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Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] ["Pomp and Circumstance"] Song number 175, we open the service with It's Just Like His Great Love. Song number 175, sing it out on the first. A friend I have called Jesus Whose love is true and true And never fails now No matter what I do I've sinned against His love and his The way I doubt to break Confessing all my guilt to Him The sin clouds roll away It's just like Jesus Rolling clouds away It's just like Jesus You keep me day by day It's just like Jesus All along the way It's just like His great love Song number 175, let's sing it out on the second. Sometimes the clouds of trouble Beat in the sky above I cannot see my saving face I doubt His wondrous love But He from Heaven's works you see Beholding my despair My faith is there My faith is there And shows me He is there It's just like Jesus Rolling clouds away It's just like Jesus You keep me day by day It's just like Jesus All along the way It's just like His great love All right, so we sang two verses already. Those are practice, all right? So we have to sing better for the last two stanzas. So 175, let's sing it out on the third. When sorrows, vows overtake me And break upon my head When life seems worse than useless And I were better dead I take my grief to Jesus then Nor do I go in vain For heavenly hope He gives that cheer Like sunshine after rain It's just like Jesus Rolling clouds away It's just like Jesus Rolling clouds away It's just like Jesus All along the way It's just like His great love Sing it out on the last. Oh, I think I'll sing forever Of Jesus, love divine Of all His care and tenderness For this love of mine His love is in and over all And wind and waves obey When Jesus whispers peace be still And rolls the clouds away It's just like Jesus Rolling clouds away It's just like Jesus Rolling clouds away It's just like Jesus All along the way It's just like His great love Amen, great singing. Welcome to Verity Baptist Church here on our Sunday evening service. We're glad to see everyone here this evening. Let's bow our heads for a word of prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you for the opportunity to come to church this evening, Lord. Thank you for keeping us safe and pray that you just bless this service, pray that you bless the preaching and the fellowship to come, and we love you and thank you again for everything in Jesus name I pray. Amen. All right, now time for favorites where if you're selected, we will sing a stanza from the song that you pick. Go ahead, Elijah. 421. Song number 421. The first Noel. Song number 421 on the first. The first Noel, the angel would say, was to certain poor shepherds in fields where they lay, in fields where they lay, keeping their sheep on a cold winter's night that was so deep. Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, Born is the King of Israel. Brother Max. 150 on the third. 150 on the third. My faith has found a resting place. Song number 150. My heart is leaning on the word. Sing it out. On the third. My heart is leaning on the word. The written word of God. Salvation by my Savior's name. Salvation through His blood. I need no other argument. I need no other plea. It is enough that Jesus died and that He died for me. Uh, Miss Christine. 216 on the first. 216 on the first. 216. Surely goodness and mercy. Sing it out. On the first. A milk from the diet, a milk from the things. In the hope I will see my endow. When Jesus of Christ ever found me and now I am on my way home. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days, all the days of my life. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days, all the days of my life. Sing it out. And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. And I shall eat at the table spread free. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days, all the days of my life. All the days, all the days of my life. Little Brother Ryan Skid. Owen. Owen. 65. Song number 65. Song number 65. Just over in the glory land, song number 65 on the first. I'm a holy bear where the swings of mine just over in the glory land. I long to be my Savior's son just over in the glory land. Just over in the glory land won't you know a happy angel may just over in the glory land. Just over in the glory land won't you know a happy angel may just over in the glory land. Sing one more song. Madison, go ahead. Song number 427. Song 427. That's the last song for favorites. Song 427 on the first. We three kings of holy and dark bearing gifts we travel so far. Field and mountain, wall and mountain following yonder star. Oh, star of wonder, star of night, star of joy, joy of beauty bright. Blessed were we still proceeding by the storm thy power and light. Amen. Alright, well let's take our bulletins this evening. We'll go over some announcements. If you do not have a bulletin, just raise your hand and one of our ushers can get one for you. If you need a bulletin, just put your hand up and we will get one for you. The verse this week, Proverbs 12 and verse 20. Deceit in the heart of them that imagine evil, but to the counselors of peace is joy. And that's a good verse there. We like that. If you open up your bulletin, you'll see our service time Sunday morning, service 1030 a.m. and we had a wonderful service this morning. We're glad you're back out tonight for the evening service. And then of course we invite you to, for the midweek service, our Wednesday night Bible study at 7 p.m. If you look at our soul winning times, our main soul winning times on Saturday mornings at 10 a.m. and we have additional soul winning times on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays at 2 p.m. And of course we are a family integrated church. What that means is that children and infants are always welcome in the service. If you have a child that's been distracting during the service or if you need some privacy, we'd encourage you to use the mother baby rooms as needed. If you need to be baptized, please let us know. We'd like to baptize you. The baptistry is filled, the water is warm. You can let us know on your communication card and we'll follow up with you in regards to that. Or if you've already spoken to somebody, you can just step out that door at the end of the service and we'll get you situated for baptisms. If you look at the upcoming announcements and upcoming events, of course we are going through a series called The Christmas Spirit on Sunday mornings and we encourage you to continue with that next week. And then of course we have our Christmas cookies and hot chocolate fellowship coming up on Wednesday, December 21st. That's not this Wednesday but next Wednesday after the midweek service, the Wednesday evening service. There is a sign up sheet in the foyer if you'd like to sign up to bring cookies or dessert that night, that would be great. And then we have our New Year's Eve service on Saturday, December 31st at 7 p.m. That is not a preaching service. There's not gonna be preaching or anything like that. We'll sing some songs and spend a look at a verse right before we bring in the new year. But that's just a fellowship time. So that is on Saturday, December 31st, 7 p.m. We'll have a potluck. We'll have a popcorn machine. We'll watch a film. And if you stay till midnight, we'll pray in the new year together and it'll be a fun time. So we'd love for you to join us for that. Nine chapters a day challenge. I hope that you are going to take the nine chapters a day challenge. There's a nine chapters a day chart in your bulletin. And many of our church people have done this for many years so I hope you'll stay with it. If you're newer, don't let it. Sometimes people think like nine chapters, I don't think you can do it or I don't think I can do it. And I'm here to tell you, you can do it. All right? And you'll be glad you did. So make sure you do it. There's two options, the straight through reading or the split up reading, whatever one you want to do, would be great. Choir, they had practice today, both the children and the adults. Holiday schedule, we just want you to be aware that on Sunday, December 25th, and on Sunday, January 1st, the services and the morning service will begin half an hour later at 11 a.m. and we'll have a quick lunch for anyone staying for the second service. And then the second service will be right after lunch at 1.15 p.m. It's going to be a shorter services. Our goal is to be done by 2 p.m. so you can have the evening off on both of those days. Upcoming cleaning crew, you can check for your name there. There's other things there for you to look at. Please don't forget to turn your cell phones off or place them on silent during the service so that they're not a distraction to anybody. In your bulletin, you have the Christmas gifts for Jesus. If you could help us with bringing something for church, we would appreciate that when you're out and about purchasing things. And then, of course, the birthdays and anniversaries for December. Today is Miss Victoria Nell Tesca's birthday on December 11th. And then tomorrow is Brother Victor Zuniga's birthday, December 12th. Brother Aldo's birthday on December 13th. Miss Kim Borrello's birthday, Checho Pompa's birthday, and Levi Taylor's birthday is on December 17th. And Brother Scott and Miss Lisa Sweet have an anniversary on December 17th. Praise Report, Money Matters, all those things are there for you to look at. And I think that's it for all of the announcements. I got several comments this morning. I was talking about resigning, and I think I might have worried people. So just realize, you don't have to worry. Somebody asked me, how many times have you seriously considered resigning? And I said to them, you mean this week? Because, but