. 47:30 See up until that point, 47:32 every king and leader in Europe 47:33 couldn't do anything without the authority 47:35 and support of the church. 47:36 You ever played chess? 47:38 What pieces were next to the king and the queen? 47:41 Bishops, 47:42 because that's the way it was in Europe. 47:44 They couldn't do anything without the endorsement, 47:46 because if the pope said, I do not support this decree. 47:50 You know why the Church of England split off 47:52 from the Roman churches 47:54 because the pope would not approve 47:55 the divorce of Henry VIII. 47:58 So he broke away 47:59 and formed the Church of England. 48:01 By the way, they recently reunited, 48:03 which I think is another prophetic milestone. 48:05 We'll talk about later. 48:07 But up until that point, 48:08 the kings couldn't even do anything 48:10 without the support of the church, 48:13 until Napoleon's general 48:15 basically gave them a mortal wound. 48:18 He that leads into captivity shall go into captivity. 48:21 He that kills with a sword must be killed with a sword. 48:24 And they took that pope captive. 48:26 He led him off to Valence and he died in captivity. 48:30 They lost all of their political clout 48:33 with the empires of Europe 48:35 during that time, until 48:37 during, just before World War I at the conclusion. 48:41 It says here, 48:43 the Roman question tonight was a thing of the past. 48:46 The Vatican was at peace with Italy, 48:48 this is San Francisco Chronicle, 48:50 February 11, 1929, 48:52 "In affixing autographs to the Memorable document 48:54 healing the wound." 48:56 So there is a healing of the wound 48:58 politically in 1929, 49:00 but now there was also a big wound. 49:03 Pope Francis often talks about the wound of Christ 49:07 in the split between the Protestants 49:10 and the Catholic or Orthodox churches. 49:13 And you know, what's happening now, 49:14 Francis more than any other pope 49:17 is committed to healing that wound and reuniting 49:20 with the Protestant churches 49:22 so that we have shared communion. 49:24 And this is something that is foretold in prophecy. 49:27 And he uses the very language healing the wound, 49:30 it's the language from the Bible. 49:32 The deadly wound was healed and all the world wondered, 49:36 we read in Revelation 13:3. 49:39 The papacy has gained worldwide influence, 49:42 prestige and prominence. 49:44 Back in 2015, when Pope Francis came to the United States, 49:48 he went to all the places 49:49 where we had the capital of our government, 49:51 New York City. 49:52 That's where our first capital was, 49:53 Philadelphia, Washington, DC, 49:56 went to the United Nations. 49:58 He addressed the joint session of Congress. 50:01 It started out at one time it was a Protestant country. 50:03 Things have really changed. 50:05 Do you know it used to be, there were only Protestants 50:07 on the Supreme Court. 50:08 Now there are no Protestants on the Supreme Court. 50:11 Things have really changed. 50:13 And as of this broadcast looks like 50:15 we've elected the Catholic president. 50:18 I think we're entering some very interesting 50:20 and exciting times prophetically, friends. 50:24 So is the beast a government or a religious power? 50:28 It tells us that it's got political power 50:31 as well as religious power. 50:32 "He causes that as many as would not worship 50:35 the image of the beast 50:36 should be killed." 50:37 Well, it's a religious power and a political power. 50:40 You know, the smallest country in the world is the Vatican. 50:43 I'll say more about that 50:44 maybe in our presentation tonight. 50:46 Only has about a thousand people, 109 acres, 50:50 yet ambassadors from around the world go 50:53 and they let the pope speak at the United Nations. 50:55 They won't let Pastor Doug talk at the United Nations. 50:58 Why him? 51:00 Because he is a political leader. 51:03 And it's just something to remember. 51:06 What is the beast do to the saints? 51:09 "And it was given unto them to make war with the saints 51:12 and to overcome them." 51:14 Did they fit that criteria? 51:15 Were they a persecuting power during that 1,260 years? 51:18 Yes, they were. 51:20 And you know I respect Pope John Paul II, 51:22 he came out and admitted it before the 2000 Jubilee. 51:25 He said, "We need to apologize for the sins of the inquisition 51:29 and all the blood that was shed." 51:30 His wording was very cautious, but he did make a statement. 51:35 It was given unto him to make war with the saints 51:38 and to overcome them. 51:39 And during those Dark Ages from 538 to 1798, 51:44 more blood was shed in the name of God 51:46 than any other time in history. 51:48 They estimate somewhere 51:49 between 30 and 50 million people died, 51:52 Christians, Jews because of the inquisition 51:56 and the persecutions from the church. 52:01 One British historian, Edward Lecky, he wrote, 52:03 "That the Church of Rome has shed more innocent blood." 52:06 By the way, this is in The History 52:07 of The Rise of The Spirit of Rationalism in Europe. 52:11 "That the Church of Rome has shed more innocent blood 52:13 than any other institution 52:15 that has ever existed among mankind, 52:17 will be questioned by no Protestant 52:19 who has any competent knowledge of history." 52:22 Karen and I were in Spain a couple of years ago. 52:25 And I think we were in Toledo. 52:26 I forget, one of the cities and we are going, 52:28 looking at the curio shops and they had, it said, 52:31 do you want to see a torture chamber, 52:32 there is a sign, you know, three pesos, 52:34 go see the torture chamber. 52:35 And I told, "Karen, you want to go see the torture chamber?" 52:37 And they, we walked down this corridor down a dungeon 52:41 and under all the churches they'll show you the room 52:44 where they carried on the inquisition 52:45 all over Europe. 52:47 They've got these chambers and you can pay to go see them. 52:50 And they got all the instruments of torture. 52:52 It says, it just makes you shudder to think 52:54 of what the people went through back then. 52:56 It was just horrific. 