Antichrist, America & the End of Days | The Bad News and Good News

Today's episode of a new beginning is brought to you by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God. Learn more@harness.org and while you're there, browse our library of free e-books designed to help you grow in your faith is living below, you will be as Superman will be a time when evil is only supernatural fury coming up today after Grigori points out Jesus Christ for the Jesus as a manager of how could he be adored and then soon bring on the planet will bring a divided world together and then tear it apart. How can that be today on a new beginning pastor Greg Laurie gives a detailed view is clear that clears up the mystery is our hope they work in our Daniels Erie calling end of days turned into Gossage's Daniel chapter 7 verse of colonialist chapter 4 and the title of my message is antichrist America and the end of days. Let's talk about the Antichrist himself, he will be sent by state of the devil around the sun.

This will be him.

The Antichrist will be energized by Lucifer himself. What is going to be what you might expect, you know, dressed head to toe in black with glowing red eyes and steam coming off of them with the Darth Vader song playing in the background when he enters a room not telling you this guy will be charismatic still be magnetic will be a powerful orator will be a convincing speaker you will do it. No man is ever been able to do before he will establish a treaty between the Jewish and Arab nations that they will abide by and he will pave the way for the long-awaited third temple in Jerusalem. He will be a satanic Superman but it's all a mask hiding who he really is the most evil man who ever lived. Daniel seven verse eight I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots.

And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking pompous words. There so if you're taking notes there is point number one antichrist is coming to defy and take the place of Jesus antichrist is coming to defy and take the place of Jesus our Lord is mentioned herein. Daniel 78 as a symbol of power in Scripture. But this horn has both eyes and a mouth reminding us that this is a person that is being addressed and I would also add this the prefix & does not only mean against it also means instead of so it's not just that this coming world leader. This piece, this charismatic politician extraordinaire is going to oppose Christ and he will but it also comes in the place of Christ and for some, they'll believe he is the Christ, or is there Messiah at least.

But here's some else to know about antichrist point number two is coming to declare war on believers is coming to declare war on believers. Daniel 725 says, then the saints will be given into his hand for time and times and half J so will read this phrase in Daniel and elsewhere and basically comes down to this, the Antichrist will inaugurate what is often called the great tribulation.

That will last for seven years.

In the beginning of the tribulation, the Antichrist will come up like a good guy will come with this peace treaty don't come with his brilliant words will come with economic solutions and many will hail him and love him and especially when he rebuilds the third temple for the Jewish people, but at the three and I Earmarked the abomination of desolation takes place will talk about this more later to this is one. The temple was rebuilt and it desecrated by the antichrist, marking the second section of the tribulation. Were this coming world leader shows his true colors and they're not pretty, he begins to persecute Jewish people and he persecutes Christians and he begins to rule by force and so that is what this is referring to number three antichrist is coming to dominate the glow is coming to dominate the globe.

Revelation 13 seven says authority was given to him over every tribe and tongue and nation now again when I emphasize how does he do it through war.

No initially through piece. The Bible says the PC will deceive many. And so he'll establish please read then you'll be the ultimate man-of-war. Following that, here's another interesting thing about him.

Number four antichrist will establish global control through a cashless society antichrist will establish global control through a cashless society requiring people to take a mark and no one will be able to buy or sell without the mark under the reign of Antichrist. Now I ask you, is this possible in technology today.

Of course it is well know it is so you know some of your thinking.

While this is like the most depressing message ever heard in LME pivot change my direction. Antichrist is coming, that's the bad news, good news. Jesus Christ is coming before the therefore we should not be looking for antichrist to be looking for Jesus Christ. Don't waste your time trying to figure out who the ends I is a one understand what you mean Jesus Christ I mean is coming is coming back for his people. I don't even believe the antichrist can be revealed until Christ comes for his people. What we call the rapture of the church to find that in the moment but over in second Thessalonians to seven it says the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. I know he who restrains will continue to do so until he is taken out of the way so the Bible say and then the wicked one will be revealed whom the Lord will destroy with the brightness of his coming. So let me simplify that Bible say before antichrist can be revealed. The restraining force, the thing that's holding the back has to be removed. So what is the restraining force in the world today that keeps people from spreading wholesale Christians Christians to stand up for what is true Christians to speak out against what is wrong Christians to make such a difference in every situation imaginable.

