Greetings, radio friends, in the ever-precious name of the Lord Jesus. We continue our study in the book of Timothy, the second epistle, and may I read verses twelve and thirteen together as we follow the study of Paul's ministry in relation to our guidance for the last days. We have particularly been seeing in this third chapter the conditions pertaining to the last days of Christianity. the moral and spiritual difficulties that will abound. Not only will abound, but they do abound even now. We've also noted the emphasis the Apostle has given upon the false teachers pervading the last days of the testimony of the Church. We have seen the example, godly and blessed, of this man, a spiritual leader, par excellence, the Apostle Paul himself. And the Apostle has reminded us in the twelfth birth, yea and all that will live godly, in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. As much as to say, if you live as I have lived, you will pay a price. You will suffer persecution. Oh, my beloved Christian, The servant is not any greater than his master. If they persecuted our blessed master, the son of God, if they put him to open shame and degradation, humiliation, and disdain, let not you and I be ashamed either to suffer for him. Ashamed of Jesus, shall it be that mortal man be ashamed of thee? God grant that you and I will realize that our responsibility is to live godly and pay the penalty and price that may be involved as far as this world might be. But I want you to note very carefully what Paul says concerning these conditions and these men as he closes this section relating to the prevailing times. In verse thirteen, Paul by the Spirit writes, But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. Oh, my beloved, may I point with emphasis to these words that you might certainly realize that according to the word of God, the days of Christianity will bring no conversion of this world. So many are trying to make the world better. Well, believe you me, it needs to be better. And who would ever deny that? But when I read my Bible, there is a principle that from beginning to the end of the Bible, that from the beginning to the end of the human race, and all through human history, the hearts of men will never obediently follow the Word of God. You can look in any period of human history whether it be the Garden of Eden, where in the very first time of human history our very first parents disobeyed the Word of God and suffered the consequence of their disobedient act. You can go on to the time when God spake to others and brought to some godly men such as Abraham, Isaac, and as well as Jacob, the guidance and the instruction of his precious words to Moses and the establishment of the people of Israel as a nation under the power and the enabling grace of mighty God. And yet what God began, whether in Eden, whether it might be also in the days of Noah after the flood, a cleansed earth, Whether it be out of the land of Egypt, taking a nation to be for himself, what God began, man has spoiled. And there is then no continuation of faithfulness to its truth and obedience to its commands. But largely, without exception, largely the bulk of the human race have rebelled against the word of God and gone astray. Now we come down, if I may, supported by the Gospel Age. It was after the burial, the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he was crowned with glory in heaven above, and made the head of the church. And the Spirit of God came down at Pentecost to begin the great work of the Christian testimony. And I defy you to state, that the existence of the Christian testimony has been successful to convert the whole world and bring it to the feet of the Lord Jesus. But contrary, we have seen that departure from the truth of God, declension from the word of God has come in. And I say it reverently and firmly. that even in the great Christian age we have had many, too many who have departed from the truth of God and led people astray. And even the church is a failure in itself to the testimony of our blessed and adorable Lord. I am so grateful that my Lord Jesus said in Matthew sixteen upon Peter's confession, thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God, upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against them. Christ is building the church. I am confident he will finish it, but I am also confident and very much ashamed acknowledging even my own participation in the failure, that we his people have not been faithful to him, as he is faithful to us. And when you come down to the end of the Christian age, what do we see even now? Where do you hear the preaching of the gospel in its sincerity, and in its simplicity, and in its purity, Where do you hear the teaching of the truth of God? Where do you find the Bible in exposition given as being the word of the living God, as we should? Beloved unfortunately, there's a famine for the truth of God. And Paul writes in the consummation of this section in chapter three from verse one through thirteen, he writes, But evil men and seduces shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. May I read the words of another translation that enlightens us to the meaning of these words? Listen to them. But wicked men and jumbling impostors shall advance in evil, leading and being led astray. Beloved, these words are solemn. They are very solemn. They are serious words. the seriousness of them we do not realize as we should. That God himself forewarns us that at the end days of Christianity the pervading condition will be that there will be men of wickedness, not necessarily only moral wickedness, but wicked men in relation to the truth of God. And they will be juggling impostors. Did you ever see a juggler? Have you ever watched with fascination the hands and the acts of a magician? And he fools you. The hand is quicker than the eye. And he tricks you. And you see him do things. And you're not able to explain the magic that he has performed. But there's one thing that is true about any juggler. He's fooling you. And you and I have to admit it. And it is the clever thing that he's able to fool you and me by the quickness of his act and doing things that we do not see with our eyes. Well, beloved, may I say, when you look at this which God is telling us through his servant Paul regarding Paul's teachers, I want to tell you I've heard some of the most strange juggling of scriptures in my day. But they know many people are deceived. And the Apostle says, They shall advance in evil. They will be leading many astray. And they themselves will be also led astray. As the Authorized Version says, They shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. My beloved radio friend, I want to be clear. that the word that God tells you and me there will be men who can and will lead astray many from the truth of God. I want to say beware. Now, beloved, I would suggest to any man and woman, whenever you hear the teaching of the word of God, supposedly, even from this preacher who talks with you, and to you, cast that preaching by the Word of God. You and I can only follow the Word of God, and this we shall see particularly in the continuation of our study. But these are words that we should take to our heart. Listen, whenever one comes to propose some teaching concerning the Scriptures, May God help you and me to realize I must test what this teaching is and the acid test is the word of the living God. What set the scriptures? Oh my beloved, first of all, and this is important, I must put it clearly. First of all, my friend, the essential thing for you and for me is to be saved. The essential thing is for you and me to be born again. For the natural mind perceiveth not the things which be of God, neither can it know them, for they are spiritually discerned. And you will never understand the Bible rightly until you're born again. Are you saved? But when you are saved, God will give you, as he gives to all of his children, the indwelling Spirit of God, that you might know the things which be of God. And that Holy Spirit will be the divine guide. The divine teacher, Jesus said, He shall guide you into all truth. And dependency upon the Holy Spirit is therefore necessary. But first, be born again. Second, Let the Spirit of God be the illumined scriptures to your soul, your heart, and your mind. For the days are evil, and evil men and seducers are becoming worse and worse. They are deceiving many, and they themselves are being deceived. God help us to awake to the dangers we are in, shall we pray. To thee again, our Father, we commend and commit the blessing and the power of thy word to be blessed in the energy of the Holy Spirit to all the hearers. For Jesus' sake and for his glory, amen.