52:58 But yeah, they freely admit it. 53:00 What is the mysterious number that identifies the beast? 53:05 His number is six hundred threescore and six. 53:10 Now, 666, 53:12 it's an interesting number mathematically, 53:14 but you can read, it's the number of a man. 53:17 It's the number of his name or his title 53:19 is what it's telling us. 53:21 You know, I remember driving down the road 53:23 and I took a picture, 53:24 saw someone had on their license plate, 666. 53:28 People go, what does that mean? 53:30 I was checking out of the store one day 53:32 and I don't know the price came up to $6 and 66 cents. 53:37 I said, "Look at that." 53:40 I said, "You know what it means?" 53:42 She said, "No, but it's bad." 53:44 And that's all people know. 53:46 And if someone's, you know, going to a public event 53:48 and they get the ticket for their seat. 53:50 And the seats says 666 53:51 they ask if they can have another one, 53:53 because they think this is a bad number. 53:56 And, the number itself 53:58 is just another numerical sequential number. 54:00 But it's the number that reveals the identity. 54:03 Follow me. 54:05 Look at the title that is held by the pope. 54:08 This is actually a book written by John Paul II. 54:11 And all you have to do is go to page three, 54:13 "Confronted with the Pope, one must make a choice. 54:17 The leader of the Catholic Church 54:19 is defined by the faith 54:20 as the Vicar of Jesus Christ." 54:22 That means a representative. 54:24 "And is accepted as such by believers." 54:26 He is the representative of Jesus 54:28 and accepted by such. 54:30 Well, Jesus said the representative 54:31 is the Holy Spirit. 54:34 The pope is considered the man on earth 54:36 who represents the son of God, 54:38 who takes the place of the second person 54:42 of the omnipotent God of the Trinity. 54:44 Now, did you catch that? 54:46 If you missed it the first time in the quote I gave earlier, 54:49 where the pope says, 54:50 we hold the place of God on earth. 54:52 He says that in the book. 54:54 We hold the place 54:56 of the second person of the Godhead, 54:57 Jesus Christ on earth. 54:59 That's pretty bold. 55:01 Now that title is Vicarius Filii Dei. 55:05 That's the Latin official title. 55:07 It means vicar of the son of God. 55:10 In the Catholic magazine, 55:12 Our Sunday Visitor, April 18, 1915. 55:15 Some people say, well, that magazine doesn't exist. 55:17 I've got microfilm of it. 55:19 "What are the letters on the pope's crown 55:21 and what do they signify?" 55:23 The letter on, the letters on the pope's crown are these: 55:26 Vicarius Filii Dei, 55:28 which is Latin for vicar of the son of God. 55:31 They're actually several documents 55:32 where they say, 55:34 this is the official title of the pope. 55:35 Now above the head 55:37 of the high priest in the Bible, 55:38 he had a golden plaque. 55:40 And that golden plaque says holiness to the Lord. 55:43 That was the call. 55:44 But many of the popes, 55:46 they got, there's many people miters 55:48 different kingdoms have given gifts of crowns 55:50 and miters for the popes. 55:52 Several of them used to have a little plaque on it 55:53 that had the title, 55:54 but someone added up what the title comes to 55:57 and they started not wearing those. 55:59 You've not seen Pope Francis wear that crown. 56:03 Here's what that title comes up to, 56:05 Vicarius Filii Dei. 56:07 Now you realize if you remember, 56:09 from your days in school, 56:10 that Roman numerals equal numbers. 56:13 And V is five. 56:16 I is one and so forth. 56:19 And when you add M 1000, you add up the Roman numerals, 56:24 or by the way, you want to hear an amazing fact 56:26 about Roman numerals. 56:27 The first six Roman numerals when you add them up, 56:31 add up to 666. 56:33 I thought that was very interesting. 56:36 V is five. 56:38 One is one, C century 100. 56:41 You add them up. 56:42 Vicarius is 112, Filii is 53, 56:46 Dei is 501 56:48 and voila, you add them all up. 56:50 That comes to 666. 56:52 Says it is the number of a man's hand, of a man. 56:56 Throughout Revelation the number seven 56:58 represents perfection or completeness. 57:01 The number six represents imperfection. 57:04 It was the basis for the Babylonian system 57:06 of calculation. 57:08 A triple six therefore 57:10 symbolizes the triple union of error, 57:12 the union of the dragon, 57:14 the beast and the false prophet. 57:15 Furthermore, keep in mind, 57:17 man was made on the sixth day. 57:20 God made the seventh day to be a day for God, 57:24 for man to worship God. 57:26 Six, six, six is manmade religion. 57:29 The worship of man and manmade religion. 57:32 Very beginning of the Bible, 57:33 God says on the seventh day, 57:34 the seventh day, the seventh day, 57:36 it's talking about God based religion, 57:38 worshiping the Creator, 57:40 which He made that day to remember He is the creator. 57:42 So you've got the contrast 57:44 of two different forms of worship 57:46 that are emerging here in the last days. 57:50 Question number 14. 57:52 Who will sing God's praises in heaven? 57:56 The Bible tells us that, 57:58 "I saw as it was a sea of glass mingled with fire: 58:02 and them that had gotten the victory 58:04 over the beast, 58:05 and over his image, and over his mark, 58:08 and over the number of his name," 58:10 we can get a victory over all of that, 58:12 "standing on the sea of glass, having the harps of God." 58:16 And the Bible tells us 58:18 that we'll be singing His praises. 58:19 We don't need to worry about what's going to happen 58:21 in the last days 58:22 if our faith is rooted in Christ, 58:24 but people need to be warned. 58:25 It's all unfolding 58:27 right under our noses right now. 58:29 See the devil's got most of the world 58:31 looking for a counterfeit beast and mark of the beast. 58:33 They're expecting some monster, some computer, 58:35 some chip be planted 58:39 under their forehead or in their hand. 58:40 And they got all these counterfeit ideas. 58:42 They're all looking that way and its coming up behind them 58:45 right while they stand there. 58:47 People need to know what the real issue is. 58:49 It's who do you worship? 