Turn to your Bibles, if you would, please, to Mark chapter number 13. Mark chapter number 13. You might have to back me off just a little bit there, my brother. And Mark chapter 13 finds your place there in the pages of God's Word. Let me give you just a quick advertisement about tonight, okay? We're going to be in Joshua chapter number 5, and you don't want to miss it. We have been having a wonderful, wonderful time. working our way through the book of Joshua, understanding what it means to live on the other side of the cross. What we would understand is Canaan living. And I trust you'll be with us tonight. I believe a lot of the frustration in the Christian life comes from trying to live it in your own strength, your own power, your own ability. I'm just here to tell you, that's not just difficult, friend. It's impossible. You can't live the Christian life without Him. And we're going to talk about that a little more tonight. I trust you'll be in your place here. 6 o'clock tonight. This morning, we are tuned in to Mark chapter number 13, and we've been working our way through the book of Mark. We are living in an unprecedented time of uncertainty and unrest. Matter of fact, people are looking for any sign as an indicator of things to come. Some kind of insight as to what lay on the horizon as our planet races toward its final days. Prognosticators. You say, well, what's that? That's a self-proclaimed expert on the evening news. How many know what I'm talking about? Alright. By the way, an expert is somebody who is then 25 miles outside their hometown. Y'all can think about that for a while. In their hometown, they're not really an expert. Once you get out, you can be whatever you want to be. So they all have their apocalyptic messages, speculating the end of the world as we know it. Somehow man's going to self-destruct because of a climate catastrophe, or some type of widespread pandemic, or global food shortage, or nuclear holocaust. There is no doubt that our world has problems. But I've got good news for you. I don't have to live and be troubled and uncertain because I have been affected by human speculation. No, I can live in an assured life upon divine revelation. I don't have to live in fear. We can live in faith because our God knows what lay on the morrow. He knows the future. He holds the world in His hand. Our God is sovereign over the affairs of men. Man is not going to self-destruct. It doesn't matter what we may see in our world. It doesn't matter what anybody says. Young man, young lady, it doesn't matter how bad they claim it is going to get. They can't even imagine how bad it's going to get. They can't even imagine it. It's beyond anything that any human can ever think up. But man will not self-destruct. The same God who brought the universe into existence will be the God who will take it out of existence. When you come to Mark chapter number 13 and answer to His disciples, the Lord Jesus unveils His plan for the future of this world. It's what we know as the Olivet Discourse. As a matter of fact, it's the longest answer to any question Jesus was ever asked. This message given by the Lord on the slopes of the Mount Olives with the temple complex two miles in the distance, just three days, He gave it just three days before He would go to the cross and die. It's the most important prophetic passage in the Bible. I'm amazed that people become enamored with the book of the Revelation or maybe the prophecies of Daniel. Can I tell you that both Revelation and Daniel are unknowable? You really can't understand them apart from the Lord's prophecy in Mark 13, Matthew 24 and 25, and Luke 21. As a matter of fact, it is the most chronological passage of prophecy found anywhere in the Bible. It is the key to understanding the future. It is the blueprint to end time events. It is the end times according to Jesus. Let's begin looking in verse number 1. The Bible said, and as he went out of the temple, it's now evening time on Tuesday of Passion Week. One of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here. He stands in awe. The disciples, like every patriotic Jew, was proud of their temple. They were excited about it. They stood in awe of it. It was one of the wonders of the ancient world. It was a masterpiece of architecture. It was the center of Jewish worship. But now wait a minute. It was also the center of rebellion and rejection of Jesus Christ and the God of the Bible. They're apostate at this point. They have left the truths of Scripture and they've said no to their Messiah. And notice in verse 2, "...And Jesus answering said unto him," They're still near the temple mount, "...Seest thou these great buildings?" Now, they're saying, Master, see. Jesus says, no, you see. I want you to take a long look at this temple complex, and then he tells them what's getting ready to happen. He said, Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down. In that moment, the Lord prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem, the destruction of the temple, the scattering of the nation of Israel that took place for nearly 1,950 years till they came back into the land in 1948. They're partially there today. But for 1,900 years they were scattered amongst the nations, and that was fulfilled in 70 A.D. under the Romans by Titus. But then we're going to get to where he's dealing not with present, what was going to happen to the temple then. He said, let me tell you what's going to happen on the horizon. Because they're going to ask him a question. Look at verse 3. They're now on the Mount of Olives. and as he sat upon the Mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew..." They had questions just like you and I have questions. "...asked him privately, Tell us, When