I'm not going anywhere. You'll know when I'm resigning, because right before I do that, I will go through and kick every single one of you out of church. And then I'll resign. So when that day happens, you'll know it's coming. But anyway. Let's go ahead and take our Chorus of the Week. We'll sing Born to Die Upon Calvary. If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me. That's what I'm saying. Born to Die Upon Calvary. We'll go ahead and sing it out together as we better receive the offering this morning. Born to Die, sing it out on the first. On the night Christ was born Just before break of dawn Born as the stars in the sky were fading For the place where he lay Fought a shadow cold and grey Of a cross that would follow a king Born to Die Upon Calvary Does not suffer my sin to forgive Born to Die Upon Calvary He was wounded that I might live We'll sing it out almost a second Sings us near, when he came He would suffer in shame He could feel every pain and sorrow He was paralyzed with his blood He paid the price by redemption To Jesus' fire Born to Die Upon Calvary Does not suffer my sin to forgive Born to Die Upon Calvary He was wounded that I might live From the sky Jesus came Laid outside heaven's pain In exchange for the cross on Calvary For my sin suffered loss For my sin he bore the cross He was wounded that I must have free Born to Die Upon Calvary Jesus suffered my sin to forgive Born to Die Upon Calvary He was wounded that I might live We'll sing it out on the last Here is for evermore May thy cross I adore As I follow the path To Calvary For my death, my good faith My ambition I foresee Born to Die Upon Calvary Jesus suffered my sin to forgive Born to Die Upon Calvary He was wounded that I might live Amen. Alright, we'll have the guys come up and help us with the offering at this time. Let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, Lord, we do thank you for allowing us to gather together tonight. We pray that you bless the gift and the giver. Lord, we ask that you would meet with us as we take another portion of scripture study together. Help us to learn. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Please open your mouths to Luke 21. Luke, chapter number 21. If you need a bow, put your hand up and I'm not sure you want to bring your Bible. Luke, chapter number 21. If you need a bow, just keep your hand up and I'm not sure you want to come by. Luke 21. We will read verses 5 through 19. Luke 21, verses 5 through 19. Luke 21, beginning in verse number 5. And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said, As for these things which ye behold, the days will come in which there shall not be left one stone upon another. And shall not be thrown down. And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? And what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and the time draweth near. Go ye not therefore after them. For when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified. For these things must first come to pass, but the end is not by and by. Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines and pestilences. And fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. And it shall turn to you for a testimony. Settle it therefore in your hearts not to meditate before what ye shall answer. For I'll give you a mouth in wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist. Ye shall be betrayed both by parents and brethren, and kinsfolk and friends, and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. Ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake, but there shall not in the hair of your head perish. In your patience possess ye your souls. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for this evening. God, I thank you for your word and for our church, for everyone that's here. I ask that you please give us all a tender heart to the message. I ask that you be the pastor to strengthen him, and from the Holy Spirit we love you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Alright, we're there in Luke chapter number 21. And of course we've been going through the Gospel of Luke for some time now. And we took a little break and we're gonna be fitting it in in some of the evening services from now to the end of the year. And we really find ourselves now in Luke chapter 21, which is where we're gonna be for the next few times we're in the Gospel of Luke in this chapter. There's a lot in this chapter and we're gonna take our time to make sure that you know it and you understand it. And starting at verse number 5 through the end of the chapter, it has to do with end times prophecy. And of course this is a parallel passage to Matthew 24, Mark 13, and to the Olivet Discourse. So this is really Jesus' big teaching on end times. And he covers a lot. We're not gonna go through the entire chapter, the rest of the chapter tonight. We're gonna go from verses 5 to 19. And what we're going to cover tonight is Jesus' teaching on the end times tribulation period. And of course I've taught on that a lot in the past. So it might be a review for some of you and for some of you maybe it's new material and that's good too. If you notice there in Luke 21 in verse 5, the Bible says, And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said, As for these things, referring to the temple, which ye behold the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. So of course this is Jesus' famous prediction of the destruction of the temple. And of course we know historically that that happened in 70 AD. And of course it might not seem like it but this is a major event in the history of just the Bible and in the history of the world. And of course we see that Jesus predicted it. And he predicted it as a result of the Jewish people, of course, denying him and not accepting him as Messiah. So we see the prediction there regarding the temple, verse 7, And they asked him, and when you look at this in other passages you'll find that his prediction about the destruction of the temple seems to prompt them to ask these questions about end times. Luke 21 to 7, and they asked him, saying, Master, but when? And I want you to notice the question that's being asked here. Two questions. They ask, But when shall these signs be? And what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? But when shall these things be? And what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? It's always interesting to me that today those who teach the pre-tribulation rapture, which is probably the most accepted view of the end times, and it's not our view. We do not believe in the pre-tribulation rapture at this church. And we're going to look at that tonight and on Wednesday night as well as to why we don't believe that, because it's not biblical. But it's funny to me that when you talk to these pre-tribbers, oftentimes they will tell you that you can't know any sign. There are no signs. You can't know when. You can't know what. Because they teach that it could just happen at any moment. There's nothing that needs to happen before the rapture. It could happen at any moment. It could happen tonight. It could happen while we're sitting in church right now. It could happen before the service is over. I mean, literally, those are the types of things that they teach and preach. What's interesting to me is that what prompted the most famous teaching on end times by the Lord Jesus Christ was the question, When shall these things be? When shall these things be? And what sign will there be? And it's interesting because Jesus does not respond saying, Well, we're pre-trib. There are no signs. You can't know when. He doesn't respond. In fact, His response gives you and gives me really some of the clearest teaching on the subject of the end times. So it's just funny because the Olivet Discourse is probably the most, of course, by the Lord Jesus Christ. Other than the book of Revelation, it's the passages on the end times. They're prompted by the questions, When and what? And Jesus answers. And really that's what we're going to see here is His answer to these questions. When shall these things be? And what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? Now, real quickly, just before we get into it, let me just give you a quick outline. And I've done this in the past, but I just want to make sure that I'm refreshing your memory so that we can be ready to go on some of these things. When it comes to end times prophecy, just a couple of, I'm going to run through a quick outline for you just to help you remember a little bit of the timeline. Of course, the first thing we're going to see, and we're going to see it here tonight, is the Tribulation, or what's known as the Tribulation Period. And the Tribulation Period is outlined by Jesus here in Luke 21, Matthew 24, and Mark 13. And then it's outlined, of course, in the book of Revelation. Now, in the book of Revelation, it is outlined using six seals. When you get past the preliminary chapters of Revelation and you get into the actual end time stuff, where you begin is you begin by the opening of these different seals. And the seals really serve as an outline for the end times. The first five seals, and I just want you to be aware of this, and I'm going to cover this, but I want you to understand this, the first five seals cover what is known as the Tribulation Period, really the first four seals. The four seals also correspond with what are famously known as the four horsemen of the book of Revelation. They cover the Tribulation Period. And then the fifth seal is part of the Tribulation Period, but it's distinct in the sense that when the fifth seal is open, we have the abomination of desolation, and that is actually known as the Great Tribulation. So the first four seals are known as the