We bless his name this morning and I
just have a message that I want to
convey to our hearts this morning and I
suppose in many ways that this stirring took
place in Colorado just regarding the end times
and what's happening around us and what's happening
in the church today and it's such an
extensive subject we know that and I'm not
going to do it any justice I suppose
this morning I'm not going to go in
too deep but I just I feel I
need to share this and and possibly next
week I don't know we will be led
by the very spirit of God and the
spirit of prophecy the spirit of revelation we
believe by him and him alone turn with
me to the the second epistle of Thessalonians.
Thessalonians we are going to look at chapter
two now we will look at the first
three verses I don't think we'll get past
that this morning but I want to teach
just basically this morning on what Paul has
called the great falling away and that is
a bit of an introduction here and we
see in this portion of scripture before the
rise of antichrist as such there must be
a great falling away there is criteria that
Paul sets out here events that will take
place and manifest before that and I just
want to see what what God has to
say on this this morning not merely what
I have to say or even the commentators
in the study that that I've that I've
put in and what I have grained and
grasped but we need his his voice in
this matter amen we need his voice now
Paul wrote to the church of Thessalonica obviously
in the first epistle and spoke about some
things now we believe this morning that there
was some confusion after that first epistle as
regards to the understanding the Thessalonians didn't fully
grasp nor understand Paul's writings on the end
times or there may have been circulating false
teaching and so therefore this is the reason
why that Paul is speaking again on the
day of the Lord or the coming of
Christ so in chapter two let's read from
verse one to three now brethren concerning the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
gathering together to him we ask you not
to be soon shaken in mind or troubled
either by spirit or by word or by
letter as it from us as though the
day of Christ had come let no one
deceive you by any means for that day
will not come unless the falling the falling
away comes first and the man of sin
is revealed the son of perdition and we'll
stop up there father and enable me God
the truly God to be able to take
your message the prophetic scriptures Lord and to
be able to communicate them in a right
way and in a right spirit Lord to
this church and to those Lord that hear
the recording may we have illumination this morning
and understanding God for we are in perilous
times dangerous times but Lord we thank you
that you are building your church and the
gates of hell should not prevail against it
and so Lord God we just ask for
the blessing upon your word in Jesus name
amen and amen Paul says here in verse
one concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ
and praise God this morning church that is
our hope is the coming of the Lord
Jesus Christ that is what the heart of
the believer is hoping and waiting and expecting
the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ that
word coming actually means a physical visible tangible
return of the Lord Jesus Christ in fact
in Acts chapter 1 we certainly read in
verse 10 and it says in regards to
the Lord Jesus Christ and while the disciples
and apostles and while they looked steadfastly toward
heaven as he went up behold two men
stood by them in white apparel he also
said men of why do you stand gazing
up into heaven this same Jesus who was
taken up from you into heaven will so
come in like manner as you saw him
go into heaven so we believe in a
literal physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ
in fact Paul says in Titus chapter 2
verse 13 that we look for the blessed
hope amen we look for the blessed hope
and the glorious appearing of the great God
and our savior Jesus Christ that's that's what
we as a church this morning we are
we are looking or in other words we
are waiting we are waiting for the the
glorious appearing that that is something that that
witnesses in our souls we we have hope
this is an anchor that's embedded deep in
our souls that Jesus Christ of Nazareth the
Lord of Lords and the King of Kings
is coming back again he says also in
John chapter 14 that that I will come
again and receive you unto myself we are
waiting for him sometimes waiting can be quite
a difficult experience quite a traumatic experience for
some waiting it reminds me a little bit
of my waiting in airports Andrew knows a
little bit about that there is nothing as
bad as waiting in an airport for hours
when I was in Oklahoma I had to
spend four hours in Oklahoma airport and it
wasn't a great experience you sit down and
then you get off your chair and you
walk about and you you look at the
time and you sit down again then you
go for another walk and you're trying to
kill time and it's not pleasant you've got
itchy feet and you're looking at the monitor