shall these things be? And what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?" Now understand, that according to Zechariah in their minds, Zechariah's prophecy, the destruction of the temple, the coming of the Messiah, the inauguration of the kingdom, all happened in one event. The problem was not Zechariah's prophecy, but their understanding of it. They didn't have the full understanding, and the Lord's helping them to realize that there's going to be an intervening period of time between His going back to heaven and when He actually comes again. And now watch it, you and I are living in that intervening period of time. The last 2,000 years or so of what we would understand of God working in the world through His churches, something He had never done before. Up until that time, He had worked through the world through prophets and preachers, and then the nation of Israel, and now it's His churches. God's saints in this day of grace. where God is offering to men a salvation full and free. It's an age of men offering them peace with God. But friend, there's coming a day when God's going to declare war on our planet. You say, preacher, why? Because men for the last, really, six millennia have declared war on God. There's coming a day of judgment. And Lord Jesus begins to reveal what's going to happen when the church, the saints of this age have been taken to heaven in the rapture and the world is engulfed in what you and I know is the tribulation period. It's here that He gives the Olivet Discourse. It's here that He gives this truth. Let's pick up verse 5. And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed, lest any man deceive you. For many shall come in My name saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many. And when ye shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars, be ye not troubled? For such things must needs be, but the end shall not be yet. For nations shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in diverse places, and there shall be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows, the signs of the second coming. Let's pray and ask God to help us. Father, we thank You for Your Word. We thank You for the truth of Your Word. God, I'm glad that You haven't left Your children in darkness. Lord, we don't have to wonder about what lay on the horizon. We know You have it under control. And Lord, You already said that heaven and earth would pass away, but Your Word would never pass away. I'm glad that I have rested my faith in the unchanging Word of an unchanging God. Lord, that You're in control today. I pray that You'll give us understanding. Lord, help me to preach Your Word as it is to people as they are. Let Christ be magnified. If there's someone here without Him, they've never been saved. I pray they'll come to know Him today and give all of us a greater sense of urgency in this hour to reach our world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. And I'll thank You for it. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Well, the next event on God's prophetic calendar is what we know as the rapture of the church, the snatching away of the saints of God in a moment. The Twinkly and I, the Lord will come in the air for His saints. Every saved person on planet earth in that moment will be snatched out. We will be translated. We will be taken from earth to heaven. God is going to remove His people just prior to the events that Jesus is getting ready to talk about. The rapture in Scripture is a signless event. What I mean by that is it's imminent. It could happen at any moment. There's nothing that has to take place. That means that in the next instant the Lord could come and every saved individual would be immediately transported to heaven and they will escape this terrible time that's coming upon the earth. So whenever you study signs in the Bible, they have nothing to do with the rapture. If you say, well preacher, I mean the signs are everywhere. The reality of it is, no they're not. Whatever you may think is a sign, whatever you may view as a sign could be a foreshadowing, but I can promise you that there are no signs leading up to the rapture. There's nothing prophetically that has to be fulfilled. The next event is the snatching away of the people of God. And then the signs will begin that will point to the Lord Jesus Christ coming back from heaven to this earth to inaugurate His kingdom. It's going to come. And the Lord, that's what they're asking. Lord, when are you going to come? When are you going to set up your kingdom? And the Lord begins to help them to understand the signs that will be prevalent in that day when He's going to return and set up His kingdom. Sign number one, are you ready? Is unparalleled deception. Let's look again please in verse number five. And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed. Do you know that's the first of four instances found in our text where Jesus tells His disciples to take heed. He's saying to them, Stop! Look! Listen! He's saying, I want you to draw near. I want you to pay close attention. I don't want you to miss it. Can I tell you, God doesn't want you to miss it today. He doesn't want me to miss it. And He doesn't want those that are living in this day to miss what is going to take place just prior to His coming to the earth. And so He talks to them about deception. Notice what He says. He says, take heed lest any man deceive you. Do you know there's a lot of deceivers in our day? There really is. Matter of fact, there are people out deceiving people about end time events. There's books written, television shows, all kinds of different things that you see in the world. That doesn't necessarily mean they're telling you the truth. God said, I want you