Let us now turn to the gospel according to Matthew chapter 4. Matthew chapter 4 and we shall read verses 16 and 17. Matthew chapter 4 verses 16 and 17. The people which sat in darkness saw great light, and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death, light is sprung. From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And the title this morning is the change is coming. The change is coming. The people which sat in darkness saw a great light. The people which sat in the region and the shadow of death, light is sprung up. What is the scripture saying? It is talking about change. A change from darkness to light. A change from death to life. Darkness speaks of danger, lifelessness, dampness, inactivity, fear and it speaks of death. Here the Lord God in his word is not talking about people that literally are sitting in darkness. But that their minds were filled with darkness. Their souls were filled with darkness. This means their souls were dead. Dead. Inactive. They had no knowledge about God and they had no appetite for the things of heaven. It was dead. This means they lived on the level of feelings and on the level of the five senses, on the level of emotion and sentimentality. Mankind had stooped as low as animals. All that man was concerned about is to eat and drink and be merry. You know about the Romans how they would eat and then go and vomit out, bring it out and then back again they would eat and so on and so forth. If they had anything about God it was from their imagination and they had plenty, plenty of this. And at this point, at this time and age, the western nations have become very sentimental. Very sentimental. People bound to earth are very sentimental. These have no higher aspirations, have no heavenly calling and heavenly desires. They make you feel that there is no heaven. Imagine there is no heaven, there is no hell. People resign themselves to the cyclic seasonal living. Like the earth that drink the rain and bring forth fruit and dry up and die and then live again. There is no cause to believe in heaven. There is no cause to look for judgment and hell. There is no cause to look for accountability for what they do. Totally earthbound to the mother earth. This is bound to happen if you believe in evolution. that you are only a dust, that you are only an animal. Their deeds and thoughts were centered around their flesh and carnality. Even their religion was based on what gave pleasure to the flesh. It could not go beyond to actually know what God is and who is the true and living God. There was no appetite to know the truth and to merge with the mind of God and be liberated from the fleshly ideas. They did not allow God to speak to them. People were stuck up, totally anchored to this way of life. This was the state of mind, not only in the land of Galilee, in Israel, but all over the world. All over the world. In this dark age and time, Jesus Jesus Christ the son of God was born and at the appointed time being prepared to bring change. He came preaching saying repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Kingdom of heaven is at hand. Jesus began to preach and to proclaim and shout out to make known that people should repent. Now the word repent basically means to change, to change. It means to change one's mind, to change one's mind for the better, for the truth. It means that you must heartily, willingly change for higher standards of moral and godly life. It means you must change with abhorrence of your past evil ways. So it is a definite change to a better way of life. It is a permanent change. Repent. Jesus came to bring change. John the Baptist proclaimed saying the change is coming. The change is coming. He came to prepare the way for the one that was going to bring in the change. It was told by God through his prophets that the one who is going to bring the change will come. Change is coming. The one that will shine the light of truth and bring people from darkness to light will come. Change is coming. Jesus preached saying repent. Repent, change for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Is at hand. This change is going to be a life lived according to the mind of the one who is in heaven. This change is going to be where men and women, boys and girls are going to become the citizens of heaven. They will live in the Spirit of God. They will become the temple of the Holy Spirit. They will live according to the will of God. They will take delight and pleasure in His word, in following Him, in loving Him and separating themselves from the evil world around us. They will live putting their trust in God and honoring and worshiping the Creator God and His Son, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This change is for good. It is the best and this change is for lifetime and for eternity. This change is from God Himself. But why this change? Why this change? This change came on this earth through Jesus because Satan had changed human hearts from the time our first parents fell for his change. For his change, Satan introduced the first change in human beings by telling lies. He first deceived Eve and then Adam. He promised them a change. This change was to change from being human to becoming God. They will themselves become God. God had created all things well. Everything that God created, He said, it is good, very good. The way mankind, that is the man and a woman was created was perfect. There was no need of any change. They were created in God's image and likeness. But Satan came along and said, I offer you a change. It is very appealing, isn't it? Change is very appealing. A change of status. A change of position. A change of existence. A change of power. A change of knowledge. And a change of wealth. This is what we all strive for. Three things. Power, knowledge and wealth. This will make you God. This will make you God. You will be able to have control over everything. All you have to do is do exactly what I tell you to do and forsake what God has told you to do. You will not die if you eat the fruit of the tree He has told you not to eat. This is exactly what Satan told Eve. Genesis chapter 3 verse 