these weekly Bible prophecy updates. And then second service is now the sermon, which is a verse by verse study through the Word of God, where we are making our way through the Bible and have reached the very last book of the Bible, the Book of Revelation. Today, Lord willing, we'll actually complete chapter 12, and our text will be verses 13 through 17 in a sermon that I titled, How God Protects Us from the Enemy. And in it, we're going to look at just three ways. There are many, many more, but just three ways that God provides us with His divine protection. Even though oftentimes we may not even realize that He's doing it, or even how he's doing it. So that'll be live streamed at 11 15 a.m. Hawaii time for those of you online. And for those of you that are watching by way of YouTube or Facebook, we really encourage you to go to the website directly at JDFarag.org. And with that, let's get right to it. I'd like to pose this question of Is Bible prophecy exciting to you, terrifying for you, or neither? Let me explain. Over the years, I've sort of narrowed it down to basically these three responses when it comes to current events, and how it is that they comport with Bible prophecy. Of course, I've always loved Bible prophecy, been a student of Bible prophecy, but I've kind of, you'll forgive me, categorized it, for lack of a better way of saying it, into these three categories. Either people are excited or they're terrified, or neither. So that's what I want to talk with you about today. Now, if you're asking why this rises to the level of devoting an entire update to it, my answer would be that, and I want you to think about this, one's response to this question that I just posed has profound implications both now and more importantly for all eternity. Namely, due to the fact that the swiftness with which Bible prophecy is being fulfilled leaves no doubt, not just a reasonable doubt, no doubt that we are truly living in the last hour. Now, if one finds themselves getting very exciting as we witness the unfolding and fulfilling of Bible prophecy, then as some of you I'm sure know, that could be a game changer, even a life changer. And this for no less than two reasons, one of which is that The pain and the suffering of this life can be seen through the lens of eternal life. I hope you don't tire of me saying this, but when you know that you have eternity to look forward to, it makes whatever you're going through easier to get through. The second reason is that our excitement can be both curious and contagious, which in turn may open up a door to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, who desperately needs the Lord and is even seeking the Lord. However, conversely, if one finds themselves terrified, by Bible prophecy and everything that's happening in the world today, it can actually serve as a much needed divine warning. And this also for no less than two reasons. The first of which is that, and I want you again to think about this, it may be an indication that one isn't right with the Lord. nor ready for the return of the Lord. Secondly, being terrified, which I would venture to say, and I think you would agree with me, describes the vast majority of the world's population today, can actually have the opposite effect. God, as only He can, may choose and use the terrifying nature of Bible prophecy. And sometimes it can be so terrifying to cause them to seek out a Christian friend. I hope you and I come to mind when that happens. And again, think about this. And I, I'm sorry, I'm repeating myself. I'm having flashbacks from elementary school, and my teacher would always say, put your thinking caps on. And whenever she would, she would look right at me and say it. And she was right. You know, in other words, don't let your mind wander. I want you to really think about this and think through this with me. shouldn't, I'm going to frame it in a question, shouldn't now more than ever, with everything that's happening in the world today, shouldn't Christians stand out? I mean, just by virtue of how excited we get, which freaks them out. I mean, they're seeing the same thing we're seeing. Many of them, depending on the algorithms, have the same news feeds that we have. And their response is the polar opposite, the antithesis of our response. It leaves us excited. It leaves them terrified. What's up with that? That's an opportunity. And again, I hope that You and I come to mind when that happens, and I hope that you and I stand out when that happens. It's this third response of Bible prophecy being neither exciting nor terrifying that should be most concerning. And the reason being is it may indicate that There's no stirring in one's heart, which in turn may mean that the individual's eyes have been blinded and their hearts have been hardened. If you know someone like this, never ever give up on them because there's always hope for them. that the Holy Spirit will give them eyes to see that everything in the world was foretold in the Word. Would you kindly allow me to share with you a comment we received early this morning it was really interesting. I, of course, get up early on Sunday mornings. I don't usually do this, but I just had this prompting. I know it was the Holy Spirit now, but just this prompting, just, just check YouTube comments, which I don't usually do or try not to. And, but it was so strong, I was propelled to, and I'm so glad I did, because there was this comment early this morning from Fabro family 7038. Listen to what they wrote. Hey, I'm one of them. Saved December 2020, when my neighbor said, get this, all of this is in the Bible, you know. I had a nurse say something about, we're not given a spirit of fear. And I, and I heard others and was like, what do these Christians know? And this is all in caps. And then they end with this, which is kind of moving Please pray for the salvation of my three Children, Cole, Miles and Madison. God's favor on you all. We're going to add them to our prayer list for our prayer meeting Tuesday night. But Lord, please, for Cole, Miles and Madison, would You bring them to a saving knowledge of You, we pray in Jesus' name. So after that comment, as you might imagine, I was a a little bit, well, it was very affirming and confirming. But as I continued to prepare for today's update, it just