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Look Forward with Hope- Minister Max Lucado · Max Lucado Daily Sermons

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Speaker 1: I got a home in glory land and I'll shine
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Speaker 1: the sun.
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Speaker 2: I got a home in glory land and.
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Speaker 3: I'll shine the sun.
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Speaker 4: Way beyond the blue.
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Speaker 2: Do you remember me now? Do you remember me now?
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Speaker 2: Do you remember me now? Do you remember me now?
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Speaker 2: Do you remember me now? Do you remember me now?
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Speaker 3: Today we reach the concluding message of our study in
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Speaker 3: the book of Daniel. I hope you've enjoyed this study
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Speaker 3: as much as I have. Because of travel plans, I'm
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Speaker 3: recording this message in advance, but I want you to
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Speaker 3: know that on the day you study Daniel chapter 12,
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Speaker 3: my heart is going to be with you. Because it's
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Speaker 3: a great opportunity for all of us to thank God
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Speaker 3: for this astounding book that originated in the life of
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Speaker 3: a wonderful man by the name of Daniel some 600
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Speaker 3: years before the life of Jesus Christ. You know, in
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Speaker 3: my time at Oak Hills Church, I've preached well over
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Speaker 3: 50 series to our congregation. But I think I can
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Speaker 3: say this has been the most challenging series to date.
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Speaker 3: This book is stimulating. It's perplexing. It's exciting. And I've
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Speaker 3: done my best to present to you my best take
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Speaker 3: on this wonderful study. What's important in this study is
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Speaker 3: that we understand the big message. And that is that
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Speaker 3: there is a God in heaven. And that he is
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Speaker 3: bringing all of history toward a powerful and decisive victory. Now,
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Speaker 3: no one understands all the details of what's going to
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Speaker 3: happen between now and the end of history. I don't.
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Speaker 3: No Bible student does. And I've simply done my best
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Speaker 3: to unpack to you what seems to me to be
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Speaker 3: a fair interpretation of this wonderful book. And if your
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Speaker 3: study takes you in a little different direction, that's okay.
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Speaker 3: What's important is that we agree that there is a
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Speaker 3: God in heaven and he's going to bring a great
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Speaker 3: victory to this earth. Amen. And that's what matters the most. Well,
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Speaker 3: we're going to dig into chapter 12 and wrap this up,
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Speaker 3: put a ribbon on the book. But before we do,
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Speaker 3: can I say a prayer? And then we'll get to work.
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Speaker 3: Heavenly Father, we thank you now. We thank you for
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Speaker 3: this wonderful book. We thank you for what you've taught
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Speaker 3: us in this study. Lord, it leaves us hungry wanting
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Speaker 3: to know more. We pray you'd forgive our teacher. His
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Speaker 3: sins are many. And we pray, Heavenly Father, that you
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Speaker 3: would please reveal to him and to us just a
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Speaker 3: deeper understanding understanding of what your future is, what you
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Speaker 3: hold for us in the future. And we pray that
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Speaker 3: we could be like Daniel, people who are prepared, people
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Speaker 3: who understand your word, who seek your truth. We pray
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Speaker 3: this for these are difficult, severe days in which we live.
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Speaker 3: And so we pray in the name of Jesus Christ.
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Speaker 3: And all the church said, well, my dad made a
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Speaker 3: big deal out of family vacations. He enjoyed preparing for
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Speaker 3: the vacations as much as the vacation itself. Our vacations
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Speaker 3: always consisted of a long road trip and then some
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Speaker 3: time in a campground in the mountains. Usually the road
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Speaker 3: trip was from West Texas to Colorado. But there were
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Speaker 3: a couple of times we ventured out as far as
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Speaker 3: Yellowstone Park or Yosemite one time to the Grand Canyon.
