Latest / Max Lucado Daily Sermons / Never lose hope in the future ahead- Minister Max Lucado

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Never lose hope in the future ahead- Minister Max Lucado · Max Lucado Daily Sermons

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Speaker 1: Including message of our study in the Book of Daniel.
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Speaker 1: I hope you've enjoyed this study as much as I have.
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Speaker 1: Because of travel plans, i'm recording this message in advance,
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Speaker 1: but I want you to know that on the day
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Speaker 1: you study Daniel chapter twelve, my heart is going to
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Speaker 1: be with you because it's a great opportunity for all
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Speaker 1: of us to thank God for this astounding book that
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Speaker 1: originated in the life of a wonderful man by the
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Speaker 1: name of Daniel, some six hundred years before the life
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Speaker 1: of Jesus Christ. You know, in my time at o'kill's Church,
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Speaker 1: I've preached well over fifty series to our congregation, but
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Speaker 1: I think I can say this has been the most
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Speaker 1: challenging series to date. This book is stimulating, it's perplexing,
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Speaker 1: it's exciting, and I've done my best to present to
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Speaker 1: you my best take on this wonderful study. What's important
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Speaker 1: in this study is that we understand the big message,
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Speaker 1: and that is that there is a God in heaven
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Speaker 1: and that he is bringing all of history toward a
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Speaker 1: powerful and decisive victory. Now, no one understands all the
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Speaker 1: details of what's going to happen between now and the
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Speaker 1: end of history. I don't. No Bible student does. And
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Speaker 1: I've simply done my best to unpack to you what
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Speaker 1: seems to me to be a fair interpretation of this
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Speaker 1: wonderful book. And if your study takes you in a
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Speaker 1: little different direction, that's okay. What's important is that we
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Speaker 1: agree that there is a God in heaven and he's
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Speaker 1: going to bring a great victory to this earth. Amen,
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Speaker 1: And that's what matters the most. Well, We're going to
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Speaker 1: dig into chapter twelve and wrap this up, put a
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Speaker 1: ribbon on the book. But before we do, can I
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Speaker 1: say a prayer and then we'll get to work. Heavenly Father,
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Speaker 1: we thank you now. We thank you for this wonderful book.
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Speaker 1: We thank you for what you've taught us in this study. Lord,
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Speaker 1: it leaves us hungry, wanting to know more. We pray
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Speaker 1: you'd forgive our teacher his sins her many and and
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Speaker 1: we pray, Heavenly Father, that you would please reveal to
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Speaker 1: him and to us just a deeper understanding of what
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Speaker 1: your future is, what you hold for us in the future.
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Speaker 1: And we pray that we could be like Daniel, people
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Speaker 1: who are prepared, people who understand your word, who seek
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Speaker 1: your truth. We pray this, for these are difficult, severe
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Speaker 1: days in which we live, and so we pray in
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Speaker 1: the name of Jesus Christ. And all the church said, Well,
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Speaker 1: my dad made a big deal out of family vacations.
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Speaker 1: He enjoyed preparing for the vacations as much as the
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Speaker 1: vacation itself. Our vacations always consisted of a long road
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Speaker 1: trip and then some time in a campground in the mountains.
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Speaker 1: Usually the road trip was from West Texas to Colorado,
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Speaker 1: but there were a couple of times we ventured out
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Speaker 1: as far as Yellowstone Park or Yosemite, one time to
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Speaker 1: the Grand Canyon. He loved vacations and he loved preparing
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Speaker 1: for them. In spring, when the spring weather began to change,
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Speaker 1: he would start talking about our summer vacation, and he
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Speaker 1: began making decisions as to where we were going to go.
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Speaker 1: And he didn't always tell us. He would surprise us.
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Speaker 1: He would talk about it until right up on the
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Speaker 1: evening before the vacation, and then he would tell us. Now,
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Speaker 1: this was back in the days before there was GPS
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Speaker 1: and before there was cell phones, of course, so he
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Speaker 1: would plan our trips the old fashioned way with an
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Speaker 1: honest to goodness foldable map, and he would spend hours
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Speaker 1: over that map in the days leading up to the vacation,
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Speaker 1: and he would use a highlighter and he would highlight
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Speaker 1: our route on the map. He would circle the restaurant
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Speaker 1: or places where we were going to stop at restaurants,
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Speaker 1: and he would circle the names of campgrounds where we
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Speaker 1: were going to spend the night. And then, of course
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Speaker 1: he would have in high highlights the name of the
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Speaker 1: campground where we were going to spend most of our vacation.
