I'd like to invite you to
take your study guide out,
00:00:15.16\00:00:19.40
I want to begin with a
little bit of review. Last night
00:00:19.44\00:00:23.88
we looked at this metal man,
let's read our first paragraph
00:00:23.91\00:00:27.90
on your study guide, it says:
Here at the Discovery Prophecy
00:00:27.94\00:00:31.90
seminar we believe that
Jesus is coming soon, is there
00:00:31.93\00:00:34.98
anyone else out there
that shares that conviction
00:00:35.01\00:00:36.92
that Jesus is coming soon.
I'm going to give you reason
00:00:36.96\00:00:39.74
tonight why we believe
that. We ask the question:
00:00:39.77\00:00:41.76
how do we know that this
is true, and how soon is soon?
00:00:41.80\00:00:44.89
People have been saying
for centuries, people have been
00:00:44.92\00:00:47.81
saying for decades that He's
coming soon, and that raises
00:00:47.85\00:00:50.71
the question, how soon
is soon? How can we be sure
00:00:50.74\00:00:54.93
that the second
coming really is imminent?
00:00:54.96\00:00:57.18
Fortunately, the Bible
powerfully, compellingly,
00:00:57.22\00:00:59.60
and clearly answers
these very questions.
00:00:59.63\00:01:01.80
Let's turn our attention to
the Bible and see what it has
00:01:01.84\00:01:03.63
to say about
this important topic.
00:01:03.66\00:01:05.18
Let's do a little bit of review.
Just there, a quick review
00:01:05.22\00:01:08.17
of Daniel 2.
00:01:08.20\00:01:10.34
A great metal man of Daniel 2
tells the story of the history
00:01:10.38\00:01:16.71
of this planet. The 5
elements of that image:
00:01:16.74\00:01:20.01
gold, silver, brass,
iron and clay represent
00:01:20.04\00:01:24.39
the 5 major kingdoms
from the time of Daniel
00:01:24.42\00:01:28.70
to the setting up of
God's kingdom. [text on screen]
00:01:28.74\00:01:31.45
Daniel, in about 150
words accurately foretells
00:01:43.60\00:01:47.71
2500 years of earth's
history beginning in the time
00:01:47.75\00:01:51.15
in which he lived, Babylon,
moving through the whole
00:01:51.19\00:01:54.56
sweep of history,
down to divided Rome;
00:01:54.59\00:01:57.18
today what we'd
called modern Europe.
00:01:57.22\00:01:59.74
Today we live in
those feet of iron and clay,
00:01:59.78\00:02:03.61
partly strong and partly
weak, and the very next thing
00:02:03.65\00:02:08.67
that happened is that God
would set up His own kingdom,
00:02:08.71\00:02:13.70
and it was
represented by a stone,
00:02:13.73\00:02:17.53
and where did it hit the image?
00:02:17.56\00:02:21.29
It hit the image in the
feet and it smashed the gold,
00:02:21.33\00:02:24.00
the silver, the
bronze, and the iron to bits.
00:02:24.03\00:02:27.61
Then it says that that
stone that struck the image
00:02:27.65\00:02:29.66
grew and became
a great mountain.
00:02:29.69\00:02:33.53
Look at the last part of
that paragraph, the second
00:02:33.57\00:02:38.27
to the last sentence
says: The dream applied to
00:02:38.30\00:02:42.70
the latter days. The
kingdom of God is at hand.
00:02:42.73\00:02:47.10
As you take a look at
that image, that great timeline
00:02:47.20\00:02:49.86
that moves us
through the sweep of history
00:02:49.89\00:02:51.86
from 600 years before
the time of Jesus until now,
00:02:51.90\00:02:54.92
I want you to notice that there
is nothing bellow the feet,
00:02:54.96\00:02:58.26
that's it. As
we said last night,
00:02:58.29\00:03:00.72
God said there would be Babylon,
and there was Babylon, number 1.
00:03:00.76\00:03:03.52
God said that there would
be Medo-Persia and there was
00:03:03.55\00:03:05.47
Medo-Persia, number 2.
God said that there would be
00:03:05.51\00:03:07.40
Greece and there
was Greece, number 3.
00:03:07.43\00:03:09.82
God said that there would
be Rome, and there was Rome,
00:03:09.85\00:03:10.83
number 4. God said
that Rome would be divided
00:03:10.87\00:03:12.55
and it was divided, number 5.
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And God said that Rome
would remain divided, and it has
00:03:13.73\00:03:16.36
remained divided despite
the overtures of some of the
00:03:16.40\00:03:18.92
so called great men of
history, and it has remained
00:03:18.96\00:03:21.66
divided to this day. The
very next thing to happen
00:03:21.70\00:03:24.33
is that God will set up His own
kingdom, that's the next thing.
00:03:24.37\00:03:28.64
So someone might ask,
legitimately and rightfully:
00:03:28.68\00:03:31.97
when will that happen? And
that is our message tonight.
00:03:32.01\00:03:35.79
We asked the question last
night: what would you wager
00:03:35.83\00:03:39.58
if you were a gambling
person, what would you wager?
00:03:39.61\00:03:42.58
Just think it through, you don't
have to be a religious person,
00:03:42.62\00:03:45.34
you don't have to be a
theologian, you don't have
00:03:45.37\00:03:47.57
to be a super spiritual
person, just to think about
00:03:47.61\00:03:49.78
this logically.
We discussed already
00:03:49.81\00:03:52.44
that historians tell us about
the past, and news anchor people
00:03:52.48\00:03:56.15
tell us about the present,
but God alone can tell us
00:03:56.18\00:04:00.10
about the future. And
God is sending us a signal
00:04:00.13\00:04:03.43
in the apocalyptic books
of Daniel and Revelation.
00:04:03.46\00:04:06.32
He's saying that it's
getting nearer and nearer,
00:04:06.36\00:04:09.19
now you're going to
ask: how much more time
00:04:09.22\00:04:11.67
do we have? The
answer is: I don't know,
00:04:11.71\00:04:14.09
but I'll show you
tonight, I don't think we have
00:04:14.13\00:04:16.67
much time left.
00:04:16.70\00:04:18.85
The stone that struck the
image became a great mountain
00:04:18.89\00:04:21.69
and filled the whole
earth. The end of all things,
00:04:21.72\00:04:25.74
is it here, is it
near, or is it mere fear?
00:04:25.77\00:04:30.97
This is not just something that
theologians and Bible scholars
00:04:31.01\00:04:35.17
are dealing with, not at all,
even popular media magazines
00:04:35.20\00:04:39.33
like Newsweek and Time:
"Prophecy, what the Bible"
00:04:39.36\00:04:43.34
"says about the
end of the world."
00:04:43.37\00:04:44.61
If you can see the writing
here: "The end of the world?!"
00:04:44.65\00:04:47.27
"Apocalypse Now",
"Will Computers Melt Down?"
00:04:47.30\00:04:50.45
"Will Society a Guide
to Millennium Madness?"
00:04:50.48\00:04:53.56
It's not just popular
culture that has an interest
00:04:53.60\00:04:57.02
in the end of all things, what's
called apocalyptic studies.
00:04:57.06\00:05:00.60
Notice this remarkable
quotation from a man by the name
00:05:00.63\00:05:02.67
of Bernard McGinn from
the University of Chicago
00:05:02.70\00:05:05.29
Divinity School, he
says: [text on screen]
00:05:05.32\00:05:08.16
In other words, from an academic
point of view, from a scholastic
00:05:16.18\00:05:19.70
point of view, there is
more research, more study,
00:05:19.73\00:05:22.77
in the last day events
in the last 30 years than in
00:05:22.81\00:05:25.82
the foregoing, in
the previous 300 years.
00:05:25.85\00:05:28.35
Not only is there an
increase in the common media,
00:05:28.39\00:05:31.20
in the mass media, even scholars
00:05:31.23\00:05:33.55
are interested in what is going
on, it's almost like there is
00:05:33.59\00:05:37.76
something tangible,
something palpable in the air,
00:05:37.79\00:05:41.74
people have a sense that
something is about to happen,
00:05:41.78\00:05:45.63
and I would say that has
increased 10 fold since 9/11.
00:05:45.66\00:05:49.48
The post 9/11 world
is a very different world
00:05:49.51\00:05:52.37
than the pre 9/11 world,
and everything is in flux,
00:05:52.41\00:05:55.99
people are
wondering: what is going on?
00:05:56.02\00:06:00.20
I want to tell you tonight,
and I believe this with all
00:06:00.24\00:06:02.09
of my heart, with all
of my soul, with every bit
00:06:02.12\00:06:06.26
of my being, that the
Bible alone can give us real,
00:06:06.29\00:06:10.15
compelling and true
answers about what is going on
00:06:10.19\00:06:14.02
in the world today.
The politicians do not
00:06:14.05\00:06:17.10
have the answer.
They might have some
00:06:17.13\00:06:19.83
of the answers, and they'll
do their best, and hey listen,
00:06:19.87\00:06:23.14
fine fine fine, but they
don't have the ultimate answers.
00:06:23.18\00:06:26.42
The world religious
leaders, many of them do not
00:06:26.45\00:06:29.37
have the answers, God
alone has the answers as to
00:06:29.41\00:06:32.10
what's happening, he's
given them to us in His Word,
00:06:32.13\00:06:35.92
and we can know them if
we'll study and look at them.
00:06:35.95\00:06:38.89
The end of the world, is
it here, near, or mere fear?
00:06:38.92\00:06:42.63
You might be saying: "Well
that's religious talk David".
00:06:42.66\00:06:46.34
Look at your study
guide, the subheading says:
00:06:46.37\00:06:48.18
What do the experts say?
00:06:48.21\00:06:52.43
It is not only the Bible
and Bible believers that insist
00:06:52.47\00:06:56.16
we are living in
strange and unusual time,
00:06:56.19\00:06:58.38
you say, "Awe, that's
religious talk; you wild eyed"
00:06:58.42\00:07:01.52
"religious fanatics have been
saying these kinds of things"
00:07:01.56\00:07:04.00
"a long time. Oh
sure, Jesus is coming,"
00:07:04.03\00:07:06.85
"oh sure, the end of the
world is coming, we've heard it"
00:07:06.89\00:07:09.24
"all before." Let
me tell you something,
00:07:09.27\00:07:12.07
I was not a Bible believer,
I had no interest in things
00:07:12.11\00:07:15.33
religious, I had no
interest in things Christians,
00:07:15.36\00:07:18.63
23 years old, I had no
interest in these things
00:07:18.67\00:07:21.85
and God got my
attention and I think I can say
00:07:21.88\00:07:24.75
with a degree of
objectivity that we are living
00:07:24.78\00:07:27.58
in strange and unusual
times. The world appears to be
00:07:27.62\00:07:30.19
coming apart at the seams,
do you tend to agree with that
00:07:30.22\00:07:32.76
or disagree with that?
