In a day when we, as a nation, are not only opposing and discarding the Word of God and its principles to live by, but also are aggressively seeking to get rid of it (at least from public places), is it any wonder we are seeing the resulting effects in political corruptness, increased cheating by students, an ever increasing moral decline, the acceptance and endorsement of sexual practices the Bible says are an abomination to God, individuals and some judges becoming a law unto themselves—not to mention the ethical debacles which have come to light in the business world in recent times?

Here in the United States, among the most highly educated, advanced and wealthy societies in the history of the world—intellectually, scientifically, technologically, medically, and materially—far too many of our leaders (including some religious leaders), businessmen, politicians, educators, entertainers, media moguls, etc., etc., have become moral and ethical paupers and little more than educated fools. Far too many care more for votes, high media ratings, position, power, popularity, and monetary gain than they do for truth, honesty, character, moral values and the good of our fellow mankind.

And whether we blatantly state it, or act as if there is no God, doesn’t make any difference, for as God’s Word says, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”²

Unless we bring back a high standard of morals and ethics into today’s society we are heading for disaster. As God said about ancient Israel when they turned from him and his ways: “They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind.”³

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me as a Christian to live according to high Christian morals and ethics and in so doing be a very effective model and witness to those with whom I work, relate, and live. And grant that they will see Christ in me and in so doing want the same for themselves. Please send a spiritual awakening to our country and let it begin in me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Psalm 53:1 (NIV).

2. Ibid.

3. Hosea 8:7 (NIV).

It’s not only the influence of some prison guards whose power has corrupted them, but one cannot help but wonder about the power of the news media that daily influences the minds of multiplied millions of people—seeking to shape the minds of listeners according to their particular slant and agenda.

Here in the U.S., for example, while mostly ignoring all the good that has been done in places like Iraq and other places around the world, the TV news media thrive on reporting the number of deaths of our military personnel in Iraq and/or in Afghanistan. I’m not in any way implying that such deaths are not tragic. They certainly are. What I am talking about is truth and responsibility in reporting. These same news channels rarely mention the daily slaughter on our highways—43,220 deaths in one recent year—that was an average of 118 deaths every day!²

Furthermore, of these 43,200 deaths 17,401 were alcohol related! (By way of interest, not so long ago, while waiting to turn left at a stop light, I was slammed into by a car that was slammed into by a heavy pickup truck driven by a youth who caused a six-car pileup. I wonder if he had been drinking! I’m just fortunate that my injuries weren’t much worse. The accident caused $8000 damage to my vehicle.)

Nor does the news media mention the hundreds of babies who are being murdered every day throughout our nation, nor the merciless butchery of partial-birth abortion, nor the accelerating moral decline of our nation. Why aren’t these tragedies newsworthy? Is it because it wouldn’t be politically correct to report on these issues? Or is it because their TV station would lose listeners and therefore financial support?

Think too of the far-out-of-proportion power of some politicians who are adept at making decisions that they believe will keep them in power, rather than for the good of the country … and those who blame other politicians (or anyone else) for the problems that they themselves helped to create in the first place, or who refuse to call acts of terrorism for what they are? Instead, the war on terrorism has been called “Overseas Contingency Operation.”

Furthermore, let’s be realistic, the “overseas contingency operation” its not only a war against terrorism, it is a religious war caused by militant Muslims who are hell-bent on destroying and killing Americans, Westerners, Jews, Christians and all who oppose their fanatical, barbarous “interpretation” of their religion. If we don’t win the war against this barbaric “religiosity” the consequences will be unthinkable for our children and our children’s children. Will our politicians and the news media ever consider calling the “overseas contingency operation” for what it truly is—a war against religious terrorism? Not likely!

How tragic when we use words to twist the meaning of critical issues and in so doing deny their reality. This, too, shows the deceitfulness and hypocrisy of the human heart. Would we dare call poison by any other name? To do so would be murderous.

So wherein lies the answer to the dilemma we currently face? Is it, as Ed Ames asked about the national problems our country faced in the sixties, is it in the “stars, or in ourselves?” Not likely.