4. And the serpent said unto the woman, you shall not surely die. You shall not surely die. And perhaps the serpent even said to her, look, I am eating. I'm going to eat this fruit. And perhaps he did eat and said, look, I did not die. it is like a man smoking cigarettes and he tells a young lad of 12 come take this cigarette and smoke it and the boy says no no no my dad told me that if I smoke cigarette I will die it is bad for me and the man says look I'm smoking this for 10 years now and I'm not dead I'm not dead But the truth is this man is dying from within. His lungs are getting destroyed and he is filling his lungs with cancer. Sin, disobedience to God's laws does not kill you immediately. Dying, you die. And this is what the Lord had warned Adam and Eve. Genesis chapter 2 verse 17. For in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die. Surely, meaning you are doomed to die. It is not an immediate consequence, but death will enter into you for sure. A change will come in you. A change from life to death. A change from light to light to darkness. A change from joy to grief. a change from peace to turmoil and upheaval, a change from order to disorder, a change from being fresh to decay, a change from life to death. Ever since this change has come upon mankind, leaders have risen in the world. Ever since then, promising to change this evil system, this evil situation. And the leaders of the world blame the situation on poverty. They blame the situation on racism. They blame the situation on the food we eat. They blame the situation on the rich. They blame the situation on injustice. They blame the situation on inequality. They blame the situation on minority. They blame the situation of totalitarianism. They blame the situation on population. And we all join in hand to blame all these. They blame the evil of society on religion. They blame it on God. They blame the situation on environment. They blame the situation on not having freedom to do what they want to do. They blame the situation on weak genes. They blame the situation on being a woman or not having the rights to do what they want to do. They blame the situation on education, on division and the list goes on and on and on. And so the leaders rise up And these leaders can be in the family, in the church, in the society, in the village or whoever. And they promise to take away racism. Leaders rise up to give equality to all. They rise up to give jobs for all. They rise up to give power to the minority. They promise to give better health system to all. They rise up to give promises to drive away poverty and housing problems. They promise to unite us all under one world order and one world religion and drive away all divisions from us. They promise to bring in a mind of toleration and and a mind away from discrimination, that we should not discriminate. Meaning, let everyone do whatever they want to do and believe whatever they want to believe. So, if someone wants to kill babies, let them do so. If a man wants to marry a man, let him do so. Anyone wants to change their gender, let them do so. Don't discriminate. Don't discriminate. This will bring in peace. This will bring in peace. Just follow your heart. So ever since then many leaders have come and gone. Say like Hitler who wanted only the pure group of people to survive on this earth and the rest to be eliminated. Then we have a leader like Chairman Mao who wanted to get rid of all the rich people and especially the middle class people. The poor being the majority he promised them equality. Has poverty disappeared from China or any of these places? Which people live in luxury? Which people live in luxury? In order to put into practice what they promised, they promoted killing and destruction. So change comes and is to be brought about by destroying those who will not agree with you. So the change actually never brought any change. The heart of man remained the same. Evil. The richest and the wisest king among the kings of Israel, King Solomon, said after he had scientifically studied human nature, he took upon himself. took upon himself, he says in the book of Ecclesiastes, to search, and to understand, and to experiment. And he did so. And he says in Ecclesiastes chapter 9 verse 3, Yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live. It is evil and madness is in their heart while they live and after that they go to the dead. The leaders of the world have brought in many changes but not the change of heart. Not the change of heart. The Lord God had prophesied by his prophets that a vile leader will arise. He is a man of sin. He will change many things. Many things. And here is a description of these type of leaders. Daniel chapter 7 verse 24 to 25 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise, and another shall arise after them, and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings, and he shall speak great words. against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and laws, and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times, and dividing of times. Here is another description of a ruler Daniel chapter 11 verse 21 onward and in his estate this leader in his estate shall stand up a wild person to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom so this person this leader is going to be wild and they will not give him honor but he shall come in peaceably and obtain the kingdom by flatteries flatteries and with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown before him and shall be broken, yea, also the prince of the covenant. Arm of a flood with the power of an army. He will break them, subdue them, make them come under him. How peaceably and flatteries and after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully. After the league they will all join together and when they have joined with him he shall work deceitfully. He shall come up and shall become strong with a small group, a small people. Verse 36 and the king shall do according to his will and he shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god and shall speak marvelous 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, listen to this, 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 the honor of God he honor the God of forces and a God whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold and silver and with precious stones and pleasant things the love of money is a root of all evil And then we are told of this ultimate ruler who is called by God the man of sin. 