[Audience replies] Agree.
00:07:32.79\00:07:35.99
I want to show you tonight
that it is not just so called
00:07:36.03\00:07:38.77
religious people that
believe we are living in strange
00:07:38.81\00:07:41.52
and unusual times. In
fact, you'll notice that
00:07:41.55\00:07:44.24
in your study guide.
Many recognized experts
00:07:44.28\00:07:46.90
and authorities in various
fields suggest that we are
00:07:46.94\00:07:50.25
living in an extraordinary and
unique period of earth's history
00:07:50.29\00:07:54.76
Many of these individuals
are not writing from a Biblical,
00:07:54.79\00:07:58.24
or a so called
theological perspective.
00:07:58.27\00:08:01.07
They're simply writing from an
observational and an evidentiary
00:08:01.11\00:08:04.60
perspective, they see that
the evidence points in a fearful
00:08:04.63\00:08:08.09
and unusual direction.
00:08:08.12\00:08:12.41
I cite for you this
evening as case in point Nr.1
00:08:15.65\00:08:19.08
a man by the name of Eugene
Linden. Eugene Linden is an
00:08:19.12\00:08:22.51
award winning
journalist and several years ago
00:08:22.54\00:08:25.60
he wrote a book entitled
"The Future in Plain Sight",
00:08:25.64\00:08:29.13
the subtitle of the book was: 9
Clues to the Coming Instability.
00:08:29.17\00:08:34.25
When Mr. Linden says "the coming
instability", again, he's not
00:08:34.29\00:08:39.34
writing from a religious
perspective, he's not writing
00:08:39.37\00:08:41.72
from a Biblical
perspective, not at all.
00:08:41.75\00:08:43.73
When he uses that language,
"the coming instability",
00:08:43.77\00:08:46.77
sometimes he calls it
"massive global instability",
00:08:46.80\00:08:49.73
that secular code speak for
"the end of the world as we"
00:08:49.77\00:08:54.27
"know it", "9 Clues to
the Coming Instability".
00:08:54.30\00:08:57.95
Let me share with you
very quickly Eugene Linden's
00:08:57.99\00:09:01.61
concerns, notice,
none of them are Biblical,
00:09:01.64\00:09:04.52
none of them are so
called religious reasons.
00:09:04.55\00:09:07.36
This is what he says,
we're not going to spend time
00:09:07.40\00:09:09.58
going into them, but let's
just look at a few of them.
00:09:09.62\00:09:11.77
He says: [text on screen]
00:09:11.80\00:09:14.16
[In regard to Nr.5] The rich get
richer, and the poor get poorer.
00:09:26.94\00:09:30.57
He says it's reaching epidemic
proportions, he goes on:
00:09:30.60\00:09:33.90
[text on screen]
00:09:33.93\00:09:36.04
[In regard to Nr.8] - He
cites both a resurgence of old
00:09:40.12\00:09:42.15
diseases and a
resilience of modern diseases,
00:09:42.18\00:09:44.87
he says that the diseases
are getting smarter and more
00:09:44.91\00:09:47.44
resilient to antibiotics,
etc. [text on screen]
00:09:47.47\00:09:50.60
Notice again, Dr. Linden
is not writing from a Biblical
00:09:52.60\00:09:56.70
perspective, and he says we
are living in strange, unusual,
00:09:56.73\00:10:00.80
and extraordinary times.
00:10:00.83\00:10:03.54
I cite for you now a man
that is considered by many
00:10:03.58\00:10:06.21
to be the single greatest
scientific mind on the planet.
00:10:06.25\00:10:09.19
With a raising of hands,
how many of you are familiar
00:10:09.22\00:10:12.13
with who this man
is: Dr. Stephen Hawking,
00:10:12.16\00:10:14.48
many of you would be.
He's authored the best selling
00:10:14.52\00:10:18.11
science book of all
time. It's a book entitled
00:10:18.14\00:10:20.96
"A brief history of
time", again, he's considered
00:10:20.99\00:10:23.74
by many to be the greatest
scientific mind on the planet,
00:10:23.78\00:10:26.05
he's hailed as
Einstein's successor.
00:10:26.08\00:10:28.18
You're looking at his picture
and you're thinking he doesn't
00:10:28.22\00:10:30.87
look like he's very
fit, like he's very well,
00:10:30.90\00:10:33.45
and that's exactly right,
he has a terrible disease,
00:10:33.49\00:10:36.36
Lou Gehrig's Disease,
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis,
00:10:36.39\00:10:39.13
he can't even speak as a
matter of fact, all he has
00:10:39.16\00:10:41.87
is just a very small
amount of movement in one
00:10:41.90\00:10:44.38
of his fingers, which he is able
to use on a very sophisticated
00:10:44.42\00:10:47.71
computer and craft
sentence, he does presentations.
00:10:47.74\00:10:52.25
He spoke recently at a group,
convention of academic leaders
00:10:52.29\00:10:59.10
and others, and this is how
Dr. Stephen Hawking concluded
00:10:59.14\00:11:05.88
his lecture that was entitled:
"Is mankind determined or free?"
00:11:05.92\00:11:10.20
I want you to notice this,
the language is a little obtuse,
00:11:10.23\00:11:13.55
and I apologize for that,
but you'll get the thrust of it
00:11:13.59\00:11:16.88
right away. Dr.
Stephen Hawking said this:
00:11:16.91\00:11:20.48
[text on screen]
00:11:20.51\00:11:22.69
He believes in the process
of evolution, we'll talk more
00:11:24.39\00:11:26.60
about that maybe in our
seminar. [text on screen]
00:11:26.63\00:11:29.63
You see what he's saying
is: "I'm very concerned."
00:11:45.58\00:11:49.68
The man holds the Sir Isaac
Newton Chair of Mathematics
00:11:49.72\00:11:52.15
at Cambridge University,
he says "I'm concerned."
00:11:52.18\00:11:56.51
Notice what he says next, here's
his solution: [text on screen]
00:11:56.55\00:12:00.50
He said this 6 years
ago, [continues to read]
00:12:06.42\00:12:09.00
You see what he's saying
"We're living in strange times,"
00:12:21.23\00:12:23.60
"we're living in unusual
times", he says "I'm concerned"
00:12:23.63\00:12:26.05
"for the long-term survival
of our species, however,"
00:12:26.08\00:12:28.16
"if we can just keep
from destroying one another"
00:12:28.19\00:12:30.48
"for 100 years, technology
will have been developed"
00:12:30.52\00:12:32.95
"and you man might go to
Mars, and you man might go"
00:12:32.98\00:12:35.34
"to another planet, we can go
to different planets and then"
00:12:35.38\00:12:37.86
"no one tragedy or
atrocity will eradicate us all"
00:12:37.89\00:12:40.45
"at the same time."
Am I the only person here
00:12:40.48\00:12:43.52
that thinks that that
sounds just a little crazy?
00:12:43.55\00:12:46.56
[Audience laughs]
00:12:46.59\00:12:47.67
Now that is not out of
disrespect to Dr. Hawking,
00:12:47.71\00:12:49.82
he's a brilliant man, he's
a wonderful man, I hope that
00:12:49.86\00:12:52.76
the man is converted and accepts
the Lord Jesus as his personal
00:12:52.80\00:12:55.55
Saviour, the point is
that that is a little strange.
00:12:55.58\00:12:58.79
I found this cover here
from Time Magazine, I thought
00:12:58.82\00:13:01.96
it was kind of cute, they show
a sort of astronaut looking man
00:13:02.00\00:13:04.54
walking his robodog, and it
says "In the future will we?"
00:13:04.57\00:13:08.79
That's exactly what Dr.
Stephen Hawking is advocating,
00:13:08.83\00:13:12.98
he says: "Hey look, this planet
is waxing old like a garment,"
00:13:13.02\00:13:16.33
"this planet is groaning under
the weight of all of these"
00:13:16.36\00:13:20.14
"different things", this worries
him, not from a religious
00:13:20.18\00:13:23.93
perspective, not from
a Biblical perspective,
00:13:23.96\00:13:26.53
not from a theological
perspective, simply from
00:13:26.56\00:13:29.10
a scientific or
observational perspective.
00:13:29.13\00:13:31.90
Let's turn our
attention to the Bible.
00:13:31.93\00:13:34.63
I cite these instances for
you, and we'll give a few more
00:13:34.67\00:13:37.23
momentarily to show that
this is not just wild eyed,
00:13:37.26\00:13:39.64
so called "religious fanatics"
that believe we're living
00:13:39.68\00:13:42.03
in strange and unusual
times. In fact, I would say
00:13:42.06\00:13:45.03
if you don't think we're living
in strange and unusual times,
00:13:45.07\00:13:47.69
you're not paying attention.
I saw a bumper sticker
00:13:47.72\00:13:50.89
the other day that said
"If you're not outraged,"
00:13:50.93\00:13:54.28
"you're not paying
attention." [Audience laughs]
00:13:54.32\00:13:57.64
[text on screen]
00:13:57.67\00:13:59.67
1 out of ever 25 verse,
it is the preeminent theme,
00:14:04.82\00:14:08.87
one of them, of
the New Testament.
00:14:08.90\00:14:10.45
Let me give you 5 verse
from the book of Revelation,
00:14:10.49\00:14:12.87
they're all right
there in your study guide,
00:14:12.90\00:14:15.05
and what I want you to
notice is that all of these
00:14:15.09\00:14:17.00
verse have something in common,
see if you can pick it out.
00:14:17.04\00:14:20.71
Revelation 1:7, John
says: [text on screen]
00:14:20.74\00:14:24.03
The Bible has promised
those that put their faith
00:14:49.86\00:14:51.93
in Jesus a crown of
righteousness, He says:
00:14:51.96\00:14:53.73
"I'm coming quickly,
hold on so that no one else"
00:14:53.77\00:14:56.26
"gets the crown that
belongs rightfully to you."
