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Series Code: BOL
Program Code: BOL000662S
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00:01 (Breath of Life Theme Music)
00:07 Sermon #B662 - 2 Beasts, 2 nations, 1 Disease 00:20 Dr. Byrd: Today, we've come ready to preach a word from the Lord. 00:25 This is not an easy word, 00:27 but it's a necessary word particularly in the times in which we live. 00:32 I would like to invite you at this time to take your Bibles 00:35 and go with me to the Book of Revelation. We're going to Revelation 13, 00:40 and we're going to read the entire chapter today. Revelation 13. 00:48 I'm going to read and your hearing from the King James Version of the Bible. 00:52 Revelation 13. The Word of God says, "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, 00:59 and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, 01:04 and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 01:10 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, 01:15 and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, 01:20 and great authority." 01:22 Verse 3. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; 01:26 and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. 01:31 And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: 01:33 and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like unto the beast? 01:37 Who is able to make war with him?" 01:41 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; 01:45 and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 01:49 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, 01:53 and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 01:56 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: 02:01 and a power was given on him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 02:06 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, 02:08 whose names are not written in the book of life of the 02:10 Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear. 02:19 Verse 10. He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: 02:25 he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. 02:28 Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. 02:32 Verse 11. And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; 02:36 and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 02:39 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, 02:42 and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, 02:47 whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, 02:52 so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, 02:56 and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles 02:59 which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, 03:04 that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. 03:10 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, 03:13 that the image of the beast should both speak, 03:15 and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. 03:20 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, 03:23 to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 03:28 and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, 03:35 or the number of his name. 03:37 Verse 18. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: 03:47 for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. 03:57 Today, I want to speak with you all in the subject 2 Beasts, 2 Nations, 1 Disease. 04:06 2 Beasts, 2 Nations, 1 Disease. Let's pray. Father, right now, we have sung. 04:14 We have returned our gifts to you. We've had children's ministries. 04:19 We've testified of your goodness, but now, Lord, we need the word from you. 04:25 Speak to us today. We pray. 04:27 Give your people open minds and receptive hearts to your word this day. 04:33 With the [inaudible] may individuals respond to your voice 04:37 and desire to surrender their lives to you. In the name of Jesus we pray, amen. 04:46 2 Beasts, 2 Nations, 1 Disease. The world right now is in an uproar. 04:56 Our nation is in chaos. Uncertainty is commonplace. Fear is everywhere. 05:07 The future is unknown. Thousands are dying daily from the coronavirus. 05:15 Hundreds of thousands are contracting the coronavirus. Shelters in place are now in effect. 05:24 Schools are closed. Churches are closed. Restaurants are closed. Businesses are closed. 05:32 Everywhere is closed. You ride down some streets and it looks like a ghost town. 05:40 There aren't enough masks. There aren't enough ventilators. 05:45 But today, in the name of Jesus, 05:49 I'm still glad today that those who believe in Jesus will still hear his voice 05:57 during this pandemic. Then, we hear his voice saying, "It is I, be not afraid." 06:04 Though the storms of life are raging, Jesus says, "It is I, be not afraid." 06:11 Though somebody right now is walking through the valley of the shadow of death, Jesus says, 06:15 "It is I, be not afraid." 