If we who claim to be Christians, whose faith is definitely not in the stars or in ourselves but in God and his Word, don’t give answers, who will? Godless politicians, the outspoken immoral minority, irresponsible news reporters, and militant religionists will give hopelessly false answers to lead us astray. Of this we can be certain.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help us in this day of militant religionists, outspoken morally irresponsible minorities, compromising church leaders, self-promoting politicians, to stand up and be counted for you. Help us to see the truth as you see it, to find ways to impact our society and help usher in a desperately needed spiritual awakening throughout our land. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Psalm 33:12; 16-19 (NIV).

2. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov.

A few short years ago we witnessed the devastating moral degeneracy of prison guards in Iraq in the pictures from the Abu Ghraib prison camp in Iraq. And while this tragic event doesn’t represent the vast majority of U.S. servicemen and women, it does graphically reveal the depravity of the human heart.

An even more frightening report comes from Prison Fellowship President Mark Earley who wrote, “In 1971, Dr. Philip Zimbardo and his colleagues conducted an experiment in the basement of Stanford’s psychology building. After creating a simulated prison, they randomly assigned twenty-four Stanford students to be either guards or prisoners.

“Within a few days, the students playing guards had become sadistic. They placed bags over the ‘prisoners’ heads. They forced them to strip naked and subjected them to humiliating sexual pranks.

“Students from one of America’s most prestigious schools descended into barbarism at an alarming speed. Zimbardo was forced to end the experiment less than a week after it began.

“As the nineteenth-century Christian statesman Lord Acton famously put it, power will corrupt.”² What Acton said: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are very often bad men.” And being bad, or acting badly, is something we are all capable of being.

As God’s Word says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?” How tragic that, as a nation, more and more, we not only ignore God’s Word, but do all in our power to get rid of it, along with God, from every avenue of public life. Indeed, we have sown the wind and are reaping the whirlwind. Unless we turn back to God and live in harmony with his ways, we will continue to see increased tragedies and an ever-increasing moral decay of our nation, and a further disintegration of the very foundation upon which this country was built.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, as a nation we have sinned grievously by turning from you and choosing to go our own sinful and selfish ways. Have mercy on us and send a great spiritual awakening before evil and terrorism get right out of hand—and let your work begin in me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV).

2. Mark Earley, BreakPoint, Charles Colson Commentary #040510 www.breakpoint.org.

“In Florida, two young men, eager to win the admiration of fraternity brothers, removed a stop sign and brought it back as a trophy. In Tennessee, a couple of teenagers were at a party in a high-rise apartment, and one dared the other to slide down the trash chute in the hall.

“The Florida boys were convicted of manslaughter after a fatal accident occurred at the intersection. The Tennessee boy who slid down the trash shoot was killed by an automatic trash compactor and his friend was traumatized with guilt and grief.”²

Foolish choices made on the spur of the moment can lead to dire consequences. Choices made without consideration of the consequences can be equally disastrous. In fact, life is the sum total of all the choices—conscious and unconscious—we make. Choices we made years ago have brought each of us to where we are today. Choices we make today will determine where we are tomorrow, and next year, and the next, and so on.

So when it comes to making choices, as another has said, “Don’t sacrifice your future on the altar of the immediate.” And another, “It is choice, not chance, that determines your destiny.” When making choices, it is wise in everything to acknowledge God and he will direct our path.³

And whatever you do, don’t forget life’s most important choice that will determine where you spend eternity. If we fail to make this choice it means we choose by default, and therein reap the eternal consequences of our sin; because we are all sinners destined for an eternity apart from God, love, and all that is good—in the place the Bible calls hell. If we want to spend eternity in Heaven with God, we need to make this our choice and act upon it by accepting God’s Son, Jesus Christ, as our Savior. To help you, be sure to read the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” at: http://tinyurl.com/real-christian.

Again, whatever you do, don’t leave your eternal well-being to chance. Choose God. Choose God’s gift of salvation. Choose life—life everlasting.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you offer me the gift of forgiveness for all my sins and the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ your Son. With your help I choose to believe in you, to accept Jesus as my savior, and I choose to serve you all the days of my life. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Joshua 24:15 (NIV).

