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Antichrist’s Lieutenant The Beast Out of the Earth Msg 1313 - Pastor Chuck Swindoll Insight for Living · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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  Speaker 1: You'll find an outline for this morning's message in your
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  Speaker 1: worship folder. If you will, just locate 2 Corinthians chapter 11,
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  Speaker 1: slide the outline in there, and then turn to the
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  Speaker 1: reading of the morning, Revelation chapter 13. I want to
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  Speaker 1: read for you verse 11 down to the end, verse 18.
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  Speaker 1: Section of scripture we've heard about. All our lives, but
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  Speaker 1: perhaps you've never known where some of these words originated
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  Speaker 1: and here you'll find them. Revelation 13, begin reading at
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  Speaker 1: verse 11. Then I saw another beast coming up out
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  Speaker 1: of the earth and he had two horns like a
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  Speaker 1: lamb and he spoke as a dragon. He exercises all
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  Speaker 1: the authority of the first beast. in his presence and
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  Speaker 1: he makes the earth and those who dwell in it
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  Speaker 1: to worship the first beast whose fatal wound was healed.
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  Speaker 1: He performs great signs so that he even makes fire
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  Speaker 1: come down out of heaven to the earth in the
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  Speaker 1: presence of men. And he deceives those who dwell on
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  Speaker 1: the earth because of the signs which it was given
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  Speaker 1: him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling
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  Speaker 1: those who dwell on the earth to make an image
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  Speaker 1: to the beast who had the wound of the sword
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  Speaker 1: and has come to life. And it was given to
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  Speaker 1: him to give breath to the image of the beast
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  Speaker 1: so that the image of the beast would even speak
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  Speaker 1: and cause as many as do not worship the image
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  Speaker 1: of the beast to be killed. He causes all the
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  Speaker 1: small and the great and the rich and the poor
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  Speaker 1: and the free man and the slaves to be given
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  Speaker 1: a mark on their right hand or on their forehead.
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  Speaker 1: And he provides that no one will be able to
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  Speaker 1: buy or to sell except the one who has the mark,
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  Speaker 1: either the name of the beast or the number of
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  Speaker 1: his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding
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  Speaker 1: calculate the number of the beast, for the number is
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  Speaker 1: that of a man, and his number is 666. Our
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  Speaker 1: purpose in meeting is always the same. It is clearly
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  Speaker 1: to give honor And glory. To our great God. His son.
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  Speaker 1: Jesus Christ. In the energy. And through the. Presence and
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  Speaker 1: working of the Holy Spirit. Honor.
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  Speaker 2: And glory.
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  Speaker 1: Say those words with me. Honor. And glory. May we
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  Speaker 1: bow together. So much about us and around us and
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  Speaker 1: that happens to us seems distant from honor and glory.
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  Speaker 1: Our Father, we've sung true words when we have been
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  Speaker 1: reminded that you are kind to those who fall and
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  Speaker 1: you are gracious to those who have lost their way.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for this kind of grace. We give honor
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  Speaker 1: and we give glory to your great name for your grace.
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  Speaker 1: You meet among us even people like us who have
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  Speaker 1: known just this past week moments that we today regret.
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  Speaker 1: Some things that disappoint us about ourselves and yet you
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  Speaker 1: have forgiven us. We give you honor and glory for
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  Speaker 1: your forgiveness. We are here today because we have health
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  Speaker 1: and strength and the ability to get dressed and to
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  Speaker 1: drive and to come to this place and to participate,
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  Speaker 1: be engaged in this most important of all activities, the
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  Speaker 1: worship of you, our God. We give you honor and
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  Speaker 1: glory today because your name is above every name, and
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  Speaker 1: your Son, our Savior, is like no other. To whom
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  Speaker 1: else could we turn to find eternal life? There is
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  Speaker 1: no other. And now, from your treasure, some of which
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  Speaker 1: you have provided for us in this thing called temporal living,
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  Speaker 1: from your treasure we give We give for your honor
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  Speaker 1: and glory. Be magnified, our Father, in this act as
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  Speaker 1: we focus on you, your provision, your grace, your forgiveness,
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  Speaker 1: your person, your work. In the honorable and glorious name
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  Speaker 1: of Christ, we now give and we pray. And everyone said, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Deception is a terrible thing. Anyone who has been deceived,
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  Speaker 1: and haven't we all, remembers the pain of the consequences.
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  Speaker 1: Your deception may have come in a relationship with someone
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  Speaker 1: in a marriage. You went with them. You checked out
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  Speaker 1: their life, if you will. You looked deeply into their past.
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  Speaker 1: You talked to others. You spent time. You didn't hurry.
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  Speaker 1: And finally, you said, I do. And you gave yourself
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  Speaker 1: to that individual for the rest of your life, only
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  Speaker 1: to find in not that long period of time, the
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  Speaker 1: person was not the one you thought she was or
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  Speaker 1: he was before you married. Your deception may have come
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  Speaker 1: in the corporate world where you interviewed and checked the
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  Speaker 1: resume and looked into the past and did all you
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  Speaker 1: could to find out all that was possible to find
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  Speaker 1: out regarding this individual. And then you hired him. Only
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  Speaker 1: to discover after the fact that the person had deceived you.
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  Speaker 1: That individual was not the person that all that fine
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  Speaker 1: paperwork had been suggested he was. And who could ever
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  Speaker 1: forget some financial deception that may have happened. You put
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  Speaker 1: your money into the plan and you listened to the
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  Speaker 1: very persuasive discussion that accompanied the idea and maybe even
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  Speaker 1: entered a partnership hopefully to reach this financial goal. And
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  Speaker 1: then after a period of time, you realized you were
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  Speaker 1: taken advantage of. And you'll never see that money again.
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  Speaker 1: Deception may have happened in your life through some professional
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  Speaker 1: person or a neighbor or someone you trusted in your
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  Speaker 1: educational past. All of this is painful and all of
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  Speaker 1: this is horrible, but nothing is worse than religious, religious deception.