06:17 Though it seems that we're going to witness death of epic proportions, Jesus says, 06:24 "It is I, be not afraid." Though it seems that we're headed for economic destruction, 06:30 I'm so glad I can hear Jesus' voice saying, "It is I, be not afraid." 06:37 In the name of Jesus today, I'm here to let someone know that I am not afraid. 06:44 God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love, and a sound mind. 06:51 Because I am not afraid today, I must be honest. 06:55 I can't keep silent as a preacher regarding the esconological 06:59 and apocalyptic times in which we live. Friends of mine, 07:03 God has called me today to warn you of what's ahead of us. 07:07 Not from the newspaper, not from the TV news, not from CNN, not from ABC, NBC, CBS, or Fox, 07:17 but God has told me to warn you of what is coming from the unadulterated Word of God. 07:25 Now, if you think things are bad now, you better think again 07:29 because you haven't seen a thing yet. Some people say, "Oh, this is one of the plagues." 07:34 Let's be clear. This is one of the pestilences that happens 07:37 and transpires before the plagues. With that in mind, 07:41 I don't have time to be preaching feel-good sermons. 07:45 I don't have time to be preaching style without substance. 07:48 I don't have time to just be preaching gravy and there is no meat. 07:52 I don't have time to be preaching home-baked, taste-good, sound-good, 07:56 feel-good, clap-your-hands, stomp-your-feet sermons that make you shout on Sabbath 08:02 but you live any kind of way during the week. The Bible's very clear now. 08:06 Isaiah 58:1. It's time to cry aloud, and spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet. 08:14 Today, I've come to tell you about 2 Beasts, 2 Nations, and 1 Disease. 08:19 Now, there are two books in the Bible that are what we call prophetic books. 08:23 In the Old Testament, the prophetic book is Daniel. 08:26 In the New Testament, the prophetic book is the Revelation. 08:30 When you read these books, when you read Bible prophecy, 08:34 you need to understand that in these books. 08:37 there are certain symbols that have certain meanings. 08:39 For example, when you read Numbers 14:34, 08:43 you will discover in Bible prophecy that a day represents a year. 08:48 Water, according to Revelation 17:5, represents people. 08:52 A beast, according to Daniel 7:23, represents a kingdom, 08:56 and a dragon represents Satan according to Revelation 12. 09:01 Now, let's talk first about the first beast of Revelation 13 because, remember, 09:07 there are 2 beasts, 2 nations, and 1 disease. Revelation 13:1. 09:13 The Word of God says, once I read again, "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, 09:18 and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, 09:22 and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 09:28 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, 09:30 and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: 09:32 and the dragon gave him his power, his seat, and great authority." 09:35 Now, let's stop there and understand what we've just read, 09:38 applying biblical symbols to the prophetic books of Daniel and the Revelation. 09:42 The Bible says that John says, "I saw, 09:45 and I stood upon the sand of the sea a beast rise out of the sea." 09:49 If a beast means a kingdom, then the Bible is clear that a kingdom comes out of the sea. 09:55 Sea is water. Water represents people. Then, John is saying, 09:59 "I saw a kingdom rise out of among many people." 10:04 Now, understand, verse 2 lets us know that the dragon, Satan, gave the beast this kingdom, 10:12 its power, its seat, and its great authority. Let me say that one more time. 10:18 The Bible is clear that the dragon, Satan, gave this beast, a kingdom, its power, 10:25 its seat and its great authority. 10:28 Now, you need to know that this dragon representing Satan also represents, 10:33 in this instance, papal Rome. When you study world history, 10:39 it's clear that old Pagan Rome gave the pope the papacy, the beast, 10:44 its power and authority. Now, before I go any further, 10:48 I need you to understand that this message is not in attack on the pope. 10:52 This message is not an attack on the Roman Catholic church. 10:55 But I must preach the Word of God so that we all might understand that 10:59 prophecy must come to pass. 11:02 Now, we keep reading. Revelation 13, let's go to verse 3. 11:05 The word of God says, "And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; 11:11 and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast." 11:16 The Bible is teaching now that the beast, it would suffer a death blow. 11:21 The beast, it would suffer a great wound. A wound that would really wound it to death, 11:27 but then later on, the wound would heal, and all the world would wonder after the beast. 11:33 When you study world history, you will discover that in 1798, remember that date, 11:39 in 1798, a gentleman by the name of General Berthier, 11:45 he was a French general under Napoleon. 11:47 French General Berthier took the pope captive in 1798, go read your history books, 11:54 took the papacy captive in 1798 and the papacy died in exile. 