Participants: Taj Pacleb
Series Code: ROHB
Program Code: ROHB000018
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00:41 Our message is entitled, "The Battle of Armageddon,
00:46 The Coming of the Kings of the East 00:48 and the Final Gathering of the Nations." 00:53 The first thing I want us to understand 00:55 is that we don't have to be afraid. 00:56 Amen? 00:58 We are on the winning team 00:59 when we align our self with the Lord. 01:00 The second thing I want us to understand is that, 01:02 this battle and this fight is not a physical fight. 01:06 If we'd say that this is a literal battle 01:09 in the Middle East, 01:10 we are inconsistent with the Bible context. 01:14 And, friends, it's clear. 01:15 Futurism has calls many people to look in the wrong place. 01:20 Obviously, it's symbolic. 01:21 And so the question is, what exactly is this battle 01:24 that is called Armageddon, and what exactly does it mean? 01:27 Well, friends, in the very context 01:30 God give us a clue as to how we are to understand 01:34 what the Battle of Armageddon is. 01:37 Remember and notice, in verse 16 it says, 01:40 "And he gathered them together 01:41 into a place called," in the what? 01:43 "Hebrew tongue, the Battle of Armageddon." 01:48 And so God gives us a clue right there in the passage 01:51 that we need to understand Armageddon 01:53 in the context of the Hebrew language. 01:56 Now, friends, the New Testament was written in Greek, 01:58 the Old Testament was written in Hebrew. 02:00 So when it says in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon, 02:02 what God is doing, 02:03 He's pointing us back to the Old Testaments 02:06 to understand what exactly this word Armageddon means. 02:11 And if you are to look up this word Armageddon in the Hebrew, 02:14 it's the conjunction of two Hebrew words, 02:17 Har which means mount. 02:21 What is it mean? 02:22 And Magedo which the root word is the Hebrew word Mo'ed 02:25 which literally means congregation. 02:28 What is it mean? 02:29 So, friends, in the Hebrew tongue 02:31 the word Armageddon, it simply means 02:34 the Mount of the Congregation. 02:37 What is it mean? 02:38 And so this is how we are to understand this battle. 02:42 God is pointing us right there in the context of the plague. 02:44 It says it's in the Hebrew tongue. 02:46 And, friends, the word Armageddon in the Hebrew 02:49 is the Mount of the Congregation. 02:51 It's not so much a literal battle in a literal place, 02:54 but it's a worldwide spiritual war 02:56 between truth and error, 02:58 Christ and Satan, the genuine and the counterfeit. 03:01 You see, friends, the Great Controversy 03:04 between good and evil. 03:05 It, brother and sisters, was a war 03:08 that began over who would sit 03:11 on the Mount of the Congregation. 03:13 This is how the war actually began. 03:15 Satan, who was Lucifer wanted to sit at Armageddon, 03:21 the Mount of the Congregation. 03:23 We studied this before, 03:24 so we are going to briefly go through it together. 03:25 Notice in Isaiah 14:12-14. 03:29 This is what began the battle. 03:31 It was over the Mount of the Congregation. 03:33 Notice what it says. 03:34 Please, write it down, 03:35 "How art thou fallen from heaven, 03:37 O Lucifer, son of the morning! 03:38 How art thou cut down to the ground, 03:40 which didst weaken the nations! 03:41 For thou hast said," where? 03:44 So where did the war actually began? 03:47 It began in the very heart of Lucifer, 03:50 that first rebellious angel in heaven. 03:53 "For thou hast said in thine heart." 03:55 What did he said in his heart? 03:57 It says, "I will ascend into heaven. 04:01 I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. 04:05 I will sit also upon the," what? 04:09 "Mount of the--" 04:11 That's the word Armageddon, friends. 04:13 "I will sit upon the Mount of the Congregation 04:15 in the sides of the north. 04:16 I will ascended above the heights of the clouds, 04:19 I will be like," who? 04:22 "The Most High." 04:23 We find that the origin of the battle, 04:25 the conflict began in the heart of Lucifer. 04:27 He said, I will, I will, I will, I will. 04:31 What was the problem? 04:32 Satan had an I problem, friends. 04:34 We called that myopia. He was short sighted. 04:38 All he was thinking about is himself 04:40 and his own will, his how own desire. 04:42 And what was his will? 04:44 He wanted to sit upon the Mount of the Congregation 04:46 in the sides of the north. 04:48 And as we learned before, that's where God's throne is. 04:51 Do you remember that? 04:52 Is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, 04:54 the city of the great king? 04:55 The Bible says in the Book of Psalms 48. 04:57 In other words, and saying, 04:58 "I will sit upon the Mount of the Congregation 05:01 in the sides of the north." 05:02 What Lucifer was saying was, I want to dethrone God. 05:05 Wow. What blasphemy. 05:08 Here's an angel thinking he can kick God off of His throne. 05:12 But this is what began the conflict. 05:14 He wanted to dethrone God and he wanted to be God. 05:16 He said, "I will be like the Most High." 05:19 And, friends, what is the Most High like? 05:21 The Most High is holy. 05:23 He is righteous. He is good. 05:25 When Lucifer essentially was saying is, I want to be holy, 05:28 I am going to be righteous, I am going to be good, 05:31 and I am going to do it on my own. 05:33 I will do it myself. 05:35 You see, friends, 05:37 this is the origin of self-righteousness. 05:40 What Lucifer was saying is, 05:41 we don't need God in order to be holy. 05:43 We don't need God in order to be righteous. 05:45 We don't need God nor His law to be good. 05:48 We are holy angels. 05:50 And so this is what began the controversy. 05:53 It was the battle of the will. 05:55 It was the battle of the what? 05:56 It was I will versus Thy will. 06:00 And thus because of this, 06:02 the Bible tells us in Revelation, 06:04 and there was war, where? 06:07 What began the war? 06:09 Is the fact that Lucifer wanted to be God. 06:11 He wanted to dethrone God. 06:13 He rebelled against the law of God. 06:14 And, friends, this was not a physical war, 06:17 it was a spiritual war. 06:19 It was a battle of the will. 06:21 Not so much the battle of arm forces, 06:24 not so much the battle of fists, 06:26 it was the battle of the will. 06:27 If you were to look up this word, war, 06:29 in the Greek language the word war is the Greek word polemos. 06:34 Can you say that? 06:35 And that word polemos, it means strife, 06:39 quarrel, dispute or argument. 06:44 You know, I used to think that the war 06:45 that broke loose in heaven was a clash of arm. 06:48 No, friends, the war was actually an argument. 06:51 It was a quarrel. It was a dispute. 06:54 A war of words or a conflict of ideas. 06:59 A conflict and a clash of beliefs 07:02 or a conflict and a clash of the will. 07:05 You see, friends, the nature of the Battle of Armageddon 07:08 that first began in the heart of Lucifer, 07:10 the very nature of it is that it's a spiritual battle. 07:13 It's a battle of the will. 07:15 And, friends, if that make sense, 07:16 would you please say amen? 07:19 Lucifer sought to cast down God's truth 07:21 and God's righteousness to the ground, 07:23 so that he can set up his own truth, 07:25 his own righteousness which really was his own will. 07:29 He began an argument against God in heaven. 07:32 And, friends, the origin 07:35 or the original Battle of Armageddon, 07:37 we see very clearly is a spiritual Battle of Beliefs. 07:42 It's a battle of what? 07:43 A Battle of Beliefs, friends. 07:45 You see, God's government in heaven 07:47 is based upon His perfect law of love, 07:51 and Lucifer began to propose 07:53 a plan based on self-government. 07:55 We can govern ourselves, we can be God, 07:58 and we don't need God to tell us how to do it. 08:00 We don't need God to be righteous and holy. 08:03 We can do it on our own by our own beliefs 08:06 and our own works. 08:08 This was the original Armageddon. 08:10 It was a spiritual Battle of Belief. 