kind of hit me that this is the common denominator with all three responses, in the sense that all three of them should propel us, myself included, to get Jesus to people and people to Jesus, as many as we can, as fast as we can. But here's the problem. We have a problem. You know what the problem is? It's ironic, actually. The problem is that most Christians are terrified to share their faith with people who themselves are terrified. How's that one? Question, where do you think that comes from? Come on, Clearly it's a spirit of fear, not from God, because the Holy Spirit does not give us fear, but love, and power, and a sound and disciplined mind. And by the way, disciplined mind is a better translation from the original, because it carries with it the idea of disciplining your mind. You know your mind needs to get disciplined. When was the last time you gave it a good spanking? You need to be careful with what you allow into your mind. You're so careful about what you allow into your body. Notice I didn't include myself in that. You need to take every thought captive into the obedience of Christ. Don't let that in. Listen, you could be rest assured on the authority of God's Word that if it produces fear in you, it's not God. It's the enemy who puts that fear in your heart when it comes to sharing Jesus with somebody. It's the number one fear. I think it ranks right up there with public speaking. I think some people would rather have a root canal without novocaine. What are you afraid of? I'm afraid they're going to say no or reject me or unfriend me on social media. Really? This is why I think it's incumbent upon me to seize the opportunity with this update, as Paul would write to the Ephesians, and equip you, the saints, for the work of the ministry. You know that sometimes more ministry and evangelism takes place between you and you. I should be careful who I point to. than does from pulpit to pew. And Bible prophecy is arguably one of the most powerful tools in our toolbox of evangelism, especially now, given everything that's happening in the world today. You don't think people have questions? Who are they going to ask? Why is Bible prophecy so powerful as an evangelical tool to witness and share the gospel with people? Well, one reason is that Bible prophecy brings to the forefront what I'll call the fragile of the temporal and the reality of eternity. Because see what happens is, and Christians are just as guilty as non Christians when it comes to this. We get settled down, settled in. We dig our roots down too deep in the temporal soil of this earth, this world, not our home. And we just go on our daily lives caught up, no pun intended, in the cares and the affairs of our busy and stressful lives, giving no consideration to the reality of eternity. And might I add the nearness of eternity. And do you know how many souls have been won to Christ using this tool. You know why that is? The first prophecy in the Bible is also the first mention of the gospel in the Bible. You know what I'm referring to? Because we've talked about it before. Genesis 3 15, referred to as the proto evangelical, a word that makes me sound smarter than I am. It's an evangelistic prototype or foreshadowing of the coming Savior of the world. It's the gospel packaged with prophecy. Wow. Let me read it. It's the curse now being pronounced to the serpent in the garden. The first three chapters basically can be summed up this way, the creation of man, the fall of man, and the curse on man. And when you get chapter three, the curse is pronounced on the man, sweat of his brow, on the woman, the travailing and labor. And now it's the serpent's turn. And listen to what God says to the serpent. I will put enmity between you and the woman. Who's the woman? We're learning that in Revelation. Israel, Israel. And between your seed, the serpent seed, and her seed. Wait, stop. Women don't have seeds, they have eggs. The men have the seeds that fertilize the eggs. That's the virgin birth. That's a prophecy packaged with the gospel, the good news of the Savior of the world coming by way of the virgin birth. And it even gets better. He shall crush your head. That's the resurrection. And you shall strike his heel. That's the crucifixion. All in one verse. The first prophecy in the Bible, in the first mention of the gospel in the Bible, packaged together as one. Now the question becomes one of why it's so important to win souls to Jesus Christ. And the answer is twofold. First, they are all we're going to take with us to heaven. You know that, right? You're not taking anything with you. I love how the late Larry Burkett used to say it. I've yet to see a hearse towing a U-Haul. I'll give you a moment on that. I know it's early. You can't take it with you, but you can send it ahead. You know, the only thing that we take with us those treasures that we have stored up in heaven for us, are those people that we played a role in them coming to Christ. Now, and I think this is the biggest barrier to Christians sharing their faith. They think they have to close the deal. You don't have to close the deal. I know you, I know for me, I'll just speak for myself, early on in my Christian walk, I would see people and it's like, you know, someone would walk by them and then look at them and then say to them, what must I do to be saved? I'm like, that never happens to me. I think the greatest barrier is that we think that we've got to close the deal. You'll forgive the crass comparison, but like we failed. If they don't, you know, say, what must I do to be saved? And, you know, fall on their face before you and come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ in a dramatic way. Like, you know, I failed. No, you may have just been there to plant the seed. or you may have been put in their path and there's in your path just to water the seed that somebody else planted. Now, if God should profoundly privilege you with the opportunity to harvest that soul, win that soul to Christ, there is no high like that high. And that's coming from somebody, I'm not proud of this, who used to be a drug dealer before coming to Christ. And I mean, I was high all of my high school years. There is no high like the high of bringing somebody to the most high. So that's the first of two reasons. There are more, but they're