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This program is made possible by the giving of the God called Partners of Renner Ministries. Get ready for a teaching that feeds your spirit and your mind, where the Word is the anchor in uncertain times. And doctrine doesn't bend to culture. We keep it simple, but dive deep, revealing a truth that strengthens us, a love that emboldens, and a mission that touches the world. Let's join Rick Renner. Welcome to today's program. My name is Rick Renner and I've been waiting for you. And today we're going to return to the series which is called How Close Are we to the End? I brought my hourglass again. You know, when I was a boy I just loved these because I would watch the passing of the sand as it went from the top to the bottom. And I would think about time. Gee, how long is it going to take for all that sand to get down to the bottom? But you know, people are always fascinated with time and people are asking, how close are we to the end? And they've been asking that for 2,000 years. That's why I'm teaching this series. Jesus gave us signs to let us know how close we are to the end. And the series called How Close Are we to the end is a 10 part series, comes with all kinds of formats and it comes with a great study guide and there's a wonderful book I want you to have called Signs yous'll See just Before Jesus comes. It'd be great for you. It'd be a great gift to give to somebody else. And right now, our gift to you today is a special timeline of the end times. It's a chart we've made just for you and it is beautifully designed and I want you to have it. It shows all the past prophecies, we prophecies currently being fulfilled, those that are yet to be fulfilled. And by seeing this timeline, you can see right where we are in time. All these resources are available by going online or by giving us a call. And as I always tell you, and I really sincerely mean it, if you need prayer, call that number and write it down and save it. Save that number so that if you ever get into a fix and you said to yourself, oh, I just wish I had somebody to pray with me, there's the number to call. You can call us. We're trustworthy, we are confidential and we know how to pray. Maybe you would prefer to send an email. Send an email. And whether you write or whether you call, either way we're really going to pray for you. But please let Us know how to pray, and it's such a privilege that we can do that with you. But I want you to reach for your Bible, because we always use the Bible in this program. And believe with me for revival of the Bible in the church and for pastors to begin to teach the Word of God verse by verse. There's nothing like the verse by verse teaching of the Bible. But today we're going to return to Matthew 24:3, where Jesus is seated on the Mount of Olives. And in all these programs, I've been showing you a beautiful view from the Mount of Olives of the city of Jerusalem. That's the view which they had when they were sitting with Jesus. There they were sitting on the Mount of Olives. Behind them was this beautiful panoramic view of the Temple Mount. And we read in Matthew 24:3. And as he sat up on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, tell us, when shall these things be? What things? They were talking about the end of the age and things which would occur at the end of the age. Lord, when will these things be? What shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the age? Well, the King James Version says the end of the world, but as we've already seen, the Greek really says the end of this present age. That's what they wanted to know. When is this age going to end and the next age begin? The next age is the tribulation. But when is this current age, which is the last days? It is the church age. It is the age of grace. How will we know when we're bumping right up to the end of it? And they asked for one sign, but Jesus gave them more than 20. But in this series, we're just covering 19 because it's all that we have time for. But here are what we have covered so far. Signs number one to 16, worldwide deception, wars, rumors of wars, commotions, nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, famine, scarcity, economic woes, pestilence, diseases, catastrophic events, monstrous developments, signs from the heavens, worldwide persecution and the emergence of false prophets. But today we're going to see signs number 17 and 18. And they are. Iniquity will abound, and the love of many will wax cold. Now turn in your Bible, if you would Please, to Matthew 24:12, where Jesus said, and because iniquity shall abound, what does the word iniquity mean? What does the word iniquity mean? Does it just mean sinfulness? Well, certainly sinfulness is the result of iniquity. But let's look at that word iniquity because it is such a very important word. It is the Greek word in English, it is the word iniquity. You say, what in the world does iniquity mean? Well, it is the Greek word anomia. Anomia. If you're going to spell that in English, it would be spelled like this, but it's actually a compound of two words. Here you have the word A and the word gnomia, which is actually from the Greek word nomos, which would be spelled like this. The word nomos means law. Law. But when you put an A on the front, it becomes anomos or anomia. It means without law. Without law. It pictures a people who have cast aside the law of God and they say, we've already been there, we've already done that. We don't want to live that way. We don't want to walk that direction any longer. We want to be free. The restraints of God's instructions and the teaching of the Bible, we don't believe