Babylon Uncovered is dedicated to vital truths in the books of Daniel and Revelation. The Book of Revelation indicates that, sooner or later, apostate Protestantism in America will reject religious liberty and bring about a union of church and state. The United States will revive the medieval religious system and compel all to honor biblical Babylon, that is, Romanism.
Two women. The same clothing, the same hair style, the same smile, the same cross. Which one is the true Christian? No one knows, no one can know. All we know is what each of these women may say or do. It’s not our job to judge them. But to avoid being deceived by one or both of these women, we must apply the only test that counts. We must answer the question, What does the Bible say about the words I hear and the actions I see? Any other evidence is worthless.
Know this: most Christians in the time of the end will be Christians in name only. The great struggle for God’s true followers will be distinguishing the true from the false. Our eternal destiny is at stake.
Jesus warned specifically about deception in the last days. He said, “For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ, and will deceive many'” (Matt. 24:5, NKJV). Individual Christians represent some version of Christ. They may not claim to be Christ, but they can represent a false Christ.
Living in our world today demands spiritual vigilance and careful study of the Scriptures. Not a fearful anxiety, but a prayerful watching. A key warning comes from Paul in 2 Timothy 3:1-5, “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power” (NKJV).
God’s children must realize that last-day events concern Christian vs. Christian, not Christian vs. non-Christian. False Christians may attend church, may contribute time and money to good causes, may even be wonderful people. But their actions will show compromise with something God requires or something God forbids. All people are sinners, but the true Christian will show evidence of spiritual rebirth.
James 1:19-21 says, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you” (NIV). Notice that the righteousness required by God does not come from any other source than “the word planted in you.” In the last days, there will be Christians with the Word of
God planted in them and Christians without the Word of God planted in them.
What is so perilous about false Christians? They have the capacity to deceive in the most dangerous time of Earth’s history. In other words, if God’s people follow the example of false Christians, they will themselves become false Christians.
In the Beatitudes, Jesus describes the experience of His true followers. Each follower begins at the bottom of the spiritual ladder, so to speak, in poverty of spirit. God’s true children realize their need for outside help. But they also mourn for their own sins, they are meek (gentle and patient), they hunger and thirst for righteousness (for obedience to God’s revealed will and divine laws), they are merciful, they are pure in heart, they are peacemakers, they are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, and they are reviled as the prophets of old were reviled.
True Christians follow the Word of God with their whole heart, no matter the sacrifice. They may not understand much of the Bible, but they will be faithful to what they do understand and continue seeking truth as it is in Jesus. They will be led to any necessary truths as they honestly seek truth. Any Christian without this characteristic is no Christian at all, but a deceiver to all those around him.
The deceptions of the near future will be profoundly difficult to detect. Jeus warns: “For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (Matt. 24:24, NIV). A large percentage of ministers and priests, friends and family, will seek to convince God’s true children to believe lies and deceptions. These deceptions will appear to be of divine origin, even to the eyes of every human being on the planet.
But when spiritual discernment is needed, as it certainly will be in the days ahead, eyes are not to be trusted. Signs and wonders will be impossible to deny. Seeing is believing! But to a great degree, people see what they expect to see, what they believe to be possible.
For instance, if a person believes that Christ may walk the Earth before he comes in the clouds of heaven, that person will believe that the “Christ” walking the Earth in their sight is, in fact, Jesus. Paul warns in 2 Cor. 11:13-21 about the great deceptions ahead of us. He writes, “Satan transforms himself to appear as an angel of light! So it’s no wonder his servants also go about pretending to be ministers of righteousness. But in the end they will be exposed and get exactly what they deserve” (The Passion Translation). Satan can assume any form he wishes, even that of Jesus. Worshipping this false Christ will, in reality, be worship of Satan. Believing what the devil says will, in reality, mean believing lies. The only defense against a lie is the truth. Know the truth, because the truth will set you free.
Do you understand the Word of God for yourself? Or do you merely accept what those in authority tell you? Do you know what the teaching of the entire Bible is on a particularly critical issue? You must know intellectually what truth is. God will lead you. If you go into the coming crisis and fail to realize that a crisis even exists, you will have no defense against the evil one. The time for preparation is now!