10. The Great Tribulation - Pastor Stephen Bohr - Matthew 24

[Music] shall we bow our heads for prayer our father and our god we come before your awesome presence in the powerful name of jesus asking that you will be with us as we study this very important subject about the great tribulation that jesus spoke about in matthew 24. we believe that we are seeing in the world the signs that this tribulation will come soon and we want to be ready so i ask that you will bless us in our study open our minds to understand in our hearts to receive and i ask that you will remove any obstacle from any heart that will watch this presentation that we might accept the truth as it is in jesus in his name we pray amen i want to draw to your attention four specific successive stages that matthew chapter 24 mentions in the end time there are many others but these are the four that i want to highlight first of all you have the abomination of desolation that is set up in the holy place in terms of prophecy end time prophecy we've noticed that this represents a national sunday law that will lead the whole world to decide to be in one of two groups there will be no neutrality you will be either on the side that keeps god's holy sabbath or you will be on the side that keeps sunday as the day of rest when the abomination of desolation is set up that's a sign for god's people to flee from the large cities preparatory to leaving the smaller ones and so after the abomination of desolation is seen the sign is seen then god's people must flee because persecution will ensue shortly after the flight probation closes all of the world has taken sides on one side or the other just like in jerusalem those who stayed were in apostasy they perished those who left actually were saved because they paid attention to the sign and then after the close of probation when god's people flee then you have the great tribulation such as has not been seen since the beginning of the world until this time no nor ever shall be now in order to understand this great tribulation not the tribulation of verse 9 but the great tribulation of verse 21 we need to understand that there is only one tribulation composed of two stages one tribulation two stages with a pause in between let me give you an illustration of what i mean you put a dvd in a dvd player you push play and now you're watching a movie let's say it's a movie then you go and you press pause and the movie stops then at your leisure you push play again and the movie picks up where it left off this is the case with the great tribulation it has two stages with a pause in between now the question is what are the two stages of this great tribulation i might mention before we identify the two stages that the first stage is the worst in the history of the world with regards to length because it lasted 1260 years the second phase of the great tribulation is actually the worst with regards to intensity because even though it's short it will be a time of severe anguish and suffering for god's people so what are the two stages the two stages are the first the period of papal supremacy during the 1260 years that began in 538 a.d and ended in 1798 when the papacy received its deadly wound at the conclusion of the french revolution this stage of the great tribulation was interrupted towards the end by the protestant reformation in other words it was cut short by the protestant reformation the second period or the second stage if you please of the tribulation will be a short period of persecution at the very end of time after probation is closed and it will be cut short by the second coming of jesus christ so there is only one tribulation divided into two parts two phases with a pause in between now what is the biblical evidence for this well you find in revelation chapter 13 that there is a beast that rules for 42 months in other places it's called time times the dividing of time or it is called 1260 days it's actually 1260 years and you find this beast in revelation 13 verse 3 to 10 that basically does its will it sinks thinks it can change god's law it persecutes the saints speaks blasphemies against the most high tramples on the heavenly temple in other words it does basically what it wants god allows it to do this but at the end of this period we're told in revelation 13 and verses 9 and 10 that this system received a deadly wound with the sword in other words it was put out of commission it no longer was supreme it no longer ruled this is the pause button on the movie if you please but revelation 13 and verse 3 tells us that the deadly wound of this system will be healed and the whole world will marvel after the beast and then persecution will ensue like the papacy persecuted during the first stage of its existence we also are encouraged to study about the seven seals and particularly the fifth and sixth seal to understand the historical framework of these two phases of the tribulation i want to go to revelation chapter 6 revelation chapter 6 and verses 9 through 11 where you have mentioned two periods of persecution not one period two periods of persecution and actually there are two phases of the same persecution let me just review what the first four seals are you have a white horse which is the conquest of the christian church you have the red horse which represents the persecutions by the roman empire against christians then you have the herd third horse the black horse that's the period during which constantine and the church join forces and introduce paganism into the church the fourth horse which is a pale or yellow horse the horse of death represents the period of papal supremacy the 1260 years when the saints of the most high were mowed down because of their religious convictions now with this in mind let's go to the