2. Michael Josephson, Character Counts, “Discipline and Good Judgment” 351.1.

3. See Proverbs 3:5-6.

For those of us old enough to remember, we may recall the words of John Lennon (1940-1980) of Beatles fame who “said in 1966: ‘Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn’t argue about that. I’m right and I will be proved right. We’re more popular than Jesus now. I don’t know which will go first—rock n’ roll or Christianity.’ Fourteen years later, Lennon was shot dead by Mark David Chapman in New York City on December 8, 1980.”²

Some time after John Lennon’s statement about being more popular than Jesus, “while in Chicago, Lennon and the Beatles called a press conference and apologized to the world for his comment.”² However, I believe Lennon was referring to his own country with his statement … and it probably was true in the UK.

There has been an email message floating around claiming that other famous people verbally mocked God and were killed in an unusual way soon after. Many, if not most, of these claims were false. I did check on TruthOrFiction.com about the report on John Lennon and it is stated as truth, not fiction.

However, in a very real sense, any person who disregards the Word of God saying that they don’t believe in God or his Word, and fails to accept the fact that Jesus, the son of God, died on the cross to pay the penalty for their sins, and in so doing rejects God’s gift of salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life, is living a life of mockery. This is because they play the role of God in choosing to believe their own word instead of God’s Word. Putting themselves above God is not only a mockery, but also a fatal path to follow—eternally fatal.

Whatever you do, God has given us his Word and specific warning about life after death, so don’t mock God and hope for the best when you come to the end of life’s journey. The reality is that we cannot mock God. We will reap what we sow. For help to be sure your life is right with God read the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian … without having to be religious” on line at: http://tinyurl.com/real-christian. Also read, “Life After Death” at: http://tinyurl.com/8brzh.

Suggested prayer: Dear God, thank you that you have given mankind your eternal Word so that we can know the way to you and the path to eternal life. I choose to believe in you and in your Word, and I thank you that your forgiveness and gift of eternal life is available to all who believe in and put their trust in you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Galatians 6:7-8 (NIV).

2. http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/u/untimely-deaths.htm

Many people today say that the Bible is just a bunch of fables and all this talk about a coming Antichrist is nonsense for the simple fact that we are far too enlightened today to believe in such nonsense. Let us remember, however, that Hitler’s Germany was among the most educated, advanced and enlightened country in the world when Hitler rose to power. A reminder, too, that every prophecy in God’s Word, the Bible, about Christ’s first coming, written hundreds of years prior to his coming, was fulfilled in detail. We can be just as certain that every prophecy in God’s Word regarding Christ’s second coming and the coming of the Antichrist will also be fulfilled in detail.

For instance, the Bible stated that Israel would be a nation again at the time of Christ’s return. Israel as a nation was reborn in 1948, two-thousand years after being decimated by the Romans in AD70. As already noted, the Bible states that the Jewish temple will have to be rebuilt at the end times because the Antichrist will enter and desecrate it by setting himself up in the temple and claim to be God midway through his seven-year reign (see 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4).

But many will say how can the third temple be built on the Temple Mount because the Muslim Dome of the Rock is in the way? Not so. According to archeological findings the Dome of the Rock is built in the Gentile (non-Jewish) area of the temple grounds⁶ and not over the ancient Jewish temple that was built by King Herod. The new Jewish temple will be built over this temple—the one that was destroyed by the Romans in AD70. If you go to the temple area today, you can see many of the huge temple stones that the Romans threw over the temple walls when they destroyed the temple. For the first time in almost two-thousand years a new Jewish temple is right now in the planning stages of being built.

So where are we today? Are we, the US and its allies moving towards globalization which would incorporate a one-world people, a one-world economy, and a one-world government? And if so, is this helping to set the stage for the coming Antichrist who will rule over a globalized world?

More and more it is looking like it. For example, speaking overseas early in his presidency, President Obama addressed a crowd of some 200,000⁷ people in Berlin as “Citizens of the world.” More recently in an online article titled, “Tony Blair, Evangelicals, and The Coming One World Religion,” Paul McGuire writes, “Former UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair has created the Tony Blair Faith Foundation to unify the world’s religions. Blair is especially interested in promoting the benefits of globalization to Christian churches. There are a number of prominent American ministers who have endorsed his Tony Blair Faith Foundation with its emphasis on globalization or global government. In Revelation we read about this coming one world religion and the False Prophet who unites the world’s religions in order to bring peace to Planet Earth under the rule of Antichrist.”

