The World in Crisis

The title today is The World in Crisis. The world is in a state of crisis on all fronts, in all facets of what is called civilization. After the slaughter in Paris on November 13, the President of France, Francois Hollande, stated we will lead a pitiless war against the terrorists. Pope Francis stated that this is an episode in the continuing asymmetrical World War III, and some are writing and saying that World War III has begun. As I have told you for well over a year or maybe more that the nations are at war. There's great economic warfare being waged, there's cyber warfare being waged, there's political warfare being waged, and of course, there's military conflict in different places. The barbarians are not only at the gates, they're inside the wall, killing and wreaking havoc on innocent people. Mercilessly, doesn't matter what your age is, what your gender is, none of that matters. Yet our leaders basically utter weak words of condolence, and in some cases refusing to take meaningful measured action against the perpetrators. In the sermon today, we will be explaining to some degree why that is the case. U.S. President Barack Obama stated on ABC's Good Morning America on Friday morning, November the 13th, that ISIS was contained. A few hours later, he was made to look foolish. We're living in unprecedented times. Let's turn to Matthew 24, Olivet Prophecy, where the disciples asked Jesus two questions, what is the sign of your coming and the end of the age. And Jesus Christ gives a long detailed account answering those two questions, the signs of the times, and then really what the church would be doing toward the end of chapter 24 and Matthew 25. Going all the way in Matthew 25 and into the coming of Jesus Christ and the judgment being said and the goats separated from the sheep. In Matthew 24 and verse 5, Jesus begins to respond to the questions, and you shall hear of wars and rumors of war. Are we doing that now? Well, you could say we've been hearing that for 2,000 years, and in the church maybe that's one of our problems, that we are inure to the call and to the urgency of the times.

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, kingdom against kingdom. There should be famines and pestilences and earthquakes in different places, and of course that is taking place. One of the big news items in the past day or so has been in South Sudan, where 4 million people are facing starvation. 4 million in that one area. It showed these men and women trekking for miles and miles in the hot burning sand, the desert, to little distribution centers to get a few morsels of food, then the long trek back to their families. And along the way, not only are there human serpents in the way, there are snakes and scorpions along the way as well.

All these are the beginning of sorrows. You look down at verse 14, and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come. Back in the 80s, it was said that basically the Plain Truth magazine had penetrated virtually every nation on the face of the earth, even into outer Mongolia, Tibet, and to the upper shelf of the world, as it were.

Who will preach the kingdom of God to all nations? Will it be the Church of God? Will it be the two witnesses? Will it be the three angels of Revelation 14? Let's turn to Acts chapter 1. Acts chapter 1 gives the account of Jesus Christ's ascension after His resurrection, spending 40 days here on earth, appearing at least three times to His disciples. So we come to Acts 1, where they were gathered together for His ascension. Evidently He told them to gather out here, and this is what's going to happen.

We'll pick it up in verse 6. Acts 1.6. When they therefore were come together, they asked of Him, saying, Lord, will You at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And He said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father has put in His own power. Of course, Jesus Christ in one place said that He didn't know that it was in the domain of the Father. But You shall receive power after that the Holy Spirit has come upon You. You shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria, and in the othermost parts of the earth. And when He had spoken these things, while they beheld He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. Of course, we have this. We also have Matthew 28, the last two verses. Go, you therefore, into all the world, preach the gospel, make disciples of all nations, teach them to observe all things. Whatsoever I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you, even unto the end of the age. So it is clear that the Church has been commissioned to preach the gospel of the Kingdom. Now, what about the two witnesses? Well, let's turn to Revelation 11. We talked about in the announcement session, the first two or three verses there, about Jerusalem being divided. Then, immediately on the heels of that, we have that about the two witnesses, the ones that were prophesied to come from Zechariah chapter 4. Remember the vision? Zechariah chapter 4, Zechariah sees this candelabra, giant menorah, and inside the bowl, the seven candlesticks, two olive trees on either side of the bowl, emptying the oil out of themselves into the bowl. Well, these are the two witnesses. The olive tree symbolizes or symbolizes the two witnesses. We pick it up here in Revelation 11.3, and I will give power unto my two witnesses. They shall prophesy 1260 days clothed in sackcloth.

