Participants: Pr. Stephen Bohr
Series Code: GAB
Program Code: GAB000010
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01:12 Our Father and our God,
01:16 we're thankful for the privilege of being Your children. 01:20 We're thankful because we are able to belong 01:22 to Your family on earth. 01:26 A family that is preparing for the glorious 01:29 and marvelous second coming of Jesus. 01:32 And Father, as we study in our subject today 01:37 about the Overmastering Delusion that is gonna take place 01:42 just before the coming of Jesus. 01:45 We ask for wisdom from on high, 01:48 we ask for the presence of the Holy Spirit. 01:51 We thank you Father, for the promise 01:53 that You will answer our prayer when we come in faith. 01:57 And so we ask and that You will answer us 01:59 because we ask it in the precious name 02:01 of Jesus Your Son, amen. 02:07 I'd like us to transport ourselves in our minds 02:11 to the time immediately before the first coming of Jesus. 02:18 Now we all know that when Jesus came 02:22 the Jewish nation was expecting the Messiah to come. 02:30 In fact they all claimed to be followers of the Messiah 02:36 and they believed that they understood the prophecies 02:40 which announce the coming of the Messiah 02:44 and prophecies there were many. 02:47 They were prophecies about the fact 02:49 that there would be a forerunner to the Messiah 02:52 who'd preach to prepare Israel for His coming. 02:55 And of course, they knew about 02:58 the ministry of John the Baptist. 03:01 And actually there was a lot of excitement among the Jews 03:04 because John the Baptist appeared to be Elijah 03:08 the precursor, the one who would prepare the way for the Messiah. 03:13 Of course, they knew that 03:15 the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. 03:18 By the 70 weeks, they knew 03:19 that at some point the Messiah would be anointed. 03:24 They also knew by Isaiah 53, 03:27 that the Messiah at some point would be cut off. 03:30 In other words He was to die as a lamb 03:33 taken to the slaughter and not opening up His mouth. 03:38 They also knew that lots were gonna be cast over His garments. 03:43 They knew as well that on the cross 03:45 He was going to say I thirst 03:48 and "Into your hands I commit My spirit" 03:51 and "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" 03:54 All of these things were prophesied 03:57 in the Old Testament messianic prophecies. 04:02 And yet in spite of the fact that they professed 04:04 to believe in the Messiah, 04:06 they professed to be expecting and waiting for the Messiah. 04:11 When Messiah showed up they did not receive Him 04:17 in spite of all of these prophecies. 04:20 And so the question surfaces 04:22 why did those who were expecting the Messiah 04:27 not receive Him when He came? 04:31 I believe the answer is very simple 04:33 and you can find it clearly revealed in the gospels. 04:38 And that is that even though they had messianic prophecies 04:42 they actually gave a wrong interpretation 04:45 to those prophecies. 04:48 They actually interpreted the prophecies according 04:51 to the selfish desires of their hearts. 04:54 They did not want the mysterious spiritual 04:57 transforming kingdom that Jesus was going to bring. 05:01 Actually, they wanted an earthly theocracy. 05:05 They wanted a Messiah 05:07 who would be a military commander, 05:09 who would bring order in society by the force of arms, 05:15 destroy the hated Romans, the secular humanists 05:19 if you please of that day and age. 05:22 And to set the Jewish nation 05:26 high above all of the other nations of the world 05:30 with Messiah sitting on a temporal throne. 05:35 You see the problem with the Jews of Christ day 05:38 is that they were expecting the wrong type of Messiah. 05:44 And this is revealed very clearly 05:47 towards the end of the life of Jesus 05:49 when Pilate brought out Jesus and Barabbas 05:52 and he put Jesus and Barabbas side by side. 05:57 And he said to those who were gathered there, 05:59 the Jewish leaders and many among the Jews 06:02 who had come there at the period of the Passover, 06:06 whom do you want me to release? 06:09 Whom do you want as Messiah? 06:13 Would you like Jesus who is called the Christ 06:17 or would you want Barabbas? 06:20 And by the way most likely Barabbas was also called Jesus. 06:25 Barabbas. 06:27 So, who do you want Jesus the Christ 06:29 or do you want Jesus Barabbas? 06:31 Which kind of Messiah do you want? 06:36 And of course, we all know the response they made. 06:42 They said release unto us Barabbas. 06:45 This is the kind of Messiah that we want. 06:48 And lead Jesus the Christ to be crucified. 06:54 Now it's important to realize who Barabbas was. 06:58 Notice Luke 23:19. 07:03 Here we find what type of deliverer 07:09 Barabbas envisioned himself to be. 07:12 It says there in Luke 23:19, speaking about Barabbas, 07:17 "Who for a certain sedition made in the city, 07:24 and for murder, was cast into prison." 07:28 In other words Barabbas was a seditionist. 07:33 He was intent on overthrowing the Roman government. 07:38 He was the type of Messiah that the Jews 07:41 were actually expecting and the Jews wanted. 07:45 It's interesting to notice the comment 07:48 that Ellen White makes about Barabbas. 07:50 She has some profound insight into the character of this man, 07:53 his aspirations and the methods which he wished to use. 07:58 Desire of Ages page 733 says this, 08:04 "This man" that is Barabbas "had claimed to be the Messiah. 08:12 He claimed authority to establish 08:16 a different order of things, to set the world right. 08:23 Under satanic delusion" I want you to remember that, 08:27 "under satanic delusion he claimed 08:32 that whatever he could obtain 08:34 by theft and robbery was his own. 08:39 He had done wonderful things through satanic agencies," 08:44 gives the impression that he had done miraculous works. 