Now let’s continue on here in Matthew 24, right here in Matthew 24:11. “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” So there’s going to be so many out there, and I want you to stop and think for just a minute, how many have we been confronted with within the church of God, let alone just in the world? “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” And in all of this, here’s the key thing we need to do, verse 13, “But he [or that is, the one who] that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” (Matt. 24:11-13)

Now when this great religious fervor with all these false prophets take place… Now let’s go back here to Revelation 17 and let’s see what’s going to - it’s going to affect the whole world. You see, and when the false religion takes place - which it’s going to include all the major religions of the world - what’s going to happen is everyone is going to think this is the most wonderful, best thing that has ever happened, and, “Look at the holiness, the Pope! Look at the miracles that he has done! Look at those who have been healed! Look at the changes of the minds of men and women who are all happy and cooperative now,” you see. It’s going to be awesome.

Now Revelation 17 shows how that is going to be. It’s going to be kind of like a drunken party for a while where everybody’s happy. What ends up? You end up in a brawl. So when this ends up it’s going to end up in a war too. And it’s the great whore that sits upon many waters, verse 2. “With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication,...” So all the governments are going to be involved in it. And just like happened this summer, the Supreme Court approved vouchers, so now all of this money is going to start going to religious schools. So religion is going to get involved. “...And the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication” (Rev. 17:2). So that’s the leaders of the world, the inhabitants of the world. And we find in verse 15, “And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.” There it is. Revelation 17:15. It is going to be a phenomenon, that unless you have the Holy Spirit of God you are not going to be able to understand what is going on.

Now let’s come to number five. There’s going to be the false prophet endorsing the beast. Now we’ve already covered that. And this beast power is going to be awesome. He is going to be declared as God, or the Messiah. Now Revelation 13, let’s see that. Now I know this is a summary, because we’re just having an overview of the fourteen things to watch for in prophecy. Now let’s pick it up here in verse 2. “And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon [or that is, Satan] gave him his power, and his seat, and [his] great authority.” Now let’s understand something here very important. Satan must get permission from God to bring these men on the scene. Because Satan can do nothing without God’s approval. God’s allowance. Remember what happened with Job? Satan was talking with God, and God said, “See Job?” He said, “Yes.” And Satan said, “Let me just deal with him, and I’ll take away his children,” and so forth. And God said, “Go ahead.” And that still didn’t turn Job from following God. So he said, “Let me afflict him. Skin for skin, and then he’ll deny You.” And God said, “Go ahead.” So likewise, when the beast and the false prophet come on the scene, that has to be by the permission of God.

And now what’s going to happen? “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death;...” Now can you imagine what a tragedy this is going to be for the world? Because, you see, the beast is going to start out, as we find in Daniel 9:27, that he’s going to be in power for one week, or seven years. The first three and a half years are going to be marvelous and wonderful. Then there’s going to be the assassination attempt. And the world is going to be in shock. “What a terrible thing! This wonderful man!” Then he’s going to be resurrected back to life. And now then, the fervor is going to be, when his deadly wound is healed, “...And all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? [And] who is able to make war with him?” (Rev. 13:3-4). And then he continues another forty-two months, and then the tribulation begins.

Now let’s continue on here. So the false prophet, point number five, has to endorse the beast power. And the beast power will be a world-wide power. Now next, we find out what happens, which is this: persecution and war against the saints. Now since we’re here in chapter 13, just look across the page here to chapter 12, or turn the page, and let’s come to verse 12. There will be persecution against the church. “Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child” (Rev. 12:12-13). So number six is a time of persecution.

Now how is that going to be? It’s already being set up now with the laws that are being enacted in the United States, which they have in other countries as well. And that is going to be that, as we find in Matthew 24. I often wondered years ago, “Now how is this going to come about?” Well, I recently received quite an article on neighborhood watch. Now you know what neighborhood watch is? Watch your neighbors. And if they are little different than you, you better report it. Now let’s tie this in with the great false religion that is here, and everyone believing that. Those who don’t believe it will be marked as enemies. And here’s what’s going to happen. Matthew 24:9, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for My name’s sake.” Because you’re upsetting the One World Order. “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another,...” Yes, “Dial this 800 number and you can turn them in and you don’t even have to identify yourself.” And now the new Gestapo will come out and arrest you because you’re an enemy of the state. “...And shall hate one another” (Matt. 24:9-10).