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Speaker 1: And then, in an act of great drama, in an
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Speaker 1: act that I cherished, he would, on the eve before
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Speaker 1: the trip, sit me, my brother, and his wife, our
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Speaker 1: mother at the table, unfold the map, and he would
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Speaker 1: let us see where we were going. Oh can you
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Speaker 1: imagine how excited we were, my brother and I. We
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Speaker 1: were just single digit age, you know, nine or ten
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Speaker 1: years of age. Oh, how we would sit on the
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Speaker 1: edge of the chair with both elbows on the table
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Speaker 1: and our chin cupped in our hands, and just listening
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Speaker 1: to Dad as he would describe where we were headed it.
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Speaker 1: And since we didn't know anything about travel, since we
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Speaker 1: didn't know what to expect, since we were newcomers to
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Speaker 1: the road, He not only told us where we were going,
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Speaker 1: he told us what to expect. He would say, now, suns,
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Speaker 1: when we get into New Mexico, that that desert wind
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Speaker 1: can blow, you got to prepare yourself. And he'd say, sons, now,
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Speaker 1: when we get close to the mountains, you're gonna you're
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Speaker 1: gonna feel your ears begin to pop. He would say, boys,
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Speaker 1: now you'll know we're getting close to the end when
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Speaker 1: you see those wooden signs that say National Park. They
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Speaker 1: all have green trees painted on them, those those those
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Speaker 1: pine trees, and he would describe them to us. Now,
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Speaker 1: why would he do that? I mean, aside from being
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Speaker 1: a fun loving guy, why would he go to the
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Speaker 1: effort of showing us the map? And then would he
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Speaker 1: why would he go to the effort of preparing us
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Speaker 1: ahead of time so we would know what to expect.
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Speaker 1: Why was it important to our father for him to
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Speaker 1: tell us what signs to look for? And as long
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Speaker 1: as we're asking the question, why has God done the
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Speaker 1: same over and over as we've studied through the Book
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Speaker 1: of Daniel, I have suggested to you that this book
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Speaker 1: is a roadmap of sorts, or it's a timeline, it's
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Speaker 1: an itinerary of the human journey, especially the Book of Daniel.
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Speaker 1: God has told us what to expect. He has told
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Speaker 1: us what's going to happen, and he has prepared us
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Speaker 1: so we will know how to behave when we begin
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Speaker 1: to see the signs. Of course, the Book of Daniel
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Speaker 1: is far from the only book in the Bible to
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Speaker 1: do this. It may surprise you to know that thirty
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Speaker 1: percent of your Bible is comprised of prophecy. Thirty percent.
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Speaker 1: Did you know that entire volumes such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Revelation,
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Speaker 1: or prophetic. So to dismiss prophecy is to dismiss one
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Speaker 1: third of your scriptures. Yet many people do many people
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Speaker 1: do They dismiss prophecy. They say, just give me the
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Speaker 1: Lord's Prayer and just give me the twenty third song,
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Speaker 1: just give me the stories. I can't handle that prophecy.
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Speaker 1: They may do so for a couple of reasons. First
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Speaker 1: of all, prophecy it can be complicated. It can and
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Speaker 1: it can be controversial, and teachers of prophecy will have
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Speaker 1: a tendency to be opinionated. I understand the hesitancy, but
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Speaker 1: I would encourage you, dear friend, I would encourage you
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Speaker 1: don't be listed among those who miss out on the
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Speaker 1: blessing of studying prophecy. Yes, blessing. God promises a blessing
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Speaker 1: for those who study the words of the prophetic teachers.
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Speaker 1: In fact, he closes the Book of Daniel with this promise.