08:49 Once again "He had done wonderful things 08:51 through satanic agencies, he had gained a following 08:57 among the people and had excited sedition 09:03 against the Roman government. 09:07 Under cover of religious enthusiasm he was a hardened 09:12 and desperate villain, bent on rebellion and cruelty." 09:19 And so Pilate presented 09:22 the two potential Messiah's before the people. 09:27 Jesus the holy, blameless, innocent one 09:32 who came to bring the spiritual kingdom of Jesus 09:35 in the heart and Barabbas the other so called messiah 09:42 who wanted to establish the kingdom 09:45 by force from outside. 09:48 In other words a spiritual kingdom 09:51 versus a temporal political kingdom. 09:58 Now Jesus had taught all through out His ministry 10:01 that before the literal kingdom could be inherited 10:06 it was necessary to have Christ's 10:08 spiritual kingdom implanted in the heart. 10:13 In other words the preparation for ruling 10:15 in Christ's glorious kingdom was found in living 10:19 the message of the beatitudes. 10:22 Blessed are the peacemakers, 10:25 blessed are the pure in heart et cetera, et cetera. 10:29 In other words, the heart had to be transformed 10:32 in order to prepare the individual 10:34 to participate in the glorious kingdom. 10:39 But what the people of that they wanted, 10:41 they wanted the glorious kingdom 10:43 without the preparatory work 10:46 of the Holy Spirit in the hearts. 10:48 They wanted a kingdom imposed from outside 10:52 not a kingdom implanted upon the heart. 10:56 Notice what Jesus said in Luke 17:20-25. 11:01 Luke 17: 20-25. 11:05 It says here, "Now when He was asked by the Pharisees 11:10 when the kingdom of God would come, 11:13 He answered them and said," 11:16 now notice because when the Pharisees 11:18 actually wanted to know when the kingdom would come 11:21 they had a certain idea about the kingdom. 11:24 They had the idea of the kingdom of Barabbas. 11:27 Someone who would arise, rally the troops 11:31 and from outside defeat the Romans 11:33 and establish an earthly temporal kingdom 11:35 with Messiah reigning on the throne in Jerusalem. 11:39 But notice what Jesus says, 11:42 "Now when He was asked by the Pharisees 11:43 when the kingdom of God would come, 11:46 He answered them and said, 11:48 'The kingdom of God does not come with observation,'" 11:53 that's an old English word. 11:54 Basically what it means with external show 11:57 of power and force. 12:03 In other words, "The kingdom of God 12:04 does not come with observation, nor," notice, 12:10 "nor will they say, 'See here' or 'See there!' 12:15 For indeed the kingdom of God" is where? 12:20 "The kingdom of our God is within you." 12:25 And then I want you to notice the passage 12:27 that continues in verse 22, 12:29 "Then He said to the disciples, 12:32 'The days will come when you will desire 12:34 to see one of the days of the Son of Man, 12:37 and you will not see it. 12:41 And they will say to you," now here is the critical point. 12:44 Jesus says the kingdom has to be in you. 12:47 But now notice what we find in verse 23 12:49 "And they will say to you 'Look here!' or 'Look there!' 12:55 Do not go after them or follow them. 12:59 For as the lightning that flashes out of one part 13:02 under heaven shines to the other part of heaven, 13:06 so also the Son of Man will be in His day." 13:11 Do you notice here that first of all 13:12 you have the kingdom planted in the heart 13:15 and then later when Jesus comes 13:17 you have the glorious kingdom. 13:20 But the Jews have Christ day failed to understand this. 13:25 And therefore they rejected the Messiah. 13:28 And what happened that in the year 70 13:32 because of the rejection of the spiritual Messiah 13:35 with his spiritual kingdom Jerusalem was destroyed, 13:42 the temple was destroyed. 13:45 And the Jews were scattered 13:47 to all of the four corners of the earth. 13:52 Now this destruction of Jerusalem 13:54 is really a type or a symbol 13:57 of what is gonna happen at the end of time. 13:59 If you read Matthew Chapter 24, the disciples asked 14:03 Jesus two questions, when will these things be, 14:07 when will the destruction of Jerusalem be 14:09 and what sign will there be of Your coming 14:12 and of the end of the world? 14:15 So what happened in relationship 14:16 to the Jewish nation is going to take place again 14:21 but it's going to be on a global worldwide scale. 14:27 So let's take a look now that we've studied 14:30 what happened with the Jewish nation. 14:32 Let's take a look at what scripture says 14:36 about the reaction of the Christian world 14:42 to the coming of the Messiah at His second coming. 14:46 Go with me to 2 Thessalonians Chapter 2 14:50 and we're gonna read verses 1 through 8 first of all. 14:53 And I'm not gonna dwell a lot upon these verses 14:57 because I've studied them before with the church. 15:00 I want to deal particularly with verses 9 to 13 15:04 but in order to understand verses 9 through 13 15:07 we need to say a few things about verses 1 through 8 15:11 and as I'm reading along I'm going to interject 15:14 some thoughts to refresh our memory 15:16 about the meaning of these verses. 15:20 Here the Apostle Paul says 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 15:25 "Now, brethren, concerning the coming" 15:30 that word for coming there is very important 15:33 it's the Greek word "Parousia," 15:36 I want you to remember that. 15:37 The Greek word "Parousia" 15:39 describes the second coming of Jesus. 15:41 "Now, brethren, concerning the coming or Parousia 15:45 of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together 15:49 to Him, we ask you, 15:52 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, 15:56 wither by spirit or by word or by letter, 16:01 as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come." 16:07 In other words, the Apostle Paul is saying folks, 16:09 don't let anybody convince you 16:11 that the day of Christ has already come. 16:14 Don't let anybody convince you 16:16 that the parousia has come 16:18 or even that the parousia 16:20 or the coming of Jesus is imminent. 