Revelation’s Rumblings (Part C)

You cannot have the war scenes that you have in the book of Revelation without weapons of mass destruction. They're here now. They've never been here before.

Not before the 1950s. Antichrist. They're buying up everything. All of the media platforms they own. What conservative group has the power to broadcast as these liberals do?

None. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching special messages here on Cross Reference Radio. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross Reference Radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching.

Today, Pastor Rick will conclude his study called Revelations Rumblings as he teaches through Revelation chapter 13. Yahweh said indeed the people are one and they all have one language and this is what they begin to do. Now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. They pooled their resources. They swapped notes.

They made each other stronger in the ways of evil and rejecting God. How will they identify the mark of the beast with its 666? Very easy. During those days, it would be no problem once they say no seal, no sale, no name, no necessities, no number, no deal, no mark, no meals.

Get it or die. But you see that won't be fast enough. It's like when the Nazis were trying to exterminate, commit genocide against the Jewish people. It wasn't enough to just shoot them.

They had to come up with ways to accelerate the process and cook them. And even that wasn't fast enough for them. That's how it's going to be during that great tribulation period. I'll get to where the church will be and Christians will be other than the tribulation converts in a moment. But we will be, we Christians, will be very easy to identify. We'll be the hungry ones. We'll be the hurting ones. We'll be the ones that lack the essentials.

Somehow the 144,000 Jewish preachers, evangelists, will be unharmed by these restrictions and they will function. I don't know how. None of us know how. We won't be here. Present Christians won't be here to find out. But no other kingdom in the history of humanity has seen rule as evil and as vast as this one.

Again, Daniel chapter 7 where he says they are terrible and exceedingly strong. Now let's talk about more technology. Because you know, if those of you, I don't know how droid phones work, I don't think anybody does.

Okay, sorry. The iPhone, you pick it up, it senses your mug, your face, and it begins to work for you. It reads your face. Your face is the ID. Well the mark of the beast, where's it going? On the face, on the forehead, and on the hand. You'll be able to pick up your phone and swipe your hand over it or look at it and read the chip in your head and off you go.

Your data will be in the cloud of darkness. There are chips available now. Some of them have ruffles. But others are implanted. They're not the mark of the beast. They're just an indication everything's going that way. You can get that chip and you will not be defiled. I wouldn't get it, but if I did, I'd get the chip on my shoulder.

Because that's how I am. Revelation 13 16, he causes both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave to receive the mark on their right hand or their foreheads. And that no one may buy or sell. Now, it is coupled with the willful worship of the beast. Why does the Bible make that indication?

It's not, I don't have it here so I can't bring too much of it up, but to say this, there will be people with special needs who will be forced to get this, who aren't aware of all of this nonsense, and they will get an exemption. You go to a little baby in the hospital and you insert the chip, that baby's not damned because that baby did not connect the chip with the worship. The mercy of God, always active, always robust, always the baddest dude in town. So this that we're living in, this end of the age, the last of the last days, unlike ever before, our generation can fulfill these prophecies, you'll see them fulfilled. Revelation 11, then those from the peoples, tribes and tongues of nations will hear, pardon me, will see their dead bodies three and a half days and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves.

These are the two prophets I mentioned earlier. Everyone on earth, from every peoples, tribes and tongues, the nations will at one time, at the same time, be able to see their dead bodies. We couldn't do that in John's day, you couldn't do that in Martin Luther's day, you couldn't do that in Billy Graham's day, but you can do it today.

Well, part of Billy Graham's day you could, and he lived to be like 190. So, the global communication, that Tower of Babel, listen to what God says, Genesis 1.1, now the whole earth had one language and one speech, and as I mentioned, we are back to this. So, some of the things that go along with the fulfillment of Antichrist and the technology, before I get even to the repatriation of Israel, which is a part of filling in the puzzle. Israel has their land, they're back in it. Their people have been flying in from all over the world and staying there.

They are committed to making them citizens. Armageddon cannot take place without Israel being in that land with ownership. Drones will color in a lot of the meaning to the activities taking place in the book of Revelation. Artificial intelligence, that is robots that look like human beings, act like humans, almost indistinguishable from humans, in fact, it doesn't even have to be a human. If you can make any kind of monstrosity out of something and give it life, give it bullets, give it the ability to destroy, make it have the hair of the woman and the teeth of a lion, all of these things are now coming to life. In fact, Antichrist, there's an attempted assassination on him and he survives, but that assassination proves that he's human and not a demonic spirit and not artificial intelligence, not a robot, but that he is human. God has laid it all out and they can't stop but fulfilling it because they are evil.

Weapons of mass destruction, you cannot have the war scenes that you have in the book of Revelation without weapons of mass destruction. They're here now. They've never been here before, not before the 1950s. Antichrist, they are buying up everything. All of the media platforms they own. What conservative group has the power to broadcast as these liberals do?