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  Speaker 1: It's even picked up the correct word, abuse. You trust
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  Speaker 1: someone to be the man or woman of God that
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  Speaker 1: he's presented to be, and then you find that that
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  Speaker 1: role of authority is taken advantage of. And you find
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  Speaker 1: yourself victimized by someone you trusted. Hurt deeply. Terrible thing.
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  Speaker 1: A pastor who appears to be a man of God,
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  Speaker 1: but uses his role and rank to take unfair advantage
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  Speaker 1: of the innocent and the uninformed. Or a priest. Or
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  Speaker 1: a rabbi. some media personality who uses the Bible, and
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  Speaker 1: you realize after the fact, to get your money or
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  Speaker 1: to turn you in his direction. He talks of sacrifice,
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  Speaker 1: but he hides the truth of greed and selfishness. One
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  Speaker 1: pastor I knew fairly well had a real following. He
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  Speaker 1: was leading a church that grew considerably in an upscale area.
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  Speaker 1: And my, the commitment of the congregation was was remarkable
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  Speaker 1: as he led them into a new building program and
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  Speaker 1: in fact they followed him there and and he was
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  Speaker 1: so much a part of their lives he began to
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  Speaker 1: write books on subjects such as interpersonal relationships and the
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  Speaker 1: value of encouraging one another and even being accountable to
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  Speaker 1: each other and uh participated in a small group of
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  Speaker 1: accountability partners, a group of men who met every week.
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  Speaker 1: All the while, he was a womanizer. Without the congregation
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  Speaker 1: even having a hint of such, he was found to
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  Speaker 1: be a man of lust, a liar. The impact that
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  Speaker 1: struck that congregation took them years to overcome. Even more
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  Speaker 1: common than lust is the religious leader who is hungry
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  Speaker 1: for control and power mad, dominating other individuals, leading by
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  Speaker 1: fear and intimidation and legalism. No other words for it.
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  Speaker 1: Religious abuse. Few things please the adversary, Satan. more than deception.
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  Speaker 1: Remember this, never forget it, the major arsenal in the enemy's,
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  Speaker 1: the major weapon in the enemy's arsenal is deception. His
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  Speaker 1: favorite method is deceiving. He's powerful. He is attractive. He
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  Speaker 1: is alluring. And those who work alongside him are all
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  Speaker 1: the same. And therefore, deception works beautifully, beautifully as he
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  Speaker 1: engages in his goal of moving us away from truth.
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  Speaker 1: He's a liar from the beginning. He is a master
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  Speaker 1: when it comes to cunning and deceiving. His favorite method, however,
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  Speaker 1: is to use religion as a cloak of covering. Let
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  Speaker 1: me show you. 2 Corinthians 11, Paul mentions in verse
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  Speaker 1: 3 about being afraid for the Corinthians. It's not often
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  Speaker 1: you hear Paul admit to being afraid of anything. Here
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  Speaker 1: he tells us he's afraid of something. Verse 3 of
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  Speaker 1: 2 Corinthians 11, I am afraid that as the serpent
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  Speaker 1: deceived Eve, there it is again. This Greek word translated
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  Speaker 1: deceive means to deceive fully, to deceive completely, absolutely. It's
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  Speaker 1: the idea of blinding someone, moving them in a direction
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  Speaker 1: that probably they never dreamed they would go. I am
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  Speaker 1: afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, cleverness,
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  Speaker 1: your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and
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  Speaker 1: purity of devotion to Christ. Mark it down. Satan's all-consuming
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  Speaker 1: plan and objective is to deceive our minds for the
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  Speaker 1: purpose of leading us away from devotion to Christ. There
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  Speaker 1: it is, verse 3. It is to deceive our minds.
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  Speaker 1: This is not a moral corruption he leads Eve into.
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  Speaker 3: This is an intellectual decision. This is an intellectual deception
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  Speaker 3: that leads to spiritual apostasy.
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  Speaker 1: And he says, I'm afraid you're going to fall into
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  Speaker 1: that trap. Verse 4 continues, If anyone comes and preaches
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  Speaker 1: another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive
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  Speaker 1: a different spirit which you have not received, or a
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  Speaker 1: different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.
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  Speaker 1: You accept it. You tolerate it. The problem with the
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  Speaker 1: Corinthians was their willingness to To entertain and accept eloquent
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  Speaker 1: preachers of an adulterous gospel that added human merit to
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  Speaker 1: divine grace. And Paul is afraid they'll fall into the trap.
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  Speaker 1: And they'll fall deeper and deeper until apostasy sweeps across
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  Speaker 1: the church. Now, verse 14 of this same chapter. No wonder...
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  Speaker 1: For even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
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  Speaker 1: Put in your mind a correct mental image of the adversary.
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  Speaker 1: He is not some grotesque or silly little medieval figure
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  Speaker 1: that you've seen painted and portrayed in cartoon pictures. He
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  Speaker 1: is like an angel of light, attractive, dazzling, eloquent, appealing,
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  Speaker 1: dripping with charisma, full of logic, knowing what itches to scratch,
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  Speaker 1: knowing what buttons to push to attract us to his message. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: he says in verse 22, It's not surprising if his
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  Speaker 1: servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness whose end
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  Speaker 1: will be according to their deeds. You shouldn't be surprised
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  Speaker 1: when you come across a religious charlatan. Don't be surprised
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  Speaker 1: when you come across those who look like servants of righteousness,
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  Speaker 1: but they are in fact people with unrighteous motives. I
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  Speaker 1: checked Webster to find the meaning of the word deceive
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  Speaker 1: And I came up with a good, I found a
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  Speaker 1: good definition. To cause to accept as true and valid
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  Speaker 1: what is false and invalid. To cause to accept what
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  Speaker 1: is true and valid. To accept as true and valid
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  Speaker 1: what is false or invalid. It implies, says Webster, imposing
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  Speaker 1: a false idea or belief, get this, that causes bewilderment
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  Speaker 1: or helplessness. When I am deceived, the result is bewilderment
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  Speaker 1: and a helplessness. I'm trapped. I'm caught. And with all
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  Speaker 1: of that as a background, I want you to turn
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  Speaker 1: to Revelation 13 where we meet the consummate deceiver of
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  Speaker 1: the future. All of this explains why the Lord frequently
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  Speaker 1: in his word warns us against false teachers, phony prophets,
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  Speaker 1: people who appear to be one way when in fact
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  Speaker 1: they are not that way. The man who is portrayed
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  Speaker 1: in verses 11 through 18 of Revelation 13 is not
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  Speaker 1: called such here, but later in the book of Revelation,
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  Speaker 1: he is called the false prophet. Let me show you.