Tribulation. The fifth seal is known as the Great Tribulation. Now, tonight we're going to go over the first four seals, and we're going to look at those four horsemen. And what you need to understand when it comes to end times and when it comes to the Antichrist, there's going to be two things that lead us into the New World Order. The New World Order is the term that's often used for the coming government of the Antichrist. And the New World Order has two characteristics that you need to be aware of. One is that it's a one-world government, and it is a government political system that unites the entire world. That one-world system actually happens as a result of the first four seals. And again, I just want you to kind of be aware of how God organized this. You've got six seals. Four seals are also distinct in the sense that they are corresponding to four horsemen. And the reason that those four are set aside with the horsemen is because those lead to a one-world government. The fifth seal, which is the Great Tribulation, is when the abomination of desolation is set up, and that leads to a one-world religion. Now, tonight we're going to cover the first four seals. On Wednesday night, we're going to cover the fifth seal, the abomination of desolation, and we're going to cover it from the aspect of Luke 21, because Matthew 24 and Mark 13 focus their attention on the abomination of desolation, the image, and we'll definitely talk about that on Wednesday night. But Jesus focuses in Luke 21 on the desolation of Jerusalem, and we're going to look at that and study that on Wednesday night. We have the Great Tribulation, the abomination of desolation. That brings about the one-world religion. That's when you have your mark of the beast. That's where you cannot buy or sell if you do not worship the image. And then after that, you have the sixth seal. We will also cover the sixth seal on Wednesday night. That's when the sun and moon are darkened. That's also known as the day of the Lord. That's when the Bible teaches, the rapture happens, or the gathering of believers. I'll prove that to you on Wednesday night. And then, of course, the book of Revelation, not the teaching by Christ. The teaching by Christ pretty much ends there. The book of Revelation then goes on after the rapture and teaches us about the wrath of God. And that is also outlined in the book of Revelation using seven trumpets and seven vials. And just so you know, the seven trumpets and the seven vials are the same events. They happen simultaneously. They're just different views. One is a view from heaven. The other is a view from earth. And you get to see God pouring out His wrath using those seven different trumpets or vials. And you get to see it in different ways. And then, of course, after the wrath of God, you have the battle of Armageddon, then the judgment seat of Christ, the millennial reign of Christ, the battle of Gog and Magog, the great white throne, and then you go into the eternal state. So I just want you to be aware of the outline. And like I said, tonight we're going to focus in on the tribulation period aspect, the first four seals. And then I'd love for you to come back on Wednesday night and we'll cover seals five and six. And we'll talk about the abomination of desolation specifically, the desolation of Jerusalem, and of course the day of the Lord and the rapture. And then after that there's other teachings on end times that we'll cover at another time in this chapter. All right, so you're there in Luke 21. Look down at verse number eight and we'll just kind of walk through this. And if you're not familiar with end time stuff, tonight's really more of a basic. I would say Wednesday night's going to be a little maybe deeper. Tonight will be just kind of a post-trib, pre-wrath 101. All right, so just kind of you need to just some things that you need to understand. And like I said, it'll be review for some of you, but hopefully it'll be helpful. So Jesus asked this question, When shall these things be? What shall be the signs of your coming? Luke 21 and verse eight, the Bible says, And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ. And the time draweth near, go ye not therefore after them. So I want you to notice that the first thing that Jesus brings up when he says, Okay, you want to know what the signs are going to be? You want to know what to be looking for? And you want to know when this is going to happen? Well, here's what you need to know. The first thing you need to be aware of is that there's going to be many who come in my name saying, I am Christ. And of course, we know as we compare this to the book of Revelation that it has to do with the coming of the Antichrist. Now keep your place there in Luke 21. That's obviously our text for tonight. But go with me if you would to the book of Revelation, Revelation chapter 6. Do me a favor, put a ribbon or a bookmark or something there or keep your finger there in Revelation and also in Luke because we're going to go back and forth. In Revelation chapter 6, if you remember, you have the seals and the seals outline these events as well. And here in Luke 21, Jesus talks about the fact that many shall come in my name saying, I am Christ. And of course, there are going to be many who come as imposters of Christ. And here's one thing you need to understand about these four seals and about the tribulation period is that these are things that are already happening. They're going to get worse and worse as we get closer to the end. But it's really difficult to kind of mark the beginning unless it's done on purpose by God because God doesn't really want us to be able to say, it started. The tribulation has begun. We're not really able to do that because of the fact that the things that God is talking about and Jesus is talking about are things that are already happening. The illustration that is given throughout the Bible regarding end times events is that it's like a woman in labor. And of course, a woman in labor, the labor pains and the labor contractions begin small, begin less intense and they get stronger and more intense and more frequent the closer you get to the birth. And that's what Jesus says about what the Bible says about the end times is that these things we're going to look at tonight, you can look at that and say, well, that's happening already. And yes, that is the point. These are things that are already happening but the closer we get to the event, the more intense, the more frequent, the bigger it's going to get. And the idea is that it starts slow and small and climaxes to this birth like a woman in travail, a woman in labor. And the reason for that is because that makes it very difficult to be able to say, okay, this is it. Now there is a mark in the Bible that Jesus gives us, we'll talk about it on Wednesday night, when you can say this is not a drill, this is the real thing, but you're not going to be able to say that before, you're already going to be deep into the tribulation and into the great tribulation before you can decisively say this is not a drill, this is it. So I just want you to be aware of that, that the reason it's done this way is because he does not want you to be able to pinpoint. And anybody on YouTube telling you that the tribulation has begun is lying. They don't know that. Now maybe it has, but they don't know that. They just want your views. So Luke 21 verse 8, he begins with, Take heed that ye be not deceived, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ. Revelation 6, I'm sorry, I meant, I told you to go to Revelation 6, right? Look at verse 1. Notice what the Bible says, I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals. So this is seal number 1. And I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. Notice verse 2. And I saw, and behold, a white horse. Remember that you got four horsemen that correspond with the first four seals. The first seal is opened, one of the seals, and then John says that he saw a white horse. The first horseman is a white horse, and I want you to consider the fact that this is an imposter. This is a false Christ. Now you're there in Revelation 6. Go to Revelation 19 real quickly and compare this. Revelation 19, 11. Revelation 19, 11 is the Lord Jesus Christ coming for the battle of Armageddon. Revelation 19 is Jesus coming down to fight the battle of Armageddon. Revelation 19 verse 11, the Bible says, And I saw heaven open, and behold, a white horse. Alright, that is not a coincidence. The Bible tells us that Jesus, when he returns, will return on a white horse. And he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True. And in righteousness he doth judge and make war. And I saw, and behold, notice again, a white horse. And he that sat on him had a bow. I'm sorry, I'm reading the wrong verse to you. Revelation 19, 11. Faithful and true, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. The point that I want you to notice there, and what I want you to see, is that the reason that the first... Go back to Revelation 6. That's what I need you to do. The reason that the first horseman is on a white horse is because he's an imposter to the Lord Jesus Christ. And of course, this is a reference to the Antichrist. And here's what I want you to understand. We're not going to know that he is the Antichrist at this point. But what Jesus is telling us, that at the beginning of the tribulation period, the Antichrist is going to come on the scene. He's going to come on the scene. He's going to step onto the stage of world events. You and I may not necessarily know that he is the Antichrist, but he's going to be there. And I want you to notice the characteristics. Revelation 6, look at verse 2 again. And I saw, and behold, a white horse. Again, representing the fact that he's an imposter. He's trying to be like the Lord Jesus Christ. He's going to be the Antichrist. And he that sat on him had a bow. All the things we're looking at here are symbolic, but the symbolism shows you something. When the Antichrist shows up, one thing that you will know is that, first of all, he's going to be on a white horse, which means he's not going to literally be on a white horse, but he's going to be impersonating or trying to be a messianic type figure, a Christ-like type figure. And when he comes, the Bible says that he that sat on him had a bow. Now the bow there is, of course, a weapon, and it's showing us that when he shows up, he shows up on a white horse and he shows up with a military weapon. The idea is that he is coming with military power. Now you're there in Revelation 6. Keep your place there and go with me to the book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah chapter 50. In the Old Testament, you've got the major prophets. They're all clustered together. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel. Go to Jeremiah chapter 50. And again, you want to be careful, of course, with some of these things when they're symbolic. We don't know for sure what any one of these things mean, and you don't want to just run with some crazy ideas. But oftentimes what you can do, what you should do, is compare spiritual things with spiritual, and as you compare the Bible with the Bible, it might give you some ideas as to some of these things. We're told that he is coming on a white horse, and that he is coming with a bow. Now in Jeremiah chapter 50, and again I don't have time to go through the entire chapter for Jeremiah 50, but let me just give you the context. Jeremiah chapter 50 is about the destruction of Babylon. Now it's literally about the destruction of the actual Babylon of the time of Jeremiah, but like most prophecy, it has a dual purpose. Oftentimes prophecies throughout the Bible will have an aspect that has to do with the actual time in which it's being written, and then also have an end times or a further view. Jeremiah 50, Jeremiah is definitely preaching about the fact that Babylon, his Babylon that is around during his time is going to be destroyed, but Jeremiah 50 is definitely about the end times Babylon as well, and the destruction of the end times Babylon. And I want you to notice what the Bible says. Now again, I don't have time to go through all of this, so if you're not aware of this, you have to take my word for it, or of course you could always read the Bible and study this out on your own, but when we get to the end of Daniel's 70th week, which Daniel's 70th week is a term that is used for the seven years, the seven year period of the end times, the antichrist actually destroys Babylon. God uses the antichrist to destroy Babylon. So when we see the destruction of Babylon here, we're actually reading about the destruction of the antichrist destroying Babylon. Jeremiah 50 and verse 9, notice what the Bible says, For lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon. Notice the words, an assembly of great nations. Because remember, at this time the antichrist will already have a one world government in place, will already be in charge of the entire world, so he's able to point this assembly of great nations against Babylon, and this is referring to end times Babylon. Notice from the north country, and they shall set themselves in array against her, from then she shall be taken. Notice these words, their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man, none shall return in vain. So the Bible tells us in Jeremiah chapter 50 that at the destruction of Babylon, the way that it's going to be destroyed is because of the fact that arrows are shot into Babylon, and they are as the arrows of a mighty expert man. You say, what does that mean? It means none shall return in vain. It means they all hit their mark. It means none of them miss. And of course, at the time of Jeremiah, Jeremiah is using verbiage and understanding of his time, of course during his time they used arrows and swords and things of that nature. Today no one's actually fighting with arrows, and most people believe that this is symbolic of missiles, which would make sense because the Bible tells us in Revelation 6, 2 that when this antichrist shows up on the scene, he's going to come on a white horse and he's going to have with him a bow, which symbolizes the fact that he's got some sort of military power, and those arrows, it's my opinion, and I want to be clear about saying that to you, it's simply an opinion that these are probably a reference to missiles, guided missiles, nuclear warheads, something along those lines. When you read Revelation and the destruction of Babylon, it definitely seems to describe that Babylon is destroyed by some sort of a nuclear attack. And Babylon is America, by the way, if you didn't know that. That's a sermon for another day. Revelation 21, go back to it. So I want you to notice that seal number one happens, the antichrist shows up, he's on a white horse, what does that tell us? He's an imposter. And the Bible tells us that he that sat on him had a bow, so he's got military power, he's got weapons. We're told in Jeremiah that that same antichrist destroys Babylon with his arrows, which may be symbolic of missiles. And then the Bible also tells us there at the end of verse 2 that not only did he have a bow, the Bible says, and I saw and behold a white horse and he that sat on him had a bow, notice these words, and a crown. So what does that tell us? That's telling us that he's got political power. So he's got political power, but just because you have political power does not mean you have military power. There's a lot of people out there that are presidents or leaders of nations that do not have a strong military or a military that is strong enough to go into battle. What the Bible is telling us about this guy is that he shows up on the scene, he's a real likable guy, right? He's going to be very messianic in his demeanor and the way he acts, but he shows up with a horse, with a bow, and with a crown. So he's got political power, he's got military power, and notice what he does, the Bible says there at the end of verse 2, and was given unto him and he went forth, notice these words, conquering and to conquer. So when the Antichrist shows up, he shows up as a military leader. As a political military leader, he's going forth conquering and to conquer. Keep your place there in Revelation 6, go back to Luke 21. So we have seal number 1, what is it? It's the Antichrist. The Antichrist steps onto the world stage as a political and military leader, and he goes forth conquering and to conquer. Now every time that some sort of charismatic political leader steps on the stage, people think, that's the Antichrist, and you're really not going to be able to know, I don't think you're going to be able to know when it is, but here's something that you could be looking for as a sign, it's a political leader with military power that goes off conquering and to conquer. Here's the next step, or seal number 2, Luke 21 verse 9. But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions. Now doesn't that make sense? Because the Antichrist just showed up on the scene, right? I saw him behold a white horse and he that sat on him had a bow, and a crown was given unto him and he went forth conquering and to conquer. This guy's going out to battle. So then Jesus says, here's seal number 2, step 2, but when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified, for these things must first come to pass, but the end is not by and by. So he says, look, when you hear about wars and rumors of wars, realize this has to happen, and then you see that little phrase at the end of verse 9, the end is not by and by. Now that phrase by and by is a term that we don't use in our modern vernacular today, but it can be a little misleading because by and by sounds like maybe something else than it actually is, but the word by and by or the phrase by and by, the actual definition means at hand or soon or next. So here's what he's saying. When you hear of wars and commotions, he says, it's not yet. You understand that? He says the end is not by and by. The end is not soon. The end is not at hand. Here's what Jesus is saying. When ye hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified, for these things must first come to pass, but the end is not next. It's not the next step. It's not the next thing. Now here's what's funny to me, is that the moment there's any sort of conflict on the world state, what is everybody telling you? The end is next. It's the next thing. Jesus is coming. You know, that's what all the YouTubers are saying to you, right? But that's not what Jesus says. Jesus says, hey, be not terrified, for these things must first come to pass, but the end is not by and by. And by and by means next, at hand, soon. It's not going to happen yet. That's what he's saying. So people ask me, like, what do you think about Russia and Ukraine and this and that? And here's all I can tell you. These things must first come to pass, but the end is not by and by. Now look, I wish, if I could be on YouTube, which I'm not allowed on YouTube, if I could be on, I wish I could make up a bunch of crap like everybody else does and get five million views or whatever. But unfortunately, I'm actually a pastor that actually has some character and integrity, and all I can do is tell you what the Bible says. I can't make up a bunch of garbage that sounds good. I can't tell you that Donald Trump is the last Trump. Yeah, that stuff's garbage, friend. None of that is real. You know why people don't want to read the Bible and study the Bible? Because it's work. And