00:14:56.30\00:14:58.76
Revelation
22:7: [text on screen]
00:14:58.79\00:15:01.44
"That book" being the book of
Revelation, [continues to read]
00:15:06.38\00:15:09.63
5 times "I'm coming
quickly", what do these verse
00:15:26.23\00:15:30.65
have in common? There's
a sense of urgency here.
00:15:30.69\00:15:34.03
God is saying it's not
time to be lackadaisical,
00:15:34.06\00:15:37.37
it's not time
to be lazy anymore.
00:15:37.40\00:15:39.23
You say "wait a minute, the
book of Revelation was written"
00:15:39.27\00:15:42.17
"2000 years ago", you're right,
but in the book of Revelation
00:15:42.21\00:15:45.08
there is a key that
lets us know when quickly
00:15:45.11\00:15:48.34
is really quickly.
And notice that in your
00:15:48.37\00:15:51.53
study guide: what do
these verse have in common?
00:15:51.57\00:15:53.87
There's a sense of
urgency in every one of them.
00:15:53.91\00:15:56.26
Clearly the second
coming is a prominent component
00:15:56.30\00:15:59.24
of Revelation, it is
the capstone of the book,
00:15:59.28\00:16:02.16
the whole Bible and of
God's plan of salvation.
00:16:02.20\00:16:06.12
But notice the next
subheading: how quick is quick?
00:16:06.15\00:16:10.04
How soon is soon?
And how close is close?
00:16:10.07\00:16:14.11
These are excellent questions,
these are the very kinds
00:16:14.15\00:16:17.00
of questions that people
ask today, they might say
00:16:17.03\00:16:19.15
something like this: "People
have been saying for years"
00:16:19.19\00:16:22.29
"that Jesus would
return, how do you know that"
00:16:22.32\00:16:24.63
"He actually will?"
Is there anyone in here
00:16:24.67\00:16:26.91
today that has heard something
like that, a variation of that,
00:16:26.95\00:16:29.50
you tried to share with a
family member, tried to share
00:16:29.53\00:16:31.27
with a friend and he said:
"Come on, people have been"
00:16:31.31\00:16:33.02
"saying that forever,
how do you really know?"
00:16:33.05\00:16:34.91
Raise your hands if
you've heard that before.
00:16:34.94\00:16:36.73
Sure, many of us have heard
it before, and it's sometimes
00:16:36.77\00:16:38.81
said with kind of a
snicker, a snide sense of
00:16:38.84\00:16:41.60
"come on, get
over it." Notice this,
00:16:41.63\00:16:44.45
the key is in our next verse
which is also in Revelation,
00:16:44.49\00:16:47.23
Revelation
16:15: [text on screen]
00:16:47.26\00:16:52.06
Now this is not speaking
about literal nakedness,
00:17:04.05\00:17:05.98
it's speaking about spiritual
nakedness, which is what happens
00:17:06.02\00:17:08.21
when you've not put your
faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ.
00:17:08.24\00:17:11.06
That's not the main thing
we want to look at right now
00:17:11.10\00:17:14.01
though, what I want you to
see is that the operative word
00:17:14.05\00:17:16.93
in this passage is that
word right there that begins
00:17:16.96\00:17:20.03
with a "w": "watches".
00:17:20.06\00:17:23.59
In fact, you'd write
that in right there, it says:
00:17:23.63\00:17:26.25
What is the
operative word in this passage?
00:17:26.28\00:17:28.83
And the word is
"watch". The word "watch" means
00:17:28.87\00:17:32.53
"to look", "to see". If
you remember those verses
00:17:32.57\00:17:36.20
that we were just
quoting from Revelation,
00:17:36.23\00:17:38.21
all the ones that are
listed, many of them began
00:17:38.25\00:17:40.34
with the word "behold"; what
does the word "behold" mean?
00:17:40.38\00:17:46.55
What does that mean?
"Beauty is in the eye"
00:17:46.58\00:17:49.14
"of the beholder",
what does it mean to behold?
00:17:49.18\00:17:52.42
It means to look. So
you have this reverberating
00:17:52.45\00:17:55.66
bottom line,
they're saying "Look! Look!"
00:17:55.69\00:18:00.17
And then here he says:
"blessed is he who looks."
00:18:00.21\00:18:04.88
Very interesting, let me
show you several other verses,
00:18:04.92\00:18:06.64
in fact, I think
I've got them all for you:
00:18:06.67\00:18:08.38
Matthew 24:42 right there,
take this home and study it
00:18:08.42\00:18:11.55
yourself, Jesus speaking,
He says: [text on screen]
00:18:11.58\00:18:14.68
Notice Jesus says
"watch". 1 Thessalonians 5:4,6,
00:18:19.59\00:18:26.56
the apostle Paul, notice
what he says: [text on screen]
00:18:26.60\00:18:29.38
There's that language
again, many people have heard
00:18:36.16\00:18:38.39
that language "He comes
as a thief", many people
00:18:38.43\00:18:40.86
don't know what that
means, we'll talk about that
00:18:40.90\00:18:43.26
in another presentation,
"that Day" is the second coming,
00:18:43.30\00:18:46.77
notice verse 6: [text on screen]
00:18:46.80\00:18:49.27
Paul knew that there would
be people that would be asleep,
00:18:53.73\00:18:55.95
Paul knew that there
would be people that would say
00:18:55.98\00:18:58.15
"[Yawns] Oh yeah,
we've heard that all before."
00:18:58.18\00:19:00.28
"No! Let us not therefore sleep
as others do, but let us watch"
00:19:00.32\00:19:05.37
"and be sober" - that
means be serious minded.
00:19:05.40\00:19:09.76
It doesn't mean you can't have
a little fun, nobody in this
00:19:09.80\00:19:11.88
room likes to have fun
more than David Asscherick,
00:19:11.91\00:19:13.76
I guarantee you that, you
ask my wife, she'll tell you
00:19:13.80\00:19:15.62
that's the truth, but
we should be sober minded
00:19:15.65\00:19:18.37
about the times in
which we're living.
00:19:18.40\00:19:22.35
He says "watch", John
in Revelation says "watch",
00:19:22.74\00:19:28.41
Jesus in the gospel
of Matthew says "watch".
00:19:28.44\00:19:32.21
Here Paul is saying
"watch", and Peter actually says
00:19:32.25\00:19:34.90
the same thing in 1
Peter 4:7: [text on screen]
00:19:34.93\00:19:37.81
John says "watch", Paul says
"watch", " Peter says "watch",
00:19:47.82\00:19:50.68
Jesus says "watch", is
there any question in anybody's
00:19:50.71\00:19:53.52
mind tonight that the
Bible is telling us to watch
00:19:53.56\00:19:56.34
for something?
00:19:56.37\00:19:59.20
The question is: for what?
00:19:59.24\00:20:02.92
Does that sound good? It
says: "keep your eye out,"
00:20:02.96\00:20:05.89
"I'll tell you,
keep your eye out,"
00:20:05.92\00:20:08.44
but you're going to say
"David, what am I keeping"
00:20:08.48\00:20:11.10
"my eye out for?"
00:20:11.13\00:20:13.91
Notice your study guide,
what do all of these verses
00:20:13.95\00:20:18.50
have in common? They
all deal with the end
00:20:18.53\00:20:20.28
of time. Each of those verses
00:20:20.31\00:20:22.68
we just looked up
deal with the end of time.
00:20:22.72\00:20:25.12
All of these verses tell us
to watch, but the question is:
00:20:25.16\00:20:31.18
for what? The
disciples questioned Jesus
00:20:31.21\00:20:35.15
on one occasion
about the end of the world.
00:20:35.19\00:20:40.71
Open your Bibles
with me to Matthew 24,
00:20:40.74\00:20:46.19
first book of the New
Testament, you can find that.
00:20:46.23\00:20:48.56
If you're sitting next to
someone who has difficulty
00:20:48.59\00:20:50.89
finding it, just help
them out, first book of
00:20:50.92\00:20:52.89
the New Testament, right
between Malachi and Mark.
00:20:52.93\00:20:56.05
Matthew 24.
00:20:56.08\00:21:01.33
We're being told to watch
and the question is for what?
00:21:03.05\00:21:09.02
And here's the
answer, Matthew 24:1:
00:21:09.05\00:21:13.02
"Then Jesus went out and
departed from the temple",
00:21:13.06\00:21:18.16
Jesus left the
temple, "and His disciples"
00:21:18.19\00:21:21.22
"came to show Him the
buildings of the temple,"
00:21:21.26\00:21:23.20
they were trying to
cheer Him up, the reason
00:21:23.24\00:21:25.11
they were trying to cheer
Him up if you read in the last
00:21:25.15\00:21:28.20
3 verse of the chapter before
it, Jesus has left the temple
00:21:28.23\00:21:31.25
for the last time, in
fact, He says in verse 37
00:21:31.28\00:21:34.58
of the previous chapter:
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,"
00:21:34.62\00:21:37.26
"the one who kills the
prophets and stones those"
00:21:37.30\00:21:39.80
"who were sent to her,
how often I wanted to gather"
00:21:39.83\00:21:42.17
"your children together
as a hen gathers her chicks"
00:21:42.21\00:21:44.52
"under her wings, but
you were not willing."
00:21:44.55\00:21:47.14
Never forget that, God
is a gentlemen, He will not
00:21:47.18\00:21:50.98
force His way into your
life, He begs and He hopes,
00:21:51.02\00:21:55.53
and He calls, and He
pleads, but God will not force.
00:21:55.57\00:21:59.16
Jesus says "I wanted to
bring you under my wings"
00:21:59.20\00:22:02.72
"as a hen gathers her chicks,
but you were not willing."
00:22:02.76\00:22:04.87
Verse 38: "Your house
is left to you desolate."
00:22:04.90\00:22:10.70
"For I say to you, you will
see Me no more until you say,"
00:22:10.74\00:22:13.14
"Blessed is He who comes
in the name of the Lord",
00:22:13.17\00:22:15.63
and He walked out of the
temple, that was the last time
00:22:15.67\00:22:18.47
that Jesus, the
Messiah, the very one to whom
00:22:18.50\00:22:21.12
the temple pointed, would ever
set foot in those precincts.
00:22:21.16\00:22:24.03
He walks out, His
heart was burdened, His heart
00:22:24.06\00:22:26.60
was sad, He went up
on a mountain called
00:22:26.63\00:22:29.09
the Mount of Olives,
and the disciples could tell
00:22:29.13\00:22:31.37
there was something wrong.