58:51 And I pray that you'll make your decision 58:53 that you're going to follow Jesus, 58:55 no matter how difficult it might be. 58:57 Now I know, friends you may be heard some tough stuff 59:00 in this presentation. 59:02 I know I've got a lot of Catholic friends 59:03 that are watching and Protestants and you go, 59:05 wow, this is heavy. 59:07 Please just examine the evidence. 59:09 I've only given you part one. 59:11 There's like three parts to this presentation. 59:13 Tune back in tonight for part two 59:15 and the other presentations 59:17 and I think it's going to become very clear. 59:20 And so just pray for God's Spirit to guide you. 59:22 And I want to pray for you now, as we close this section. 59:24 But don't go away, 59:25 we'll be answering your Bible questions 59:27 in just about three minutes. 59:29 Father in heaven, we're thankful that You love us 59:32 and that You gave us Your Word to help us know what's coming. 59:36 And, Lord, we just sit amazed as we see how dramatically 59:41 these prophecies have been fulfilled. 59:43 I pray that in our lives, we'll all be determined 59:46 to follow You, to worship You first, 59:48 to not get involved in the global idolatry 59:50 that'll be taking place in the last days. 59:52 Indeed it's taking place now. 59:54 And that Your Word and the teachings of Christ 59:57 will be the first priority in our lives. 59:59 Bless each person. 01:00:01 I pray that we can experience Your salvation and enjoy. 01:00:04 Not be worried about the last days, 01:00:05 because if we've got Jesus, 01:00:07 we've got the Prince of peace 01:00:08 and a peace that passes understanding. 01:00:10 Bless each person with that experience. 01:00:13 We thank You and pray in Christ's name. 01:00:15 Amen. God bless you. 01:00:17 Again be back in just a few moments 01:00:18 with your Bible questions. 01:00:25 Did you know that 01:00:26 Noah was present at the birth of Abraham? 01:00:29 Okay, maybe he wasn't in the room, 01:00:31 but he was alive 01:00:33 and probably telling stories about his floating zoo. 01:00:36 From the creation of the world 01:00:37 to the last-day events of Revelation, 01:00:40 biblehistory.com is a free resource 01:00:42 where you can explore 01:00:44 major Bible events and characters. 01:00:46 Enhance your knowledge of the Bible 01:00:48 and draw closer to God's Word. 01:00:50 Go deeper. 01:00:52 Visit biblehistory.com. 01:00:57 Did you know 01:00:59 Amazing Facts has a free Bible school 01:01:00 that you can do 01:01:01 from the comfort of your own home? 01:01:03 It includes 27 study lessons 01:01:05 to aid in your study of God's Word. 01:01:07 Sign up today by calling 1-844-215-7000. 01:01:12 That's 1-844-215-7000. 01:01:22 Have you always wanted to be a Bible expert, 01:01:24 but never knew where to start? 01:01:26 Are you searching for answers 01:01:28 that will bring you joy, peace, and fulfillment? 01:01:31 Then you will love 01:01:32 the Amazing Facts Storacles of Prophecy 01:01:35 Bible study experience. 01:01:36 Now available in 18 languages, 01:01:39 featuring 24 easy to read lessons, 01:01:42 the Storacles are packed with scripture 01:01:44 and step by step guidance 01:01:46 that will give you absolute confidence 01:01:48 about what the Bible actually says 01:01:50 about the Second Coming, 01:01:51 the rapture, the Antichrist, and the mark of the beast. 01:01:55 You'll also get the truth about hell and the afterlife, 01:01:58 and practical insight about grace, salvation, 01:02:01 and how to truly live like Jesus. 01:02:04 Even better, 01:02:05 it's absolutely free at storacles.com. 01:02:09 So don't miss out. 01:02:10 Get started 01:02:12 on your Bible study adventure today 01:02:13 at storacles.com. 01:02:23 Hello, friends, we'd like to welcome you back 01:02:25 to our Bible question and answer time 01:02:28 here at this Revelation of Now series. 01:02:30 And, Pastor Doug, that was a very intriguing 01:02:33 and important presentation 01:02:34 identifying who the beast power of Revelation is. 01:02:37 And I'm sure we have a lot of questions 01:02:38 relating to that. 01:02:39 We do. 01:02:41 And now someone may want to preempt and say, 01:02:42 well, so what is the mark of the beast? 01:02:44 They have to tune in tonight for that. 01:02:45 That's right. 01:02:46 And we'll be talking about Babylon 01:02:48 and American prophecy in the future presentations. 01:02:49 Okay, well, let's get right to it. 01:02:51 Our first question that we have today is, 01:02:54 "I always thought that the Antichrist is a person, 01:02:57 not an organization. 01:02:59 Am I wrong?" 01:03:01 Well, there is a person 01:03:02 at the head of the organization. 01:03:05 That's something I didn't get into in the presentation today, 01:03:07 but I think I'll say more about tonight. 01:03:11 Unlike some governments 01:03:12 where you've got a parliament that rules the government, 01:03:15 as the Bible describes the beast power has a head. 01:03:18 A man is a head 01:03:20 and there is only one man that is the head. 01:03:23 And the pope actually has the universal power. 01:03:26 He is the last word 01:03:27 and anything that happens 01:03:29 with the Vatican and the church. 01:03:30 It's interesting. 01:03:32 He is both the law giver as well as the judge. 01:03:34 Yeah. 01:03:36 And sole authority, so somewhat unique. 01:03:38 There's not too many organizations, 01:03:40 political organizations that are structured 01:03:42 the way the Vatican is. 01:03:43 And even many of the ancient monarchies, 01:03:45 the kings had some, 01:03:46 there were some checks and balances to their power, 01:03:48 but the pope really has absolute authority. 01:03:50 Right. 01:03:52 Our next question that we have, 01:03:53 "Do you think that it is wise for Christians 01:03:56 to pass laws enforcing Christianity?" 01:04:00 Yes and no. 01:04:02 Now let me explain. 01:04:03 This was a big question that our founding fathers 01:04:06 in North America struggled with. 01:04:08 They said, 01:04:09 "Well, we need to have certain laws. 01:04:12 And originally they thought 01:04:13 we're going to enforce the Ten Commandments 01:04:15 on everybody. 