Let’s come here to Matthew 10. Here’s what’s going to happen to those who are teaching and preaching the truth at that time. You’re going to be brought up to trial. And that will be a time of persecution, just like it was in World War II. First of all, Hitler persecuted the Jews, right? And in that it was step-by-step. They were then isolated in the ghettos; they had to wear the yellow stars so they could be identified. And also, remember, that even IBM is being sued now, because Germany used the IBM punch cards to identify all of the people in Germany and wherever they went, so they could racially select all the Jews. Now after they did that, then came the Holocaust. So you see, there’s going to be the persecution and then the martyrdom.

Now here’s what’s going to happen. Verse 17, “But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; and ye shall be brought before governors and kings for My [name’s] sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.” Because we are going to declare, “Christ is coming. This one is not Christ. And the kingdom of God is going to be here, and our allegiance is to God, not the beast.” And that is going to lead to mass beheadings. And here’s how it’s going to affect the families: “And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for My name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved” And he said, verse 23, “But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come” (Matt. 10:17-23). So number six, there’s a time of persecution.

Number seven. The other half of the formula of the beast is the ten kings. Now let’s come back to the book of Revelation. Now as I’ve given in a sermon before, “The Beast That Was, And Is Not, And Yet Is,” and I show there very conclusively how that the United Nations will probably be that structure that the beast power is going to use. See, because what’s going to happen with all the, especially with United States doing what it’s doing now and other nations doing what they’re doing, they will understand that they cannot solve the problems militarily with just a national army. They’re going to need an international army.

Now I also read a report that was really, really quite something. It said one of the things that they’re going to try and do to unite the nations together militarily, not only just in the one world government, but to keep them from fighting against each other, is to stage some sort of alien invasion. And then declare to the people that, “We have to arm and prepare ourselves for an invasion from outer space,” and little will they know that they are preparing to fight against Christ. So there may be something to that. We just have to watch that and see. But nevertheless, when you read other parts of the book of Revelation then you know for sure that there have to be armies armed to the teeth all around the world. And so that’s going to have to come, and it’s going to be under the beast power, because, “Who is able to make war against the beast?” And then he comes and goes after all of those who have the Spirit of God.

Now number seven is the ten kings. Revelation 17:12. Now this is not a detailed explanation of how it comes about. I’m just pointing out what it needs to be at the end. “And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet;...” And it’s very interesting. The United Nations has the world divided down into ten regions. Now is it going to be that out of those regions there’s going to be a leader who’s going to fulfill the role of a king here? Could very well be. Now notice, “...which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful” (Rev. 17:12-14). So there have to be the ten kings. Now how that comes about, we don’t exactly know. That’s why we need to watch and see.

Now there’s another faction which will come out of this too. When this starts breaking down, there’s going to be the king of the north and the king of the south. So number eight is, there has to be the king of the north and the king of the south. Let’s go to Daniel 11. Now we don’t know who the king of the north is, except it probably will be the beast power. The king of the south then will be the leader of the Muslims. So the king of the north and the king of the south have had peace for a while. Now you know the Muslims can’t keep peace very long. So this is what’s going to happen. Daniel 11, and let’s pick up here in verse 40. “And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him:...” Now who is that going to be? Is it going to come out of Egypt, financed by the Arabs and all of their oil money? Or is it going to be out of Arabia itself? We don’t know. But we need to watch.

There’s a king of the south and he pushes at him, that is, the king of the north. “...And the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind,...” Gonna come down and take care of him. You know, and we know what whirlwind attacks are like, don’t we? We’ve seen that in Iraq and Afghanistan. And you can be sure that there’s going to be another war against Iraq. No doubt about it. And it’s going to be for several things. Number one, ostensibly, to get rid of Saddam Hussein. Number two, to get rid of the weapons of mass destruction. But number three, the unspoken thing that it is going to be for, is to keep America from falling into depression and the whole world economy collapsing. Because you see, that’s how you pull an economy out of a depression is to have war. Ok, so we have the king of the north, the king of the south.