it's just not as exciting because when you ask Jesus, Jesus, what do you think about Russia and Ukraine? It's not by and by. Be not terrified. Look, do you realize that there's been war since, literally, Cain and Abel? There's been war since forever. So the next step is war. But he says, be not terrified, for these things must first come to pass, but the end is not by and by. Verse 10, then said he unto them, nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. So what is the next step? And the next step is, and this is my opinion, this is my belief, and you may agree with this or disagree with this, I think most people probably agree with this, but the next step is first the Antichrist shows up, right? On a white horse, with a bow, with his crown, and he goes forth conquering and to conquer. Then as a result of that, the Bible seems to indicate, that as a result of his going out, conquering and to conquer, then nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. What is that a reference to? I believe that that is a reference to world war. The entire world will go to war. Go to Revelation chapter 6, look at verse 3. Here we have the second seal. Revelation chapter 6 and verse 3. Revelation chapter 6 and verse 3, and when he had opened the second seal, right? Here's the second seal. I heard the second beast say, come and see, and there went out another horse. Here's horse number two, horseman number two, another horse that was red. So the first horse was white, the second horse was red. This is the second horseman. And power was given unto him that sat thereon, notice the words, to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another. And there was given unto him a great sword. What does a sword symbolize? Throughout the Bible and throughout history. What has a sword symbolized? It symbolized war. So the second horseman shows up on the scene, he's a red horse, and his job is to take peace from the earth, that they should kill one another, and there was given unto him a great sword. So what is the Bible telling us here? I believe the Bible is telling us that the second seal, after the Antichrist showed up, which you're not going to really be able to know if it's the Antichrist, he's not declaring himself God at this point, he's just a political leader with a military going forth, conquering and to conquer, and as a result of his conquering and conquering, nations are getting involved, and of course we know that you've got all sorts of treaties and nations that are backing each other up, so nations shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and he's going to spark a world war in which the whole world is encompassed into this war. Why? Because the second horseman takes peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another, and there was given unto him a great sword. Now again, people will say, so the next time when we're at war, then that's got to be it, right? That's got to be the end, because what are the chances that the entire world would go to war? And you got to kind of smile and say, you must have not paid attention in history, right? Because it's actually happened already. In fact, it's happened twice. The whole world has gone to war already more than once, right? World War I, you know why we call it World War I? Because there was another one, World War II. And here's what I'm telling you. I'm sure when World War I broke out, and I don't blame anybody, there was all sorts of people saying, this is it, this is the end, this has got, I mean nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, and then it ended. And then a few years later, they did it again. And I'm sure the second, they're like, well, this one's got to be it, right? Well, what, the third one, they're going to be like, well, third, you know, third time's the charm. The point is this. I do believe that there's going to be a world war connected to the events of the end times, but I can't sit here and tell you it's going to be World War III. Because you don't know that there's going to be a World War III and a World War IV and a World War V. We don't know. I mean, you don't know how many world wars there could be. I tend to think there's probably only going to be one more, but I can't tell you that. What I can tell you is that a whole, the whole world will go into war right before the end. Will that be the next time? I don't know, because it's already happened twice. Because, like we talked about this morning, human beings are not really good at keeping peace. When you don't have Jesus Christ in your life and you're not following the Bible, you're just likely to start killing each other. So it's very possible that we could have many wars to come and even world wars to come. But what the Bible is teaching is that the Antichrist steps onto the world stage as a political and military leader, and as a result of his conquering and to conquer, the world goes into war. And what we do know is this, that every world war that has happened has brought us a step closer to a one-world government. Isn't that true? World War I produced the League of Nations. World War II produced the United Nations. And it's very likely that the next world war will produce something else that either gets us to a one-world government or just gets us even that much closer to a one-world government. Look at Luke 21. Here's seal number three, or step number three. And I'll be honest with you. There comes a point with these seals where Jesus definitely gives them to us in order and Revelation gives them to us in order. But some of these things are happening simultaneously because of the fact that some of these things are causing other things. So you just kind of have to be aware of that, which is why Jesus gives them in different orders. Luke 21, 11. The Bible says, And great earthquakes shall be in diverse places, and famines, and pestilence, and fearful sites, and great signs shall there be from heaven. So I want you to notice that according to Revelation, the next step, the third seal, brings about massive famines. Go to Revelation chapter 6. Look at verse 5. Revelation chapter 6 and verse 5. Revelation 6, 5. And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see, and I beheld in law a black horse. So here we have the third horseman, a black horse, and a white horse, a red horse, and now a black horse. And he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. So notice how each one of the things that these horsemen are carrying is symbolic of something that they're doing. The guy with the sword was symbolic of the fact that he was bringing war. The guy with the bow was symbolic about the fact that he probably has missiles and some sort of nuclear military access. This guy shows up with a pair of balances in his hand. What does the balance represent in the first century and even today? What does it represent? A balance is how you measure the weight of food to measure the cost of food. And the Bible tells us that the third seal is open. I heard the third beast say, Come and see, and I beheld in law a black horse. And he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. Verse 6. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny and three measures of barley for a penny, and see thou hurt not the oil and wine. So here the Bible tells us that the cost of food has skyrocketed. And look, we have really bad inflation right now. But that's not necessarily mean it's the third seal. But the Bible is telling us that this guy shows up. He's got balances in his hands. And I heard the voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny and three measures of barley for a penny, and see thou hurt not the oil and wine. Now go back to Matthew, if you would. If you kept your place in Luke, just flip over to Matthew chapter 20. And what John is telling us here in Revelation is that there's really high prices for food. Because again, we want to compare spiritual with spiritual. And when it comes to money and the Bible, you can get a lot of people telling you a lot of stuff. This costs this much, and this costs this much. But nobody really knows. Honestly, this was 2,000 years ago. It's pretty difficult for people to really know the value of things. But here's what we know. Matthew was written in the first century, and so was the book of Revelation. So if we can compare a penny in both of these books, that's probably going to give you a very good idea of the cost of a penny. Because what Jesus is telling us, or what God is telling us in Revelation 6, is that a measure of wheat is for a penny and three measures of barley for a penny. And that is supposed to leave us with the impression that, whoa, that's really expensive. Now in Matthew 20 and verse 1, you have the parable of the householder that went out to hire servants. Matthew 20 and verse 1, the Bible says, For the kingdom of heaven is likened to a man that is a householder, which went out early in the morning to hire laborers in his vineyard. And when he had agreed, meaning they made a deal with him, when he had made a deal, is what it's saying, when he had agreed with the laborers, you know what the Bible says? For a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And I'm not preaching on this parable, I'm just pointing out the fact that in this parable, when Jesus gives the parable, Jesus is saying, it's like a householder that went out and he found workers standing around, and he said, hey, why don't you guys come work for me for the day, and they agreed, they made a deal, they negotiated, and they settled upon getting paid a penny a day. So here's what we know. A penny is a day's wages for a laborer. For someone working out in the field, getting paid a penny a day was a fair wage. So what does that look like today? I don't know, 100 bucks, $120, maybe $150, whatever that worth is, if you were to go hire some guy standing in front of Home Depot and ask him to work in your field, whatever you would pay him, that's probably the equivalent of a penny. And what the Bible is telling us in Revelation 6 is that a measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny, is the fact that people are working all day earning money and then using all that money that they worked for 12 hours, and in the Bible they worked for 12 hours, by the way. They worked for 12 hours, and then all that money went to buying a measure of wheat for a penny, or three measures of barley for a penny. So the idea is that there's a lot of famine. Food is scarce, and as a result it's expensive, because obviously when there's not a lot of something, it becomes very expensive. Go back to Luke 21. Look at verse 11. Here's seal number four. And you find seal three and seal four both in Luke 21, 11. In that one verse, Jesus is just giving a list of characteristics, and you find both seal three and four in that list, because of the fact that these things are simultaneously happening. War brings famine, but that's not the only... So obviously the world is at war, so there's going to be famines throughout the land, but that's not the only thing that brings famine. Also natural disasters, Luke 21, 11. Notice the Bible says, and great earthquakes shall be in diverse places. The Bible says there's going to be earthquakes in places where there's normally not earthquakes. Diverse means different places. And famines, we already talked about that. And pestilences, and fearful sites, and great signs shall there be from heaven. So what is this a reference to? This is referring to the fact that there's going to be great death as a result of natural disasters. Go to Revelation chapter six. Revelation chapter six. Look at verse seven. Revelation chapter six and verse seven. Revelation six, seven, the Bible says, And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold, a pale horse. So we had a white horse, a red horse, a black horse. Now we have a pale horse. And this will make sense when you realize that it represents death. Behold, a pale horse, and his name that sat on him was Death, and hell followed with him, and power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beast of the earth. So the Bible tells us that there's going to be massive deaths that are taking place during this time in the fourth part of the earth. Now what does that mean exactly? We don't know for sure. Does that mean that literally, geographically, there's going to be a fourth part of the earth where a lot of people are dying? That could very well be because, of course, we know from World War II that though the entire world was at war, most of the fighting was happening in certain theaters of geography, in certain locations. Or it might just be that it's spread out, but it's the equivalent of the fourth part of the earth is just having massive deaths. But the point is this. There's going to be a lot of people dying. You say, as a result of what? Well, as a result of war, of course, and as a result of famines, which often happen because of war, but there's also going to be natural disasters. Great earthquakes shall be in diverse places, and pestilences in fearful sites, and great signs shall be from heaven. So there's going to be great deaths in seal four as a result of natural disasters. Now go to Mark 13 real quickly. Mark chapter 13. So we're looking at these four seals. Seal one is the Antichrist. The Antichrist steps onto the world stage as a political and military leader. Notice at this point, he's just a political leader. Seal two is the world at war. As a result, I believe, as a result of the Antichrist conquering into conquer, the world goes into war. That will bring famines, seal number three, and then just great death in general, seal number four. Natural disasters that rack up massive death tolls. Now let me just explain something about what we've seen so far in Revelation, and let me just answer a few things. Not really answer, but just give my opinion. Some people believe that when the Bible talks about these earthquakes in diverse places, the pestilences, these natural disasters, that these are things that are man-made, and that may very well be. I'm not arguing that that's not a possibility. That may be because we know that the world is just getting worse and worse, and people are always trying to create sort of things to bring pain upon people and to kill people. But let me just say this. That doesn't necessarily have to be, because the whole point of these first four seals, and the thing that I really want you to take away from this, is that all of these things are natural. None of it is supernatural. And what I mean by that is that they are things that happen in our natural world. It's not God miraculously doing anything. It's not God bringing devastation upon the earth. These things are natural, and I think sometimes what confuses people is that they read about earthquakes and famines and pestilences and all these things. And look, I believe that there's probably going to be tsunamis. We've seen this even in our lifetime where earthquakes kick off tsunamis that kick off this, that kick off that. In Japan we saw an earthquake in the ocean brought a tsunami that brought down a nuclear facility and radiation was going everywhere. These are the types of things that are going to happen, but here's the point. They're all natural. And don't get confused. Even the earthquakes and the tsunamis, even the pestilences and all those things, they're called natural disasters. They're not supernatural disasters. Do you understand that? Hurricanes are natural disasters. Storms are natural disasters. Fires are natural disasters. So everything that's happening in these four seals, yes, it's bad. Yes, it's massive. To an extent that we've never seen on Earth, but it's all natural things. And here's the point. It's all things that are already happening. Because there's already people at war, even tonight. There's already famines. We don't really realize that as Americans, but there are people starving around the world. There's already sickness, disease, pestilence. These things are already happening, and the closer we get to the end, they're going to get stronger and stronger and more. They're going to climax. Now, the reason that I'm making that point is because the pre-tribulation rapture and the doctrine of the pre-tribulation rapture teaches that there is a seven-year tribulation period. And I want to just take a little bit of time and explain some of these things to you because there's just a lot of confusion regarding these things. The reason that they say that there's a seven-year tribulation period is because there is a seven-year period in which the end times events are going to play out. The biblical term for that seven-year period is Daniel's 70th week. Daniel in the book of Daniel, of course, prophesied about 70 weeks. The 70th week was divided. It's actually the last week of human history as we know it. It's not a week of days but weeks of years. It's seven years, and there is, I just want you to understand this, there is a seven-year period in which the end times events are going to play out, and it is biblically called and known Daniel's 70th week. There is no such thing as a seven-year tribulation period because the tribulation timeframe does not cover the entire seven years of Daniel's 70th week. Where the pre-tribbers are misunderstanding or wrong is that they mix in the tribulation and the wrath of God as the same thing. When they say tribulation, they mean wrath of God plus all these natural things that are happening. But I want you to understand the Bible makes a clear distinction between these two events. The first three and a half years is when we see those four horsemen and the fifth seal is open of the antichrist, the abomination of desolation, the bringing about of the one world government, one world religion. That happens in the first three and a half years. Then in the next three and a half years happens the wrath of God, which is supernatural events. Let me just read to you, I won't take the time to go through everything, but just to help you. Because what did we just get done seeing? What did we see? Political leaders, war, famines, earthquakes, pestilence, death, all natural things, right? What happens when God begins to part his wrath in the book of Revelation? Well, in Revelation chapter 8, which is where God begins to part his wrath, where that begins, in verse number 7, remember that's outlined by trumpets. The first trumpet brings hail and fire mingled with blood. Okay, that's not natural. I don't care how bad the hail is, wherever you came from, you've never seen hail with fire mingled with blood. Here's trumpet number 2, a great mountain burning with fire casts into the sea. Here's trumpet number 3, a great star from heaven turns water into wormwood. Here's trumpet number 4, the third part of the sun and moon and stars are darkened. Here's trumpet number 5, locusts come out of hell with faces of men, hair of women, teeth of lions, and tails of scorpions. You say, what do you call that? Supernatural. Those are not things that you and I have ever seen. That's God pouring out his wrath. So please understand this, earthquakes are not God pouring out his wrath. They're bad, they're a result of sin, but they happen. Tsunamis, they happen. War, it happens. Famines, it happens. So the first part is all natural things. It's getting worse and worse, climaxing the closer we get to the end, but none of it is supernatural. Even the big earthquakes and tsunamis, even the really big, the frightful sights from heaven, those are called natural disasters. They're