01:04:16 And you read about some of the great founding fathers 01:04:18 like Roger Williams. 01:04:20 He said, 01:04:21 "We shouldn't be enforcing the first four commandments." 01:04:24 And they were outraged by that. 01:04:26 He had battles with people, 01:04:27 you know, some of the great Puritan leaders 01:04:29 like Cotton Mather, 01:04:30 and they told everybody, 01:04:32 you had to be in church every Sunday. 01:04:33 Now America is one of the first countries 01:04:34 to have religious persecution 01:04:37 and, you know, we had witch trials 01:04:38 and there were people that were being persecuted. 01:04:40 If they weren't in church, if you committed adultery, 01:04:42 you had a scarlet letter. 01:04:43 That's why that book was written. 01:04:45 And so, Roger Williams said, no. 01:04:48 He said, 01:04:49 "God put the Ten Commandments 01:04:51 on two tables of stone. 01:04:53 The first four commandments 01:04:54 deal with our relationship with God. 01:04:56 Every individual must be free to choose that. 01:04:59 The last six commandments must be enforced civilly. 01:05:04 The government must enforce respect for property 01:05:07 that you're not allowed to perjure. 01:05:08 You make a covenant contract, you keep it. 01:05:11 The sanctity of marriage, 01:05:12 the government needs to be enforced. 01:05:13 It needs to be involved 01:05:15 in respecting the sanctity of marriage. 01:05:18 And so those last six commandments 01:05:20 Williams argued and he finally won. 01:05:22 That's why you had Rhode Island 01:05:23 became such a popular state. 01:05:25 And he said, 01:05:26 "Here's a place where we're going 01:05:27 to have real religious freedom." 01:05:29 The freedom in Rhode Island was so popular, 01:05:31 gradually the other states adopted it 01:05:33 and it spread. 01:05:34 But so should we be keeping Christian law, 01:05:37 the last six commandments the government must enforce. 01:05:40 Okay. Very good. 01:05:42 I guess, pastor, I have one thing to add to that is 01:05:43 if you have one religious entity 01:05:46 choosing to enforce religious law, 01:05:49 they're always going to be biased 01:05:50 to what their beliefs are. 01:05:52 And you're going to end up with persecution. 01:05:53 Yeah. 01:05:54 Of course, we've seen that throughout European history 01:05:56 and even in other places around the world. 01:05:58 The next question that we have is, 01:06:00 "Is the Antichrist in the world today?" 01:06:04 Yes. 01:06:05 And in fact, people are, are surprised to learn that 01:06:08 when the Bible was written, John tells us in his letters, 01:06:12 he says, there are already many Antichrists. 01:06:14 The word Antichrist 01:06:15 does not appear in the book Revelation. 01:06:18 The person of the Antichrist is definitely in the book, 01:06:21 but the word Antichrist, 01:06:22 you can find in the letters of John, 01:06:24 he says there already are many Antichrists. 01:06:27 So Antichrist is someone 01:06:28 who is, you know, ostensibly, they claim to be a believer 01:06:33 in Jehovah, the true God, 01:06:35 but they end up having teachings 01:06:38 that are against the teachings of Christ. 01:06:40 And that's why he said 01:06:42 there are already many Antichrists. 01:06:43 There were a lot of counterfeit Christians, 01:06:44 even in John's day when he wrote his letter. 01:06:46 Okay. 01:06:48 But, yeah, the main Antichrist is definitely alive and well 01:06:51 and has been ruling in the world 01:06:52 as we presented in our study. 01:06:54 All right. 01:06:55 We're going to go to some of the questions 01:06:57 that folks have just sent in during the presentation. 01:06:58 The first one is, 01:06:59 "Is there literally 01:07:01 three angels flying in heaven?" 01:07:04 There's literally a lot more than three angels in heaven, 01:07:06 but the three angels in Revelation 01:07:08 and there's actually, I think you go to Revelation 18, 01:07:10 you can even see a fourth angel 01:07:12 or another one of those angels makes another trip. 01:07:14 We're not sure if it's a repeat, 01:07:16 but they represent messages. 01:07:19 And I think even 01:07:21 in the first chapters of Revelation, 01:07:22 it talks about the angels of the churches 01:07:24 and you got seven angels there 01:07:26 and Jesus has these messages that He gives to church. 01:07:29 So when it talks about angels in heaven, 01:07:32 well, when a person wanted a message to go global, 01:07:34 it was given from heaven. 01:07:36 And I think one of the words, it says a loud voice. 01:07:38 The word is megaphono. 01:07:40 And we liked, we used the word a megaphone. 01:07:43 It means a loud message is being proclaimed. 01:07:45 They're not literally, 01:07:47 you're not going to find them with a telescope 01:07:49 looking up saying there's that third angel. 01:07:51 So it's really the messages of the angels 01:07:53 we're talking about. 01:07:54 Okay. 01:07:55 I think in the original Greek angels are angelos, 01:07:57 which literally means messenger. 01:07:59 All right. 01:08:00 Another question that we have, it says, 01:08:01 "With Islam being 01:08:03 the second biggest religion in the world, 01:08:05 is Islam mentioned in Bible prophecy?" 01:08:08 Yes. 01:08:09 As a matter of fact, 01:08:11 you've done some studies on this. 01:08:12 What is it, is it chapter? Yes. 01:08:14 When you get into the trumpets 01:08:15 and it talks about, 01:08:17 well, actually the seals 01:08:18 also talks about the fifth and the sixth seal. 01:08:20 Talks about Muhammad. 01:08:22 The rise of Muhammad and the expansion of Islam. 01:08:24 So, yeah. 01:08:26 And there's an interesting time prophecy 01:08:27 related to their rule that you find in Revelation. 01:08:30 Came true precisely. 01:08:31 And some are wondering 01:08:33 will Islam have a role in the last days? 01:08:35 I think it has to, 01:08:37 if it's a second largest religion in the world, 01:08:40 Islam is going to have to have some role. 01:08:42 So maybe we'll say more about that later. 01:08:43 Okay. 01:08:45 Another question that we have that's come in 01:08:47 and this question is, 01:08:51 "Why do we pray 01:08:52 that the Lord's will be done on earth? 