McGuire concludes his article by saying, “We are on the precipice of a new world financial order, a cashless society and global government. Once again, the forces behind globalization understand that they need to recruit the churches in order to make the transition. The Tony Blair Faith Foundation, the prominent evangelical ministers and religious leaders of other religions are part of globalization strategy. If you want to know where this all ultimately ends up? Read Revelation 13.”⁸

Peace and Safety. The more we hear about globalization, a one-world economy, a one-world religion, a one-world political system, plus the promise of peace, the closer we are to the appearance of the Antichrist and the second coming to earth of Jesus Christ.

For many years now the UN and other countries, including the U.S., have been doing their utmost to broker peace in the Middle East—so far all to no avail. But they continue to talk about it and try to find ways to establish peace in this major conflict area of today’s world. We also have a very dominant religious group in that part of the world that claims to be a religion of peace. However, according to biblical prophecy, it will be the Antichrist who will broker a peace treaty with Israel for at least three-and-a-half years until he breaks it.

As today’s Scripture reminds us: “About times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. . . . So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.”⁵

Right now the setting of the stage for the coming of both Jesus Christ and the Antichrist is certainly appearing to be accelerating. The clock is ticking. Every day brings us closer to the midnight hour.

What can we do about it?

First, be aware: Jesus said, “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”⁹

Second, be on the right side: Make absolute certain you are on the side of the real Christ and not on the side of the counterfeit Christ—the Antichrist—or you will be totally controlled by him.

Third, be prepared: As Jesus said to Nicodemus, “You must be born again.” “Jesus declared, ‘I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God’”¹⁰ By this Jesus meant if you are to see and enter God’s kingdom, you need to be re-born spiritually. We do this by believing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that he died on the cross to pay the penalty for all our sins, that we confess our sinfulness to God, and that we receive God’s forgiveness and his gift of eternal life by receiving Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and making a genuine commitment of our life to him. To help you do this, be sure to read the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” at: www.actsweb.org/christian.

Suggested prayer: Dear God, thank you again for your Word informing us of the events to come at the end of this world age. Please help me to know and understand your Word, be aware of what is happening, and be prepared for your coming by accepting your Son, Jesus Christ, as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank you for this blessed hope and assurance of your salvation and for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

5. 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3; 6 (NIV).

6. Grant R. Jeffrey, The New Temple and the Second Coming, p.28. WarterBrook Press, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921.

7. Real Clear Politics, http://tinyurl.com/6652aq.

8. Paul McGuire, “Tony Blair, Evangelicals, and The Coming One World Religion,” http://tinyurl.com/2bqa76c.

9. Luke 21:28 (NIV).

10. John 3:3 (NIV).

When the Antichrist appears, much of the world (if not all of it) will be facing economic and political chaos; it will be threatened by ongoing wars, continuing terrorist attacks, and possible nuclear destruction—it will be a world desperate for peace—especially peace regarding the endless war-torn Middle East area of the World. As it was in Hitler’s Germany, this will set the stage for the ready acceptance of a dynamic and charismatic leader who will make grandiose promises of peace and prosperity for all. The masses of people, desperate for help, will buy into his propaganda, and be blinded by his deception because he will turn out to be the dictator from hell. Those who oppose him will take the risk of being killed—thousands will be.

What will the Antichrist do? “According to the Bible, in the last days the Antichrist will control everything people see, hear and read. It says in Revelation 13:7 that ‘Power was given him over all kindred, tongues, and nations.’ This future fuehrer will have the task of propagandizing the world through a [totally] controlled media. This antichrist will be a passionate leader with an appealing message and the power of oratory that will be out of this world because his power comes from another world [from Satan]. He will be a master of doublespeak. But he must [will do everything to] silence his opponents.”⁴

Once the Antichrist comes to power, this will mark the beginning of his seven-year reign with world-wide control. For people to buy and sell, they will have to have on either their right hand or forehead the “mark of the beast” (see Revelation 13:16-17). This could very well be some kind of computer chip or electronic identification mark.

Recently Joy, my wife, bought a new cell phone with GPS (Global Positioning System), and when she typed in our name and address, the names and addresses of all the people who live on our street automatically appeared. When every person on earth has some kind of electronic chip or ID, a government who controls a GPS satellite system will know exactly where every person on earth is, and as such will be able to control them. Warning: the technology to make this possible is undoubtedly already in place.