They're not going to be worried about the fashion of the day.

Jesus Christ himself wore a robe, and of course, eventually, the so-called business suit that we wear on the Sabbath came in vogue for men. Relatively new thing. Of course, you still see many of the Muslims dressed in the robes and various garb.

These are the two olive trees, my reference to Zechariah 4. These are the two olive trees and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. They are the sons of oil, the anointed ones. They come on the scene for this purpose, and if any man will hurt them, the fire proceeds out of their mouth and devours their enemies, and if any man will hurt them, he must be, in this manner, killed. So you see that the two witnesses have the power to defend themselves, and they do defend themselves until that defense is eventually taken away.

These have power to shed heaven that it rained not in the days of their prophecy. They have power over waters to turn them to blood and to smite the earth with all plagues as often as they will. Sort of like the power there that God brought upon Egypt in freeing Israel from slavery there. That's tremendous power that is given to these two men. What will their prophecy be? I'm quite sure, which I can't turn to specific scripture, they will be exposing what is taking place and saying, this one that's sitting in the temple claiming to be God is not God at all.

Let me tell you about the true God, and of course they'll be trying to kill him with all their might. And when they are killed, they'll be sending gifts to one another and cheering, because these are the two that tormented the earth. In fact, the CNN and Fox and all of that and more will be probably dubbing them as the beast and the false prophet plaguing the earth. So get rid of them. Boy, we have peace forevermore. Of course, God is involved in the plagues of Revelation 16, are yet to come.

And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pitch will make war against them, shall overcome them and kill them. Now, verse 8 tells you where Jerusalem is spiritually, Sodom and Egypt. And Zechariah 12 will tell you that Jerusalem is surrounded by armies. Jerusalem is not going to be destroyed, per se. And Zechariah 14 tells you that when his foot shall stand on the Mount of Olives, a great earthquake will take place. And the Mount of Olives is going to move and the great valley will be created. Some of that we really haven't studied as closely as we should.

And some of it we really don't understand, I don't think. Now, note the work of the three angels in Revelation 14, verse 6. Revelation 14, verse 6, And I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth. So, yeah, the gospel of the kingdom is going to be preached. The church has been commissioned to do so. The two witnesses will be revealing the plan and purpose of God. Then this angel that goes forth will be preaching unto them that dwell on the earth to every nation and kindred and tongue and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him that made heaven and earth and the sea and the fountain and waters.

And there followed another angel, saying Babylon has fallen, has fallen that great city because she made all nations drink the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And then a third angel followed those two, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and the image and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand, of which, if you don't have, you can't buy or sell.

Revelation 13, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God. Notice it is the wrath of whom it is the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation, and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels in the presence of the Lamb. So we see that the gospel of the kingdom is going to be preached to all nations. There are three main ways that we see here, the church, the two witnesses, and the first angel, especially, are the three that are described in Revelation 14.

Now, how is it that a band of fanatics out in the desert can hold a world hostage? It's like everybody who's trembling today, especially in Europe, because of a band of fanatics. They're vowing to bring the world under their rule, convert to Islam, or die. Yet in our news items, we see that U.S. governmental officials are aiding and abetting the very people who have vowed to kill us, and we don't submit to their rule.

Sort of in a little hidden way, I think it was Megan Kelly's show on Fox this week, it was revealed that the Assad regime is buying oil from ISIS. See, one of the main ways that ISIS is being financed is they have taken over control of some refineries there, and they are reaping the dividends thereof. So why are they allowed to create fear in the minds and hearts of men and women throughout the world, especially the Western world? There are several nations in the world who could defeat ISIS within a matter of weeks.

They could wipe them out. Here's what Vice President Joe Biden stated. This was stated a year ago.