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Speaker 3: He loved vacations and he loved preparing for them. in spring,
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Speaker 3: when the spring weather began to change, he would start
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Speaker 3: talking about our summer vacation. And he began making decisions
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Speaker 3: as to where we were going to go, and he
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Speaker 3: didn't always tell us. He would surprise us. He would
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Speaker 3: talk about it until right up on the evening before
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Speaker 3: the vacation, and then he would tell us. Now, this
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Speaker 3: was back in the days before there was GPS and
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Speaker 3: before there were cell phones, of course, and So he
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Speaker 3: would plan our trips the old-fashioned way with an honest-to-goodness
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Speaker 3: foldable map. And he would spend hours over that map
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Speaker 3: in the days leading up to the vacation. And he
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Speaker 3: would use a highlighter and he would highlight our route
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Speaker 3: on the map. He would circle the restaurant or places
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Speaker 3: where we were going to stop at restaurants. He would
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Speaker 3: circle the names of campgrounds where we were going to
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Speaker 3: spend the night. And then, of course, he would have
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Speaker 3: in high highlights, the name of the campground where we
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Speaker 3: were going to spend most of our vacation. And then,
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Speaker 3: in an act of great drama, in an act that
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Speaker 3: I cherished, he would, on the eve before the trip,
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Speaker 3: sit me, my brother, and his wife, our mother, at
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Speaker 3: the table and unfold the map. Yeah. and he would
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Speaker 3: let us see where we were going. Oh, can you
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Speaker 3: imagine how excited we were? My brother and I, we
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Speaker 3: were just single-digit age, you know, nine or ten years
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Speaker 3: of age. Oh, how we would sit on the edge
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Speaker 3: of the chair with both elbows on the table and
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Speaker 3: our chin cupped in our hands and just listening to
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Speaker 3: Dad as he would describe where we were headed. And
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Speaker 3: since we didn't know anything about travel, Since we didn't
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Speaker 3: know what to expect, since we were newcomers to the road,
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Speaker 3: he not only told us where we were going, he
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Speaker 3: told us what to expect. He would say, now, sons,
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Speaker 3: when we get into New Mexico, that desert wind can blow.
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Speaker 3: You've got to prepare yourself. And he'd say, sons, now,
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Speaker 3: when we get close to the mountains, you're going to
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Speaker 3: feel your ears begin to pop. He would say, boys,
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Speaker 3: now you'll know we're getting close to the end when
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Speaker 3: you see those wooden signs that say National Park. They
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Speaker 3: all have green trees painted on them, those pine trees,
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Speaker 3: and he would describe them to us. Now, why would
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Speaker 3: he do that? I mean, aside from being a fun-loving guy,
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Speaker 3: why would he go to the effort of showing us
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Speaker 3: the map And then why would he go to the
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Speaker 3: effort of preparing us ahead of time so we would
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Speaker 3: know what to expect? Why was it important to our
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Speaker 3: Father for him to tell us what signs to look for? And,
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Speaker 3: as long as we're asking the question, why has God
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Speaker 3: done the same? over and over as we've studied through
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Speaker 3: the book of Daniel, I have suggested to you that
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Speaker 3: this book is a roadmap of sorts, or it's a timeline.
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Speaker 3: It's an itinerary of the human journey, especially the book
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Speaker 3: of Daniel. God has told us what to expect. He
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Speaker 3: has told us what's going to happen. And he has
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Speaker 3: prepared us so we will know how to behave when
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Speaker 3: we begin to see the signs. Of course, the book
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Speaker 3: of Daniel is far from the only book in the
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Speaker 3: Bible to do this. It may surprise you to know
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Speaker 3: that 30% of your Bible is comprised of prophecy. 30%.
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Speaker 3: Did you know that entire volumes such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel,
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Speaker 3: Revelation are prophetic? So to dismiss prophecy is to dismiss
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Speaker 3: one-third of your scriptures. Yet many people do. Many people do.
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Speaker 3: They dismiss prophecy. They say, just... Just give me the
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Speaker 3: Lord's Prayer and just give me the 23rd Psalm. Just
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Speaker 3: give me the stories. I can't handle that prophecy. They
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Speaker 3: may do so for a couple of reasons. First of all, prophecy,
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Speaker 3: it can be complicated. It can. And it can be controversial.
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Speaker 3: And teachers of prophecy, well, have a tendency to be opinionated.
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Speaker 3: I understand the hesitancy, but I would encourage you, dear friend.
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Speaker 3: I would encourage you. Don't be listed among those who
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Speaker 3: miss out on the blessing of studying prophecy. Yes, blessing.
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Speaker 3: God promises a blessing for those who study the words
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Speaker 3: of the prophetic teachers. In fact, he closes the book
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Speaker 3: of Daniel with this promise. Those who are wise will understand. understand.