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Speaker 1: Those who are wise will understand. Those who study this prophecy,
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Speaker 1: those who gather this wisdom, they will come to a
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Speaker 1: sense of understanding. This is a promise of God that
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Speaker 1: as you study prophecy, you will understand. You will come
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Speaker 1: to new levels of understanding. You will have those aha
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Speaker 1: moments in which you say, oh, now I see how
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Speaker 1: this lines up. Oh now I see what this passage means.
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Speaker 1: You see, God wants to give you what my father
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Speaker 1: gave my brother and me, and that is a glimpse
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Speaker 1: into the future. He wants to show us the journey,
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Speaker 1: and he promises a special blessing, a special blessing for
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Speaker 1: those who read and heed the words of prophecy. Maybe
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Speaker 1: you've read these words found early in the Book of Revelation,
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Speaker 1: the most famous of the prophetic books. God blesses the
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Speaker 1: one who reads the words of prophecy to the church.
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Speaker 1: I guess that's me, and he blesses all who listen
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Speaker 1: to its message and obey what it says. I guess
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Speaker 1: that to you, for the time is near. There's a
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Speaker 1: story about an airplane that was lost over the ocean
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Speaker 1: in the middle of a hurricane. The captain decided that
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Speaker 1: it was time to assure the passengers that he was
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Speaker 1: still in the cockpit, so he announced over the intercom, Well,
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Speaker 1: I have good news and I have bad news. The
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Speaker 1: bad news is I have no idea where we are
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Speaker 1: or where we are headed. The good news is we're
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Speaker 1: making great time. That describes the lives of many people today.
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Speaker 1: We're busy, but lost in a hurry, but with no destination.
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Speaker 1: You know, we're running faster than ever, but we have
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Speaker 1: no idea where we are going. But to all who
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Speaker 1: will listen, God will share the blessing of the destination.
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Speaker 1: He'll show you the map, and in addition, he'll show
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Speaker 1: you the signs to look for along the way. The
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Speaker 1: map and tells us where we are headed. At Chapter
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Speaker 1: twelve begins with a reminder of where this history is headed.
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Speaker 1: He calls this the tribulation Verse one of chapter twelve.
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Speaker 1: At that time, Michael, the Great Prince, who protects. Your
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Speaker 1: people will arise, and there will be a time of distress,
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Speaker 1: such as nought has happened from the beginning of nations
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Speaker 1: until then. But at that time, your people, everyone whose
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Speaker 1: name is found written in the book will be delivered.
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Speaker 1: Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake,
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Speaker 1: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.
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Speaker 1: Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of
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Speaker 1: the heavens, and will lead many to righteousness like stars
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Speaker 1: forever and ever. But you, Daniel, close up and seal
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Speaker 1: the words of the scroll until the time of the end.
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Speaker 1: Many will go here and there to increase. This passage,
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Speaker 1: as well as the rest of the Book of Daniel,
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Speaker 1: anticipates a major event in the future that called the Tribulation.
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Speaker 1: We've come to see. That's a period of seven years,
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Speaker 1: and I personally take that seven year time frame as literal.
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Speaker 1: It's a seven year period in which there will be
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Speaker 1: times of intense struggle for who the Book of Daniel
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Speaker 1: calls your people, Daniel, that is the Hebrews. The others
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Speaker 1: will be involved, but certainly those who are Jewish heritage
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Speaker 1: in the city of Jerusalem will face a time of
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Speaker 1: intense struggle. This is just one of several prophecies or
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Speaker 1: several promises moments that are going to happen in the
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Speaker 1: future that we have looked at. I might for us
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Speaker 1: to take just a minute and back up and review
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Speaker 1: some others, just so we can look at the timeline
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Speaker 1: and look at the map one more time. Scripture tells
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Speaker 1: us that there will be a sudden, unexpected resurrection of
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Speaker 1: the saints. This is often called the rapture, and it's
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Speaker 1: going to happen without warning. But at that moment, every
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Speaker 1: believer who has placed his or her trust in Christ
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Speaker 1: will be resurrected in a moment, in the twinkling of
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Speaker 1: an eye, they will be given a new body. They
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Speaker 1: will be welcomed as the bride of Christ to a
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Speaker 1: wedding feast in heaven. This will be a glorious day
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Speaker 1: for all who have trusted in Christ, but this will
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Speaker 1: trigger a difficult day for all those left behind. You see,
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Speaker 1: in this moment, in a millisecond, the Church and her
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Speaker 1: restraining influence, the Holy Spirit, will be gone. He the
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Speaker 1: Holy Spirit is what holds is who holds evil at bay.