He stated last year, if the U.S. wanted to truly destroy the entire Islamic extremist movement in the Middle East, it could have applied its global superpower pressure on its allied Gulf state nations to stop funding the ISIS jihadists. And so there are various ones who are trading with ISIS and buying their petroleum and secretly giving them money in different ways, but there's a lot more to it than just that.

One must conclude that ISIS is serving Satan in his quest to be worshipped. Of course, Satan is on that quest to be worshipped. Insatiable quest, it started with his rebellion as described in Isaiah 14. I will ascend. I will be like the Most High. Now I'm going to read some assertions by Joe Kim, Haugapian. It's J-O-A-C-H-I-M H-O-G-A-P-I-A-N Haugapian.

Joe Kim, Haugapian, is a West Point graduate, former U.S. Army officer. He has written a manuscript based on his unique military experience title, Don't Let the B Word Get You Down. It examines and focuses on U.S. international relations, leadership, national security issues. After the military, Haugapian earned a master's degree in clinical psychology, worked as a licensed therapist in mental health for more than a quarter century. He now concentrates on his writing and has a blog site, empire exposed dot blogspot. Here's what he writes. Let's be perfectly clear. The United States is not actually at war with ISIS. President Obama is waging a fake war against the Islamic State forces, putting on another propaganda show from mainstream media to keep his flock of American sheeple asleep in echo chamber darkness with a mere cursory review of recent historical events. One can readily realize that virtually everything big government tells us that is happening in the world is probably not true.

He continues, to this day, Al-Qaeda and ISIS have been employed as the hired gun to create havoc to destabilize everywhere the U.S. unleashes its Balkan eyes, Iraq, Syria, Libya, and Yemen policy. Now, Balkan eyes, the meaning of that, these little countries there in southeastern Europe, Serbia, Yugoslavia, Croatia. In the 90s, during the presidency of Bill Clinton, of course, war was waged there, and these countries were divided up into little provinces. That's what's meant by Balkan eyes. And, of course, going way back, Joe Biden was one of the first ones that I publicly heard say that we need to divide Iraq into three provinces, the Shiites to the south, and the Sunnis to the north, and to the northeast. A lot of the Kurds are there, but they're hesitant to give the Kurds any kind of independence because the Kurds will do the right thing, basically, they have. Now, he continues and he writes, recall that iconic photo from last June of American-supplied trucks traveling unimpeded in the ISIS convoy, kicking up dust in the Iraqi desert, fresh from Syrian battlefields, heading south toward Baghdad. It was no accident that they were equipped with an enormous fleet of brand-new Toyota trucks armed with rockets, artillery, and Stinger missiles, all furnished by the U.S. Nor was it an accident that the Iraqi Army assembly simply did an about face and ran, and this guy says it was probably from orders from high above, the Islamic State forces were allowed to seize possession of 2,500 armored troop carriers, over 1,000 Humvees, several dozen U.S. battlefield tanks, all paid for by U.S. tax dollars. This entire spectacle was permitted as ISIS without any resistance, then took control of Mosul, the second largest city in Iraq, including a half billion dollars that they got from robbing its main bank. Hagapian continues, throughout this process, it was definitely no accident that the United States allowed the Islamic State forces to invade Iraq as with advanced U.S. air power. It could have, within a couple of hours, easily carpet bombed and totally eliminated ISIS since the Islamic State possessed no anti-aircraft weapons. And even now, with the high-tech wizardry of satellites, lasers, nanotechnology, and advanced cyber warfare, the U.S. and Allied intelligence has the means of accurately locating and, with far superior firepower, totally eradicating ISIS if the will to do so actually existed. So when President Obama said on Friday morning, November the 13th, they're contained, that's what he meant. We haven't defeated him. We want to fence him in here and let him continue to, apparently, terrorize the world. Why?