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  Speaker 1: Hold your place here and look at Revelation 19, 20.
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  Speaker 1: Revelation 19, 20. This is yet future. Even future from
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  Speaker 1: the time we're going to read about in Revelation 13.
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  Speaker 1: The beast was seized and with him the false prophet.
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  Speaker 1: Pseudo prophetes. It's all one Greek word run together. Pseudo,
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  Speaker 1: we have our word today. Pseudo, false, phony. Prophetes, prophet.
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  Speaker 1: The beast was seized along with him the false prophet
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  Speaker 1: who performed the signs in his presence by which he
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  Speaker 1: deceived those who had received the mark of the beast.
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  Speaker 1: And those who worshiped his image, these two were thrown
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  Speaker 1: alive into the lake of fire, which burns with brimstone.
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  Speaker 1: What I want you to see is the name of
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  Speaker 1: this individual, the false prophet. Now, Revelation 13, beginning at
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  Speaker 1: verse 11, he is the other beast. Look closely. Let's
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  Speaker 1: kind of work our way through these verses and tie
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  Speaker 1: them together with what we learned earlier about the beast
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  Speaker 1: out of the sea. whom we identified as Antichrist, the
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  Speaker 1: beast out of the sea, is the more prominent of
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  Speaker 1: the two. In fact, think about it. This is an
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  Speaker 1: unholy trinity they have going for them in the future tribulation.
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  Speaker 1: The dragon represents God the Father in his phony or
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  Speaker 1: false presentation. Antichrist is another Christ, phony and false though
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  Speaker 1: he is, he does the work that at least resembles
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  Speaker 1: that of rescuing and looking as though he is a
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  Speaker 1: Messiah to save the times in which they live. Antichrist
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  Speaker 1: representing the Son and now the false prophet, certainly one
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  Speaker 1: who would energize much of this worship of this Antichrist
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  Speaker 1: and he would represent a false Holy Spirit. So we
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  Speaker 1: have an unholy trinity portrayed for us in Revelation 13.
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  Speaker 1: The energy, the strength come from the dragon, who is
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  Speaker 1: the devil himself. Now, we have another beast. The earlier
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  Speaker 1: one was out of the sea, verse 1. This beast comes...
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  Speaker 1: Before we get to where he comes from, please notice
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  Speaker 1: the word another. In the Greek language, there are two
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  Speaker 1: ways to represent another. One would be represented by these
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  Speaker 1: two pieces of paper I have in my hand. One's
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  Speaker 1: a four by six card. One's an eight and a
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  Speaker 1: half by 11 sheet of paper. They are both paper,
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  Speaker 1: but they are other of a different kind. Heteros is
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  Speaker 1: the Greek word. We get our word heterosexual from heteros. Heteros,
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  Speaker 1: another of a different kind. However, if you put two
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  Speaker 1: cards of the same size, the same material, the same
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  Speaker 1: color together, they are alas, A-double-L-O-S cards. They are other
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  Speaker 1: of the same kind. This word is alas. I saw
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  Speaker 1: another of the same kind, meaning what? Not identical to
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  Speaker 1: the beast, but beast-like. Same motive. same source of power,
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  Speaker 1: same charisma, same style, same approach, same objective. I saw
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  Speaker 1: another beast, this one coming up out of the earth. Now,
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  Speaker 1: I'm not going to rest my entire ministry on this
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  Speaker 1: next statement, but I will suggest that some have said,
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  Speaker 1: since the beast comes up out of the sea, verse 1,
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  Speaker 1: and sea represents the nation's Around the world, most likely,
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  Speaker 1: this first beast is a Gentile. And since the land
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  Speaker 1: or the earth is often rendered in the prophetic literature
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  Speaker 1: as Israel, this one may very well be an unregenerate Jew.
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  Speaker 1: Makes sense, the two work together, Gentile and Jewish leader,
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  Speaker 1: serving together and leading together. There's a lot of persuasion
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  Speaker 1: in that, and it may very well be Can't say
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  Speaker 1: that dogmatically, but it's a possibility. So the other beast
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  Speaker 1: comes out of the earth. Notice that he is, at
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  Speaker 1: least to begin with, gentle as a lamb. The first
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  Speaker 1: beast has ten horns and seven heads. This beast has
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  Speaker 1: two horns, so he doesn't quite have the authority of
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  Speaker 1: the other. However, his approach is much more gentle. He's
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  Speaker 1: like a lamb, but never doubt it, He speaks as
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  Speaker 1: a dragon. He is satanically inspired. He is Satan possessed,
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  Speaker 1: just as the first beast. So let's summarize. He will
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  Speaker 1: be a man with a beast-like nature. He will be
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  Speaker 1: another of the same kind as the first beast. He
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  Speaker 1: will counterfeit the gentle character of Christ, at least to
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  Speaker 1: begin with. His so-called inspired words will come from none
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  Speaker 1: other than the devil himself. Henry Morris writes this. There
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  Speaker 1: has been much speculation as to the identity of the
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  Speaker 1: second beast. Since he's later called the false prophet, he
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  Speaker 1: apparently first comes to world attention as a miracle-working religious leader.