fifth seal which comes immediately after a description of the period of papal supremacy we're going to find that the martyrs who died during the fourth uh seal during the period of the fourth horse are not now crying out for justice and vengeance because of what has happened to them unjustly revelation chapter 6 verse 9 when he opened the fifth seal i saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of god and for the testimony which they had and they cried with a loud voice saying how long o lord holy and true until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth so they're asking two things how long is it going to be until you judge and secondly avenge our blood on those who did this to us now notice verse 11 then a white robe was given to each of them in other words they're secure they don't have to worry incidentally they're not literally crying out this is like the blood of abel crying out for justice when cain slew him you know abel is symbolically crying out because a great injustice has been done so it says in verse 11 then a white robe was given to each of them and it was said to them that is this first group of martyrs that they should rest a little while longer until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who would be killed as they were was completed so then you have a second group that are going to be killed in the future so you have two periods of persecution you have those who are crying out for justice and for vengeance because an injustice has been done they're given a white robe they're told your case is secure just rest for a while until the number of the rest of the martyrs is complete so there are two groups of martyrs because the papacy has two periods of persecution two periods of dominance now ellen white had something to say about the period of persecution in the past she wrote in great controversy page 59 the following words speaking about the papacy during the 1260 years the mangled forms of millions of martyrs cried to god for vengeance upon that apostate power so notice the first stage is the martyrs that were slain by the papacy the co that's the context the forms the mangled forms of millions of martyrs cried to god for vengeance upon that apostate power but ellen white also refers to the second stage of persecution by the papacy we find in volume 5 of the testimonies page 451 the following words the cries of the faithful persecuted ones ascend to heaven and as the blood of abel cried from the ground there are voices also crying to god from the martyr's graves from the sepulchers of the sea from mountain caverns from convent vaults how long o lord holy and true dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth and here she's referring to the last group of martyrs so she understood that the papacy has two stages and she understood that the persecutions by the papacy also has two stages daniel 11 presents the same scenario if you study daniel 11 and verses 30 to 39 you're going to find that it describes the period of papal supremacy you find many common elements with the little horn of daniel 7 and with the little horn of daniel chapter 8. so verses 30 to 39 describe the past career of the papacy when everything is going well for it however when you get to verses 40 to 45 you have the future career of the papacy who goes out to destroy and annihilate many because tidings are coming from the north and the east that represents the loud cry of revelation chapter 18 and it represents the sealing message of revelation chapter 7. ellen white saw that daniel 11 has a past stage and a future stage to the papacy in the in 13 manuscript releases volume 13 of manuscript releases page 394 ellen white wrote we have no time to lose troubles times are before us the world is stirred with the spirit of war soon the scenes of trouble spoken of in the prophecies will take place and now notice the prophecy in the 11th of daniel has nearly reached its complete fulfillment and then she says much of the history that has taken place in fulfillment of this prophecy will be repeated the history is the period of papal supremacy and the repetition of history is what is going to take place in the future when the papacy recovers from its deadly wound notice that she's not saying that the prophecy will be repeated she's saying much of the history that fulfilled the prophecy will be repeated and the reason is simple the same power that persecuted god's people in the past is going to be the power that will persecute his people in the future then she ends by saying in the 30th verse a power is spoken of that shall be grieved and returned and have indignation against the holy covenant so shall he do he shall ever even return and have intelligence with them that forsake the holy covenant then she quotes verses 31 to 36 which are describing the period of papal supremacy and then she writes scenes similar to those described in these words will take place so notice that in the future prophecy is going to be fulfilled again not prophecy but history is going to be fulfilled again the prophecy just flows from verses 30 to 39 it's the past stage and verses 40 to 45 are the future stage so there's not a repetition of prophecy there's actually a repetition of history both stages of the tribulation are the worst in history as i mentioned the first because of the length of the period and the second because of the intensity of the period now here's another interesting element toward the conclusion of the first period there were signs in the heavens there were signs in the sun moon and stars the sun was darkened the moon looked like blood and the stars fell from heaven and there was a great earthquake these were fulfilled in 1755 the great earthquake then 1780 the sun was darkened and the moon looked like blood and