08:11 Now, friends, listen, the beginning of the battle 08:14 that began in Lucifer's heart 08:15 will help us understand 08:17 the conclusion of the controversy 08:20 because this final battle of Armageddon is not different. 08:23 It's not a physical or literal battle, 08:26 but it too is a battle of the will. 08:28 God's will versus men's will. 08:31 It's a Battle of Beliefs. 08:33 The final Armageddon, the Mount of the Congregation 08:36 is the climax of the spiritual war 08:38 between truth and error 08:41 that first began in Lucifer's heart. 08:44 Once again, it's not a physical fight, 08:45 but a spiritual showdown between truth and error. 08:48 And by the way, this makes sense, doesn't it? 08:50 Because think about it. 08:51 Does God need to fight physically? 08:54 Is there anyone in the universe 08:55 that can overpower God physically, yes or no? 08:58 Absolutely not, friends. 08:59 God does not have to fight physically. 09:01 He is the omniscient, omnipotent one. 09:04 Friends, all He has to do is speak a word and everything is-- 09:08 Everything can be destroyed by just a word. 09:10 And so God does not have to fight anyone physically, 09:13 but, friends, it's the will that the human race 09:16 and his intelligent creation has the power over. 09:20 We find clearly that this universal war 09:23 is a war that we're all involved in today. 09:26 You see, each one of us, 09:27 we are all born on a battlefield. 09:30 And being born on a battlefield, 09:31 we must choose which side of the war we're going to be on. 09:34 And so today, are they going to stand 09:36 on the side of the truth and righteousness or error, 09:40 either we're going to compromise with the world 09:42 or we're going go remain faithful to God. 09:44 And, friends, I don't know about you, 09:45 but I want to remain faithful to the lord Jesus. 09:47 Can you say amen? 09:48 Because if we align ourselves on His side, 09:50 we are on the winning team. 09:51 And what enables us to win this war? 09:53 Notice what it says in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5. 09:58 The Bible says, "For though we walk in the flesh, 10:02 we do not war after the-- 10:05 In other words, it's not a physical battle." 10:07 "For the weapons of our warfare 10:08 are not carnal, not of this world, 10:11 but mighty through God 10:13 to the pulling down of strongholds." 10:16 But what are these strongholds 10:18 that God wants to pour down in our lives? 10:21 Notice what it says, the next verse, 10:23 "Casting down," what? "Imaginations. 10:26 And every high thing that exalt itself against the, what? 10:31 The knowledge of God, 10:32 and bringing into captivity 10:35 every thought to the obedience of Christ." 10:38 You see, friends, it's a spiritual war, isn't it? 10:40 It's a battle of the will. 10:42 God's will versus our will. 10:45 And, friends, in this spiritual battle, 10:46 it's not something physical. 10:48 The things that God wants to, 10:50 all the strongholds that He wants to cast down 10:53 is every high thing, every earthy, 10:55 worldly carnal thought 10:56 that will exalt itself against the knowledge of God 11:00 which is the truth of God's word. 11:02 You see, God wants to take every thought captive 11:06 to conquer every earthly, worldly idea 11:10 and bring it into obedience to Jesus Christ 11:14 and the Word of God and the law of God. 11:18 Can you say amen? 11:19 So, friends, what we are seeing once again is this, 11:21 is that this is a war of knowledge. 11:25 The knowledge of God 11:26 and the knowledge that goes against God. 11:30 And, friends, the only way 11:31 we can overcome in this spiritual supernatural battle 11:36 is to yield our mind to the Lord Jesus. 11:39 You see, when the Bible tells us 11:40 that God teaches our hands to war 11:42 and our fingers to fight. 11:43 Do you know how God does this? 11:45 Here is how we war, friends, by prayer. 11:48 Our hands to war. 11:50 This is how, friends. We pray. 11:53 And our fingers to fight, use your fingers 11:54 to flip the pages, isn't that right? 11:56 And so how do you fight in this spiritual battle? 11:58 Oh, you use the weapons of prayer 12:00 and the weapon of the sword of the spirit 12:03 which is the word of the living God. 12:04 Can you say amen? 12:05 And, friends, what this is doing 12:07 is this is fortifying our minds with the truths of the Bible 12:10 so that we can stand in the last great conflict 12:13 between God and evil. 12:15 It's not a literal battle, the Battle of Armageddon. 12:17 It's a spiritual war between truth and error. 12:20 And, friends, as we use our hands to war with prayer 12:23 and our fingers to fight by flipping the pages 12:26 and putting the finger 12:27 upon the promises of the Word of God, 12:30 we are bringing every thought 12:32 into captivity to the obedience of Christ. 12:35 And as our thoughts are controlled by the Lord Jesus, 12:38 it's then that He can place the seal 12:39 of the living God in our foreheads 12:42 so that we will be able to stand all the way to the end. 12:45 Can you say amen? 12:46 It's yielding our mind to Christ, 12:48 so that He can give us His seal, 12:49 allowing the Lord to shape our belief system. 12:53 Because, friends, remember it is your mind, 12:55 your forehead that is where your-- 12:57 The cerebral cortex of your brain, the frontal lobe. 13:01 And it's our mind that produces our thoughts and feelings. 13:03 Our thoughts and feelings produce words and actions. 13:06 Words and actions, 13:07 when you repeat them over and over produce habits. 13:09 Habits make up you character and the Bible teaches 13:12 that character determines your destiny. 13:15 So we find that, it all starts with the mind 13:17 and that's why the Battle of Armageddon 13:19 began in the heart or the mind of Lucifer. 13:21 It was his will against the will of God. 13:24 And, friends, by God's grace 13:26 he is going to give us victory in this battle 13:28 as we make a decision to yield our mind to Him 13:32 to be molded by His word. 13:34 Can you say amen? 13:35 And so now that we understand 13:36 that this battle is a spiritual war. 13:38 Let's look into the symbolic details of the battle. 13:41 Let's go back now to Revelation 16 13:43 and notice verse 12. 13:45 The Bible tells us that the Battle of Armageddon 13:48 was placed in the context of the sixth plague. 13:52 We looked at the seven, last night. 13:54 Now let's take a little closer look 13:56 at the sixth plague, the Battle of Armageddon. 13:57 It says in Revelation 16:12, 14:01 "And the sixth angel poured out his vial 14:02 upon the great river," what river? 14:05 "Euphrates, and the water thereof was dried up," why? 14:10 "That the way of the kings-- " From which direction? 14:14 "The east might be prepared." 14:16 So we find that the Battle of Armageddon 14:17 is placed in the context of the sixth plague, 14:19 and in preparation for this battle, the supernatural war, 14:23 the Bible says that the Great River Euphrates 14:25 is going to dry up to prepare the way 14:28 for the coming of the kings of the east. 14:30 And the question is this. 14:32 Where do we see this same thing happening 14:34 in the Old Testament scriptures? 14:37 Where do we see a river being dried up, 14:39 preparing the way for the kings of the east? 14:41 Friends, we see it all the way in the Book of Daniel 14:44 during the kingdom, the mighty Kingdom of Babylon. 14:47 Do you remember the story? 14:48 Babylon, that mighty ancient kingdom was built 14:50 right on top of the River Euphrates. 14:53 And River Euphrates was the lifeline 14:55 of the Kingdom on Babylon. 14:56 It provided water for the crops of the Babylonians 14:59 so much so that they-- 15:01 History tells us had a 20-year food supply 15:04 so that they could outweigh any army 15:06 that will try to besiege them. 15:08 Not only that, but that river, the River Euphrates. 15:10 If it ever-- If it ever rose endangering the city, 15:15 they had these massive gates 15:16 that will block off the excess water, 15:18 diverting the water around the walls 15:20 creating a modes of protection. 