None. Again, feathering the nest for Antichrist and his false prophet to just sashay right into power. They will assume all these things. They will claim them as their own and everybody's going to be happy with it, everybody in the world. And so we have some reminders for ourselves in the midst of these things because the church will not be in the world when this seven-year period begins. The assembled church will be raptured out, leaving behind the apostate church. But then there will arise the 144,000 witnesses of our Lord. They will make tribulation converts. Those converts will be executed.

They will be persecuted and then killed any chance that is given to Antichrist and his people. And this plan for everyone's data that we have now, many of you don't want to get certain plans because you feel like you're being tracked. It's too late.

Just go ahead and get it. It doesn't matter. They know who you are anyway. You started in days where you would track where you're spending if you used your credit card at a gas station or a convenience store. Well, now, of course, it's just gone beyond that with your phone, with a simple click.

You've made your purchase and they know where you made it from. But true believers will not be here because we're raptured, but more true believers will come through it. There will be Hindus and Muslims and other peoples giving their life to Christ during this period of time. God is not finished with preaching the gospel to people just because Antichrist comes to power. But still, what restrains him then?

What's holding him back? Well, 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, there you will read that it is the Holy Spirit that restrains the evil forces until he's good and ready to move back some to let him come to the forefront and give him this power we read about in chapter 13 at the standing and reading of the word. This assassination attempt, as I mentioned there in verses 3 and 4 and then repeated later, I think 13 and 14 twice, no less than in this one chapter, there is an insistence by God. Listen to me, God says.

There's nobody like this one. He's going to be wounded severely and miraculous and Zechariah called it centuries even before John. Miraculously he's going to survive and when he does, everybody's going to think he's the greatest thing ever and pour themselves into this monster. But the judgment is coming. Revelation 14 9, then a third angel followed them. Now the presence of all these angels in Revelation is God saying I got this and that's why you keep reading about them. Then a third angel followed them saying with a loud voice and that's another thing.

They're making it loud and clear and we need to get it. If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on his forehead or his hand, he himself shall also drink the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the lamb.

Did you catch that? If anyone worships the beast and the image and receives the mark, that's what I was referencing earlier. Verse 11 of Revelation 14, and the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever and they have no rest day or night who worship the beast and his image and whoever receives the mark of his name. So God repeats it for emphasis. That's a second witness within the Revelation. Now all of this has got to have something to do with us. Okay, we're not going to be here then, so why tell us now?

Because there are current opportunities. Sharing Jesus Christ, I've noticed for some time now, from the Gospels, is not convicting people. It's as though they've heard it so much, so often, they're immune to it. Yeah, I know Jesus died for me.

I know he rose again. That's why we have Easter. It's sort of the marginalized. It's reduced in its potency. God has created, in his own word, a backup plan. It's sort of like, you know, when large tracts of land are being developed for housing, but they save certain other tracts.

They don't open it up until everything is sold off. Then they open the second tract of properties to be developed. God is now opening that second tract. He's saying, well, maybe the witnessing is not working anymore of the simple beauty of our faith. Maybe what they need to counteract all of this technology and mind-numbing, you know, video games and all this other stuff, maybe what will work now is prophecy. Full-blown, in-your-face prophecy.

Not like the end times. Peter said we have the more sure word of prophecy. We were there, we had the fulfillment, everybody knows it. But we are now in an age where we can say the same thing on a different level. We can say we've got the prophecy. We can take an unbeliever and say, let me tell you about this Vimeo case. You see what's happening here?

They're going to control who can buy and sell. And if you don't play their tune, you don't get the reward, the life, the necessities of life. But God called it already. He said this was coming and you're now living, you're seeing it. You are seeing God's word fulfilled.

Why would you reject this? Because if you see these prophecies fulfilled, then the doomed prophecies apply too. Don't you think for one minute that all these other prophecies, weapons of mass destruction, Israel coming back and letting out artificial intelligence and all these other stuff, don't you think for one minute that that is going to be fulfilled as you're watching it, cannot deny it. But the wrath of the Lamb is somehow not going to be fulfilled.

They come together. These things are given to us. These are the rumblings of the book of Revelation. It is our platform.

Why else have this book if we're not going to be here to live through the horrors of this great tribulation period such as the world has ever known. We want converts as believers. We don't want just a good church.

We do want that. And many of you contribute to that. But there is more. And there's more to just making converts. You've got to have somewhere to put them, to do something with them, to strengthen them.

Or they will be stunted and plucked up and picked off. It's a lot of work going in to fighting this war against Satan because he has so much power. And so the purpose of this message in the light of the Vimeo case is to say to us, listen, these are the last days.

Use this book. Preach from it. If they don't want to hear about Christ walking in Galilee, maybe they'll want to hear about him walking over those who blaspheme him in these last days. Revelation 13, 19, if anyone has an ear, let him hear.

That's what that means. John is writing this in his day to people who will read those words and he's saying to them, listen to the prophecies. Don't dismiss these things as something so far removed from you that they have no practical value.

He's saying the opposite. God is saying through him, these have a value and we, unlike any other generation, to whomsoever much is given, much is required. Let us start buckling down a little bit more on the fulfillment of these prophecies and say our message is relevant. It's going to take more than t-shirts and bumper stickers to win lost souls.

