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What happened on November 18, 1978? One of the sensational news was the Jonestown Massacre. Jim Jones, the founder of the Peoples Temple, launched a mass suicide, killing more than 900 people, including hundreds of children. He called himself the messiah or the christ. Since ancient times, many cults have appeared in various parts of the world. What characteristics do they have? One of the characteristics is “legalism”. Their followers must obey a rigid set of extrabiblical rules in order to please God. In addition, the heads of these cults are mostly fornicators and adulterers. Take the example of Jim Jones. He strictly prohibited his members from having extramarital affairs, but he himself had sex with many male and female members. Moreover, many cults abuse their members physically and emotionally. Lastly, cults see themselves unique, and they are intolerant toward others.
The four disciples of the Lord Jesus, Peter, James, John, and Andrew, came to ask their teacher (Mark 13:3), about the signs of the end times. The disciples asked three different questions. When would the Jewish Temple be destroyed? This was the first question they asked. My friends, the Temple had already been destroyed by the Romans and it happened in A.D. 70. The second question was about the signs of the second coming of Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:3). The third question was about the last days.
Christmas is the day to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The first coming of Jesus Christ was for redemption, to reconcile human beings with God the Father. After humans sinned, we are all dead spiritually, that is to say, we are separated from God and cannot communicate with Him. Not only that, all human beings must die physically one day. Jesus Christ was not only born as a baby, but when He was thirty-three years old, the Son of God died on the cross for the sins of the world. After three days, He rose from the dead, and for all those who sincerely believe in Him as the Savior would receive forgiveness and eternal life straightaway.
The Lord Jesus will surely come again, but before He returns to the earth, many imposters would appear. They would claim to be the messiah or the christ, deceiving people (Matthew 24:4-5), causing them to get lost spiritually. Have you got lost before? My family and I were on a family trip and were misled by the GPS. Consequently, we were ended up in the middle of nowhere. This was a nasty and scary experience. Not only false christs lead people astray, but the most terrible part is that, followers would be trapped in error forever.
Before the Lord Jesus returns, don’t miss out the blessings that He had already brought to the world on His First Advent. On His First Coming, Jesus Christ came to restore the broken relationship between God and humankind. Also, when believers leave this world one day, they would go to their heavenly home. Dear friends, Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. Are you willing to accept Him in your heart? Christians, on the one hand, we must watch out for false christs, on the other hand, we must be familiar with the Gospel that we believe.
Kenneth Thumb Ministry 譚約珥事工 