The Time Is Fulfilled, the Kingdom Is at Hand

Greetings again, everyone. Ready to begin our second session here. When will the kingdom come? Men and women through the years and through the ages have yearned for the kingdom of God. The disciples thought that the kingdom of God would be coming in their day.

The Apostle Paul thought the kingdom of God would be coming apparently in his day. Then he wrote 2 Thessalonians, which we'll talk about here today a little later, to show that it would not come unless certain things happened. And we will talk about some of those certain things that must happen. Today, as we began our seminar, we sang to him, Behold, the day will come, the day of the Lord, when God directly intervenes in human affairs and the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of God and Christ. In the model prayer, Jesus himself prayed, Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

The disciples wanted to know when the kingdom would come. We find this in what is called the Olivet Prophecy, Matthew 24. This was during the time that Jesus Christ was going in and out of Jerusalem just before he was crucified in 31 A.D. He and the disciples would spend the nights. Apparently, there was a house there that they frequented and visited. They're on the Mount of Olives. They'd spend the night there, and then in the daytime, they'd go over to the Temple Mount or down to the Temple Mount, and he would teach there in the environs of the temple. But in this case, he's sitting on the Mount of Olives, and apparently they're looking down at the Temple Mount.

And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of your coming, and the end of the world, this order, the Greek Aeon here, the end of the age. Now, the end of the world, as some people think about the world ending, the world is not going to end in the sense that human life is going to be totally obliterated, because after Jesus Christ returns, he will set up his kingdom and will begin the millennial reign of a thousand years of peace and prosperity.

But that will be a new age, not the new age that the New Agers talk about, but the new age of the kingdom of God, be administered by God in Christ and the saints. Jesus' response to the disciples' question, Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ. So there will be many faults Christ, many faults ministers, many faults prophets, and shall deceive many.

You'll hear preachers tomorrow on television and in the churches say that Jesus Christ may come today, that he may come tonight. No, Jesus Christ is not coming today, tomorrow, or next week, or next month, or next year. These events must take place first. Otherwise, the Bible is not true, and we would have to allegorize it away. You shall hear wars and rumors of war, and surely we're in the time in which wars and rumors of war are running rampant. See that you be not troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

For nation shall rise against nation, and we have seen that for hundreds of years. Kingdom against kingdom, there should be famines and pestilences and earthquakes in different places. Yes, even in far-deep East Texas. All of these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted and shall kill you, and you shall be hated of all nations, for my name's sake.

The main reason you're going to be hated is because you expose this system for what it is, and you're willing to give your life for the truth and for entrance into the kingdom of God. Jesus continues, Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted and kill you. You shall be hated of all nations, for their name's sake, and then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another. When they come looking for different ones, well, we heard that so-and-so said such-and-such. We heard that He's part of this group here. We hear that they are part of the Church of God, the true Church of God.

Is that true? Just as in many times in which there were so-called ethnic cleansing and purging, it will happen again. Just as Hitler took after the Jews in World War II, and just as other places have had the same kind of thing, regardless of the ethnic group, it's not a new thing. It's been happening throughout various periods of history. Shall betray one another and hate one another, and many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. So you better know and know that you know, and you better know from the Word of God, and not just from hearsay of what somebody says, or what you read on the Internet, or any other source. Know and know that you know from the Word of God.

And because iniquity shall abound, that's lawlessness. The love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. So there's great, perhaps, persecution, affliction, trials, troubles. Who knows what lies ahead?

But you have to keep your eye on the big picture. You have to keep your eye on that, what is set before us, the promise of eternal life in the kingdom of God. To be a child of God, a spirit being, glorious, radiant spirit beings in the kingdom of God, and helping God and Christ bring about a new world order, a truly new world order in a new age in the kingdom of God.

This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come. Of course, God and Christ, especially God the Father, will be the one who determines when that point is.

We even find in Revelation 14, where at some point three angels go out and declare the coming kingdom of God. Of course, we have in Revelation 11 the witness of two witnesses for three and a half years in the streets of Jerusalem. The sign that marks the countdown to the end of the age. Here it is.