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Speaker 3: Those who study this prophecy, those who gather this wisdom,
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Speaker 3: they will come to a sense of understanding. So this
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Speaker 3: is a promise of God. That as you study prophecy,
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Speaker 3: you will understand. You will come to new levels of understanding.
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Speaker 3: You will have those aha moments. In which you say, oh,
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Speaker 3: now I see how this lines up. Oh, now I
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Speaker 3: see what this passage means. You see, God wants to
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Speaker 3: give you what my father gave my brother and me.
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Speaker 3: And that is a glimpse into the future. He wants
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Speaker 3: to show us the journey. And he promises a special blessing.
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Speaker 3: A special blessing for those who read and heed the
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Speaker 3: words of prophecy. Maybe you've read these words found early
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Speaker 3: in the book of Revelation, the most famous of the
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Speaker 3: prophetic books. God blesses the one who reads the words
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Speaker 3: of prophecy to the church. I guess that's me. And
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Speaker 3: he blesses all who listen to its message and obey
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Speaker 3: what it says. I guess that's you. For the time
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Speaker 3: is near. There's a story about an airplane that was
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Speaker 3: lost over the ocean in the middle of a hurricane.
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Speaker 3: The captain decided that it was time to assure the
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Speaker 3: passengers that he was still in the cockpit. So he
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Speaker 3: announced over the intercom, well, I have good news and
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Speaker 3: I have bad news. The bad news is I have
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Speaker 3: no idea where we are or where we are headed.
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Speaker 3: The good news is we're making great time. That describes
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Speaker 3: the lives of many people today. We are busy but lost,
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Speaker 3: in a hurry but with no destination. You know we're
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Speaker 3: running faster than ever, but we have no idea where
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Speaker 3: we are going. But to all who will listen, God
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Speaker 3: will share the blessing of the destination. He'll show you
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Speaker 3: the map, and in addition, he'll show you the signs
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Speaker 3: to look for along the way. He opens the map
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Speaker 3: and tells us where we are headed. Chapter 12 begins
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Speaker 3: with a reminder of where this history is headed. He
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Speaker 3: calls this the tribulation. Verse 1 of chapter 12. At
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Speaker 3: that time, Michael, the great prince who protects your people,
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Speaker 3: will arise. And there will be a time of distress
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Speaker 3: such as not has happened from the beginning of nations
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Speaker 3: until then. But at that time, your people, everyone whose
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Speaker 3: name is found written in the book, will be delivered.
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Speaker 2: Delivered.
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Speaker 3: Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake,
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Speaker 3: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.
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Speaker 3: Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of
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Speaker 3: the heavens and will lead many to righteousness like stars
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Speaker 3: forever and ever. But you, Daniel, close up and seal
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Speaker 3: the words of the scroll until the time of the end.
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Speaker 3: Many will go here and there to increase. This passage,
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Speaker 3: as well as the rest of the book of Daniel,
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Speaker 3: anticipates a major event in the future called the tribulation.
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Speaker 3: We've come to see that's a period of seven years.
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Speaker 3: And I personally take that seven-year time frame as literal.
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Speaker 3: It's a seven-year period in which there will be times
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Speaker 3: of intense struggle for who the book of Daniel calls
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Speaker 3: your people, Daniel, that is the Hebrews. Others will be involved.
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Speaker 3: but certainly those who are of Jewish heritage in the
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Speaker 3: city of Jerusalem will face a time of intense struggle.
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Speaker 3: This is just one of several prophecies or several promises,
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Speaker 3: moments that are going to happen in the future that
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Speaker 3: we have looked at. I'd like for us to take
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Speaker 3: just a minute and back up and review some others
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Speaker 3: just so we can look at the timeline and look
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Speaker 3: at the map one more time. Scripture tells us that
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Speaker 3: there will be A sudden, unexpected resurrection of the saints.
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Speaker 3: This is often called the rapture. And it's going to
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Speaker 3: happen without warning. But at that moment, every believer who
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Speaker 3: has placed his or her trust in Christ will be
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Speaker 3: resurrected in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.