12:01 Many people thought that this was the end of the papacy, that the papacy was done. 12:07 But the prophecy of the Word of God must come to fruition. 12:10 The Bible says that the papacy would receive a death blow. 12:15 He was taken in 1798, prisoner by Berthier, and died in exile. 12:19 But the Bible says that this deathly wound would have to heal. 12:24 When you further study history and you study the Concordat of 1929, Italian Prime Minister, 12:30 a gentleman by the name of Benito Mussolini, restored the power of the papacy in 1929. 12:37 Just as the Bible have prophesied, the papacy would receive a death blow, 1798. 12:43 But in 1929, the deathly wound would heal and all would wonder after the beast. 12:50 We know as the world in which we live today that the papacy, the pope, 12:53 is the most influential person on the face of the globe, 12:57 and all the world wonders after him. But let's go some more. 13:02 Let's go to verse 5 of Revelation 13. Verse 5, the Word of God says, first part, 13:07 "And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies." 13:14 We understand here, friends of mine, that the papacy, this beast, 13:18 would speak great things and blasphemies. 13:21 Now, the Bible defines blasphemy as two things: number one, 13:26 being a man and you make yourself God according to John 10:33; and then number two, 13:31 declaring to have power to forgive sin, Luke 5:21. The papacy does both. 13:38 It claims to be God on earth and it claims to have the power to forgive sin. 13:46 But where I read in my Bible, there's only one name under heaven whereby we can be saved, 13:52 and that's the name of Jesus. Only Jesus can forgive me of my sins. 13:59 The Bible says in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful 14:03 and just and forgive us of our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness," 14:08 which means I don't have to go pray to another individual in a window, 14:11 but I can boldly go to the throne of grace. God will hear me and he will have mercy. 14:18 But we continue the second part of Revelation 13:5. 14:21 Power was given unto the beast, him, to continue forty and two months. 14:29 Let's understand what we're reading. 14:30 Number one, the beast would receive its power from the dragon. 14:34 Dragon is Satan, dragon is old Pagan Rome, and it would give power to the beast, 14:39 the papacy. The Bible goes on and lets us know that the papacy, 14:43 it would suffer a death blow but its wound would be healed. 14:46 The Bible lets us know that the papacy would speak blasphemy, having the power, 14:50 it says, to forgive sins, and claiming to be God on earth. 14:54 But then number four, Revelation 13:5, 14:57 power was given unto the beast to continue for forty and two months. 15:00 Now, remember, we said a little earlier that in these books, Daniel and the Revelation, 15:06 there are different symbols that mean different things. 15:09 Remember in Bible prophecy, one prophetic day is equal to one literal year. 15:15 One prophetic day is equal to one literal year. 15:19 Now, the Bible says that the beast or the papacy would be given power for 42 months which, 15:25 by the way, is the same as 1,260 years according to Revelation 7 which is 1,200 15:33 and threescore days, and a time, times, and dividing of time in Revelation 12:14 15:39 and Daniel 7:25. It is also time, times, dividing of time; 15:43 another way of saying 3 1/2 years. It's the same thing. 1,260 years. 15:53 Let me break this down. 42 months. 42 months times 30 days, and we use 30 days 16:06 because the 30 days is for the Roman calendar of number of days within a month. 16:11 42 months times the 30 days give us 1,260 days. When we say 1,260 days, in essence, 16:22 we're saying 1,260 years because a day is for a year. 16:27 But let's continue on. We read 1,200 and threescore days. What does that mean? 16:35 Well, 1,200 threescore, a score is represented by the number 20. 16:42 When you say threescore, we're saying 3 times 20 which equals 60. 16:47 We know score is 20 because we often say the Bible says that 16:51 God has promised us to live threescore and ten. Threescore. 3 times 20 plus 10 is 70. 16:59 In this text, the Bible is saying 1,200 and threescore days, which is 1,260 days, 17:07 which is 1,260 years. But then the Bible goes on, 17:11 and it says according to Revelation 12:14 and Daniel 7:25, a time, times, 17:20 and dividing of time. 17:23 Now, in Bible prophecy, one time is one year. In a year, we have 12 months. 17:29 Remember, we must keep our math the same. We're saying 30 days in a Roman calendar month. 17:34 a time, one year, is 12 months times 30 days which is 360 days. 17:43 The Bible says a time, then it says a times. 17:45 If a time is 360 days, a times must be 2 years. 360 plus 360 is 720. 