When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, whosoever reads, let him understand. So Jesus Christ, no less authority than Jesus Christ, gives His credence to, verifies the authenticity of Daniel's prophecy. So here is Daniel's prophecy part of it. We'll look at two different places, at least two, maybe three. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.

Blessed is he that waits and comes to the thirteen hundred and thirty-five days. So from the time that the abomination of desolation is set up, a countdown begins, and the Scriptures under inspiration Daniel prophesied. And Daniel didn't really understand this himself, because after this was over, Daniel was greatly perplexed. And the angel told him, Go your way, Daniel. It shall be for a time appointed, and you shall stand in your lot at that time.

But go you your way till the end, be for you shall rest. So what is meant by the phrase, sacrifice taken away? Verse 11 states that from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away and the abomination set up, there will be thirteen hundred and thirty-five days. In Daniel 11.3, we see a reference. That should be Daniel 11.31. That is Daniel 11.3 is not correct. It's 31. In Daniel 11.31, we see a reference to the daily sacrifice being taken away. And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that makes desolate Daniel 11.31.

Now, there was a type of this that took place in the days of Antiochus Epiphanes. Alexander the Great came on the scene as the, first of all, you had the various great world-ruling empires, and the Greco-Macedonian Empire was one of the great world-ruling empires. Alexander the Great conquered the world in a very short period of time, and he met an untimely death at about the age of 33.

And there was no successor, there was not a dynasty in place, a successor to take Alexander the Great's place. So his kingdom was divided up among four of his generals. The two main divisions that played a great role in Bible and secondary history were, one, the Ptolemaic Empire, which consisted of Egypt and Palestine, and then the Northern Empire, the Seleucid Empire that included Syria, and points east all the way back to Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, there is a city named Kandahar, which is a form of Alexander. So it was a vast, the Seleucid Empire was a vast empire.

And one of the successors to Seleucid was Antiguist Epiphanes. A type of fulfillment of the sacrifice being taken away when the Seleucid king Antiguist IV in 167 BC entered the temple in Jerusalem, erected an altar to the pagan god Zeus. Zeus is known as Zeus in the Greek world and basically is Jupiter in the Roman world, and sacrificed a pig on the altar in the temple. That desecration dated as the 25th of Kessalu, according to the sacred calendar. Now, the 25th of Kessalu on the sacred calendar, of course, corresponds to 25th of December on the Roman calendar, the time in which the ancient Saturnalia was taking place and what today is celebrated as Christmas.

The pagans counterfeited and mixed together the pagan holidays with holy days. The church went for it because they did not want to lose adherents. Eventually, the Catholic Church adopted the pagan custom of keeping the 25th of Kessalu, and they said that Christ was born on December 25th. Of course, he was not. He was born in the autumn of the year, which you can pretty well prove from the Bible.

Now, this event of Antigua's epiphanies, polluting the altar and the sanctuary and the temple, triggered what's called the Maccabean Revolt by the Hasmoneans. Hasmoneans were a family that banded together and they led a revolt against the Antigua's epiphanies and the Seleucid rulership.

They eventually were victorious, and they took the temple over again, and also the rulership of Judea in a limited way. They cleansed the temple and they commemorated that time in which they were victorious by the annual festival of Hanukkah.

So you will hear about the Jews keeping Hanukkah and so on during the time of the Christmas season. Now, even the Jews, to some degree, have sort of blended some of this in with the Christmas pagan tradition, but it was a very sacred kind of commemoration when they began to keep it, because they commemorated it because that was when they triumphed over Antigua's.

The Statue of Jupiter Olympus, and there are two different versions of this. I lean toward the second one we're going to show here, but the Statue of Jupiter Olympus was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and was placed on Mount Olympus in honor of the great pagan god Zeus or Jupiter in the Roman world. Another depiction of this, which I think perhaps might be more accurate, version of the Statue of Jupiter Olympus, and I don't know what was so great about that. I mean, I don't know how large this was. It must have been a great imposing figure to be one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