Jesus had begun His public
00:22:31.41\00:22:33.62
ministry, you
might remember the story.
00:22:33.65\00:22:36.01
He went in and He threw
all the money changers out,
00:22:36.05\00:22:38.71
remember that story? And
He said: "take these things"
00:22:38.74\00:22:41.33
"out of here, you have made My
Father's house a den of thieves"
00:22:41.37\00:22:43.97
So at the beginning of
Jesus' ministry He said
00:22:44.00\00:22:46.49
"My Father's house",
but here at the end He says
00:22:46.53\00:22:48.99
"Your house is
left to you desolate."
00:22:49.02\00:22:51.08
3 and a half years earlier
it was "My Father's house",
00:22:51.12\00:22:54.23
at the end of His
ministry it's "your house", why?
00:22:54.27\00:22:57.00
Because the Jewish
nation had consistently rejected
00:22:57.03\00:22:59.73
the evidences of
Jesus' Messiahship, He says:
00:22:59.76\00:23:02.01
"hey, listen, what more can
I do, you won't see Me again"
00:23:02.05\00:23:04.98
"until you say, Blessed
is He who comes in the name"
00:23:05.01\00:23:06.64
"of the Lord." He goes up,
00:23:06.67\00:23:08.60
He sits on the Mount of Olives,
the disciples come in verse 1,
00:23:08.64\00:23:10.94
we've already read it,
to try and cheer Him up:
00:23:10.97\00:23:13.24
"Oh Jesus, look at how
beautiful the temple is,"
00:23:13.27\00:23:15.38
"Oh Jesus, look at how
the sun glistens off of its"
00:23:15.42\00:23:17.46
"glorious marble walls", but
Jesus would not be comforted.
00:23:17.50\00:23:22.17
Look at verse 2, Jesus
said: "Do you not see all these"
00:23:22.21\00:23:26.82
"things, assuredly I say
unto you, not 1 stone will be"
00:23:26.86\00:23:31.60
"left here upon another
that will not be thrown down."
00:23:31.63\00:23:35.01
The very thing that the
disciples were trying to cheer
00:23:35.05\00:23:38.40
Jesus with, Jesus
says: "do you see it all?"
00:23:38.43\00:23:40.29
"It's going to be destroyed,
in fact, it'll be so destroyed,"
00:23:40.33\00:23:43.79
"so utterly decimated that
there won't even be 1 stone"
00:23:43.82\00:23:46.93
"upon another; the temple
destroyed, Jerusalem destroyed,"
00:23:46.97\00:23:50.05
and in the minds of the
disciples they're thinking:"
00:23:50.08\00:23:51.65
"What?!"
00:23:51.68\00:23:52.70
"The destruction of the temple,
the destruction of Jerusalem?"
00:23:52.74\00:23:55.77
"Surely He's talking
about the end of the age,"
00:23:55.80\00:23:58.38
what the Greeks
called the "eschaton",
00:23:58.41\00:24:01.76
"Oh, that must mean
the end of all things".
00:24:01.80\00:24:05.23
Verse 3: "As He sat
upon the Mount of Olives,"
00:24:05.27\00:24:08.40
"the disciples came
to Him privately saying,"
00:24:08.43\00:24:11.53
"tell us when
will these things be?"
00:24:11.56\00:24:14.48
"And what will be
the sign of Your coming"
00:24:14.52\00:24:16.66
"and of the end of the
world", or "the end of the age?"
00:24:16.70\00:24:23.41
The disciples thought
they were asking 1 question,
00:24:23.44\00:24:28.55
"when will of all these
things be and what will be"
00:24:28.58\00:24:30.76
"the sign of your coming
and of the end of the age,"
00:24:30.79\00:24:33.18
but that's really 2
questions. What Jesus does is He
00:24:33.22\00:24:35.58
parallels the destruction
of Jerusalem in 70 AD
00:24:35.61\00:24:39.66
under the Roman Emperor
Titus, and the end of the world,
00:24:39.70\00:24:42.13
and that's really
what Matthew 24 is,
00:24:42.16\00:24:44.15
it's this marvelous answer in
which Jesus takes these 2 events
00:24:44.19\00:24:47.63
and interweaves them
in a marvelous tapestry.
00:24:47.66\00:24:52.79
Let's look at our study
guide, consider Matthew 24,
00:24:52.83\00:24:55.66
we're on the
bottom of the second page.
00:24:55.69\00:24:59.50
In Matthew 24 Jesus
deals with the issue of the end
00:24:59.54\00:25:03.03
of the world, in this chapter
Jesus masterfully parallels
00:25:03.07\00:25:09.81
the destruction of Jerusalem
in 70 AD with the destruction
00:25:09.85\00:25:16.56
of the world at
the end of the age.
00:25:16.59\00:25:19.84
In this parallel Jesus
employs 2 revealing and helpful
00:25:19.88\00:25:23.73
analogies for understanding
the last days and the end
00:25:23.76\00:25:27.58
of the world. Let's
look at these 2 analogies.
00:25:27.61\00:25:33.40
The first one is
actually found in Matthew 24:8.
00:25:33.44\00:25:39.16
I'm reading this evening
from the New King James Version,
00:25:39.20\00:25:42.53
it says: "All these are
the beginning of sorrows".
00:25:42.56\00:25:49.07
How many of you have
a translation that says
00:25:49.10\00:25:50.36
the same thing in Matthew 24:8?
"All these are the beginning"
00:25:50.40\00:25:53.32
"of sorrows."
00:25:53.35\00:25:55.35
Who has a translation that says
something different than that?
00:25:55.39\00:25:58.09
What does yours
say? "Birth pangs",
00:25:58.12\00:26:00.92
that's exactly right,
that's what the Greek word is.
00:26:00.96\00:26:02.85
Just as the RSV says here:
"All of this is the beginning"
00:26:02.89\00:26:06.67
"of birth pangs", in other
words, contraction, ladies.
00:26:06.70\00:26:10.45
That's the Greek word
that Jesus is employing,
00:26:10.48\00:26:13.08
He was probably speaking in
Aramaic, but here Jesus says
00:26:13.12\00:26:16.45
"All of this", all of
what? We'll get there in just
00:26:16.48\00:26:18.74
a moment, He uses the
analogy of contractions,
00:26:18.77\00:26:22.06
we'll come back to that.
00:26:22.09\00:26:23.93
He employs a second
analogy as you turn the page
00:26:23.97\00:26:32.25
you can write this
down, look in Matthew 24:32.
00:26:32.29\00:26:40.50
Jesus says: "Now learn this
parable", a parable is a story
00:26:40.54\00:26:45.41
that illustrates a
larger spiritual significance.
00:26:45.44\00:26:48.74
"Now learn this parable from the
fig tree", that's interesting,
00:26:48.78\00:26:54.28
Jesus is going to
teach us a story from a tree,
00:26:54.31\00:26:57.01
a lesson from a tree,
"when its branch has already"
00:26:57.04\00:26:59.67
"become tender and puts forth
leaves you know that Summer"
00:26:59.71\00:27:04.45
"is near." Now notice verse
33, He makes the application,
00:27:04.48\00:27:09.85
"So also when you see all
these things, know that it",
00:27:09.89\00:27:15.23
"it" in the context
is the second coming,
00:27:15.26\00:27:18.61
"know that it is
near, even at the doors."
00:27:18.65\00:27:21.93
Jesus employs 2 analogies
here, the 2 analogies are this:
00:27:21.97\00:27:26.96
[text on screen]
00:27:26.99\00:27:28.98
Those of us here in
Michigan know what Jesus
00:27:32.82\00:27:34.70
is talking about. We
don't have many fig trees,
00:27:34.74\00:27:36.55
but we have lots of other
kinds of trees, and we have
00:27:36.59\00:27:38.62
winters here. I
grew up in South Dakota,
00:27:38.65\00:27:41.03
and I know something
about winters and we know
00:27:41.07\00:27:43.68
when Spring is just around
the corner, or I should say
00:27:43.72\00:27:46.11
we think we know when Spring
is just around the corner.
00:27:46.14\00:27:47.96
I've heard it said: "If
you don't like the weather"
00:27:47.99\00:27:50.20
"in Michigan, wait 5
minutes." [Audience laughs]
00:27:50.23\00:27:52.81
Where I come from in
South Dakota we have 2 seasons,
00:27:52.84\00:27:55.42
we have winter and road
construction, seems like you
00:27:55.46\00:27:58.01
have the same right
here in Michigan as well.
00:27:58.04\00:28:01.06
We know that something is about
ready to happen when the leaves
00:28:01.10\00:28:05.02
begin to appear and
the branch gets tender.
00:28:05.05\00:28:07.66
Jesus says: "Pay attention",
He uses these 2 analogies;
00:28:07.70\00:28:13.08
labor pains and a budding
fig tree, these analogies
00:28:13.12\00:28:18.47
have 3 things in common.
00:28:18.50\00:28:22.48
[text on screen]
00:28:22.51\00:28:25.39
[In regard to Nr.2] -
that is they start here,
00:28:35.06\00:28:37.30
and they move toward
here, and as they move,
00:28:37.33\00:28:41.45
they increase in
frequency and in intensity.
00:28:41.48\00:28:45.57
And number 3: [text on screen]
00:28:45.60\00:28:47.76
The budding fig tree announces
Summer, the labor pains
00:28:48.42\00:28:52.27
of a woman's
contractions announce a child,
00:28:52.30\00:28:56.01
they all end at
something, an event.
00:28:56.04\00:29:01.58
You say "what is it?
What are these things"
00:29:01.62\00:29:02.91
"that we're
supposed to watch for?"
00:29:02.94\00:29:04.41
Peter says "watch", John says
"watch", Jesus says "watch",
00:29:04.45\00:29:07.39
Paul says "watch", we
haven't even talked about
00:29:07.42\00:29:09.72
what we're watching for, but
we know we should be watching
00:29:09.76\00:29:11.53
for something.
He gives 2 parables,
00:29:11.56\00:29:13.64
the fig tree and the
labor pains, these are visible,
00:29:13.68\00:29:17.43
progressive and climactic,
and you say "what is it?"
00:29:17.47\00:29:21.11
Go back to Matthew 24,
the disciples have asked Jesus
00:29:21.15\00:29:25.62
the question. Verse 3,
"when will all of this happen?"