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Speaker 1: Right now and for a time, the Holy Spirit will
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Speaker 1: step away now imagine the ensuing chaos when the Church
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Speaker 1: and the Holy Spirit are removed from society, when all
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Speaker 1: those who seek to do good are suddenly gone, when
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Speaker 1: all those who teach truth are suddenly missing. It seems
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Speaker 1: to me that their sudden departure will cause a moral, financial,
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Speaker 1: and political tale split, and this world as we know
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Speaker 1: it will turn into a chaotic miss And this chaos
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Speaker 1: will set the stage for an evil despot, a tool
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Speaker 1: of Satan, the Antichrist. He's a primary character in the
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Speaker 1: book of Daniel. Now, according to the prophecy of Daniel nine,
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Speaker 1: this Antichrist is going to step forward, and he's going
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Speaker 1: to broker a peace treaty in the Middle East that
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Speaker 1: will seem to settle everything down. It's going to encompass
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Speaker 1: the world. The promise is this, that leader speaking of
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Speaker 1: the Antichrist will make a firm agreement with many people.
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Speaker 1: For seven years, he will stop the offerings and sacrifice.
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Speaker 1: After three and one half years, a destroyer will do
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Speaker 1: terrible things until the ordered end comes to destroy the city.
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Speaker 1: So the Antichrist will step forward. He will broker a
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Speaker 1: peace treaty. Apparently, this peace treaty involves the reconstruction of
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Speaker 1: the temple. Yet after three and a half years, he's
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Speaker 1: going to stop the offerings and he will engage in
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Speaker 1: what Jesus Christ himself calls the abomination of desolation. He
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Speaker 1: will position himself as God and demand to be worshiped,
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Speaker 1: and this will trigger a season of suffering. But after
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Speaker 1: this season of suffering, a resurrection will occur, as we
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Speaker 1: just read in Daniel chapter twelve, a sum to everlasting life,
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Speaker 1: and some who rejected God to shame and torment. Even
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Speaker 1: most important, at the end of these seven years, Christ
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Speaker 1: himself will come. Can we reread the promise from Daniel
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Speaker 1: chapter seven. This king, speaking of the Antichrist, will speak
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Speaker 1: against the Most High God, and he will hurt in
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Speaker 1: kill God's holy people. He will try to change times
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Speaker 1: and laws that have already been set. That is to say,
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Speaker 1: who will try to create a religion that's set up
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Speaker 1: around himself. The Holy people that belong to God will
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Speaker 1: be in that king's power for three and one a
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Speaker 1: half years, but then the court will decide what should happen.
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Speaker 1: That's the court of God. The power of the king
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Speaker 1: will be taken away and his kingdom will be completely destroyed.
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Speaker 1: Then the holy people who belong to the Most High
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Speaker 1: God will have the power to rule, and they will
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Speaker 1: rule over all the kingdoms under heaven with power and greatness,
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Speaker 1: and their power to rule will last forever. That's the
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Speaker 1: beautiful promise of the Book of Daniel. The Church will
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Speaker 1: be raptured, the tribulation will be severe, but it won't
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Speaker 1: last forever. Christ will return and he will establish his
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Speaker 1: kingdom on this earth with his saints, and he will
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Speaker 1: rule forever. Now you may have more questions Daniel did.
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Speaker 1: Before Daniel could ask for an explanation, did you notice
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Speaker 1: he was told to seal up the book of Prophecy,
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Speaker 1: That is to say, no further revelation is going to
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Speaker 1: be coming. Daniel had been given all that he would
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Speaker 1: be given. The review was complete. Even so, a couple
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Speaker 1: of questions remained. And as we read further in Daniel
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Speaker 1: chapter twelve, Daniel saw what appeared to be an angel,
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Speaker 1: and he heard the angel ask, now, how long before
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Speaker 1: these amazing things come true? Well, what do you know?