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Speaker 3: They will be given a new body. They will be
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Speaker 3: welcomed as the bride of Christ to a wedding feast
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Speaker 3: in heaven. This will be a glorious day for all
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Speaker 3: who have trusted in Christ. But this will trigger a
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Speaker 3: difficult day for all those left behind. You see, in
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Speaker 3: this moment, in a millisecond, the church and her restraining influence,
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Speaker 3: the Holy Spirit, will be gone. He, the Holy Spirit,
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Speaker 3: is who holds evil at bay right now. And for
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Speaker 3: a time, the Holy Spirit will step away. Now imagine
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Speaker 3: the ensuing chaos when the church and the Holy Spirit
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Speaker 3: are removed from society. When all those who seek to
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Speaker 3: do good are suddenly gone. When all those who teach
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Speaker 3: truth are suddenly missing. It seems to me that their
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Speaker 3: sudden departure will cause a moral, financial, and political tail splint.
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Speaker 3: And this world as we know it will will turn
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Speaker 3: into a chaotic mess. And this chaos will set the
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Speaker 3: stage for an evil despot, a tool of Satan, the Antichrist.
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Speaker 3: He's a primary character in the book of Daniel. Now,
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Speaker 3: according to the prophecy of Daniel 9, this Antichrist is
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Speaker 3: going to step forward and he's going to broker a
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Speaker 3: peace treaty in the Middle East that will seem to
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Speaker 3: settle everything down. It's going to encompass the world. The
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Speaker 3: promise is this, that leader, speaking of the Antichrist, will
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Speaker 3: make a firm agreement with many people for seven years.
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Speaker 3: He will stop the offerings and sacrifices after three and
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Speaker 3: one half years. A destroyer will do terrible things until
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Speaker 3: the ordered end comes to destroy the city. So the
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Speaker 3: Antichrist will step forward. He will broker a peace treaty.
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Speaker 3: Apparently this peace treaty involves the reconstruction of the temple.
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Speaker 3: Yet after three and a half years, he's going to
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Speaker 3: stop the offerings. And he will engage in what Jesus
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Speaker 3: Christ himself calls the abomination of desolation. He will position
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Speaker 3: himself as God and demand to be worshipped. And this
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Speaker 3: will trigger a season of suffering. But after this season
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Speaker 3: of suffering, a resurrection will occur, as we just read
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Speaker 3: in Daniel chapter 12. A sum to everlasting life and
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Speaker 3: some who rejected God to shame and torment. Even most important,
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Speaker 3: at the end of these seven years, Christ himself will come.
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Speaker 3: Can we reread the promise from Daniel chapter 7? This king,
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Speaker 3: speaking of the Antichrist, will speak against the Most High
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Speaker 3: God and he will hurt and kill God's holy people.
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Speaker 3: He will try to change times and laws that have
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Speaker 3: already been set. That is to say, he will try
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Speaker 3: to create a religion that's set up around himself. The
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Speaker 3: holy people that belong to God will be in that
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Speaker 3: king's power for three and one half years. But then
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Speaker 3: the court will decide what should happen. That's the court
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Speaker 3: of God. The power of the king will be taken
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Speaker 3: away and his kingdom will be completely destroyed. Then the
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Speaker 3: holy people who belong to the most high God will
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Speaker 3: have the power to rule. And they will rule over
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Speaker 3: all the kingdoms under heaven with power and greatness. And
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Speaker 3: their power to rule will last forever. That's the beautiful
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Speaker 3: promise of the book of Daniel. The church will be raptured.
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Speaker 3: The tribulation will be severe, but it won't last forever.
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Speaker 3: Christ will return and he will establish his kingdom on
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Speaker 3: this earth with his saints and he will rule forever.
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Speaker 3: Now you may have more questions. Daniel did. But before
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Speaker 3: Daniel could ask for an explanation, did you notice he
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Speaker 3: was told to seal up the book of prophecy? That
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Speaker 3: is to say, no further revelation is going to be coming.
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Speaker 3: Daniel had been given all that he would be given.
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Speaker 3: The review was complete. Even so a couple of questions remained.
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Speaker 3: And as we read further in Daniel chapter 12. Daniel
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Speaker 3: saw what appeared to be an angel. And he heard
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Speaker 3: the angel ask. Now how long before these amazing things
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Speaker 3: come true? Well what do you know? We used to
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Speaker 3: ask that question on vacation. How long dad? How long
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Speaker 3: before we get there? I guess that was an angelic question.