01:08:55 Doesn't God's will... 01:08:56 Won't God's will always be done?" 01:08:59 No. 01:09:00 God's will is not always done on earth. 01:09:02 People are surprised. 01:09:03 They think, wasn't, isn't He all-powerful, 01:09:05 doesn't He force His will? 01:09:06 No. 01:09:08 And that's why the Bible says, if you are willing, 01:09:10 sometimes we don't do God's will 01:09:11 that's not his will. 01:09:13 It's not his will that we sin. 01:09:14 The Bible says the Lord is not willing 01:09:16 that any should perish. 01:09:18 And that 2 Peter Chapter 3, 01:09:19 but all should come to repentance. 01:09:21 And so the reason we pray that God's will 01:09:24 is done in the world 01:09:25 is because the devil is rampaging 01:09:27 around this planet, 01:09:28 doing things that are not God's will. 01:09:30 Sin is not God's will, 01:09:31 but someday 01:09:33 that stone will grow into a great mountain 01:09:35 and fill the whole earth. 01:09:37 And the knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth 01:09:39 as the waters cover the sea. 01:09:41 Someday the earth once again will all be doing God's will. 01:09:44 So we're praying for that day. 01:09:45 Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. 01:09:47 It's not happening yet. 01:09:49 There's some people contesting God's kingdom 01:09:51 here in the world. 01:09:52 Okay. 01:09:54 Another question that's come in. 01:09:55 And I think you might be talking about this 01:09:57 a little more tonight, 01:09:58 but the question is, 01:09:59 "Why is God's mark only placed in the forehead, 01:10:02 but the mark of the beast in the forehead and the hand?" 01:10:05 Good question. Yeah. 01:10:08 Well, in the forehead, and we'll say more about this, 01:10:10 it represents in your thoughts and in your worship. 01:10:13 And the hand represents works. 01:10:16 Nobody is saved by works. 01:10:18 We're only saved by faith. 01:10:19 And so the seal of God is placed in the forehead, 01:10:20 meaning it's in our worship, it's in our hearts. 01:10:23 Whereas those who serve the beast, 01:10:25 some do it because they have to buy or sell. 01:10:27 They're doing it for work reasons. 01:10:29 Some do it because they genuinely believe 01:10:31 and worship the beast. 01:10:32 So whether they get it in their actions, their hand, 01:10:35 they say, I don't really believe it, 01:10:36 but I'm going to do it. 01:10:38 Whether they're serving just is through their actions 01:10:41 or whether it's really a heartfelt 01:10:43 worship of the beast. 01:10:44 Some will get it in their hands, 01:10:45 some on their forehead. 01:10:47 And, whoa, I almost gave you too much. 01:10:49 Come back. 01:10:51 You got to come back tonight 01:10:52 and hear the rest of that answer. 01:10:53 All right. Good. I don't have time. 01:10:55 Another question. 01:10:56 "Can a saved person 01:10:57 have the seven last plagues fall on them?" 01:10:59 Well, the plagues may be falling around them, 01:11:02 but they won't be hurt by it. 01:11:03 And I know a lot of Christians watching now 01:11:05 might be shocked to learn. 01:11:07 We believe the Bible teaches 01:11:09 that Christians will be in the world 01:11:12 when those plagues fall, 01:11:13 but they are protected 01:11:15 the same way God protected the children of Israel 01:11:18 when those 10 plagues fell on Egypt. 01:11:19 Now it's interesting. 01:11:21 When you look at the 10 plagues of Egypt, 01:11:22 many of them are similar 01:11:23 to the same seven plagues in Revelation. 01:11:25 The first three plagues of the 10 plagues 01:11:28 that fell on Egypt, 01:11:29 the children of Israel 01:11:31 suffered right along with the Egyptians, 01:11:33 but God then protected them 01:11:34 through the seven last plagues of those 10 plagues. 01:11:39 So when it tells about 01:11:40 the seven plagues in Revelation, 01:11:42 God's people are completely protected 01:11:44 or it might be happening in the world around us. 01:11:46 I'm not worried. 01:11:48 Psalm 91, 01:11:49 "Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling." 01:11:51 But it does say in the same Psalm, 01:11:53 "You will look and see 01:11:54 a thousand may fall at your side, 01:11:56 10,000 at your right hand." 01:11:57 It's happening around you, 01:11:59 but just like Noah and the arch, 01:12:01 we are protected during that last time, 01:12:03 those last plagues. 01:12:04 Okay. 01:12:05 Somebody else is asking, 01:12:07 "Pastor Doug, when does 01:12:08 the seven years of tribulation begin?" 01:12:11 After the close of probation, 01:12:13 when everybody's being shaken into either receiving 01:12:18 the seal of God or the mark of the beast. 01:12:20 Something's happening in the world, 01:12:21 it's happening now. 01:12:23 I think you know from reading prophecy 01:12:24 that there's going to be a shaking 01:12:26 where everyone is going to polarize 01:12:28 and we see it in our country. 01:12:29 Look how polarized the country is on two extremes right now. 01:12:33 And it's not only in our country. 01:12:34 You see it in the nations around the world. 01:12:37 Things are getting polarized politically 01:12:39 and they're soon going to be polarized religiously. 01:12:42 And it will eventually transition into the point 01:12:45 where everybody either is going 01:12:46 to be receiving God's seal 01:12:49 and worshiping the true God, 01:12:51 the power of God. 01:12:52 And the truth of God's going to go with a great voice, 01:12:55 or they're going to worship the beast and his image. 01:12:57 There'll be time of persecution. 01:12:59 Some won't be able to buy or sell 01:13:01 during that time. 01:13:02 The message is going to go loud and clear. 01:13:04 There'll be miracle, signs and wonders by the beast 01:13:07 and by God's people. 01:13:08 So we're going to have to know. 01:13:10 Remember Moses, he did a miracle, 01:13:11 the Pharaoh's magicians they did miracles too. 01:13:14 So during the time before the plagues fell, 01:13:16 there were, there's a battle of miracles 01:13:18 that were taking place. 01:13:20 But then finally 01:13:21 everyone will make their decision. 