that any longer. And we want to forge a brand new path. That's what iniquity is. It is anomia or it is lawlessness. Now this is very important for you to understand because Jesus says at the very end of the age, lawlessness or a period will emerge when society at large will begin to cast off the teachings of God's Word and to form their own way. And I want to read to you from page 139 in my book Signs. You'll see just before Jesus comes. The word iniquity actually describes lawlessness. In the Greek text, the word lawlessness is plural, which tells us that Jesus was foretelling a time when lawlessness would escalate around the world. The word lawlessness refers to the actions of an individual, a group of people or a nation, or even an entire society or culture that has chosen to live apart from God's laws and principles. Although this person or group previously followed biblical laws and principles in general, they elected to forge their own way of doing things that are not founded on the principles of God's Word. Thus they are lawless or living by their own newly evolving principles that are not based on established truths so vividly portrayed in Scripture. And a collective rejection of God and his time tested truths in the last days is confirmed by Paul in Second Corinthians 2, 3, where he described a great falling away of people in the last days. Paul wrote, let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not come except There come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition. In this verse, Paul prophetically described a falling away that will transpire in society at large at the very end of this age. In that hour, the mystery of iniquity, which has been working for 2,000 years, will be unleashed full steam in an attempt to lead the entire planet into. Into various forms of deception. And the words falling away in second Thessalonians 2, 3 are used in the Greek Old Testament Septuagint to depict a mass mutiny against authority. These words describe society revolting against the authority of God himself at the conclusion of the age. And it's just a fact that both Jesus and Paul prophesied that a great falling away will occur in the last days. The Bible describes it as a worldwide rebellion against God in society across the planet. That really is what Jesus meant when he said, iniquity will abound. But what does the word abound really mean? Well, let's go to the board. The word abound is very important, and if you're taking notes, please write this down. And I hope that you're taking notes. The word abound, this is a very, very important word in this context. In Greek, it is the word plethoono. Now, if you write the equivalent of that in English, it would be spelled like this. Plethuno. The word plethuno means to increase to maximum capacity. So we're not talking about a small problem. We're talking about iniquity or the throwing aside of God's law, choosing that we're no longer going to walk that direction. Now we're going to make our own laws. We're going to go a new direction. This will abound. Pletheno. This is going to increase around the planet at the very end of the age to maximum capacity. My friends, we're seeing this. We see this in the judicial system. We see this in education. We see this in. In Hollywood. We see it everywhere around us as the world goes woke, my friend, the only way you can go woke is if you cast aside what the Bible says. That's what wokeism really is. You're no longer going the direction of the Bible. You're going to make your own new way. And Jesus says, at the very end of the age, the globe worldwide will be impacted by this kind of thinking. And we are witnessing this in our time, which is a sign that we're bumping right up to the very end of the age. Wow. But then Jesus adds in Matthew 24:12, and the love of Many shall wax cold. The love of many shall wax cold. Now, we could speculate about what that means, but we don't need to because the Greek makes it so clear. For example, the word love. What word love is this? The word love that is used in this verse is a form of the Greek word agape, spelled like this. In English, the word agape only describes the love of God. And therefore this is a love that is resident among believers. And when Jesus says the love of many shall wax cold, he's talking about the love of Christians, the love of believers. And one reason they're waxing cold is because of the effect of iniquity. They're surrounded by sin. They're surrounded by teaching and thinking that is nullifying the teaching of the Word of God. It is abounding. They are surrounded by it. And they become so affected by this new immoral mindset, this new inclusive mindset that is just so wrong biblically that it begins to affect agape, the love of God among the brethren. And the Bible says the love of many. There's that word again, the word many again, the Greek word poloi. And the word poloi, the equivalent in English would be like this. It means vast multitudes. So now we find even the body of Christ is going to be affected in a huge way. Vast multitudes of those who have the love of God we're talking about, the Christian community will wax cold. Wax cold. What in the world does that mean? The Greek word such, it would be spelled like this. The word succo means. And I'm going to read to you from my notes because this is so very important, this word wax cold, succo describes something that is cold, or more explicitly, a breeze that cools or freezes. And it means there's going to be a cold breeze that blows through the church that is going to cause people to turn cold spiritually at the very end of the age. And we see the effects of this today. People who don't go