in 1833 you had the falling of the stars these signs in the heaven actually were announcing that the judgment in favor of the saints was about to begin the vindication of the martyrs who were killed was about to begin beginning with those who were killed in the past and this judgment would end with those who will be will be persecuted at the end of time shortly before the close of probation so you have signs in the heavens that indicate that the judgment of the cases of the righteous who were slain are going to be examined now in the heavenly investigative judgment then you have also signs that point forward to the second coming of christ they're a little different because it says in matthew chapter 24 and verse 30 that the sun will be darkened the moon will be darkened it doesn't say the moon we will be turned into blood it says the moon will be darkened and the stars will fall from heaven the stars will not give forth their light so you notice once again that this will be the announcement that the avenging stage of the martyrs has arrived so i want you to catch this very clearly in your mind there are two groups of martyrs the martyrs of the past that the papacy slew the martyrs of the future with a pause in between the deadly wound of the papacy is healed and persecution rises again you also have the martyrs crying out for justice and for vengeance so god simply gives some signs in the heavens and then the sun moon and stars to announce that the judgment portion is about to begin and then he gives signs shortly before jesus begins his second coming to show that he is now going to avenge the blood of those who were persecuted during the two stages both stages also have a relationship with the sabbath you say how is this because in daniel 7 25 we're told that the little horn which represents the papacy not only persecuted the saints of the most high not only blasphemed against the god of the most high but thought that it could change god's holy law and the papacy in multiple statements claims that it had the power to change god's law specifically to change the day of worship from sabbath to sunday i've provided these quotations in other studies of ours which you can find at secretsunsealed.org so ellen white also wrote about these two periods of tribulation in desire of ages page 631 she wrote about the first stage of this one great tribulation this is how it reads then shall be great tribulation he said such as 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 she's quoting matthew chapter 24 verse 21 and verse 22. then she explains what this applies to for more than a thousand years such persecution as the world had never before known was to come upon christ followers millions upon millions of his faithful witnesses were to be slain had not god's hand been stretched out priest to preserve his people all would have perished but for the elect's sake he said those days shall be shortened she's saying for more than a thousand years this is talking about the persecutions of god against god's people by the roman catholic papacy during the 1260 years but ellen white also applies matthew 24 21 to the future you say now how can it apply to the past and to the future simply because we have noticed that according to the prophecy there are two stages to the persecution with a pause in between in a reviewing herald november 22 1892 ellen white wrote we are to realize that the judgments of god are about to fall upon the earth and we should most earnestly present before the people the warning that the lord has commissioned us to give and then she quotes matthew 24 for then shall be great tribulation such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time no nor ever shall be so notice that she applies matthew 24 21 to the persecutions in the past and to the persecutions in the future you say well how's that then there's two great tribulations no there's one great tribulation with a pause in between it's the same tribulation basically because the same power the papacy is the power that persecutes god's people in both stages now let's compare the sequence of matthew 24 with the book of revelation i want to read first of all great controversy page 614 where ellen white explicitly states that the destruction of jerusalem foreshadowed what would take place at the end of the world great conversation 6 14 she states the whole world will be involved in ruin more terrible than that which came upon jerusalem of old so she's comparing the ruin of the world with the ruin of jerusalem of old now what is the sequence that we find in matthew chapter 24 and then we'll go to revelation first of all jesus spoke about the preaching of the gospel to all the world what is the equivalent in the book of revelation in the book of revelation the equivalent is the everlasting gospel in the first angels message that goes to every nation kindred tongue and people to prepare them for what is coming and calling them to worship the creator god then we go back to matthew 24 after the preaching of the gospel is mentioned in verse 15 you have the world divided into two groups those who have the seal of god and those who have the mark of the beast just like before the destruction of jerusalem you have those who fled from the city and you have those who stayed in the city in other words the the sign of the abomination of desolation separated all of the inhabitants of jerusalem into two groups where is the equivalent in the book of revelation well once again you have two groups you have those who receive the seal of god or the sign of god which is the sabbath and you have those who receive the mark of the beast which is the observance of the first day of the week now let me just clarify that nobody yet has the mark of the beast only when the world has seen clearly