15:22 You see the mighty River Euphrates 15:25 was the lifeline of the ancient kingdom of Babylon. 15:28 And the reason why Babylon fell 15:31 is because this water 15:33 of the River Euphrates was dried up 15:35 to prepare the way 15:37 for the kings of the east to come to destroy this kingdom. 15:40 You read the story in Daniel 5. 15:43 In fifth chapter of Daniel, 15:44 we find Nebuchadnezzar's grandson 15:46 Belshazzar throwing a party. 15:47 And, friends, he's having a good time 15:50 and he is there as the host. 15:51 He has the thousands of his Lords 15:52 and his wives and kinky wives. 15:54 They are living it up, having a good time. 15:58 And friends, in the midst of this drunkenness, 16:01 Belshazzar makes a fatal mistake. 16:04 He tells his solders, 16:06 his servants to bring the golden cups, the what? 16:10 The sacred cups that his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar 16:12 took from the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. 16:15 He said, "Bring me those golden cups 16:16 that were used in the Lord's service." Why? 16:18 So that he could drink his old wine, 16:22 the Wine of Babylon, in those sacred golden cups. 16:25 Here, we find the king mixing the holy with the unholy, 16:29 the sacred and the profane, 16:30 and this is what calls God's judgments 16:33 to fall on Babylon on that very night 16:36 is because they mix the sacred and the profane. 16:38 Remember the handwriting on the wall, 16:40 prophesying about the end of the kingdom of the Babylon. 16:43 And, friends, while the party was taking place, 16:46 we find that Cyrus 16:48 who is the king from the east. 16:51 Cyrus and Darius, the kings of the east 16:53 with the armies of Medo-Persian Empire 16:54 were on the outside of the walls of Babylon 16:57 and the only way or the way 16:59 in which they got in and penetrated Babylon 17:01 was Cyrus march's army one mile up the River Euphrates 17:05 and ordered his men to divert the waters into open fields, 17:11 thus causing the waters of Euphrates to dry up 17:15 so that he can march his army through the riverbed 17:17 to penetrate the Kingdom of Babylon. 17:20 And, friends, I want you to notice 17:21 who these kings of the east were 17:22 and what God calls them in His word? 17:24 Notice, Isaiah 44:27. 17:27 Please write it down, "That saith to the deep, 17:30 be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers." 17:33 What river? The River Euphrates. 17:35 "That says of Cyrus, He is my," what? 17:40 "shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure." 17:43 Then going to chapter 45:1, it says, 17:46 "Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, 17:49 whose right hand I have held, to subdue nations before him, 17:52 I will loose the loins of kings 17:53 and open before him the two leaved gates, 17:55 and the gates shall not be shut." 17:57 Here we find, friends. 17:59 The type of the anti-type 18:02 that we were reading in Revelation. 18:04 Here is the kings of the east, Cyrus and Darius 18:06 and the armies of the Medo-Persian Empire 18:08 on the outside of the walls of Babylon. 18:10 They cause the River Euphrates to dry up 18:13 and God calls Cyrus, the king of the east, 18:16 he calls him the anointed one. 18:18 He calls him the what? 18:20 And, friends, that word, anointed in the Hebrew, 18:22 it literally means Messiah. 18:25 He said, to my shepherd Cyrus. 18:27 Cyrus, notice is called the anointed Sheppard. 18:32 He and Darius were the kings of the east, 18:36 the king to destroy Babylon. 18:38 And so, friends, what happened back then 18:40 was symbol of how end-time mystical, 18:43 spiritual Babylon would fall during the seven last plagues. 18:47 Because remember, we studied the other night 18:48 that this kingdom called Babylon also sits upon many waters. 18:55 Do you remember that? 18:56 It was a woman that was riding a beast 18:58 that was sitting upon many waters. 19:00 We learned before that a woman in prophecy 19:02 represents a church, 19:04 but this is a harlot woman representing an apostate church. 19:07 The beast in prophecy represents a kingdom or political power 19:11 as the woman who rides upon the beast 19:13 it's a symbol of a church, an apostate church 19:16 that dominates political power. 19:18 It's a church state union together 19:21 and sitting upon many waters. 19:23 What waters? It's the River Euphrates. 19:26 And so we find who is this woman 19:29 that is sitting upon many waters? 19:31 But we learned before, friends, it's not a surprise 19:34 that this woman is identified in the Bible 19:36 and through history as the Roman Church State System. 19:40 A church that is located upon a kingdom, 19:42 the Kingdom of Rome, 19:44 a beast with seven heads representing seven mountains. 19:47 The Vatican City is the city of seven hills 19:50 and she is upon many waters 19:52 which represents multitudes of people. 19:54 It's a worldwide church. 19:55 Friends, remember 19:56 we're not talking about the people in the system, 19:59 we're talking about the system itself 20:00 because does God have his people in this system, yes or no? 20:04 Absolutely yes, and God loves all people in this system. 20:07 And in every church, you find the people of God, 20:09 every denomination is going to be represented in heaven 20:12 and so this is not talking about individuals, 20:14 it's talking about the structure, 20:16 the system itself. 20:18 And God pronounces this kingdom 20:20 called Babylon as a fallen kingdom. 20:23 And I want you to notice why she's fallen. 20:25 Revelation 14:8 says, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen, 20:30 that great city because she made all nations," do what? 20:34 drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." 20:39 Friends, does that sounds familiar? 20:41 And that's the same reason 20:42 why Old Testament Babylon fell as well 20:44 because they were drinking old wine in the sacred cup. 20:47 You see, friends, this system called Babylon 20:49 is fallen because she has made the whole world become drunk, 20:53 spiritually confused, deceit, or intoxicated 20:58 because of the wine of there false doctrine. 21:02 Friends, we're not talking about the individuals. 21:03 We're talking about teaching of the church. 21:05 Jesus said that that you shall know them by their fruits. 21:09 And, friends, the fruit is their teachings. 21:11 We don't know the roots so we're not standing in judgment 21:13 upon any individual person. 21:15 Can you say amen? 21:16 We don't know the motives of individual's hearts, 21:19 but Jesus made it clear that we can look up on their fruits, 21:21 and we can judge and know them by their fruits. 21:24 You see, friends, end time Babylon, 21:26 just like ancient Babylon 21:28 mixes the sacred with the profane together. 21:31 And as result, it's a fallen system in the golden cup, 21:36 is old intoxicating wine, 21:39 not fresh pure grape juice of the covenant 21:42 that the new covenant representing the blood of Jesus. 21:45 It represents the wine of false doctrine 21:47 that she uses to deceive the world. 21:50 It's the spirit of Lucifer that first said, 21:53 "We can be holy without God's law, 21:56 we don't need the law of God, all we need is the wine." 21:59 And so people think that if they just drink the wine 22:01 and eat the bread, they can live however they want to live 22:04 and still they will be saved in God's kingdom. 22:07 That's what Lucifer said, "We don't need the law, 22:09 we can do it ourselves our own way." 22:12 And that's exactly what the church teaches. 22:16 This is the last abomination 22:18 that brings about the final desolation 22:20 of the seven last plagues. 22:22 What leads the fall, to the fall of mystical, 22:26 spiritual end-time Babylon? 22:27 Well, friends, remember why did ancient Babylon fall? 22:31 Because of the drying up the waters, 22:33 preparing the away for the kings of the east. 22:36 And what do these waters represents? 22:38 Notice, what it says in Revelation 17:15, 22:41 the Bible says, "And the water which you saw, 22:43 where whore sits, are what, 22:45 peoples and a multitudes and nations, and tongues." 