01:13:23 Probation will close. 01:13:25 The great time of trouble, 01:13:26 the seven plagues will happen then. 01:13:28 Okay. 01:13:29 This person is asking also, 01:13:31 I just don't want to leave them wondering, 01:13:33 they mentioned seven years of tribulation. 01:13:35 "Does the Bible say anywhere 01:13:36 that there's the tribulation of seven years?" 01:13:38 Yeah. 01:13:39 No, the great, 01:13:40 there'll be a small time of trouble 01:13:42 and no one's sure exactly how long that will be. 01:13:44 We're fairly certain the seven last plagues 01:13:46 are not seven years 01:13:49 because it says all of her plagues 01:13:50 will come in a day. 01:13:52 And that means within a day, within a year, 01:13:54 a day in prophecy is a year. 01:13:55 So, and you think about it, the severity of those plagues, 01:13:59 oceans blood, fresh water supplies blood, 01:14:02 men scorch with great heat, 01:14:03 people being plagued with annoy some sore, 01:14:06 darkness on the seat of the beast. 01:14:08 You look at those plagues 01:14:09 and you know, life, 01:14:11 that's why Jesus said it, 01:14:13 unless those days would be shortened, 01:14:15 no flesh would survive. 01:14:17 So the plagues that fell on ancient Egypt 01:14:20 happened in a matter of a couple of months. 01:14:23 The plagues that Job went through 01:14:24 happened in quick succession. 01:14:26 It was a matter of a few weeks. 01:14:27 Seven last plagues will be very intense, 01:14:29 but it's going to be less than a year. 01:14:31 Nowhere in the Bible does it say 01:14:33 seven years of tribulation. 01:14:34 That's something that is presumed. 01:14:36 All right. 01:14:38 Another question it says, 01:14:39 "Pastor Doug can you say something 01:14:41 about the 144,000?" 01:14:43 Yes. 01:14:44 You want to be part of that number 01:14:46 when the saints come marching in. 01:14:47 Right. 01:14:53 are basically your last day apostles. 01:14:56 They are not the only one saved. 01:14:58 You look at the descriptions it's given of the 144,000. 01:15:02 It says that they follow the Lamb wherever he goes, 01:15:05 like apostles did. 01:15:06 The number is 12 times 12,000. 01:15:09 You know, something interesting happened in Acts Chapter 1. 01:15:13 Just before God pours out the Holy Spirit 01:15:15 and the message goes like a wildfire at Pentecost. 01:15:19 It says, Peter stood up and said, 01:15:21 you know, we used to have 12 apostles, 01:15:22 were down one, Judas hung himself. 01:15:24 We need to replace Judas. 01:15:26 They went through a process. They replaced Judas. 01:15:28 The next word says, then the Holy Spirit fell. 01:15:31 They got that number 12 back 01:15:33 through the leadership of the 12 apostles, 01:15:36 but they were not the only one 01:15:37 saved and filled with the spirit. 01:15:38 There were 120 in the upper room, 01:15:40 but the 144,000 are a special group 01:15:43 with a special relationship 01:15:44 and a special work in the last days, 01:15:47 you know, Jesus said of Nathaniel, 01:15:49 here's an Israelite in whom there is no guile. 01:15:52 It says of the 144,000, there is no guile that they, 01:15:55 they're honest, they follow the Lamb. 01:15:58 It kind of defines them as apostles, 01:16:01 but through their preaching, 01:16:02 a great multitude is converted and many are saved. 01:16:07 Jesus sent the apostles 01:16:08 for the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 01:16:10 In the last days, you're going to have 12 times, 12,000 01:16:12 before the second coming that go to the whole world. 01:16:15 That's what it means, 01:16:16 but they're not the only ones that are saved. 01:16:18 And I think we have a lesson 01:16:19 that talks more 01:16:21 or at least spiritually as well. 01:16:23 Yeah, we do. Yeah I think that's coming up. 01:16:24 So folks want to stay tuned for that one. 01:16:26 "Pastor Doug why do some Bibles have different books 01:16:30 and how you know which ones are inspired?" 01:16:33 Well, in most Protestant Bibles, 01:16:37 all Protestant Bibles have the same number of books. 01:16:41 Some of the Catholic Bibles, like the Douay version. 01:16:44 They've got some books 01:16:45 that are mostly intertestamental books 01:16:47 that we are referred to as the apocryphal books, 01:16:50 they are of dubious origin. 01:16:52 And, but the Maccabees are, it's a good book for history, 01:16:55 but even some of the Catholic priests say that 01:16:57 it probably not inspired 01:17:00 as you find the Holy Canon of scripture. 01:17:04 And then some of them, 01:17:06 they just appeared out of history 01:17:07 and they're kind of doubtful. 01:17:09 See, one reason we know the books in the Bible 01:17:11 that we have now are sacred is they in cross-pollinate. 01:17:15 They endorse each other. 01:17:17 There's a symbiotic relationship 01:17:19 between the books. 01:17:20 Peter quotes Jude, and Jude quotes Peter, 01:17:22 and Peter quotes Paul and Jesus. 01:17:26 All of the apostles were involved 01:17:27 in writing the books. 01:17:29 They were recognized by the early church. 01:17:30 People who are alive 01:17:32 contemporaneous with the apostles, 01:17:34 knew that these books were authentic. 01:17:37 Some other books appeared later in history 01:17:39 and no one knew where they came from. 01:17:40 They were probably written by some church leaders 01:17:42 who wanted to make a point 01:17:44 and they don't match the teachings, 01:17:45 don't match up. 01:17:47 And so they're considered apocryphal books, 01:17:48 they're not in the Protestant Bibles. 01:17:50 Okay. 01:17:51 Here's an interesting question. 01:17:54 "Does the environmental movement 01:17:55 have some significance in Bible prophecy?" 01:18:00 Well, I think so, 01:18:01 you know, it tells us in Revelation, 01:18:04 is it Revelation 11, 01:18:06 God will destroy those that destroy the earth, 01:18:07 the nations are angry. 01:18:09 Yeah. 01:18:10 It's interesting that 01:18:13 Revelation says in the last days, 01:18:14 we'll be concerned about the earth being destroyed. 01:18:17 And, boy, that fills the headlines 01:18:18 in all the Western countries now, 01:18:20 great concern. 