The Jews believe that the Temple Mount must be ceremonially cleansed by the ashes of an acceptable red heifer before a third temple can be built on the Temple Mount. At the present time, the Temple Mount is controlled by the Arab world, the Jordanians, the Hashemite Kingdom, the Kingdom of the Hashemites. At the present time, Abdella is the king of Jordan. They've been given the responsibility of maintaining the Temple Mount. They have done a fair job at times and other times not so good. But the Jews believe that the Mount has to be cleansed and made ceremonially clean before an altar or temple can be set up. According to tradition, the sacrifice of the red heifer took place nine times, the last time being some 2,000 years ago. The tenth sacrifice will proceed according to them. I'm saying according to them. I'm not saying according to the Bible. The tenth sacrifice will proceed the rebuilding of the sacred temple in Jerusalem, allow the purification of the Jewish people, and signal the coming of the long-awaited Messiah. Now, what the Jews are looking for, they are not looking for the Son of God from heaven. Not at all. They're looking for a human being who will restore the geopolitical fortunes of Israel. We call them Jews today. So that they will be the preeminent power on the face of the earth, and make no mistake about it, to a large degree, that's what Zionism is all about. The Jewish Chronicle report. The Jewish Chronicle is an extensive Jewish newspaper read throughout the Jewish world. According to the Jewish Chronicle, July 31, 1998, a red heifers are being raised in Kaphar, Qasadim, and on a farm near Elot in Israel. And here's a picture of one of the red heifers. You read about the red heifers in Numbers 19 and how they were used in purification rites. It's a great story behind this red heifer. A Pentecostal preacher from Canton, Mississippi, struck up a relationship with the head of the Temple Institute, a man named Kaim Richmond, and they eventually even toured in the United States, raising funds for the reconstruction of the restoration of temple worship, including the growing of red heifers. An applied lot of Pentecostal preachers were a preacher and a rancher. So they got together, and according to the Jewish Chronicle, they are now growing red heifers, which are acceptable for the purification of the Temple Mount. The Temple Institute has also restored the instruments of temple worship. And they are saying that through DNA testing, that they are being able to identify the priestly line, the Cohen priest. I don't know how true that is, but there's quite a bit. You could go online and you could look up DNA testing, that kind of thing, for the priesthood or for the Jews. There's quite a bit of information there. Some of the instruments, these are on display. The Temple Institute is located very close to the Temple Mount, and these are on display. If you ever go to Jerusalem, you can visit the Temple Mount, I mean the Temple Institute, and see these instruments. The priest collects the blood from the sacrifices into the misrach, then spills the blood under the corner of the altar. So those things are on display there. In addition to that, the Sanhedrin has been restored. The startling development, the restoration of the Sanhedrin, has also fanned the flames of TempleMania and Israel. The Sanhedrin is called the Council in the New Testament. The concept of the Sanhedrin dates back to the days of Moses. Remember when Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, came to Moses and said, Moses, you're just too overburdened with all of this, and they're bringing every little last thing to you for you to judge. Now choose 70 elders that they may judge some of these matters, and Moses did that.

And then the Sanhedrin passed off the scene during the days of Judah and Israel's various captivities, but was restored during the period of the Maccabees. Remember the Maccabees were the ones who revolted against the Seleucids and Tyrese Epiphanes IV, and cleansed the temple and for a time restored temple worship, which was still in place, which the Romans allowed even after they took over Palestine. They still allowed temple worship in the temple until it was destroyed in 70 AD.

The Sanhedrin in the New Testament, basically, it's called a council when it says, and they were taken up before the council. That means before the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin consists generally of 70 elders or rabbis.

In addition to that, generally there's the high priest. At times, it seems that maybe there were two high priests, one for religious matters and one for civil matters, but this was like the Supreme Court of the land and Jewish matters.

So why is the Sanhedrin significant in the fulfillment of prophecy according to the Jews?

In October 2004, the Sanhedrin was reestablished, first time in 1600 years at the site of the last meeting in Tiberius. And why is it significant? Orthodox Jews believe that the Sanhedrin must be established before temple worship can be reestablished. Why? They believe for these three reasons. That the Sanhedrin is the only legal group qualified to oversee and manage the building and operation of a third temple. Second, the Sanhedrin is the only group that can certify and declare the Messiah in accordance with Mosaic law.