Now when he enters into the glorious land, it says here of the king of the north, “...the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon. He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.” So he’s going to go into the - it says down here in verse 45, “And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain;...” And this is the next one, which will be the abomination of desolation. “...Yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him” (Dan. 11:40-43, 45). So number nine, the abomination that makes desolate.

Now let’s understand something very important. When that happens, that is the beginning of the last three and a half years. Now we can see the things building up to it. Let’s come back to Matthew 24 again here, and let’s see what is written concerning the abomination of desolation. Then we will see what that is, as Paul describes it in 2 Thessalonians 2. Matthew 24, and this is a very key thing. Verse 14, let’s review that again. “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. [And] when...” I want you to circle it, because when you have “when,” we’re going to connect it with “then.” “[And] when ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,...” Now here’s an editorial comment in here, probably put in there by the apostle John when he canonized the New Testament. “...(Whoso readeth, let him understand:)…” (Matt. 24:14-15). Because Jesus, in giving this prophecy, didn’t stop in the middle of it and say, “Oh, by the way folks, this is going to be written down. So the one who reads, let him understand.”

“…Then...” See? Verse 15, “When you see...” Verse 16, “…Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains:…” And so there’s going to be a mass exodus of Jews going out from there, and it’s going to be so urgent that Christ gave these instructions. “…Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:…” So this, you know, Rapture.com thing is going to be worthless. “…Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!” And then He says, “Pray that your flight be not on the Sabbath, or in the winter.” (vs. 20) paraphrased. Now verse 21, “For then...” Now notice, we have it this way: when, then, then. So we have one event, “When you see the abomination of desolation, then those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, then...” And the reason that they flee is because, “...[there] shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (vs. 16-21).

Now here’s a very important verse, verse 22. “And except those days should be shortened,...” Now that’s an unfortunate translation, because that gives the connotation that God is going to intervene and stop these days by cutting them short. Now it doesn’t mean that. It really should be translated, “And unless those days were limited...” In other words, God has limited it to what, as we see in the other prophecies? Three and a half years. And unless those days were limited, there should be no flesh saved. “...But for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened [limited].”

Now let’s come to 2 Thessalonians 2, and let’s see what this abomination of desolation is really going to be. Now the type of it was with Antiochus Epihpanes when he went into the temple in Jerusalem at his time, desecrated it, set up an idol in it, and offered swine on the altar of God. This is going to be different. It’s not going to be that mild. This is going to be a man saying that he is God. This will be the beast power. Now let’s pick it up here in verse 3. “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day [that is, the Day of the Lord, the return of Christ] shall not come, except there come a falling away [the apostasy] first,…” as it should read. Falling away. Now you’ve heard many different versions of the falling away. That is, there were many people in the church of God who have fallen away. We’ve seen that. But this has more of the connotation, the great apostasy, where the world, in worshipping the beast and following the false prophet, are going to be in total apostasy from God. Because they will worship the beast as God, and the false prophet is going to lead the people to do it. Now a lot of religious people say that it is the Pope who’s going to go into the holy place. Not so. It’s going to be the beast. Because he will be the Messiah, and he will proclaim himself to be God. And after all, he came back to life after the deadly wound, didn’t he?

So let’s read it and see what the character of this man is. “...Except there come… [the apostasy] first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;...” Now there has never been a man like this. That’s why when the temple is built in Jerusalem, I suppose we could when we have it there for the holy place there will be a temple. You can add that to that one there. The holy place, we had that, number three, you can put “- temple.” Because he’s going to go into the temple. Never has there been a man like this, except the person of Satan the devil. And he is going to possess this man.