and you're just wishing that the time would
just diminish and that you will be able
to board that mode of transport is going
to that's going to take you to the
sky you know you're tapping your feet you're
tapping your feet that that four hours seems
like forever that four hours seems like like
eternity but eventually it comes you know that
it's coming you know that there's a time
coming that you will hear a call over
the tannoy that it's time to board you
know that it's coming and you're sitting and
you're waiting in anticipation and again you're bored
and you're restless but you're waiting and you're
waiting and then eventually the call comes now
we believe this morning again that Jesus Christ
of Nazareth is coming again and some of
us even in here this morning we might
be suffering a little bit and we're tapping
our feet as it were but I want
to encourage you keep waiting and keep hoping
because the call will come and then we
know that it's going to come because the
word of God says that it's going to
come hallelujah the word of God says that
he is he is coming one day according
to what Paul says again there shall be
the sound of a mighty trumpet hallelujah and
we are waiting for that that that sound
we are looking for that sound glory to
God glory to God the coming of the
Lord you know what Peter says in in
these latter latter days we are living as
I said in perilous times and 2nd Peter
chapter 3 says this in verse 3 and
4 knowing this first that scoffers will come
in the last days walking according to their
own lusts and saying where is the promise
of his coming for since the fathers fell
asleep all things continue as they were from
the beginning of creation where is the promise
of his coming and again that's the same
word that I read out in Thessalonians it
means that physical visible return bodily return of
the Lord Jesus Christ and it says here
that there will be scoffers or muggers that
will come in the last days I was
on line there this week and in America
in New York I think atheists are propping
up their their billboards at this time of
the year and there was one billboard that
depicted the wise men coming to the stable
and the very word that was used I
can't remember the whole phrase but it was
something like this is a myth or it's
just a myth I I believe that 40
50 years ago within the United States of
America and specifically New York that that would
never have taken place and there is a
great thrust in these days there is an
agenda outside in the world that has been
perpetrated and instigated by the worker of iniquity
by by by the prince of the power
of the earth and we know that we
know that there's a great push when it
comes to atheism we see it we see
the muck and we see them scoff and
deride the things of God we see the
rise of Richard Dawkins we see the rise
of Christopher Hitchens these are men academic men
that will stand and debate and write books
denouncing the existence of God etc so we
we see that there's a a particular group
and they they post on YouTube and they're
called the rational response squad and this is
what they're doing they're trying to encourage young
people that have been brought up in Christian
homes who have distanced themselves from the faith
of their parents and what they want them
to do is to upload videos onto their
site denouncing and blaspheming the very spirit of
God and if they do that they will
receive a DVD that they have prepared in
regards to the non-existence of God now
that that is it's right it's there it's
in your face Peter talks about it they
scoff and they muck and they wave their
fists at the living God the one and
true God where is his coming sure since
the beginning of time the sun has risen
the men have went into the grave and
they in their carnal and fallen intellects they
suppose that God almighty does not exist in
Peter prophesied about this here that's amazing and
we know that this book is filled with
prophetic scripture this morning now brethren concerning the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
gathering together to him is not wonderful church
this morning that we will be gathered together
to him hallelujah that those that went down
from the frigates in the pacific during the
second world war that were believers will be
gathered together with him those that lost their
lives during the black plague who professed and
foul christ will be gathered together with him
those that shed their blood and foreign soil
for the sake of the gospel will be
gathered together with him those believers born in
africa or asia will be gathered together with
him hallelujah well one gathering one one large
gathering one innumerable gathering a multitude of people
will be gathered together and him the dead
shall rise first and the living shall together
be gathered together in him glory to God
this morning church this is wonderful news this
is marvelous news that we shall be gathered
together in him glory to God and if
we can encourage ourselves this morning let that
indeed be sealed into our hearts now paul
goes on to say here he says he
says do not be shaken in mind or