the issues relating to sabbath and sunday and people decide to keep sunday in spite of the evidence then they will receive the mark of the beast but now there are many thousands and thousands of sincere christians that don't understand these things and when the loud cry is given under the power of the holy spirit they will forsake all and they would join god's remnant movement so then you have the world divided into two groups just like jerusalem was divided into two groups and then you have the close of probation you have those uh in the city who were faithful that now flee and you have those that stay behind at that moment probation closes then you have the great tribulation once again in matthew 24 it says that then god's people flee in matthew 24 and verse 21 where's the tribulation in the book of revelation revelation chapter 16 through 18 describes the period of the seven plagues that is the great tribulation such as never has been seen and then in matthew 24 29-30 you have the second coming of jesus christ in power and glory just like in the book of revelation chapter 19 you have jesus sitting on a white horse he comes with the armies of heaven to rescue his people from certain deaths so you see that matthew 24 and revelation go together revelation is the revelation of jesus christ so revelation has to be an explanation and a further expansion of what jesus said in matthew chapter 24. now let's take a look again at the sequence of events in the synoptic gospels the synoptic gospel gospels are matthew mark and luke let's look at the sequence of events and i've already covered this before but there might be people watching who did not watch the previous presentations so let's review i'm going to do it quickly first of all according to matthew chapter 24 verses 6 through 8 there will be wars and rumors of wars nation will rise against nation kingdom against kingdom there's going to be famine and there's going to be earthquakes and there's going to be wars and there's going to be troubles according to what we noticed epidemics or pestilence and all of these things have one purpose satan wants to use these things to blame god's people who keep the holy sabbath and that's what we find in verse 9 where it says then they will afflict you there will be tribulation and some of you will die some of you will be killed then we're told in verse 10 that many at that time who appeared to be genuine believers will apostatize in other words they will be scandalized this is the shaking they will abandon the face because they don't want to be persecuted and during this time of tribulation when god's people are being persecuted this is not the great tribulation it's the tribulation mentioned in verse 9. during this period we're told that god's people will be taken before political rulers before councils and kings and presidents to give a witness for their faith they won't have to think about what they're going to say because the holy spirit that has been poured out in latter rain power will give them wisdom and will provide the words for them to speak at this time false prophets will arrive and these false prophets of course are those who abandoned god's people who actually forsook the message because they did not want to suffer persecution and because of the message of the false prophets we're told that lawlessness will increase and the love of many will grow cold and then we're told that whoever endures or perseveres till the end will be saved then you have the preaching of the gospel to the world this would be the three angels messages that are proclaimed to the world you say how do we know that well because jesus said this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed to the whole world as a witness to all nations then the end will come first angel's message says that there's an angel that flies in the midst of heaven having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every nation kindred tongue and people it's the same gospel but in an end time context saying that the hour of god's judgment has come and that we are to worship the creator and of course the sign of the creator is the holy sabbath so the gospel is preached and then the last point that we see before probation closes is the abomination of desolation which we noticed was the roman standards with an eagle that had arts outstretched wings and also a sun that surrounded it a wreath a golden wreath that represented the sun in end time prophecy it represents the united states a nation represented by an eagle that will impose the day of the sun in other words what we call sunday and this sign this abomination of desolation will divide the entire world into two groups those who decide to reject the the seal of god and receive the mark of the beast and those who receive the seal of god and reject the mark of the beast in other words the sunday law will divide the entire world into two groups the lost stay in jerusalem and those who are saved flee to groups and then god's people will have to flee from the large cities preparatory to leaving the small cities because those who believe that they're causing the evils in society believe that it's because they keep the sabbath if they can get rid of them then things will return as they once were and then we're told that not one of god's people will perish during this period after probation closes not one person will die as a martyr there will be no one among the living righteous that will die and then after this at the very end of the tribulation we have the sun the moon and the stars darkening the dark this is the darkness of the fifth flag of the book of revelation all this points to the moment when god is going to deliver his people from certain death and then the sign of the son of man is seen in heaven it's the