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 verses 3 and 4. Let no man deceive you by any means. For that day shall not come except there come a falling away first. Falling away. People will become rootless, unbelievers. They will not have anything to do with God. Even in the churches, the apostate, they will turn apostate. they'll fall away from the truth and then and that man of sin be revealed the son of perdition so except they come a falling away first and that man of sin be revealed the son of perdition who opposeth and exalted himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped so that he as God seated in the temple of God showing himself that he is God he's coming His coming is rather, His coming is 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 9 and 10. Even Him whose coming is after what? The working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish because they receive not the love of truth that they might be saved. Dear friends, How important is the love of truth, the search for truth, and you must pray to God. Oh God, I want to know the truth at this moment. I want to know that I may know the truth and that the truth may set me free. Yes, dear friends, that is what you must pray for. Doesn't matter where you are, in which religion you believe, whatever your philosophy is, you must know the truth. Satan obviously wants to enter into human souls and reside in them, just as Jesus resides in us and makes us the temple. Jesus himself is a temple, isn't it? He is a temple, we are told in Revelation. And he himself said that the greater than the temple is here, destroy me and in three days I will raise up, talking about himself. So Satan wants to imitate and want to enter into our souls. He cannot be everywhere at the same time. So he gives them the mark and connects them to him with a wireless connection in a digital manner. in a digital manner, and the number being 666. So we are shown the progress of these leaders of the earth. They are trying to bring in the change, but their change seems to be moving toward one of them becoming the ultimate leader, like God. And in doing this, he wants the support of the people of the earth. But it is for his own glory. And people, because of their evil hearts, are looking forward for such a leader. Examine yourself, dear friends, on whose side are you? If you are on the side of God, reject everything. Get wisdom from God. Get knowledge from God. Ask Jesus to save you and deliver you. Ask Him to come into you, to bring change in you, that you may know exactly what is happening. There is nothing to rebel about. Jesus will not teach us to rebel and bring rebellion and chaos. That is not us. That is not what the children of God do. We are the children of God and we leave vengeance in God's hand. Vengeance belongs to God. But Psalm 2 says that the leaders of the earth are against God and His Son. Psalm 2 verse 2 and 3, the kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed saying, let us break their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us. Now, it has been noted that there are three things that these kings don't talk about changing. And we should focus on these things. They don't promise these three things. One, they do not talk about giving people life. from death. No promises of everlasting life. They don't talk about changing a person from the flesh to the spiritual body. 2. They do not talk about changing from evil to good, from unholy to holy, from unrighteous to righteous. They do not talk about sin. They don't promise to ban gambling, alcohol or to totally destroy drug cartels. Hey, look, they can close the whole lot down for coronavirus, which is good. If people are in danger of dying, they should do that. But they do it instantly. Such is the power they have. Yet these few drug cartels are destroying our young people all over the world. If our rulers care for our young people, for those who are dying, millions of them die due to drugs, they can close down, finish and destroy the drug cartels. Abortion is encouraged, fornication and adultery is committed even by leaders themselves. There is no change mentioned to keep the commands of the Lord. 3. They do not speak about having a change from serving idols and Satan to the Creator God and His Son Jesus Christ, and serving Him and worshipping Him alone. They do not call people to honor the only righteous Son of God who gave His life for our salvation. You can read or hear the message titled, The King's War Against Jesus. In fact, when Jesus was born, you know, Herod the king, he wanted to kill him. And ultimately, the religious leaders, the political leaders, put him to death. No man can promise these three changes and provide it. The heart of man is utterly wicked. No earthly leader can promise these because they are incapable to provide these changes. And Satan himself is utterly destitute. His end is in hell, eternal hell. But these three things are so very important and essential for our life here and eternity. Since the evil powers cannot provide this and no earthly leaders can bring this change, the Son of God comes to bring this change. He comes, dear friend. He comes to usher in a total change. He comes to take the government upon his shoulders and create a new breed of people. He truly includes all humanity, black, white, brown, yellow, whatever. He truly includes the weak and the strong, the poor and the wealthy, rulers and subjects. He includes the old, the very old and the very young, little children even. He told them, do not stop the little children. coming to me. Do not stop them, let them come, for such belong the children, the kingdom of God. He comes to include the educated and the illiterate. He comes to make men new. New in mind, new in thoughts, new in deeds, new in heart. As the Bible says in 1 Peter, listen to this carefully. 