17:54 But then it closes out and says a dividing of time. 17:57 When we say a dividing of time, we're saying half a year. 18:01 We're saying 360 divided by 2 which is 180. When the Bible in Bible prophecy says a time, 18:08 a times, and dividing of time, we're saying 360 plus 720 plus 180 which equals 1,260 days, 18:18 which is the equivalent day for a year, 1,260 years, which means, 18:23 friends of mine, that 1,200 threescore days, 42 months, and a time, times, 18:31 and dividing of time are all the same thing. 1,260 years. 18:39 Now, remember, the prophecy says that power would be given to the beast for 1,260 years, 18:46 42 months. Now, in 538 AD, the power of the papacy reached its highest point 18:56 because a gentleman by the name of Justinian, 18:59 Roman Emperor Justinian made the papacy the head of all Christian churches, 538 AD. 19:10 But then exactly 1,260 years later, in 1798, remember, we told you that history says, 19:19 the papacy was taken captive by French General Berthier. The prophecy is correct. 19:27 The papacy would rule for 1,260 years. 19:31 It would begin in 538 AD when it was made head of all Christian churches, 19:37 and exactly 42 months, 1,200 and threescore days, a time, times, 19:43 and dividing of times, 1,260 years later in 1798, his reign would end 19:50 because Berthier would take him captive. 19:54 Next point, let's read Revelation 13:7. 19:59 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, 20:02 and to overcome them: and power was given unto him over all kindreds, tongues, and nations. 20:09 History clearly indicates that the papacy persecuted many Christians during this period, 20:14 538 to 1798, which was also referred to during this period as the Middle Ages. 20:21 While many Catholics believed it was doing the right thing, 20:23 eliminating heresy from the church, 20:25 the reality is many people were destroyed during this period. 20:29 Revelation 13:7, the 2nd part. And power was given over him over all kindreds, and tongues, 20:37 and nations, which means the beast would have global power and influence. 20:44 But then number seven, Revelation 13:8, the Word of God says, 20:49 "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, 20:53 whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain 20:56 from the foundation of the world." Let me look at that first sentence again. 21:01 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him." 21:07 The beast then would engage in worship, but not true worship, 21:14 but the beast would engage in false worship. 21:17 But God in this day and age in which we live, is calling His people to true worship. 21:25 Revelation 14:6 is clear. And I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, 21:30 having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, 21:32 to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, 21:36 "Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgement is come." 21:41 God is calling us to true worship, but the beast was as engaged in false worship. 21:48 Now, the first beast of Revelation 13 is papal Rome, 21:55 and the first beast of Revelation 13 is synonymous with the fourth beast of Daniel 7. 22:04 Take your Bibles and turn with me to the Book of Daniel, and let's go to Daniel 7. 22:09 Take your Bibles and go with me to the Book of Daniel, 22:11 and we're going to go to Daniel 7, and we're going to read verse 25. 22:15 Now, remember, we're saying that the first beast of Revelation 13 is synonymous 22:20 with the fourth beast of Daniel 7. 22:23 The Word of God says to us in Daniel 7:25, 22:28 "And he shall speak great words against the most High, 22:33 shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: 22:40 and they shall be given into his hand until a time, and times, and the dividing of time. 22:46 God's word is true, that this fourth beast of Daniel 7, 22:50 which is the same as the first beast of Revelation 13, 22:54 would seek to change God's times, and seek to change God's law, 22:59 and power would be given to this beast for 1,260 years, a time, a times, 23:05 and the dividing of time. This beast would have the nerve. 23:09 This beast would have the unmitigated gull to change God's law. 23:15 Now, remember, we told you, this is all about worship. 23:19 Who are we going to give our worship to? The central issue being worship, 23:25 what's going on here? What would the beast seek to change? 23:28 What law would the beast seek to change? The beast would seek to change in worship, 23:34 God's day of worship. What am I talking about? The fourth commandment. 23:38 Now, notice when you read the commandments in Exodus 20:3 through 17, 23:42 all of the commandments begin with the words "thou shall not". 23:46 But when you read the fourth commandment in verse 8 of Exodus 20, 23:50 it begins with the word "remember", which suggests to me, God didn't say, 23:55 "Thou shalt keep the Sabbath." God said, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." 23:59 Why? God knew that some thing, some power, some beast would seek to change his law. 24:06 He says, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." 