all we're going to bring to heaven with us. As C. T. Studd famously said, soon one life will be past, only that which was done for Christ will last. But there's a second reason, and it's very subtle and so easily missed at first read and found in, of all places, an obscure verse in the Book of Proverbs. Proverbs 11 30. Listen to this. The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise. Let me rephrase that. It would be wise if you won people to Christ. Why? Because that's all that matters in the end. And when we're in glory, all those people that we had an impact on, maybe had the profound privilege to lead to Jesus Christ, Again, I'll say one last time. Think about this. There, I just committed. I can't say it again. So think about this. We live maybe 70, 80, 90. I like to keep pushing the number up the older I get. Let's just say we live to be 100. This is just hypothetical. Do you realize that our life span of 100 years will determine what our eternal life will be forever. Not that there's going to be regret in heaven. It's just that now is the time and we have that opportunity to store up for ourselves treasures in heaven. We're not talking about material things. What are we going to do with a car in heaven? Well, Pastor, the roads are made of gold. Okay, whatever. That's actually a pretty good answer, but nice try. No need, no need. Okay, be that as it may, we have another problem. Boy, Pastor, you've got a lot of problems today. You have no idea. But this is a problem that has to be addressed, and it's that people think not only that they have to again close the deal, but they think that, well, I have to be a pastor or an evangelist or a Bible scholar. No, you don't. In fact, the truth of the matter is, in some cases, it's better that you're not. What do you mean? Because you can reach people that pastors like myself cannot. When I share my faith, which on Monday the Lord presented me with an opportunity to do, just this last Monday. Oh man, it was the highlight of my week. I don't usually like them to know, at least initially, that I'm a pastor, because as soon as they know I'm a pastor, the whole complexion of the conversation changes. Oh, and I've just by default as a pastor created a chasm, because now I'm the clergy, you the mere laity. You see what I'm saying? See, you can reach co-workers that I cannot, because you're their co-worker. I am not. See, as soon as people find out, and then even when I do finally have to, you know, full disclosure. What do you do for a living? I'm a pastor. What? What do you do? I'm a pastor. I'm sorry. And all of a sudden now it's, and it's the world has done this, and I think the church has been complicit in this, in putting the office of the pastor on a pedestal on which it does not belong. And you know my heart when it comes to this, for those of you that have been coming to this church, for any length of period of time. There's a distancing between the pastor and the people. Whereas you're working with these guys, these people. You're going over to their home for a barbecue. They're coming over to your home for a barbecue. And you're on a level playing field. I'm working from a disadvantage. Oh, come on, Pastor. You've got a huge platform. You know how people come to Christ? One at a time. One at a time. Here's where I'm going with this, and what I'm hoping to accomplish with this. I'm hoping to encourage you to have a holy boldness and a sanctified strength in sharing the gospel. I heard one use this comparison and it stuck with me. I'll never forget it. Here you are with the cure to a terminal disease and you don't want to share it with anybody. What's the disease? Sin. We have the cure for sin. Would you mind if I, I'll be brief, just offer three simple suggestions. just kind of encourage you with that boldness and that power of the Holy Spirit. In the book of Acts, five times when hands are laid on someone, it's not evidenced by the speaking in tongues. It's evidence to a man by boldness. When somebody is baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit, the evidence of it is boldness. a sanctified boldness, the opposite of shyness. You know, I know some people, our temperaments are very different. Oh my goodness, are they? Some of us are just by nature, you know, shy and bashful and quiet. And I'm definitely not the strong silent type. I mean, but don't be belligerent, but be bold because you have the cure. you have the answer. So I just want to share three simple suggestions, the first of which is by using current world events, which many are asking very good questions about right now. Maybe you've been asked about some of these questions, like Wasn't there something in the Bible about what's happening in Israel right now? Oh, am I so glad you asked. Suggestion number one, without going into specifics, you can ask like we just read. Did you know that what's now happening in the world, particularly in Israel, is in the Bible? Now, when you do that, what will likely happen is you'll be able to take their spiritual temperature, as it were, in order to discern what their level of interest is. Now, some people, they're going to let you know right out of the chute, right off the bat. Don't you just love those metaphors? I ran out just with those two, but you can fill in the blanks. But they'll let you know. I'll never forget many, many years ago, when I worked for Mercedes Benz, I took one of my buyers, who became a very good friend, out to lunch. And I had it all planned out. I was praying, Oh God, give me an opportunity because he needs the Lord. He's got a lot of money, but it doesn't mean anything. It's harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than it is for a camel to go through, I have a needle. So I knew I had my work cut out for me, and I had to be prudent and precise, especially with this guy, very sharp guy. So we're sitting there eating lunch, and I thought, okay, I'm going to try, just kind of eased into it, walked into it, don't run into it, just walk into it, take his temperature a little bit. And boom, he shut me down. He said, is that why you brought me to lunch? I said, no, no. It's not why. It was. But then he proceeded to tell me a heartbreaking story about growing up in a Christian home with legalistic parents. And he said, I just, I'm sorry, JD. I