Welcome back, brothers and sisters.
In today’s message we will talk about the building of the Third Temple, the coming of the Antichrist, & how these prophecies may relate to current world events.
There has been much debate over the years about the identity of the Antichrist. I believe that part of this debate has been due to confusion. Many people do not realize that there will in fact be numerous antichrists and numerous false prophets. Consider the following Scriptures:
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that [spirit] of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” – 1 John 4:1-3 (KJV)
“For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.” – 2 John 1:7 (KJV)
You see, beloved, there have been false prophets and antichrists in the world continually for thousands of years. Many have claimed to be the prophesied Messiah. Unfortunately, there have also been many people who have been deceived by these antichrists and have been led to their physical and spiritual deaths by these evil men. A couple of fairly recent examples of antichrists are David Koresh (Branch Davidians) and Jim Jones (Jonestown – 912 dead).
Beloved, the tragic thing is that all those who have been led to an eternal separation from God by these antichrists could have avoided it. How could they have avoided it? Well, if they would have studied God’s word they would have known that anyone promoting himself as the Messiah was indeed a fraud. How could they have known this? Well, Jesus Himself tells us that when He returns, everyone will see Him returning. Everyone. Consider the words of Jesus in the following Scriptures:
“Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here [is] Christ, or there; believe [it] not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, [he is] in the secret chambers; believe [it] not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” – Matthew 24:23-30 (KJV)
As you can see, brothers and sisters, Jesus is clearly telling us that when He returns from heaven, all the people in the world will see Him return. We will not be able to miss it. Therefore, since the whole world will see Christ’s return to the earth, we can know that anyone else claiming to be the Messiah is nothing more than an antichrist.
Now, we have seen in Scriptures where the bible speaks of there being many antichrists that will come into the world, and we have already cited a couple of them. However, there is indeed one ultimate Antichrist, just as there is one ultimate False Prophet. Here is a sampling of some of the Scriptures that foretell of the ultimate Antichrist that will come to reign in the “End Times”:
“And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify [himself] in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.” – Daniel 8:23-25 (KJV)
“And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make [it] desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” – Daniel 9:27 (KJV)
“And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things. Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge [and] increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.” – Daniel 11:36-39 (KJV)
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and [by] our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for [that day shall not come], except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” – 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (KJV)
Beloved, in the Scriptures above we see that the ultimate Antichrist will be a deceiver. He will arise to power spreading a message of false peace, and the world will not notice the daggers that are poised behind his smile. In the beginning of his reign his initial power grab will not be done through force; rather it will be done through deception. His deception will be filled with promises of peace, harmony, utopia, and tolerance. Understand that he will only use these themes to come to power, but he will never have any intention of fulfilling any of them. Ecumenism will help to get the people of the world to align behind the Antichrist, thereby helping to sway the masses. Would the world really fall for such a deception? Yes, it will. Why? Well, beloved, the world will be in such chaos and despair when the Antichrist is ready to emerge, that his messages will be tailored to prey on the fears of the people of the world. In this setting, the vast majority of the people of this world will see the Antichrist as their only hope to get through their time of troubles. Unfortunately, we know all too well that when people are consumed with fear and panic, they forego rational thought.
The Antichrist will lead the one-world government and will make a 7-year peace treaty with Israel. How do we know it will be for 7 years? Well, in biblical prophecy a week is equal to 7 years, with each “day” of the prophesied “week” being the equivalent of 1 year. During the first half of this period, the Jewish people will be allowed to resume their rituals of offering sacrifices in the Temple. Of course, in order for this to happen, the Temple will have to be rebuilt. While I’m not sure how the Dome of the Rock presently standing on the site of the first two Temples will be removed, we know that the Temple will be rebuilt for a third time and that the Dome of the Rock will have to be displaced for that to happen. Only time will tell whether the Dome of the Rock is destroyed or merely moved to another location through diplomatic means.
Nonetheless, these prophecies also tell us that after the first half of the 7-year peace treaty with Israel, the Antichrist will violate the peace treaty and prevent the people from offering any more sacrifices to Jehovah in the Temple. Furthermore, we see that at this point, the Antichrist will shed any guise of humility, honesty, and compassion from his public persona, as he will no longer see a need to deceive the world as to what type of a person he truly is. Why is that? Well, by that time he will have a very tight, controlling grip over the world, so he will see no need to try and make people think that his aim is to serve them. Conversely, at this point in his reign, Antichrist will make clear to all the people of the world that they are to serve him. As a matter of fact, the Antichrist will also demand that people worship him, as it is at this point that he will enter the Temple in order to proclaim himself to be God (known as the abomination of desolation). That’s right. The Antichrist will actually proclaim himself to be God. Of course the Antichrist is not God. The Antichrist is nothing more than Satan’s ultimate gopher, as he will serve Satan in leading an enormous multitude of people to eternal damnation. The good news is that in the end, Jesus wins:-)
So how does all this play in with today’s current world events. Well we discussed in previous messages how there is an increasing pressure for the world to adopt a global currency. When that eventually happens, that currency will ultimately be controlled by a central bank that is part of a one-world government. We know that the one-world government will be led by none other than the Antchrist.