Now verse 4, let’s read it. “Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped;...” Remember Revelation 13 says that the whole world is going to worship the beast. They’re going to wonder after this beast, you see. So here he is. “...So that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” Same attitude of Satan the devil. He said, “I will be like the Most High.” There we have it right here. Now Paul warned them and told them, “This is the mystery of iniquity. I’ve told you about this, and it’s going to show in his time” (vs. 5, paraphrased).

Now verse 8, “And then shall that Wicked...” You can put “one” there, because that’s what it means in the Greek: “That Wicked one.” Notice it’s capitalized. “...Be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,...” (vs. 8-9). And just remember, the false prophet is going to be right there with him, performing miracles too, and saying, “Yes, this is the Messiah! Yes, this is our God! Yes, this is God manifest in the flesh! Worship him! Serve him! He’s going to lead us to victory. Let’s get rid of all of these people who say that Christ is coming from heaven. No, that’s not true. If anything comes from heaven, that is going to be aliens from outer space, and we’ll unite all together and fight against it and destroy them and we will save ourselves and we will follow our leader, the great beast!” I mean, you can almost do the movie material, right?

Now notice, lying wonders “...With all deceiveableness of unrighteousness in them that perish;...” Now here’s the key so that you are going to know when it comes. Because you will know that they won’t know when it comes, because of this. “...Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” So then the opposite of that is true. If you love the truth, if you love God, if you love the way of Jesus Christ, if you love the word of God, you shall be saved. Correct? Because they don’t, God intervenes and He does something just spectacular. “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (vs. 10-12). So that’s the abomination that makes desolate, number nine.

Number ten, the tribulation begins after the deadly wound is healed. And let’s put that together with Revelation 13. Because what happens is this: remember we read about the abomination that makes desolate, those in the Holy Land are to flee into the mountains because they will know that the beast goes into the temple. And in there, when he does that, the great tribulation is going to begin. Because now he is going to come out and pronounce himself God, and he is going to say, “We are going to get rid of all the enemies of the state,” which will be us. Let’s see it here. Now Revelation 13:5, “And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.” That is after the deadly wound was healed, three and half years. “And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God...” 2 Thessalonians 2, we just read it. “…To blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints,...” So that’s the next thing. We had the persecution first, you see. Now the next thing that follows, then, will be the war against the saints. And that begins the tribulation. “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” And then God gives a warning. “If any man have an ear, let him hear” (Rev. 13:5-9). So we need to hear. So number ten, the tribulation begins. Number eleven, war against the saints.

Now then, number twelve. Enforcement of the mark of the beast. “Now how are we going to test that everyone is going to be loyal? Well, we’re going to identify them. And we’re going to know that everyone who does not bow down and worship the image of the beast, we’re not going to give them the mark of the beast. And we’re going to have it so that no one can buy and sell.” Now I just in the past months gave a sermon on the coming mark of the beast. And isn’t it interesting, since that big furor of the chip, the insertable chip in the right hand or in the forehead, now they’ve said, “Well, we’re going to put it in the upper arm. See, so this can’t be the mark of the beast , because it says in the right hand or in the forehead.” But notice how the furor of that has all calmed down. But you just watch how it’s going to spread and grow, and spread and grow now that people are not all, you know, hyped up about it. And then this is going to be used as the way that they will know who is loyal to the beast. And this is going to divide the Christians from the rest, and those that are left behind - now I don’t know what this new book, The Remnant, says, but if they have it right they will show that they are going to refuse the mark of the beast and they will be killed.

Now, number thirteen, somewhere in all of this mix… Let’s come to Revelation 3. Now there are two things that everybody wants. Number one, they want to be spared the tribulation; and number two, they want to go to a place of safety. Right? So therefore, when they read Revelation 3, and the church of Philadelphia, they like to claim that they’re the church of Philadelphia. Because, after all, that makes them feel good. You see the same misapplied psychology that the rapture has. Now as we’ve covered before, if anyone is taken to a place of safety - which is not the rapture - God is going to be the one Who’s going to do the selecting. And He’s probably going to send the angels to take the ones who are going there, so they will know where to go. So we need to be careful by making declarations that we are Philadelphians. Now it is true, this is the attitude and things that we need to follow. So let’s read it here.