00:29:25.66\00:29:30.10
"What will be the sign
of the end of the age?"
00:29:30.13\00:29:33.35
Jesus says in verse
4, the very first words
00:29:33.39\00:29:36.54
out of His mouth: "Take
heed that no one deceives you."
00:29:36.58\00:29:41.06
In other words: "be careful
that no one deceives you."
00:29:41.10\00:29:45.55
In fact He says that 3
times in this 1 chapter,
00:29:45.58\00:29:48.66
"be careful that
no one deceives you."
00:29:48.69\00:29:52.37
Friends, the only thing
that you can be guaranteed
00:29:52.41\00:29:56.06
that will keep you from
being deceived is knowing
00:29:56.09\00:29:59.71
the Bible for
yourself. I can stand up here
00:29:59.74\00:30:04.12
and say something wrong,
in fact I'll tell you this,
00:30:04.16\00:30:05.63
if I ever do say something
that's wrong, don't come back,
00:30:05.67\00:30:07.37
you don't have to come
back. If what I say doesn't
00:30:07.40\00:30:09.83
come from the
Bible, don't come back.
00:30:09.86\00:30:11.68
What I like to
tell Christians is this:
00:30:11.71\00:30:13.46
you should know your Bible well
enough to know when a minister
00:30:13.50\00:30:15.99
misquotes it.
00:30:16.02\00:30:18.98
You pay attention to
me, sometimes I'll purposely
00:30:19.02\00:30:22.13
misquote it just to see
if you're paying attention.
00:30:22.17\00:30:25.25
"That's not what it
says, you hang in there."
00:30:25.28\00:30:27.83
Jesus gave these signs, He
said "be careful that you're"
00:30:27.87\00:30:32.52
"not deceived", and
He gives us 10 signs,
00:30:32.55\00:30:35.42
not all of them come from
Matthew 24, but most of them do.
00:30:35.46\00:30:38.80
10 signs of the times.
I just want to underscore
00:30:38.83\00:30:42.17
that these are not just
religious people that say
00:30:42.20\00:30:45.81
these things, these are
not just so called religious,
00:30:45.85\00:30:49.43
spiritual people that
think that we're living
00:30:49.46\00:30:51.64
in strange and unusual
time, people like Eugene Linden,
00:30:51.68\00:30:54.09
people like Dr. Stephen
Hawking say: "Wow, we're living"
00:30:54.13\00:30:56.51
"in strange and
unusual times". Jesus says
00:30:56.54\00:31:00.07
"I'll show you what
it's going to be like."
00:31:00.11\00:31:04.02
Jesus gives 10 signs
of the times, verse 5:
00:31:04.05\00:31:07.89
"For many will come in My
name saying, I am the Christ,"
00:31:07.93\00:31:12.81
"and will deceive many."
Notice it says that "many"
00:31:12.84\00:31:16.72
"will come in My name
and will deceive many."
00:31:16.75\00:31:19.49
People will come and
say "I am the Christ."
00:31:19.52\00:31:21.94
The very first sign
that Jesus gives, signs in
00:31:21.98\00:31:24.33
the religious world, He says
there will be a proliferation
00:31:24.37\00:31:27.90
of false Christs and
false prophets; do we see that
00:31:27.93\00:31:30.91
in your day and age
today? Sure, just quickly
00:31:30.94\00:31:33.90
off the top of my mind I've
selected a few of them for you,
00:31:33.94\00:31:36.34
[text on screen]
00:31:36.37\00:31:38.39
Marshall Applewhite -
he's the one in the background
00:31:46.49\00:31:48.62
of the picture, the man who
led 39 people to kill themselves
00:31:48.66\00:31:51.89
in San Clemente, California,
so that they could go
00:31:51.92\00:31:54.40
ride around in a spaceship
behind the comet Hale-Bopp.
00:31:54.43\00:31:56.88
How many of you
remember that one?
00:31:56.91\00:31:59.12
Jesus says that there
will be "a state of general"
00:31:59.16\00:32:01.38
"religious confusion
just before I return."
00:32:01.41\00:32:04.19
Isn't that the case?
00:32:04.22\00:32:08.21
Let's talk for a moment as a
case in point just to show you
00:32:08.25\00:32:11.40
how naive and how
gullible people can be.
00:32:11.43\00:32:13.85
I don't want to pick on anyone,
no no, that's not my purpose,
00:32:13.89\00:32:16.84
I'm a friendly person, I love
people, I love to spend time
00:32:16.88\00:32:19.76
with people, but let's just look
at how gullible people can be.
00:32:19.80\00:32:24.24
Take for example, number 2,
this Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda.
00:32:24.28\00:32:28.69
I introduced to this
fellow about 6 months ago
00:32:28.72\00:32:30.75
when someone sent me a
clip on the internet, a show
00:32:30.79\00:32:34.48
that he had done on NBC's
Today Show, this guy claims
00:32:34.51\00:32:38.17
to be Jesus.
00:32:38.20\00:32:41.53
I was on his website just
today, I thought you might like
00:32:41.57\00:32:44.34
to take a look at it, there's
his official English website,
00:32:44.37\00:32:46.98
I'm not going to tell you
the name of it, why should we
00:32:47.01\00:32:49.59
give this guy any more
credit then he deserves?
00:32:49.62\00:32:52.00
He deserves no credit
whatsoever, but if you can see
00:32:52.04\00:32:54.67
in the upper right hand corner,
it says "The Man, Christ Jesus,"
00:32:54.71\00:32:57.85
"Dr. Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda
is coming to the United States"
00:32:57.89\00:33:00.88
"of America, the Kings of kings
and Lord of lords has arrived"
00:33:00.92\00:33:03.88
"in America." [Audience laughs]
00:33:03.91\00:33:06.83
This is the official
release from his website,
00:33:06.87\00:33:08.87
this is a direct quote from his
website, Mr. Miranda's website:
00:33:08.91\00:33:11.94
[text on screen]
00:33:11.97\00:33:13.99
The man has an estimated 5-10
million followers who genuinely
00:33:36.96\00:33:42.74
believe that he is Jesus
Christ. You think this guy
00:33:42.77\00:33:46.28
is just whistling Dixie, you say
"Oh David, that's no big deal,"
00:33:46.32\00:33:48.58
"there's a guy down my street
that thinks he's Jesus Christ",
00:33:48.62\00:33:50.85
but has the guy down
your street appeared on CNN?
00:33:50.88\00:33:53.88
Has the guy down your street
appeared on CBS National News,
00:33:53.92\00:33:56.68
Fox News Live, NBC's Today
show, and dozens of local and
00:33:56.72\00:33:59.45
Latino networks? Do
a little Google search
00:33:59.48\00:34:02.12
on this guy, this guy
claims to be Jesus, you watch
00:34:02.16\00:34:05.09
the interviews
on Anderson Cooper.
00:34:05.12\00:34:07.07
Anderson Cooper says to him
straight out "Are you Jesus?"
00:34:07.11\00:34:09.54
He says: "I'm Jesus and
I'm greater than Jesus."
00:34:09.57\00:34:11.84
- [Audience] Oh no! -
And then they cut away
00:34:11.88\00:34:14.08
to his followers and they're
all rejoicing and dancing
00:34:14.12\00:34:16.72
around, holding up signs that
say: "The Son of Man is here."
00:34:16.76\00:34:22.09
Now beloved, we don't
want to make fun of anybody,
00:34:22.12\00:34:24.62
in fact, we want to
pray, but the point is this:
00:34:24.66\00:34:27.64
the guy is a 60 year old
ex-heroin addict who spent
00:34:27.67\00:34:30.41
time in prison, and you
have hundreds of thousands,
00:34:30.45\00:34:33.12
potentially millions of people
that say: "Jesus is here."
00:34:33.16\00:34:36.12
How could they possibly
believe such a ridiculous thing?
00:34:36.15\00:34:39.62
They're not studying their
Bibles. [Audience says amen]
00:34:39.65\00:34:43.09
Jesus said that's what it would
be like just before He returned.
00:34:45.12\00:34:48.05
Other examples could be given.
00:34:48.08\00:34:49.90
Notice the next sign
that Jesus gives, verse 6:
00:34:49.94\00:34:54.08
"And you will hear of
wars and of rumors of wars."
00:34:54.11\00:34:57.28
"See that you are not
troubled for all these things"
00:34:57.31\00:35:00.45
"must come to pass,
but the end is not yet."
00:35:00.48\00:35:03.23
Do we live in a time
when there are wars and rumors
00:35:03.27\00:35:06.11
of wars, yes or no?
[Audience replies] Yes.
00:35:06.14\00:35:08.13
Atheistic philosopher,
Friedrich Nietzsche said:
00:35:08.17\00:35:10.45
"the 20th century
would be the bloodiest ever",
00:35:10.48\00:35:12.73
and he was
right. [text on screen]
00:35:12.76\00:35:15.62
Jesus said that there would
be wars and rumors of wars.
00:35:43.12\00:35:46.18
That reminds me of a
story: a man by the name
00:35:46.21\00:35:49.03
of Richard J. Gatling
drew this patent drawing
00:35:49.07\00:35:51.82
and submitted it to the US
Patent Office, May 19, 1865,
00:35:51.86\00:35:56.00
you've probably seen the
old west movies, and you'd turn
00:35:56.03\00:36:00.14
a crank and it was
basically the first machine gun.
00:36:00.17\00:36:03.21
He was showing his patent
to several arms manufacturers
00:36:03.24\00:36:06.25
and guns manufactures
in his day, and they did
00:36:06.28\00:36:08.75
an unveiling and the people
were walking around this gun
00:36:08.79\00:36:12.22
and they were all looking
at it, and one of the gun
00:36:12.25\00:36:15.89
manufacturers looked
at Mr. Gatling and said:
00:36:15.92\00:36:19.52
"But Mr. Gatling,
won't this weapon make war"
00:36:19.56\00:36:23.13
"all the more terrible?"
00:36:23.16\00:36:28.01
"The loss of life will be
so easy now, people can just"
00:36:28.05\00:36:31.03
"be mowed down in a
moment, in a second."
00:36:31.06\00:36:33.33
"Mr. Gatling, won't this
weapon make war more terrible?"
00:36:33.37\00:36:39.16
And Mr. Gatling, as the
story goes, looked that man
00:36:39.19\00:36:41.47
right in the eye and
he said "No, this weapon"
00:36:41.50\00:36:44.62
"will make war impossible."