22:49 So, friends, the water, that Babylon is built upon 22:54 represents multitudes of the people 22:56 that are in the control of Babylon. 22:59 And the Bible says that the wind which this end time falls 23:01 apostate church system is going to fall 23:04 is when the waters, the people, when it's dried up. 23:07 In other words, the people will leave, 23:10 and no longer supports this system. 23:13 And, friends, there are two main ways 23:14 that the waters are going to dry up. 23:16 How many ways? 23:17 One of the first ways is when the gospel is preached. 23:20 When the everlasting gospel is preached, 23:22 a part of that gospel is the warning 23:24 against the system called Babylon 23:26 and God saying in Revolution 18, 23:28 "Come out of her," what? "My people." 23:32 God is going to dry up the waters, 23:34 He's going to call many of His sincere wonderful people 23:36 that are still in this apostate church system to come out. 23:40 And, friends, whatever someone response to that call 23:42 and comes out of Babylon and joins God's movement, 23:46 that's another drop that has left to support of Babylon. 23:50 You know, sometimes, I here people saying, 23:52 if my husband would accept this truth 23:54 then I will accept and going to be baptized. 23:56 If my spouse would do, then I will do it. 23:58 If my parents allowed me then I will do it. 24:00 If my children join me then I will make a decision. 24:03 And, friends, we're waiting for others but, friends, 24:06 water does not evaporate in gallons, does it? 24:09 Water evaporates one drop at the time. 24:14 And so we can't wait for others to join us. 24:16 God saves families, 24:17 but He saves them one by one as individual. 24:21 So we have an individual choice to make 24:24 and we should not let anything or anyone hinder us 24:27 or causes to vacillate in the call of Jesus 24:30 when He says, "Come out of Babylon, 24:32 these fallen apostate church systems." 24:35 God wants us to make decision for ourselves. 24:37 Can you say amen? 24:38 And by the way, friends, when we make the decision, 24:40 we're setting an example for others 24:42 that they might be encouraged 24:44 to make the same decision as well. 24:46 And so that was one of the first ways 24:47 the water is going to dry up. 24:48 As God's faithful people that are in the system 24:51 actually leave the system 24:53 and join God's final end time movement. 24:55 Now the second way, the water is going to dry up 24:58 is when the seven last plagues are poured out. 25:01 And when these plagues affect Babylon, 25:03 affect this apostate church system 25:06 multitudes of deceive people who withdraw their support, 25:09 they're gonna-- They're going to turn on the system 25:13 that they have supported almost their entire lives. 25:16 And they are going to leave, friends. 25:18 Bible says they are going to hate the harlot 25:21 and they are going to come out, 25:23 but they are going to come out when it's too late. 25:25 And, friends, as the waters dry up, 25:27 it prepares the way for the kings of the east. 25:30 Question is this, who are the kings of the east 25:33 that are going to come after the waters are dried up? 25:36 Friends, you know, who the kings of east are? 25:38 It's Jesus and the Holy Spirit. 25:39 Can you say amen? 25:40 Because remember, the kings of the east 25:42 in ancient Babylon that destroyed--oh, excuse me, 25:45 the kings of the east of Medo Persian Empire 25:46 that destroyed Babylon was Cyrus and Darius. 25:49 And Cyrus was called-- What was he called? 25:52 The anointed Sheppard. 25:54 But, friends, who's the real anointed Sheppard? 25:56 Who is the great Sheppard? And who is the Messiah? 26:00 And so who are the kings of east? 26:01 It represents the coming of Christ. 26:03 And why does it say for the east? 26:05 Because the bible tells us 26:06 as a lightning comes from the east 26:10 and shines even to the west 26:12 so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. 26:15 When the waters dry up, now the kings of the east, 26:18 the second coming of Christ would now taken place. 26:20 Can you say amen? 26:21 In fact notice, in the Book of Ezekiel 43:2 26:25 it tells us that when Jesus comes, 26:27 He's coming from the east. 26:28 It says, "And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel 26:31 came from the way of the east, 26:34 and his voice was like the noise of many waters, 26:37 and the earth shined with his glory." 26:41 So we find that the drying up of the waters, 26:44 the withdrawal of the support of the people towards Babylon 26:47 will prepare the way 26:48 for the kings of the east to come. 26:50 This is Christ and the Holy Spirit will come 26:52 with all the angelical armies, 26:55 He will comes to set us free 26:57 from spiritual Babylon, Babylonian captivity, 27:01 false doctrines in these last days, 27:03 He will bring us out of Babylon, this world 27:05 and now he will bring us back to Jerusalem, 27:07 not a literal city but the heavenly Jerusalem. 27:09 Can you say amen? 27:11 The New Jerusalem with reign with Christ 27:13 for the first 1,000 years in heaven. 27:17 And so, friends, if this makes sense, 27:19 if this is clear, would you please say amen? 27:22 Those who are trapped 27:23 by the left behind theology have missed. 27:26 The spiritual significance of the typology of the Bible. 27:30 You see, the literal mindedness of the Jews, of Israel 27:34 is what caused them to reject the Messiah. 27:36 They were looking for literal kingdom, 27:38 they wanted to fight literally against Rome 27:40 and because of their literally mindedness, 27:42 they rejected the Messiah. 27:44 And, friends, evangelical Christianity today 27:46 are making the exact same mistake 27:49 when you're looking to the Middle East 27:50 for the fulfillment of prophecy, 27:52 they are looking for a literal temple 27:53 and a literal battle and literal earthly wars. 27:57 They're looking in the wrong place. 27:59 And what happen to the Jews is also being repeated 28:03 in the evangelic Christian world today. 28:05 But, friends, how many of you thankful for the clarity 28:07 of the truth of God's word? 28:08 Can you say amen? 28:09 Friends, we have to study the Bible contextually, 28:12 exegetical, making sure that we have a firm foundation 28:15 on which to built the house of truth upon. 28:19 Now, friends so we fond that end time Babylon, 28:23 the apostate churches of water are going to fall. How? 28:26 As the God's people, the waters are dried up 28:30 and then Jesus will come 28:31 and to take his people to the heavenly Jerusalem. 28:34 But before this grand and glorious climax 28:37 before Jesus comes, 28:38 Satan is going to launch a threefold attack 28:42 upon God's truth and God's people. 28:46 And this is not so much a physical, 28:48 but it's a spiritual attack 28:50 of deception in the last days. 28:52 He uses three powers 28:55 and these three powers are described in the next versus. 28:57 Notice now with me, Revolution 16, 28:59 now notice verse 13-14. 29:01 Notice the threefold attack. 29:03 The Bible says, "And I was three unclean spirits like frogs 29:07 come out of the mouth of the dragon 29:10 and out of the mouth of the," what? The beast. 29:12 "And out of the mouth of the false prophet. 29:15 They are the spirits of devils working in miracles 29:17 which goes forth to the kings of the earth 29:20 and of the whole world to gather them 29:22 to the battle of the great day of God Almighty." 29:25 Here is Satan's threefold attack. 29:27 He uses a counterfeit false trinity. 29:30 The dragon, brother and sisters, 29:31 is a counterfeit of God the Father. 29:33 The beast, the antichrist. 29:35 Beast is a counterfeit of Jesus Christ. 29:38 The antichrist counterfeit of Jesus Christ. 29:40 And the false prophet 29:41 is the counterfeit of the Holy Spirit. 29:44 And through this counterfeit trinity, 29:47 we find that Satan will gather the whole world 29:50 to fight against God's truth and God's people. 29:53 But I want you to notice from what we just read 29:55 that there is a progression of unity. 