troubled either by spirit or by word or
by letter as if from us as though
the day of christ had come shaken in
mind or are troubled do you know something
church we as christians need to be and
i say this often so grounded in this
book so grounded in the holy words of
god that we truly know him and we
believe him and believe these words because there
are teachers out there or doctrines out there
that would come to try to shake or
in other words topple what you believe topple
it's it's at times it can be quite
lengthy i suppose and time consuming to build
a house of cards it's not correct but
uh one breath can topple it over one
breath you can build great structures around this
world today but you can topple them over
quite quickly with dynamite or with explosives and
i i want to to just to stir
up within you a greater longing and a
greater passion for the word of god for
the word of god because as jesus says
if we if we build our lives on
him if we build our lives upon the
rock it doesn't matter what storm or what
fire power comes from the heavenlies we will
stand we will stand we cannot be shaken
in in our mind or troubled by whatever
comes into the church or by whatever we
hear you see paul goes on to say
here he says do not be shaken in
your mind or troubled if it's by spirit
either by spirit what does that mean he's
he's talking about the spirit of prophecy he's
talking about the spirit of prophecy there are
many that have and claim to have the
spirit of prophecy and they claim that certainly
in the days of paul and paul is
saying look listen regardless of they've got the
spirit of prophecy if they're prophesying contrary to
what i have taught it is not of
me it is not of my teaching and
again there are plenty that prophesy today prophesy
the coming of the lord in fact in
another place in the states there are billboards
depicting the coming of the lord in may
2011.
Do you know something even paul didn't give
dates you know that even the writer of
prophetic scripture here he didn't give a date
but yet there are those that give dates
and he is saying see see when it
comes to the spirit of prophecy listen you
test it and you prove all things either
by spirit or by word he says oral
word those that come in and those that
teach or those that say i got my
message from paul somebody communicated it to me
and i am verbalizing the message of paul
to you he says even if you you
hear it by word or spoken and then
he goes on to say or even by
letter you see the reason why the crux
of it is this the reason why paul
said that paul wrote the second epistle because
the commentators believe that there was a forgery
circulating around a forgery of paul's writings and
paul in fact says in 2nd thessalonians chapter
3 verse 17 that the the greeting of
paul is with his own hand which is
a sign in every epistle so i write
so every epistle that he did right he
signed it he signed it with his own
name but yet there was a forgery circulating
around there was many forgeries in those days
again satan didn't waste any time to attack
the truth and attack the church of the
lord jesus christ so many forgeries were inside
the church paul says that forgery even though
that it looks good even though that it
has even my signature you know there are
many people today and i mean they they
can they can certainly mimic a signature it's
not right man they can copy a signature
on a letter i could go down to
the bank and and i could lodge in
some money and i could sign a slip
and somebody could be beside me and peering
over my shoulder and because of whatever skill
that they have they are able to take
the way i sign my signature and through
their own hand they're able to copy it
almost exactly but for most of us this
morning you know you can't really tell the
difference can you that's why the fbi specialists
will be called in in particular cases and
they will analyze they are handwriting experts and
they will analyze the signature what we need
to have something of that spirit in us
in these days that's a picture an illustration
because there's lots of forgeries in the church
there are teachings out there in the body
of christ today and it's just downright forgery
and listen to me you see the forgery
that may have been circulating would have had
very similar content to paul's letter and his
writing style it'll been very like his letters
and that's the subtlety of wickedness that's the
subtlety of satan that's the subtlety of the
deceiver he'll give you the word that satan
not quote the word to christ he'll give
you any amount of the word he'll give
you any amount of the bible if you
want the bible seat they'll give it to
you but we need to prove all things
church and these days we need to get
the magnifying glass out friends and we need
to take it up and look at the
doctrine through the magnifying glass like an expert
this bible indeed we are not to be
shaken because they believe that the the coming
of the lord here the church believed was
immediately imminent paul was teaching that the coming
of the lord was imminent but they believed