00:36:44.65\00:36:48.38
What he was saying is this:
people will see the futility
00:36:48.42\00:36:51.99
of war, it will be so
easy to kill, that people see
00:36:52.02\00:36:56.21
how foolish it really is.
How wrong was Mr. Gatling?
00:36:56.24\00:37:00.40
When today we have
single weapons, single bombs
00:37:00.43\00:37:03.82
that can annihilate
tens of thousands of people
00:37:03.85\00:37:07.21
in a moment. August 9, 1945,
00:37:07.24\00:37:10.84
73,884 people killed
when a bomb was dropped
00:37:10.88\00:37:14.40
on Nagasaki, 3 days
earlier, 60,000 were killed
00:37:14.43\00:37:17.88
when a bomb was
dropped on Hiroshima, so wrong
00:37:17.91\00:37:21.29
was Mr. Gatling, the Gatling gun
didn't make war more impossible,
00:37:21.33\00:37:24.69
it made it more terrible,
and today we have weapons
00:37:24.72\00:37:26.95
of mass destruction, and
weapons of war that could
00:37:26.98\00:37:30.50
destroy the planet multiplied
hundreds of times over.
00:37:30.53\00:37:34.02
We live in an age where
war is on proliferation,
00:37:34.05\00:37:36.81
not on the decrease,
is this true, yes or no?
00:37:36.84\00:37:39.37
- [Audience replies]
Yes. - Absolutely true.
00:37:39.41\00:37:41.87
Jesus said it would be just
like that before He returned,
00:37:41.91\00:37:45.08
but Jesus went on,
there are still more signs,
00:37:45.11\00:37:46.84
you're still
there in Matthew 24:7:
00:37:46.87\00:37:49.67
"For nation shall
rise against nation,"
00:37:49.70\00:37:52.43
"and kingdom against kingdom,
and there will be famines,"
00:37:52.47\00:37:55.95
"and pestilences, and
earthquakes in various places."
00:37:55.99\00:37:59.40
Famines: the United Nations
tells us that: [text on screen]
00:37:59.44\00:38:02.83
Many countries are not
blessed like the USA and are not
00:38:12.40\00:38:15.23
exporting countries, in
fact, many countries produce
00:38:15.27\00:38:18.07
not enough food to
feed their own population,
00:38:18.10\00:38:20.29
and if it wasn't for
countries like the US,
00:38:20.32\00:38:23.22
many countries
would literally wither up.
00:38:23.25\00:38:25.61
Suffering goes
beyond these mere numbers,
00:38:25.64\00:38:27.93
here living in sterling
heights, or wherever we live,
00:38:27.97\00:38:30.55
these just look like numbers
on a screen, but these are
00:38:30.58\00:38:33.13
real people that are
really dying of starvation,
00:38:33.16\00:38:35.59
can you think of
a worse way to die?
00:38:35.62\00:38:37.98
[text on screen]
00:38:38.01\00:38:40.08
Jesus said that the last
days would be marked by famines.
00:38:45.31\00:38:50.07
He said there would
be pestilences, you say:
00:38:50.10\00:38:51.78
"What's a pestilence?"
00:38:51.81\00:38:53.40
A pestilence is not your
kid brother or your kid sister,
00:38:53.44\00:38:56.70
[Audience laughs]
00:38:56.73\00:38:59.20
a pestilence is
a noxious illness.
00:39:01.33\00:39:05.03
Do we live in an age of
illnesses and diseases today?
00:39:05.07\00:39:08.63
Sure: [text on screen]
00:39:08.66\00:39:10.99
Some of these diseases
you've never heard of before
00:39:12.77\00:39:15.07
10 years ago: [text on screen]
00:39:15.10\00:39:17.40
You just do a little
Google search on flu epidemic
00:39:28.54\00:39:31.07
and there are many world
health professionals that are
00:39:31.11\00:39:33.61
very concerned that if
there was a flu outbreak,
00:39:33.64\00:39:36.58
it could literally
kill millions of people.
00:39:36.61\00:39:40.54
[continues to read text]
00:39:40.57\00:39:42.61
Jesus said there
would be earthquakes.
00:39:44.98\00:39:47.08
[text on screen]
00:39:47.11\00:39:49.16
I want you to notice what
I say, I chose my language
00:39:52.78\00:39:54.91
very carefully, I
didn't say: "The actual number"
00:39:54.94\00:39:57.15
"of earthquakes has
increased," that's debatable.
00:39:57.19\00:39:59.33
You go on the USGS website, the
Unite States Geological Survey,
00:39:59.37\00:40:02.24
and they seem to suggest
that the number has not actually
00:40:02.27\00:40:04.68
increased, but I'll
tell you what has increased,
00:40:04.71\00:40:06.14
Nr.1- we are more sophisticated
now with our seismological
00:40:06.18\00:40:10.02
devices so we know
that more are happening,
00:40:10.05\00:40:12.77
so there's the appearance of
more, but Nr.2- because people
00:40:12.81\00:40:16.05
are moving towards more
urban centers when earthquakes
00:40:16.08\00:40:19.29
do take place, instead
of 1 or 2 or 5000 dying,
00:40:19.32\00:40:22.20
you have earthquakes where
tens of thousands of people die,
00:40:22.24\00:40:25.42
like the tsunami that just
happened, December 26, 2004,
00:40:25.46\00:40:29.70
in which 300,000 lost their
lives in one of the greatest
00:40:29.73\00:40:33.38
natural disasters in all human
experience, and it happened
00:40:33.42\00:40:37.04
because of an earthquake.
Jesus said there would be
00:40:37.07\00:40:40.81
earthquakes, they would be
deadly, they would be prominent.
00:40:40.85\00:40:45.32
The first 5 signs of the times,
the last 5: [text on screen]
00:40:45.36\00:40:49.80
Jesus said in Luke
21:25,26: [text on screen]
00:40:51.91\00:40:56.62
"sea and the waves" -
weren't we just talking about
00:41:04.97\00:41:07.41
the tsunami? [continues to read]
00:41:07.44\00:41:09.87
What He's saying is:
"the world is going to look"
00:41:17.87\00:41:19.60
"like it's falling apart at
the seams; the world is going"
00:41:19.64\00:41:21.73
"to look like it's going
to hell in a hand basket,"
00:41:21.76\00:41:23.88
"and people are going
to be basically fainting"
00:41:23.92\00:41:25.97
"and freaking out because they
don't know what's happening."
00:41:26.01\00:41:29.97
Is that the world we live in?
That is the world we live in!
00:41:30.01\00:41:33.94
If people would just
take a moment to stop
00:41:33.97\00:41:35.42
and really look around,
they'd see that things are not
00:41:35.46\00:41:38.86
business as usual, it's
not status quo any longer,
00:41:38.89\00:41:42.04
but we have distractions
that keep us occupied
00:41:42.07\00:41:45.15
so we're not paying attention
to how things are really going,
00:41:45.19\00:41:47.25
I'll talk about that
more in just a moment.
00:41:47.28\00:41:49.92
I collect these things, here's
just a few magazine covers
00:41:49.96\00:41:53.89
that I scanned in, I don't know
if you can read the writing,
00:41:53.92\00:41:57.82
but Discover Magazine is
hardly a theological journal,
00:41:57.85\00:42:01.10
and here it says:
"What in the world is wrong"
00:42:01.13\00:42:03.30
"with our
weather?" They're asking that
00:42:03.33\00:42:05.27
from an evidentiary
basis, not a religious basis.
00:42:05.31\00:42:08.13
The one there, Life Magazine:
"The Year of the Killer Weather"
00:42:08.17\00:42:10.78
"Why has Nature Gone
Mad?" And do I have to tell you
00:42:10.81\00:42:13.36
anything about hurricanes?
Last year was the first time
00:42:13.39\00:42:15.91
in the history of
recorded hurricanes where
00:42:15.94\00:42:19.94
the meteorologists had to go
all the way through the 22-23
00:42:19.98\00:42:23.74
letters picked up and they
had to start with alpha, beta,
00:42:23.78\00:42:27.51
gamma, etc.
00:42:27.54\00:42:29.88
We know about it, don't
we? There is an environmental
00:42:31.47\00:42:34.92
connection, and there is an
increasing number of scientists
00:42:34.96\00:42:37.15
and world leaders who are
saying: "Yeah, I'll tell you"
00:42:37.18\00:42:39.17
"why the weather's getting
worse, it's not just because"
00:42:39.20\00:42:41.59
"we're going through a cycle."
People say: "Oh, you know"
00:42:41.62\00:42:44.35
"these meteorological, and
climatological, these things"
00:42:44.39\00:42:47.09
"go in cycles", and some
people are saying: "Yeah,"
00:42:47.12\00:42:50.23
"but we're accelerating
the cycle by adding to it."
00:42:50.26\00:42:53.30
Listen, I'm not a scientist,
but the world is not that big.
00:42:53.34\00:42:56.43
I know that because
my home is in Wyoming
00:42:56.46\00:42:58.50
and my wife's family lives
in California, and every year
00:42:58.54\00:43:00.72
we drive from Michigan to
California, it doesn't take us
00:43:00.75\00:43:03.11
that long to do it really,
we can do it in about 3 days,
00:43:03.15\00:43:05.48
and if you look at a
map you can see you're going
00:43:05.51\00:43:08.95
from here to here. If it
was possible to go around
00:43:08.98\00:43:12.35
the circumference of the
earth, you'd just drive around,
00:43:12.39\00:43:14.46
it's not that big of a
planet, I can get in an airplane
00:43:14.50\00:43:16.54
and be in Johannesburg,
South Africa, in 15 hours.
00:43:16.57\00:43:19.75
You take all of us and millions
more and you put them in
00:43:19.79\00:43:22.97
cars and those cars start
running, SUVs and every other
00:43:23.01\00:43:26.16
kind of thing, it just
makes sense to me that this
00:43:26.19\00:43:28.88
would start to have a
deleterious effect on a fragile
00:43:28.92\00:43:31.31
environment, I don't think
that's a political statement,
00:43:31.34\00:43:33.70
I think it's common sense.
00:43:33.73\00:43:37.52
Many are saying that we're
living in strange and unusual
00:43:37.56\00:43:39.77
times when it
comes to our environment.