01:18:22 In fact, in Europe, 01:18:23 they're going to have a special, 01:18:26 what do they call it? 01:18:28 A green Sunday 01:18:29 where all the church leaders are going to come together 01:18:31 and talk about how can we save the environment? 01:18:34 So I do think that under the pretense 01:18:38 of wanting to save mother earth, 01:18:40 because how do you get all the atheists in the world 01:18:43 to work in cooperation with the Christians? 01:18:48 Well, they all seem to worship mother earth. 01:18:52 And it's interesting, you watch nature programs 01:18:54 produced by atheists and they talk about, 01:18:55 isn't nature miraculous, 01:18:57 isn't nature wonderful. 01:18:59 How miraculous that nature does these things. 01:19:01 I'm thinking, "Why don't you just say God." 01:19:04 They have problems with admitting 01:19:05 there's an intelligent God, 01:19:06 but that's the way they're going to bridge 01:19:09 the millions of atheists in the world with Christianity, 01:19:13 common goal of saving the world, 01:19:14 saving the planet. 01:19:16 I think it's going to play in there. 01:19:17 Okay. 01:19:19 "Do people have the mark of the beast now?" 01:19:21 No. 01:19:23 Nobody has the mark of the beast yet. 01:19:25 When it is enforced as a law 01:19:27 that you either do it or you can't buy or sell, 01:19:31 then those who make that choice, 01:19:33 that's the testing point. 01:19:34 That'll be a pivot point of 01:19:36 people choose to obey the laws of the beast 01:19:39 instead of the laws of God, 01:19:40 they'll receive the mark of the beast. 01:19:42 Okay. 01:19:43 "What political powers should we be watching 01:19:46 as we near the end of time?" 01:19:49 Well, we've learned today that 01:19:51 the Roman Catholic Church is a political power 01:19:54 and it's a religious power. 01:19:56 And we also mentioned the United States, 01:19:58 but we have another, 01:19:59 boy, no better time than now friends 01:20:02 to tune in for our study, 01:20:04 that deals with the USA and prophecy. 01:20:06 So that's another one. 01:20:07 I think, along with that, 01:20:09 you should be watching what's happening 01:20:10 with the division of the Roman empire, 01:20:13 which is comprised 01:20:14 of much of the European union countries right now. 01:20:17 And they're all going to be working together. 01:20:20 China, I think, is actually going 01:20:21 to have an interesting role, 01:20:24 so we'll watch and see. 01:20:25 Okay. 01:20:26 So stay tuned for more... 01:20:28 Yeah, more coming. We can unpack that entities. 01:20:30 This might be a question we addressed earlier, 01:20:31 but we want to answer it quick again. 01:20:33 It says, "Are there three heavens?" 01:20:35 And I think it's referenced to Paul 01:20:37 been caught up to the third heaven. 01:20:39 No, they're not different levels of heaven. 01:20:41 When Paul says I was caught up to the third heaven, 01:20:43 he's talking about the third definition of heaven. 01:20:45 The Jews understood the first heaven was the air 01:20:48 around the earth, 01:20:50 the atmosphere where you've got birds flying 01:20:52 and clouds floating. 01:20:53 Second heaven was the heavenly bodies 01:20:55 where the sun, moon and stars hang. 01:20:57 Third heaven was the place of God's dwelling or paradise, 01:21:01 what we call heaven. 01:21:03 And when he says third heaven, 01:21:04 he's just talking about the dwelling place of God. 01:21:07 Not that there's three levels in heaven, 01:21:09 where you got people in heaven segregated 01:21:12 based on how well they did in this life or something. 01:21:15 Okay. 01:21:17 Here's a question, it says, 01:21:18 "Did the Jews have a form of baptism 01:21:20 or washing 01:21:22 before John the Baptist began to preach?" 01:21:25 You know, many of the Orthodox Jews 01:21:27 back in the time of John, the Essenes, 01:21:30 they did practice ceremonial washings. 01:21:34 And most modern Jews today they are very... 01:21:37 It's interesting. 01:21:38 They practice washing on a regular basis. 01:21:41 In the time of Christ 01:21:42 they went through ceremonial washings, 01:21:44 but it wasn't always baptism. 01:21:46 But today, I hope I wouldn't offend anybody, 01:21:50 but when you walk around the old city of Jerusalem, 01:21:53 it's divided in four quarters. 01:21:55 You were there with me a couple of years ago. 01:21:57 It's really easy to see 01:21:59 that the Jewish quarter is the cleanest quarter. 01:22:02 They are very meticulous about washings and cleanliness, 01:22:07 but not so much like the baptism 01:22:09 that they had in ancient times. 01:22:11 And I think they've found 01:22:12 some groups within the Jewish tradition 01:22:16 that were practicing a type of cleansing. 01:22:18 Yeah, the Essenes. The Essenes. 01:22:19 Yeah. 01:22:21 By Dead Sea Scrolls or Qumran Scrolls. 01:22:24 So, yeah, very interesting. 01:22:25 Here's a question, Pastor Doug. 01:22:26 "Will Satan impersonate Jesus' second coming? 01:22:30 And if he does, 01:22:32 will he have the scars in his hands?" 01:22:35 Well, yes and no. 01:22:37 Will Satan seek to impersonate Christ? 01:22:38 Yes, absolutely. 01:22:40 Jesus said there will be false christs 01:22:42 and false prophets. 01:22:44 And I think that the devil is making 01:22:45 his case for the Lord. 01:22:47 You were able to come, 01:22:48 God came to the earth in the form of a man, 01:22:51 the incarnation, Jesus, Satan. 01:22:53 I don't know whether he's going to possess a man 01:22:55 or whether he'll just be an angel of light 01:22:58 that will appear. 01:22:59 He will claim to be Christ. 01:23:01 He will not have the power to come in the heavens, 01:23:03 as Jesus is coming. 01:23:04 Only Christ will be able to do that. 01:23:06 And when Christ comes, we don't touch the ground. 01:23:09 We are caught up to meet Him. 01:23:10 He doesn't touch the ground. 01:23:12 He doesn't... Yeah, I'm sorry. 01:23:13 When Christ comes, He doesn't touch the ground. 01:23:14 We are caught up to meet Him in the air. 01:23:16 And so the devil is not going 01:23:18 to be able to impersonate rapturing us up. 01:23:19 So if anyone walks around or you turn your channels 01:23:22 and it says, guess what? 01:23:24 Jesus has showed up. 01:23:25 I wouldn't even watch. 