to pay attention so you don't get deceived. Look at verse 6. In that day, He's talking to those who will be alive during the tribulation. He said, For many shall come in My name, saying, I am Christ, I am Messiah, I am Jesus, and shall deceive many." That word Christ is the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew Messiah. He's saying literally, I am the Messiah. They will claim for themselves the title that belongs solely to the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is the Messiah, the promised one of God. and anyone else is a false Messiah. And the world in that day will know many. As a matter of fact, this is another proof that this passage of Scripture is not dealing with church saints and times prior to the rapture. You say, preacher, why is that? Because no true child of God in our day would be fooled by somebody claiming to be Jesus Christ. Say, why is that? We've already received Him. We know who He is. He lives in our hearts. We're not going to be fooled by a false Messiah, but the Jews would. You say, preacher, why is that? Because they don't believe that He's come. They're still looking. Do you know yesterday was the Sabbath day? Today, first day of the week. Yesterday, Jews were praying for their Messiah to come. Today, they will go to the western wall, the wailing wall, the only thing left of the temple that was destroyed by Titus in Jesus' prophecy in 70 A.D. And there will be Orthodox Jews that will have a prayer, and they will go, and they will rock back and forth with all the energy and the effort and the fervency within them, crying out in their heart for Messiah to come. Because they believe and they know He's the only answer for their nation. I've got good news for you. He's already come. He's going to come again. And you know what? In one sense I will agree they are right. He is the answer. Amen? Hallelujah. They just don't realize He came the first time. They've rejected Him. He's going to come a second time. And He's saying to His people, don't be fooled by those who would claim to be Me. And they're not. As a matter of fact, Jesus is warning these godly Jews during the tribulation period to beware of those that would claim to be Messiah and to underscore the seriousness of His warning. He repeats it. Look over in verse number 22, would you please? for false Christs and false prophets shall rise and shall show signs and wonders to seduce. Do you realize that every sign does not necessarily indicate truth? We live in a day today where people are all the time looking for a sign. They're looking for a wonder. They're looking for something. But do you realize in that day Jesus is saying, listen, not every sign is from God. Not every wonder is from God. The devil can give signs too. That's what he's saying. And notice he goes on to say, he said, they'll show signs and wonders to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect, those who are saved, but take heed, pay attention, I have foretold you all things. That's powerful, isn't it? Religious deception is something that's already present in our world, but the tribulation period will be characterized by mass deception on an unparalleled scale. 1 John 4, 1 talking about our day, the Bible, John saying to believers, he said, beloved, aren't you glad that we're beloved of God? He said, beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God, because many false prophets are gone out into the world. And so even in our own day, God said, don't you listen to everybody that claims to be from God. Try the spirits. Determine whether or not, based on the litmus test of truth, this book called the Bible, whether or not they're really of me. He said, because they've gone out into the world, they're deceiving people. He talks in that same chapter in verse 3 of the spirit of Antichrist that's already present and at work in our world. Not the Antichrist, but the spirit of Antichrist that's leading the world up to the revelation of the Antichrist. It's already at work. It's not a sign. John said it's already at work. It was at work in John's day. That same Spirit's at work in our day. If it was at work in John's day, just imagine how much more it's at work in our day. 2 Timothy 3.13, But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. So there's always been deceivers and people have always been deceived. But as we draw nearer to these end-time events spoken of by the Lord Jesus, false teachers and religious deception will become more and more prevalent until it reaches epidemic proportions during the tribulation period, that seven years of wrath poured out on the earth. Once the church, the church saints are taken out of the world at the rapture, the Holy Spirit's restraining power is removed. Deceivers will be more powerful and persuasive than they've ever been. People living in that awful time will be more gullible than they've ever been before. Think about it. As the frightening events of the tribulation worsen, these false Christs and false messiahs, with their religious deception, will seize on the opportunity as the world seemingly is disintegrating around them, offering answers and ways of escape from the world. And multitudes will look to these religious hucksters for deliverance, only to be damned by their lies. The first sign of the second coming is mass deception that will culminate in the coming of the Antichrist, the master deceiver. Hold your place. Would you do that? I want you to turn to II Thessalonians chapter 2. Here the Apostle Paul is going to echo some of the things that the Lord Jesus says and give a fuller revelation as it relates to the person of the Antichrist. We will meet him a little bit later on in the Lord Jesus' prophecy. Look at II Thessalonians chapter 2. I