Blueprint for Delusion - Terry James -
Even a cursory observation by those paying attention, if they are honest, should induce them to acknowledge that this generation is encompassed by attempts to delude. I was in the advertising and public relations business for a number of years before my eyesight problems forced me to turn to other pursuits. The Lord saw to it that I landed softly enough in the field of writing books-for the most part, books on Bible prophecy.
I am most thankful for His providing that parachute into the field of trying to determine truth from lies about unfolding issues and events of these last days.
The advertising business is filled with lies, misconceptions, diversions and delusions of many sorts. The whole objective is to separate consumers from their hard-earned money. Actually, the objective is to get into our wallets, regardless of how the money is earned.
Government regulators now stipulate much more stringent parameters in advertising than they did during my day. For example, you've heard that line of mumbling of impossibly-fast-to-be-understood words after some drug company commercials. It sounds like gibberish. Actually, the lines are complying with governmental regulations by explaining possible side effects or other points of information the regulators insist the consumer be given. I'm surprised the government will allow those follow-up announcements to be given in such a hard-to-understand way.
The thing I'm trying to point out is that advertising and public relations are, by their very design, intended to seduce people into buying products and services, or whatever.
This is a form of delusion. Billions of dollars are spent in ad buys and other ways to produce these seductive messages. Campaigns can be long and ongoing in a building propaganda process to construct and establish product identity.
Think, for example, of the diet food industry. Marie Osmond seems to be on the TV screen every hour, on the hour, lauding the praises of Nutrisystem. America's airways and cable systems are inundated with such commercials.
Whether the product advertisements are truthful in every case or not, the attempts to seduce the buyer are never ending. This is but one step away from deluding the consumer-deluding us to make us believe that something that might or might not be true is almost certainly a fact.
When it comes to spiritual matters, the Bible is absolutely true in every case. And God's Word speaks powerfully to the matter of false advertising in the spiritual sense. Heaven's forewarnings about one coming delusion is unmistakable for anyone who will heed the alert.
Satan has a blueprint for delusion. The Bible forewarns about this devilish plan. We are in a time when this forewarning is crucial. The Christian must not ignore the flashing red lights that are bursting all around us today.
Paul the apostle tells through prophecy that God will, following the Rapture of the Church, allow this delusion to come upon earth's rebels, and they will believe Satan's big lie. Believers of this Age of Grace must be wise to Lucifer's evil deception.
This is why we, collectively, wrote the book we released recently. Discerners: Analyzing Converging Prophetic Signs for the End of Days is designed, we believe, by Holy Spirit influence, to give the Christian a comprehensive look at signals of how near we are to the time of Christ's Second Advent, thus to the Rapture of the Church.
Satan wants to foist upon humanity seduction that will delude his victims to believe one particular lie. Regarding the matter of the blueprint for the delusion that our title cocoons, Jeff Kinley has framed the matter in excellent fashion.
The apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonians,
Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; 9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, 10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.
2 Thessalonians 2:8-12 (italics mine)
So, it is clear from Scripture that there is coming a time in history when the whole earth will fall under a grand delusion. The means through which this global deception will take place is the Antichrist, the man of sin. And he himself is directly energized by Satan. Paul says this devilish activity will take place in force during the last three and one-half years of the tribulation. And with his signs (whether they prove to be illusory in nature or actual miracles), he will nevertheless convince the world that he is indeed "God." And billions will worship him as such (Revelation 13:8,11-15; 14:9,11; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4). This is the culmination of Satan's long-sought objective-to be worshiped as God (Isaiah 14:13-14). And through the Antichrist, he will finally realize that depraved desire.
But what makes this bizarre phenomenon so potentially perplexing is that it is God Himself who initially sends this delusion. One may be inclined to think this sounds either uncharacteristic, cruel, or antithetical to God's essence and character. After all, doesn't He want people to come to faith in Him? Doesn't Scripture say as much in 2 Peter 3:9? And if this is true, why would He then cause the world to be deceived by lies that will effectively prevent people from salvation? These are fair and legitimate questions, and ones that, fortunately, are answered for us in God's Word. (Jeff Kinley, "Descending Dark Delusion," chapter 3, Discerners: Analyzing Converging Prophetic Signs for the End of Days)
Jeff goes on to illustrate that God's plan is in every case perfect, and that the Lord will deal with mankind through the delusion. That is, God will make understandable the horrendous lie that will assault people during the Tribulation.
If I may, I suggest you read that chapter and all others in our book. It's a great book because of superb writers like Jeff and fifteen others who are, themselves, spiritually attuned discerners of our times. That's not just the old ad man in me coming out. It really is a book that will greatly edify your study as we watch this delusion build, leading up to the Rapture.
And, I do believe we are seeing it build. It will manifest fully once the Church is in Heaven, but that prophesied delusion is increasing now as God's cup of wrath is filling for pouring upon a world of rebellious unbelievers. Meantime, while we are witnessing the things develop that God's Word tells us are signs to look for preceding Christ's return, we are to adhere to the following Scriptural commands. They are from the mouth of the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself:
"And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch" (Mark 13: 37).
"And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh" (Luke 21: 28).
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