16:24 Now notice verse 3, 16:26 "Let no one deceive you 16:31 by any means, for that Day," 16:35 that is the day of the parousia they of the coming of Jesus 16:39 also called the day of Christ here "for that Day" 16:43 the day of the coming of Christ 16:45 "will not come unless 16:48 the falling away comes first." 16:54 Now that expression falling away 16:58 in the original language is the Greek word "Apostasia." 17:04 In English it's "Apostasy." 17:10 So first you have the apostasy and then after the apostasy 17:15 you have the parousia or the glorious coming of Jesus. 17:22 It continues saying, "for that Day will not come 17:25 unless the apostasy comes first." 17:29 And now notice what is connected with that apostasy? 17:33 "And the man of sin is revealed." 17:36 Let me ask you what is sin? 17:40 As good Adventist you know the answer to that. 17:42 First John 3:4. 17:45 It says very clearly there 17:47 that sin is the transgression of the law. 17:51 So is this man of sin going to encourage people 17:55 to break God's holy law? Absolutely. 17:59 And so it says, until the man of sin is revealed. 18:03 Must he have been concealed before that? Obviously. 18:07 And now notice what he is called the son of perdition. 18:14 In our last subject together 18:15 we studied about the son of perdition. 18:18 Who was that son of perdition? Judas Iscariot. 18:23 Of course, Judas Iscariot was an open apostate. 18:26 He blasphemed Jesus. 18:29 He was an atheist, right? No. 18:33 Was Judas part of the inter circle? 18:36 No, certainly. 18:38 Did he have the disciples deceived even till 18:40 when Jesus sent him out from the upper room? Absolutely. 18:46 Did he actually claim to be following the Messiah? 18:51 He even betrayed Jesus, how? 18:54 With a kiss. 18:56 In other words, this antichrist so called 18:59 is not gonna be some blasphemous individual 19:03 who is going to defy openly Jesus 19:06 but he's gonna be like Judas. 19:09 He's got to claim to be a follower of Jesus, 19:12 claiming to support Jesus but in an underhanded way 19:16 he is going to betray the cause of Jesus. 19:22 And so it says, here the son of perdition 19:25 who opposes and exalts "himself above all that is called God 19:33 or that is worshipped, so that he sits 19:36 as God in the temple of God 19:40 showing himself that he is God." 19:46 Now notice here that he's gonna sit in the temple of God. 19:49 This has led many protestant Christians to say 19:53 that the Jerusalem temple is gonna be rebuilt. 19:56 And this son of perdition is going to sit 20:00 in a rebuilt Jerusalem temple in the Middle East. 20:04 And he's gonna claim to be God. 20:07 And most of the world is gonna come 20:08 and is gonna worship him as God there in the Jerusalem temple. 20:13 But the simple fact is folks, that the Apostle Paul 20:17 uses that expression temple of God 20:20 many other times in his writings. 20:22 First Corinthians 3:16, 17, Ephesians 2:20-22, 20:26 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20 among other texts 20:30 and every single time that the Apostle Paul 20:33 uses the expression temple of God 20:35 he is referring to the Church, 20:39 he is referring to the Ephesians church, 20:41 he is referring to the Corinthian church, 20:43 in other word the temple of God 20:45 is not some rebuilt Jewish temple, 20:48 the temple of God spiritually speaking is the church, 20:51 built upon the foundation, spiritual foundations 20:54 of the apostles and the prophets a spiritual chief corner stone 20:58 Jesus Christ and spiritual stones 21:01 according to 1 Peter Chapter 2 21:02 being built on the foundation and on the corner stone. 21:07 In other words, this antichrist is not gonna sit 21:10 in a rebuilt Jerusalem temple, 21:12 he is going to sit within the Christian church. 21:17 Of course, that's where you would 21:18 expect him to sit if he's gonna be like Judas. 21:20 He's gonna be right near Christ. 21:23 He's gonna be right near Christianity, in other words. 21:26 And then the Apostle Paul says in verse 5, 21:29 "Do you not remember that when I was still with you, 21:32 I told you these things 21:36 and now you know what is restraining." 21:40 So, there was something that was restraining 21:42 this man of sin, the son of perdition, 21:45 this individual who's gonna sit in the church 21:47 something was retraining him from manifesting himself. 21:50 The question is what was it that was restraining him? 21:54 According to all of the early church fathers 21:57 that I have read they understood 22:00 because they were living during this period. 22:03 They understood the restrainer to be the Roman Empire. 22:08 Particularly the civil power, 22:11 the secular ruling power of that day and age. 22:14 In other words, secular Rome or the Empire of Rome 22:18 had to be removed as a ruling power 22:21 so that this power could manifest itself. 22:25 And of course we know that in the course of time 22:28 according to Revelation 13:2 22:30 that the Empire of Rome gave his seat, 22:34 his power and his authority to the beast 22:38 who is the same as the man of sin. 22:41 In other words, the Roman Empire as the ruling entity 22:45 was taken away and in its place sat a system 22:51 which still exist today known as a Roman Catholic Papacy. 22:59 So the Apostle Paul says, 23:01 "And now you know what is restraining, 23:05 that he may be revealed in his own time." 23:07 Of course, that time is the prophecy 23:10 of the 1260 years. 