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Speaker 3: The answer came from Jesus himself. Reading again in Daniel 12,
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Speaker 3: the man dressed in linen who stood over the water
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Speaker 3: raised his hands toward heaven, and I heard him swear
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Speaker 3: by the name of God who lives forever. It will
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Speaker 3: be for three and one half years. The power of
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Speaker 3: the holy people will finally be broken, and then all
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Speaker 3: these things will come true. I heard the answer, Daniel said,
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Speaker 3: but I really did not understand. So I asked, Master,
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Speaker 3: what will happen after all these things come true? He answered,
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Speaker 3: Go your way, Daniel. The message is closed up and
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Speaker 3: sealed until the time of the end. Many people will
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Speaker 3: be made clean, pure, and spotless. but the wicked will
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Speaker 3: continue to be wicked. Those wicked people will not understand
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Speaker 3: these things, but the wise will understand them. The angel
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Speaker 3: needed an explanation. Daniel needed an explanation. How long, asked
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Speaker 3: the angel. What shall be the end of all these things,
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Speaker 3: asked Daniel. Give us more details, in other words. And
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Speaker 3: Jesus came and gave them more details. Now you and
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Speaker 3: I would love more details, too. We don't have all
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Speaker 3: of our questions answered. But as we have sought God,
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Speaker 3: he has given us more details. I believe that God
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Speaker 3: has done for us what he did for Daniel. God
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Speaker 3: has given us more details. In fact, the details that
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Speaker 3: God has given to us are sufficient enough to cause
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Speaker 3: me to think we really may be nearing the end.
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Speaker 3: I do not say that lightly. And I realize in
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Speaker 3: every generation there have been those who have said, now
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Speaker 3: this is the last generation. And yet there are certain
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Speaker 3: things about our generation that command our attention, that cause
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Speaker 3: us to wonder, are we truly toward the end? Are
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Speaker 3: we truly nearing the final rapture? I believe that Christ
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Speaker 3: could come at any moment. I believe this Not just
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Speaker 3: because of what I read in the scriptures, but also
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Speaker 3: because of what I read in the newspaper. Now, again,
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Speaker 3: to be clear, no one knows the exact time of
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Speaker 3: our Lord's return. Jesus said, no one knows about that
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Speaker 3: day or hour. Not even the angels in heaven, nor
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Speaker 3: the Son, but only the Father. The exact time is
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Speaker 3: hidden from the followers. We do not know the hours.
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Speaker 3: But we have been told to look for the signs.
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Speaker 3: And we are told to respond to the signs. Now
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Speaker 3: you know how to respond to signs. You see signs
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Speaker 3: on the highway whenever you're driving or riding in a car.
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Speaker 3: For example, when you see this sign, what does it
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Speaker 3: tell you? Well, because of that sign, you're going to
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Speaker 3: anticipate a wet road. You don't know the exact location
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Speaker 3: or the amount of the water, but you anticipate water.
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Speaker 3: What about this sign? Now, do you know the amount
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Speaker 3: of construction? Or the purpose?
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Speaker 4: No.
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Speaker 3: But you know, you need to be alert. What about
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Speaker 3: this sign? Well, who put that in there? That must
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Speaker 3: be from God. I mean, we sure don't want to
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Speaker 3: ignore the signs, do we? No, Jesus has not given
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Speaker 3: us the hour of his return. But church, we have signs.
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Speaker 3: We have signs. As we're traveling through life. As we're
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Speaker 3: traveling toward our final destination. Just like my father told
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Speaker 3: my brother and me what signs to look for. So
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Speaker 3: Jesus Christ has said, now here's some signs. He criticized
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Speaker 3: the religious leaders of his day for not looking for signs.
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Speaker 3: The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him
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Speaker 3: by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.
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Speaker 3: He replied, when evening comes, you will say, it will
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Speaker 3: be fair weather for the sky is red. And in
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Speaker 3: the morning, today it will be stormy for the sky
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Speaker 3: is red and overcast. You know how to interpret the
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Speaker 3: appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs
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Speaker 3: of the times. Now, would Jesus need to give us
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Speaker 3: the same rebuke? We know how to read the weather forecast,
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Speaker 3: but we're not paying attention to the signs of the times.
