If you think only the lost can fall for deception, consider this. Jesus warned believers in particular to be wary of deceivers. Are you on high alert? Today, on Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah returns to Christ's prophecy in Matthew 24.
To examine the rise in deception that will occur in the Earth's final days. Here's David to introduce today's message in a world of deception. Be honest.
Well, Jesus says a lot about that. In the Olivet Discourse, he says, Let no man deceive you. Alexander Solzhenitsyn, in one of his famous speeches, warned. uh believers not to believe lies. And obviously, in today's world, that takes a bit of discernment because so much of what we hear isn't true.
We've coined the phrase fake news.
Well, there's a lot of that. And frankly, for me, and I'm sure for many of you, it's hard to know what to believe sometimes. But Jesus warned us, he said ahead of time, that in the days before his return, deceit would run rampant. We're going to talk about that today and tomorrow here on Turning Point. In the meantime, let me tell you that we have a very special resource for you this month.
During the month of April, we're making available the book, The World of the End. It is 142 pages, hardback book, and it has everything in it that I'm talking about on the radio and a bunch more that we don't have time for. There are some charts, lots of illustrations, places for you to go for additional information, and it's yours for the asking when you send a gift to Turning Point during this month. Just send your gift and say, please send me the book, The World of the End. Let's get started now with part one of In a World of Deception, Be Honest.
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 brought to an end. the brutal reign of Nikolai Ceaușescu and his wife Elina. And the entire story can be wrapped up. In one word. The word is Deception.
From the very beginning, Ceausescu's 24-year rule was saturated with falsehood. He deceived the Romanian people when he described the utopian vision of the nation. That he planned to build, promising the end of oppression and the beginning of prosperity. Of course, instead of that, he delivered an iron hand that crushed his own people and squeezed his own nation dry. Nikolai lauded himself as a man of unprecedented talent in the world.
claiming the titles of the supreme embodiment of God. Hero of heroes, worker of workers, and first personage of the world. And Alina, his wife, made sure the Romanian press referred to her as a model to be followed up by all the women in our country. The legendary mother and the most just woman on earth. Those were Words of deception.
Those who were deceived by Romania's leaders were not limited to Eastern Europe either. They basically deceived the whole world. Queen Elizabeth knighted Ceaușescu. The United States government granted his country most favored nation trading status, and former Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin credited Ceaușescu with mediating Anwar Sadat's peace mission to Jerusalem. In reality, the Ceausescus were as evil as Hitler.
They just didn't have the opportunity to work on as grand a scale. They were, in every sense of the word, liars and master manipulators. Deception is common in our world today. And it's also a frequent topic throughout scriptures. And while the practice of deceit began in Genesis chapter 3, In the Garden of Eden.
It seems to occupy an especially significant place in the prophetic passages of the New Testament. When the disciples came to Jesus, asking him about the future. Jesus began his response with this serious warning. Take heed, said Jesus. that no one deceives you.
The status of deception in the world of the end. According to Jesus, deception will play a major role in the world of the end. While we should always be on the alert for lies and misdirection. The Lord warned us to be especially watchful. for spiritual deceit as the day of his return approaches.
Matthew 24, 23 and 24. Reads like this. Than if anyone says to you, Look, here is the Christ, or there, do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive. If possible, even the elect.
Jesus specifically instructed his disciples not to follow or fall. for these false claims. If the idea of people claiming to be the Messiah sounds strange or far-fetched. Know that even in the first century, there were several who made that claim. 50 years after the fall of Jerusalem, a false Messiah came on the scene.
The Jews were now ready to follow anyone who would lead them in a new revolt against Rome, so when the courageous fighter Barcoba appeared, He naturally took on himself the aura of the long-awaited Messiah. He said, Here I am. I am your Messiah. On one occasion, Barcoa supposedly caught a stone from a Roman catapult and threw it back. And when the current rabbi heard about that, he exclaimed that this man must really be the king, the messiah, and gave him the name Barcoa, which is taken from Numbers chapter 24.