We were all suddenly just removed from the planet. You could see how all hell could literally break loose so the restraining force is the work of the Holy Spirit through the church once the church is removed or caught up to heaven. I don't mean buildings I mean people want to recut up to heaven. Antichrist can begin his reign.

He said no, you mention the word rapture. You know, I don't know that I've ever seen. The word rapture in the Bible.

Well, okay, and I know some people are critical of the rupture of the ruptures not in the Bible. Show me the word rapture.

Okay, I'll show you the word rapture when you show me the word Trinity in the Bible, this also you the word rapture when you show me the word Bible in the Bible the word Bible is not in the Bible that you know that, but we use that phrase so you so what is the deal with the rapture, the teaching of the rapture is clearly in the Bible many times in fact, the Jews 13 times in the New Testament the word rapture is just a translation of the Latin word rapturous so feel the Latin translation you of the word rapturous okay but the Greek word is harp also harp also. So don't get hung up on the word rapture. I'm just saying that there is an event coming call of the rapture. Call it the harp also call it the great escape whatever you like, but it is the teaching that people are going to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air were her paws and can be translated to take forcibly to snatch or to catch up. The rapture is when Christ ascends from heaven and were caught up to meet now could we be the generation that sees the rapture. Yes.

Are we the generation that will see the rapture, and no one knows about the way no one knows the day of the hour and every now and then someone comes alive figured it out. I cracked the code after eating a lot of chinos and drinking Diet Coke date already know they're wrong because when Jesus says no one knows the day of the hour, the return of the Son of Man.

If you were to go back to the original language it would translate no one knows the day of the hour.

What it means is, no one knows the day of the hour, so we should avoid setting Greg Moore will have the second half of this message just a moment.

Everybody what are you doing this weekend. I like to hang out with you at harvest and home services home. It is a time of worship and Bible study exclusively designed for people that are doing in from all over the place. You can be a part of our extended congregation at Harvest at Home. Join us this weekend Saturday and Sunday for Harvest at Home@harvest.org considering the biblical facts surrounding the antichrist today and how the rapture may hasten our action before the man of lawlessness even arises. Here's Pastor Greg once again. So were caught up to meet the Lord in the air and it is at that moment that we receive our new resurrection bodies tenets. Also at that moment that were reunited with loved ones who preceded us, bringing me to point number two. Why is our rapture listen to this now. Why is there rapture well back in Thessalonica. There were a lot of Christians and many of them and died some from natural causes. Some have been martyred for their faith. So there was a concern among the Thessalonian Christian that they would never see their loved ones who had preceded them to Kevin and they wondered if they would miss the rapture and so Paul writes these words first Thessalonians 413 we don't want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who have died so that you will not grieve as those who have no hope to bring this up because sometimes people say there's no point in studying Bible prophecy. No one can understand that there's a lot of use. Don't study it know we need this study Bible prophecy because if we understand it, it will impact us in the way that we live in. I find great hope from this teaching of the rapture so I don't have to grieve hopelessly missing Christians grieve, but we grieve. Hopefully not hopelessly because we know will see our loved ones again have will either see them through death. When we die, will glory or will see them in the rapture. So imagine this. Those of you who have lost loved ones to be just going about your business. One day, and I suddenly in a moment so quick you can measure.

The Bible says the rapture will happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye pretty fast assessment, twinkling of an eye.