to church as they once did. People who are not as on fire for the Lord as they used to be. People that are compromising what they used to believe. Now they're adapting new mindsets, becoming more inclusive, more open minded. My friends, it's good to be open minded. But don't be so open minded. Your brain falls out. We need to remain established in the Word of God. That's why you need to get my book called how to Keep youp Head On Straight in a World Gone Crazy. That's what that book is about. But Jesus says at the very end of the age, iniquity will abound, and a cold breeze is going to blow through the church, which is going to cause the temperature of many believers and their agape love to really cool down at the end of the age. But then, when we come to Matthew 12:13, Jesus adds, but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. Are you enduring? Do you know what it means to endure? Well, let's see what it means to endure. The word endure is one of the most important words in the New Testament. It appears again and again and again. And here, as always, it is a form of the Greek word hupomeno. Hupomeno. In English, it would be spelled like this. It's a compound of two words. The word hupo, which means to be under, as if to be under a very heavy load. The word meno, which means I stay, I abide, this is my spot. But when you compound the two words together, it is a person who says, menno, this is my spot. I'm not moving. I am not surrendering hupo. I don't care how heavy the load gets or how hard it is. Menno, I've resolved, I'm not budging, I'm not moving. And this word is so very important. I want to read to you from my notes. This word endure means to remain in one spot. So when Jesus says, he that endures to the end, it means he who remains in this place that he knows that is right to the end. It means to keep a position, he that keeps a position to resolve, to maintain territory gained in a military sense. It pictured soldiers ordered to maintain their position, positions even in the face of opposition. It means to defiantly stick it out, regardless of pressures mounted against it. It is staying power, hang in their power. Or listen to this, it is the attitude that holds out, holds on, outlasts, perseveres, hangs in there, never giving up, refusing to surrender to obstacles and turning down every opportunity to quit. It pictures one who is under a heavy load, but refuses to bend, break, or surrender because he's convinced that the territory, promise, or principle under assault rightly belongs to him. And now we find that for us to endure to the end, for us to remain on fire and on track with the Lord, we've got to determine we're just not going to move. It is a matter how much pressure we feel from society and coming against us. We have resolved here it is that we're gonna hang in there, we're gonna hold out, hold on, outlast, persevere never giving up, and refuse to surrender to obstacles and turn down every opportunity to quit. The world around us may change, but when it comes to the truth of God's word, we are not budging. That is what the word endure means. But the whole verse says Matthew 24:13, he that shall endure unto the end. The word end is also very important. It is the Greek word telos, spelled like this. In English, it means the consummation or the very conclusion. And remember, that is the question that the disciples asked. Lord, how will we know when we've come to the consummation of the age, to the culmination of the age, to. To the close of the age? And now Jesus is referring to that. He that endures to the very, very end of the age. The same shall be saved. And the word saved is a form of the Greek word sozo, the most important word in the New Testament for salvation. But it's much, much more than just going to heaven. This word sozo, here translated saved, conveys the idea of wholeness or salvation or wholeness in every part of life. It is a touch of deliverance or salvation that brings, delivering and healing power, that results in wholeness. It even means to deliver one's country from enemies, to protect, to keep safe, and to keep under protection. And my friends, now we find that when we make the decision to stay put, even if the world around us changes, if they call us fuddy duddies, if they call us dinosaurs from the past, that's okay, they can call us whatever they wish. Christians have always been called names. And Jesus says, at the end of the age, it's going to get so intense from society that has become a place abounding to the maximum with iniquity, lawlessness, many will cold as a cold breeze blows through the church, that affects agape, the love that should be burning hot among them. But those who endure, those who say, I'm not going to wander, I'm not going to move, I'm going to stand on the Bible, I'm not moving from what the scripture teaches. I'm going to maintain this territory. I'm going to hold on, hold out, persevere, never give up, never budge. Locked into truth, Jesus said, they'll be saved. You will be delivered, you will be saved. You will experience God's power. That's really what it means. So now we see that Jesus said, are you ready for this? Here we go again. He said, and because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But Matthew 24:13 but he that endures to the end, mm, the same that one, the one that endures, the one who refuses to move, he shall be saved or he will experience God's power in all of its dimensions. That's really what Jesus taught and that's a message we need to understand because we're the ones that are living right at the end of the age. We have covered a lot today, but I'll be back in just a moment and I want to pray for you.