00:43:39.80\00:43:42.82
There's a DVD that was
just recently released,
00:43:42.86\00:43:44.70
this is not an endorsement of
this DVD, it was a full length
00:43:44.74\00:43:47.31
movie motion picture that went
in theaters, I didn't see it,
00:43:47.34\00:43:49.95
this is their website, it's
called: "An Inconvenient Truth",
00:43:49.99\00:43:52.57
has anybody seen
this? Absolutely amazing.
00:43:52.60\00:43:55.96
It is amazing, you
can go to their website:
00:43:55.99\00:43:59.28
www.climatecrisis.net,
and basically they're saying:
00:43:59.32\00:44:02.50
"Listen, we're living in
strange and unusual times."
00:44:02.54\00:44:05.69
The man, Eugene
Linden that we cited earlier,
00:44:05.72\00:44:07.79
"The Future in Plain
Sight", he just released a book
00:44:07.83\00:44:10.56
this year, 2006,
entitled "The Winds of Change",
00:44:10.60\00:44:13.47
can you read the subtitle
there? "Climate, Weather,"
00:44:13.50\00:44:16.34
"and the
Destruction of Civilizations."
00:44:16.37\00:44:20.29
Eugene Linden is not the
only one saying these kinds
00:44:20.33\00:44:22.81
of things; a very well
respected and conservative
00:44:22.85\00:44:25.85
English scientist by the
name of Dr. James Lovelock
00:44:25.89\00:44:28.59
has written a book
called "The Revenge of Gaia",
00:44:28.63\00:44:31.33
"Earth's Climate Crisis
and the Fate of Humanity."
00:44:31.37\00:44:34.51
Notice this from the opening
introduction of his book,
00:44:34.55\00:44:37.66
he says: [text on screen]
00:44:37.69\00:44:40.09
In case you're saying, "Oh well,
these are just those crazy"
00:44:49.23\00:44:51.93
"liberal scientists, these
are those liberal scientists"
00:44:51.96\00:44:54.62
"that don't like George
Bush, they publish these things"
00:44:54.65\00:44:57.28
"to get him out
of office." Listen!
00:44:57.31\00:44:59.86
This is not a
political statement,
00:44:59.90\00:45:02.38
I couldn't care less
right now about politics,
00:45:02.42\00:45:04.20
I want to talk about God's word,
but I'll tell you that this man
00:45:04.24\00:45:06.78
right here, do you
know who this man is?
00:45:06.81\00:45:09.47
That's Tony Blair,
this man is anything
00:45:09.51\00:45:12.10
but a liberal scientist.
In fact, in his own country
00:45:12.14\00:45:14.99
he gets all kind of
trouble because they say
00:45:15.02\00:45:17.25
George Bush has got
him in his back pocket.
00:45:17.28\00:45:19.44
He's not the kind of
person that would want to say
00:45:19.48\00:45:21.70
something to upset his
relationship with the USA,
00:45:21.73\00:45:25.21
but look at the date,
10/31/06, that's 2 weeks ago,
00:45:25.24\00:45:28.69
or not even 2 weeks
ago, about 1 week ago,
00:45:28.72\00:45:31.50
he did an appeal to world
leaders at a science conference,
00:45:31.54\00:45:34.59
and this is what Mr. Blair
said, again, not some radical,
00:45:34.62\00:45:37.64
renegade, liberal
scientist, this is Tony Blair,
00:45:37.67\00:45:40.80
our ally in the war on
terror, conservative, he said:
00:45:40.84\00:45:45.16
[text on screen]
00:45:45.19\00:45:47.23
If you've ever heard this
man speak, he's not a wild eyed,
00:45:57.28\00:46:00.20
fanatic, not even close.
00:46:00.23\00:46:02.58
He's a very sober minded, very
articulate, very intelligent
00:46:02.62\00:46:05.29
person. He
says: [text on screen]
00:46:05.32\00:46:08.07
Okay, let's just say
you disagree with him,
00:46:21.21\00:46:22.91
that's just your prerogative
to disagree with him,
00:46:22.95\00:46:25.51
the point is this, even
non- religious people say
00:46:25.54\00:46:28.03
we're living in unusual
times, is that clear, yes or no?
00:46:28.07\00:46:31.16
[Audience replies]
Yes. That's the point.
00:46:31.19\00:46:33.36
"Increasing violence."
Do I need to say anything
00:46:33.40\00:46:35.16
about this?
00:46:35.19\00:46:36.54
Do we live in an
increasingly violent society?
00:46:36.58\00:46:40.83
Nothing needs to be said
here, whether it's the TV,
00:46:40.87\00:46:44.45
or Rap music, or video
games, Lord have mercy,
00:46:44.48\00:46:47.23
look at these video
games that people are playing,
00:46:47.26\00:46:49.98
it's so real.
00:46:50.01\00:46:52.78
I love it when they get these
experts on these TV programs,
00:46:52.82\00:46:55.94
my parents used to live just
outside of Columbine, Colorado.
00:46:55.98\00:46:58.63
In fact, they lived in Columbine
when that terrible tragedy
00:46:58.66\00:47:01.28
took place and those 2
boys went in and killed 11-12
00:47:01.31\00:47:03.81
of their classmates, and
then they'd have these experts
00:47:03.85\00:47:06.32
on CNN and C-Span and
other places and they'd say:
00:47:06.35\00:47:08.79
"Now we'd like to
ask you Dr. So-and-so,"
00:47:08.82\00:47:11.89
"we notice that these boys
are listening to violent music"
00:47:11.93\00:47:13.94
"and they're playing violent
video games, and they're"
00:47:13.97\00:47:16.25
"watching violent TV programs,
do you think that it might"
00:47:16.28\00:47:18.53
"be possible that there
is some causal explanation,"
00:47:18.56\00:47:22.38
"that maybe it's possible,
perhaps, that the things"
00:47:22.42\00:47:26.21
"that they're
exposing themselves to,"
00:47:26.24\00:47:28.45
"these media things are
causing them to do this?"
00:47:28.49\00:47:31.19
"Well, you
know..." [Audience laughs]
00:47:31.22\00:47:34.33
"...we're not sure." And I'm
thinking: "AHH, the whole world"
00:47:34.37\00:47:37.82
"has gone
insane." [Audience laughs]
00:47:37.85\00:47:42.15
We don't need to say
anything about an increasingly
00:47:42.19\00:47:44.55
violent society, Jesus
said that the love of many
00:47:44.58\00:47:47.02
would wax cold, and that
the thoughts of men would be
00:47:47.05\00:47:49.46
only on evil
continually at the end of time.
00:47:49.49\00:47:53.27
Pleasure driven society,
Nr.8. Is that the society
00:47:53.31\00:47:57.06
that we live in
today? Oh Lord, have mercy!
00:47:57.09\00:48:00.91
Jesus says at the end of
time the pornography business
00:48:00.95\00:48:03.28
will be booming, Jesus
says at the end of time
00:48:03.31\00:48:06.36
everybody's going to
be interested in sports,
00:48:06.39\00:48:09.37
Jesus says at the end of
time TV is going to be huge,
00:48:09.41\00:48:12.50
at the end of time cinema
houses are going to be huge.
00:48:12.54\00:48:15.63
Pleasure, pleasure, pleasure!
Why is pleasure so much
00:48:15.66\00:48:18.72
on our minds?
I'll tell you exactly
00:48:18.75\00:48:20.63
why it's on our minds, because
we're looking for distractions
00:48:20.67\00:48:23.31
to keep our minds out
of what is really happening
00:48:23.34\00:48:25.43
in the world today.
00:48:25.46\00:48:27.88
There's actually a
psychological phenomenon here
00:48:27.92\00:48:29.64
called "compartmentalization",
it's when, just imagine with me,
00:48:29.68\00:48:33.07
you think you're going
on vacation to Orlando.
00:48:33.10\00:48:35.37
You say you've got
the whole family loaded up
00:48:35.41\00:48:37.61
in the SUV, and you're
going to Orlando, and you think
00:48:37.65\00:48:40.36
you're on your way to
Orlando, you're all happy:
00:48:40.39\00:48:42.29
"This is going to be
great in Orlando, can't wait"
00:48:42.33\00:48:44.16
"to get on that beach", and
you pass a sign and the sign
00:48:44.20\00:48:48.09
says "Akron, Ohio", and you
think: "Huh, that's alright,"
00:48:48.12\00:48:51.98
"we're on our way to
Orlando, turn up the iPod",
00:48:52.01\00:48:54.67
driving on your way;
and you pass another sign
00:48:54.71\00:48:57.63
that says: "Columbus".
"Ahh, never mind that sign"
00:48:57.66\00:49:00.19
"anyway, we're on our
way to Orlando, just turn up"
00:49:00.23\00:49:02.73
"the music", that's
the experience that many
00:49:02.76\00:49:04.93
are having: there are signs
and indicators that the world
00:49:04.97\00:49:08.22
is falling apart at the
seems, but we just turn it up,
00:49:08.25\00:49:11.47
turn up the pleasure
so we don't have to think
00:49:11.50\00:49:13.65
about what's really
happening in the world today,
00:49:13.69\00:49:15.80
are you follow me everyone?
[Audience replies] Yes.
00:49:15.83\00:49:17.87
It's a psychological phenomenon
called "compartmentalization"
00:49:17.91\00:49:20.70
because we don't like to
think about these things.
00:49:20.73\00:49:23.78
Yet, Jesus is saying "watch",
and Paul is saying "watch",
00:49:23.82\00:49:26.60
and Peter's saying "watch",
and John is saying "watch,
00:49:26.63\00:49:29.55
and we're saying "Yeah, we
will watch 'Must See TV' ".
00:49:29.58\00:49:32.47
[Audience laughs]
00:49:32.50\00:49:34.87
2 Timothy 3, notice what
Paul said: [text on screen]
00:49:36.17\00:49:39.47
"...disobedient to parents",
any parents want to say
00:49:51.00\00:49:53.23
amen to that?