It always has. And being a separatist as a Christian where, you know, I'm just in my little Christian commune. I don't really reach out to anybody. That's never worked. That's never been part of God's plan. We ought to reach out to the lost and you say, well, I don't have any success.

I don't have anybody. Are you praying? Are you asking God to send them your way?

What makes you think you can do anything without him when he clearly says you cannot? So this is an encouragement, not a scolding. If you've been guilty of being a separatist, then be a separatist no more. Reach out to the lost. Don't try to convert them to your lifestyle. Convert them to Christ. Nobody's interested in your lifestyle as being the gospel.

It is Jesus Christ. One Christian might not want to eat this kind of food. Well, I'm not going to convert somebody to eating the type of food I eat because I'm a Christian. One might raise their kids this way.

One might wear this kind of clothing. I'm not converting anybody to my lifestyle. It's Christ's likeness that we're after. That's paramount. I'm not trying to convert them to a man-made doctrine.

I want the person of Jesus Christ in their life according to the Bible. Those other things will be sorted out as we move forward. And so we, of course, are not looking for the beast. We won't be here for that. We are looking for lost souls who are victims of their own sin. And it will be the time of Jacob's troubles such as mentioned, the world has never known. I want to read this one part and we'll be closing.

I think I got 25 minutes left. Amen. Revelation, there's a couple of them.

First I want to take Jeremiah 10. My purpose is this. There are many deceivers that have gone out into the world. We're not to be afraid of these people.

We are to certainly respect the damage that they cause in the lives of others. But we are to be more focused on the message we have to deliver because no one else has got it. Jeremiah said to people in his day who were essentially throwing out their covenants with their God, their own identity, thus says Yahweh, do not learn the way of the Gentiles. Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven for the Gentiles are dismayed at them. So he's saying be distinct. You're different.

You're not like them. Maintain your separation of identity with God. We read in chapter 13 that Antichrist is going to have power to call lightning and thunder down from heaven. Remarkable signs that are lying wonders. They are wonders but they lie and they lie in this. A miracle has taken place. What's the return address? Where did it come from?

Who's doing it? So what? Pharaoh's magicians can turn a stick into a snake. Our God will gobble them up. And this is what we have to keep in front of us. Revelation 13, 14, and I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded and his deadly wound was healed. The world's going to be very thrilled with that. And all the world marveled and followed the beast.

We're not marveling. Pause there one minute. It used to be I'd make a hospital call and if the person said this is my pastor, the staff would be responsive to that in some way.

There was a reverence to the office of a clergy. Now it's gone. Some still are. But many are just totally cold. They shut down.

They're not even friendly after that. Things are changing. I think people are being deceived. And we are not to be frightened or intimidated or marvel at these things as they do.

And he deceives those who dwell on the earth, Revelation 13, 14, by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. In hospitals they have so much ability to do things that we never could do before. I mean pretty soon a head transplant will be a drive-thru event.

It's an outpatient. We applaud the advances that medical science has made. But what's that to God?

Nothing. God has just opened up knowledge to man. As Daniel said, in the last days knowledge will increase.

So don't be intimidated by these things. Point them out. Next time somebody acts like they're, you know, mankind is going on such a course of development and success, point out no they're not. They're still sinners.

They're still wicked. With all the technology that they have, they're going to use it to slaughter people who don't agree with them. And when they say, I don't believe it, you say look at the book of Revelation. It's calling it. You're seeing it right in front of your eyes. You're seeing the mark of the beast. You're seeing this ability to activate your phone just with your face. Imagine how much more if that phone can read every bit of information about you through that chip planted in your head.

Wouldn't be bad if David got to plant the chips in people's heads. It's a slingshot event, you know. All right.

Just my signal. Time's almost up. God is giving lost souls time to receive salvation and not spend it on the ruin of their own souls. You and I know that it is a fight that we're going to fight to the finish. We all have loved ones who are not receiving Christ. That ain't the end of the story.

We'll fight this to the end because many, many have prevailed this way. Matthew 24, 24, for Christ, for false Christ and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive if possible the elect. Revelation 19, 20, then the beast was captured and with him the false prophet worked signs in his presence at which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped his image.

These two were cast into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. So the Bible won't let it go. Way back in chapter 13 of Revelation, this was brought up. It was then brought up in chapter 14. It's then brought up in chapter 19.

I close with this. The gospel of Jesus Christ can be preached through the revelation of Jesus Christ. Start getting more familiar with the fulfilled prophecies and use them on behalf of lost souls who would never know any better without you. Thanks for tuning in to Cross Reference Radio for this study in God's word. If you've missed any part of this message or would like to explore more teachings, you can hear them by going to crossreferenceradio.com.

Pastor Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia. To learn more about this ministry, visit our website, crossreferenceradio.com. Again, that website is crossreferenceradio.com. We'd also like to encourage you to subscribe to our podcast. By doing so, you'll be notified of each new edition of Cross Reference Radio that we upload. It's a great way to stay connected to God's word. Just search for Cross Reference Radio in your favorite podcast app. That's all for today. Thanks for joining us here on Cross Reference Radio.