It means there shall come forth a star.
So he was anointed as the Messiah. Of course. He was not the Messiah. And his rebellion ended in tragedy for God's people. The Barco revolt was also known as the Second Jewish Rebellion, and it was put down by the Romans in AD 135.
When Hadrian led Roman legions to once again destroy Jerusalem and the surrounding area. It resulted in the death of over a half a million Jewish people. because of his deception. In every century since the first men and women, There have been impostors who have claimed to be the Messiah, but that is not the only deception about which Jesus cautions. In his sermon, he says to his disciples in verse 11, then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.
For every one imposter who claims to be the Messiah, there are at least ten. False prophets. Who will rise up to claim knowledge they do not have about a future they cannot know? They are false prophets. For example, back in 1843, a New Englander named William Miller.
Came to ardently believe that in the eminent time. Jesus Christ was going to return. Unfortunately, he began to speculate about the date of that return. using dubious mathematical calculations. He collected mounds of data, he analyzed it, and was certain he had made no mistakes.
He confidently announced to his followers that on March 21st, 1843, Jesus Christ would return to the earth. At midnight on the appointed day, Miller's devoted followers donned their ascension robes. Trekked into the mountains and climbed towering trees to get as high as possible so they would have less distance to travel through the air. But the day came and went. And the Lord did not return, and the trees became really uncomfortable.
And so a dejected band of Millerites trudged home to a late breakfast on March the 22nd. accompanied by the jeers and cat calls of their neighbors and friends. It was a sad and bitter day for those deeply disappointed men and women. But Miller is just one example of many false prophets in history. Frankly, when we read that false prophets based their predictions on their study of the scripture, I can't help but wonder what Bible they were studying.
Because you see, if there's one truth about which we can be absolutely certain, it is this. The date of our Lord's return is unknown and unknowable by anyone. on this earth. Scripture makes that very clear. Here, just a representative three verses.
Matthew 24, 44. Therefore, you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming. at an hour you do not expect. Matthew 25, 13, watch therefore. For you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
Mark 13:32, but of that day and hour no one knows. Listen to this, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Did you know that when Jesus was on this earth, Jesus did not know when he would return?
Somebody said, How could that be true? Wasn't he the Son of God? Wasn't he omniscient? Yes, he was, but for the time he was on this earth, he voluntarily divested himself of the independent use of his attributes.
So while he was on the earth, he lived as a man. He knows now, and he's looking forward to it, but when he was on this earth, Jesus did not know when he would return. The angels do not know when he will return.
So Here's my question. If Jesus doesn't know, while he's on this earth. And the angels do not know. How in the world did you find out? I mean, it is so ridiculous because it is so clear.
I've read three verses. I think there are 12 verses in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. where it says you cannot know the hour. We should always be ready for the return of Christ, but we should never give dates. Miller did it, and over the years many others did it.
Whenever you hear somebody say they know when Jesus is coming back, you know. They are wrong. Because you cannot know that, and the scripture says that very plainly.
So, no matter how orthodox we may be, no matter how committed we are to the Word of God, no matter how much we think we could not be vulnerable to deception. History teaches us that even faithful men and women have become susceptible to the deception. of the enemy. Jesus said, be careful that you be not deceived. That danger will increase greatly as we move nearer to the world of the end.
That's the status of deception. Here's the source of it. The spiritual deception that Jesus warns us about isn't mere happenstance. There is someone behind these deceptions, and that someone is none other than Satan, the evil enemy of our souls. He is the father of lies.
And since the very beginning of human history, one of his primary weapons against us has been deceit. In the book of Revelation, John describes him like this. The great dragon, that serpent of old called the devil and Satan. who deceives the whole world. Here's what Jesus said about Satan in John 8, 44.
He said he was a murderer from the beginning. He does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. And when he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father. of lies. Spiritual deception may be Satan's most insidious weapon against those of us in the church.