29:58 There is a what? 29:59 A progression of unity that leads to an all-out attack 30:04 on God's truth and His people. 30:06 And it comes in three ways. 30:09 Notice with me on the screen, 30:10 I hope you'll write them down. 30:11 Here's the progression of unity. 30:13 First thing that happens 30:15 is the Dragon and the Beast 30:16 and the False Prophet unite together. 30:18 That's the first unity, 30:20 the unity amongst this counterfeit trinity. 30:22 And then once the dragon, beast and false prophet are unified 30:25 then they go to the kings of the earth 30:28 and they unified 30:30 with the political powers of the world. Why? 30:32 Because they need physical, military muscle 30:35 in order to then take it to the whole world 30:37 and unify the whole world in false doctrine 30:41 to fight against the truth of God's word. 30:44 You see, friends, this is Satan's military strategy 30:48 to battle against God. 30:50 And, friends, listen only as we know his strategy, 30:53 can we counter his attack. 30:55 Can you say amen? 30:57 And so now the next question this. 30:58 Who is this dragon? Who is this beast? 31:01 And who is the False Prophet? 31:03 Let's first start with the dragon. 31:04 We're going to try and make this as clear as we can. 31:07 Friends, we learn before 31:08 that the dragon is non another than Satan. 31:10 Can you say amen? 31:12 In Revelation 12:9, it's clear that it's Satan, 31:15 but I want you to notice the dragon power of Satan 31:18 is described as the old serpent. 31:20 Notice, Revelation 12:9 tells us. 31:23 "And the great dragon was cast out, 31:25 that old serpent called the devil and Satan 31:29 which deceives the whole world." 31:31 So we find, yes, dragon is Satan, 31:33 but most specifically he is called the old serpent 31:37 who deceived, how much of the world? 31:40 Friends, question. 31:42 What is this-- Where is this passage pointing us to? 31:46 Where in the Bible do we find 31:48 the old serpent deceiving the whole world? 31:50 You see, Revelation, 31:51 this echoing something in the Old Testament. 31:53 If we want to understand what it means, 31:55 we have to go back to the Old Testament. 31:57 And, friends, we realized 31:58 that the serpent deceived the whole world 32:01 when he deceived Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. 32:04 In deceiving them, he deceives the whole world. 32:06 And he did it by the means of the serpent. 32:09 And, friends, notice how he did it. 32:10 Let's find out who is this dragon. 32:13 It's Satan, but most specifically what is the method? 32:16 Genesis 3:1, "The serpent said to the Lord, 32:20 'Yea, hath God said, 32:22 you shall not eat of every tree of the garden.'" 32:25 Here, the serpent is putting a question mark 32:28 where God place the period. 32:30 God said, "You shall surely die." 32:32 And he made it clear that the wages of sin is death. 32:35 But now the serpent begins by planting seeds of doubts. 32:38 He says, "Have God said." 32:40 In another words, "Did God really say that?" 32:43 Did He mean it when He said it? 32:45 Here, brother and sisters, 32:46 is the origin of higher criticism, 32:49 doubting the Word of God that many universities, 32:53 even Christian universities are teaching today. 32:55 It came from the serpent himself. 32:58 Yea has God. Did God really say this? 33:01 And they notice, he then says to Eve, 33:04 our first mother the exact opposite of what God said. 33:07 "And the serpent said unto women, 33:09 'you shall not,'" what? "Surely die." 33:12 Here's the origin of spirituals. 33:15 The origin of the doctrine of the immortal soul. 33:17 God said that the wages of sin is death 33:19 and the day that you eat thereof, 33:20 you shall surely die. 33:21 But Satan says, "Don't listen to God, listen to me. 33:24 You shall not surely die." 33:27 Well, what's going to happen then? 33:28 For God doth know that in the day you eat thereof, 33:31 then your eyes shall be opened, 33:34 and you shall be as God's, knowing good and evil." 33:39 In other words, don't listen to God, Eve, 33:42 He's not telling you the truth. 33:45 Listen to me, when you eat, you won't surely die, 33:48 there's a life in sin. 33:50 Yes, you might die physically, but you wont-- 33:52 That's not death, you won't surely die, 33:55 but rather your eyes are going to be open 33:57 and you will be like God. 33:58 In other words, death is simply one phase of an existence 34:02 to a much higher exalted phase of consciousness. 34:05 Your eyes are going to be open. 34:07 You are going to be conscious of things. 34:08 You are going to see things you've never seen before. 34:11 And isn't that what Satan tells us 34:12 when he attempts us to sin. 34:13 "Oh, go ahead and do it. 34:14 You can experience something, you've never experience before. 34:17 It's going to be so much fun." 34:19 Friends, he was alive. 34:22 What the serpent is saying here is that, 34:25 you are immortal and you can be like God. 34:29 This is the origin of the spiritualism 34:32 which is the foundation of paganism, 34:34 the very platform of every pagan false religion 34:39 and this is who the dragon is. 34:41 Friends, the dragon is Satan, 34:43 but most specifically the dragon Satan's power 34:46 of spiritualism and paganism. 34:48 Friends I want you to notice what spiritualism says, 34:50 one of the main beliefs of spiritualism 34:53 is exactly what the serpent said. 34:54 Here is what one spiritualistic book had to say in describing 34:58 the history and doctrine of spiritualism. 35:00 The fundamental principle of spiritualism 35:02 is that human beings survive, what, bodily death," 35:06 In other words, yes. 35:07 Your body dies, but that's not death 35:10 because your soul lives on 35:12 in the state of consciousness. 35:13 That's the foundational teaching of spiritualism. 35:16 "And that occasionally under conditions 35:18 not yet fully understood 35:19 we can communicate with those who have gone before." 35:23 This is the root foundational teaching 35:26 of paganism and spiritualism. 35:28 They say, in many religions that the body dies, 35:32 but you don't really die, 35:33 your soul lives on in a spirit of consciousness 35:35 and that the spirit world is the real world. 35:38 And that what we're living here in the physical world 35:40 is not really the real world. 35:42 And, friends, this is exactly what Buddhism teaches, 35:44 Confucianism, Hinduism and Taoism and Shintoism 35:47 and Sikhism and Rastafarianism and Hari Krishna. 35:50 They believe in reincarnation which is a doctrine 35:53 that comes from the serpent himself 35:56 is to believe that when your body dies, you don't really die, 36:00 you live on in the stage of consciousness. 36:02 And Islam believes that as well. 36:04 You see, they believe that those who die in jihad, 36:08 they go directly into the paradise 36:11 and those you just die there's consciousness in death. 36:13 That's exactly what the serpent talk. 36:16 All of these heathen pagan religions, 36:19 there are many good people and good teachers. 36:21 Let me just make that very clear. 36:22 Many good, wonderful people in these religions 36:25 that they are living up to all that like they known. 36:28 And, friends, God recognizes who his sheep really are. 36:32 Can you say amen? 36:33 Because He judges us 36:34 based upon the light and the opportunity 36:36 that have been given to us. 36:37 But as we look at the foundational teachings 36:39 of the actual religious, the actual structures 36:42 we find that it's all founded upon the self-histories of Satan 36:45 in the belief that you shall not surely die, 36:47 but you will be as God. 36:50 Friends, this is a new age movement, 36:51 but the new age is really the old lie 36:55 of the serpent himself, 36:57 deceiving many people to believe 36:59 that they are God or that they can be God 37:03 by their own good works. 37:04 And so we find who the dragon is. 37:06 The dragon we known is Satan, but most specifically, 37:09 the dragon represents paganism and spiritualism. 