It's faster than the blink of an eye blink arrives. 123 link faster than that. That's fast, trying to imagine it. I don't think you can wrap your mind around it is walk along mean you're even thinking about your loved one how much you miss them how much you wish it to be with them all of a sudden boom your with them. It's a matter boom here. There reunited with their the dead in Christ rise first. Which means when you die as a Christian you go to heaven and we which are alive and remaining shall be caught up together with them, who knows what preceded us will be caught up together with them in the clouds and so shall we ever be with the Lord and then Paul says therefore comfort one another with these words to. That's the practical side of this. There is no theology without doxology that simply means it's great to study doctrine and it's great to study Scripture.

But what is it mean to me in real life and that's what it means to you means you'll see them again and that is a great hope that we have as followers of Jesus Christ caught up in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye to meet them and to meet the Lord so the rapture is going to come and sometimes people get confused about the rapture and the second coming. By the way there two events that are separated by seven years may want to talk about date setting on Sunday when the second coming of Christ is you want to know very simple set the end of the tribulation. It's during the battle of Armageddon ones that I don't know but I just know once the church is rapture and Antichrist is revealed.

You can do the math and go forward seven years and that's when Christ is going to come back at the second coming. But here's the difference in the rapture comes for his church and the second coming becomes with his church and the rapture. He comes as a thief in the night and on the second coming. Every eye will see him, Jesus said, as the lightning shines in the east of the West, so will the coming of the Son of Man be so let's conclude we talk about antichrist. Now let me ask you a question that may surprise you. Are you anti-Christ will you say I could be the antichrist. I didn't ask you that there's a difference between the antichrist of the beast and being anti-Christ.

That term is used of those who turned against Jesus and away from the church. First John 218 says, dear children, the last hour is here and you have heard that the antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrist have a peer. From this we know that the end of the world is come. These people love our churches because they never really belonged with us.

Otherwise they would've stayed with us and when they left us to prove they did not belong with us. Remember and try Christ anti-doesn't just mean against it means instead another to be someone here listening to me or wherever there watching her hearing this later and though so I'm against Jesus Christ. I'm against Christians and I'm against the Bible. Okay man you are antichrist you are within there can be someone that would say was not that against Christians.

It's just that I have other things in the place of God in my life.

It's not that I don't care about God but I care more about my career try care more about my advice try care more about my money right care more about this relationship, you realize I can be a form of anti-because it's instead of Christ and these people are in our church and they left our church and then never came back proving they were never part of. So what about people to come to church and museum for weeks, months, maybe years, and they seem to be a passionate Christian that one day they just walk away believing that the mark not into it and they never come back to the Lord again did they lose their salvation. I would suggest you.

Maybe they never had salvation here so you know if your real Christian. It's where you end up Christians of lapses of faith. Christians have doubts. Christians fall short, and Christians backslide, but if the real believers will always come home again will always return to the Lord again, but if they never return to the Lord.

Again, I suggest they were never Christians to begin with, and in effect in the strict biblical definition there anti-Christ. You do not want to be that person. So let me ask. In closing, are you antichrist or youth for Christ. Those are your only options and before he was death and life in heaven and hell.

You decide what shall be rapture is common could come in your lifetime could come this year could come this month could come today nothing standing in the way of it. So I ask you now are you rapture ready now you know if you rapture Reading well here's what you need to do.

You need to admit your center you need to turn from your sin need to ask Christ to come in your life forgive you of your sin.

Also, your basically saying you need to be a Christian and go see if you're a Christian, you got all your bases covered. If you're a Christian it's win win win win right so if I die I go to heaven of the rapture comes up taken to be with the Lord.

I have purpose in this life and hope for the life to come. That's our hope. So that's how you know you're rapture ready by having Jesus live inside of you. Listen to this, when Jesus comes back for his people not everybody is going to be caught up to meet him in heaven.

Only believers will still be people who are left in a want to be that person. So if you're not sure if you're ready for the return of the Lord.