want you to find verse number 7. If you can't find that, it's okay. Just jot it down. You can look it up later. Notice the Bible says, II Thessalonians 2 verse 7, For the mystery of iniquity doth already work." Paul says it's already at work in our world. That is Satan's master plan of wickedness and sin and deception that will bring about his son, the Antichrist, in the last days. It's already at work. Only he who now letteth, restrains, will let, will restrain until he be taken out of the way. We know that to be the Holy Spirit who exercises His restraining work through God's people in this age of grace. Can I just tell you it's bad, but it's not as bad as it could be. If it weren't for the influence of Christians and the restraining work of the Holy Spirit, our world would be more terrible than you and I could even imagine. But one day it's going to be removed and the flood tide of sin will be unleashed on the world. Look at verse number 8, "...and then shall that wicked..." Did you notice that's capitalized? "...then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming." Look at verse 9, "...even him whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders." Can I tell you for 2,000 years men have rejected the truth and that day they're going to believe the lie. See friend, if you reject the truth you don't have anything left to believe but a lie. That's it. And the lie of the Antichrist will be so believable, his power so deceptive, his charm so persuasive, that Jesus says in Mark 13.22, if it were possible, He would seduce the very elect, those who are saved. Can I tell you the first sign of the second coming is unparalleled deception. Sign number two, unprecedented dissension. Let's go back to Mark 13. Look at verse 7. Mark 13 verse 7, And when ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars, be ye not troubled. For such things must needs be, but the end shall not be yet. Some people have taken that verse and they apply it to our day by saying, well, there's always wars and rumors of wars. You're right, but it's not the right kind of wars, and I'm going to explain that to you. Okay? There's always been war. The first war recorded in the Bible goes all the way back to Genesis 13. There's always been war. There's always been conflict. There's always been violence in a sinful world. But not on the scale that Jesus is talking about. As a matter of fact, Jesus spoke of wars and rumors of wars. Wars and the continual threat of war. The wars of the tribulation period. During that time, armies will be on the march. The threat of war will be on every hand as the darkening clouds of international conflict will continually be gathering on the horizon. Now, hold your place again. Put your hand or a pen right here. Hold your place. We're going to go to Revelation 6. I want you to notice how Revelation 6 overlays Mark 13. When you come to Revelation 6, you're in the tribulation period, the first part of it. You have the four horses of the apocalypse. You have a white horse, a red horse, a black horse, and a pale horse. I want you to notice how they come together with what Jesus is saying. You're in Revelation 6, find verse 1. This is the seven sealed judgments that will mark the first three and a half years of the tribulation period. What Jesus is going to call the beginning of sorrows. And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals." John is seeing future events. He's writing it down under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Lamb is the Lord Jesus. He alone has the authority to open the seals of judgment. And I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder. One of the four beasts saying, this is a living creature saying, come and see. And I saw, and behold a white horse, and he that sat on him had a bow. Did you notice there's something missing? What is it? It's arrows. There's no arrows. He's got a bow. It's a war bow, but there's no arrows. There's no ammunition. And a crown was given unto Him, and He went forth conquering. And to conquer, here is peace through deception. So the white horse is peace through deception. It's the Antichrist's policy of peace coming to power through diplomacy. Let me give you I Thessalonians 5.3. Write it down. I Thessalonians 5.3. For when they shall say, talking about in that day, peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them as trevail upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape, Paul says. Jesus describes this unprecedented time of war and international conflict. Let's look at a red horse. Look at verse number 3. And when He had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast, living creature, say, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red. I remember when my grandfather was alive, and you had the height of communism, which by the way is overtaking our nation. We can stick our heads in the sand if we want to, but it's happening before your eyes. The policies of the current administration are Marxist and Socialist to the core. But that's not what he's talking about here. My grandfather would believe the white horse is democracy, red horse communism because of the red flag. That's not it at all. Look at verse 4. And there went out another horse that was red, and power was given to him that sat thereon, watch this, to take peace from the earth. Peace came to the earth, verse 2, it's taken, you have open war, verse 4, and that they should kill one another. And there was given unto him a great sword. Jesus describes it back in verse 8. Let's go to Mark 13. We're going to come back to Revelation 6 at the end of the message, by the way. Look at verse 8. Here the Lord Jesus describes this unprecedented war. For nation shall rise against nation. That is Germany against France. I'm just giving an illustration. America against Canada. Nation against nation. But He doesn't stop there. and kingdom against kingdom. This is regions of nations. By the way, the Antichrist is going to rule over a ten-nation confederation of western nations. I personally believe that by this time America will be absorbed into the kingdom of the Antichrist. We are a western nation and we will be absorbed into his kingdom, the kingdom of the Antichrist. And you've got the Antichrist and his armies. You've got the armies of the East. You've got the armies of the North. You've got the armies of the South. And so you've got kingdoms in conflict. There have been more wars, it's interesting, since 1900 than all the wars of recorded history before that time combined. World War I, 1914 to 1918, involved a total of 27 nations. 