At the beginning of his seven-year reign the Antichrist will make a peace pact with Israel, making it appear that peace has finally come to the war-torn Middle East—a peace pact that no other leader from any other country has ever been able to achieve, although several have tried (see Daniel 9:27).

However, in the middle of this seven-year tribulation period, the Antichrist will break his peace pact with Israel, enter and desecrate the re-built Jewish temple in Jerusalem by setting himself up as God (see Daniel 9:27, 11:31, 12:11; Matthew 24:15; and 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4). For the next three and a half years all hell will break loose on earth when God pours out his judgments on earth during the Great Tribulation (see Revelations chapters 8 and 9). What will end the Great Tribulation will be the battle of Armageddon (see Revelation 16:16). This will be when the nations of the world unite to come against Israel in an attempt to “wipe her off the map.” At this time Jesus Christ will return with his true followers to step onto the stage of mankind’s history and will totally destroy the Antichrist, his armies, and his followers and all who seek to destroy Israel and Jerusalem. Armageddon will be the war to end all wars.

By way of interest, recently Joy and I had the opportunity to be on a tour of Israel where we visited the city of Megiddo which overlooks the enormous valley of Megiddo (some 20 miles long and 14 miles wide) where the battle of Armageddon will be centered. It is a real place. The name, Armageddon, comes from the Hebrew, Har Megiddo.

After Armageddon Jesus will, with the aid of all his true disciples, rule and reign on earth for a thousand years (see Revelation 20:6). During this time Satan will be bound and, at the end of this millennium, will be released for a short while and then cast into hell for all eternity (see Revelation 20:1-3). Furthermore, all those whose names are not written in God’s book of life, that is, those who never accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and received God’s free pardon for all their sins, will stand before God at the Great White Judgment throne of God and be judged for all the sins they ever committed and, with Satan, will also be cast into hell for all eternity (see Revelation 20:11-15). After this God will create a new heaven and a new earth, and all of God’s children will live together forever with God and Jesus Christ, and there will be no more sorrow, no more death, no more crying, and no more pain (see Revelation 21:1-4).

It is no secret that the nations surrounding Israel today are already determined to wipe Israel off the map once and for all. The day is coming when they will join forces to attempt to do this. That day may be a lot closer than many think.

For instance, when Joy and I were in Israel a few months ago, we visited the Temple Institute in Jerusalem and learned firsthand that the Jewish people are currently preparing to build the third temple and re-institute temple worship. Priests are now being trained for this temple ministry, and the instruments needed for temple worship are being made at this time. Plans for building the third temple are under way right now. This temple will need to be erected either before or during the beginning reign of the Antichrist for the simple fact that three-and-a-half years into his reign, he will enter the temple, and desecrate it by setting himself up as God (see Matthew 24:15, and 2 Thessalonians 2:4).

With all that is happening in today’s world the setting of the stage for both the coming of the Antichrist and the real Christ is accelerating. That time could be very near. The Antichrist will promise peace but as Jesus said, “When men say peace, then sudden destruction” (see 1 Thessalonians 5:3).

The most important issue is this: If Jesus Christ should come today for all his true followers, are you ready? Or would you be left behind and have to go through the Great Tribulation under the reign of terror by the Antichrist? Have you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and received God’s forgiveness for all your sins? To help you to be ready be sure to read, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” online at: www.actsweb.org/christian.

Be sure and accept Jesus today. As every prediction in God’s Word, the Bible, concerning Christ’s first coming, written hundreds of years prior to his birth in Bethlehem two thousand years ago, was fulfilled in minutest detail, so also will his second coming be fulfilled as spelled out in God’s Word. Furthermore, so will the predictions concerning the coming of the Antichrist also be fulfilled in detail.

To be concluded . . . .

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that you have clearly warned me in your Word that the Antichrist, being empowered by Satan, is coming, and when he does, will unleash his fury, and tyranny of evil and destruction on mankind. Please help me to be ready for your return and be delivered from the evil power of the Antichrist. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

3. Revelation 13:16-17 (NIV).

4. Jan Markell, Olive Tree Ministries, www.olivetreeviews.org.

Who is this Antichrist that is coming? As his name implies, the Antichrist is the anti or against-the-real-Christ (the Son of God) and will be totally opposed to him and everything to do with Christianity. He is a person whom the Bible says will come to power at the end of this world age as we currently know it—at or about the same time as the literal return of the real Christ to earth via Israel. The Antichrist will be the leader of the revived Roman Empire—an amalgamation or merger of ten nations symbolized in Daniel 2 by the image with ten toes and by the terrible beast with ten horns in Daniel 7. This merger or coalition of nations will cover much of the same geographical area as did the ancient Roman Empire. The EU (Europe Union) today is looking very much like it could be shaping up to become the revived Roman Empire as depicted in the Word of God.