23:12 God said that He would reign time, 23:14 times and dividing of time. 23:15 In other words, He was supposed to arise at a certain time. 23:20 But then the Apostle Paul in verse 7 says, 23:22 "For the mystery of lawlessness," 23:25 knows against the emphasis 23:26 that this is gonna be a lawless system, 23:29 "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work." 23:33 See even in Paul's day this spirit of antichrist, 23:37 the spirit of lawlessness was wanting to manifest itself. 23:42 And then Paul repeats 23:44 "only He who now restraints will do so until 23:49 He is taken out of the way." 23:53 So we find here in a nutshell 23:58 what the Apostle Paul has to say about the concealment 24:02 and the revealing of the antichrist. 24:06 But as I was mentioning the particular verses 24:08 that I'm interested in are verse 8 through 12. 24:14 So let's go to verses 8 through 12. 24:17 What's gonna happen, when this system is fully revealed 24:22 and when its leader is fully revealed? 24:26 Notice, "and then," that is when the restraining power 24:32 is taken away and may be I need to make a note of explanation. 24:35 The restraining power was taken away 24:38 when the Roman Empire stepped out of the way 24:41 and the Roman Catholic Papacy ruled. 24:44 However, in 1798 the civil power took over again 24:49 because it gave the papacy a deadly wound. 24:53 And so for 200 years according to even Malachi Martin 24:56 who was a Jesuit before he died. 25:00 During these 200 years the civil powers of the world 25:04 have ruled but scripture says 25:06 that the deadly wound is gonna be what? Healed. 25:09 In other words, the civil power is gonna step aside 25:12 and is going to give ruler-ship to the same system 25:14 which exercise ruler-ship during the 1260 years. 25:18 So this prophecy not only carries us to 1798, 25:21 this prophecy carries us to the very end of time 25:24 when the civil powers of the world 25:26 which have stepped back 25:28 and said we're not gonna support this system 25:31 or eventually going to support this system. 25:34 In other words, they are gonna allow this system to rule 25:38 and that's what this period is speaking about. 25:40 And so it says, and then the lawless one will be revealed. 25:45 That word revealed is the Greek word "apocalypsis." 25:50 Its one of the three key words that I use to describe 25:53 the second coming of Jesus. 25:55 There's actually three key words one is the word "parousia" 25:59 the second word is "epiphania" and this word "apocolypsis." 26:06 All three words describe the second coming of Jesus. 26:10 So let me ask you is the lawless one going to have 26:15 a second coming before Jesus has His second coming? 26:18 Sure, it's indicated by the word. 26:21 "And then the lawless one will be revealed, 26:26 whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth 26:30 and destroy with the brightness of His" parousia. 26:37 Do you see that there's two coming here. 26:39 One is the coming of the lawless one 26:43 the apocalypse of the lawless one if you please. 26:47 And he's gonna be revealed and then Jesus is gonna destroy him 26:51 with the brightness of his parousia or his coming. 26:56 In other words, we have two comings here 26:59 we have the coming of the lawless one the antichrist 27:01 and we also have the coming or the parousia of Christ. 27:04 Now you're saying, yeah but the word apocalypse 27:06 is used not the word parousia 27:08 to describe this counterfeit second coming. 27:10 Well, the fact is if you go with me to verse 9 27:13 you gonna notice that the word parousia 27:15 is also used to describe the coming 27:17 of the counterfeit lawless one. 27:20 It says there in verse 9 the coming parousia, 27:28 "The coming of the lawless one 27:31 is according to the working of Satan." 27:36 So, is Satan gonna have his parousia? 27:41 Is he gonna have his apocalypse or his revelation? 27:45 Yes, both words are used. 27:47 He will be revealed, he will have his apocalypse 27:50 and the lawless one will have his parousia. 27:53 The lawless one will have in other words, his coming. 27:58 Is that coming gonna take place before the coming of Jesus? 28:01 It must be, because at the coming of Jesus he's destroyed 28:04 so he can't have his parousia after he's destroyed. 28:08 So, it must be that he's going to have a coming, 28:10 a counterfeit coming before the glorious coming of Jesus. 28:16 Now go with me to Acts 2:22. 28:21 Acts 2: 22, very interesting verse. 28:29 You'll notice here in 2 Thessalonians 2 28:36 that it speaks about this lawless one, 28:39 the coming of the lawless one is according 28:41 to the working of Satan and now notice 28:43 "with all power, signs" and what? 28:48 "And lying wonders." 28:52 Now do you know that there's only one other verse 28:55 in the whole Bible that uses this combination of three words? 28:58 The three words power, signs and wonders? 29:01 Only one other verse 29:03 in all of the Bible that uses these identical 29:06 three Greek words they are not translated the same 29:09 but they are the three identical original words 29:12 and they're found in Acts 2:22 29:15 and notice who is speaking about in Acts 2:22. 29:20 Here Peter is speaking on the day of Pentecost 29:22 and he says "Men of Israel, hear these words. 29:26 Jesus of Nazareth, 29:29 a Man attested by God to you" by what? 29:35 "By miracles, wonders and signs 29:42 which God did through Him in your midst, 29:45 as you yourselves also know." 29:48 So accordingto Acts 2:22 who did the power, 29:52 the signs and the wonders? Jesus did. 29:55 God through Jesus. 29:57 But in 2 Thessalonians Chapter 2 30:00 we're told that the signs 30:03 and the power and the wonders 30:04 are going to be done by whom? 30:07 By the lawless one, the antichrist 30:10 and his false apocalypse or his false parousia. 30:16 Must this mean then that 30:19 this antichrist is going to do many of the same things 30:23 that Jesus did while He was on earth? 30:27 Do you think he's gonna perform 30:28 many of the miracles that Jesus performed? 30:31 Many of the signs that Jesus performed? 