Have
you ever sat, and
watched in amazement
at how someone can
be so good at
something?
Did you ever
find yourself
saying, “They make
that look easy”?
Have you ever
watched a marathon,
and found that you
were out of breath
just watching them
run?
I know I
have, and have been
envious of some of
them for these
amazing
accomplishments.
What about
our Military
personnel?
We remember
their demeanor when
they went in, and a
few months later we
see them again,
after Boot Camp, and
they are this whole
new person
But, you have
to consider that all
of these people are
just like you and
me, except for the
fact that they’ve
trained hard and
conditioned
themselves to
perform in this
manner.
So, what is
conditioning?
CONDITIONING:
present
participle of
con-di-tion (verb)
Verb:
Have a
significant
influence on or
determine (the
manner or outcome of
something)
Train or
accustom (someone or
something) to behave
in a certain way or
to accept certain
circumstances.
Con-di-tion-ing:
A process of
behavior
modification by
which a subject
comes to associate a
desired behavior
with a previously
unrelated stimulus.
Do you
realize that
YOU are being
conditioned right
now, in your own
lives?
You wouldn’t
really think about
it, because it’s not
on a structured
basis like in a gym
or classroom
environment.
It’s all the
things that are
going on around you
that you take for
granted on a daily
basis.
It’s what
makes us who we are.
There is a
distinct difference
between an
individual that
grows up on a farm
and another
individual that
grows up in the
city.
Our
environment
conditions us to
relate to and thrive
in the surroundings
that we live.
The media
plays a huge role in
what we think, and
how we act.
So much so,
that it seems as
though the whole
world is pivoting on
what the Hollywood
Hypes have to say
about everything.
Look at the
types of movies that
are coming out about
2012, Armageddon,
the end of the
world, cyborgs, the
Harry Potter series,
just to mention a
few since my space
is limited.
The History
Channel runs
multiple series on
Mayan calendars,
Nostradamus. The
Weather Channel has
the ‘It Could Happen
Tomorrow’ series.
All of this
plays into the end
times scenario that
is spoken about in
the Bible.
This ALL
falls under
conditioning whether
or not you want to
accept or
acknowledge that
fact.
This isn’t
just a recent thing.
Let’s take
the phenomenon of
Unidentified Flying
Objects (UFO’s) for
example.
We tend to
think of UFO’s as
something that is
now accepted by our
societies.
There are
numerous
organizations out
there that study
this.
But, back on
June 14th
1947, Kenneth Arnold
saw 9 objects in the
sky while he was
piloting his private
plane near Mt.
Rainier in
Washington.
The
community’s initial
reaction to the
reported sightings
was probably one of
“Oh, he’s just
crazy”…. “He was
just lacking oxygen
up there and was
hallucinating..”
But today it
would be more likely
that a whole team of
‘experts’ would be
flying to the sight
to capture and
record valuable data
that can used to
determine the level
of intelligence that
might be in
one of those
objects.
Especially
after the whole
“Roswell” thing, we
have been
conditioned over the
years to accept the
existence of UFO’s
whether they truly
exist or not.
But, a very
important factor to
be considered.
Not only are
we conditioned to
believe, or accept
things that are
unknown, we are also
trained and
conditioned to
accept those things
that are real.
These things,
however, are
contrary to Bible
teachings.
“But, I don’t
believe in that book
of make-believe”,
you say.
What I say is
that you don’t
have to
believe it.
But, you will
have to endure the
consequences of that
decision.
God has given
you the power to
choose, just as he
had given Adam and
Eve the gift to
choose.
Unfortunately
(or, fortunately
however you look at
it), Eve chose to
disobey the direct
orders of God
Himself.
To this, we
must pay the penance
of that choice. But,
you too, have that
same option to
choose between God
and Satan.
It’s one or
the other.
There is no
in-between.
Even though
the Bible clearly
states that
Homosexuality is an
abomination, we have
been conditioned
over the years to
accept this.
Homosexuality
has been occurring
since mankind was
introduced to the
planet. It’s a known
fact and mentioned
throughout the
Bible.
It’s also a
fact that God had
destroyed mankind
because of it, and
not just once! (do
you see the
pattern?) It was in
1924 that the
Society for Human
Rights in Chicago
was established.
It became the
country’s earliest
known gay rights
organization.
But, it was
in 1948 that Alfred
Kinsey, the noted
zoologist/sexologist
at Indiana
University,
published the
infamous Kinsey
Report on Sexuality.
Since that
time the LGBT
community has been
proactive in making
strides in public
awareness and
acceptance.
This was
extreme conditioning,
over a short period
of time, to get to
where they are now.
It’s still
not right in the
eyes of God, but, it
is clearly right in
the eyes of society.
Our own
government fully
recognizes and
accepts this as
‘normal behavior’.
Woe to those who
call evil good and
good evil, who put
darkness for light
and light for
darkness, who put
bitter for sweet and
sweet for bitter.
(Isaiah 5:20 NIV)
Remember that God
loves the sinner,
but hates the sin.
They have a
choice to make.
The world is
lost, but it
continues to thrive,
in its own way.
People are
continually looking
for answers and will
turn to Religion
most of the time to
try and answer some
of those daunting
questions.
Even though
most of these
choices are cults,
they continue to
look for answers.
The latest
that comes to mind
is the Tom Cruise,
Katie Holmes
divorce.
How so, you
ask?