Well, the out-of-chaos confusion. When things, quote, and people get terrorized enough, and enough, quote, fire power comes together and people cry out, we want relief from this. We want relief. And so that will give rise to the eventual dictator. Of course, who knows how many wars and innocent people are going to die in between. Now, Joe Biden had a similar story. This appeared in the Daily Beast on October the 5th, 2014, and the headline is, Vice President Biden apologizes for telling the truth about Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and ISIS. It essentially says the same thing, that millions of dollars have been poured into ISIS, and he doesn't say directly by the U.S., but by those so-called Allied nations in the Middle East. Vice President said, as we've already said, if the U.S. wanted to truly destroy the entire movement, it could do so. So this thing is going to continue and it's going to rock back and forth for quite a long time as the whole world is being terrorized.

So after many people have been tortured and killed, a peace treaty of some sort will be signed and peace will be declared. Yeah, peace is coming. A type of peace is coming in our time. Look at Daniel chapter 8. Daniel chapter 8 is perhaps the most neglected chapter in many of our prophetic writings along the way. In Daniel chapter 8, the first part, Daniel has a ceaseless vision of a ram with two horns, the point of the origin being from the west pushing westward, and then he sees a goat with one horn pushing toward the east, the point of origin from the west. And the daily sacrifice is taken away, trampled upon, and we still haven't fully determined what the 1,150 days are. And then he seeks to understand this vision. And we're going to pick it up where the angel Gabriel comes and gives him the meaning of this vision. This vision takes you up to the return of Jesus Christ. Now, time after time, I say, are you going to believe the Bible or are you going to believe somebody or something else? In Daniel chapter 8 and verse 16, I heard a man's voice between the banks of Eli, which called and said, Gabriel, Gabriel is a messenger angel, make this man to understand the vision. So he came near and I stood and said, when he came, I was afraid, and I fell upon my face and he said unto me, understand, O Son of Man, for at the time of the end shall be the vision. And that's what it means. It literally means the time of the end. The English spelling of that Hebrew word is q-e-t-s. q-e-t-s. In time. At the time of the end shall be the vision. Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face toward the ground, and he said, behold, and he touched me and set me up right, and he said, behold, I will make you to know what shall be the last end of the indignation. And it means what it says. For at the time appointed, the end shall come. Now, the word here, moed, is the word appointed time. And the end, once again, is the kets, q-e-t-s.

The realm which you saw, having two horns, are the kings of Medea and Persia. The Medo-Persian Empire, Alexander defeated. And the rough goat is the king of Grisha, and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. Now, this very prophecy here was one that I was reading after I got the correspondence course from Pasadena somewhere 61, 62, somewhere around in there. And seeing this so clearly spelled out, and someone expounding this, but actually we've really not paid a lot of attention to these passages here that continue through the years. It means what it says. I believe the Bible, I think most of you do as well.

That I was teaching history of some sort at that time, and to see the in history, the actual the Bible saying, okay, this is a fulfillment of that, and this is what happened. The history verifies. This is what happened. How accurate is the Bible? Of course, a lot of the textual critics want to say, oh well, this was written much later, much later, but not so. The rough goat is the king of Grisha, Alexander the Great, and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it. So Alexander did not have a son to take his place. There was no dynasty right there on the hand to take his place, and so the kingdom was divided into four divisions among his four generals. One division was Ptolemy, who got Egypt and Palestine in some parts of Asia Minor. So the Ptolemaic Empire, and that included Israel, Palestine, or Judea, and Egypt. One of the things that Cleopatra tried to do was to convince Anthony to kill Herod and to make her queen of Jerusalem, but that never happened.

The other general, Cassander, he got Macedonia in Greece.

Lysimatius got Bithynia, Thrace, and Mycia, which is Asia Minor. And Seleucid Empire received Syria, Armenia, and territory east of the Euphrates. See, Alexander had pushed all the way to India. Through modern-day Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and into India. He ran into the elephants in India, and he could not stand against the elephants. It's pretty hard to bring an elephant down with the weapons of that day. The elephants ran roughshard over Alexander's army, so he retreated. And shortly after that, died somewhere in his early 30s.