announcement that jesus is beginning his second coming that little a cloud black cloud about the half the size of a man's fist will come closer and closer to the earth and it will become a white cloud as it nears and then we find jesus once he is above the earth not on it but above the earth we're told that he will send his angels to gather his elect from the four winds of heaven now let's talk about the flight in matthew chapter 24. and let's go to verse 21. we'll read this verse again that we've read before for then there will be great tribulation such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time no nor ever shall be the word then here is very significant you say why because we've noticed that the book of matthew chapter 24 is in chronological order notice verse 6 once you see wars and rumors of wars the end is not yet once you see pestilences and earthquakes and famines these are the beginning of sorrows verse 9 then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you then many are going to be offended and they're going to betray one another then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many and then in verse 14 then the final proclamation of the gospel will come and then we find the abomination of desolation in verse 15 verse 16 says then those are in judea judea flee to the mountains so you have a sequence of events spoken of here the word then is very important now in volume five of the testimonies page 451 ellen white explained that the national sunday law which is the abomination of desolation is the sign for god's people to flee after which they will be plunged into the time of trouble during the first stage of the tribulation god's people fled to the piedmont valleys now when i talk about the first stage of the tribulation i'm talking about the period of papal supremacy let me ask you did god's faithful people during that period flee to the desolate places of the earth absolutely you'll notice uh that they've they fled to the piedmont the walden seas the albany albigenses fled to the desolate places of the earth but at the end of time during the second stage god's people will also have to flee to the desolate places we're told in great controversy page 635 this is speaking of the moment when the death decree is about to be executed against god's people it says they're the people of god some in prison cells some hidden in solitary retreats in the forests and the mountains still plead for divine protection while in every quarter companies of armed men urged on by hosts of evil angels are preparing for the work of death now you're probably thinking pastor bohr what you're saying is absolutely crazy are you saying that the time is coming when individuals will be sentenced to death because they are sabbath keepers come on be real that can't happen in the united states of america this is the land of the free and the home of the brave well folks the book of revelation tells us of a time when god is going to release the four winds of heaven he's holding them back now but he's going to release them which means that he's going to withdraw his holy spirit from the earth and then the finally impenitent will be fully controlled by satan only those who are faithful who receive the seal of god during that period will be protected everyone else will be under the influence of satan there will be no redeemable good in people after probation closes and ellen white states that the heart of man can be very cruel when it is destitute of the spirit of god we find in matthew 24 22 that this period of tribulation at the end is going to be cut short the time of trouble is going to be cut short it says in matthew 24 and verse 22 and unless those days were shortened that's the days of the tribulation no flesh would be saved but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened as i mentioned before the first stage was shortened by the protestant reformation the second stage will be shortened by god uttering his voice according to revelation 16 and verse 17 and this will indicate that god is now going to deliver his people from the death decree it's important to realize that the elect this is a very important point will go through the tribulation god will not take them to heaven in a pre-tribulation rapture when jesus comes he will come to pick up he will send his angels actually to gather his elects from the four winds of heaven now why would he pick up his elect and his second coming from the four winds of heaven if he had already taken them to heaven seven years before in the rapture the fact is that god's people are going to go through the tribulation the worst period in history in terms of persecution and anguish and where do we prepare a character to withstand this period of severe trial folks that is to be done now if we reach that period and we're not ready we will fail that's why jesus said watch pray work pay attention because you don't know when the time is satan uses false teachers to persuade christians that they're not going to go through the tribulation because satan knows that we are going to need a special quality of faith to go through this particular period let me illustrate what i mean would a person prepare for a hurricane in california when the weather casters predict that it is going to hit in florida of course not you don't prepare for what you don't think is coming here if as futurists believe all of the events of revelation 4 through 22 occur after the rapture while the church is in heaven then why even bother to study revelation 4 through 22 at this time in history by the way who are the elect you can read romans chapter 8 verses 33-37 where it says that the elect are those that have been justified by christ in other words the elect are the true followers of jesus you know there's a