it was immediately imminent and that's why he
wrote this epistle he goes on to say
let no one deceive you by any means
for that day will not come unless the
falling away comes first that the day of
the lord will not come until there is
a great falling away or in other words
the apostasy the great apostasy another word for
apostasy is defection and i have used this
before to illustrate something defection during the cold
war many people defected from russia or particular
eastern european countries that were dominated by communism
and they leave the harsh regime it's too
harsh for them and the rules and the
laws of the land are too harsh and
they defect basically from that system to let's
say britain or the united states of america
and it's easier for them sunny climate a
bit more money in the pocket and so
they defect from this place to this place
and i believe this morning wholeheartedly that the
church even from the beginning and paul teaches
that there was a defection from the truth
and what church is and today there is
no exception and it is blatant that there
is a defection from the truth a defection
from the teachings of christ jesus said whosoever
will come after me let him take up
his cross and follow me now for some
that's too harsh we don't want to hear
that stuff about dying to self we don't
want to hear anything that we need to
separate from the world and the pleasures of
this world that's not what we want to
hear anymore we don't want to hear the
don't talk about eternal hell and separation from
god don't talk about this morning holiness don't
talk about walking in righteousness and upright before
the lord god almighty the holy one of
israel don't talk about that stuff i don't
want to hear that stuff that stuff does
something to me i want to defect from
that and there's plenty of places and plenty
of teachers that will give them and facilitate
what they want they defect this is what
the apostle john said 1st john chapter 2
verse 19 they went out from us but
they were not of us for if they
had been of us they would have continued
with us but they went out that they
might be made manifest that none of them
were of us they were part of the
church they were in the church but then
they defected i don't know if they were
saved or not or what was going on
there but anyways they defected they they walked
away from the truth do you know something
many many years ago we had when we
think of let's say crisps or potato chips
there was one flavor or even ice cream
one flavor vanilla but you see one day
somebody thought to themselves i've had enough of
vanilla i've had enough of cheese and onion
so let's experiment and you've got all sorts
of flavors today haven't you church you've got
bubble gum and you've got cookie and you've
got steak potato chips you've all sorts of
flavors that's a wee bit like church where
we've been fed up with the old flavor
where we've been fed off of up with
that old style religion so give us a
little bit of something else give us a
scoop of this and a scoop of the
other and mix it all up and that's
what church is elements of church i see
today and i believe the holy ghost is
saying that there's a scoop of this and
there's a scoop of this mysticism and there's
a scoop of this and it's all in
a big bill and people are just feeding
their big fat souls with stuff that is
not of god and i believe that's prophetic
i really believe that a scoop of this
and a scoop of the other what what
will you have man what will you have
sir as multitudes run into church and churches
placate and churches yield to their desires what
will you have roll up and have a
scoop and a sprinkle your own little sprinkle
on top of that as well we'll give
it to you at no cost at no
cost but brothers and sisters we know this
morning there's a cost to follow christ and
there's a deep and a painful and a
hurtful cost inside the soul to follow christ
and to walk in the very feet and
to imitate not only christ but the life
of paul what did paul say in acts
what did he say in acts chapter 20
29 and 30 he says also from sorry
first 29 for i know this that after
my departure savage wolves will come in among
you not spurring the flock savage wolves i
tell you something if a wolf gets into
a chicken coop it's not going to leave
anything alive it's not correct it will rip
the shreds everything that's that's the the heart
of the wolf that's the dna of the
wolf and paul's warning the early church here
and he says this also from what among
yourselves men will rise up speaking perverse things
to draw away the disciples after themselves now
we've looked at the outside we've looked at
and talked about the rise of atheism and
dawkins and those guys those guys are walking
according to the prince of the power of
the air and we know that and that's
that that's what's happening but i want to
tell you that the biggest danger is with
inside the church and those that rise up
within the church that's where the true danger
lies and that's where the true apostasy is
from those that profess christ he says from
among yourselves men will rise up men will