love you, man. I don't want to hear about it. And I respected that. So you've got to discern and kind of see where they're at, what their level of interest is, and discern whether or not they want to know more. And if they want to know more, then you have to be at the ready to show them Scripture, preferably from your Bible. or Bible app. I have to add Bible app now. Why? Because the world, and it's the opposite, Jesus said, believe and you will see. But the world says seeing is believing. So one day I'm in the car and I'm with one of my wholesalers who happened to be a gypsy, an outcast, the last, the least And I'm just, I'm sharing the Lord with him. I always kept my Bible in my pocket on the driver's side door. And I'm just going on and on quoting Scripture. He's going, he goes, pull over. I'm like, what? What did I say? Pull over. Okay. So pull over. He said, show me in your Bible. Hulk, good thing I knew where to go. So I pull that thing out, the sword of the Spirit, and I point to it and showed him in the Bible. Do you know, his name is Ronnie. He's walking with the Lord today. He loves the Lord. His son came to Christ. I was there when his son was born. You never know. You never know. But he wanted to see it in the Bible. not just hear me say it's in the Bible. No. And you have to understand this guy and his personality, great guy, great friend. So, okay, so if I'm to be at the ready, because I know what happens, and I've shared this with you before the first time when, you know, I was kind of like to talk about being a man of faith. You wouldn't be interested in knowing about the Lord, would you? And then they go, actually, I would. I'm glad you asked. Can you show me in the Scripture where I'm like, what do I do now? No, you need to be prepared. Rightly dividing the Word of truth. Study to show yourself a workman. It takes work. You need to do the work, put the work into it. know how to divide the Scripture, know where everything is at in the Scripture, so you won't be embarrassed or ashamed when somebody asks you about the Scripture. So, man, these Bible apps on your devices, they're, you can, we didn't have that back in our day, I'll tell you. We have to know, we have to turn the page and write it down and make notes. You guys just go search. That is not fair. But anyway, use your app, search it up. I want to give you quickly an abbreviated list of recommended prophecies. These are the biggies. These are in play today. And I want to start off with just one verse in a well known prophecy found in Ezekiel 38, because you could turn on your TV and watch a news channel, and this is happening now. It's beginning to come to pass now. Five years ago, I've been at this for a while, five years ago, I could not have stood behind this pulpit, as is my privilege to, and said what I'm about to say to you today. And whenever I did teach Ezekiel 38, and particularly verse 13, I would always say at some point, Saudi Arabia will have good foreign relations with Israel. The response I would get, no way, way. It's called the Abraham Accords, and it's all over the news if you haven't noticed. And they're about to sign this normalization agreement with Israel. 2,600 years ago. The prophet Ezekiel prophesied that Saudi Arabia, then known as Sheba and Dedan, the ancient name for the Arabian Peninsula, would protest this invasion of Israel, which is the next one you can take him to. This is happening now. A well known prophecy in Ezekiel 38-39 about an allied invasion from the north, Syria, into Israel with Russia, Iran and Turkey at the helm. Do you know where Russia, Iran and Turkey are right now? In the north, in Syria. Happening now. Daniel 9-27. Now be careful with this one because it is a very detailed prophecy and you better know what you're talking about if you go here, because this is that prophecy about a seven year peace agreement that's enforced, sweetened. We need to sweeten the deal, make it stronger, better, sweeter. If you'll agree to a two state solution, we'll let you rebuild your temple. Let's sweeten the deal. Oh, you will? Where do we sign? Now, in the original language of the Hebrew Old Testament, it's the same word in my native tongue of Arabic. It's the word ikhbir, meaning to make stronger, enforce, sweeter, better, spectacular, greater. And then it's with the many, which is an idiom referring to Israel. taken to Zechariah 12 verses one through three, just the first three verses. This is a prophecy about the world's intoxicating obsession with dividing Israel, but mainly Jerusalem, the burdensome boundary stones that they want to try to move and divide. I know I said this last week. I'm going to say it again this week. What is the two state solution if it's not a dividing in two. Jerusalem, God's land. Again, 2600 plus years ago, the prophet Zechariah prophesied that the whole world, every nation on earth would be intoxicated and obsessed with dividing Jerusalem. We call it and know it as the two state solution where they take the boundary stones. See, this is before Google Map, where you knew the boundaries. So they would mark the boundaries with heavy stones. It's a burdensome boundary stone that you're trying to move, and you're cutting it up in two. And if you cut it up, I'm going to cut you up. How about that? I will cut you up in pieces. Take them to First Thessalonians 5.3. This is an interesting one. This prophecy is about all the geopolitical maneuvering and posturing coming under the banner of the entire world. And I mean entire world. This is not hyperbole saying two specific words. You know what they are? Peace and security. Go to the UN. They have a peace and security website. You can't hear a speech given anywhere at any time without hearing those two specific words, peace and security. And interesting, it's usually in the context of the two state solution with the Jews and the Palestinians living side by side together in peace and security. Exactly as we were told. Taking the Matthew 24, this will get them. We're not trying to get them, by the way. It's not like that. I didn't mean like that. Let me try that again. Give me a do over. This will pique their interest. Isn't that much more pastoral? Jesus himself in Matthew 24 verses 4 through 8 particularly prophesied that at the time of the end there would be wars, famines, plagues