It’s because
Scientology is the
latest focus.
Scientology
is another cult.
Unlike religions
with Judeo-Christian
origins, the Church
of Scientology has
no set dogma
concerning God.
It’s
encapsulated in the
mysticism of New Age
Theology.
This is just
another name for
Hell.
The same
holds true for the
Ecumenical crowd.
It’s all for
the “feel good”
theology of today
like Rick Warren’s
“Purpose Driven
Life” portrays.
It’s false.
It’s Satan
driven, right to
Hell.
Jesus answered, "I
am the way and the
truth and the
life. No one comes
to the Father except
through me. (John
14:6 NIV) emphasis
mine.
So, what does
any of this
conditioning really
have to do with us?
Most of us
have seen the
Conspiracy Theory
program with Jesse
Ventura, right?
He’s
investigated a
plethora of topics
from The New World
Order down to
drinking water being
stolen by China.
Most people
just blow it all off
to “entertainment”.
But, what if
it’s NOT just
entertainment?
What if
there’s more to it
that meets the eye?
In the Old
Testament, there is
a story contained in
the book of Daniel
in chapter 2 where
King Nebuchadnezzar
had a dream that he
needed interpreted.
Daniel was
able to interpret
the dream.
He described
the succession of
Kingdoms from his
time to future.
Just as you saw that
the feet and toes
were partly of baked
clay and partly of
iron, so this will
be a divided
kingdom; yet it will
have some of the
strength of iron in
it, even as you saw
iron mixed with
clay.
As the toes
were partly iron and
partly clay, so this
kingdom will be
partly strong and
partly brittle.
(Daniel 2:41-42 NIV)
These 2 verses
represent Europe
from 476 AD to the
end.
The ten toes are the
ten European nations
that formed the ten
divisions of the
Western Roman
Empire.
Likewise in
the end, the divided
kingdom will again
have ten distinct
sections which are
divided internally.
This is
currently what the
European Union is
doing.
They are
moving to become The
United States of
Europe.
It is from
within this
‘kingdom’, more like
the revised Roman
Empire, that the
Antichrist will
emerge.
It is through
him that the great
deception will take
place.
Let’s define
Deception.
DECEPTION:
The act of
being deceived.
The fact or
condition of being
deceived.
Something
that deceives –
trick, fraud
DECEIVE:
To cause to
accept as true or
valid what is false
or invalid.
To give false
impression.
This
Antichrist, will
establish for
himself, a one world
government, a one
world religion and
an identification
method that will
only allow those
that accept the mark
to conduct financial
business.
Sounds like a
fun guy, doesn’t he?
If you think
the world is chaotic
right now….. as the
BTO song says, “You
aint seen nothing
yet”.
But how will
things become more
chaotic?
When the
Bride of Christ is
removed, that’s how.
For the secret power
of lawlessness is
already at work; but
the
one who now holds it
back will
continue to do so
till
he is taken out of
the way. (2
Thessalonians 2:7
NIV) emphasis mine.
The “one that
holds it back” and
the “he” that is
taken out of the way
is the indwelling of
the Holy Spirit
within us.
This is
commonly referred to
as the Rapture.
It’s going to
be hard to imagine
what it will be like
when millions of
people just simply
vanish from the face
of the earth.
How do you
explain something
like that?
Oh, wait a
minute…… I know.
Remember that
we were talking
about conditioning
earlier?
Well maybe,
the media will just
chalk it up to UFO’s
removing all of
those pesky
Christians.
They only
made life miserable
for those that
didn’t believe in
their message.
Well, we
Christians have our
own conditioning,
too.
We have the
word of God.
Train a child in the
way he should go,
and when he is old
he will not turn
from it. (Proverbs
22:6 NIV)
A student is not
above his teacher,
but everyone who is
fully trained will
be like his teacher.
(Luke 6:40 NIV)
Everyone who
competes in the
games goes into
strict training.
They do it to get a
crown that will not
last; but we do it
to get a crown that
will last forever.(
1 Corinthians 9:25
NIV)
Have nothing to do
with godless myths
and old wives'
tales; rather, train
yourself to be
godly.
For physical
training is of some
value, but godliness
has value for all
things, holding
promise for both the
present life and the
life to come. (1
Timothy 4:7-8 NIV)
All Scripture is
God-breathed and is
useful for teaching,
rebuking, correcting
and training in
righteousness, so
that the man of God
may be thoroughly
equipped for every
good work. (2
Timothy 3:16-17 NIV)
Remembering
back to the book of
Daniel, chapter 2,
he continued on in
verse 44:
"In the time of
those kings, the God
of heaven will set
up a kingdom that
will never be
destroyed, nor will
it be left to
another people. It
will crush all those
kingdoms and bring
them to an end, but
it will itself
endure forever.
(Daniel 2:44 NIV)
This is the
Kingdom that we
Christians are
preparing for.
It is open to
everyone, but few
will acknowledge
Jesus Christ as
their Savior, and
take the free gift
of salvation to get
there.
"For
God so loved the
world that he gave
his one and only
Son, that whoever
believes in him
shall not perish but
have eternal life.
(John 3:16 NIV)
The larger print is
because it’s so
important!
The bottom
line is this.
Are you
prepared to accept
Jesus Christ as your
Savior, or do you
plan to live life
according to man?
The first
option is eternal.
The second
option is, well,
just plain Hell.