rise up it's almost like the picture here
in these words are someone sitting down they're
sitting down but then there's a moment when
they rise up that's the teaching here so
they're biding their time they're sitting back or
they're sitting down and then in a moment
they rise up and that's a little bit
i'll be going to that next week when
the spirit of the person and the man
of perdition begins to rise he rises through
the apostasy he has his pulpit his pulpit
is already there it's prepared for him we'll
look at that a little bit more next
week so what is paul saying here also
from among yourselves men will rise up i
think at times we can get so troubled
and so bogged down than looking outside looking
for the enemy outside that we forget about
the enemy inside we forget about the enemy
in the church and again that's where we
need to covet earnestly the best gifts and
truly covet even the gift of discernment true
discernment of god that we would have that
that we would be watch men and watch
women etc they shall rise up and they
shall what speak perverse things so what they
will do they will distort scripture remember talked
about the forgery they will take and they
will sign and and and twist and and
shape that's what they'll do and they'll cause
to draw the disciples of christ away that's
the agenda now it's interesting because draw away
means tear away tear away that's what it
can mean and the very used or sorry
the word draw is used in the in
the garden when uh peter wasn't it peter
drew his sword and took off the year
that's the picture what we are seeing here
it speaks of the sword being drawn and
a or tearing away i believe that now
at this time there are men that were
once sitting now we can look back the
different generations and it was prevalent then but
for our generation that have been sitting and
are now on their feet in the church
and they are drawing people away or tearing
people away high by the sword what is
the sword according to the bible well the
sword's the word of god and they're distorting
the word of god to draw people away
to their new age thinking and theology and
philosophy again because it so sounds right smells
okay feels okay then it must be god
the biggest attack today is certainly one that
was there from the very beginning when the
serpent came and said in in chapter 3
verse 1 i think has god said has
god said questioning the very word of god
and how many today church and this is
the truth and we're not naming anybody this
morning but how many today how many today
are doing that they're questioning the very book
how well there are elements within the church
teachers within the church that deny a literal
hell so what they are doing is has
god said and they are taking themselves and
exalting their hearts like lucifer did that's the
truth has god said or the homosexual issue
well it's not god's best for them but
hey god loves everybody has god said taking
the word of god and speaking perverse things
and drawing or tearing people away from that
old time religion drawing people away from the
commands of god our god a holy god
and a wise god and they're taking their
own carnal wisdom which james says devilish and
carnal and earthly wisdom and drawing people away
we are living in days of apostasy we
are living in days where there's a great
falling away and listen to me church listen
to me i believe they are going in
their droves i don't know about you but
certainly that's what i see today that's what
i believe god wants to certainly tell us
examine and prove all things by this but
there's no new mystic revelation there's not i
talked about this one other time and i
watched on online uh this this guy who
was quite prominent and into all sorts of
mysticism and he's quite influential amongst youth in
in america and he he spoke about a
token the holy ghost like a joint like
marijuana he called him jehovah marijuana or jehovah
wanna imitate that that's and he has big
-time influence amongst the youth in the states
there's a picture i think of a of
of of jesus on the website and and
and and it's it's it's mystic and and
this is this is rife and it's strong
it's strong that's just one thing two other
prominent uh teachers in a particular movement again
denying the existence of hell a little hell
and and uh and then again the homosexual
a question there's so much so many scoops
so many flavors and the people love to
have it so as jeremiah said like that
message i preached one time judges and jesters
the people love the high to have it
so but these prophets will prophesy peace and
prosperity church that's what they'll prophesy to you
that's what they are prophesying me me me
i tell you we are in a great
falling away we are in it but we'll
stand and we'll stand for truth this church
will stand and maintain truth and the integrity
and the infallibility of the word of god
amen we won't add to it we won't
take away from it we'll keep preaching it
and we'll keep preaching the blood of the
lord jesus christ we'll keep preaching the blood
because satan and his cohorts and his men
that are in the church hit the blood
