Latter Days – Part Two

Dear Brethren,

The Church of God does not realize just how close we are to dangerous and precarious times.  There should be a heightened awareness among the people of God that, quite frankly, is not there—it is missing.  How many attend Sabbath services for the very purpose of provoking one another to love and good works—exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching (Hebrews 10:24-25)?

Yes, the day is approaching, but how many are prepared?  There was a time in God’s Church when there was keen interest in watching, not only world events, but the state of God’s people.   More than ever, there is ample opportunity to live our Christianity—but few know how to go about doing so these days (Matthew 24:46)

Now is not the time to be letting down, but to renew our zeal and expectation of the coming of the Lord.  The Beast Power – an evil leader and his régime is in the making as we speak, but who knows what it is that we should be on the lookout for?  The Book of Revelation reveals a counterfeit religious system and its leader who hates the things of God.  Its onslaught has been persistent and pervasive—but where is the alarm among God’s people?  Lawlessness and Godless counterfeit doctrine abounds – and if we do not see it as much as we should, it is because it has become the everyday norm.  Do we Church brethren still realize that there is a war against a moral integrated society with the nuclear family as a basic unit?

Where on earth can you still find the Godly family—with a father, mother and loveable obedient children held in high esteem?  Do we realize that the enemy and its agents are going about seeking to destroy every semblance of decency?  Godly families and their ideals are in serious jeopardy.  The mystery of iniquity is thoroughly at work (2Thessalonians 2:7).  That spirit of iniquity, gross injustice and wickedness is quite obvious on the world stage where every purveyor of irreverence is gladly accepted and welcomed.

2Thessaslonians 2:3-4  Let no man deceive you by any means: for the day of Christ shall not come, unless there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who 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, shewing himself that he is God.

Embraced by social media, endorsed by every religion, expounded by every news outlet, and promulgated by universal social networking, the foundation for the spirit of iniquity is becoming ubiquitous.  In the Book of Revelation, this counterfeit religious system is associated with Babylon the Great (Revelation 17:5).  This counterfeit system is becoming a universally accepted movement and mixture of religion, faith, and an ideology of dark camaraderie and worship (Revelation 14:9) which is gaining great momentum toward a world dominance that can only be destroyed by Jesus Christ at His coming.

2Thessalonians 2:8-10  Then shall that Wicked [one] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming:  Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

Daniel explained Nebuchadnezzar’s dream telling him that a stone cut out without hands (Jesus Christ) destroyed the great image representing all the world’s empires (Daniel 2:34).  He went on to say that the Kingdom of God would replace all worldly kingdoms forever:

Daniel 2:44-45  In the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a Kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the Kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.  Forasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the Great God has made known to the king (Nebuchadnezzar) what shall come to pass hereafter.

We are told in the Book of Revelation that the Beast will be among the destroyed kings and empires of the earth.  The Beast and everything he stands for will be consumed in a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

Revelation 19:19-20  I saw the Beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him that sat on the horse, and against His army.  And the Beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

Brethren, it behooves us to stir up our enthusiasm in these latter days.  Time is shorter than we realize.  As Paul said, “The mystery of iniquity is already at work” (2Thessalonians 2:7).  We need to be more cautious than we have been.

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Today's Sermon:  "Latter Days – Part Two"  

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