Okay, so we have those four divisions. Verse 23, In the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance and understanding dark sentences shall stand up. This is the beast. And his power shall be mighty, but not of his own accord. The parallel scriptures here are Daniel 12, verses starting in 36 to the end of the chapter, and also in Revelation, starting in verse 4 or 5 to the end of the chapter. This power shall be mighty, but not of his own power. Of course, it's from Satan the devil. He shall, and the word destroy here, should read corrupt. He doesn't literally kill that he corrupts them.

You have to follow it all the way through. And shall prosper and practice, and shall corrupt the mighty and the holy people. And through his policy, also, he shall cause craft of the dark mysteries, the magical side of things, demonology, to prosper in his hand, and he shall magnify himself in his heart. You know, in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, it says that this one who sits in the temple exalts himself over all that is called God, and by peace shall destroy many, and by peace shall destroy many. Therefore, we know some kind of peace is going to come. And, of course, this will look good at first, but then it will turn awfully ugly, especially after the two witnesses are killed.

And he shall also stand up against the Prince of Princes, the Revelation 17, 14, and Jesus Christ comes back, and those that are with him are called chosen and faithful. He shall stand up against the Prince of Princes, but he shall be broken without hand.

And the vision, the evening and the morning, which was told, is true about the 1,150 days, 2300, depending on how you divide it. Wherefore, shut you up the vision, for it shall be for many days. And how did Daniel respond to this? After he heard all of this, he was, as we might say, sick to his stomach. And I, Daniel, fainted and was sick certain days. After I rose up and did the King's business, and I was astonished at the vision, but non-understood it.

From the setting up to the coming of Christ in those few verses. Now let's note the Apostle Paul's inspired description of the end times. You see, if you have some of these broad prophetic frameworks, then it'd be very difficult for you to be deceived if you really understand and you have truly internalized it. So we're in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5. One of the big things in both the Thessalonians, 1 and 2, is that Paul, as many were saying there in Thessalonica, that the day of the Lord had already come, and they had missed out or something to that effect. And then Paul writes as 2 Thessalonians to even clarify it more, and that's where he talks about the one sitting in the temple of God, claiming that he is God. But notice what he writes here concerning the end times, the times that we just read about in Daniel, chapter 8, and especially focusing on that verse where it says, and he shall corrupt many and prosperity and peace. So that's what the world cries. All let's have prosperity. Let's raise the middle class. Let's have peace in our time. But that's why the politicians cry. In 1 Thessalonians 5, but at times in the seasons, brother, you have no need that are right unto you. Can we all say that? For yourselves know perfectly that the Lord, the day of the Lord, comes as a thief in the night. Well, we have people out there who say, oh well, I know that such and such has to happen. This has to happen. That has to happen. And I'm going to play it right to the cliff, and I'll repent just before I die.

Now notice this. For when they shall see peace and safety, how does the one in written Daniel 8 corrupt the people through prosperity and peace? For when they shall say peace and safety, then sudden destruction comes upon them as surveil upon a woman and child, and they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief. So are we, as what's described in the next verse, the children of light. Our lamps are filled with oil, and our lamps are burning brightly. You are not, for we are all the children of light and the children of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and be sober, watchful, vigilant. For they that sleep sleep in the night, and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us who are of the day be sober, watchful, vigilant, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for in helmet the hope of salvation. Helmet permeates the head. The hope should permeate the head. In one place, Paul writes in Romans 8, that we are saved by hope. And that is, we talked about that in club this morning, how do you face the end days? Well, you keep the gold in sight. You see the big picture. You know what's before you. A crown of life, eternal life in the kingdom of God. What would you trade for that? Of course, many people will go the other way, as it says in Matthew 24, that they'll hate one another, betray one another because of the iniquity of bounds. In some cases, trying to save their own skin.

