| Time | Text |
|---|---|
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Voices Speaking to Us
00:07:21
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|
| Testing the supernatural. | |
| Well, Brother Jim, I wrote this book because the Bible clearly prophesies that in the end of the age, some really weird things are going to happen. | |
| And a lot of voices are going to emerge, some of them right, some of them wrong. | |
| And we need to be able to discern which ones are right and which ones are wrong. | |
| And we can figure that out if we know how to test them. | |
| But I want to read to you something very interesting that the Apostle Paul said in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. | |
| He was talking about the coming of Jesus. | |
| And he said that right before Jesus comes, some things would happen that would shake people up quite a bit. | |
| It says in 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 2, that you be not soon shaken in mind or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as that the day of Christ is at hand, and let no man deceive you by any means. | |
| Well, I've translated that. | |
| The new translation that I'm working on, which is called the RIV, I want you to listen to what this verse literally means. | |
| Now, this is expanded, but man, this is really amazing. | |
| Listen to this. | |
| Some things will be happening right before Jesus' coming that could shake you up quite a bit. | |
| I'm referring to events that will be so dramatic they could leave your head spinning. | |
| Occurrences of such a serious nature that many people would end up feeling alarmed, panicked, intimidated, and unnerved. | |
| These events could put you on edge and make you feel apprehensive and insecure. | |
| And how I wish I could tell you these incidents were just going to be a one-shot deal, but when they finally get rolling, they're going to keep coming and coming one after another. | |
| And that's why you have to determine not to be shaken or moved by anything you see or hear. | |
| I also want to tell you not to be too surprised. | |
| Now listen to this. | |
| I also want to tell you not to be too surprised if people start making weird spiritual proclamations and off-the-wall utterances during the time just before the Lord comes. | |
| All kinds of strange things are going to happen during those days. | |
| That is a literal translation of that verse. | |
| And the Apostle Paul said, in that slither of time just before the Lord comes, a lot of weird spiritual proclamations, off-the-wall occurrences, bizarre things are going to happen, and they're going to happen even inside the church. | |
| And therefore, we need to know what to open ourselves to and what to say no to. | |
| It's just the age we live in. | |
| We're living in that time when two ages are pulling on us from both directions. | |
| Voices are speaking to us from the past. | |
| Voices are speaking to us from the future. | |
| And we're in the middle trying to figure out what God is saying to us. | |
| And sometimes it seems very confusing. | |
| And sometimes in that slither of times, some really weird things show up inside the church. | |
| Weird proclamations really is what Paul said. | |
| And we need to know to be able to judge, is this the Lord? | |
| Or is this a figment of somebody's imagination? | |
| And I don't believe we're supposed to be Revelation police checking everybody out and, you know, just nitpicking on people all the time. | |
| I don't believe that. | |
| But we need to listen to our hearts and we need to use our heads. | |
| We need to use our heads. | |
| And if anybody ever says to you, well, you shouldn't question anything. | |
| Well, you should already question it because God gave you a head. | |
| And when you have a mind, especially if your mind is renewed in the word of God, you have the ability to see what's right and to see what's wrong. | |
| And if something is being taught that's bizarre and is wrong, you have the right to say, you know what, I don't buy that. | |
| I just don't buy that. | |
| There's nothing wrong with that. | |
| In fact, we saw in the last program that the church of Ephesus really tested people who came through town. | |
| They didn't just say, praise God, brother. | |
| We're glad you're here. | |
| We receive anything you have to say. | |
| They tested them. | |
| They understood it was very important who you endorse and who you embrace. | |
| And so they tested people. | |
| And once they saw people were the bona fide deal, they embraced them. | |
| They endorsed them. | |
| They laid hands on them. | |
| But if they discovered somebody was off, they did not have admittance into their lives. | |
| And we have to be careful like that. | |
| Denise and I were just watching a program the other night on YouTube, and it was somebody who was claiming that they were claiming so many things. | |
| It was amazing to me. | |
| A person who, I believe people go to heaven. | |
| I don't have a problem with that. | |
| The Apostle Paul went to heaven. | |
| The Apostle John went to heaven. | |
| I know Brother Hagin went to heaven. | |
| A lot of people have been to heaven. | |
| But this person was telling this testimony. | |
| It sounded like they go to heaven more than they go to the grocery store. | |
| And the things they were telling, just so bizarre. | |
| And people shouting and clapping. | |
| And I said, Denise, this is about the worst nonsense I've ever heard in my life. | |
| And those people sitting in those chairs, clapping and shouting, don't know the Bible. | |
| If they knew the Bible, they would say, We're not eating this. | |
| Denise? | |
| You know, your spirit will warn you. | |
| Like I just said to Rick, I was watching that for just a few minutes. | |
| And I thought, this is almost a sham of the things that are so precious to me. | |
| Heaven, heaven is going to be precious to us. | |
| I mean, the Apostle Paul said he couldn't even speak about the things that were there. | |
| They were so either he didn't have vocabulary or he wasn't allowed to speak, but it was so, so precious. | |
| And I just think we have to be careful. | |
| And if our spirit says, you know what, I don't want to be critical, but for me, I can't watch that. | |
| And I think that the spirit of God inside of us will bring a warning and we should listen to it. | |
| And that's happened to me more than once, Rick, that I was watching something and thought, I'm not going to criticize that person, but I can't watch that. | |
| And, you know, I found that for me, there's four really important questions to ask. | |
| Number one, how did this person receive this new visitation or supernatural manifestation? | |
| Number two, what is the content? | |
| Does it line up with the Bible? | |
| If it doesn't line up with the Bible, you're finished with it. | |
| Let me tell you, God is not going to give you a revelation that contradicts the Bible. | |
| He's just not going to do that. | |
| Number three, what is the long-term fruit of that revelation? | |
| And number four, who does it glorify? | |
|
The Revelation of Jesus Christ
00:00:53
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|
| And Brother Jim and Laurie, you know, through the years, people have told some amazing tales. | |
| Well, when people walk out of those meetings, what are they talking about? | |
| Are they talking about the tales? | |
| Are they talking about the angel? | |
| Are they talking about the vision? | |
| Or are they talking about Jesus? | |
| Who does it glorify? | |
| To me, that's the biggest thing of all. | |
| Even if you come to the book of Revelation, is there a revelation bigger or better than the book of Revelation? | |
| And how does it begin? | |
| The very first verse: the revelation of Jesus Christ. | |
| Jesus is the focus of the book of Revelation. | |
| You walk away with Jesus more than anything else. | |
| And if a dream or a vision or a supernatural manifestation or a revelation really has heavenly origin, it will glorify Jesus Christ. | |