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Speaker 1: We used to ask that question on vacation. How long Dad,
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Speaker 1: how long before we get there? I guess that was
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Speaker 1: an angelic question. The answer came from Jesus himself, reading again.
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Speaker 1: In Daniel twelve, the man dressed in lenin who stood
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Speaker 1: over the water, raised his hands toward heaven, and I
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Speaker 1: heard him swear by the name of God who lives forever.
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Speaker 1: It will be for three and one half years the
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Speaker 1: power the holy people will finally be broken, and then
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Speaker 1: all these things will come true. I heard the answer,
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Speaker 1: Daniel said, but I really did not understand. So I
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Speaker 1: asked Master, what will happen after all these things come true?
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Speaker 1: He answered, go your way, Daniel. The message is closed
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Speaker 1: up and sealed until the time of the end. Many
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Speaker 1: people will be made clean, pure and spotless, but the
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Speaker 1: wicked will continue to be wicked. Those wicked people will
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Speaker 1: not understand these things, but the wise will understand them.
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Speaker 1: The Angel needed an explanation. Daniel needed an explanation how long?
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Speaker 1: Asked the Angel? What shall be the end of all
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Speaker 1: these things? Asked Daniel, give us more details, in other words,
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Speaker 1: and Jesus came and gave them more details. Now you
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Speaker 1: and I would love more details too. We don't have
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Speaker 1: all of our questions answered, but as we have sought God,
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Speaker 1: he has given us more details. I believe that God
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Speaker 1: has done for us what he did for Daniel, God
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Speaker 1: has given us more details. In fact, the details that
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Speaker 1: God has given to us are so efficient enough to
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Speaker 1: cause me to think we really may be nearing the end.
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Speaker 1: I do not say that lightly. And I realized in
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Speaker 1: every generation there have been those who have said, now,
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Speaker 1: this is the last generation. And yet there are certain
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Speaker 1: things about our generation that command our attention, that cause
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Speaker 1: us to wonder, are we truly toward the end? Are
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Speaker 1: we truly nearing the final rapture. I believe that Christ
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Speaker 1: could come at any moment. I believe this not just
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Speaker 1: because of what I read in the scriptures, but also
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Speaker 1: because of what I read in the newspaper. Now, again,
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Speaker 1: to be clear, no one knows the exact time of
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Speaker 1: our Lord's return. Jesus said, no one knows about that
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Speaker 1: day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor
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Speaker 1: the son, but only the Father. The exact time is
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Speaker 1: hidden from the followers. We do not know the hours.
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Speaker 1: But we have been told to look for the signs,
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Speaker 1: and we are told to respond to the signs. Now
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Speaker 1: you know how to respond to signs. You see signs
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Speaker 1: on the highway whenever you're driving or riding in a car.
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Speaker 1: For example, when you see this sign. What does it
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Speaker 1: tell you? Well, because of that sign, you're going to
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Speaker 1: anticipate a wet road. You don't know the exact location
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Speaker 1: or the amount of the water, but you anticipate water.
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Speaker 1: What about this sign? Now, do you know the amount
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Speaker 1: of construction or the purpose? No, but you know you
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Speaker 1: need to be alert. What about this sign? Well? Who
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Speaker 1: put that in there? That must be from God. I mean,
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Speaker 1: we sure don't want to ignore the signs, do we.
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Speaker 2: Now?
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Speaker 1: Jesus has not given us the hour of his return.
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Speaker 1: But church, we have signs. We have signs as we're
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Speaker 1: traveling through life, as we're traveling toward our final destination.