37:12 What is it represents? 37:14 All pagan religions that believe 37:16 in the doctrines of the dragon 37:18 and spiritualism that believes 37:20 that when you die you do not really die. 37:23 And, friends, we see that all religions, 37:26 almost all religions, are already united 37:29 under the dragon's power in this belief. 37:32 And, friends, the Bible tells us that this dragon 37:34 representing paganism and spiritualism 37:36 is what will give power to the antichrist beast. 37:41 He's going to link up and empower the beast 37:45 to then make war with God's truth and God's people. 37:47 Notice, Revelation 13:2, it says, 37:49 "And the dragon--" Who's the dragon? 37:52 Satan, but more specifically it's paganism and spiritualism. 37:56 It says, "And the dragon gave him, 37:57 talking about the beast, 37:58 his power, seat, and great authority." 38:03 And so it's the dragon that empowers this beast. 38:05 Now who is the beast? 38:07 Who is the antichrist beast? 38:08 Friends, we've studied in this seminar, 38:09 we made it abundantly clear through the Bible and history 38:12 that the beast is none other 38:13 than the Roman Church State System, it's the papacy. 38:17 Not the people, but the system itself. 38:20 And it was the dragon that empowered the papacy 38:24 to reign for 1,260 years. 38:27 You see, friends, the beast 38:30 is really a continuation of the dragon 38:32 because the dragon was the one that empowered the beast. 38:35 In the same way, Papal Rome is in reality 38:39 a continuation of papacy Rome. 38:41 We saw that in history how the pagan Roman Empire, 38:44 the dragon empowered the beast, transferred its authority 38:48 to the Roman Church State System. 38:50 We find that the beast and the dragon 38:54 were united from the very beginning of time. 38:57 You see, paganism is the foundational teaching 39:00 of the papal church, 39:03 not the people, but the church itself. 39:06 You see, friends, the dragon empowered the beast 39:09 and the beast has always remained faithful 39:11 to the dragon's teachings. 39:13 And, friends, let me just prove it to you right now. 39:14 Here's the question, does the papacy believe 39:18 and teach in the doctrines of the dragon? 39:21 Does he teach the dragon's doctrines of spiritualism? 39:25 The answer is absolutely yes. 39:27 I want you to notice, in the praying-- 39:30 In praying to saints, 39:31 they believe that there those who have died 39:34 actually can hear them. 39:35 That's spiritualism, friends. 39:36 The doctrine of purgatory is the dragon's doctrine 39:39 who believes that there's consciousness in death. 39:41 This union has remained strong and these two powers, 39:45 the dragon which paganism and spiritualism 39:47 and the beast which represents the papacy 39:49 will then unites their powers 39:51 with the third part of the trinity 39:53 that kind of trinity which is the false prophet. 39:56 Now who is the false prophet? 39:59 You see, friends, this false prophet 40:00 is only mentioned three times in the Book of Revelation. 40:03 There is very little that is said about the false prophet, 40:06 but what is said about the false prophet is enough 40:09 for us to identify who the false prophet really is. 40:13 And whenever you find 40:14 the false prophet in the Revelation, 40:16 you always find the false prophet mentioned 40:19 in connection with the beast. 40:20 In other words, the false prophet and the beasts 40:22 are really good friends. 40:24 I want you to notice 40:25 the characteristics of the false prophet. 40:26 In Revelation 19:19-20, the Bible says, 40:30 "And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, 40:32 and their armies, gathered together 40:34 to make war against him 40:35 that sat on the horse, and against his army. 40:38 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet." 40:43 Notice what the false prophet does. 40:45 "The false prophet that wrought miracles before him, 40:48 before the beast 40:49 with which he deceived them that had received the, what, 40:52 Mark of the Beast, 40:54 and then that worshipped his image." 40:58 So, friends, I want you to notice, write it down. 40:59 There are three specific characteristics 41:01 of the false prophet in that passage. 41:03 Number one, he works miracles 41:05 or performs miracles before the beast. 41:08 Number two, he deceives people 41:11 to receive the Mark of the Beast. 41:15 And number three, he makes an image to the beast. 41:18 Friends, these are the characteristics 41:20 of the false prophet. 41:21 And, friends, these same characteristics 41:25 we find applied to the second beast of Revelation 13. 41:30 Notice, Revelation 13:11. 41:32 The Bible says, "And I saw another beast 41:34 coming up out of the earth. 41:37 He had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 41:39 And it exercises all the power of the first beast, what? 41:43 Before him and causes the earth 41:46 and then dwell there into worship 41:48 the first beast whose deadly wound was healed. 41:51 And it does great wonder so that he makes fire come down 41:54 from heaven and sat at the earth and does." what? 41:58 Verse 14 "Deceives them that dwell upon the earth 42:01 by the means of those miracles 42:03 which he had power to do in the sight of the beast, 42:06 saying to them that dwell on earth 42:08 that they should make an image to the beast 42:10 which had the wounded by the sword and yet lived." 42:12 Friends, we find that the same three characteristics 42:14 of the false prophet are also applied to the second beast 42:17 of Revelation 13, this earth beast. 42:20 And, friends, do you know who this earth beast is? 42:22 It's none other than the United States of America. 42:25 Now, friends, listen, 42:26 the earth beast or the United States of America 42:29 is not the false prophet 42:31 because the beast, a beast 42:34 is represented as a political power, 42:38 but a false prophet is a religious power. 42:41 They are connected, how? 42:43 Because the false prophet 42:44 is the religious part in the earth beast, 42:49 it's the religious part in the United States of America 42:52 that does not prophecy accurately, 42:55 but is a false prophet. 42:56 And, friends, what is the main religious institution 42:58 in the United States of America? 42:59 It's Protestantism, friends. 43:00 We are a protestant country. 43:02 And so this false prophet which simply represent 43:06 apostate Protestantism or false Protestantism 43:10 here located in the earth beast, the United States of America. 43:16 Protestants who are no longer protesting. 43:19 And, friends, as you considered the characteristics 43:23 and the condition of a protestant America, 43:25 the question we must ask is this, 43:28 is protestant America united with the beast and the dragon? 43:33 Does protestant America 43:35 embrace the teachings of spiritualism, 43:38 the dragon's teachings? 43:39 Do they? Friends, absolutely yes. 43:41 Many Protestants and evangelicals here in America 43:44 are embracing the contemplated prayer movement 43:47 and propagating it to the world, 43:49 calling it the new spirituality. 43:53 The dragon has infiltrated the false prophet, 43:55 Protestantism today. 43:57 And, friends, here's the next question. 43:59 I wish I can give you-- 44:00 I can spend a lot of time on that, 44:02 but we're running out of time this morning. 44:03 Here's the next question. 44:05 Is the beast and the false prophet united? 44:07 We see that the dragon and the beast are surely united, 44:09 united from the very beginning. 44:11 We find that the dragon and the false prophet, 44:13 Protestantism is united already, 44:15 but what about the beast and the false prophet? 44:17 Are they united? 44:18 Is Catholicism and Protestantism coming together today? 44:22 Absolutely yes. 44:23 Let me read you few quotes. 44:25 "The situation of Roman Catholicism 44:27 within American culture has always been 44:29 a puzzling issue to scholars and citizens. 44:31 Many Protestants in early America back in the day 44:35 were sure that Catholicism was what? 44:38 Antithetical both to genuine Christianity and democracy. 