Brother against brother, sister against sister, parents, children, children, parents. Verse 9, God had not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. Wherefore, comfort yourselves together, edify one another even as also you do.

There are voices crying out, voices crying out, voices telling it like it is. Yet, ironically, it seems in the Church of God there's a general malaise and a people who appear to be of the same mindset as those described in 2 Peter, chapter 3. Who are by their actions saying, and let's turn there and read what they say, 2 Peter, chapter 3, we'll start in verse 1. I read into the 2 Peter 3, 1, The second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you, in both which I stir up, this stir up is like friction, kindling, like you strike a match on a rough surface. You stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance, that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and in the commandments of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior, knowing this verse, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lesson, saying, Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as from the beginning of the creation.

Are we in that mindset? They have heard of all of this for so long that they apparently do not discern the times in which we are living. Yeah, and we were way out front in the prophecy arena, in the world of religion in the United States. I told the story before I will repeat it now about meeting Jerry Falwell, and soon as he heard where I was from, he immediately identified us with prophecy in Matthew 16 and verse 1. And I hope that we're all here properly discerning the times that these days do not come upon us unawares, that we are ready.

The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came and tempting desired him that he would show them a sign from heaven. He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, you say, It will be fair weather for the sky of red. And in the morning it will be foul weather that day for the sky is red and lowering. Oh, you hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky, but can you not discern the signs of the times? Are we sobered? It is absolutely amazing and a great blessing that you and I can live where we live at the present time and basically unaffected to a large degree by what's happening in the world. 2. A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the signs of the prophet Jonah, and he left them in the party. As Jonah was in the belly of the whale, the testimony of Jesus Christ, he gave them himself, the mantra of the day is, all forms of beliefs, religions, and lifestyles must be respected and tolerated. There's even been discussion in the Church of God with regard to homosexuals and other aberrant behavior. Yes, God loves the sinner, but he hates the sin. In Psalm 14, verse 1, 2, long and dear, it says, God is angry with the wicked every day. We had the sermon added on God has a full range of emotions, which includes anger, sorrow, grief, as you heard. Look at 1 Corinthians 6. 1 Corinthians 6 and verse 8. 1 Corinthians 6, I think, and verse 8. We almost gloss over in some ways today, but I tell you, you better not gloss over it.

In 1 Corinthians 6 and verse 8, of course, Paul writing at the Corinthians to Corinth was known. It was sort of like the Las Vegas of the day. Sin, city. Anything goes. Sexual debauchery of all types. So in 1 Corinthians 6, verse 8, Know you do wrong and defraud your brother. Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate. Nor effeminate. We were talking about this verse in our online training class of ministry this week. How do you define effeminate? Exactly what is it?

Nor abusers of themselves with mankind. Homosexuals. Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revelers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

Now, all of these things can be repented of, and hopefully anyone that has any of those sins or problems, and all have sinned—that includes you, it includes me—all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And all can repent. I didn't read in 2 Peter 3, 8, and 9, Not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Will the brethren in the church of God be swayed to call evil good? In this Olivet prophecy in Matthew 24 it says, And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall grow cold. We are indeed in the days prophesied by Isaiah. Evil is called good, and good is called evil. And more and more, the old-line churches are surrendering to the so-called multicultural moral debauchery that is capturing the moral will of the masses.

And so now we have women preachers in these old-line denominations. I don't have anything against women. My mother was a woman. I love her dearly. My wife is a woman, and I love her dearly.

But God has assigned to each one of us and given us the opportunity to have the most glorious role, whatever the gender may be, of serving as a father or a mother. And so many are now performing same-sex marriage. We've already noted the mission that God has given the Church of God at this time to preach the kingdom of God, make disciples of all nations. The gospel shall be preached beginning at Jerusalem, into Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the world. The very motto of the United Church of God is preaching the gospel and preparing a people. Look at Mark 1. It is no mystery. It's like this article that I pointed out, where what works best, even today, as they may say in this so-called technological, postmodern world, what works best is a straight old gospel, the truth. Repent of your sins. What did Jesus preach? Mark 1.14. Now, after that John was put in prison, Jesus came in a Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom and saying, The time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent you and believe the gospel. The word gospel, evangelae, on the good news. So what did Jesus preach? The kingdom of God and to believe the gospel. Christ spoke the words of the Father. Look at John 828. John 828. What does the Father want us to preach? The Father wants us to preach the same thing that Jesus preached because Jesus said, I got my words from the Father.