30:34 Is he gonna teach 30:35 many of the things that Jesus taught? 30:38 Yes, because the same words are used for Christ 30:41 and they're also used for this lawless one 30:46 who comes according to the working. 30:48 In other words, he works the works of Satan. 30:53 Now let's go back to verse 9 30:56 "The coming of a lawless one" 30:58 see once again the emphasis on trampling on the law 31:02 "is according to the working of Satan 31:05 with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 31:09 and with all unrighteous deception 31:13 among those who" what? 31:15 "Parish." 31:16 Who are gonna be deceived? Those who parish. 31:21 Now the question is why are they gonna be deceived? 31:25 And why are they gonna parish? 31:27 We have explanation here in the text. 31:31 "Because they did not receive" 31:35 notice this, "the love of the truth, 31:41 that they might be saved." 31:45 Why is it that they are deceived? 31:47 Because they don't receive the love of the truth. 31:51 Now here's my question, which truth? 31:56 Well, you say truth in general. 32:00 All of the truths of the Bible, 32:01 they didn't believe in all of the truths of the Bible. 32:05 According to the context there's one particular truth 32:08 that has being spoken about here. 32:10 It's not truth in general, 32:12 it's not the truth about the state of the dead 32:14 and in truth about the Sabbath, the truth about health reform, 32:16 the truth about tithing, the truth about marriage 32:19 all of the truths that we hold here, 32:21 although all of those are important in antichrist 32:23 and one way or the other is gonna attacked those 32:25 but there's one particular truth which is in view here. 32:31 Let's continue reading. 32:33 "Because they did not receive the love of the truth 32:38 that they might be saved. 32:41 For this reason God will send them strong delusion." 32:44 When it says that God sends them strong delusion 32:46 it means that they want to be deluded 32:48 so God steps back He says, okay, 32:50 if you want antichrist that's fine. 32:53 You have freedom of choice. 32:54 I'm sorry, I'm sad, I wish you could be saved, 32:57 I don't want you deceived 32:58 but I have to respect your freedom of choice. 33:02 And so God steps back 33:04 and in the Bible what God allows the Bible attributes to God. 33:09 Remember the Book of Job, 33:11 what God allowed is attributed to God. 33:13 God doesn't actively do what 33:15 people choose and God steps back 33:17 and then Satan does it according to this. 33:21 And so it says, "And for this reason 33:23 God will send them strong delusion." 33:26 Now notice this, 33:27 "that they should believe the lie." 33:35 Now in the King James Version it says 33:37 that they should believe a lie. 33:41 But in the Greek language in which the New Testament 33:43 was written the word lie 33:46 is accompanied by the definite article "the." 33:52 In other words, this isn't general lies 33:55 this is a specific lie. 33:58 In other words, they-- they are deceived, 34:03 they follow a strong delusion according to this 34:07 because they believe what, "the lie." 34:11 Now the question is what is the lie 34:13 that they are believing in the context of this passage? 34:19 What is the lie? 34:21 We have a counterfeit what here? 34:23 We have a counterfeit second coming 34:27 of the lawless one. 34:29 He performs signs and wonders and miracles. 34:33 In other words, his counterfeiting what? 34:37 The second coming of Jesus. 34:38 This is the lie that the world is gonna receive. 34:43 How many are gonna receive it? 34:46 Of course, just the Muslims and Buddhists and the Hindus. 34:51 Think again. 34:54 It's the Christian world which is gonna be received 34:58 because this antichrist as we've already identified him 35:02 sits in the temple of God. 35:05 He's like Judas Iscariot. He's an insider. 35:11 He's a pagan if you please disguised as a Christian 35:17 and we're talking about a system here. 35:20 So in other words, people are gonna be deluded 35:23 because they believed the lie. 35:27 Now notice verse 12, "That they may all be condemned 35:32 who did not believe" what? 35:35 There it is again "the truth." Which truth? 35:39 The true about Christ's coming. 35:42 The truth about how Jesus is going to really come 35:46 but they had pleasure in what? 35:48 They had pleasure in unrighteousness. 35:54 Let me ask you, are there many prophecies in scripture 35:56 about how things are going to transpire in the end time? 36:00 Are there an abundance of Bible prophecies 36:03 about the manner in which Jesus will come? 36:07 Absolutely. 36:08 And the order of events which will take place 36:10 before Jesus comes do we have many? 36:13 Yes, we have many like the Jews had 36:15 many prophecies about the Messiah. 36:18 Does this prophecy clearly show 36:20 that there's gonna be an apostasy in the church 36:23 and then Jesus is gonna come? 36:26 But what does the Christian world teach today? 36:30 At least the conservative branch of Protestantism says 36:33 that the church is gonna be ruptured to heaven 36:36 and then the apostasy is gonna come. 36:40 Then the tribulation is gonna come 36:44 and they're gonna find themselves 36:45 in the midst of the great tribulation 36:47 without having prepared for it 36:49 because they did not believe 36:51 that they were gonna go through it. 36:54 And they'll be leaving themselves 36:55 wide open to the deceptions of this antichrist. 37:01 Scripture makes it very clear 37:03 that there's gonna be a huge apostasy 37:05 within the Christian church 37:06 and then afterwards Jesus is coming 37:08 in His glorious coming. 37:10 My, my question is this, 37:11 if there's going to be a great apostasy in the church 37:14 it must mean that the church was not ruptured to heaven? 