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Speaker 3: Consider what Jesus says about reading signs. Watch out that
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Speaker 3: no one deceives you. For many will come in my
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Speaker 3: name claiming I am the Christ and will deceive many.
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Speaker 3: You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. But
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Speaker 3: see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things
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Speaker 3: must happen, but the end is still to come. In
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Speaker 3: other words, we shouldn't be too quickly misled. Men have
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Speaker 3: been declaring the end since the very beginning. There are
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Speaker 3: endless skirmishes and conflicts and rumors of wars. And these
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Speaker 3: mean nothing. They are not signs. But the true signs
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Speaker 3: are these. Look what he says next. Nation will rise
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Speaker 3: against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines
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Speaker 3: and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginnings
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Speaker 3: of birth pains. Now, note that phrase, birth pains. We
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Speaker 3: men are really not qualified to explain what a birth
23:50
Speaker 3: pain is. But I have it on good authority that
23:52
Speaker 3: birth pains are painful. And they come with increasing frequency
23:59
Speaker 3: as the time of delivery draws near. Jesus is saying
24:03
Speaker 3: that there are certain signs that are going to be painful.
24:08
Speaker 3: They're going to be disruptive. And they're going to come
24:12
Speaker 3: with increasing frequency as the end draws near. With that
24:16
Speaker 3: in mind, consider a couple of signs of the end.
24:20
Speaker 3: He says, nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. Now,
24:25
Speaker 3: this is a colloquial expression used by Hebrew rabbis in
24:30
Speaker 3: ancient literature found often. that describes a unique type of war.
24:36
Speaker 3: It's an expression that describes a widespread conflict. Our phrase
24:42
Speaker 3: for this conflict would be world war. World war. So
24:48
Speaker 3: Jesus is saying you will see world wars. Now have we?
24:52
Speaker 3: Of course we have. Twice in the last century we
24:56
Speaker 3: have seen conflicts that are so universal that that they
25:00
Speaker 3: earned the phrase world war. In fact, the first one
25:03
Speaker 3: was called the war to end all wars, but then
25:05
Speaker 3: came the second one, World War II. More people died
25:08
Speaker 3: from war in the 20th century than in all the
25:12
Speaker 3: other centuries leading up to the 20th century combined, combined,
25:18
Speaker 3: increasing frequency, increasing pain. What about natural disasters? Specifically, Jesus says,
25:26
Speaker 3: famines and earthquakes. Of course, the world has always seen both.
25:32
Speaker 3: But did you know we're seeing them with increasing frequency? Examples.
25:38
Speaker 3: For example, earthquakes. According to one study, from 1939 to 1976,
25:41
Speaker 3: there were 71 earthquakes. Yet from 1977 to 2014, there
25:43
Speaker 3: were 164. That's an increase of 131%. Does it seem
25:59
Speaker 3: to you that the birth pains are increasing in frequency?
26:02
Speaker 3: These are signs on the road. And there are more signs.
26:08
Speaker 3: I have time for just a couple, but consider this one.
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Speaker 3: The most remarkable sign, I think, of our generation is
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Speaker 3: the regathering of the Jewish people in Israel. Did you
26:19
Speaker 3: know that the Bible speaks of a day in which
26:21
Speaker 3: the Jewish people will reoccupy their homeland? Way back in
26:25
Speaker 3: the book of Jeremiah, The days are coming, declares the Lord,
26:29
Speaker 3: when I will bring my people Israel and Judah back
26:33
Speaker 3: from captivity and restore them to the land I gave
26:37
Speaker 3: their forefathers to possess. Now almost all the key prophecies
26:43
Speaker 3: in the book of Daniel depend upon a repopulated geographical Israel.
26:51
Speaker 3: For example, the book of Daniel prophesies a covenant between
26:54
Speaker 3: the Antichrist and Israel. This can only happen if the
26:58
Speaker 3: nation of Israel exists. The book of Daniel prophesies a
27:03
Speaker 3: rebuilding of the temple. Again, Israel must exist. It must
27:06
Speaker 3: occupy the land in order for this to happen. Daniel
27:11
Speaker 3: forecasted an utter sacrilege of the temple. Well, no Israel,
27:15
Speaker 3: no temple. The war of Armageddon only makes sense if
27:18
Speaker 3: Israel is occupying the land where the valley is found. Now,
27:21
Speaker 3: The idea of a repopulated Israel was unthinkable just a
27:26
Speaker 3: few decades ago. You know the history. The Jewish people
27:30
Speaker 3: were dispersed to over 70 countries for more than 20 centuries.