called natural disasters. Why? Because everything that happens in the tribulation period is natural. You say, what do we know of God's pouring out his wrath? When locusts with the faces of men and hair of women, teeth of lions, and tails of scorpions start showing up, now you know you're in the wrath of God. You did something terribly wrong. You didn't get saved or something. Trumpet number six, horses with heads of lions and tails like serpents. I mean, think about that. A horse with a head of a lion and its tail is a snake. That's supernatural. You've never seen that. And then, of course, trumpet number seven, God establishes his millennial kingdom. The point that I'm making is this, the tribulation rapture teaches that there's a seven-year tribulation period, and the pre-tribulation rapture mixes in the tribulation and the wrath of God. The mistake that they make is that they mix these two in. The tribulation is not supernatural pouring out of God's wrath. It's all natural things. The tribulation period is only half of the seven-year period. So don't let people do it. The seven-year tribulation period, that is not a thing. They made that up. They learned that in Bible college or in some commentary, but they did not get that from the Bible. The only seven-year period is Daniel's 70th week, but the tribulation did not cover that entire period. The first part is the tribulation. The second part is the wrath of God. And right in the middle of that seven-year period known as Daniel's 70th week, you know what happens? The rapture. Because people will say, because we don't believe in the pre-trib rapture, we don't believe that we're going to be raptured before the tribulation, and people will say, well, the Bible says that we have not been appointed to the wrath. And whenever somebody says that to me, what I say is, amen? The tribulation is not God's wrath. They say, well, we got it, brother. We got to be raptured out of here because we have not been appointed to wrath. I know, but the tribulation is not the wrath of God. And right before God begins to pour the vials and to sound the trumpets, and where He's going to pour out His wrath, you know what He does? He raptures us out because we have not been appointed to wrath. So let's look at this word tribulation just real quickly, just as we finish up tonight. Matthew 13. Look at verse 21. Matthew 13 is the first time the word tribulation comes up in the New Testament. In the Bible, when you study the Bible, there are some principles of Bible study that you could leverage. One of the principles that is often taught, and I think it's probably legit because it seems to work out pretty well, is the law of first mention. The law of first mention is this, that the first time something's mentioned in the Bible, then God defines for us what that word means. You find that in the Old Testament and, of course, in the New Testament. I'm just showing you the first time it shows up in the New Testament, but I think that the law of first mention works even from the Old Testament to the New Testament. Because in Matthew 13.21, we're not talking about end times. This is just the parable of the sower, but it's just the first time the word tribulation appears. And notice what the Bible says, Matthew 13.21. Yet hath he no root in himself, but doeth for a while, for when tribulation. First time in the New Testament, you find the word tribulation, so the law of first mention tells us that God is going to define the word for us. He says, for when tribulation, or, let me define it, persecution, arises because of the word, by and by he is offended. So according to the Bible, what's tribulation? It's persecution. That's not the only definition. Let's look at some others. 2 Corinthians 1. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians 1. Because here's what the pre-tribbers say. We're not going through the tribulation. We're going to bypass the tribulation. We're going to be raptured up before the tribulation. You can stay for the tribulation, brother. Right? That's what they say. But I'm not going to be in tribulation. Well, here's the thing. You are misunderstanding, and I believe purposely misunderstanding for a lot of these guys, what the Bible teaches because you are defining God's wrath as tribulation. But never in the Bible does the word tribulation mean the pouring out of God's wrath. Never. We go through every mention of the word tribulation. I'm not going to do that, but let me just give you a few. Because they'll say, we won't go through tribulation. Christians will not go through tribulation. We're going to be raptured before the tribulation. 2 Corinthians 1, verse 3, Blessed be the God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, who comforteth us. This is Paul speaking. He's saved. To the church of Corinth, a bunch of believers. Notice what he says. Who comforteth us and all our tribulation. We're not going to go through the tribulation. Well, Paul did. And this is not referring to the great tribulation of the end times. Christians have been going through tribulation since the beginning. Who comforteth us and all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them, which are in... Notice how the Bible is defining the word for us. The Bible, the King James Bible, is its own dictionary. You say, what does the word tribulation mean? Well, we saw in Matthew 13, it's persecution. Here we're told, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them, which are in any... Notice the word trouble. The word tribulation means trouble. In fact, the word tribulation, the underlying Greek word in our New Testament that is translated tribulation in the prophetic passages, is also translated in other parts of our King James Bible as the words afflicted, afflictions, anguish, persecution, and trouble. I bring that up to say this. Those are the synonyms to the word tribulation. You all know what the word tribulation means? It means trouble. You all know what the word tribulation means? It means persecution. You all know what the word tribulation means? It means anguish. You all know what the word tribulation means? It means afflicted, or affliction, or afflictions. Here Paul says, who comforteth us in all our tribulations, that we may be able to comfort them, which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. Don't miss it. Verse 5, for as the sufferings of Christ abound in us. That's what tribulation is, the suffering. So our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. Look at chapter 7, the same book, 2nd Corinthians chapter 7, look at verse 4. 2nd Corinthians chapter 7 verse 4. Great is my boldness of speech toward you. Great is my glorying of you. I am filled with comfort. I am exceeding joyful. Notice what Paul says, in all our tribulation. Christians are not going to go through tribulation. Well, Paul never got the notice. Because Paul says, I'm going through a lot of tribulation, in all our tribulation. For when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were, notice the consistency of the Bible, but we were troubled on every side. He says, we are exceeding joyful in all our tribulation. By the way, that goes with the last Sunday morning sermon, you can be joyful even in tribulation. I am exceeding joyful, Paul says, in all our tribulation. For when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side, without our fightings, within were fears. Go to 1 Thessalonians chapter 3, 1 Thessalonians chapter 3. And look, in Acts, the Bible says that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. And here's what people do, right? Because we define the word tribulation using the Bible. And they're like, you're not educated, you need to let Spurgeon, or you need to let Darby, or you need to let whoever define these words for you, Schofield. So we go to these passages to define the words, right? And they're like, well, those aren't end times passages. Okay, well, 1 and 2 Thessalonians are end times books. Or Paul writes on the subject of the end times. Look at chapter 3 and verse 3, that no man should be moved by these afflictions, for yourselves know that we are appointed there unto. Now, I want you to notice, right? Because Paul's the one that told us that we have not been appointed to wrath. So the reason that we believe that we're going to get raptured before God begins to part his wrath, number 1, because that's what the Bible says, it's very clear. But number 2 is because the Bible says, Paul said that we have not been appointed to wrath. But here he tells us that we have been appointed to afflictions. Which the word afflictions is synonymous with the word tribulation. That no man should be moved by these afflictions, for yourselves know that we are appointed there unto, for verily, when we were with you, we told you before that we should suffer tribulation. Even as it came to pass, and you know. So they're like, we're not, I mean, think about just how ridiculous this is. They say, we will not suffer tribulation. And you literally have the Apostle Paul in a book in which he deals with end times say we should suffer tribulation. Meaning we will suffer tribulation. You say, well how can that be? Because Paul said we're not appointed to wrath. Here's why he can make those statements is because tribulation and wrath are two different things. And God did not promise to take us out before the tribulation because then he would have had to take Christians out after the first century because Christians have been dealing with persecution and anguish and troubles. There's been wars and famines and pestilence since the beginning. Go to Revelation chapter 2. Because here's what people will say. Well, yeah, 1 Thessalonians does deal with end times, but not chapter 3. Right? Okay, how about Revelation? I mean, can