So man has to okay who the Messiah is, and it is the only the Sanhedrin who can anoint the Messiah, King of Israel. So where's God in all of this? I don't know. Doesn't seem to be there. Religious deception and pseudo-peace. Before Christ returns, and Jerusalem once again truly becomes the spiritual capital of the world, which it will be, like you read about in Isaiah 2, verses 1-4, that it shall be in those days that the nations shall go up to Jerusalem, and they'll be taught the law of God, and the Word of God shall go forth from Jerusalem.

They'll beat their swords into pruning hooks and their plowshares, and their swords into plowshares, and it'll be a great time of peace, and Jerusalem will be the spiritual capital of the world. So if we understand the scriptures correctly, the scriptures that deal with the restoration of the temple worship, the Jews are going to be allowed to at least build and alter and offer sacrifices. Thus, some kind of pseudo-peace is coming in the Middle East, and various places in the Bible talk about it, and when they say peace, peace, you really need to beware.

However, this peace is going to be taken away along with the sacrifices, as the beast's power is energized by Satan and assumes the role of antichrist. This is very important to understand. Also, one is called the antichrist, because that system is going to feign the return of Jesus Christ. The present peace plan calls for a two-state solution with Jerusalem being divided.

What is meant by that is an Israeli state, Israel, and a Palestinian state, with Jerusalem being divided and East Jerusalem, and that's where the Temple Mount is, and East Jerusalem, with East Jerusalem being the capital of the Palestinian state. That would leave the Israeli state without Jerusalem as the capital. Jerusalem is the great contention in this dispute over the peace plan. There are many, many facets to it, but that's one of the greatest facets to it. Now, for some reason, after the 1967 war, in which Israel was successful, and they captured the West Bank and East Jerusalem, for some reason they turned around and turned over, and I guess they thought they would curry world favor, but they turned the Temple Mount over to administration by the Arab world.

That really makes sense, but that's what they did. Now, if we go back to 1947, well, let's go back a little earlier than that. We go back to 1917, and the Balfour Declaration, this was during World War I, that Lord Balfour of England brought forth a declaration declaring that after the war, that the territory of Palestine would become a British protectorate, which eventually did.

The British moved in there, and they became very well situated. World War I ended the Ottoman Empire. The Turks had controlled, basically from Constantinople all the way over to Afghanistan, that part of the world, for about 400 years. But after World War I, and the peace treaties after that, the British moved into the Middle East, they took over Palestine, eventually they took over Iraq, and had great influence in Iran and surrounding countries as well, and down into even North Africa.

And after World War II, they began to talk about a homeland for the Jews. Of course, this had been going on for decades, this talk about this. And so in 1947, the United Nations passed a resolution, Resolution 181, that declared that that area of the world, that is Palestine, would become two sovereign nations, one for the Israelis, the Jews, and one for the Arabs.

The Arab world rejected this resolution, and in May of 1948, they launched an attack against the Israelis. The Israelis were aided by Western help, and they rapidly defeated the Arab world, and declared an independent Israeli state in 1948, sometimes the summer of 1948. And Israel was admitted into the world community as a sovereign nation. And the Palestinians during this 48 war, to a large degree, were displaced. They started the war, but then when Israel came in, they drove the Palestinians out of their homes and out of their land, and many of them fled into Jordan.

This ring I have on my finger, I got from a Palestinian in the Sukkah, or the Goh market, in downtown Amman, Jordan. He said he had relatives in Altadena, California. So, this dispute has been going on for a long time. It really dates back to the days of Abraham, of Ishmael. According to the Quran, Abraham passed the blessings on to Ishmael, but according to the Bible, Abraham passed the blessings on to Isaac, and of course Isaac had the blessings passed to him from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Jacob had 12 sons, became the 12th Rikers, became the nation of Israel. So, this dispute is a long dispute. So, when it calls, when this says a two-state Jerusalem, that's what it's talking about, an Arab state, Israeli state, Jerusalem being divided, that 1947 resolution called for Jerusalem being administered by an international tribunal, not being the capital of either one. Now, this peace plan is sponsored by the Quartet. So, if you're on the news, the Quartet has agreed to whatever. The Quartet consists of the United Nations, the United States, the European Union, and Russia. And this peace plan has really stalled out in the past couple of years, and direct talks, you hear about direct talks being resumed between the Israelis and the Palestinians, between Netanyahu and Abbas, who is the president of the Palestinians.