parable that jesus told which is uh describing what will take place as this particular time of history i call it the parable of the persistent widow in luke chapter 18. there this widow who is destitute of every human support comes to the judge and comes to the judge and continues coming to the judge to ask him to do justice and to avenge her over her adversary now that's very similar to the fifth seal judge and avenge and she's crying out to the judge and the judge puts her off and puts her off and doesn't answer in other words there's a delay but eventually the judge to get her off his back does her justice and avenges her over her adversary what does that parable mean well the widow represents god's end time remnant that will go through the tribulation the judge of course is god and the adversary is satan and satan is going to turn the adversary against god's people and god's people during the time of trouble will cry out to the lord saying lord until when do you not judge and avenge those who shed the blood of your people here on the earth and god is going to delay the time of trouble is the delay god does not answer immediately but eventually god cuts cuts this period short and he will do justice to his people because not because to get him off his back but because he loves them in the great controversy page 631 this is the chapter on the time of trouble in this book ellen white universalized the meaning of the tribulation and alluded to matthew 24. she re she referred to the shortening of the tribulation for the sake of the elect and to the flight of god's people from the cities i want to read that statement in great controversy page 631 remember that this is dealing with the second phase of the tribulation it says there she quotes matthew 24 yet for the elect's sake the time of trouble will be shortened that comes directly from matthew 24 22. then she comments the heavenly sentinels faithful to their trust continue their watch though a general decree has fixed the time when commandment keepers may be put to death their enemies will anticipate the decree in some cases and before the time specified will endeavor to take their lives however none can pass the mighty guardians stationed about every faithful soul some are assailed in their flight from the cities and villages but the swords raised against them break and fall powerless as straw others are defended by angels in the form of men of war not one of god's people will perish during this period the persecution will be very intense but god's people will persevere until the end and they will be saved now we go to matthew chapter 24 and verse 23 this is still during the tribulation period jesus said then if anyone says to you look here is the christ or there do not believe it at some point towards the end of the tribulation period satan is going to counterfeit the second coming of jesus to deceive if possible the very elect the word then in matthew 24 23 indicates that clearly it says there then if anyone says to you look here is the christ or there do not believe it now this is taking place after the close of probation now there's this uh controversy among adventist scholars as to whether the counterfeit second coming occurs before the close of probation or after the close of probation there are some who say that this uh that this will occur before the close of probation others say that it will happen after the close of probation now those who say that it takes place before the close of probation you know they they seem to have a point and that is that why would satan counterfeit the second coming after the close of probation if he knows that he's not going to be be able to deceive the elect what would be the purpose ah but if this happens before the close of probation then satan can do this because he knows that it's it's possible that he might be able to deceive the elect well sometimes what appears to be reasonable is not exactly so let me just mention uh that there are two reasons why we know that the counterfeit second coming takes place uh after the close of probation first because this um counterfeit second coming appears in the great controversy in the chapter on the time of trouble after the close of probation so we know that that is one reason the second reason uh that we have is that matthew 24 is in chronological order so the word then indicates that after god's people flee and the persecution or the tribulation begins then in the period of tribulation you have satan counterfeiting the second coming of christ now i know what some people are thinking they're saying well pastor bohr what use would it be for satan to counterfeit the second coming before the close of probation or after the close of probation it makes more more sense to say that he does it before the close of probation because if probation hasn't closed you know he thinks it might be possible to deceive the elect but after the closing probation he knows that the elect are sealed and he's not going to be able to deceive them so what would be the purpose of counterfeiting the second coming well let me give you a an example so you can understand the reason why satan does this after the close of probation it's very simple satan is satan he doesn't give up he tries to counteract what god says in scripture he knows that matthew 24 says that he is going to deceive if possible although he knows it's not possible the very elect so why is he going to counterfeit the second coming to try and deceive them because satan harbors the thought that perhaps just once he'll be able to he'll be able to counteract what god has said in his holy word now you say how do you know this let me give you a parallel so that you can understand how this works out does satan know that after the millennium he is not going to be