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Speaker 1: Just like my father told my brother and me, what
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Speaker 1: signs to look for? So Jesus christ Is said, not
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Speaker 1: hear some signs. He criticized the religious leaders of his
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Speaker 1: day for not looking for signs. The Pharisees and Sadducees
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Speaker 1: came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to
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Speaker 1: show them a sign from heaven. He replied, when evening comes,
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Speaker 1: you will say it will be fair weather, for the
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Speaker 1: sky is read and in the morning today it will
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Speaker 1: be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast. You
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Speaker 1: know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but
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Speaker 1: you cannot interpret the signs of the times. Now what
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Speaker 1: Jesus need to give us the same rebuke. We know
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Speaker 1: how to read the weather forecast, but we're not paying
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Speaker 1: attention to the signs of the times. Consider what Jesus
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Speaker 1: says about reading signs. Watch out that no one deceives you,
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Speaker 1: for many will come in my name claiming I am
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Speaker 1: the Christ and will deceive many. You will hear of
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Speaker 1: wars and rumors of wars. But see to it that
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Speaker 1: you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the
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Speaker 1: end is still to come. In other words, we shouldn't
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Speaker 1: be too quickly misled. And men have been declaring the
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Speaker 1: end since the very beginning. There are endless skirmishes and
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Speaker 1: conflicts and rumors of wars, and these mean nothing. They
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Speaker 1: are not signs. But the true signs are these. Look
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Speaker 1: what he says. Next, nation will rise against nation, and
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Speaker 1: kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in
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Speaker 1: various places. All these are the beginnings of birth pains.
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Speaker 1: Now note that phrase birth pains. We men are really
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Speaker 1: not qualified to explain what a birth pain is. But
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Speaker 1: I have it on good authority that birth pains are painful,
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Speaker 1: and they come with increasing frequency as the time of
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Speaker 1: delivery draws near. Jesus is saying that there are certain
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Speaker 1: signs that are going to be painful. They're going to
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Speaker 1: be and they're going to come with increasing frequency as
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Speaker 1: the end draws near. With that in mind, consider a
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Speaker 1: couple of signs of the end, he says, nation will
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Speaker 1: rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. Now, now, this
23:16
Speaker 1: is a colloquial expression used by Hebrew rabbis in ancient literature,
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Speaker 1: found often that describes a unique type of war. It's
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Speaker 1: an expression that describes a widespread conflict. Our phrase for
23:34
Speaker 1: this conflict would be world war, world war. So Jesus
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Speaker 1: is saying, you will see world wars. Now have we?
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Speaker 1: Of course we have twice in the last century. We
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Speaker 1: have seen conflicts that are so universal that they earned
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Speaker 1: the phrase world war. In fact, the first one was
23:54
Speaker 1: called the War to End all wars, but then came
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Speaker 1: the second one, World War two. More people died from
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Speaker 1: war in the twentieth century than in all the other
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Speaker 1: centuries leading up to the twentieth century. Combined, combined increasing frequency,
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Speaker 1: increasing pain. What about natural disasters specifically, Jesus says famines
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Speaker 1: and earthquakes. Of course, the world has always seen both,
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Speaker 1: but did you know we're seeing them with increasing frequency? Examples,
24:29
Speaker 1: for example, earthquakes. According to one study, from nineteen thirty
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Speaker 1: nine to nineteen seventy six, there were seventy one earthquakes,
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Speaker 1: Yet from nineteen seventy seven to twenty fourteen, there were
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Speaker 1: one hundred and sixty four. That's an increase of one
24:44
Speaker 1: hundred and thirty one percent. Does it seem to you
24:50
Speaker 1: that the birth pains are increasing in frequency? These are
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Speaker 1: signs on the road, and there are more signs. I
24:59
Speaker 1: have time for just a couple, but consider this one.
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Speaker 1: The most remarkable sign I think of our generation is
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Speaker 1: the regathering of the Jewish people in Israel. Did you
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Speaker 1: know that the Bible speaks of a day in which
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Speaker 1: the Jewish people will reoccupy their homeland Way back in
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Speaker 1: the Book of Jeremiah. The days are coming, declares the Lord,
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Speaker 1: when I will bring my people Israel and Judah back
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Speaker 1: from captivity and restore them to the land I gave
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Speaker 1: their forefathers to possess. Now, almost all the key prophecies
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Speaker 1: in the Book of Daniel depend upon a repopulated geographical Israel.
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Speaker 1: For example, the Book of Daniel prophesies a covenant between
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Speaker 1: the Antichrist and Israel. This can only happen if the
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Speaker 1: nation of Israel exists. The Book of Daniel Prophesies or
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Speaker 1: rebuilding of the Temple Again, Israel must exist. It must
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Speaker 1: occupy the land in order for this to happen. Daniel
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Speaker 1: forecasted an utter sacrilege of the Temple. Well, no Israel,
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Speaker 1: no Temple. The War of Armageddon only makes sense if
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Speaker 1: Israel is occupying the land where the valley is found. Now,
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Speaker 1: the idea of a repopulated Israel was unthinkable just a
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Speaker 1: few decades ago. You know the history. The Jewish people
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Speaker 1: were dispersed to over seventy countries for more than twenty centuries.