We have also discussed in previous messages how ecumenism has really picked up steam. As tolerance continues to become the world’s focus, while truth is forgotten, the growth of ecumenism/humanism will only continue to grow at a faster and faster pace. As we discussed previously, we are already seeing a dramatic increase in aspostate Christianity, with many leaders in the Christian churches preaching the message of tolerance and doctrines of men, rather than the laws of God.
Furthermore, in Iran, the nation’s top two leaders believe it is their divine responsibility to help cast the world into chaos in order to bring about the return of the 12th Imam. For all of the conflicting news reports, the truth is that Iran will in fact build/acquire nuclear weapons. Anyone who believes that the radical leaders of Iran will hesitate to use nuclear weapons for fear of reprisal is living in denial. Why do I say that? I say that, because the leaders of Iran believe that Allah has assigned them the mission of helping to throw the world into chaos in order to facilitate the return of the 12th Imam. Frankly, they would see a nuclear holocaust as a sure way to make that happen. By the way, if you study the Scriptures and compare them to the 12th Imam of Islam, you will notice that the 12th Imam is none other than the Antichrist. Check for yourself, and you will see that this is true. This is fitting given that Allah is none other than Satan by another name.
Only time will tell if indeed we are currently seeing the stage set for the emergence of the Antichrist in our lifetime. The only thing I can tell you for sure is that the only true future worth experiencing that any of us have is a future that is centered on having accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.
In regards to the building of the Third Temple, we all know that the Dome of the Rock is currently still sitting on the site where the Temple is to be built. With that said, we know that the foundation of the Third Temple has not yet been laid. However, we do know that preparation for the Third Temple is already underway. Marble cornerstones have already been acquired and prepared for the time when the day to lay the foundation for the Third Temple comes. Additionally, many of the furnishings for the Third Temple are already being constructed in accordance with the specifications laid out for the Temple in the bible. What is the significance of all of this? Well, it means that once the path is cleared for the Third Temple to be rebuilt, it will be accomplished in a very timely fashion since so much of the preparatory work will have already been completed.
Many believe that after God’s resounding victory for Israel in the upcoming Gog-Magog war, the path will be cleared for Israel to build the Third Temple on the Temple Mount. Again, only time will tell. What we do know is that the Third Temple will eventually be build on the Temple Mount where the Dome of the Rock currently stands.
I want to thank you for joining us for today’s message. I hope you will join us tomorrow as we wrap up this series on bible prophecy. It’s always a genuine and powerful blessing any time you are able to be with us:-)
If you often feel consumed/overwhelmed by the fears and uncertainties of this world, I would just like to let you know that you can be freed from being consumed/overwhelmed by those fears and uncertainties. When you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, the chains of this world that hold you in bondage are suddenly broken. Instead of allowing yourself to be under the uncertainty and oppression of this world, choose to live in the loving assurrance of Jesus Christ while experiencing the true freedom that can only be found in Him. If you would like to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please join me in praying the following prayer:
“Lord God Almighty, I know that I am a sinner and that I am lost. I know that I need to be saved from sin, but I also know that I can’t save myself. Lord, I know that only You can save me. I know that you paid for my salvation with your own life and blood on the cross. I know that when You rose from the grave on the third day, you conquered death and provided everlasting life to all who trust in You. Right now, I lay down my life and let go of my pride, my vanity and every other sin that has kept me from You. From this moment on, Lord Jesus, I completely trust my life to You. I open my heart to You, Lord. Please come into my heart. Please forgive me of all of my sins, and please accept me as Your child. From this point on, I commit my life to You. Please guide me and provide me strength as I begin to live the rest of my life for You. In Your precious and matchless name I pray. Amen.”
Beloved, if you just genuinely and sinerely prayed that prayer then you are now born-again in Chirst Jesus. With your new spiritual birth comes a clean slate for you to start your new life in Christ with. The blood of Jesus Christ has washed away your sins of the past. In order to live obediently and faithfully for your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, commit yourself to getting to know Him better. Study the word of God for a few minutes each day, and talk to Him frequently in prayer. He’s waiting to hear from you:-) Consider finding fellow believers that you can enjoy fellowship with, as well, as that will only help you in your spiritual growth. Welcome to the family, beloved!!! We’re so very happy to have you:-) The bible tells us that when even one person repents, the angels in heaven rejoice. You just started a party in heaven!!!
Again, I want to thank you all for being with us today. I hope you will be with us as we conclude this series on bible prophecy tomorrow.
Have a wonderful and blessed rest of the day!!! Share Jesus with others just as freely and compassionately as He has been shared with us by the Father:-) Remember, we were created to glorify God and His holy name. Anything that doesn’t accomplish that is not worth doing.
May the Lord bless you, keep you, guide you, and make His face to shine upon you and your loved ones always.
Your brother in Christ,
Rev Jason Thurwanger
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