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  Speaker 1: professing to convey supernaturally inspired messages. His prophecies, quote-unquote, are
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  Speaker 1: not from God but from Satan, though it may well
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  Speaker 1: be that he will first become known, possibly before the tribulation,
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  Speaker 1: as a man supposedly receiving messages from God. He will
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  Speaker 1: most likely emerge as the patriarch of a universal religion,
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  Speaker 1: He will originally, or at least initially, counterfeit the gentle
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  Speaker 1: character of Christ. But his, quote, inspired words will be
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  Speaker 1: those of Satan, the old dragon. First, they will be
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  Speaker 1: sweetly deceptive words. Soon, they will become deadly, tyrannical dragon words.
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  Speaker 1: So much for the identity of this individual. Remember now,
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  Speaker 1: where we've been in our study, The world is in
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  Speaker 1: chaotic condition. It's pleading for survival. There have been natural disasters.
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  Speaker 1: There has been worldwide upheaval, wholesale horrors, widespread death. The
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  Speaker 1: world will long for someone who can promise relief and
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  Speaker 1: hope from all the torment and all the anguish that
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  Speaker 1: the lost are going through. His gentle sounding answers will
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  Speaker 1: lead them into the worship Of another God. That's where
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  Speaker 1: we focus. As we turn to his authority. And then
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  Speaker 1: his strategy. Look at his authority. Verse 12. He exercises
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  Speaker 1: all the authority. Of the first beast. In his presence.
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  Speaker 1: He makes the earth. And those who dwell in it.
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  Speaker 1: To worship the first. Beast. Someone has called him the
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  Speaker 1: first beast's campaign manager. He will be the one who
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  Speaker 1: will be the propagandist. He will encourage following this other leader.
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  Speaker 1: He will be his lieutenant, if you will, serving second
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  Speaker 1: in command. And his goal is to get the world
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  Speaker 1: to worship this one who comes, who we've identified as Antichrist.
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  Speaker 1: How can such a man hold such sway over the
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  Speaker 1: people of the world? Next verse. He performs great signs.
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  Speaker 1: That's the biblical term for miracles. He performs great signs
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  Speaker 1: so that he even makes fire come down out of
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  Speaker 1: heaven to the earth in the presence of men. Pause
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  Speaker 1: and imagine. Here is one with the same influence, same popularity,
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  Speaker 1: same charisma who will sweep the public off their feet
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  Speaker 1: empowered by the same hellish enemy with energy and creativity
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  Speaker 1: as only Satan can give it. His great objective is
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  Speaker 1: to turn people's hearts away from the living God. Remember,
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  Speaker 1: the all-consuming goal is to lead us away from People
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  Speaker 1: away from devotion to Christ. So he will assist the
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  Speaker 1: beast in his leadership. And he will encourage people to follow.
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  Speaker 1: And what is his strategy? Verse 14 tells us. He deceives.
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  Speaker 1: Interesting word, deceive. It's from a Greek word, planao. P-L-A-N-A-O.
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  Speaker 1: We get our word planet from it. It means to wander.
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  Speaker 1: to wander, to move about, to move away. It's the picture,
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  Speaker 1: our English word, of the planets as if they are
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  Speaker 1: wandering across space, the stellar spaces. The world will be
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  Speaker 1: utterly vulnerable to his deceptive message and methods. Intellectually attracted
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  Speaker 1: to him, emotionally drawn by his appealing style, convinced by
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  Speaker 1: the signs that he works, they will volitionally submit and obey. Remember,
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  Speaker 1: he is Antichrist's lieutenant. His major task is to promote
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  Speaker 1: the worship of his leader. He deceives those who dwell
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  Speaker 1: on the earth, referring to the unbelievers because of the
• 28:07
  Speaker 1: signs which it was given him to perform in the
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: presence of the beast. Now observe an interesting project. In
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: the midst of his persuasive message, which is now reaching
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: the whole world, He will lead people on the earth
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: to make an image to the beast who had the
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: wound of the sword and has come to life. I
• 28:32
  Speaker 1: take it literally. I take it to mean that he
• 28:36
  Speaker 1: will literally lead people to construct a massive towering icon
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: or idol that will become a point of world worship
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: will be the focal point of the system of the future.
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: Don't run past the end of verse 15 too quickly.
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: As many as do not worship the image of the
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: beast will be killed. Now the gentle lamb turns to
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: who he really is, and deception yields its produce of power. Murder.
• 29:22
  Speaker 1: There is now persecution and brutality and murder in the streets.
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: Did you miss it in verse 15 when I read
• 29:31
  Speaker 1: earlier it was given to him to give breath to
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: the image of the beast? Somehow this beast comes to life,
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: the one that's been construed. the image of the beast
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: can even speak and be the reason people are killed
• 29:51
  Speaker 1: for not worshipping him that's the way it is with
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: deception What appears to be true is false. Remember the definition?
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: What appears to be valid is invalid. The lamb-like qualities
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: will turn to beast-like savagery. Quiet persuasion will lead the
• 30:11
  Speaker 1: public to persecution and ultimately murder in the streets. Frightening thought,
• 30:21
  Speaker 1: isn't it? John Phillips, in his work Exploring Revelation... writes this,
• 30:27
  Speaker 1: the role of the false prophet will be to make
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: the new religion appealing and palatable. No doubt, it will
• 30:34
  Speaker 1: combine all the features of the religious systems of men.
• 30:44
  Speaker 1: It will appeal to man's total personality and will take
• 30:47
  Speaker 1: full advantage of his carnal appetite. The dynamic appeal of
• 30:51
  Speaker 1: the false prophet will lie in his skill in combining
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: political expediency with religious passion. His arguments will be subtle, convincing, appealing.
• 31:02
  Speaker 1: His oratory will be hypnotic, for he will be able
• 31:06
  Speaker 1: to move the masses to tears or whip them into
• 31:09
  Speaker 1: a frenzy. He will control the communication media of the
• 31:15
  Speaker 1: world and will skillfully organize mass publicity to promote his ends.