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Speaker 1: Yet in our day we are seeing them return. Did
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Speaker 1: you know that today, for the first time since a.
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Speaker 1: D One thirty five, there are more Jews living in
26:35
Speaker 1: Israel than any place on Earth. There is a regathering
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Speaker 1: of the Jews to Israel. Could this be a sign
26:45
Speaker 1: It's unique to our generation, that's for sure. The supersign
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Speaker 1: in itself is enough to get our attention. Maybe we
26:53
Speaker 1: have time for one more. How about globalism. Globalism, you know,
26:58
Speaker 1: the Book of Revelation prophesies a d and in the
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Speaker 1: Tribulation in which an evil ruler will commandeer the world
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Speaker 1: economy and that no one will buy or sell without
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Speaker 1: his permission. Well, one hundred years ago this was impossible.
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Speaker 1: How could anybody commandeer the world economy one hundred years ago?
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Speaker 1: But today, thanks to the proliferation of electronic banking and
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Speaker 1: credit and debit cards, it's possible. The world is a
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Speaker 1: smaller place. Globalization has shrunk the globe, and scripture repeatedly
27:33
Speaker 1: promises a plunge into immorality in the end times. I
27:37
Speaker 1: know the world has always been immoral, Yet because of globalism,
27:42
Speaker 1: because of the Internet, because of accessibility that we have
27:47
Speaker 1: between one culture and another, between another country and this one,
27:51
Speaker 1: pornography is peddled on a global scale like never before.
27:56
Speaker 1: Porn pedlers in Russia can poison the thoughts of a
27:58
Speaker 1: teenager in Kansas at any point during the day. Folks,
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Speaker 1: that wasn't true when I was a kid. That wasn't
28:05
Speaker 1: true when I was growing up. Was it true thirty
28:07
Speaker 1: years ago? But it's true today. Might it worsen? Yeah? Probably?
28:15
Speaker 1: But can we say that we have plunged into a
28:18
Speaker 1: dark cesspool of immorality. Absolutely, we can say that the
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Speaker 1: world is smaller, and because the world is smaller, the
28:26
Speaker 1: possibility of global disasters are more likely. The Antichrist during
28:31
Speaker 1: the time of tribulation will unleash atrocities upon the globe.
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Speaker 1: What's he going to use? Bacteria, nuclear power, financial sabotage,
28:40
Speaker 1: a combination of them. All. We live in a day
28:43
Speaker 1: in which he could thanks to globalism. Now we could
28:48
Speaker 1: add more signs to this list. The mysterious blood moons,
28:51
Speaker 1: the attempts at peace in the Middle East, the increased
28:54
Speaker 1: apostasy of the Church. But all of these add up
29:00
Speaker 1: to make us wonder if we couldn't be getting close
29:04
Speaker 1: to the end.
29:06
Speaker 2: Now.
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Speaker 1: Again, no one knows. No one knows, and anyone who
29:10
Speaker 1: says they know, well, they're wrong. But we should pay
29:14
Speaker 1: attention to the signs. The Father has told us what
29:18
Speaker 1: to expect. Now, if you're in Christ, you have nothing
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Speaker 1: to fear. And I suggest these signs not to increase
29:27
Speaker 1: a level of anxiety at all, just the opposite, but
29:30
Speaker 1: to affirm you. You see, Christ said these things. What happened,
29:34
Speaker 1: so we know He's in control. You know what is coming.
29:38
Speaker 1: But if you've never given your heart to Christ, I
29:42
Speaker 1: share these signs to alert you you need to be
29:46
Speaker 1: ready and you need to make sure that you have
29:49
Speaker 1: placed your trust in the hands of the one who
29:52
Speaker 1: controls society. By the way, we never did answer that question,
29:58
Speaker 1: why did my father tell my brother me about the map?