01:23:27 The Bible says, go not forth, don't even look, 01:23:29 Satan is going to be very compelling, 01:23:31 very convincing, very majestic. 01:23:34 He will quote scripture. 01:23:35 He will look loving. He will work miracles. 01:23:38 Satan can do miracles. 01:23:40 He can bring fire down from heaven. 01:23:41 He did it in the Book of Job. 01:23:43 So yes, I believe Satan is going 01:23:45 to seek to personate Christ in the last days. 01:23:49 All right. Here's another question. 01:23:50 It says, 01:23:52 "Babies are born with a tendency to sin. 01:23:55 Why should they not be baptized?" 01:23:58 Well, I think babies are dedicated. 01:24:00 Babies are born all creatures since then. 01:24:03 We've kind of been born with these selfish natures, 01:24:05 but they're not able to cognitively rationalize 01:24:08 the distinction between right and wrong 01:24:09 until they get older. 01:24:11 They can't repent of their sins. 01:24:13 I think it's great to dedicate your children to the Lord, 01:24:16 but when parents do that, 01:24:17 that's really the parents 01:24:19 dedicating themselves to the Lord. 01:24:21 But baby can't be taught the Ten Commandments 01:24:25 and Bible says, go, teach, baptize. 01:24:28 In the Bible there's no example of a baby being baptized. 01:24:32 There are babies being dedicated. 01:24:34 And that's what we ought to be doing. 01:24:35 Jesus was dedicated as a baby, baptized when He was 30. 01:24:40 And so we find that their guilt is not placed upon a person 01:24:44 until they know right from wrong. 01:24:46 Yeah. 01:24:47 And they're able to make that decision. 01:24:48 For example, you wouldn't treat somebody 01:24:50 who maybe has a mental handicap 01:24:52 the same as you would, 01:24:53 somebody who understands what they doing. 01:24:55 Absolutely. Yeah. 01:24:57 And Christ said that if you did not know, 01:24:58 you would have no sin, 01:25:00 but since now, you know, your sin remains. 01:25:02 To whom much is given much is required. 01:25:04 Baby doesn't know. Right. 01:25:07 This person's asking, 01:25:08 "When is the battle of Armageddon? 01:25:10 Is it before the second coming 01:25:12 or at the end of the thousand years?" 01:25:15 The battle of Armageddon 01:25:17 is a final battle between good and evil 01:25:18 that begins before the second coming. 01:25:21 You might say its phase one of the battle 01:25:23 when the dragon makes war with the woman. 01:25:26 And it concludes 01:25:28 when the devil in Revelation 20 surrounds the city of God 01:25:31 to launch his final assault. 01:25:33 And so it's probably safer 01:25:36 to call it the war of Armageddon, 01:25:38 but it begins, I believe 01:25:40 just during the time prior to the Christ's return, 01:25:44 it concludes after the 1000 years. 01:25:46 So it kind of begins at the second coming, 01:25:48 but it has its final judgment 01:25:50 and the devil and his angels are cast in the lake of fire. 01:25:52 The war is finally won for good. 01:25:54 That's at the very end. At the end. 01:25:55 Yeah. Okay. Great. 01:25:56 Well friends, we'd like to remind you 01:25:58 about our free offer for today. 01:25:59 It's one of our Amazing Fact study guides. 01:26:01 It's entitled Who is the Antichrist, 01:26:03 and we'll be happy to send this to anyone. 01:26:05 Actually, you can download it for free. 01:26:07 All you have to do is 01:26:08 text the word, revive, revival to 4... 01:26:12 Sorry, Reveal to 40544. 01:26:16 Again, that's Reveal to 40544. 01:26:19 You'll get a digital download of the study guide. 01:26:21 If you're outside of North America, 01:26:23 again, we want to encourage you 01:26:24 to go to the Revelation Now website, 01:26:26 and you'll be able to download that for free. 01:26:28 So Pastor Doug, 01:26:29 another very important meeting this evening, 01:26:31 We'll be talking about the mark of death. 01:26:34 And this is really dealing with the Antichrist power 01:26:38 and what is the mark of the beast. 01:26:41 And we'll also be touching 01:26:42 on what is the seal of God in this lesson. 01:26:45 And so everybody, if you want to know 01:26:47 that you're not getting the wrong mark 01:26:48 and you are getting the right mark, 01:26:50 you want to make sure and tune in. 01:26:51 Once again, friends, it's not too late 01:26:53 for you to call your friends 01:26:55 and encourage them to tune in, 01:26:58 just take the Revelation Now link, 01:27:01 send it to them. 01:27:02 You might even send it with a personal invitation. 01:27:04 You can do a video message and say, 01:27:06 you don't want to miss this presentation tonight, 01:27:08 especially with everything 01:27:09 that is going on in the world today. 01:27:11 I think that these presentations 01:27:15 could not be more timely, friends. 01:27:17 I think we're seeing the very prophecies 01:27:18 we're talking about 01:27:20 are being unfolded before our eyes 01:27:23 and God wants people to get ready. 01:27:25 So be praying for these meetings, 01:27:27 pray for everything to go well technically 01:27:28 as we're doing this year, 01:27:30 and that God will pour out His Spirit 01:27:32 and we believe that many people will be preparing 01:27:35 and our series now continues through November 14. 01:27:40 No meeting, Sunday night, we have a meeting, 01:27:42 but no meeting on Monday. 01:27:44 So then we'll be back again Tuesday and Wednesday. 01:27:46 Tonight, Sunday night, no meeting Monday, 01:27:49 Tuesday, Wednesday, 01:27:50 and the final big weekend 01:27:52 is going to be the 13th and 14th 01:27:54 where we're going to tie off some of these great subjects. 01:27:58 Friends, if you are going to miss a meeting, 01:27:59 you should have missed all the other ones. 01:28:01 Don't want to miss anything from here on now, 01:28:03 because this is where it really gets interesting. 01:28:05 Again, we want to encourage you to tell your friends, 01:28:07 make sure you set your alarm 01:28:09 to join us tonight 7:00 P.M Pacific Time.

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