we get a little more, is there any more end times you can get than the book of Revelation? The whole point of the book is to show you end times prophecy. Revelation 2 verse 9, I know thy works. This is Jesus speaking to a church. What is a church? A congregation, an assembly of believers, saved people. Here's what he says, I know thy works and tribulation and poverty, but thou art rich, and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews and are not, but are the sinning of Satan. Fear none of those things, but thou shalt suffer. Behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, and ye shall be tried, and ye shall have tribulation. Look, nowhere in the Bible does it say that Christians are not going to go through tribulation. In fact, there are more verses in the Bible that tell you you are going to go through tribulation than you can think of. And that ye may be tried, and ye shall have tribulation ten days, be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. And those ten days are symbolic of the tribulation period, the end times tribulation period. Not that this church literally went through that, but that is symbolic, and I've preached about that, and we've covered that in the past. So the point is this, that the tribulation is not the wrath of God. These are different events. Go back to Luke 21. Luke 21, we're going to finish up right now. Because they'll say, oh, it's the seven-year tribulation period. Find that in the Bible. Show that to me in the Bible. Show me in the Bible anywhere where it says that the tribulation period lasts for seven years. You can't find it. It's a seven-year period of end times events known as Daniel's 70th week, but only the first three and a half years are a reference to the tribulation The next three and a half years are a reference to God's wrath, and right in the midst of the week, right in the middle of the week, is the rapture. Revelation 21, look at verse 12. And we're going to be done here. We're going to pick this up right here on Wednesday night, all right? So stay tuned. But I just want you to see this. Luke 21. Did I say Revelation 21? I meant Luke 21. I apologize. Luke 21, look at verse 12. But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. Now, sometimes people get confused by this because they'll say, are they going to really be taking us in front of synagogues during the end times? And here's what you need to understand, okay? And I just want to kind of end on this, and then we'll pick this back up on Wednesday night. When you look at Bible prophecy, oftentimes there's dual meanings. There's a physical, literal meaning, and then there's a future meaning. Luke 21 is a parallel passage to Matthew 24 and Mark 13. But when you compare Luke 21 to Matthew 24 and Mark 13, it follows the same outline, but there's some differences. And the reason for the differences that you need to understand is that Luke is focusing some of his attention on the coming destruction of the temple. Remember where we started? Jesus began by saying this temple is going to get destroyed. And when he says the temple will be destroyed, that happens 70 AD. And I don't have time to get into all of this, but let me just help you understand this real quick. That happens right in the middle of a seven-year war between the Jews and the Romans. And that is symbolic of Daniel's 70th week. Not actually Daniel's 70th week, but it is symbolic of Daniel's 70th week. And the reason that Jesus, some of these things are being brought up here is because some of these things actually are going to happen in their lifetime. So when he says that persecution is going to happen, yes. Persecution is going to happen for you and I during the end times tribulation period. Are they going to necessarily be bringing us before synagogues? Not exactly, because some of this stuff applies to them at that time. You see what I'm saying? So I just don't want you to misunderstand some of these words, because people say like, well, this doesn't sound like something that's going to happen to us, verse 12. But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and into prisons being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. And they shall turn to you for a testimony. Settle it therefore in your hearts not to meditate before what ye shall answer. And we're going to cover this on Wednesday night. For I will give you a mouth and wisdom with all your adversaries and shall not be able to gainsay nor resist. And ye shall be betrayed both by parents and brethren and kinsfolk and friends. And friends, and some of you shall they cause to be put to death, and ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake. But there shall not an hair of your head perish, and your patience possess your souls. Verse 20, and when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. And I just want you to see this, that he's talking to them about the fact that Jerusalem is going to be destroyed in just a few years from when Jesus is speaking. But that's also going to happen again during the end times, during the desolation. What's known from Daniel, from Revelation, as the abomination of desolation. That is when the antichrist declares himself God. That is when the mark of the beast is rolled out. And the reason it's called the abomination of desolation is because Jerusalem is made desolate. So we're going to just end it right there and just pick that up on Wednesday night. And we're going to continue through these seals as we look at the desolation, the abomination, and the day of the Lord, the rapture, and all those events. Let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word. And thank you for the fact that these things are very clear in the Bible. And of course, we see through a glass darkly. We don't know all of the things, how they're going to play out. And we can have our opinions, and there's nothing wrong with that. But help us to just stick to what the Bible says. This is what the Bible says. The Bible tells us that these things are going to happen, and these are the signs we should be looking for, when they're going to happen. And Lord, I pray you'd help us to learn these things, study them, and help us, Lord, to have joy, even through tribulation. Because Christians have been going through tribulations from the very beginning. There's been persecution and all sorts of troubles. And I pray, Lord, that if we would be a generation that would be counted worthy to go through the great tribulation, that you would help us to do it with faith and that you would help us to do it with joy. We love you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. All right. Well, Brother RJ's going to come up and lead us in a final song. I just want to remind you that we're going to, of course, pick this up on Wednesday night. We're going to continue on to the seal number five and number six, and we'll talk about those things. And then, of course, don't forget that in the foyer we've got a sign-up sheet for the cookies and hot chocolate fellowship. So if you'd like to bring cookies or dessert to the fellowship, if you would please stop by the sign-up sheet and sign up, we would really appreciate that. Also, don't forget about the Christmas gifts for Jesus. If you'd like to purchase something off the list for Christmas gifts for Jesus, we have the drop-off location in the foyer as well. And if you would not mind, if you would look around where you were sitting there and just put the hymn book back and pick up anything that your kids might have made a mess with, we would really appreciate that. It will help the cleaners tomorrow morning to just kind of get done. So if you would not mind looking around and picking up your mask, we would really appreciate it. If there's anything we can do for you, please let us know. We'll have Brother RJ come up and lead us in a final song. Man, let's grab our songbooks and turn to page number 427. Song number 427. We three kings of Orient are, song number 427 on the first. We three kings of Orient are Raring gifts we try to show of Fields and clouds and war and mountain Following on in the sun Oh, star upon the star o' night Star and royal moon to bright Blessful evening, stand proceeding Guide us through thy perfect light Wanna be gone, death let's play Old flag ring to crown him again He who ever sneezing Never know a soul to make home Star upon the star o' night Star and royal moon to bright Blessful evening, stand proceeding Guide us through thy perfect light Rank and send to offer our light He who ever sneezing Never know a soul to make home He who ever sneezing Never know a soul to make home Oh, star upon the star o' night Star and royal moon to bright Blessful evening, stand proceeding Guide us through thy perfect light Mud is mine, it's bitter perfume Please, alive, we'll gather in bloom Oh, star upon the star o' night Star and royal moon to bright Oh, star upon the star o' night Star and royal moon to bright Blessful evening, stand proceeding Guide us through thy perfect light Sing it out on the last Glorious now before it arrives King and God in sacrifice Hallelujah, hallelujah Glorious new year and skies Oh, star upon the star o' night Star and royal moon to bright Blessful evening, stand proceeding Guide us through thy perfect light Amen. Great singing. If anyone here has questions about salvation, baptism, or church membership, pastor will be at the door. He would love to talk to you or direct you to someone who can do that as well. Brother Keith, would you dismiss us with a word of prayer? Father, thank you for bringing some clarity to this topic, Lord. I pray that you protect us and lead us in a mighty way as time draws near. Please help us be a light in this city and one more soul for you. And further, in Jesus' name, amen. Amen.