Jesus and his apostles speak of it nearly 30 times in the New Testament. Did you know that? Satan is a liar, he's a serpent, he's a deceiver, but he masquerades as something else, and so do those who follow in his footsteps. Here is what Paul wrote to the Corinthians in his second letter and the 11th chapter. He said, For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ.
And no wonder, for Satan himself transforms himself. into an angel of light. Deception has always been the weapon of choice of our enemy, and when this deception is full-blown in the period surrounding the rapture, It will be unlike anything that has ever happened before on this earth. But the birth pangs of deception Will be felt throughout the earth before the rapture. And many prophetic scholars believe they are being felt already today.
While I don't consider myself a prophetic scholar, I believe the deception birth pangs. have already begun. Have you experienced the increasing saturation of deception in artist society? I know the answer has to be yes. We feel it when politicians regularly fail to follow through on campaign promises.
We feel it when media personalities tell us that up is down and dark is light. We feel it when scientists make outlandish claims about basic biology that do not stand up to common sense. We feel it when governments practice censorship in the name of protection and persecution in the name of peace. What we're seeing, men and women, is more than ever an erosion of trust. Between the foundations that have held cultures and civilizations together for years, and that erosion will continue to intensify as we approach the world of the end.
Someone asked me one time, how in the world will the Antichrist ever deceive the whole world? You know what? We're preparing the way for him. We really are. If we can be deceived as blatantly as we're being deceived right now.
The Antichrist is going to have a heyday. It won't be hard for him. If he says it, we'll believe it. The status of deception in the world of the end and the source of it. and the strategy of deception in the world of the end.
If you have your Bibles with you, I hope you will find your place in the third chapter of Genesis. I want to take you through. Satan's Strategy. This will impact you if you listen carefully.
Someone will say it convicts you.
Well, you know, conviction always comes before change, so that's good. The Apostle Paul told the Corinthians, we are not to be ignorant of Satan's devices, 2 Corinthians 2:11. As followers of Jesus, we need to know our enemy so that we can stand against his schemes. including the scheme of deception. Thankfully.
We can learn a great deal about Satan's strategy by studying God's Word. The strategy Satan implemented in the Garden of Eden is the exact same strategy he tried to use on Jesus Christ in the wilderness, Matthew chapter 4. And it's the same strategy he uses on you and me today, and it's the same strategy he will use in the end times. Satan's only got one plan, he's only got one game plan, one strategy. He uses it over and over and over again.
And if you want to know what it is, you can find it out and then you can be a little more prepared not to let it happen to you.
So I'm going to show you how he works. First of all, Satan disputes God's word. The first thing Satan did when he tempted Adam and Eve was to dispute God's word. Genesis chapter 3, verse 1.
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, Has God indeed said, you shall not eat of every tree of the garden? Satan immediately tried to water down what God had said, to change it just a little. He suggested to Eve that she may not have heard God correctly. Here is how this happens to us today.
We have the clear, plain Word of God in front of us. It tells us we shouldn't do something we would really like to do. And the next thing we know, someone sidles up to us and tries to give us an alternative interpretation of the text. that will allow us to do what we know God doesn't want us to do. That is a moment of decision.
We have to choose at that moment: either to accept the truth of God's word as it is written. or to allow ourselves to be deceived. Satan told Eve that God didn't really mean what he said. Then Satan denies God's word.
Next, Satan said to Adam and Eve, You shall not surely die. Wait a minute. The road from doubt to denial is not very long, and when Satan said, you shall not surely die, he was brazenly contradicting what God had said. See for yourself, Genesis 2:17, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it, what does it say, class, you shall surely die. It is important to note the sequence here.
Doubt opens the door to denial. If Adam and Eve had not listened to Satan in the beginning, they would not have been victimized in the end. And every time you try to find an interpretation of Scripture that will permit you to do something you know is wrong in your heart. Every time you give a little ground up to the enemy, You open the door until Satan can drive a truck through that opening and dump a load of stinking garbage in your life. and he will do it every time.
