DECEPTION: ARE CHRISTIANS BEING SET UP FOR THE LAST DAYS GREAT DELUSION?

HOW DO CHANGES IN WORDS EFFECT US? - Consider the word 'Apostasia' from the Bible in 2 Thessalonians 2: What do you think it means?

As I am sure many subscribers realise, we live in perilous times when truth and lies, good and evil, illusion and reality are questioned at every turn. This is why I initially entitled my website, my early writings and my latest Substack articles, ILLUSION2REALITY: Moving from Darkness to Light. It seems all too clear that the world is moving from previously hidden illusions about how life works to the reality of the times. It is why many people, including Christians, are asking:  ‘What is happening worldwide today?

But why would any Bible-believing Christian be surprised?

Jesus told us that such things must occur before He returns to earth in power and glory. He told us very clearly that many would fall away from the faith in the last of the last days. The Bible clearly tells us in the gospel of John chapter 8, verse 44 that we have an enemy called Satan who will lie, deceive and murder; ’He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature because he is a liar and the father of lies’.

So why do so many Christians not realise what is happening today right under our noses? After all, we are told in scripture who Satan is and that ‘that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one’ (1 John 5:19)

So, I ask once again: Why the surprise?

During my many years of research, it has become clear that the whole world was being deceived into believing that the illusions about how life works are actually reality. But, thank God that in the days we are now living, some are beginning to wake up to expose the lies and perceptions of our times, and, as a result, more people are seeing through the deception. The problem for me is that so many of those waking up are not people of faith (I mean of Biblical faith), whereas those who purport to be people of such faith are being deceived. This tells me that something is seriously wrong with the church of Jesus Christ in our time.

I used the phrase ‘ILLUSION2REALITY’ to describe what I believed would happen as we became enveloped by the sheer power of deception in the last of the days before Jesus returned to earth that he warned would happen in Matthew 24. It is why we all need to be engaged in the journey from Illusion to Reality, but it seems few churches or church leaders are preparing their people or even speaking about prophecy or the signs of the times.

This raises so many issues, but for now, I would particularly like to focus on how such deception will affect new young (in the faith) Christians and their ability to stand firm when all else around them descends into lies and falsehood.

I do want to say that I believe that the local church was ordained by God for believers to hear the Word of God where they could grow as Christians into Bible-believing, Spirit-filled people in fellowship together, thereby forming a deep union with God and able to see the signs of the times, as commanded by Jesus.  But where are such churches? It has become abundantly clear that much of the church has succumbed to great deception and is in danger of ‘Falling Way’ (Apostasia) also described by Jesus in Matthew 24 and other places.

There are numerous reasons for this, but the use of language and changes in the meaning of words are major factors in deception.

For now, I would like to pose the question. In a clear glass of drinkable water, we are informed that it would only take approximately 100 to 300 milligrams of arsenic added to the glass to kill someone. This raises the question: How will this affect those young Christains if they do not receive pure truth from those responsible for revealing the whole truth of the Gospel of Christ?

When I read a recent book by a certain Biblical Teacher entitled ‘ The Great Last Days Deception’, I was very impressed with the writers’ honesty and ability to write about complicated matters relating to the signs of the times. I felt that the book might be ideal for new Christians to read to help them begin to determine truth from lies. However, when I came to the pages that describe the passage in the book referring to 2 Thessalonians, chapter 2, which states that in the last days, there will be a great falling away (the word used is Apostasia), I was a bit gasp! In a study of the Greek word used, it becomes clear that this refers to people of faith no longer accepting the word of God as the truth and falling away from the truth, which Jesus made clear would happen.

In this book, the writer stated the he believes 2 Thessalonians 2 provides the clearest and strongest text for a pre-tribulation rapture of the church, which is the escape by Christians through a supernatural act of God, this avoiding the worst times coming over the world. I personally feel that this change in the meaning of words from God’s written Word would cause me to place a caveat on the book before giving it to anyone.

After all, to change The Word of God and use ‘apostasy’ to mean the ‘rapture’ of the church is, I believe, thoroughly dangerous and would likely lead new Christians to have wrong expectations about the end days that would make them totally vulnerable and unprepared for what Jesus told us would come over the church. How will Christians be able to stand firm in a postmodern society that does not believe in absolutes or truth?

It is true that over the years, we have had many great Bible teachers and preachers who know the truth that sets men free and who have played a powerful role in helping New Christians mature as they were taught pure Biblical words like ‘propitiation’ and ‘redemption’ and the real meaning of words like ‘sin’ and ‘repentance’ - but, are these things being taught in churches today? So often, the teaching is watered down to mean asking Christ into our lives who will make all things better and not providing the basis for understanding the purposes of God. There is little understanding of the meaning of sin (Romans 1) and forgiveness leading to redemption. My own observations so often speak of a ‘me-centred’ gospel as opposed to the revealing of God’s great plan for the future which has little to do with my plans. Somone once said to me, if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.

Many Bible teachers write some great stuff and are very helpful in many ways. One often feels they are dedicated followers of Jesus Christ and men who speak the truth. However, how many Christians so often leave their local churches on a Sunday and discuss together the Biblical accuracy of what was preached? It appears that the latest trend is to teach Christians that they will escape the perlilous time we are heading for and that Jesus outlined by changing the meaning of Words. I am hearing from come teachers of the Bible that the word ‘Apostasia’ actually means ‘Rapture’ and this is dangerous. If this had been God’s intention to tell Christians that will escape the times to come, I believe that would have used the word ‘harpazo’, which means ‘snatching away as if by force’, and not ‘Apostasia’. Jesus told us that the coming times will be unlike anything the world has experienced before or will again.

My take on his interpretation is that it is likely to be setting up Christians to the powerful delusion that God said he would send up all those who refuse to believe the truth.

‘For this reason, God will send upon them a powerful deluding influence so that they will believe what is false’ (2 Thessalonians 2:11)

Graham Bridger

Illusion2Reality