24:09 This act was executed by the beast, the papacy. Pastor Byrd, what are you talking about? 24:14 Understand, friends with me, 24:16 that the current Roman Catholic church is the extension of the New Testament church that 24:24 we study about in the Bible. 24:25 They see themselves as the extension of the New Testament church, 24:29 and they base this on the premise of what Matthew 16:18 says, 24:34 when Jesus is speaking to Peter and he says, "I will build my church on a rock," 24:40 and so because of that, Peter's name by definition is Petras which means rock. 24:46 Roman Catholics believe that with this statement of Matthew 16:18, 24:50 that Peter is made the first pope of the church. 24:54 When you study Roman Catholic history and you ask, 24:57 "What and who is the first pope of the Roman Catholic church?" 25:00 They will say Peter because of Matthew 16:18, 25:04 but they have misinterpreted and misunderstood what Jesus is trying to say. 25:09 Jesus is not saying, "I'm going to build my church on Peter," but Jesus is saying, 25:15 "I'm going to build my church on myself." Jesus Christ, the solid rock. 25:20 On Christ, the solid rock, I stand. All other ground is sinking sand. 25:28 But we discover through the Word of God that it's through this the Roman Catholic church, 25:32 it sees itself as the mother church, the church universal, 25:36 an extension of the New Testament church. 25:38 Now, you need to understand when we talk about changing the sacredness of God's 25:42 Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day of the week, you need to understand, 25:46 friends of mine, that the church alone cannot enforce and make you do anything. 25:53 The church couldn't do it. The mother church, the Roman Catholic church, couldn't do it. 25:57 What took place was in the year 321 AD, look it up, 26:02 a Roman emperor by the name of Constantine says that on the venerable Day of the Sun, 26:08 let all the city workers, let all the magistrates seize their labors 26:12 and seize their work in the cities in honor and in celebration of the sun. 26:18 On the first day of the week, Sunday, in celebration of the Sun God, Constantine, 26:24 the governor, the general, the emperor, says, 26:26 "Let's stop working and treat the first day of the week as a holy day in honor of the 26:31 Sun God." It's initially just for people who worked in the cities. 26:37 Later in 336 AD, it's extended not just for the people in the cities, 26:41 but people in agriculture and in the fields. Well, why, 26:44 Pastor Byrd, was it extended to the agricultural people 26:46 and people in the fields 15 years later? Well, it's very true. 26:49 It wasn't done in 321 AD because they didn't want to stop making their money 26:53 and their money was made in the fields. 26:56 But in 336 AD, it's now not just people in the cities, 27:00 but it's people everywhere, that on the venerable Day of the Sun, 27:02 the first day of the week, 27:04 in honor of the Sun God, that you treat it as a holy day. 27:08 Slowly, we see the sacredness and solemnity of God's Sabbath day, 27:13 God's day of worship, slowly move and go from the seventh day to the first day of the week. 27:18 That should not come as a surprise to anybody 27:19 because Satan never comes out in your face and tells you anything. 27:23 He's sly. He's subtle. He's cunning. Remember, that's how he came to Adam and Eve. 27:28 He didn't come saying, "Here I am. I'm Satan. 27:31 I'm the devil." No, he didn't come like that. 27:33 Let me remind you the devil does not have horns coming out of his head. 27:36 The devil is not in a red suit. The devil does not have a tail coming out of his caboose. 27:41 The devil is not carrying a pitchfork. 27:45 But some of you, you need to know the devil will transform himself into an angel of light. 27:51 Some of you live with the devil. Some of you work with the devil. 27:55 The devil is no respecter of persons. 27:59 But we see the sacredness of God's sabbath moving from the seventh day to the first day. 28:03 Again, it's all about worship. But then in the year 1517, 28:06 Thank you for watching Breath of Life. Please tune in next week for the conclusion of 28:12 2 Beasts, 2 Nations 1 Disease 28:17 Thank you very much for tuning in to this week's Breath of Life broadcast. 28:22 We hope and pray that you've been blessed by Dr. Byrd's inspirational message. 28:26 If you would like to hear this sermon in its entirety, 28:29 please feel free to visit us at www.breathoflife.tv. 28:35 Or, call us at (256) 929-6460. 28:40 [END] 28:47 [Music] 28:50 It's an Easter Sunday extravaganza! 28:53 Celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord and God's power over sin and death. 28:58 Breath of Life Television Ministries and The Interfaith Broadcasting Commission Presents 29:03 Dr. Carlton Byrd, Yolanda Adams and Donnie McClurkin 29:11 in The Awakening! 29:13 On ABC, Easter Sunday. 29:16 April 12, 2020 29:17 For broadcast times, check your local listings . 29:20 WWW.breathoflife.tv |
Revised 2020-04-09