The Coming Liar
And he deceives those who dwell on the earth—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. (Revelation 13:14 NKJV)
Coming Deception
Whom does one believe today? We have false prophets. We have lying leaders. We have people who tell us that they are our friends who turn out to be our adversaries.
It is interesting to watch those who deceive because there is a pattern in the way that they do it. First they flatter. If that doesn’t work, they lie. If they are caught in the lie, they confront. This is the pattern of many people in this world today, particularly those who want to control others. Unfortunately, often religious leaders are at the forefront of these lies and tactics. Those that aren’t at the forefront will often give their loyalty to liars if they think the liar will have the power to benefit them. That is why a deceiver is coming that is better than anything we have seen yet!
The Coming Deceiver
The Jews were told by the Lord, “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive (John 5:43 NKJV).” The Jews called the Lord a deceiver. After his crucifixion, they went to Pilate and said, "Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise.’ (Matthew 27:63 NKJV)." And yet, the Lord told the truth. Witnesses saw the empty tomb and they saw Him after He was raised from the dead. Our relationship with others depends on our ability to depend on what they say. The Lord said things that the disciples weren’t ready to accept, but everything the Lord said was the truth. The only way we can know that we have eternal life is if the Lord always told the truth. I am convinced that He did!
Today, people believe whom they want to believe. The one who tells them what they want to hear is often the one that they believe. However, there are some people that I want to believe but because I have been so burned by them, I will always have a hard time believing what they say. The reason that I can believe the Lord is because He has kept the promises He has made that I can test. He has been faithful to me and my family in more ways that I can describe. So while I can’t prove that He will keep the promises He has made about things I can’t prove, I am willing to trust Him to keep those promises as well. That’s called faith.
The Coming Kingdom
I believe that the Lord is coming to set up the Kingdom that the Jews were hoping for in His first coming. But before that happens, Christians who have been truly born again will be gone. They will be saved from the terrible things that are coming before the Lord sets up His kingdom. They will be "raptured." But it is only those who have been truly born again who will be gone. Those who are depending on something other than the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord to take them to heaven and who have their confidence in something besides the Lord will be left behind. I hate to be a prophet of doom, but I suspect most so-called Christian churches will be able to operate quite well when the Lord takes the faithful believers to be with Himself. Those left behind will be afraid of what is coming because I believe a generation of young children will be taken in the rapture. Unbelievers who call themselves Christians will want to arm against an unseen intruder who has had this power. So the stage will be set for a powerful man called a beast in Revelation 13 to take the world stage.
But there is a problem. The Jews have never wanted to submit to a Gentile ruler, and they won’t want that during this tribulation period. So another beast arises "out of the land" and he is a Jew. Because of his ability to do signs and miracles the Jews will believe him and align themselves with the first beast who I believe will promise them peace. They will become idolaters in violation of the commands that Moses gave them when they were delivered from the bondage of Egypt. The Jews have always been convinced of spiritual truth by signs while the rest of us are convinced by wisdom or logic. The signs this second beast who is a Jew will be able to do will convince the Jews to receive this man who has come in his own name. But the Jews and the rest of the world are going to find out that this man wants to be worshiped as God. As a result, there are going to be great wars fought because people will have believed the Liar rather than accepting the One who told the truth.
I believe the Christians’ willingness in our present day to set aside common sense and truth in the interest of promoting morality through the political and the legal system is a subtle trap of Satan. While the country has moved to the dark side, the only solution is to preach the truth. The truth is that we are all sinners in need of a Savior. The truth is that the only One who told the truth, died on a cross because of religious leaders. The truth is that Christians need to recognize that there has to be conviction of sin before people can trust the Lord to save them from the consequences of their sin.
Coming Destruction
I believe it is time for those of us who are saved or "born again" to quit trying to change or reform the world. We need to realize that our commission is to "make disciples, baptize, and teach." Our mission is clear and I personally believe that we are being side-tracked into wasting our time on things that we cannot change. However, if we carry out our commission, we will change destinies for eternity. More importantly, we will be pleasing the Lord.
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of September 23, 2018