44:42 A sentiment manifests that in much of the rhetoric 44:45 inspiring both the American Revolution 44:47 and the Union cause during the Civil War." 44:49 You see, when the country was first founded, 44:51 Protestantism understood the Catholicism 44:54 was not in harmony with the true Christianity. 44:57 That's the founding-- 44:58 The founding fathers of the country. 45:00 They understood that-- 45:01 You see, the reason why the pilgrims left Europe 45:03 is because they were fleeing papal persecution. 45:06 They understood the true nature of the beast, friends. 45:09 And they realize that this was not genuine Christianity. 45:12 Now, friends, there might have been many genuine people 45:14 that were sincere in their hearts, 45:16 but as far as the doctrine, the theology, the system, 45:19 it was not according to God's word. 45:20 And this is how Protestants at first view the beast, 45:24 but nowadays, not at all. 45:25 Notice, "In the 1850s, 45:27 a Republican orator and nativist proclaimed, 45:29 'American civilization in its idea, is historically, 45:32 the political aspect of the what, reformation.' 45:37 After describing that some have looked upon Catholicism 45:40 as being fairly impotent in America, 45:42 the writer argues that quite to the contrary, 45:44 they have been very active 45:46 'exerting significant political and social power.'" 45:50 In other words, the beast is trying 45:52 to make friends with the false prophet. 45:55 They are trying to unite together. 45:56 And, friends, notice what else is taking place. 45:58 Let me give you few more quotes. 45:59 "By 1977, John Stott, 46:01 advisor to the world council of the churches. 46:04 This is the ecumenical movement. 46:07 He said that, 'The visible unity 46:09 of all professing Christians should be our goal 46:12 and evangelicals should join others in the Church of England 46:16 in working toward full communion with the--" 46:20 The beast and the false prophet are coming together. 46:22 And I want you to notice what Rick Warren said. 46:25 The first tweet, he said, 46:26 "Join me today in fasting and praying 46:28 for the 115 cardinals seeking God's will in a new leader." 46:34 Friends, listen, 46:35 there's nothing wrong with fasting and praying. 46:37 Can you say amen? 46:38 But then to make an assertion that it's God's will 46:42 to have a pope is deceptive and dangerous. 46:46 And then when Pope Francis was elected. 46:49 He then tweeted, "Welcome Pope Francis." 46:52 And then he hashtags the expression, "Habemus Papam." 46:57 It's the Latin expression that means, 46:59 "We have a Pope, you have our prayers." 47:03 And so here's an evangelical leader, 47:05 a protestant saying, we have a pope. 47:10 And, friends, this may sound small to some of us but, 47:14 but friends, when you hear this type of language, 47:15 this was unheard of back in the day. 47:17 We find that the beast and the false prophet 47:19 are coming together 47:21 and the Protestants are no longer protesting. 47:23 They are seeking for the unity at the sacrifice of the truth. 47:27 Will you be praying for the Holy Spirit 47:29 to bring us in unity not just in spirit, 47:32 but unity in truth as well? 47:35 And so here is Satan's counterfeit trinity, 47:38 the dragon, the beast and the false prophet. 47:42 What does it represent? 47:43 It's the symbols of spiritualism, Catholicism 47:47 and apostate Protestantism in the world today 47:50 and they are all being unified and they are coming together. 47:53 And what is the real basis of their unity? 47:56 Notice what it says now 47:58 as we read again versus 13-14 of Revelation 16. 48:02 "And I saw three unclean spirits like, what, 48:04 frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, 48:07 and out of the mouth of the beast, 48:08 and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 48:10 For they are the spirits of devils, working, what?" 48:14 So what is the real basis of the unity? 48:17 What do the beast, dragon and false prophet 48:19 all have in common? 48:20 They have the exact same thing coming out of their mouth. 48:24 And, friends, the mouth is an instrument of speech, 48:27 isn't that right? 48:29 It's an instrument of communication. 48:30 In other words, they are saying and teaching 48:32 the exact same things. 48:34 And, friends, when you look upon the symbol of the frog, 48:37 where does this imagery come from? 48:39 The only time the frog is mentioned in the Bible 48:42 is in connection when God brought the plague of frogs 48:45 upon Egypt in Exodus 8. 48:48 In fact, look up every time 48:49 the word frog is mentioned in the Bible, 48:51 it's always in connection with this plague 48:53 that was brought upon Egypt. 48:55 And you remember in response to the plague of the frogs 48:58 the Egyptian magicians also called forth frogs, 49:02 but it was a counterfeit frog. 49:04 In other words, it was a counterfeit miracle 49:06 that they performed that made Pharos rebel against God. 49:12 And, friends, in the same way Satan in these last days 49:15 through this counterfeit trinity will use false miracles 49:20 to cause the world to believe in the false teachings, 49:24 the false tongues of the beast, dragon and the false prophet 49:27 to battle against God and His truth. 49:31 Does that make sense? 49:33 In fact, notice the Apostle Paul told us that 49:35 this is exactly what would take place. 49:37 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 says, 49:40 "Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan 49:42 with all power and lying wonders, 49:46 with all deceivableness of unrighteousness 49:49 in them that perish 49:51 because they received not the love of the truth, 49:53 that they might be saved. 49:54 For this cause, God shall send them, what, 49:57 strong delusion that they should believe a lie. 50:01 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, 50:03 but had pleasure in unrighteousness." 50:06 Here the bible tells us, 50:08 that signs and lying wonders will be perform miracles, 50:11 false miracles that will cause individuals 50:14 to reject the truth of God's word 50:16 and rather to believe a lie, a strong delusions, 50:20 miracles contrary to truth is simply a lying wonder of Satan. 50:25 And, friends, listen, have we seen false miracles 50:28 in the dragon, beast and the false prophet 50:31 that produces strong delusion 50:33 amongst many people in the world today? 50:35 Friends, false miracles are obvious in pagan religious 50:40 but, friends, we also see false miracles being performed 50:43 amongst those who claim Christ as their Lord 50:46 and they're doing it in the name of Jesus. 50:49 And many people are trusting in these false miracles. 50:52 They're looking upon these things, 50:54 they see with their eyes and they feel like it's real, 50:56 they feel like it is the truth. 50:58 But, friends, Satan have the power 51:00 to perform miracles, too. 51:01 And so we can know truth by signs and wonders 51:04 because Satan is full of these exact things. 51:07 And that's the reason why God will say to many 51:09 amongst those who claim him as Lord. 51:12 In Matthew 7:22-23, "Many will say to me in that day 51:15 Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? 51:18 Cast out devils in thy name? 51:19 And done many wonderful works in thy name? 51:22 And God will say, 'I never knew you, 51:24 depart from me, ye who practice, what, lawlessness.'" 51:27 Because you see, friends, they are performing miracles, 51:30 but at the same time breaking God's law. 51:33 It was a false miracle that brought about a strong delusion. 51:37 And, friends, that's the reason why we must sigh and cry 51:40 for the abominations that are taking place 51:41 in the Christian world today. 51:43 And the next question people are asking is, 51:45 well, how will atheist and seculars be convinced 51:48 to join in this final worldwide false religious moment? 51:51 Because atheists don't want any-- 51:53 have anything to do with anything religious. 