1 Peter 2 9-10 But ye are a chosen generation. So the Lord Jesus Christ having changed their mind and redeemed them and saved them and brought them to himself, captured them to himself because they put their trust in him and he loved them. He says you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people that he should show forth the praises of him who had called you out of darkness. You see that? was called you out of darkness into his marvelous light, which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God, which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. Are you one of them, dear friends? Have you obtained mercy? Did it happen? Is there a sure witness in your soul that this has happened to me or you're just trying to develop such a thing by your own self or imagine it? This was prophesied. It was prophesied that he will crush the head of Satan. He would wound him by his holy and righteous living. Genesis chapter 3 verse 15. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed. It shall bruise thy head and thou shall bruise his heel. Who is the seed of the woman? Who is the seed that would bruise or crush Satan's head? Or some of you might see this picture of Mary with the serpent under her feet. No, it is not Mary, dear friends. It is not Mary. It is a seed of the woman. And who is the seed of the woman? Who is the seed that would bruise or crush Satan's head? This is Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Don't be deceived dear friends. Don't be deceived. He did this on the cross on Calvary and deeply and terribly wounded Satan and brought a change in the hearts of men. Jesus rose again and has begun to take many captive to himself. It was prophesied that the Lord would cause righteousness and praise to spring forth from all the nations. This is what he anointed. Christ Jesus for? Yes. He would anoint Him and fill Him with His Spirit. Look at Isaiah 61, 1 to 3. This is what Jesus later said as He began His ministry. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach the good tidings upon the weak, upon the meek. Unto the meek He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all that mourn. to appoint unto them that moon in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified. It was prophesied about this governor, the ruler, Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6. It is important to read the scriptures, dear friends, so that we don't talk out of our head and imaginations. So it was prophesied, Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6 and 7, for unto us a child is born. And unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace, there shall be no end, upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom, to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. even forever, he seated up into heaven. He has taken his throne which was promised by God and he will begin to rule. He will begin to rule the people of Jacob and all the people of the world. Oh dear friends, what the world leaders and the devil cannot provide for the world, Christ the Son of God is able. He is able and so let us look These three things that he is able to provide which the leaders, any leaders of the world cannot do so. One, so Jesus promises saying that even if you die, you shall live. You shall live. Jesus promises everlasting life. He gives a person who trusts in Him the assurance that he or she will live forever. This is real. How does a person come to have this assurance? How do I know that it is real? Jesus gives them the taste of peace and the joy of heaven. How is this done? A person is changed from evil to good, from loving sin to hating sin. And this has happened to many. And this has happened to me. Therefore I know it is real. Christ comes and dwells in us too. Leaders, both religious and political, cannot change a person from evil to good. They cannot change their hearts from committing sexual immorality, gambling, drunkenness, drugs, lying and cheating, and all that humans do, hatred and prejudice. But Jesus forgives men's sins and makes them new. The thing they used to do, they do no more. Jesus is the only one that can change the character of human heart and make them pure and holy and make them into the temple of the Holy Spirit. He has done this to millions of people all over the world. whole village, a whole town, a whole primitive society that indulge in eating human flesh and celebrating bizarre practices have been reformed, have been changed to living a very high standard of human dignity. You know it. Read history. And thirdly, leaders both religious and political cannot bring change in the minds of men to see the truth and worship the creator God and his son alone. The governor, the Roman governor Pilate, he didn't understand what is truth. He asked Jesus what is true and walked away. They cannot stop people from worshipping idols, false gods and Satan. They cannot stop people from worshipping their own selves. This is because they don't have this power. They themselves love to be worshipped. One prime minister went to a church which have very large gathering and he said Jesus fed only 5,000 but look I'm talking to more than that over here. If I can read his mind he was saying I'm feeding these men and women with my own agenda and belief but they are more than 5,000 And these Christians were so excited to hear that they jumped and danced and shouted in approval. The change that Satan brought in human heart and mind was to believe that he is God. I want to be God. That is what people have been aspiring and that is what he has been promoting. However, Jesus Christ promises all three and fulfills it. He brings a change in human heart and mind to know the truth and as to who the real God is and that only God and His Son Jesus Christ is to be worshipped in spirit and in truth. So dear friends, whom are you going to trust? Whom are you going to trust? The rulers of this earth or any person, philosophers or whoever, whom are you going to trust? Yes, a day will come when the ruler of the world will say, you cannot get to eat or to drink