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: He will be the master of every promotional device and
• 31:25
  Speaker 1: public relations gimmick. He will manage the truth and guile
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: beyond words, bending it, twisting it, distorting it. Public opinion
• 31:40
  Speaker 1: will be his to command. He will mold world thought
• 31:44
  Speaker 1: and shape human opinion like so much potter's clay. His
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: deadly appeal will lie in the fact that what he
• 31:52
  Speaker 1: says will sound so right, so sensible, so exactly what
• 31:58
  Speaker 1: unregenerate men and women have always wanted to hear. How
• 32:05
  Speaker 1: could there be such worldwide persuasion? Well, stop and think.
• 32:11
  Speaker 1: Five or six decades ago, it was a mystery. Now
• 32:14
  Speaker 1: it's no mystery. One person. click of the television and
• 32:18
  Speaker 1: you've transported yourself to a country you've never been to,
• 32:23
  Speaker 1: to a culture you've never become acquainted with. Speaking a
• 32:26
  Speaker 1: language you don't know. Thanks to the camera and the
• 32:30
  Speaker 1: all-seeing eye of the video clip, you now are able
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: to see what occurs in one central area, even though
• 32:38
  Speaker 1: you're not there at the time. I'm sure the media,
• 32:42
  Speaker 1: under this propagandist's control, will focus on his work and
• 32:48
  Speaker 1: upon this image and upon the people who are following it.
• 32:52
  Speaker 1: It will be a wholesale plan of selling that people
• 32:57
  Speaker 1: will buy. Now, life must go on. People must still
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: eat and sleep and cook their food and buy and sell.
• 33:09
  Speaker 1: So the economy of this individual now becomes of paramount importance.
• 33:14
  Speaker 1: So we're told in verses 16, 17, and 18 how
• 33:18
  Speaker 1: that will work. He causes all the small and the great,
• 33:26
  Speaker 1: the rich and the poor, the free and the slaves
• 33:30
  Speaker 1: to be given a mark on their right hand or
• 33:35
  Speaker 1: on their forehead. You've heard of the mark of the beast.
• 33:40
  Speaker 1: It will be the mark or tattoo or some kind
• 33:43
  Speaker 1: of laser marking of this first beast, which will be
• 33:49
  Speaker 1: for people a credit card allowing them to purchase or
• 33:58
  Speaker 1: sell or carry on commerce. If you do not worship
• 34:03
  Speaker 1: the beast, you do not get the mark. No worship,
• 34:07
  Speaker 1: no mark. No mark, no ability to buy or sell. Groceries, clothing,
• 34:14
  Speaker 1: medicine and medical assistance, supplies, goods and services, necessities in
• 34:21
  Speaker 1: the pursuit of a career or education, no mark, no privileges.
• 34:27
  Speaker 1: And it will be for all, not just a chosen few.
• 34:34
  Speaker 1: And verse 17 goes further. He provides that no one
• 34:38
  Speaker 1: will be able to buy or sell except the one
• 34:41
  Speaker 1: who has the mark. either the name of the beast
• 34:45
  Speaker 1: or the number of his name. I came across a
• 34:48
  Speaker 1: fascinating testimony of a man who lived under the limitations
• 34:53
  Speaker 1: of Bulgaria's communist regime in years past, and he said this.
• 35:00
  Speaker 1: You cannot understand and you cannot know that the most
• 35:03
  Speaker 1: terrible instrument of persecution ever devised is an innocent ration card.
• 35:12
  Speaker 1: You cannot buy... And you cannot sell except according to
• 35:16
  Speaker 1: that little innocent card. If they please, you can be
• 35:21
  Speaker 1: starved to death. And if they please, you can be
• 35:24
  Speaker 1: dispossessed of everything you have. For you cannot trade and
• 35:28
  Speaker 1: you cannot buy and you cannot sell without permission. I
• 35:36
  Speaker 1: pause so you can picture it. We're moving quickly in
• 35:41
  Speaker 1: that direction, aren't we? increasingly more centralized in not only
• 35:48
  Speaker 1: the way commerce occurs, but in the focus of it,
• 35:54
  Speaker 1: boiling it all down to a simple set of numbers
• 35:59
  Speaker 1: or the click of a card. Another man adds, whether
• 36:03
  Speaker 1: it be the industrialist trying to close a billion-dollar international
• 36:07
  Speaker 1: deal or a child buying an ice cream cone at
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: the corner store, the rule will be no seals, No sale.
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: From one end of the earth to the other, not
• 36:18
  Speaker 1: a single wheel of commerce will move without the sign
• 36:23
  Speaker 1: of the seal. Nor will any black market system either
• 36:26
  Speaker 1: dare or desire to defy the will of the beast.
• 36:31
  Speaker 1: The boycott will be complete. Now, there will still be
• 36:43
  Speaker 1: a remnant There will still be those who do not
• 36:46
  Speaker 1: worship the beast. There will be those who emerge during
• 36:50
  Speaker 1: this awful era of judgment and persecution and martyrdom. There
• 36:55
  Speaker 1: will be some who will be preserved. I believe at
• 36:57
  Speaker 1: verse 18, John moves from the role of a seer, S-E-E-R,
• 37:04
  Speaker 1: from a seer. I believe John now offers hope to
• 37:11
  Speaker 1: those who will be living at the time as he
• 37:14
  Speaker 1: poses a riddle Look closely. Notice the difference in how
• 37:18
  Speaker 1: this verse begins. Here is wisdom. Let me offer wisdom.
• 37:26
  Speaker 1: And I think for those people living at that time,
• 37:28
  Speaker 1: this passage will make all the sense in the world.