20 million people were killed. It was hailed as the war to end all wars. Fast forward to 1939 and Hitler and World War II to 1939 to 1945. You have 100 million people involved in this conflict, 30 different nations, resulting in 70 to 85 million civilian and military casualties. It was held as the deadliest war in history. They're nothing compared to what Jesus is talking about. These and all the other wars combined in human history are nothing compared to that. As a matter of fact, the wars of the tribulation period will engulf this planet as never before. Wars of the tribulation will involve every nation on the face of the earth, climaxing the horrific battle of all battles at Armageddon. The armies of the world will converge in the valley of Megiddo against Israel. In that modern day country of Israel, there in Megiddo, the blood will flow, a river of blood five feet deep 2,200 miles in length as the armies of the world converge. Jesus says to those alive, be you not troubled. He said these things must needs be. You will see sin and its effects and violence in a way you've never seen it before, but the end shall not be yet. When you see these wars, these rumors of wars, it's not here yet. Don't be troubled. Can I tell you, if Jesus can tell people living in the midst of all of this that they don't have to be filled with fear and worry and anxiety and that they can have peace in their day, can I promise you, you and I can have peace in our day? I just cut the news off. Ignorance is bliss. I read what I need to read. If I sense something I need to listen to, I will. Matter of fact, it's really helped me have more time in my Bible, to be honest with you. I have a whole lot more peace. Because if I listen to this one, and that one, and the other one, I'm all torn up inside. Ulcers, and needing extra medication, and your stomach's up in your throat, and you're torn out of frame. God said, don't be troubled. I'm in control. I'm not saying that you have to give up watching evening news. I'm just saying God said, don't be troubled. I think you'd be better off sometimes if you do. He said, rest in me. He said, all these things are just another necessary step leading up to my coming. Remember, we're talking about the signs of the second coming. First one's unparalleled deception. The next one is unprecedented dissension among nations. Sign number three is unequal devastation. Look at verse number eight again. for nations shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in diverse places, and there shall be famines and troubles. These are the beginning of sorrows." Preacher, I knew it. We're getting there. There's more earthquakes today than there have ever been before. Do you know that's a myth? I used to preach that actually. I would pull stats off the Internet and I'd talk about the frequency and the severity of all these earthquakes. I did a fresh study of that and come to find out that's a myth. There's no more earthquakes today than what there was a hundred years ago or even before. They're not increasing in frequency. There's about the same number every year. And there's always been severe earthquakes and deadly earthquakes. The deadliest happened in our modern era happened on January 12, 2010 in Haiti. Magnitude 7.0, not the strongest one, but the deadliest. Do you know that there was 316,000 people died in that quake? 1.3 million were left homeless. Do you know in Haiti today, Brother Cole who has traveled there will tell you the truth of this, they still live out of doors and they don't want to sleep, many of them, in block houses because they're fearful of another quake and the house will come down on them. They'd rather live in a tent. It was so devastating. You say, preacher, how come I hear them more? Because of 24-7 news cycle. And just 50 years ago or so, there was only 20 measuring stations for earthquakes in the world. Today there's 400. Just like anything else, equipment has gotten better. There were tremors that we know about today And that happened that people don't even feel that because the equipment is so sensitive that it was never registered 50 years ago. See, all that's natural. We live in a fallen, broken world and there are natural disasters that take people's lives. Tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes. They're terrible, but it's part of living in a fallen world. Thank God when Jesus comes He'll fix all that. This is when God at times in human history has supernaturally shook the world. Let me give you some instances. Matthew 27 verse 50 at the death of Jesus on the cross. And Jesus, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the fell of the temple was rent, entwined from the top to the bottom. And the earth did quake, and the rocks rent. That word means violently split. They were pulled or ripped apart as the world convulsed at the death of the Creator. You say, preacher, it's just a coincidence. Well, if