37:20 If the temple is the church 37:21 and there's gonna be a Judas who claims to be a Christian 37:24 so much for the idea 37:25 that prophecy applies to the Jews. 37:28 See that's a distraction of the devil. 37:31 He wants you to think 37:32 that the controversy is over there. 37:35 When the controversy is taking place 37:37 in the United States, in the Rome 37:38 and you can't see it 37:39 because you're looking in the wrong place. 37:43 The devil is a master at smoke screens, 37:46 at making you think 37:48 that the controversy is were it really isn't. 37:51 Let me ask you what kind of Kingdom 37:56 do Protestants in the United States 37:57 want to establish? 38:00 Is it that mysterious Kingdom 38:02 for God through His Holy Spirit 38:06 implants the law upon the heart 38:10 or is it a kingdom 38:13 where morality needs to be legislated from outside, 38:19 a theocratic kingdom where things need to be changed? 38:24 Perhaps by Capitol Hill 38:27 maybe even by the force of arms, 38:30 by legislation, impulse from outside 38:35 and not implanted in the heart. 38:38 Isn't that the same thing that Barabbas longed for? 38:41 Isn't that the type of Messiah 38:44 that the Jews desired in Christ day? 38:47 See the idea is that Jesus is gonna come 38:50 and He's gonna set up 38:51 His millennial kingdom here on earth. 38:54 And is gonna sit on the throne of David 38:56 and He's going to rule the nations like a rod of iron 39:00 and of course He's gonna favor all of Christians. 39:07 But what the Christian world wants 39:08 is they want the kingdom 39:09 without the preparatory work in the heart. 39:13 The work of the Holy Spirit in transforming the character, 39:16 transforming the life, planting the law in the heart 39:20 so that we love Jesus and keep His commandments 39:23 not because the government says so 39:25 but because the Holy Spirit says so. 39:32 And you know what when Christians believe 39:34 that there's going to be an earthly millennium 39:35 with Jesus seated on the throne 39:37 they are leaving themselves wide open 39:39 for the final deception of Satan 39:40 and the counterfeit second coming. 39:43 Because if you're expecting Jesus to come 39:45 and stay on this earth at His second coming 39:51 then this lawless one who will be here 39:55 will easily convince people that he is Christ. 40:02 Ellen White says in Great Controversy page 23, 40:05 "The great sin of the Jews was their rejection of Christ. 40:12 The great sin of the Christian world 40:14 would be the rejection of the law of God 40:16 the foundation of his government in Heaven and in earth." 40:19 You say, well, 40:21 where's the similarity 40:22 between rejecting Christ and rejecting the law? 40:25 Well, the fact is very simple 40:27 that the law is a reflection of the character of Christ. 40:31 Christ is the embodiment of the law. 40:35 Allow me to read you 40:36 this interesting statement from the book-- 40:39 actually from Signs of the Times, 40:40 November 15, 1899. 40:42 There's a beautiful, beautiful passage from Ellen White 40:45 "As speech is to thought, 40:48 so is Christ to the invisible God. 40:51 He is the manifestation of the Father, 40:54 and is called the Word of God. 40:57 God sent His Son into the world, 41:01 His divinity clothed with humanity, 41:04 to make known in His life 41:06 and character the attributes of the Father, 41:09 that men might bear the image and attributes 41:14 of the Father, of the invisible God." 41:18 And not notice this "He" that is Jesus 41:20 "was the embodiment of the law of God, 41:24 which is the transcript of His character." 41:27 So you want to know 41:28 what the law is just look at Jesus. 41:32 You want to know what it is to keep the law 41:33 just look at Jesus 41:36 because Jesus is the, gives the law body 41:39 He makes the law personal. 41:43 And of course Jesus lived His life 41:44 because Holy Spirit was in His life 41:47 not because He was required to do so. 41:50 And you say that Pastor Bohr, how can you say 41:52 that the Christian world is gonna be lawless 41:54 shortly before the second coming of Jesus? 41:58 Aren't they fighting to have 42:00 the Ten Commandments put in the courtrooms 42:02 and in public schools and in the legislatures? 42:06 Isn't the Christian world 42:07 really fighting for the Ten Commandments? 42:09 Yeah, that's just the problem they're fighting 42:12 to place the Ten Commandments outside, 42:14 when the Ten Commandments should be placed inside. 42:19 I delight to do thy will, thy law is where? 42:24 Thy law is within my heart. 42:30 Now there's a impressive passage in the Spirit of Prophecy 42:32 that I want to read. 42:35 It's a rather long passage 42:37 where Ellen White picks up on what we studied 42:39 from 2 Thessalonians Chapter 2 42:41 about the lawless one 42:43 counterfeiting the second coming of Jesus. 42:44 Having his apocalypse, having his parousia 42:48 in performing signs and miracles and wonders. 42:52 Ellen White comments on this passage 42:53 and I want to read it. 42:54 It's found in the book 42:55 Great Controversy pages 625 and 626. 42:58 Listen to this. 43:00 "As the crowning act in the great drama of deception, 43:07 Satan himself will personate Christ. 43:11 The church has long professed to look to the Savior's advent 43:15 as the consummation of her hopes. 43:18 Now the great deceiver will make it appear that Christ has come. 43:23 In different parts of the earth, 43:26 Satan will manifest himself among men 43:30 as a majestic being of dazzling brightness, 43:35 resembling the description of the Son of God 43:37 given by John in the Revelation. 43:40 The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed 43:43 by anything that mortal eyes have yet beheld. 43:47 The shout of triumph rings out in the air, 43:51 'Christ has come! Christ has come!' 43:56 The people prostrate themselves in adoration before him, 44:00 while he lifts up his hands 44:02 and pronounces a blessing upon them, 44:04 as Christ blessed His disciples when He was upon the earth. 