27:35
Speaker 3: Yet in our day, we are seeing them return. Did
27:38
Speaker 3: you know that today, for the first time since A.D. 135,
27:42
Speaker 3: there are more Jews living in Israel than any place
27:46
Speaker 3: on earth? There is a regathering of the Jews to Israel.
27:51
Speaker 3: Could this be a sign? It's unique to our generation,
27:55
Speaker 3: that's for sure. This super sign in itself is enough
28:00
Speaker 3: to get our attention. Maybe we have time for one more.
28:03
Speaker 3: How about globalism? Globalism. You know, the book of Revelation
28:08
Speaker 3: prophesies a day in the tribulation in which an evil
28:11
Speaker 3: ruler will commandeer the world economy and that no one
28:15
Speaker 3: will buy or sell without his permission. Well, 100 years ago,
28:19
Speaker 3: this was impossible. How could anybody commandeer the world economy
28:23
Speaker 3: 100 years ago? But today, thanks to the proliferation of
28:27
Speaker 3: electronic banking and credit and debit cards, it's possible. The
28:33
Speaker 3: world is a smaller place. Globalization has shrunk the globe.
28:40
Speaker 3: And Scripture repeatedly promises a plunge into immorality. In the
28:45
Speaker 3: end times, I know the world has always been immoral.
28:48
Speaker 3: Yet because of globalism, because of the internet, because of
28:54
Speaker 3: accessibility that we have between one culture and another, between
28:58
Speaker 3: another country and this one, pornography is peddled on a
29:01
Speaker 3: global scale like never before. Porn peddlers in Russia can
29:06
Speaker 3: poison the thoughts of a teenager in Kansas at any
29:09
Speaker 3: point during the day. Folks, that wasn't true when I
29:12
Speaker 3: was a kid. That wasn't true when I was growing up.
29:15
Speaker 3: It wasn't true 30 years ago, but it's true today.
29:19
Speaker 3: Might it worsen? Yeah, probably. But can we say that
29:25
Speaker 3: we have plunged into a dark cesspool of immorality? Absolutely,
29:30
Speaker 3: we can say that. The world is smaller, and because
29:34
Speaker 3: the world is smaller, the possibility of global disasters are
29:37
Speaker 3: more likely. The Antichrist during the time of tribulation, will
29:42
Speaker 3: unleash atrocities upon the globe. What's he going to use? Bacteria?
29:47
Speaker 3: Nuclear power? Financial sabotage? A combination of them all? We
29:51
Speaker 3: live in a day in which he could, thanks to globalism. Now,
29:56
Speaker 3: we could add more signs to this list. The mysterious...
29:59
Speaker 3: blood moons, the attempts at peace in the Middle East,
30:03
Speaker 3: the increased apostasy of the church. But all of these
30:06
Speaker 3: add up to make us wonder if we couldn't be
30:12
Speaker 3: getting close to the end. Now, again, no one knows.
30:17
Speaker 3: No one knows. And anyone who says they know, well,
30:20
Speaker 3: they're wrong. But we should pay attention to the signs.
30:24
Speaker 3: The Father has told us what to expect. Now, if
30:28
Speaker 3: you're in Christ... You have nothing to fear. And I
30:33
Speaker 3: suggest these signs not to increase a level of anxiety
30:37
Speaker 3: at all. Just the opposite. But to affirm you. You
30:41
Speaker 3: see Christ said these things would happen. So we know
30:44
Speaker 3: he's in control. You know what is coming. But if
30:47
Speaker 3: you've never given your heart to Christ. I share these
30:52
Speaker 3: signs to alert you. You need to be ready. And
30:56
Speaker 3: you need to make sure that you have placed your trust.
30:59
Speaker 3: in the hands of the one who controls society. By
31:03
Speaker 3: the way, we never did answer that question. Why did
31:07
Speaker 3: my father tell my brother and me about the map?