it was, then the next one is too, because three days later at the resurrection, there's another one. Matthew 28 verse 2, And behold, there was a great earthquake. For the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came, and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. The earth convulsed supernaturally the first time, because the Creator died. God was saying, listen to the world, My Son has died. My Son has given His life. My Son has paid for sin. Sin did this. He shook the earth at His death. But friend, can I tell you, when He got out of the grave, God wanted the world to know it. He convulsed it and shook it again. And He said, I just want you to know He's alive again. Isn't that powerful? When Jesus comes in end time, God's going to reach down. He's not just going to shake the earth. He's going to shake the heavens. Let me give you some verses in the Old Testament. This is just a smattering. Joel 3 verse 16, The Lord also shall roar out of Zion and utter His voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and earth shall shake, but the Lord will be the hope of His people and the strength of the children of Israel. What a passage of Scripture. Haggai chapter 2 verse 6, For thus saith the Lord of hosts, Yet once it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. Are you holding your place? Are you ready to go to Revelation 6 again? Let's go. I want you to look at chapter 6, verse 12. We're going to come back to those last two horses. Hang with me. We'll get there. Look at verse 12. And I beheld when he had opened... Revelation 6, verse 12. And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal and lo, there was a great... what church? Earthquake. God shook it. And the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood. There's John Hagee's little book, but he forgot the other parts. Verse 13, And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, whence she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together in every mountain. Remember He said He would shake the sea and the dry land, every mountain and island were moved out of their places. It's going to change the topography of the earth. Verse 15, And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, every slave, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains, and rocks fall on us and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of His wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?" Wow! Earthquakes. The shaking of the heavens and the earth will be on such a scale that the inhabitants of the earth will have no doubt what's happening and that the end is near. There won't be any question. Not going to be any wonder. They're saying, hide us from the wrath of the Lamb. Let's go back very quickly to Mark 13. We're going to come back to Revelation 6 and finish up there, but let's look at famines. Look at chapter 13 verse 8. There shall be earthquakes in diverse places, and there shall be famines. Famines. That word literally means hunger or starvation on a global scale, not a geographical, localized scale. Famine follows war just as assuredly as night follows day. If you have earthquakes and war, you're going to have famine. Do you know as of 2016 and on before the ongoing civil war in Sudan and the Darfur region, 4.5 million people face hunger and starvation on a daily basis. Hundreds of thousands have died because of a lack of food and starvation. Every day in our world, 10,000 people die from malnutrition. Millions of people will go to bed hungry tonight because of the scarcity of food. They will. We live in a broken world. Much of what happens in Sudan is not the result of people not getting food. It's the government withholding the food that's sent by nations like America. Oh, there's food there. Don't be fooled by the news. There's food there. Those governments withhold it to destroy the people. Genocide. Sinful men are at work. Don't blame that on God. That's men doing that. Don't you blame God for what men do. Can I tell you, in the tribulation it's not going to be just in Sudan. It'll be in Kenya, and Winston-Salem, and Pilate Mountain, and Shuls. The world will be starving. And then notice this next one. Are you ready? And troubles. Matthew mentions the word pestilences. The troubles are the form of deadly disease, plagues, or global pandemics. Dr. John Cianci, if that's how you say his name. I wish these doctors would have names that humans could pronounce, but anyway. I'll tell you what he says here in just a minute. My greatest fear just happened. Technology. Don't you love it? It's back. Here's what he wrote. Main contributing factor. He wrote this. The main contributing factor to the spread of disease is space age travel. Airliners turn local epidemics into global pandemics. Are we getting familiar? Our global society has given us a global exposure to once isolated problems. He wrote, no country is immune to major outbreaks of plagues and diseases. Disease now travels the world first class in jumbo jets. You know what? That is not a new quote. That quote was taken back in 2006. People sort of looked at me and like, yeah, people don't think that way today. because you just lived through one. And it came to America on a jumbo jet. It didn't fly over the ocean. It was brought here. We know firsthand the danger of global pandemics, don't we? My father-in-law died from it. We lived through the recent COVID-19 outbreak on Lee Stone the world out of a laboratory in Wuhan, China. Probably man-made. We don't know. I believe it will be man-made in the tribulation period and they'll unleash these things. And I don't believe that what men could unleash on the world has been unleashed. Thank the Lord. Aren't you glad? There's no telling what's in laboratories in America and China and Russia and around the world. We have no idea what's in laboratories. Do we? We know of AIDS, Ebola, super strains of viruses and bacteria that are drug-resistant. It's terrible, but it's nothing to be compared to what will be unleashed on the world during the tribulation. God's not going to unleash it. Man will. Turn back with me to Revelation 6. Can you hold your place between two places? Did you notice how these overlay? Have you seen the harmony? Do you see how they go together? Alright, let's look at the next horse, the third horse. Look at verse 5. And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see, and I beheld in low a black horse, this black horse's famine. How do you know that? And he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. Guess what he's going to measure? Verse 6. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts saying, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny. Do you know the wheat and the barley were normal foods in those days. They would make their daily bread from wheat for an average worker, barley the poor. A penny was a day's wages. Here's what he's saying. You will get one meal for a day's work. And if you choose barley, you can get three meals for a day's work. Inflation. and see thou, because the rich will remain rich, and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine." That's not the black crude oil. That's the olive oil of that day. John would know nothing of crude oil. It hadn't even really been used in that day. He's talking about olive oil, luxuries, oil and wine, oil to soothe and comfort the body, wine. The luxuries will keep flowing, but the world will be starving. But then there's going to be another horse, and I want you to see him in verse 7. When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and his name that sat on him was Death. And hell followed with him. Death for the body, hell for the soul. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth to kill with a sword, and with hunger, famine, and with death, pestilence, and with the beasts of the earth. Did you notice he said fourth part? That's a quarter of the earth's population. I calculated that at today's levels and it's growing every day because a man living longer and the birth rate is outpacing the death rate in a large proportion. That means in the first half of the tribulation period nearly one-fourth of the earth's population will be killed either through warfare and violence or famine and starvation or disease. or animals that will begin to go wild. Back in chapter 13 verse 8, you can turn back there if you want to. I can tell you what Jesus says. These are the beginnings of sorrows. Jesus said this is just the beginning. God hadn't even started judging the earth yet. This is Him allowing man to have his will. Isn't that amazing? Until you get to the earthquake and Him shaking the heavens. The first four seals, actually the first five, is what man's doing to himself. But still he won't self-destruct. There's another thousand years left after this seven's over. And that's the kingdom of the Lord Jesus. See, I don't think we realize how wicked men really are. And the viciousness to which they can go. And the world's not... Well, preacher, you have Hitler. Hitler is Mickey Mouse compared to the Antichrist. Because what Hitler did on a local scale is what the Antichrist will do on a world scale. You say, well preacher, that's just in the Bible. Yeah, you're right. It's just in the Bible. I challenge you. Find me another book with predictive prophecy. You won't find it. It doesn't exist. Do you know there's 333 prophecies that relate to the coming of the Lord Jesus? Did you know that? His first coming? Did you know every one of them were fulfilled in perfect accuracy? Do you know any time God ever said something prophetically it happened? Jesus told them of a near happening that would happen called the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. and it happened just as He said it would. Jesus said this, heaven and earth will pass away, but my word will not pass away. What God has said is sure. Now here's the good news. If you're saved, you won't be here. you'll already be in heaven. These folks that want to be mid-trib, that want to live halfway through the tribulation period before the rapture, we call them pre-wrath rapturists, okay? They're out there. You may believe that. Why in the world do you want to live through three and a half years of it, or four, or excuse me, or four? Why not just... You're going to go up at the beginning anyway, alright, if you're saved. But why would you want to? Thank God He's going to take us out before it comes. What peace. But wait a minute, I've got loved ones. Did you know if the Lord came today, they'll face this tomorrow? People I love. There's an urgency to see people saved. There is. You say, well, preacher, what if it doesn't happen in our lifetime? I mean, it's been 2,000 years since the Lord said that. Wouldn't you think we're a little closer today than they were then? I mean, just logically. But what if it is another hundred years? How many of you think you're going to live that long? You're going to die. And where will you be then? You see, there's an eternity at stake. And every person needs to know where they're going to spend eternity. And there's an urgency here that if you know where you're going to spend eternity, to help somebody else know where they're going to spend eternity. It's not just to tickle our fancy. It's not just to tickle our prophetic taste buds and how much we know. It's to motivate us to action in our service for Jesus Christ. Let's bow our heads in prayer. As heads are bowed and eyes are closed, let me ask you a question.