But it just seems to flounder there in recent times, and the world scene with Syria and Iran and all of the surround has made it even more difficult.

According to the book of Revelation, this is Revelation 11, verses 1 and 2, the city, that is, Jerusalem, is going to be divided and trodden down by the nations. I'll be reading from the Bible. And there was given me a read like unto a rod, and the angel stood, saying, Rise and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and then that worship therein.

But the court, which is without the temple, leave out, and measure it not. For it is given unto the nations, and the holy city shall they tread underfoot for forty-two months, or three and a half years, twelve hundred and sixty days. So this makes it sound like that Jerusalem is internationalized.

During this time, God is going to raise up the two witnesses who will provide a great testimony during this twelve hundred and sixty days. Eventually, they'll be killed by the beast power, and their bodies will lie in the streets of Jerusalem three and a half days, and then they'll be translated.

Zacharias' prophecy is somewhat similar to Revelation 11, verses 1 and 2. Behold, the day of the Lord comes, and your spoil shall be divided in the midst of you. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken, the houses rifled, and the women ravished, half of the city shall go forth into captivity. The residue, or the remnant of the people, shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. Now that's the first three verses of Zacharias 14. Jerusalem not destroyed before the return of Christ. Today the news is filled with wars and rumors of war. The president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, says that they're going to wipe Jerusalem and the Israelis off the map. But according to Bible prophecy, that is not going to happen.

God delivers Jerusalem. This is Zacharias 12, verses 8 and 9. And that day shall the eternal Yahweh defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David. And the house of David shall be as God, and the angel, the malak, the messenger of the eternal before them.

And it shall come to pass in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. Now I'm sure great damage is going to be taken, take place in and around the environments. But as far as an atomic bomb or a nuclear bomb being dropped on it, doesn't seem the Bible would agree with that at all. So there's great contention over who's going to control the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount is about 21 acres and has two large mosques on it at the present time, one the Dome of the Rock and the other the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Over the centuries, the Temple Mount has been fought over and it continues to be the hottest piece of real estate on the face of the earth.

Satan is going to inspire the beast power to set up its headquarters in Jerusalem. I was giving a seminar similar to this in Sydney, Australia back in, I think it was year 2000, and there was a fellow who was there and he was astounded. He didn't believe that. Where is the Scripture?

Well, here it is.

But tidings out of the east, now the north shall trouble him. Therefore he shall go forth with the great fury to destroy and utterly to make away many.

And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain. Yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

Plant tabernacles of his palace between the seas. That's the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. The glorious holy mountain that's here in Jerusalem. What are holy things is where God has placed his active presence. God placed his active presence in the temple at one time.

Yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

The beast and the false prophet feigned the return of Christ.

Let no man deceive you by any means. This is Paul writing, For that day shall not come, the day of the Lord, the return of Jesus Christ, the establishment of the kingdom of God.

That day shall not come, except there come a falling away first. Now, the Greek for falling away is apostasia, and it means a false teaching.

And that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, whom opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

So there is this antichrist who is going to sit in a temple somewhere.

Well, if he, like it says in Matthew 24, 15, with regard to the abomination of desolation, therefore shall see the abomination of desolation stand in the holy place.

The holy place is where God places his active presence, at least at one time.

So it seems that it would be in that temple-mount environment.

He sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

And this is one of the main reasons why he's called the antichrist.

He's against Christ. He's trying to assert the role of Christ.

And he is going to be successful for a while.

Satan's goal is to thwart the plan of God by breaking prophecy, taking over Jerusalem before the return of Christ, sets his tabernacle in the holy mountain.

He's motivated by his insatiable quest to replace God as the object of worship among all the peoples on the face of the earth.

And guess what?

He temporarily realizes his goal.

And they worshiped the dragon, which gave power unto the beast.

And they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast?

Who is able to make war with him?

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him.