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the
• 37:42
  Speaker 1: number of the beast. For the number is that of
• 37:46
  Speaker 1: a man, 666. He offers inside scoop to those alive
• 37:53
  Speaker 1: at that time. They will be able to recognize through
• 37:58
  Speaker 1: discernment that will be given them the significance of the
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: Antichrist's name and number. It's not known today, and I
• 38:07
  Speaker 1: don't think it can be known today, so I don't
• 38:09
  Speaker 1: think we need to waste our time trying to figure
• 38:13
  Speaker 1: out who it might be. There's been enormous speculation over
• 38:17
  Speaker 1: this 666. Those in the first century believed it had
• 38:23
  Speaker 1: to be Nero, and then he died off, and then
• 38:25
  Speaker 1: it had to be Caligula, and he was gone, then Domitian.
• 38:28
  Speaker 1: Later on, they said it was Napoleon, and then got
• 38:30
  Speaker 1: into the 20th century, and it was Hitler, and then
• 38:33
  Speaker 1: it was Mussolini, and then it was Stalin. I even
• 38:36
  Speaker 1: heard a sermon, the entire sermon was about Kennedy as
• 38:39
  Speaker 1: the beast of Revelation 13. Or some other president of
• 38:44
  Speaker 1: the United States, those you don't like, always fit somehow
• 38:48
  Speaker 1: into 666. Some personality from the UK or from Europe
• 38:53
  Speaker 1: or the far east. Some individual we're always guessing. I
• 38:59
  Speaker 1: read one man who had to have written tongue-in-cheek. He
• 39:02
  Speaker 1: said he has a friend who put it all together,
• 39:04
  Speaker 1: numbering letters with numerical significance, and it came up to
• 39:07
  Speaker 1: be the name of his wife. So he decided he
• 39:10
  Speaker 1: better not use that system as he talks about the beast.
• 39:17
  Speaker 1: At the time they will need to know, this verse
• 39:20
  Speaker 1: will be discerned, it will be understood. The way John
• 39:24
  Speaker 1: writes this, please observe, let him who has understanding, the
• 39:30
  Speaker 1: literally it reads let the one having reason noon for
• 39:35
  Speaker 1: the mind though it's a special discernment given to believers
• 39:39
  Speaker 1: at that time i'm convinced And through this discernment, this
• 39:44
  Speaker 1: God-given understanding and ability, they'll be able to unravel the
• 39:49
  Speaker 1: mystery and even know ahead of time the details of
• 39:53
  Speaker 1: this sort of verse that to us today is nothing
• 39:58
  Speaker 1: but a mystery. Now let me tell you what's so
• 40:02
  Speaker 1: valuable in all of this. And I know some of
• 40:05
  Speaker 1: you want me to go further. Others of you are yawning,
• 40:08
  Speaker 1: thinking I've gone too far. I'm reading into this something,
• 40:11
  Speaker 1: isn't there? I hope I'm not doing that. Let me
• 40:14
  Speaker 1: bring it back into balance with where we are today.
• 40:17
  Speaker 1: That to me is the value of a passage like this.
• 40:19
  Speaker 1: You know what this passage is really talking about as
• 40:22
  Speaker 1: it describes the deception of the beast and the deceitful
• 40:26
  Speaker 1: methods of the dragon and as he works with both
• 40:28
  Speaker 1: of these beasts to convince the world that a lie
• 40:32
  Speaker 1: is really truth. At the heart of this is the
• 40:35
  Speaker 1: message of the value of discernment. Discernment. The Greek word
• 40:43
  Speaker 1: translated discernment most often is from the root krino, K-R-I-N-O.
• 40:49
  Speaker 1: It means to cut or to separate. It's the idea
• 40:52
  Speaker 1: of cutting through all the stuff to get to what
• 40:56
  Speaker 1: is really the issue. These people will cut through all
• 41:00
  Speaker 1: the other things we can't see through and they'll discern,
• 41:04
  Speaker 1: they'll see what others are not able to see. You
• 41:08
  Speaker 1: with discernment see what isn't clear to the general public.
• 41:14
  Speaker 1: You understand events with discerning wisdom because you know scripture
• 41:20
  Speaker 1: and you're understanding more and more of the events because
• 41:24
  Speaker 1: you see the truth of scripture. I'll look at a
• 41:28
  Speaker 1: verse of scripture in a moment that I want to emphasize,
• 41:31
  Speaker 1: but let me give it to you in simple terms.
• 41:34
  Speaker 1: Discernment detects deception. Discernment detects deception. Give you a practical example.
• 41:47
  Speaker 1: Women see things we men often don't see. I don't
• 41:54
  Speaker 1: know how that is, and it isn't fair, but it's true.
• 41:58
  Speaker 1: And I'm listening and maybe getting a little persuaded, and
• 42:03
  Speaker 1: Cynthia will lean over and say, something's wrong. And I go, what? No,
• 42:11
  Speaker 1: there's something about this that just doesn't seem right. What?
• 42:15
  Speaker 1: And I'm thinking, this is, and you know what? I hate,
• 42:18
  Speaker 1: not that I hate to say it, but she's right.
• 42:23
  Speaker 1: And so I wonder how, it's discernment. You ladies are
• 42:28
  Speaker 1: given somehow an ability to know things that often we
• 42:33
  Speaker 1: men can't get. I grew up with a mother who
• 42:38
  Speaker 1: was dripping with discernment. She saw stuff she hadn't even seen.
• 42:46
  Speaker 1: She knew it with just being near me. I guess
• 42:49
  Speaker 1: I smelled like it or something. And she said, I
• 42:51
  Speaker 1: would come in from doing stuff I shouldn't have been doing.
• 42:54
  Speaker 1: She'd say, where you been? I'd lie. And she'd say,
• 42:58
  Speaker 1: don't lie to me. Tell me the truth. You're already
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: going to get a spanking, so we might as well
• 43:01
  Speaker 1: get the truth out. And she would know just by
• 43:04
  Speaker 1: my walking in the door. Of course, I've never been
• 43:08
  Speaker 1: a good poker player, but she would spot all this
• 43:11
  Speaker 1: and she'd see it.
• 43:13
  Speaker 3: Discerning.
• 43:14
  Speaker 1: You get around some salespeople and you go, there's something
• 43:18
  Speaker 1: wrong here. I smelled, you know, something dead in this.