able to conquer the new jerusalem does he know that fire is going to fall from heaven and consume him his angels and all of his followers and he's not going to be able to prevail against the city well folks if he doesn't know he's not very smart because he can read revelation chapter 20 verses 7 through 9 where it says that he and his armies surround the city ready to attack the city and then fire descends from heaven and consumes satan his angels and the wicked so why will satan after the millennium when all the wicked resurrect he'll gather them all together prepare them for battle to attack the holy city why would he do that he knows that his case is lost revelation says so because satan is satan you see during the tribulation at the very end he says i haven't been able to gain the victory over this group of elect people but just maybe this once i can counteract what god has said in his word and i can be successful in overcoming them in matthew 24 verses 24 to 26 we find these words for false christs and false prophets will rise see during this time there's also going to be false prophets they're going to say these people are to blame for what is happening in society the calamities in society we need to observe the first day of the week everybody back to church because that way our troubles are going to going to leave us and the nation is going to come back to where it was once for false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive if possible even the elect therefore if they say to you look he is in the desert this is one person do not go out look he is in the inner rooms do not believe it so if someone appears in the desert says i am christ don't go out if he's in the inner rooms and he says i am the christ do not believe it because satan is going to counterfeit the second coming of christ i would encourage you to read second thessalonians chapter 2. it speaks there of two comings at the beginning of the chapter the apostle paul refers to the coming or the parousia of jesus a little later on in verse nine he speaks about the coming of the lawless one it's the same word parusia so satan is going to counterfeit the second coming of jesus christ he's going to perform the counterfeit in order to counteract the genuine that comes afterwards because the devil not only counterfeits the the genuine after the genuine is put in place the devil sometimes tries to preempt the genuine by establishing a counterfeit and then jesus says in matthew chapter 24 verse 25 to his disciples behold i have told you beforehand in other words i told you this pay attention obviously all the apostles have died but this was written not only for them it was actually written for us as well who will be living in the last days of the history of this world now i want to read you the description that ellen white gives of the counterfeit second coming of christ it's in the book great controversy page 624-626 it is a long description but a very important description she writes as the crowning act in the great drama of deception satan himself will personate christ the church has long professed to look to the savior's advent as the consummation of her hopes now the great deceiver will make it appear that christ has come and here's a key point in different parts of the earth satan will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling brightness resembling the description of the son of god given by john in the revelation and you read there it says that the face of jesus the ascended christ the glorified christ shone like the sun ellen white here is saying that satan is going to have a dazzling brightness resembling the brightness of the glorified jesus the statement continues the glory that surrounds him that is satan is unsurpassed by anything that mortal eyes have yet be held the shout of triumph rings out upon the air christ has come christ has come the people prostrate themselves in adoration before him imagine worshiping the devil thinking that the devil is christ she continues the people prostrate themselves in iteration before him while he lifts up his hands and pronounces a blessing upon them as christ blessed his disciples when he was upon the earth he presents listen to this he presents some of the gracious same gracious heavenly truths which the savior uttered he heals the diseases of the people and then in his assumed character of christ he claims to have changed the sabbath to sunday and commands all to hallow the day which he has blessed he declares that those who persist in keeping holy the seventh day are blaspheming his name in other words he's claiming that he's christ are blaspheming his name by refusing to listen to his angels sent to them with light and truth this is the strong almost over mastering delusion but now comes what is going to be done by the elect he will not deceive the elect she continues but the people of god will not be misled the teachings of this false christ are not in accordance with the scriptures he that is satan pronounces his blessing upon the worshipers of the beast and his image the very class upon whom the bible declares that god's unmingled wrath shall be poured out in other words satan claiming to be christ is pronouncing a blessing on the worshipers of the beast in his image amazing she continues furthermore satan is not permitted to counterfeit the manner of christ's advent in other words how jesus will come the savior has warned his people against deception upon this point and has clearly foretold the manner of his second coming and now she quotes matthew 24 there shall arise false christs and false prophets and shall show great signs and wonders in so much that if it were possible they shall deceive the very elect wherefore if they so say unto you behold he is in the desert go not forth