31:10
Speaker 3: Why did he show us where we were going? Well,
31:13
Speaker 3: I think there's a simple answer to that question. I
31:15
Speaker 3: never did ask my dad, but as a dad myself,
31:18
Speaker 3: I think there's an answer. I think he wanted us
31:21
Speaker 3: to know that he knew where we were headed and
31:27
Speaker 3: what would happen. You see, it turned out he was right.
31:32
Speaker 3: When we got to New Mexico, the winds did blow.
31:36
Speaker 3: When we reached the mountains, our ears did pop. And
31:40
Speaker 3: you know, when we got close to the campground, we
31:42
Speaker 3: began seeing those wooden signs that said National Forest and
31:45
Speaker 3: they all had that little green evergreen tree imprinted on them.
31:51
Speaker 3: By the time we reached our destination, I was proud
31:53
Speaker 3: of my dad. I trusted him because he had promised
31:58
Speaker 3: me And he had delivered. My friend, our God deserves
32:03
Speaker 3: our worship. He has promised and he has delivered. What
32:08
Speaker 3: he said he would do, he has done. So what
32:11
Speaker 3: he says he will do, he will do. Amen. So
32:18
Speaker 3: Heavenly Father, thank you now for this great book, this
32:21
Speaker 3: powerful book called Daniel. We thank you, Lord, for where
32:24
Speaker 3: we have succeeded in our study. We pray for mercy
32:27
Speaker 3: for where we have fallen short. We ask that you
32:31
Speaker 3: would give us the blessing that you have promised, a
32:34
Speaker 3: blessing of assurance, confidence, and faith. And grant that we
32:40
Speaker 3: can be like Daniel in these severe times and that
32:45
Speaker 3: we can trust you. Through Christ we pray. And all
32:50
Speaker 3: the church said, I'll take Jesus. You'll take it too.
32:57
Speaker 2: I'll take Jesus. Oh, yeah.
33:45
Speaker 5: Thank you.
34:41
Speaker 2: Thank you.
35:32
Speaker 4: I'll be all right. You don't have to stay. If
35:40
Speaker 4: you've already chosen, I won't stand in your way. I
35:48
Speaker 4: can feel it in your distance. In the way you
35:52
Speaker 4: barely speak. Like your heart is somewhere else now.
35:59
Speaker 6: Somewhere I can't reach I was trying.
36:03
Speaker 7: Just to hold us While you slowly slipped away.
36:10
Speaker 6: Now I'm left with all the silence You didn't want
36:15
Speaker 6: to say Maybe I just held on To something.
36:27
Speaker 3: Already gone.
36:32
Speaker 1: I'll be fine You can leave You don't owe me
36:37
Speaker 1: anything If your heart is found away Out of what
36:44
Speaker 1: we used to be.
36:46
Speaker 7: I'll be fine Don't look back I'll survive this empty
36:52
Speaker 7: space Not tonight, maybe not soon.
36:57
Speaker 8: But I'll learn to be okay.
37:05
Speaker 4: We don't need to fake the feeling.
37:09
Speaker 6: I can see it in your eyes There's no reason
37:13
Speaker 6: left for staying When.
37:16
Speaker 7: The love already.
37:18
Speaker 8: Died Through the quiet in your voice.
37:29
Speaker 1: I can hear your choice I'll be fine, you can
37:37
Speaker 1: leave You don't owe me anything If your heart has
37:43
Speaker 1: found a way out of what we used to be,
37:49
Speaker 1: I'll be fine.
37:51
Speaker 3: Don't look back.
37:53
Speaker 1: I'll survive this empty space. Not tonight, maybe not soon,
38:00
Speaker 1: but I'll.
38:01
Speaker 2: Learn to be okay.
38:05
Speaker 3: I don't need a reason why.
38:07
Speaker 8: I can see it in goodbye.
38:13
Speaker 3: And it breaks me, it does.
38:15
Speaker 1: But I won't ask you to stay.
38:22
Speaker 5: I'll be fine.
38:24
Speaker 3: You can't leave.
38:26
Speaker 2: You don't owe me anything.
38:30
Speaker 1: If your heart is found away, how do I'll be fine,
38:39
Speaker 1: don't look back.
38:41
Speaker 5: I'll survive this empty space Not tonight, maybe not soon
38:48
Speaker 5: But I'll learn to be
38:52
Speaker 7: Okay I'll be alright