44:09 His voice is soft and subdued, 44:14 yet full of melody." 44:17 You know, devil can be melodious. 44:20 "In gentle, compassionate tones 44:24 he presents some of the same gracious, heavenly truths 44:29 which the Savior uttered 44:32 he heals the diseases of the people, 44:36 and then, in his assumed character of Christ, 44:40 he claims to have changed the Sabbath to Sunday, 44:43 and commands all to hallow the day 44:46 which he has blessed. 44:49 He declares that those who persist in keeping holy 44:51 the seventh day are blaspheming his name 44:54 by refusing to listen to his angels 44:56 sent to them with light and truth." 44:59 And now notice this, 45:00 this is where I got the title from. 45:02 "This is the strong, 45:05 almost overmastering delusion." 45:10 She's referring to 2 Thessalonians 2. 45:13 Now it's almost for the Saints. It is not almost for the rest. 45:20 She continues saying 45:22 how are we gonna protect ourselves when this comes? 45:25 She says "But the people of God will not be misled. 45:29 The teachings of this false Christ 45:32 are not in accordance with the Scriptures." 45:38 You know sometimes we're not able to answer 45:40 the devil it is written 45:41 because we don't know where it's written. 45:45 And worse yet there are many Adventists 45:47 that can't answer it is written 45:48 because they don't even know if it's written. 45:53 I have somebody say, oh, pastor I don't much care 45:55 what's coming all I care is who's coming. 45:59 Well, I said if you don't know what's coming 46:01 you're going to accept the wrong who. 46:06 It's time that we get to our Bibles and study 46:10 and understand what is happening in, 46:12 what's going to happen. 46:13 Because folks, if we don't we will be swept 46:17 by this counterfeit second coming 46:19 and by the events that take place 46:20 in the religious world. 46:21 It's guaranteed. 46:24 She says the teachings of this false Christ 46:26 are not in accordance with the Scriptures. 46:28 "His blessing is pronounced upon the worshipers 46:30 of the beast and his image, 46:33 the very class upon whom the Bible declares 46:35 that God's unmingled wrath shall be poured out." 46:39 And furthermore-- see first of all its teachings 46:43 are not in harmony with scripture. 46:46 He's saying that God is gonna bless 46:47 Sunday keepers instead of Sabbath keepers. 46:50 So his teachings are wrong. 46:52 But now notice "And, furthermore, 46:54 Satan is not permitted to counterfeit 46:57 the manner of Christ's coming." 47:00 In other words, the way in which Christ will come. 47:03 "The Savior has warned His people 47:05 against deception upon this point, 47:07 and has clearly foretold the manner of His second coming. 47:12 This coming there is no possibility of counterfeiting. 47:15 It will be universally known-- witnessed by the whole world." 47:20 You say, oh, well, piece of cake then. 47:24 When that antichrist touches this earth 47:26 I'll know it's not Jesus, 47:27 its one thing to have it up here, 47:30 it's another thing to have a down here. 47:34 She continues saying, 47:36 "Only those who have been 47:37 diligent students of the Scriptures 47:39 and who have received the love of the truth" 47:42 notice that " the love of the truth 47:44 will be shielded from the powerful delusion 47:47 that takes the world captive. 47:49 By the Bible testimony these will detect 47:51 the deceiver in his disguise. 47:54 To all the testing time will come. 47:56 By the sifting of temptation 47:58 the genuine Christian will be revealed." 48:00 And now she makes 48:02 this very significant statement to Adventists. 48:05 She says this "Are the people of God 48:08 now so firmly established upon His word 48:12 that they would not yield 48:13 to the evidence of their senses?" 48:17 You see it, you hear it, you feel it 48:21 but you say it is not Christ. 48:24 "Are the people of God 48:25 now so firmly established upon His word 48:28 that they would not yield to the evidence of their senses? 48:30 Would they, in such a crisis, 48:32 cling to the Bible and the Bible only? 48:37 Satan will, if possible, prevent them 48:40 from obtaining a preparation to stand in that day. 48:43 He will so arrange affairs as to hedge up their way," 48:46 listen to this, "entangle them with earthly treasures, 48:52 cause them to carry a heavy, wearisome burden, 48:56 that their hearts may be overcharged 48:58 with the cares of this life 49:00 and the day of trial may come upon them as a thief." 49:04 See even our everyday activities can get 49:06 in the way of our spiritual relationship with Jesus. 49:09 I was saying in my Sabbath school classes this morning, 49:11 things that are not bad in themselves 49:14 but if they absorb all of our time 49:15 and all of our attention they distract us from praying, 49:18 from studying the Word, from witnessing to others 49:21 even that which is good 49:22 can become a detriment to our spiritual life. 49:26 The rat race of life 49:27 that's what the cares of this life means. 49:32 So its that important for us to know how Jesus will come. 49:36 Allow me to share with you as we near in end. 49:40 Several passages which clearly reveal 49:43 how Jesus will come. 49:45 John 14:1-3. 49:49 Very well know we can repeat it from memory, 49:52 "Let not your heart be troubled 49:55 you believe in God believe also in Me. 49:58 In my Father's house are many mansions." 50:01 Where's the Father's house? In heaven, thank you. 50:04 "In my Father's house are many mansions, 50:06 if it were not so, I would have told you. 50:09 I go to prepare a place for you." 50:12 Where did Jesus go to prepare the place? 50:14 To His Father's house, right. 