30:01
Speaker 1: Why did he show us where we were going? Well,
30:04
Speaker 1: I think there's a simple answer to that question. I
30:06
Speaker 1: never did ask my dad, but I as a dad myself,
30:09
Speaker 1: I think there's an answer. I think he wanted us
30:13
Speaker 1: to know that he knew where we were headed and
30:18
Speaker 1: what would happen. You see, it turned out he was right.
30:23
Speaker 1: When we got to New Mexico. The winds did blow.
30:27
Speaker 1: When we reached the mountains, our ears did pop. And
30:31
Speaker 1: you know, when we got close to the campground, we
30:33
Speaker 1: began seeing those wooden signs that said National Forest, and
30:36
Speaker 1: they all had that little green ever tree, evergreen Tree
30:39
Speaker 1: imprinted on them. By the time we reached our destination,
30:44
Speaker 1: I was proud of my dad. I trusted him because
30:48
Speaker 1: he had promised and he had delivered. My friend, our
30:52
Speaker 1: God deserves our worship. He has promised and he has
30:58
Speaker 1: delivered what he said he would do he has done.
31:02
Speaker 1: So what he says he will do, he will do. Amen. So,
31:09
Speaker 1: Heavenly Father, thank you now for this great book, this
31:12
Speaker 1: powerful book called Daniel. We thank you Lord for where
31:16
Speaker 1: we have succeeded in our study. We pray for mercy
31:19
Speaker 1: for where we have fallen short. We asked that you
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Speaker 1: would give us the blessing that you have promised, a
31:25
Speaker 1: blessing of assurance, confidence and faith, and grant that we
31:31
Speaker 1: can be like Daniel in these severe times, and that
31:36
Speaker 1: we can trust you through Christ. We pray, and all
31:41
Speaker 1: the church said, fat.
34:18
Speaker 3: Warm.
34:56
Speaker 2: You don't have to steak class. As long as you're
35:03
Speaker 2: somewhere out there. That's enough for me.
35:12
Speaker 4: I don't need to hold you near me, don't need
35:16
Speaker 4: promises to keep.
35:19
Speaker 2: Just the thought that.
35:20
Speaker 4: You are breathing somewhere in this world I see, even
35:26
Speaker 4: if I'm not beside you, even if you never know,
35:32
Speaker 4: there's a quiet kind of comfort just in knowing you
35:37
Speaker 4: still glow. I don't need forever, I just need you
35:47
Speaker 4: to exist.
35:51
Speaker 5: You don't have to stay with me, You don't have
35:55
Speaker 5: to feel the same. Just as long as yours still
36:00
Speaker 5: out there, calling softly.
36:02
Speaker 1: Through my days.
36:04
Speaker 3: You don't have to look my way.
36:08
Speaker 4: You don't have to be my home. It's enough to
36:13
Speaker 4: know where you're living in the world. I'm not alone.
36:21
Speaker 5: I won't chase you through the distance, won't disturb your
36:26
Speaker 5: chosen life.
36:28
Speaker 6: I'll just keep you in my silence, like a star
36:31
Speaker 6: that shines at night, through the darkened, through the blue.
36:42
Speaker 5: I still think of you. You don't have to stay
36:48
Speaker 5: with me. You don't have to feel the same.
36:53
Speaker 1: It's just as long as you're still out.
36:56
Speaker 5: There, calling softly through my days.
37:00
Speaker 3: You don't have to look my way.
37:03
Speaker 5: You don't have to be in my home.
37:07
Speaker 6: It's enough to know where you're living in a world.
37:11
Speaker 3: I'm not alone.
37:28
Speaker 4: I don't need to be your late. I don't need
37:32
Speaker 4: to cross your mind. All I need is just the
37:36
Speaker 4: truth that you're somewhere, still alive.
37:44
Speaker 5: You don't have to stay with me, You don't have
37:48
Speaker 5: to feel the same. Just as long as you're still after,
37:54
Speaker 5: calling softly through my days, you don't have to look
38:00
Speaker 5: not away.
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Speaker 4: You don't have to be my home. It's enough to
38:06
Speaker 4: know you're living.
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Speaker 1: In a world. I'm not alone.