and earthquakes, which at first read you're like, there's always been wars, famines, plagues and earthquakes. No, wait, he qualifies it. He says all of these things, wars, famines, nation rising against nation, kingdom against kingdom, ethnic group against, uprising against ethnic group in the original language, earthquakes, famines, pestilence, plagues, all the above. What will mark the last days, the time of the end, won't be that there will be these things. but that they will increase like labor pains in frequency and intensity. Earthquakes alone, large earthquakes in diverse places. This is a very interesting detail in the prophecy, by the way. Don't read past or fast when you get to that. When Jesus says there will be earthquakes in diverse places, different places, places that don't normally have great earthquakes. The USGS finally got busted. Thank God. I remember 20 years ago being taken to task and challenged on this. Well, the USGS data doesn't show any increase. And they finally got busted. They were, they were cooking the books. They were hiding the data. That should come as no surprise. We've been seeing that for how many years now? As it turns out, here's the chart, and it's been documented now. I love it. They got busted. You can't get away with it. Listen, if God said it, that settles it. Here's the chart, earthquakes, from just the last century, 1900 to now, off the charts. Jesus said that's exactly what's going to happen. Revelation 13 verses 16 and 17. This is the prophecy. I mean, if you don't do any of the others, go here, because everybody knows about this one. This is the, I don't know if I should say famous or infamous, Mark of the Beast prophecy. Don't, you don't have to get into that part. Just 16 and 17. Don't get to 18. No need. Because then this, we'll talk about that more. You're going to get derailed. Okay, just stay on message. This is the prophecy describing a digital economy, CBDCs, centralized bank digital currency. We'll talk about that in a moment. But what's so fascinating about this particular prophecy is that the biotechnology is already in place right now, and people don't even realize it. Palm pay, where you pay with your palm. I refuse to do that. I just want you to know that. That's the forehead. Or, okay, you don't want to peel your palm slash forehead? Okay, we'll just do facial recognition. That's your forehead. So whenever I walk through a facial recognition thing, I just go. How about that? Try to recognize that look. Um, this was brought to my attention. Do you know that today's application process for a passport bans you from smiling now? Gone are the days where say cheese. No, don't say cheese now. In fact, don't smile at all. We don't want to see your dental work. There's a ban on smiling in your photo. Why? Because it alters and interferes with facial recognition already implanted on a chip embedded within the passports. Pictured here's a screenshot from an August 12th Huffington Post article in which they attempt to explain it away in an article titled, Oh, so that's why you can't smile in your passport photo, making light of it. A couple of quick quotes. Listen, The main reason for banning smiling is the introduction of facial recognition software at airports and other border control checkpoints. Well, right there. That doesn't sound good right there. We haven't even got into the article. To compare a 3D face with a 2D passport photo, they need to pinpoint and measure the user's facial features. and includes the distance between the pupils, ears, nose and mouth, the mouth and the eyes width, and many others. Smiling can make it harder as it alters facial proportions. And get this, it's not just the U.S. Avoiding smiling in passport photos is a universal rule. for most countries. You know, John the Revelator, the year 95 A.D. approximately, well my 2000 years ago said, at the time of the end, they will have technology that they will use to force everybody to have something in their forehand or forehead to identify and verify, authenticate. Kind of getting ahead of myself. Let's keep moving. Suggestion number two, if the person seems to be hurting and struggling, and by the way, many are, just ask them if there's anything you can pray for them about. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that you might be the only one who's shown them so much care that you would ask them about prayer. In fact, be prepared for them being taken back a little bit by it. And again, be at the ready with Scriptures. You know, maybe carry around a booklet, not a novel, not a volume, you know, Just have something, you know, a little Bible promises booklet. And have at the ready promises like John 16, 33, where Jesus said in this world you will have trials and troubles and problems and tribulations, but cheer up, be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world. In other words, you're not alone. We live in a fallen world, but be of good cheer. Suggestion number three, ideally, this is the ideal, is to have the individual actually be the one to open the door by asking you the question. And if that happens, boy, you better be ready. In other words, don't be surprised, just be ready. And graciously, not argumentatively, I have yet to ever argue anyone into the kingdom, and I've never heard of anybody being argued into the kingdom. Okay, yeah, you're right, you win. You've been arguing for an hour and a half, yelling at each other. Okay, you win. I'll get saved. Never had that happen before. No, it's the Holy Spirit that leads the person to salvation. You're not going to argue. You just got to get out of the Holy Spirit's way. Now, they might ask you a question. You need to be ready to give them an answer. But you also need to discern whether or not they're looking for an answer, or are they looking for an argument? Because I've found in my experience that They're not really looking for an answer. They're looking for an argument. And the Holy Spirit will give you the discernment, hopefully sooner rather than later. So you're not, you know, getting into it. Don't waste your time. Shake the sand off your slippers and move on. 1 Peter 3 verse 15, the apostle writes by the Spirit, But in your heart set apart Christ as Lord. And then he says this, Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect. Now, this