Revelation 3:8, “I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it:...” Now “open door” can mean two things: it means to preach the gospel, number one, and it can also mean a means of understanding the word of God. Both. “...For thou hast a little strength,...” So physically it’s going to be a small group and weak. “...And hast kept My word,...” So they’re going to be the ones who keep the word of Christ. Now you can put in your margin there John 14: “If you love Me keep My commandments. And the one who loves Me has My commandments and is keeping them, he it is that loves Me, and he that loves Me will keep My words. And the words are those the sayings of the Father” (John 14:15,23, 25, paraphrased). So in order to be a Philadelphian, to love the brethren truly, you first have to love Christ and love God the Father. “...And hast kept My word, and hast not denied My name.” It’s so easy under pressure to deny Christ, isn’t it? Remember Peter? Peter said, “O Lord, I’ll go with you to the death.” And Jesus said, “Peter, before the night is over [it was the Passover night], you’re going to deny Me three times.” And he did. It’s going to take courage over fear to not deny Christ. It’s going to take love of God over protecting your own life and love of self in order to do this, you see.

Now then, He makes quite a statement here. “Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not,...behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee” (vs. 9). Now there are two ways to understand this. Number one is that they come before your feet and they actually worship God, not you. That’s one way to understand it. Another way to understand it is this: since you are going to be the sons of God, and this is going to take place after the resurrection when they know who you are, and you are the same as Christ, and you are part of the family of God, would it then be wrong to receive worship? I don’t think so. But we can look at it from those two points of view.

Now let’s go on. Here’s the verse everybody looks at, and this is the one they want. And I am absolutely sure, though not having read any of the books of the Left Behind series, that this is one that they really tout. Verse 10, “Because thou hast kept the word of My patience,...” Now you see, they have a great problem with that, because they’re mostly Sunday-keepers. So they haven’t been patiently keeping the Sabbath, have they? But nevertheless, they read it and think that they are. “...I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.” So they say, “Boy, we are going to be raptured! We’re going to be saved!” Those in the church of God say, “We’re going to a place of safety.” And in both cases they can have a misapplication of it, can’t they? Yes. That’s what everyone wants. So Christ says, “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown” (vs. 10-11). And if you let someone deceive you, you can lose your crown. Then He gives the promise, and so forth.

Now number fourteen. The truth of the matter is the Laodiceans. Number one, we live in a Laodicean age. If you don’t believe it, just go shopping. You have everything you want, anything you need, everything at your fingertips. You’re increased with goods, and rich, and have need of nothing. That’s the way this society is. That’s the way Protestantism is. That’s the way that Catholicism is today. They are all rich and increased with goods, and have need of nothing. Now we have two categories of that, because we also have those in the church of God who are Laodiceans that get spewed out of the mouth of Christ. He tells them to repent and be zealous, and do the works. Now then, we have another group here. And I’ve often thought, could this be a lot of those Protestants that, you know, like we read about in the article here concerning the “Apocalypse Now,” could it be that Christ has been there - let’s read it now, verse 20. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:...” Now I wonder how long Christ has been knocking at the door of the Protestants? “Love Me and keep My commandments. Love Me and keep My commandments.” And they haven’t opened the door. So He says, “…If any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.” Now that’s a possibility. We don’t know.

But these of the fourteen things that we need to watch. And it would be good periodically to kind of take that little list and go over it, look at the things that are happening in the world, the things that are happening in religion, the things that are happening in the church, and check and see how things are coming along. I know the first time that I gave this sermon, now, believe it or not, was back in 1972, when we had to explain why we weren’t going to a place of safety. Now mind you, that’s thirty years ago. And these things have yet to really manifest themselves in a - how shall we say - a ripeness. Just like watching fruit get ripe. It hasn’t yet happened. So that’s why we need to keep watching and seeing these things as they develop. But we need to stay alert, stay close to God, grow and overcome so that we don’t get caught short. So these are the fourteen things to watch in prophecy.