The Antichrist will be an emissary of Satan himself and empowered by him; and, as a puppet of Satan, no human will be able to stand against him. As he takes control of the world, he will make what Hitler did look like a Sunday school picnic.

What will the Antichrist look like? Without doubt the Antichrist will be an extremely charismatic, persuasive, cunning and deceptive individual, a silver-tongued orator, and will be a combination of a religious, political and economic leader/dictator. The religion he will promote will be a counterfeit religion—one that denies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and Savior of the world. He will also be the leader of a counterfeit political system, and a counterfeit world-wide economic system—all of which will ultimately fail. Furthermore, his religion will have within it an element of truth that will make it believable to the masses. It’s the element of truth in any religion, organization or political party that makes it one of the most deceptive forms of lying there is. In fact, every false cult and false religion has an element of truth in their belief system; otherwise it would never be accepted.

This is how Satan deceived the first man and woman in the Garden of Eden. In seeking to entrap the first man, Satan said to him, “God knows that when you eat of it [the forbidden fruit] your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”² This was a true statement in part and sounded very impressive to Adam. But what Satan did not say was, “not only will you be like God knowing the difference between good and evil, but you will be forever confirmed in a state of evil.” We can be certain that the Antichrist will again deceive the masses by his part-truths.

When will the Antichrist appear? The Antichrist will come on to the world scene at a time when the world is looking much like Germany in pre-Hitler days, but on a far vaster scale. Prior to World War II Germany was in chaos facing a major economic crisis, thus setting the stage for the acceptance of a charismatic leader who would promise “the world” to the German people. Enter Hitler who, promising the German people the good life, was readily accepted and embraced by the German people. Tragically, Hitler used his power and control in a sadistic attempt to conquer and gain the world—killing all who tried to block his deadly ambition—including the murder of six million Jews.

So when we see the world’s economy crumbling and the push towards a one-world economy, and a one-world political system, beware of political and religious leaders who speak in part truths that just may be helping to prepare the way for the coming world dictator, the Antichrist.

To be continued . . . .

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please open the eyes of my understanding so that I can see and understand the signs of the times as pointed out in your Word, the Bible. Help me to be certain that I am ready for your return and not be deceived by any false prophets—either religious or political—and always stand firm in my belief in you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (NIV).

2. Genesis 3:5 (NIV).

Tim Timmons and Stephen Arteburn in their book, Hooked on Life, tell about a middle-aged woman who made her way into an apartment building to the twelfth floor. As she arrived at her intended destination, she rang the doorbell impatiently. The door opened mysteriously, and she was welcomed by the smell of incense and smoke. She entered and was greeted by a slightly dressed young girl who announced her presence with the sounding of a huge gong. With this the young girl said, “Do you wish to see the all-knowing, all-powerful, the wonderful one, Maharishi Narru?”

“Yeah,” the woman said. “Tell Sheldon his mother is here!”

We laugh at such folly in others, while at the same time, most of us to some degree hide behind some kind of phony facade. It may not be as absurd as what we have just read about, but when it comes to trying to hide from God, that’s impossible. God knows all. He sees all. He knows who I am . . . where I am . . . why I am here . . . where I am going . . . what I am doing . . . and what I am not doing. No matter how I try, I cannot hide from God! No way. Period!

As David wrote in the Psalms, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”²

The best thing is to tell God who you are, where you are, what you want, what you don’t want, what you are afraid of, what you don’t want to give up, etc., etc. Only when we get honest with ourselves and real with God, can he (or anyone else) help us.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please open my eyes so I can see any way in which I may be deceiving myself, or running from your perfect plan and will for my life. Help me to be honest with myself and honest with you—knowing that the best thing in the world for me is the purpose you have for my life. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’ name, amen.”

1. Jeremiah 23:24 (NIV).

2. Psalm 139:7-10 (NIV).