verse is troubling in many respects, because if nobody's asking me about the hope that I have in me, could it be that I don't have any hope in me? And they're going to ask somebody who does? We're a peculiar people. And it's peculiar to people when they see peculiar people like us who get excited. Everybody around them is hopeless. You've got hope. I want me some of that. What's your secret? And so they're going to ask you, why are you different than everybody else? Because I'm looking, all my friends are freaking out, man. They don't know what to do. I look at you and you're not freaking out, you're looking up. By the way, you ever do that? You just look up at an intersection, everybody else looks up. What are you looking at? Oh, I'm just waiting for Jesus. Because He said, look up, lift up your head when you see things begin to come to pass, because your redemption draws nigh. That alone is a good conversation starter. Try it sometime. You might be surprised. You're winning somebody to Christ right at an intersection. What would prompt them to ask? Because they see something different about you. And be prepared, because if they do ask you, that means that there's something about you that they want to ask you about. What is it? You seem to be hopeful when everybody else is hopeless. It's this last part, and I don't want to belabor it, but I think it's very important. And I am preaching to myself here. I think we're rude sometimes when we're sharing the Gospel. You know, kindness, you know, the Proverbs says a soft answer turns away wrath. Again, I'm preaching to myself, man. Gentleness, kindness, be respectful. Be considerate. You know, the Proverbs also says that it's a soft word, a gentle word will break a bone. You know, when you whisper, you get people's attention. They listen more intently. Remember, I think it was a shampoo commercial that was going to date me. I was only five. But it was, hey, you want to get somebody's attention? Whisper. That was an actual commercial. You know, everybody's up to the TV going, what, what, what, what? If you're yelling at them, arguing with them, you're going to create the very thing that you're wanting to avoid. Well, sometimes I think we are bad advertisement for the Lord, because we're ambassadors of Christ, right? Representing Christ, preaching Christ and Him crucified. Also, and this is really important, be aware of the spiritual warfare that will be present there in your conversations with people when you're sharing the gospel. Because that's the last thing the enemy wants you doing. And here's what that will look like. All of a sudden you start off good, then all of a sudden fear sets in. That's the enemy. Or, and this is more common, the conversation goes on a tangent and off the rails. And now all of a sudden you're talking about why is the sky blue? Get back to Jesus. Stay on track. Don't let them do that to you. That's the enemy trying to derail you. Get the discussion back. Steer it back to the essential, not the inconsequential. Keep the main thing the main thing. There's actually one more suggestion that I want to offer concerning what's become the forbidden topic surrounding what happened back in 2020. But we're going to have to end the live stream in order to do that at this time. Now, when you set out to share Jesus with people, COVID-19, the so-called vaccine is likely to eventually come up. And you need to be ready for that. If it does, once again, it will require keen spiritual discernment. But always, always, always give the Holy Spirit the elbow room before you attempt to address it. This is where you have to be very sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. don't pull back or freeze up. Rather, just ask the Lord like Nehemiah in that moment to give you a word fitly spoken, and that the words He gives you to speak will be seasoned with grace. Because sometimes it's not what we say, it's how we say what we say. And this, for what I think would be deemed obvious reasons, given the demonic division that this has already caused, and sadly seems to continue to cause. Boy, you, by the way, I hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving. Was this brought up at the Thanksgiving table? Probably not. That's because I didn't even come over for Thanksgiving this year because of it. Maybe, I don't know. It's so divisive. Now, if the Holy Spirit prompts you to, you may wish to point them to Revelation 18, 23, which is a prophecy about the falling of Babylon, and explain to them that the English word for sorcery is in the original language of the Greek New Testament, pharmakeia, where we get pharmaceutical or pharmacy or pharma. And it's in the context of this deceitful pharmaceutical deceiving all the nations on earth. That's Revelation 18 23. But again, use extreme caution. And if you go there, don't get too technical, unless, of course, the Holy Spirit directs you to. But your Key objective is to answer the questions they're asking. Don't answer questions they're not asking. And as the Spirit leads, and this is what I found to be the most powerful, and this is what I did on Monday. I didn't pull out all my, you know, like my PowerPoint files. You know what I did? Two young guys doing a repair in our home. I just share with them my own testimony, how I came to Christ. How simple is that? And they were very interested. And then they asked me what I did. I said, would you look at the time? No. But see, I'd already shared with them about how the Lord got a hold of me. When I was 19 years old, and I never, never looked back. And one of the guys goes, man, that's awesome. I thought, cool. That was easy. That was almost too easy. I'm getting ready. Revelation 18, Matthew 24, Ezekiel 38. No, just share your testimony. You and I finding is that people are really interested in your testimony. One last thing. We're almost done. It has to do with this recent Economist magazine cover titled The World Ahead 2025. Now, The Economist has been prophetically predictive for decades now, specific to their annual issue, The World Ahead. And it's evidence by how it's proven to be eerily accurate concerning what would actually come in the year ahead. And I truly believe this is due to what they already know, and worse, have already planned well in advance. This is the most