behold he is in the secret chambers believe it not for as the lightning cometh out of these she's quoting matthew 24 27 now for as the lightning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west so shall also the coming of the son of man be quite a vivid description isn't it of the counterfeit second coming of christ ellen white continues this coming the true coming of christ there is no possibility of counterfeiting it will be universally known witnessed by the whole world in other words christ is not going to appear over there in the desert and you know people have to see on cnn jesus over in the desert or you know he appeared in the inner rooms and you're watching on the fox news channel you know how he's appearing in the inner rooms no it will be universally known the bible says that every eye will see him people will not be able to trust their ears their eyes their feelings their emotions their impressions are the testimony of others the faithful will det detect satan's counterfeit in two ways and ella white mentioned them but now i want to highlight highlight these two ways in which god's people will detect the counterfeit first of all the manner of satan's counterfeit coming is contrary to the biblical picture of how jesus will come matthew chapter 24 verse 30 tells us that jesus will send his angels to gather the elect from the four winds in other words jesus doesn't come step on the earth and go all throughout the earth to pick up his redeemed saints no he sends his angels from where he is above the earth he sends his angels to pick up the righteous and then we're going to read in first thessalonians 4 that they are caught up to jesus in the cloud which is above the earth incidentally in second thessalonians 2 verse 1 it speaks about the power see of christ the second coming of christ and our gathering together to him he's not coming here to gather to us we gather to him and in john chapter 14 verses 1 to 3 you remember the promise that jesus uttered let not your heart be troubled you believe in god believe also in me in my father's house are many mansions if it were not so i would have told you jesus then said i go to prepare a place for you and if i go to prepare a place for you i will come again and establish my kingdom with you no that's not what it says sometimes i misquote to make a point what does he say he says i will come again and receive you to myself that where i am there you may be also and it's going to take us to the father's house because jesus says in my father's house are many mansions and then he states that he will take us to the father's house that's the first way in which we're going to detect the counterfeit is because the coming of this false christ is not in harmony with the manner that the bible describes the second coming of jesus let's read 1st thessalonians chapter 4 first thessalonians chapter 4 and beginning with verse 15 for this we say to you by the word of the lord that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the lord will by no means precede those who are asleep for the lord himself will descend from heaven this is the second coming with a shout with the voice of an archangel and the trumpet of god and the dead in christ will rise first then notice what happens with those who died and resurrected and those who are alive verse 17 then we who are alive and remain shall be what caught up together with them that is with those who died and resurrected shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air and thus we shall always be with the lord and then paul says therefore comfort one another with these words so the manner of the counterfeit coming is not the manner that the bible teaches and the teachings of this false christ are counterfeit teachings you say how is that what is the false christ going to say well he's going to say as i read from the writings of ellen white he's going to say you know the reason why all these calamities are coming in society is because this people don't obey the law and they insist on keeping the sabbath day if we can get rid of them then once again we will have peace and prosperity in the world and in our nation matthew 24 verse 28 ends what we're going to study today matthew 24 verse 28 has a very interesting detail you remember that in the first destruction of jerusalem by nebuchadnezzar the eagle plays a role in the second destruction of jerusalem you have the roman eagle standards as the sign well at the end of time we noticed that the the nation represented by an eagle with a sun burst above his head represents the united states of america and the sunday law that will be proclaimed that's why matthew 24 28 is really interesting it says for whoever wherever the carcass is that is the dead bodies there the eagles will be gathered together so i hope that you've understood what we've studied so far about the great tribulation we still have to study in our next presentation about uh the signs in the sun moon and stars we haven't spoken about that and we have to talk about the sign of the son of man in the heavens then we have to talk about the coming of jesus in power and great glory and how jesus will gather his elect catch them up into the cloud to then take them to heaven so will god's people go through the tribulation if they are alive after the close of probation absolutely so what should we be doing now we should be forming an intimate relationship with our lord and savior jesus christ pray such as never before watch such as never before work for the lord such as never before use our gifts and talents for his glory that we might be ready for the awesome things that will soon take place in this world [Music] you

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Length: 58min 30sec (3510 seconds)

Published: Wed Feb 24 2021