50:15 "I go to prepare a place for you 50:17 and if I'd go and prepare a place for you, 50:22 I will come again" and stay with you. 50:27 No, "I will come again and receive you to Myself 50:32 that were I am" that is in the Father's house, 50:35 "that where I am, there you may be also." 50:41 Notice Acts 1:9-11 these are well known verses 50:45 but its good to review important things isn't it. 50:47 It's got to remember these passages. 50:49 Acts 1:9-11 50:51 it says, "Now when He had spoken these things, 50:54 while they watched," 50:55 that is the disciples on the Mount of Olives 50:57 "He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 51:02 And while they look steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, 51:05 behold, two men stood by them in white apparel," 51:09 the men are angels 51:10 "who also said, 'Men of Galilee, 51:14 why do you stand gazing up into heaven? 51:18 This same Jesus, 51:23 who was taken up from you into heaven, 51:27 will so come in like manner 51:31 as you have seen Him go into heaven." 51:37 Is Jesus going to return 51:39 in the same way in which He left? 51:41 Yes. Could the disciples see it? 51:44 Yes. 51:46 So much for the idea 51:47 of an invisible coming of Jesus called the rapture 51:52 where people will suddenly disappear 51:55 because Jesus came secretly for them. 51:59 Scripture says that when Jesus comes 52:01 He will be seen the same way as when He left. 52:07 Notice Matthew 24:23-27 Jesus warned us about this. 52:13 "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look here is the Christ' 52:16 or 'There!' do not believe it. 52:19 For false Christ and false profits will rise 52:22 and show great signs and wonders to deceive," 52:25 who is the target? If possible the very elect. 52:30 That's why it's the almost overmastering delusion. 52:33 If possible the elect. 52:35 See it's not possible its almost overpowering the saints. 52:42 And now notice "See I have told you beforehand," 52:45 Jesus said I warned you. 52:50 "Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!'" 52:55 go take a peek. 52:58 "Don't go out or 'Look He is in the inner rooms! 53:03 do not believe it. 53:06 For as the lightning comes from the east 53:08 and flashes to the west, 53:10 so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." 53:13 It will be as clear and is visible 53:16 as a bolt of lightening in the sky. 53:20 Notice Matthew 24:31, 53:23 speaking about the coming the glorious coming of Jesus is 53:26 and He will send His angels. 53:30 What is He gonna do? Why does He send them? 53:41 We must be up here and He what? 53:43 "He sends the angels 53:46 with a great sound of a trumpet," 53:48 and they were what 53:51 "gather together His elect from the four winds, 53:54 from one end of the heaven to the other." 53:57 So He says to these angels 53:58 and his angels do what they gather the elect 54:02 and what do you suppose are gonna do with the elect? 54:08 Have you ever read that it says that they will be caught up 54:11 in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air? 54:13 What are the clouds? Hello. 54:18 If they're caught up in the clouds 54:19 it's because the clouds came 54:20 to pick them up, together them up 54:22 and then the clouds, what? 54:24 Take them up to where Jesus is. 54:28 In fact, notice Revelation 1:7, 54:29 "Behold, He is coming with clouds, 54:34 and almost every eye shall see Him." 54:38 Thank you, still awake out there. 54:41 "And every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him. 54:46 And all the tribes up the earth will mourn because of Him." 54:51 And then of course there's that 54:53 fantastic passage in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, 54:57 the Apostle Paul says "For this we say to you 54:59 by the word of the Lord, 55:00 that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord 55:03 will by no means precede those were asleep. 55:06 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven 55:09 with a" silent shout. 55:12 No, says "with a shout with the voice of an archangel, 55:17 and with the trumpet of God. 55:20 And the dead in Christ will rise first. 55:23 Then we were alive and remain shall be," what? 55:27 "Caught up together with them" in the what? 55:30 "In the clouds" clouds of angels 55:32 "to meet the Lord" where, "in the air 55:37 and thus we shall always be with the Lord." 55:41 Incidentally have you ever read in Revelation Chapter 20 55:46 that after the millennium the wicked around the city 55:48 and inside the city are the saints? 55:51 Well, that city came down at the end of the millennium 55:53 so the saints must've been in the city when it came down. 55:58 So where was the city during the millennium? 56:01 In heaven. 56:05 The devil is preparing the Christian world 56:07 for this great overmastering delusion. 56:10 And he's doing it through the doctrine 56:11 of the immortality of the soul. 56:15 See, it won't be too much of a stretch 56:16 for them to accept a false Christ 56:18 if they become accustomed 56:19 to going by what their senses say 56:21 and by what their feelings and the emotions say. 56:24 That's the way most Christians live 56:26 is from one emotion to another and one feeling to the next. 56:30 And not by a Thus saith the Lord 56:33 and I there say folks, 56:35 that if someday John Paul the second 56:37 or the Super ported spirit of John Paul the second 56:40 should appear in different places of planet Earth 56:43 the majority of the Christian world would believe it 56:46 if you saw His funeral. 56:49 If the virgin marry purported should show up, 56:54 the Christian world would say well it must be Mary. 56:59 But the fact is that the Bible tells us 57:01 that the dead don't know anything. 57:03 The Bible tells us how Jesus is gonna come 57:06 and we simply must live 57:07 by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the God. 57:11 We must learn to live by it is written. 57:15 But in order to live 57:16 by it is written we must read the Bible and study it 57:19 and make it part of fiber of our soul. |
Revised 2014-12-17