recent one. You'll notice I've circled a few depictions, chief of which is the centrality of Trump, who's right smack in the middle, close in proximity to a syringe and a nuclear missile. among other very noteworthy depictions, all of which have prophetic significance. There are those that go very deep into this. I'm not going to do that. For the benefit of the skeptics, who may be prone to dismiss a magazine cover of all things. I mean, my goodness, Pastor Jerry, did you get enough sleep this last week? You're showing us magazine covers. Well, pictured here is the Economist magazine cover bearing the title of Get Ready for a World Currency. Now, what if I told you that this was from 1988. I'm looking around, some of you weren't even born yet. 36 years ago, that's the year my wife and I got married. And they have a magazine cover with Bitcoin on it, which by the way is at record highs now. You know what's even more interesting? In the middle is a phoenix rising out of the ashes, bringing new world order out of chaos. Look at the back of your $1 bill. Not now. I'm not done yet. Fast forward, well nigh, four years ago, with this economist cover titled GovCoins, the digital currencies that will transform finance. Okay, Pastor, why are you pointing this out? And what in the world does any of this have to do with COVID-19 and the so-called vaccine? I'm so glad you asked. According to the 13th chapter of Revelation, during the seven-year tribulation, the world's population will again be forced into a universal basic income, UBI, vis-a-vis a centralized bank digital currency, CBDC, exactly as we're told it would. Here again, the technology, which is what's described in the book of Revelation. And by the way, this is an argument, a valid argument for those who say, ah, we got plenty of time. Actually, if you go too far out, you exceed the technology as fast as it is advancing I mean, just the mere mention of AI should send chills up and down our spiritual spines. The technology, the better said biotechnology described in Bible prophecy is that of today. You go out too far, you exceed what's described as being the technology at the time of the end. Artificial intelligence to me is satanic intelligence that's downloaded to humans in exchange for their souls, with the same lie in the garden that you can live forever. We're just going to upload your conscious into the cloud and you'll have eternal life. Did you know that? You think man came up with blockchain technology? I had my son try to explain it to me in the very simplest of terms. And here's what he said. All blockchain technology is so complex, but all it really is at the end of the day is a verification system to verify. So if the transaction, whatever it is, is verified, it completes the block, the block is added to the chain, blockchain. So check this out. The technology is in place and One's ability to buy and sell will be predicated upon the authentication and validation of their social credit score and or their carbon credit score. And if you're not in compliance, they will suspend not your social media account, your bank account. Why? Because it's centralized now and they have control. So have a nice afternoon. Let me bring it in for a landing. Make no mistake about it. People are asking questions about this, and we, by the grace of God, can answer them from the Word of God. Sadly, absent the answer from God's Word, many remain terrified knowing the bad news of what's coming, when instead they need to know the good news of who's coming. See, it's not what's coming, it's who's coming. And prophecy tells us what's coming, so we'll have a gauge to know how close we are to who's coming. Jesus, His name is Jesus, the only name given among men, whereby we must be saved, the name above all names, Jesus. That's who's coming, and you need Him. Thank you for that one person who clapped. That's my cue to bring it in for a close, and I will. At the beginning, I mentioned and shared about being able to share my faith on Monday with just simply sharing my testimony. And if you got nothing out of today's update, will you please take this home with you? It can be just as simple as sharing your testimony with somebody. In fact, I would encourage you to pray that God brings somebody into your path I hope He doesn't make something break down in your house so you have to have a repairman come out. You know, pray specifically that God will present the opportunity for you just to share your testimony with somebody. I share this with you as an encouragement to you, hoping that the Holy Spirit leads you to just start out that way. This is, this is, this is what the Lord did. I mean, and I was the last person you would ever thank. Well, I think you'll agree with this when I say this. If there was ever a time to share the gospel, that time is now. And I want to explain one way as to how, by way of the ABCs of salvation. I'll be brief, but this is a very childlike, simple explanation of how people come to salvation. Not a formula. Please don't use it like that. It starts when the individual admits and acknowledges that they've sinned and they've broken and transgressed the law of God. How? By looking in the perfect mirror of God's law to see that they've broken the law. Now that they realize they're a lawbreaker and a sinner, they need a Savior. Because see, the average person you talk with and share the gospel with will say, well, I'm a good person. Romans 3 10 says, no, you're not. There's no one good, no one righteous, not even one. And Romans 3 23 tells us why, because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. We were all born sinners, which is why we must be born again to enter the kingdom of heaven. Romans 6 23 is the bad news first, then the good news. It's like a preparation. Because see, if I've broken the law, that means I've got to plead guilty. I'm guilty as charged, and that means I'm going to be sentenced. What's the sentence? Oh, it's the death sentence, for the wages of sin is death. That's the bad news. Now I'm readied and steadied for the good news. What's the good news? The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. You see how that works? Notice the contrast between wages that you earn and gift that you receive. Who paid for that gift? Jesus did. What did it cost Him? Everything, His