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The Big Picture
January 3, 2015

Signs of the Times

by Dennis Rouse
2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 NKJNow, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ andour gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken inmind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us,as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by
Sermon Notes

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 NKJ
Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and
our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in
mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us,
as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any
means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first,
and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and
exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that
he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these
things? And now you know what is restraining, that he may be
revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at
work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the
way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will
consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the
brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is according
to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and
with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they
did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for
this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should
believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe
the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Some Important Things to Note:
• Believers should live with an awareness of Christ’s return.
• Before He comes there will be a great falling away.
1 Timothy 4:1 NIV
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith
and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.
• The world is being set up for an ANTI-CHRIST leader.
• Something is restraining this from happening right now.
• The power of the Anti-Christ spirit is DECEPTION.
• The only way people avoid deception is “THE LOVE OF THE
TRUTH”.
John 8:32 NKJ
“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
The Big Picture Signs:

  1. THE INFLUENCE OF TECHNOLOGY
    Daniel 12:1-4 NKJ
    “At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands
    watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of
    trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that
    time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one who
    is found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust
    of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and
    everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the
    brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to
    righteousness like the stars forever and ever. But you, Daniel, shut up
    the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run
    to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”
    Genesis 3:5 NKJ
    “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened,
    and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
    Genesis 11:4 NKJ
    And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower
    whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest
    we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”
    Genesis 11:6 NKJ
    And the LORD said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one
    language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they
    propose to do will be withheld from them.”
    • Average child spends 37 hours per week in front of a screen of
    technology
    • 68% of men viewed porn within the last month
    • 90% of children between ages 8-16 view porn (while doing
    homework)
    • 30-40% of Internet activity at work is not work related
    • 46% of online shopping takes place at work
    • 70% of music downloads and pornography occur at work
    • $63 billion loss in productivity due to abuse of Internet at work
  2. RISE OF LAWLESSNESS
    2 Thessalonians 2:7 NKJ
    For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work…
    2 Thessalonians 2:8 NKJ
    And then the lawless one will be revealed…
    Matthew 24:12 NKJ
    “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow
    cold.”
    1 John 3:4 NKJ
    Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is
    lawlessness.
    Daniel 7:25a NKJ
    “’He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall
    persecute the saints of the Most High and shall intend to change
    times and law.’”
    Romans 1:24-32 NKJ
    Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their
    hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged
    the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature
    rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this
    reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women
    exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also
    the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for
    one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and
    receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And
    even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave
    them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;
    being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness,
    covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evilmindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent,
    proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
    undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who,
    knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such
    things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve
    of those who practice them.
  3. WORLDWIDE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE
    Revelation 13:16-17 NLT
    He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and
    slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And
    no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either
    the name of the beast or the number representing his name.

Three Key Features of Every Fallen Empire:

  1. People turn away from God
  2. Complete moral and social breakdown
  3. Financial collapse
    Matthew 24:7 NKJ
    For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And
    there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.
    2 Peter 3:14-18 NLT
    And so, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to
    happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are
    pure and blameless in his sight. And remember, our Lord’s patience
    gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul
    also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him – speaking of these
    things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to
    understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted
    his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with
    other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction. You
    already know these things, dear friends. So be on guard; then you will
    not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose
    your own secure footing. Rather, you must grow in the grace and
    knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both
    now and forever! Amen.
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