they despise the cross they despise it they
despise it because salvation is through the cross
i shared this uh a little while ago
with some of you guys i shared it
that when a when a when a lion
comes in to to the pride and wants
to take over and it tries to oust
out the old lion and it does it
drives the old lion off well the first
thing that that new land will do it
will destroy the young because its agenda is
to destroy the bloodline the bloodline that's the
agenda so then that lion mates okay with
the lionesses hoping to produce of his line
are you hearing this this morning are you
hearing this the spirit of antichrist is in
the church and the spirit of antichrist is
manipulating and distorting and creating perverse things hoping
to hoping to destroy the bloodline hoping to
destroy the remnant hoping to destroy the good
old teaching of the gospel of the lord
jesus christ and therefore if i can do
that then then just like that picture it
hopes to create some new type of believer
some new type of christian that that is
contrary to the word of god and contrary
to the teachings of scripture that is alive
and well church and you've heard it this
morning believe me take every word take this
message and seal it to your heart and
ask god to develop something even more in
your understanding for the anointing of god within
you shall teach you go and seek his
face go and call upon his name and
ask god to speak and to make alive
the very words of god because they are
alive this morning hallelujah his words are alive
alive to our soul oh god blow your
trumpet oh that god will come and do
something in the church for judgment must first
begin in the house of the lord this
morning it must first begin in the house
of god and may god indeed expose the
the heretical teachers now let me say this
just in closing i know at times that
people get it wrong and their hearts are
right and i know that and so i'm
not dismissing that that there are people there
and they're they're uh they have good intentions
but there are those there they have a
deliberate agenda they have it and i tell
you something jesus christ of nazareth when he
went out in the morning time he went
out and consulted with the father he says
i only speak the words that the father
has given me but there are those men
and they walk out and they call upon
another source another source we we have defected
and down through the generations you can see
the apostasy and you can see the defection
but but today it's so it's so obvious
and so blatant and and may god help
us and may god uh indeed may may
the people of god hear this message that
is being spoken not not just here but
behind other pulpits around the world behind other
pulpits this this needs to be guarded in
these days i need to put a chain
around this i need god to ask to
put a chain on a lock around this
pulpit and only those that have been tested
and only those that have been proved would
get behind it because this is a precious
thing precious thing is the word of god
and to teach the word of god and
to preach the word of god and only
those that are called called by god not
by men called by god we're not interested
this morning church and hollow rhetoric rhetoric flowery
and fancy words we're interested in truth we're
interested in the true spirit of god we're
interested in true revival we're interested in holy
things hallelujah we bless his name this morning
paul says in acts 20 verse 31 therefore
watch and remember that for three years i
did not cease to warn everyone night and
day with tears and i want to say
that i will cease not to warn god's
people i will cease not because i believe
god has called me to do this and
i will not cease and it's not a
popularity contest this won't win you the popularity
vote when barack obama was running for president
he had to appease people to get their
votes is not correct i tell you i
don't want the votes of men i don't
want the honor of men but god almighty
hallelujah the praise of god let's remember church
if they hated him they'll hit you and
the despisers of truth and all that is
of the spirit if you love truth and
love the spirit they'll hit you and despise
you and they'll call you sinister uh call
you uh dividers call you all sorts of
things jesus says that they called the son
of the son of ban the son of
the algebra and what will recall god's people
let's pray father we thank you this morning
for uh what you have said lord and
god there's so much more to this uh
we pray lord that some of the thoughts
that have been communicated in scriptures that the
people would even go and study for themselves
and rightly divide the word of truth i
encourage that lord and something that you encourage
i just pray lord god that you would
continue to lead us uh in lord this
this this train of thought god this this
focus on on on the prophetic lord and
on the letter times and then even next
week glory i pray that that we would
hear more and no more lord we need
to know these things god we need to
be aware of these things and so lord
we give you all the glory in jesus
name amen