unless you worship me as God. Whom are you going to trust? Well, let us go through some scripture verses. God says in Psalm 146, On 46 verse 3 onward, Put not your trust in princes, nor in the Son of Man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth, in that very day his thoughts perish. Happy is he that had the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God, which made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that therein is, which keepeth truth for ever. which executed judgment for the oppressed, which giveth food to the hungry. The Lord looseth the prisoners. The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind. The Lord raiseth them that are bowed down. The Lord loveth the righteous. The Lord preserveth the strangers. He revealeth the fatherless and widow, but the way of the wicked He turneth upside down. The Lord shall reign forever, even thy God, O Zion, unto all generations. Praise ye the Lord. Isaiah chapter 12 verse 2. Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid, for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song. He also is become my salvation. Isaiah chapter 57 verse 13 the Lord says he that put his trust in me shall possess the land and shall inherit my holy mountain the holy mountain Zion the heavenly Zion Psalm 20 verse 7 to 9 some trust in chariots and some in horses but we will remember the name of the Lord our God They are brought down and fallen, but we are risen and stand upright. Save, Lord, let the King hear us when we call. Psalm 118 verse 8 and 9. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes. And then Psalm 103 verse 15. As for man, as for man, his days are as grass, as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth, for the wind passes over it and it is gone. And the place thereof shall know it no more. He is no more in that place. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him and his righteousness unto children's children. Oh dear friends, I hope these words of God will encourage you to put your faith in your Creator. If those that are changing times and laws cannot make you a new person, cannot take away the evil in you, the sinful nature in you, the sadness and the loneliness and the pain and death from you, what is the point in putting your trust in them? Jesus has said the poor will always be with you. Do you believe that the rich billionaires will come down to the level of the poor even if there is one world order? Do you think those that rule in the one world order will eat the same food, live in the same kind of houses and drive the same kind of cars like the rest? Is that what is happening in the communist countries right now, where all are supposed to be equal? When Jesus announced the change, he said in Matthew chapter 8 verse 20, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man had not where to lay his head. not where to lay his head. The savior of the world became the least of all mankind. He became poor that we might become rich. He became a servant so that we might be made children of God. He died that we might have life. Dear friends, in the new world order, the change to come, there will always be disagreement and division between men and women and between one another. I'm sure you are not such a simple person not to understand that. Why? Because only the currency has changed or will change and the laws may change. No one has changed from within. No one will change from within. The heart is sane. Sickness will always be there. Death will always be there. The truth is when men run the world without the fear of God, those unfit men and women, boys and girls, will be discarded as useless. But Christ Jesus came to give us a new body, a totally new spiritual body, in which there will be no pain or sorrow, no defects. Yes. But the Lord is saying, My kingdom is not of this world. He made it very clear. When one world order kicks in, will the abortion clinic stop? Stop? No. The ambition of the evil rulers is same as the ambition of Satan, to act and become like God. Jesus on the other hand had no desire to become the king of the world, neither did he desire to make the world perfect. For this earth is defiled, he will destroy it, and he will make a new earth and a new heaven for those that put their trust in him. But why trust Jesus? And I'm coming to an end. Why trust Jesus? This is because what he promises, he has shown that he is able to give. He is able to perform. He lived a perfect life without sin. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, restored the deformed limbs, cast out demons, raised the dead. He showed that he had total control over the forces of nature. He died and rose again. He transformed the lives of terrible sinners and he still does so. They found his forgiveness and they followed him being totally changed from evil to good. They were given the image and likeness of God. This is real change. This is a change that God brings in mankind that put their trust in Him. Jesus had to pay a heavy price to purchase for us this change. He, dear friends, had to shed His holy blood, His righteous blood and obey God to the full. So dear friends, the real change, the best of change, the everlasting change has begun in Christ Jesus. The worst of change that the world leaders are talking about is yet to come. You have heard, isn't it? Leaders talking about change is coming, change is coming. The worst is yet to come. It has perhaps begun. Perhaps this is the beginning of preparation of that deadly change that the Bible talks about. The reign of the Antichrist. You still have time. The time is now. Take the change that Christ has brought right into your hands, dear friend. You will never regret. You will be born again. You will change from being a sinner to being righteous. You will change from being in darkness to being in the light. From being dead to being alive. From living a life of lies and worshipping the lie to living a life of truth and worshipping the God who is spirit and truth. And pray for the leaders. They need our prayers, that they may turn to God and accept the change that Jesus has brought into the world. Shall we pray?