This is the Bible, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world.

That's Revelation 13.8.

You can believe the Bible, or you can believe some other source.

The great question for all of us today is, is my name written in the book of life?

In the first session today, we explain the necessary steps for having your name written in the book of life.

The abomination of desolation introduces great tribulation.

As already noted, Jesus Christ spoke of this time in Matthew 24.15, When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken up by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, note the holy place, whosoever reads, let him understand.

For then, you have verses 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, talking about when you see that abomination of desolation, let him who is in this place or that place flee into the mountains because the time is near, and so on.

And then, for then, when after this abomination of desolation is set up, for then shall be great tribulation.

The great tribulation has not begun.

This is child's play right now that we are experiencing.

And such is was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved, but for the elect's sake, those days shall be shortened.

We hope and pray that we are among the elect.

Of course, there is the elect and the very elect. For if any man say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there, believe it not.

Of course, it talks about in the Bible that in Revelation, that as the east is from the west, there will be a streak across the sky.

It says, and every eye shall see him, every eye shall behold him.

They're even talking about through holograms that they might be able to even feign this kind of heavenly phenomenon to deceive the world.

Because it says very clearly in 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 7, 8, and 9, that he deceives the whole world through those signs and wonders and miracles.

So miracle working within itself is not a proof that it is of God.

Test the spirits, whether they be of God.

There shall arise false Christ, false prophets, shall show great signs and wonders in so much, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Of course, if the Holy Spirit's seal is upon you, you will not be deceived, but you have to love the truth.

Great spiritual political implications, political stakes that are being played out today, are awesome to contemplate, because they will eventually culminate in the man of sin and the son of perdition of 2 Thessalonians 2, 3, and 4 being revealed.

More sobering is the fact that if it were possible, the very elect would be deceived.

You will be deceived if your name is not written in the Lamb's Book of Life, because that's according to the Bible.

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship Him, whose names are not written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

You must love the truth to avoid being deceived.

What is truth? Jesus Christ says in John 17-17, Sanctify them through your word. Your word is truth.

And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish, because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved, and for this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe the lie.

A is there, but in Greek there's no indefinite article.

What is the lie? The lie is that that one that is sitting in the temple of God saying that He is God.

And those who are deceived by that, they love not the truth, and God will send them strong delusion that they'll believe the lie.

So that's how important it is to remain faithful and have ourselves buried in the Word of God.

The peoples of the world are filled with Messianic expectations.

Buddha is looking for the fifth Buddha. We've mentioned this in the first session.

Hindus are looking for Krishna. The Islamic world is looking for the Grand Mahdi.

The New Agers are looking for Maitreya. The Jews are looking for the Messiah. The Christians are looking for the Second Coming of Christ.

So the world is ripe for deception. The world wants a hero.

They want someone to come on the scene and deliver them.

It makes it easier for people to be deceived when they are in a position of stress and distress. Pseudo-Messiah. We've already covered that.

Christians reason that a third temple will be built will become the abode of the Antichrist based on 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 3 and 4. 1. One sits in the temple of God, saying that he is God.

2. Christ will then come with his saints and destroy the Pseudo-Messiah and usher in the millennial reign of Christ and the saints.

Revelation 19, verses 6, on to the end of the chapter, talks about the marriage supper of the Lamb and the return of Jesus Christ with the saints.

The destruction of this world's system and putting the beast and the false prophet into the bottomless pit.

The Bible warns us that the weapons of our warfare are spiritual and not physical.

The fulfillment of Bible prophecy and end-time events will not be as simple as some would lead you to believe.

Once again, we must all realize that the great deceiver, Satan the Devil, is orchestrating events behind the scenes.

He is deceiving the whole world into turning away from God and trusting in themselves.

Now is the time to prepare for the coming kingdom of God.

Today, if you would hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Now is the time to diligently seek the kingdom of God.

Now is the time to pray, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

So what is God saying to us today?

Behold, I stand at the door and knock.

If any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come into him, and will set with him, and he with me.

To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my father in his throne.

He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches.

So, brethren, and all of us, this is the challenge that is before us.

And I hope that we continue to pray, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.