In John 8 and verse 28. Then cried Jesus in the temple. Where did he cry? In the temple.

Jesus went to where the people were. Paul went to the synagogue. Paul went to Mars Hill. Paul went into the marketplace. He went to where the people were. He didn't set up the headquarters and say, okay, just everything come to me. Find me if you can. No, he went to them.

In John 8. Then cried Jesus in the temple, as he taught, saying, you know both, you both know me and you know where I am and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom you know not. But I know him, for I am from him, and he has sent me. And then they sought to take him, but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come. Now look at John 14.10.

John 14.10. I won't spend a lot of time, but it bears a lot of study. In John 14.10, believe you not that I am in the Father and the Father in me. The words I speak unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwells in me, he does the works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very works sake. Christ openly confronted the religious leaders of the day. You look at Matthew 23. So how did Jesus go about his earthly ministry?

Oh, he healed the sick. He raised the dead. He cast out demons. He did many mighty works. But there was a message in addition to that that he brought.

In Matthew 23 and verse 23, Matthew 23, 23, Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you pay tithe the men, anise, and coming, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith. If you exercise judgment and mercy and faith before God and your brother, you'll be reconciled to God and Christ and each member of the body of Christ. These ought you to have done, and not to leave the other undone. You blind guides which string at a gnat and swallow a camel. And sometimes we do that. We strain at a gnat and swallow a camel. More concerned about some earthly kind of picky things than we are about judgment, mercy, and faith.

Woe unto you scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites, for you may clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. He goes on and on with woe unto you scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites. John the Baptist turned the country upside down in about six months. He boldly preached repentance. The apostles and John the Baptist boldly confronted the chief leader of the land in their day. Look at Mark 6.

I should read and study all of Mark chapter 6. Quite amazing here. Once again, it's on the lines of what I was talking about earlier, of going where they are and who sent them. In Mark 6 and verse 7, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city. And they went out and did what they preached that men should repent.

And they cast out many devils, anointed with oil many that were sick and healed them. And Herod heard about it, for his name was spread abroad. And he said that John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore the mighty works do show forth themselves in him.

Others said that it's Elijah. Others said that it is a prophet or as one of the prophets. But when Herod heard it, therefore he said, it is John who might be headed. He is risen from the dead. For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hands upon John and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife, for he had married her. And of course, John confronted him and said, it's not lawful for you to have your brother's wife. You are an adult or a Herod. And then on that famous occasion, asked for a wish, and she said, give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter.

Herod didn't really want to do it, but he did it. And John the Baptist was beheaded. The Apostle Paul, he did the same thing. He went, look at Acts 17, he went to Mars Hill. He went where the philosophers and the so-called intellectuals of the day, Athens, is noted for being the cradle of Western democracy and the cradle of Western education, the gymnasium, and the education of the free man, and all the various so-called philosophers and intellectuals of the day.

And Paul went among them. In Acts 17, verse 15, and they conducted Paul, brought him. He had to escape from Thessalonica. Then he went to Berea, where he was accepted more. He left Timothy there. Then he came to Athens, and receiving a commandment unto Silas and Timothy, to come to him with all speed, and they departed. Now while Paul waited for them in Athens, the spirit was stirred in him when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.

Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews and with the devout persons in the market daily with them that met with him. Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans and the Stoics encountered him, and some said, what will this vain babbler say? Others said, he seems to be a center-forth of strange gods, because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him and bought him unto Ereacapus, which is Mars Hill, saying, May we know what this new doctrine we're of you speak is, or you bring a strange doctrine to our ears.