If you're not confident that you would go to heaven if you were to die today. Why don't you respond to this invitation and asked Jesus Christ to come into your life will forgive you of all of your sin, you don't have to be afraid of any of the things we've been talking about you not to be afraid of antichrist or the tribulation. Her hello or any of that because you have hope in Christ, and you of the promise of spending eternity with him. If you're not sure of this, let's get this resolved. Right here right now. Let's all pray together. Father, thank you for your word to us. Thank you for sending Jesus to die in the cross in our place on the rise again from the dead. Now I pray for any that have joined us who do not yet know you, Lord, help them to see their need for you to help them to come to you and believe in you. Now your name we pray, is pastor Gregori suggested that rapture ready to come back in just a moment to lead you in doing that. So stay tuned.

It's too important to away and never so excited about making a new DVD available to look at the colorful history of contemporary Christian music featuring interviews with those who played a key part DVD is called Jesus mission features Amy Grant camps are close your eyes seem to guide I wanted to sing songs with my eyes wide open.

St. Michael W Smith left for sure that they're not the record that this can get enough of it. It was called the everlasting living Jesus music concert where another one broke new ground back in 1971 this thing called Jesus and his which exploded in Southern California. So now on its way in my hometown and change my life. So this is a new movie produced by the Irwin brothers, who by the way are also producing the brand-new film that will come out next year. Based on my life in the last great spiritual awakening in America that will be called Jesus revolution, so the Jesus music is a special documentary film that tells the story of how this music came to be. I mean it's an industry now. In fact, we call it contemporary Christian music but it did not start out as an industry.

It started out as a movement, it started out as an expression of faith. One of the unique features of the early Christian songs which were rapidly back in the 70s is they were proclaiming the gospel to the culture so it wasn't really designed to be our own music as much as it was designed to be our message brought to the culture around us were a lot of change. Since then, and now we have categories of it and in different versions of it and I think that's all great but if you want to see the big picture and how this all started. And if you want to see great artist talk about how they produce and create this incredible music we enjoy so much.

Then you will want to order your own copy of the Jesus music. It's available on DVD, Blu-ray, and you can also download it will be a special code provided with the DVD. We send you and you can watch it on your phone and your tablet on your computer, or maybe even on your big screen TV.

So this is something that I think you all love to have. It's entertaining. It's fun, it's insightful and it also gives us a history of what God did, and a sense of what God still wants to do in our future.

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It's a great investment and eternal investment. You know, we saw more than 1700 people made professions of faith that Boise harvest a few weeks ago, more than 1500 more by people watching online, your investment helps us reach out with the gospel through those outreaches and through our daily outreach year on a new beginning. And when you give will thank you. With this new film called the Jesus music come to you on DVD, Blu-ray, and in downloadable form to contact us today our 24 hour phone number is 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 or write a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or go online to harvest.org will pastor Greg you mentioned our need to come to Christ for forgiveness of sin and today study I maybe there's somebody listening had like to do that like to take that step. Maybe you could help them with that right now, I'd be delighted to listen if you would like to accept Jesus Christ into your life right now.

By that I mean if you would like your sin forgiven and have the assurance that you will go to heaven when you die. Would you pray this prayer with me, Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner but I think you for dying on the cross for my sin and rising again from the dead.

I'm sorry for my sin, Lord, and I turn from it now and I put my faith in you to be my Savior, my Lord, my God, my friend. Thank you for loving me and calling me and accepting me in Jesus name I pray, amen. Listen if you just pray that prayer in minutes. I want you to know on the authority of God's word that Jesus Christ has just come to take residence in your heart.

The Bible says these things we write to the believe in the name of the son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life lesson we want to send you some resources that will help you grow spiritually. So here's David some details and let me say God bless you and welcome to the family of God. Yeah those resources pastor Greg mentioned are all included in something we call our new believers growth packet.

It will help you get started in living your life for the Lord. So can we send it to you just ask for the new believers growth packet.

Our phone number is 1-800-821-3300 call anytime 1-800-821-3300 or write a new beginning.

Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or go online to harvest.org and click the words know God. What next time pastor Greg continues his series from Daniel called End of Days with a message called three of the hardest words to say join us here beginning pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie new beginning for podcast, made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God if this show has impacted your life. Share your story, leave a review on your favorite podcast and help others find help