• 43:22
  Speaker 1: It's not what it ought to be. Discernment. Now let
• 43:26
  Speaker 1: me give you two or three things about discernment and
• 43:28
  Speaker 1: then we're going to look at a wonderful verse of
• 43:30
  Speaker 1: scripture that makes all of this meaningful. By the way, discernment,
• 43:35
  Speaker 1: Webster says, is the quality of being able to grasp
• 43:38
  Speaker 1: what is obscure. Isn't that good? Being able to grasp
• 43:44
  Speaker 1: what is obscure, to see what is not evident to
• 43:47
  Speaker 1: the average mind. When words are spoken, here's the first principle,
• 43:53
  Speaker 1: when words are spoken, discernment Here's what isn't said. When
• 43:59
  Speaker 1: this false prophet begins to give his message, the discerning
• 44:02
  Speaker 1: believer will sense it's false. The gullible public will buy it. Boy,
• 44:10
  Speaker 1: are we moving in that direction or what? Lines of
• 44:13
  Speaker 1: discrimination are slowly being blurred. Between good and evil, it's
• 44:17
  Speaker 1: a fog. Tolerance has gone to seed. Just so it's
• 44:23
  Speaker 1: a God. Doesn't matter what his name is. People are sincere.
• 44:26
  Speaker 1: So if they're sincere, we should honor their God. And
• 44:29
  Speaker 1: we too ought to consider worshiping God. That's heresy. There
• 44:33
  Speaker 1: is one God. There is only one who leads us
• 44:36
  Speaker 1: to a knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. You say,
• 44:39
  Speaker 1: that's pretty narrow. That's right. So is the gate that
• 44:42
  Speaker 1: leads to eternal life. We don't go the broad road.
• 44:47
  Speaker 1: It isn't popular. He is the way, the truth, the life.
• 44:51
  Speaker 1: When I hear someone talk in broad terms, it doesn't
• 44:54
  Speaker 1: matter what God it is, just be sincere. I'm hearing,
• 44:57
  Speaker 1: I'm discerning what isn't being said. It is an adulterated
• 45:02
  Speaker 1: gospel when you believe that kind of thing. Second, when
• 45:06
  Speaker 1: events occur, discernment realizes what isn't obvious. You're able to
• 45:13
  Speaker 1: read into the scene what isn't obvious to the general public. Third,
• 45:20
  Speaker 1: when a person is in leadership, discernment sees what isn't
• 45:24
  Speaker 1: seen by the gullible. You can spot a phony if
• 45:30
  Speaker 1: you have discernment. If you don't, you'll follow like the
• 45:34
  Speaker 1: general public will follow. Someone who is persuasive or someone
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: who will line their pockets or someone who will make
• 45:41
  Speaker 1: this very eloquent promise or someone who is appealing, who
• 45:44
  Speaker 1: will make your life easier. Why not? After all, look
• 45:49
  Speaker 1: at what we're living with right now. Why not give
• 45:51
  Speaker 1: ourselves to that kind of person? And fourth, when an
• 45:56
  Speaker 1: issue is at stake, discernment focuses on what isn't addressed.
• 46:03
  Speaker 1: When an issue is at stake, discernment focuses on what
• 46:07
  Speaker 1: isn't addressed. Look at the last three verses of Hebrews 5. Okay?
• 46:21
  Speaker 1: Some of you are just staring at me. Look at
• 46:22
  Speaker 1: Hebrews chapter 5. I really want you to do that, okay?
• 46:27
  Speaker 1: You're like, I wonder what he's going to be through.
• 46:29
  Speaker 1: It's about... You know, the game is on late, so relax.
• 46:35
  Speaker 1: Hebrews 5, verse 12. The writer to the Hebrews is
• 46:40
  Speaker 1: concerned about his readers. And they ought to be able
• 46:45
  Speaker 1: to go deeper than they were going. And so he
• 46:47
  Speaker 1: reproves them in verses 12, 13, and 14. Hebrews 5.
• 46:52
  Speaker 1: And boy, is the talk about relevant. For though by
• 46:55
  Speaker 1: this time you ought to be teachers, you have need
• 46:57
  Speaker 1: again for someone to teach you. the elementary principles of
• 47:01
  Speaker 1: the oracles of God. You have come to need milk
• 47:05
  Speaker 1: and not solid food. How many churches would this be true?
• 47:10
  Speaker 1: Of how many places of worship would this be true?
• 47:13
  Speaker 1: How many believers should by now be growing and maturing,
• 47:17
  Speaker 1: they're still sucking on the bottle, still drinking milk, still
• 47:22
  Speaker 1: fussing about solid food, still arguing because it isn't entertaining,
• 47:28
  Speaker 1: still wanting sermonettes. Still want you to make them feel good.
• 47:33
  Speaker 1: That's all milk. That's what you do with babies. You
• 47:36
  Speaker 1: entertain them. He says you ought to be grown up,
• 47:40
  Speaker 1: but you're still on the bottle. Verse 13. For everyone
• 47:44
  Speaker 1: who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the
• 47:47
  Speaker 1: word of righteousness. For he is an infant. It's meant
• 47:52
  Speaker 1: to be insulting. Just a baby. You can't sustain yourself
• 47:58
  Speaker 1: in hard times. You can't feed yourself the word of God.
• 48:01
  Speaker 1: You need somebody else to feed you all the time.
• 48:04
  Speaker 1: You have no sense or source of self-sustaining. No wonder
• 48:09
  Speaker 1: you're gullible. Then whoever has the loudest and most persuasive
• 48:13
  Speaker 1: message is going to get your attention and you're going
• 48:15
  Speaker 1: to follow them. He says in verse 14, this is
• 48:20
  Speaker 1: the clincher, but solid food is for the mature who
• 48:25
  Speaker 1: because of practice Have their senses trained to discern good
• 48:31
  Speaker 1: and evil. I love that verse. Because of practice. Time spent.