Satan disputes God's word, and then he denies God's word, and then he displaces God's word. Satan said to them: If you do this, you will be like God. He told them, if you do what God told you not to do, you will be like God. Can you believe that? I mean, if you just put that out there in a little circle and there's nothing around it, you'd notice it, but it's kind of buried in the context.
Satan was putting into their minds the same disturbing thought that had once entered his own mind, the same impulse that had transformed him from the anointed cherub. to the devil of hell. That is the master strategy of Satan. He first disputes, he then denies, and then he displaces the word of God. One of the easiest places to see Satan at work in the world today.
is to observe how our culture treats sin. How innocent it seems to shift aside the pure truth of Scripture when doing it suits our purpose. For instance, lying doesn't seem bad if we're trying to spare another person's feelings. Adultery doesn't feel as wrong when we describe it through double speak. as an improper relationship.
Gluttony and addiction aren't the result of personal choices, but genetic disorders or chemical imbalances. When we allow Satan to so doubt in our minds that some sins are Really, not sins after all. We have opened our hearts to his deception. Quickly, then, right and wrong get turned upside down. and God's word is replaced with our own wisdom.
And if you just look, you see it everywhere in our culture today. This is like. the message and the world we live in. is like the illustration. He disputes God's word, he denies God's word, he displaces God's word, and then he discounts God's goodness.
This is really subtle, but please notice. Genesis 2, 16 and 17, and the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in that day that you eat of it you shall surely die. Notice how generous God is. An abundance of goodness was offered freely, just one restriction.
Yet, look at how Eve reframed God's original command when she spoke with Satan. in Genesis chapter 3. And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. Do you see what's missing? Eve omitted God's gracious provision that she and Adam could freely eat of every tree in the garden.
In other words, Her comprehension of God's provision was not merely as magnanimous as God intended it to be. Satan had gotten to her with his evil implication about God. Listen carefully. When you start to question the grace and goodness of God, you are on the road to deception. Don't allow Satan to push you into thinking God has abandoned you or that he has not been good to you.
It's when you open the door to those kinds of thoughts that you'll find Satan has sown his seeds of deception in your heart. Let me ask you a question: Is God good? Has he been good to you? Have you had a good week? You've probably had some problems like I have, but it's been a great week.
And God is good. And life is good when you walk with the Lord. But Satan doesn't want you to believe that. He wants you to believe God is a stingy. compromising person.
The Bible tells us that Satan Disputes God's word, he denies God's word, he displaces God's word, then he discounts God's goodness and he dramatizes God's restrictions. How many times have I heard young people talk about this? Adam and Eve not only discounted God's goodness, they dramatized God's restrictions. Perhaps I should say they over-dramatized God's restrictions. They added to them.
Nowhere do we find that God told the first humans not to touch the forbidden tree. But Eve said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden, but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die. Again, God never said that. He made no mention of touching. What difference does that make, you say?
Isn't that kind of nitpicking? Isn't that kind of silly? No, it's a good question. And I think the answer is that when you give Satan an inroad into your life, you will soon be thinking less of the grace of God and more of the law of God. And that's what he does.
He emphasizes the restrictions and he minimizes the blessings. That's Satan's strategy. He's used it throughout history, continues to use it today.
Well The subtitle of this series and of the book from which it comes is How Jesus' Prophecy Shapes Our Priorities. And you can see as we study these end times deceptions. how they relate to what we face today. There's not anything that's more rampant in our world to day than deception. Anybody can be fooled by anybody, and there's no one that seems to be immune to trying.
Every day we see it over and over, and we have to pray, Lord, show me the truth. Help me to see what is really true. We'll have more of this tomorrow on the Friday edition of Turning Point. I hope you'll join us then. Please remember that Turning Point produces a magazine that you can have delivered to your home.
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David Jeremiah.org slash radio. This is David Michael Jeremiah. Join us tomorrow as we continue the series The World of the End on Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah.