[continues to read]
00:49:53.26\00:49:55.58
"brutal" - I just think
of those images of terrorists
00:49:59.78\00:50:03.57
literally hacking the
head off a man right on TV,
00:50:03.61\00:50:06.73
knowing that their
families are going to see it,
00:50:06.77\00:50:09.86
brutal!!! [text on screen]
00:50:09.89\00:50:13.53
Loss of family values,
Nr.9. Divorce rate is over 50%
00:50:21.84\00:50:27.13
in the US. I had the honor,
00:50:27.16\00:50:29.37
but the terribly sad honor last
year of burying my grandfather,
00:50:29.41\00:50:32.76
he was like a father to
me, I never had the privilege
00:50:32.79\00:50:35.06
of meeting my biological
father, so my grandfather
00:50:35.09\00:50:38.38
was like my dad. I had
the privilege last year
00:50:38.42\00:50:41.64
of performing his funeral,
I wish he was still with me,
00:50:41.68\00:50:44.38
he died at the age of 92
years old, and if he would have
00:50:44.42\00:50:47.09
lived 4 more months,
he and my grandmother,
00:50:47.12\00:50:50.13
who's still alive, would
have been married for 70 years.
00:50:50.17\00:50:54.52
That is the exception
today and not the rule.
00:50:54.55\00:50:57.58
[text on screen]
00:50:57.61\00:50:59.61
I don't want to say much
about this because God loves
00:51:02.37\00:51:04.39
homosexual people, can
someone say amen to that?
00:51:04.42\00:51:07.37
But he does not
love homosexuality,
00:51:07.40\00:51:09.92
see that's the thing, God
loves the sinner, but He hates
00:51:09.96\00:51:12.91
the sin; we're the opposite:
we love the sin and hate
00:51:12.94\00:51:15.86
the sinner.
00:51:15.89\00:51:18.67
But when I was in high school,
and I want to be very candid,
00:51:18.71\00:51:21.79
but the worst thing that
you could have been called
00:51:21.82\00:51:24.98
was "gay". When I
was in high school,
00:51:25.01\00:51:27.45
you'd get beaten up
just for somebody suggesting,
00:51:27.49\00:51:30.23
and now it's all
"hey, everybody's gay now."
00:51:30.26\00:51:33.40
[Audience laughs]
00:51:33.43\00:51:35.74
"Gay and proud, gay
and loud", listen, there's
00:51:35.78\00:51:38.15
an agenda going on
here. [text on screen]
00:51:38.18\00:51:40.88
Family values literally eroding
right before our very eyes.
00:51:58.07\00:52:01.05
Look at this statistic,
it will just blow your mind.
00:52:01.08\00:52:05.54
Michael and Diane Medved wrote
their book, "Saving Childhood",
00:52:05.58\00:52:08.26
the Wall street Journal
review of this book said
00:52:08.29\00:52:10.43
that "if this isn't an
important book, I don't know"
00:52:10.46\00:52:12.57
"what an
important book looks like."
00:52:12.60\00:52:14.75
This is from page
19, [text on screen]
00:52:14.78\00:52:16.90
That is the society that
you live in, that is the society
00:52:28.98\00:52:32.02
that your
children are growing up in.
00:52:32.05\00:52:33.91
In 1940 Reader's Digest
took a pole of the top 7
00:52:33.95\00:52:37.57
disciplinary problems
in schools, look at these,
00:52:37.60\00:52:41.15
any teachers here today?
Wouldn't you love to have these:
00:52:41.19\00:52:44.15
[text on screen]
00:52:44.18\00:52:46.16
[In regard to Nr.6] - you
say to our young people today
00:52:57.89\00:52:59.92
"dress code", they say "a what
code?", they don't even know
00:52:59.96\00:53:01.61
what that is, a dress
code? [continues to read]
00:53:01.64\00:53:04.31
They took the same survey in
the year 2000, top 7 problems
00:53:05.95\00:53:09.96
for educators: [text on screen]
00:53:09.99\00:53:12.36
Have times changed, yes or
no? [Audience replies] Yes.
00:53:19.20\00:53:22.35
Times have changed.
00:53:22.38\00:53:25.04
Matthew 24, but notice
the greatest sign of all,
00:53:28.28\00:53:36.90
phenomenal. Jesus says:
00:53:37.96\00:53:41.33
"And this gospel of the
kingdom will be preached"
00:53:41.37\00:53:44.68
"in all the world as a
witness", verse 14, "and then"
00:53:44.71\00:53:47.99
"the end will come."
00:53:48.02\00:53:49.78
The greatest sign is that
while the world is going down
00:53:49.82\00:53:53.06
like this, God says that
His kingdom will be building up,
00:53:53.10\00:53:56.31
that the gospel will go
to all the world to give
00:53:56.34\00:53:59.66
everyone a chance to be
saved. The gospel is going
00:53:59.70\00:54:02.95
to all the world, the end,
is it here, near, or mere fear?
00:54:02.99\00:54:06.11
The answer of the
is that it's very near.
00:54:06.14\00:54:08.86
You say: "Well, how near?"
The answer is: I don't know,
00:54:08.90\00:54:11.19
but I do know this: in
a world of uncertainty,
00:54:11.22\00:54:13.55
Bible prophecy
provides us with certainty.
00:54:13.58\00:54:15.84
You might be saying:
"Well, there's always been"
00:54:15.88\00:54:18.50
"earthquakes, and
there's always been famines,"
00:54:18.54\00:54:21.06
"and there's always
been pestilence, and there's"
00:54:21.09\00:54:23.58
"always been those
things", but remember,
00:54:23.61\00:54:26.04
what were the 2
illustrations as we close?
00:54:26.08\00:54:28.44
The 2 illustrations, the
2 analogies that Jesus used
00:54:28.48\00:54:31.22
were labor pains
and a budding fig tree.
00:54:31.25\00:54:33.50
Think about contractions. I
don't know them experientially
00:54:33.54\00:54:36.18
but I've been with my wife
2 times through this process
00:54:36.21\00:54:38.80
and the start far apart
and they're not very intense
00:54:38.83\00:54:41.35
and then they get closer and
closer, and as they get closer
00:54:41.39\00:54:43.96
they get more intense,
closer and more intense,
00:54:43.99\00:54:46.01
it's not that some
new sign would come on,
00:54:46.04\00:54:48.18
but that the same
old signs would be
00:54:48.21\00:54:50.16
at fever pitch, at maximum
volume, very close together,
00:54:50.20\00:54:55.49
very intense, and that is
the world that you live in.
00:54:55.53\00:55:00.79
But the good news is
that the end of this world
00:55:00.82\00:55:05.44
is the beginning
of the world to come.
00:55:05.47\00:55:09.61
This is not bad news,
it's bad news in a sense,
00:55:09.65\00:55:12.47
but for the believer
this is all good news
00:55:12.50\00:55:15.33
because "this world is not my
home, I'm just passing through",
00:55:15.37\00:55:19.34
you heard that song?
"My treasures are laid up"
00:55:19.37\00:55:23.03
"somewhere along the
blue", God has a home for you,
00:55:23.06\00:55:26.65
Jesus said: "Let not your heart
be troubled, ye believe in God,"
00:55:26.69\00:55:29.99
"believe also in Me."
John 14, "In My Father's house"
00:55:30.02\00:55:32.95
"are many mansions, if it were
not so I would have told you."
00:55:32.99\00:55:35.70
"I go to prepare a place
for you and if I go and prepare"
00:55:35.74\00:55:38.42
"a place for you, I will
come again and receive you"
00:55:38.45\00:55:40.92
"unto Myself, that
where I am you may be also."
00:55:40.95\00:55:44.72
If you're a believer,
this world is not your home.
00:55:44.75\00:55:48.49
It's all about
priorities, isn't it?
00:55:52.22\00:55:57.34
My studied conviction is that
we are living in the very toes
00:55:59.34\00:56:06.09
of this image, and one of
the several things that we're
00:56:06.12\00:56:09.22
going to do here in
this Bible prophecy seminar
00:56:09.25\00:56:12.44
is to set a sense of urgency
to show you "this is how"
00:56:12.48\00:56:15.24
"it's going to end according
to the Bible", not according
00:56:15.27\00:56:18.00
to 1 man's ideas or 1
man's opinion, but according
00:56:18.03\00:56:20.22
to what the Bible says, this is
who it's all going to wrap up,
00:56:20.26\00:56:23.30
so you can get
ready and stay ready.
00:56:23.33\00:56:27.22
I don't know about
you, but I want to be ready,
00:56:27.26\00:56:29.46
raise your hand with
me if you want to ready.
00:56:29.49\00:56:31.66
You want to say:
"This world is not my home."
00:56:32.06\00:56:34.94
Let's pray together,
Father in Heaven, this world
00:56:34.97\00:56:37.78
is not our home, we say that
by faith, this world is passing
00:56:37.82\00:56:40.58
away and it's not just religious
people that are saying it.
00:56:40.62\00:56:44.08
Father, the evidence is
in, very few of us in this room
00:56:44.11\00:56:47.54
are hardcore
scientists, and climatologists,
00:56:47.57\00:56:51.93
and astrophysicists,
but we have eyes to see,
00:56:51.96\00:56:56.10
the world looks like
it's going crazy Lord.
00:56:56.14\00:57:00.21
We turn on the TV and we
know that life is not supposed
00:57:00.25\00:57:02.79
to be like this, we
know that something is wrong.
00:57:02.82\00:57:05.62
Those of us who have
young children are deadly afraid
00:57:05.65\00:57:08.33
of raising our kids up in
this world, how do we even
00:57:08.36\00:57:11.01
teach them
what's right and wrong.
00:57:11.04\00:57:12.44
Father, give us grace.
00:57:12.47\00:57:16.57
I want to pray for every person
here, I pray that you'll be
00:57:16.61\00:57:20.53
with their homes, with
their families, and help them
00:57:20.56\00:57:23.97
to be making decisions in
their daily lives that indicate
00:57:24.01\00:57:27.64
that their real priorities
are not in this world.
00:57:27.67\00:57:29.68
It doesn't mean that
we can't have a little fun
00:57:29.71\00:57:31.65
every now and then, of course,
You've said that You've come
00:57:31.69\00:57:34.03
that our life might be
full of joy, and that we might
00:57:34.06\00:57:36.15
have life and have it
more abundantly, but Father,
00:57:36.19\00:57:38.63
help us, as Peter said,
and as Paul said, to be sober
00:57:38.67\00:57:42.10
and to be serious about the
times in which we're living.
00:57:42.13\00:57:45.53
Father thank you for
bringing us here tonight,
00:57:45.56\00:57:46.94
bring us back safely tomorrow
night, and bind our hearts
00:57:46.98\00:57:51.19
together with Your
heart, we ask in Jesus' name
00:57:51.22\00:57:53.78
let everyone say amen.
00:57:53.81\00:57:57.12