• 48:39
  Speaker 1: Engaged in truth. Wrestling with truth. Learning. Reading. Studying. Teaching. Growing.
• 48:49
  Speaker 1: Applying truth. Our senses are trained to do what? To discern. Simplest.
• 48:57
  Speaker 1: Definition I know of discernment is knowing right from wrong.
• 49:02
  Speaker 1: Good from evil. This is good for you. This is
• 49:05
  Speaker 1: bad for you. This is what's best. This is not good.
• 49:10
  Speaker 1: Sounds like parents, doesn't it? That children are growing up
• 49:14
  Speaker 1: and they even get in their 20s and you're still going,
• 49:18
  Speaker 1: when are they going to get it? When are they
• 49:20
  Speaker 1: going to get it? Then you realize maybe you haven't
• 49:23
  Speaker 1: helped them get it. And you haven't gotten it, perhaps.
• 49:26
  Speaker 1: Or you've been telling them over and over. And finally,
• 49:31
  Speaker 1: it's like a log on a frozen lake. It finally thaws.
• 49:35
  Speaker 1: And you go, wow.
• 49:38
  Speaker 2: Wow.
• 49:40
  Speaker 1: What happened? Discernment. They learned how to think for themselves.
• 49:46
  Speaker 1: He says solid food will do that. Pouring over, applying,
• 49:52
  Speaker 1: growing in the scriptures, putting it to use in your
• 49:55
  Speaker 1: life because of practice your senses become sharpened and you live,
• 50:03
  Speaker 1: if you will, on the edge of understanding. So you
• 50:09
  Speaker 1: You can read the papers and not be persuaded. You
• 50:12
  Speaker 1: can see the programs and that's nonsense. You can hear
• 50:16
  Speaker 1: somebody as they're talking. You say that's error. That's not truth.
• 50:21
  Speaker 1: That's discerning. Now the world will tell you that's judging.
• 50:29
  Speaker 1: There's a great word for that, but I'm not allowed
• 50:31
  Speaker 1: to use it in the pulpit. So we won't go there.
• 50:36
  Speaker 1: that's discerning, that's cutting through the garbage and seeing reality
• 50:45
  Speaker 1: that in the future most will miss. And as a result,
• 50:51
  Speaker 1: there will be the impact of this enormously successful, albeit
• 50:57
  Speaker 1: godless leader and his cohort, the false prophet. Are we
• 51:04
  Speaker 1: moving toward that time or what? Are we getting set
• 51:07
  Speaker 1: up for this or what? Let's ask God to keep
• 51:13
  Speaker 1: us alert, aware, awake, discerning. Bow with me, will you please?
• 51:29
  Speaker 1: You've listened carefully and you have Perhaps seen part of
• 51:34
  Speaker 1: your life walk past in review. You've remembered times when
• 51:39
  Speaker 1: you've been deceived. You realize how easy that can happen.
• 51:46
  Speaker 1: Believe me, it's happened to me too. We're in this together.
• 51:53
  Speaker 1: It is not deceptive for me to tell you that
• 51:55
  Speaker 1: there is one way to get to heaven. And it's
• 52:01
  Speaker 1: through a knowledge process. and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
• 52:08
  Speaker 1: He alone is the Savior of the world. Not he
• 52:15
  Speaker 1: plus your works, not he plus the church, not he
• 52:21
  Speaker 1: plus some good intention or a pile of money. It's he,
• 52:26
  Speaker 1: it's him alone. He is the way, the truth, and
• 52:31
  Speaker 1: the life. If you believe anything else, you're lost. You're lost.
• 52:41
  Speaker 1: I pray that as a result of our time in
• 52:43
  Speaker 1: this fearful section, fearful for those who are not discerning,
• 52:49
  Speaker 1: you'll realize the importance of getting ready for what's ahead. Please,
• 52:57
  Speaker 1: please don't put this decision off. Lord thank you for
• 53:03
  Speaker 1: the way that you connect sections such as this to
• 53:08
  Speaker 1: our lives. Thank you for giving the words necessary to
• 53:14
  Speaker 1: get across the meaning of these verses. Any part that's
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  Speaker 1: obscure or in error I pray that we'll quickly forget.
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  Speaker 1: But that part which applies may we never forget. Teach
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  Speaker 1: me Lord to be alert and aware and alive and
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  Speaker 1: awake on the edge of my times. May I never
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  Speaker 1: come to the place where I shifted into neutral and
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  Speaker 1: rely on someone else's insight to grasp the truth. Thank
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  Speaker 1: you for those who teach us, for those who assist us,
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  Speaker 1: but make us in the process of learning decisive, And
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  Speaker 1: people of strong and unpersuaded convictions. In a world that's
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  Speaker 1: lost its way. Thank you for Jesus. The wonderful, perfect
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  Speaker 1: model of this. Never persuaded by the error of his times.
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  Speaker 1: But graciously and forever focused on glory and honor to
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  Speaker 1: the Father. May that be ours as well. I pray
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  Speaker 1: in the name of Jesus for his sake. Everybody say it. Amen.
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  Speaker 2: The preceding message, Antichrist's Lieutenant, The Beast Out of the Earth,
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  Speaker 2: was copyrighted in 2003, 2006, and 2024. And the sound
• 54:45
  Speaker 2: recording was copyrighted in 2024 by Charles R.
• 54:47
  Speaker 1: Swindoll, Inc.
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  Speaker 2: All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for
• 54:59
  Speaker 2: commercial use is strictly prohibited.
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  Speaker 1: Charles R.
• 55:03
  Speaker 2: Swindoll, Inc. is grateful to the following sources for permission
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  Speaker 2: to use their material in the preceding message. Kregel Publications
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  Speaker 2: for John Phillips' book, Exploring Revelation, copyrighted in 1987 by
• 55:17
  Speaker 2: John Phillips. And Tyndale House Publishers for the book, The
• 55:21
  Speaker 2: Revelation Record by Henry Morris, copyrighted in 1983.