Verse 22, When Paul stood in the midst of Mars Hill, the Ereacapus, and said, You men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious. And he preached to them the resurrection of the dead. They were fascinated by that and wanted to hear more. So the point is that God has raised up the church to preach the gospel. Under inspiration, the prophet Isaiah cries out, Preach the word, cry aloud, spare not.

Paul writes in 2 Timothy, Preach the word, for the time will come, in which they will not endure sound doctrine, but will be turned with itching ears to fables. Preach the word, the incident season, out of season. The duty of the watchman. We get Ezekiel 33. We used to talk about quite often the duty of the watchman. The duty of the watchman.

Are we the watchman of God today? Are we the ones that are to warn the world? Or will it be the two witnesses and the first of the three angels? In Ezekiel 33 verse 1, and again the word of the Lord came unto me saying, Son of man, speak to the children of your people and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coast and set him for their watchman, if when he sees the sword come upon the land, he blows the trumpet and warns the people, then whosoever hears the sound of the trumpet and takes not warning, if the sword come and take him away, his blood should be upon his own head.

Will the blood of the people of the earth be upon our heads?

He heard the sound of the trumpet, he took not warning, his blood should be upon him, but he that takes warning shall deliver his own life essence. But if the watchman see the sword come and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned, if the sword come and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his lawlessness, but his blood will require at the hand of the watchman, at the head of the watchman.

So you, O Son of Man, I have sent you a watchman unto the house of Israel. Therefore you shall hear the word of my mouth and warn them from me. We have a more sure word of prophecy that we're supposed to declare. But there's a great caveat in this chapter and a warning to the brethren, to me, to all of us. Verse 30.

Also, you Son of Man, the children of your people are still talking in this word that's against, and the old key change should be, about you. They are not necessarily against you.

And today on the internet, all of these sermons from all the church organizations, splinter groups, and whatever, Facebook is alive. Did you hear this sermon? Did you hear that sermon? He said that. They said this. What do you think? Blah, blah, blah. Instead of really being concerned, this message is for me. God is speaking to me to get my house ready for the day of the Lord. Also, you Son of Man, the children of your people are talking about you by the walls and in the doors of the houses. And so it's today the internet, Facebook, Twitter, so on. Everyone to his own brother saying, Come, I pray you and hear what is the word that comes forth from the Lord. What are they saying now? And they shall come unto you as the people comes, and they shall sit before you as my people, and they hear your words, but they will not do them. For with their mouths they show much love, but their heart goes after their covetousness. And covetousness is defined in the New Testament as idolatry. All of the idols of the land. The temptation is so great, the spirit of the times, and because lawlessness shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

And lo, you are unto them a very lovely song, and one that has a pleasant voice and can play well an instrument, where they hear your words, but they do not them. But they do them not. And when this comes to pass, lo, it will come. Then shall they know that a prophet has been among them. Brethren, the warning to us is, of course, that we don't want to be one of those. We don't want to be one of those. To me, those are the ones in Matthew 25 of the five foolish virgins. They all took their lamps. We all were going to church. Maybe some even took a Bible. Maybe they followed along, but they were not really with it. And they were quenching the spirit along the way. And now there are oil and their lamps going out. And so, obviously, when it comes right down to it, it's up to you and me. You and I will be held responsible for what we know. So we can ask ourselves today, in the face of everything that we see and hear, what's going on, we know basically what is going to happen. But don't set your affection on any certain prophetic scenario that you might think is the one. Be prepared in your heart and in your minds every day. Paul said it comes on the world as a thief in the night. But we are not of the night. We are of the day. We are the children of light. So we can ask ourselves today, is my lamp filled with oil? Or am I saying by my actions, the Lord delays his coming? So when the bridegroom comes at midnight, it will be too late to fill your lamp with oil or my lamp. So today, if you would hear his voice, harden not your heart.