life. He purchased you. You were not your own. You were purchased with the price. He purchased the gift of eternal life, and He offers it to you. There's nothing you can do. It's just a gift to receive. And that's the good news. And that's what the word gospel means. Good news. Your debt has been paid. You're free to go. And who the Son has set free is free indeed. Now, once you get to that point, and this is so central. In fact, it's simpler than ABC. It's as simple as B. Just believe. for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever would believe. And this isn't just a, well, I believe in God. No, it's you're putting your trust in, believing in the person of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. You are standing before Him, putting your trust in Him, believing on Him, not in your own righteousness, His imputed righteousness. And this brings us to the C, which is for call or confess, as Romans 10, 9 says, but call upon the name of the Lord. And Romans 10, 13 says all who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. You see the progression, the admission, guilty. What's your plea? Guilty as charged. What's the sentence? The death sentence. Jesus carried out this death sentence in your stead with His blood shed. Good news. And now you put your trust in Him and you call upon Him. Because if you believe in Him in your heart, then out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. If Jesus is in your heart, what's coming out of your mouth? Jesus, Lord. Jesus is Lord. Well, I have a very intense and moving, but God testimony to share with you today and end with. It comes from Kristen Churchill, who writes, Dear Pastor JD, I am so grateful to be a member of your online church. I live in Michigan and was introduced to your church during COVID by my dear cousin. In 2020, I had a growing desire to read the Bible, but had no idea where to start. I suppose now I could have begun in the beginning, LOL. So I decided to ask my cousin about it. Hmm. who I knew was well versed in it. So I asked her, where do I begin? Oh, interesting. It's freezing up on me. Got a little circle going around. There we go. I rebuke you in the name of Jesus. I've got to cast a demon out of this thing. So she asked her cousin, where do I begin? It all seemed so overwhelming. She gave me some direction and also mentioned your name and to look you up on YouTube. So I did. And wow, were my once Catholic eyes, I cringe at admitting this, opened. I began sharing things I was learning from your prophecy videos with my parents, also Catholic, as well as your Sunday sermons. Over time, their eyes were opened as well, and I began sharing with them the ABCs of salvation and how simple it is to be saved. I told them I did this also. And no, they will go to heaven, not by what we were always taught in the Catholic religion, that it's by works, etc. At first they questioned this, but I could share Bible verses to confirm in God's Word, which sealed the deal. What did I tell you? I'll never forget talking to my mom on the phone and hearing her say that she and my dad were saved. It was so beautiful. They were so happy and felt free. However, in January of 2022, My husband and I and my parents came down with COVID. My husband and I survived it, but sadly, They did not. They tried so hard to stay out of the hospital. They knew what would be if they went in, but they both got so bad they had no choice but to go into the hospital six days apart from each other, mom first and then dad. They were forced medical treatments they didn't want and eventually died. Again, six days apart from each other. But here's the but God part. If it was not for your updates, sermons, and the ABCs of salvation, I would not know if I'd see my mom and dad in heaven again. But because of this simple way of salvation, they were saved. I was blessed to be able to pray with my dad before he died and tell him that I'd see him again. He nodded in agreement. I prayed with my mom as well. God knew in 2020 that this was going to come to pass, and for two years I was sharing God's Word, your videos, and His truth as they had never heard before. All the praise and glory go to our Lord and Savior. Thank you, JD, for speaking truth every Sunday. I look forward to your updates and sermons every week. They are my favorite. She put favorite in caps, just so you know. It gives me such hope in our Lord. Praying for your wife and family, praise the Lord for you all. That's you. God bless you all and Maranatha. Kristen Churchill, Michigan. P.S. And I have the photos here. Yeah, you can do that. So obviously I got this in October. She goes, P.S. I made these for our church. Trunk or treat? Thought you would like to see the ABCs of salvation with the candy. That's very creative, very clever. All the praise goes to the Lord. Capone, come on up. Stand up. We'll close in prayer. And Sonia, thank you for your patience once again. Father, wow. I hope that today's update, a little different than usual, will be an encouragement to your people in this, your church. That they will leave here today with just a boldness that maybe they didn't bring with them, when they came today, and a sanctified strength to share, if nothing else, just their testimony. Because the time is at hand, and we've got to get as many people as we can to You, Jesus. So please will You grant us that grace, that privilege to play a part in someone's life, for eternal life. Thank You, Lord. We love You so much. In Jesus' name, Amen and Amen. Nobody loves me like You love me, Jesus. I stand in awe of Your amazing way. I worship you as long as I am breathing. God, you are faithful and true. Nobody loves me like you. I could sing of your love forever. And I could sing of your love Forever, yes. I could sing of your love forever. I could sing of your love forever. Lord, I offer my life to you. Everything I've been through, use it for your glory. And Lord, I offer my days to you. Lifting my praise to you as a pleasing sacrifice. Lord, I offer you my life. Nobody loves me. Nobody loves me like you love me, Jesus. I stand in awe of your amazing ways. I worship you as long as I am breathing. God, you are faithful and true. Nobody loves me like you. God, you are faithful and true. Nobody loves me like you. Would you be blessed today in the Lord.