51:55 How are they going to join? 51:56 Well, friends, what do the atheists say? 51:58 I won't believe until I see, isn't that right? 52:01 And so all the devil has to do is perform some miracles 52:04 and they will not be able to deny the sight of their eyes 52:07 and that's how seculars, humanists and atheists 52:10 would join in this final unholy threefold union. 52:14 What about other religions? 52:16 What about the different religions of the world? 52:18 How will Satan bring them together in unity? 52:20 All the devil has to do 52:21 is appear to them and an angel of light. 52:26 2 Corinthians 11:14 tells us that he will come 52:29 and transform as an angel of light. 52:31 And, friends, did you noticed that every, 52:33 almost every major world religion today 52:35 is waiting for the coming of the next teacher. 52:40 Islam is waiting for the next Mahdi 52:43 that comes from the lineage of Mohammed, a spiritual teacher. 52:46 They're waiting for the coming of another spiritual teacher. 52:49 All Satan has to do is come in that way. 52:52 What about the Buddhist? 52:53 They are waiting for the next Buddha. 52:55 What about Judaism? 52:56 They are waiting for the coming of their Messiah. 52:58 What about Hinduism? 52:59 They are waiting for any other spiritual teacher to come 53:02 and teach them something new. 53:03 And so all Satan has to do 53:05 is perform signs and wonders and miracles 53:08 and he will unite the entire religious world together. 53:11 Lying wonders of Satan, bringing the religious together. 53:14 Notice who they will go to next. 53:15 The Bible tells us that 53:16 they then go to the kings of the earth 53:20 and then they will go to the whole world. 53:23 They will go to the political powers 53:25 in order to force their agenda. 53:28 And as a result what's going to happen? 53:29 Notice, Revelation 17:13, 53:31 it says, "These have one mind, 53:35 and shall give their power and strength to the beast." 53:38 So as the religions of the world 53:40 and secularism and humanism, all come together, 53:42 they are going to be on the same page in their mind. 53:45 They are going to have the same goals, 53:46 the same ideology 53:47 and then they are going to give their power to the beast. 53:49 What would they give it to the beast 53:50 and not the dragon and not the false prophet? 53:52 It's because the papacy 53:54 is the one that has the most dragon power. 53:57 Do you remember? 53:58 It was the dragon that actually founded the papacy, 54:00 founded the beast. 54:02 And the beast has remained faithful to the dragon 54:05 from the very beginning of time. 54:07 So Satan is going to bless this power 54:09 with the most signs and wonders and miracles 54:12 and that's why the whole world is going to look to the papacy 54:14 as the leader in this movement. 54:16 And when they give their power and strength to the beast, 54:19 it's then the beast is going to seek to enforce 54:22 the Mark of its authority. 54:25 And as we've learned in the seminar 54:26 what is the Mark of the beast? 54:28 It's Sunday Worship. 54:31 A national and international Sunday law will be passed 54:35 and then will be fulfilled the words of the Bible 54:37 and the deadly wound was healed 54:39 and all the world wondered after the beast. 54:44 Friends, do we see this happening right now 54:46 before our very eyes, yes or no? 54:48 Is prophesying being fulfilled right now, yes or no? 54:51 And do we need to be afraid, yes or no? 54:54 Absolutely not, friends, 54:55 because God is going to take care of His own. 54:58 Can you say amen? 54:59 And so there you have it, friends, 55:01 the Battle of Armageddon. 55:03 Satan is going to gather all the world, 55:05 all false, pagan religions. 55:07 Counterfeit Christian religions 55:09 and the political powers of the world, 55:12 secularist, atheist and humanists 55:14 all are going to unite to fight against the truth of God. 55:18 This is the battle, brother and sisters. 55:20 They are going to seek to attack the people of God, 55:22 but don't be afraid, friends. 55:23 The Bible gives the promise. 55:24 In Isaiah 54:17, "No weapon that is formed 55:28 against thee shall prosper, 55:30 and every tongue that shall rise against thee 55:32 in judgment thou shalt condemn. 55:35 This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, 55:37 and their righteousness is of me, says the Lord." 55:41 Can you say amen? 55:42 No weapon formed against God's peoples going to prosper, 55:44 God is going to take care of his own. 55:46 And thus the Battle of Armageddon, 55:49 Jesus is going to foil, 55:51 Satan's plan with the seven last plagues, 55:53 He's going to say, it is done. 55:54 Jesus will come to take His people 55:56 to the heavenly Jerusalem, 55:57 the battle is finished for a time 56:00 as now the saints are in heaven 56:01 for 1,000 years because listen, 56:03 before Jesus puts an end to the battle, 56:06 He wants every question to be answered 56:09 in the minds of His saints. 56:10 Therefore, they are going to judge for 1,000 years, 56:12 we studied that before. 56:13 And during this time, God is giving Satan 56:16 an opportunity to stop, think and reflect 56:20 on the battle that he has begun in the universe. 56:23 And then after having 1,000 years 56:25 to think about his crimes 56:27 and after every question is answered 56:29 in the minds of the saints, 56:31 Bible tells us that the holy city, New Jerusalem 56:33 descends back down from God in heaven. 56:36 Now the Lord comes to finish the Battle of Armageddon. 56:39 His character has been vindicating 56:41 before the whole universe, 56:42 it's time to settle the controversy for eternity 56:45 and now we find the climax of the battle. 56:47 In the second resurrection, Satan deceives the nations 56:51 and he points to the city of God 56:52 and he gathers them to the final battle. 56:55 Notice, Revelation 20:7-9, 56:57 "When the thousand years are expired, 56:59 Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 57:02 and shall go out to deceive the nations 57:03 which are in the four quarters of the earth, 57:05 Gog, and Magog, to gather them together to battle, 57:08 the number of whom is as the sand of the sea." 57:13 This is the final showdown, friends. 57:14 "And they went up on the breadth of the earth, 57:16 and surrounded the camp of the saints 57:19 and the beloved city." 57:20 Here we find war is breaking loose. 57:22 Satan and the world is going to try to dethrone God. 57:27 It's his last attempt 57:28 to sit upon the Mount of the Congregation, 57:31 to ascend above the heights of the clouds. 57:33 It's the climax of the battle 57:34 that began in the heart of Lucifer 57:36 where the Bible tells us 57:37 that even though they are going to make war with the lamb, 57:40 it says that the lamb shall overcome them. 57:42 Can you say amen? 57:43 He's going to win the victory in this war 57:46 and then the Bible tells us in Revelation 20:9-10, 57:51 "And fire came down from God 57:53 out of heaven and devoured them. 57:54 And the devil that deceived them 57:55 was cast into the lake of fire burning and brimstone, 57:57 where the beast and the false prophet are." 58:01 That counterfeit trinity is going to be destroyed 58:03 and God's people are going to be saved. 58:06 God is going to put an end to the battle 58:08 and then notice what happens to Satan himself. 58:10 Ezekiel 28:18-19, it says, 58:13 "I will bring forth a fire from," where? 58:16 "From the midst of thee. 58:17 I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth 58:19 in the sight of all them that behold thee 58:22 and never shalt thou be any more." 58:24 Friends, from the very heart of Satan, 58:27 he's going to be destroyed. Why? 58:28 Because that's where the battle first began 58:31 when Satan said in his heart, I will be God. 58:36 So God is going to put an end to it. 58:38 It's going to finish, friends. 58:40 And out of the ashes of the old world, 58:43 God is going to create a new heavens and a new earth. 58:46 It is done, the battle is finish 58:50 and the Christ remains victorious. 58:53 I want to be on His side, how about you? |
Revised 2014-12-17