Brother Edgar Reich delivers a powerful sermon on the great deception, emphasizing the dangers of falling into deception and the importance of defending the faith. Drawing from the book of Jude, he highlights various forms of deception such as hyper grace, unbelief, sexual immorality, and rebellion against God. The sermon concludes with a call to repentance, a reminder of God's judgment, and an encouragement to live faithfully in the truth of God's Word.

Thank you for joining me. My name is Brother Edgar Reich and I am called by God for revival. The message is the great deception. The definition of deception by Merriam-Webster is that it is the act of making someone believe something that is not true. The act of deceiving someone. It includes statements intended to make people believe something that is not true. Deception is one of the primary methods of Satan. Our text today comes from the Bible. It comes from the book of Jude. Jude is a small book, the second last book in the Bible, before the book of Revelation. The traditional view is that Jude was one of the brothers of Jesus and also called Judas in Matthew chapter 13 verse 55 and Mark chapter 6 verse 3. The reference to James in verse 1 is to the famous leader of the Jerusalem church in Acts chapter 15 verses 13 to 21. Jude wrote this letter likely between 66 AD and 80 AD. The text that I'm giving you today is from the New Living Translation. It's a little bit easier for young people to understand and it says this letter is from Jude, a slave of Jesus Christ and a brother of James. I'm writing to all who have been called by God, the Father who loves you and keeps you safe in the care of Jesus Christ. May God give you more and more mercy, peace, and love. Now Jude asks us in the next verse to defend the faith and in verse 3 of Jude he says, Dear friends, I have been eagerly planning to write to you about the salvation we all share but now I find that I must write about something else urging you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to his holy people. In verse 4 Jude starts to explain the deceptions that are taking place and that took place in his time but these deceptions have also continued to today and today they have taken on a great great significance for us Christians and for those who believe that they are Christians. In verse 4 Jude says, I say this because some ungodly people have warmed their way into churches saying that God's marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded a long time ago for they have denied our only master and Lord Jesus Christ. In the King James Version and translation the words used are they are denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. So I want to remind you though you already know these things that Jesus first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt but later he destroyed those who did not remain faithful. These are the continuing words from Jude in the New Living Translation and now in verse 6 he says, and I remind you of the angels who did not stay within the limits of authority God gave them but left the place where they belonged. God has kept them securely chained in prisons of darkness waiting for the great day of judgment and don't forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God's judgment. Again this is what the Bible says this is what Jude said in the book of Jude. Now verse 8, in the same way these people who claim authority from their dreams live immoral lives, defy authority and scoff at supernatural things. Probably that includes even angels and scoffing at those things that God has ordained. But even Michael one of the mightiest of the angels did not dare accuse the devil of blasphemy but simply said the Lord rebuke you. This took place when Michael was arguing with the devil about Moses' body. Verse 10, but these people scoff at things they do not understand like unthinking animals. They do whatever their instincts tell them to do and so they bring about their own destruction. What sorrow awaits them for they follow in the footsteps of Cain who killed his brother. Like Balaam they deceive people for money and like Korah they perish in their rebellion. When these people eat with you in your fellowship meals commemorating the Lord's love they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are like shameless shepherds who care only for themselves. They're like clouds blowing over the land without giving any rain. They are like trees in autumn. They are doubly dead for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots. They are like wild waves of the sea churning up the foam of their shameful deeds. They are like wandering stars doomed forever to the blackest darkness. Jude says here that these religious leaders, teachers, and so-called Christians who practice such things and deceive mankind are condemned. They are doomed. In verse 14, Enoch who lived in the seventh generation after Adam prophesied about these people, he said, listen the Lord is coming with countless thousands of his holy ones to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against them. These people are grumblers and complainers living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves and they flatter others who get what they want. Now in the next verses, Jude calls us to be faithful and he says in verse 17, but you my dear friends must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ predicted. They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God's spirit in them. But you dear friends must build each other up in your most holy faith. Pray in the power of the Holy Spirit and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ who will bring you eternal life. In this way you will keep yourself safe in God's love and you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives. We will cover the last verses 24 and 25 in the final prayer but now I'd like to go back to the text to look at it closer and we must understand that the world, our own flesh and the devil conspire against us using lies and deception to mislead us and to render us helpless. First there is the deception of not defending our faith and when we look at Jude in verse 3, Jude urges us to defend the faith that God has entrusted to his holy people. But you say I'm afraid too and so often we are afraid of man. We're deceived by political correctness. We're deceived by persecution. We don't share faith with love. We try to act without higher help and then we fail. Number two, there are three deceptions in verse 4 and the deception starts with hyper grace. In Jude verse 4, Jude warns us there are many who follow a type of grace and imply it's okay when you sin, saying that God's marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The second part of this verse 4 gives terrible deceptions. We are starting to deny the only true God. We mix them up with other gods. We deny God's character and we deny his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. We now say God is love. God is love and everyone will make it to heaven. May I ask you, is this what the Bible says? Is this what the word of God says? What does the Bible say? It says the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. The Bible rejects all gods of wood and stone and that they can not be mixed with the one and only true God. And then in Jude verse 5, there is the deception of unbelief and Jude reminds us of the sin of unbelief. He said, I want to remind you though you already know these things that the Lord first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt, but later he destroyed those who did not remain faithful. Only two men, Joshua and Caleb were allowed to go into the promised land. Unbelief cost the lives of 600,000 men less too. They died in the desert over 40 years. Even all angelic beings who turn against God and experience God's judgment and justice. Will God make an exception for you and for me if we go against his word, against his written inspired faithful word? And then in Jude verse 7, Jude reminds us of the deception of sexual immorality. He said in verse 7, and don't forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God's judgment. Many churches now compromise. Laws are being passed that will cost us. Laws are being passed that lead us away from God. And churches, many churches are now turning against what God has written in this book in his holy word in the Bible. Beloved, that's not right. That is very, very dangerous because God is not only a God of justice and love, but he's also a God of judgment. And then Jude reminds us in Jude verse 8, there is a deception of dreams. In the same way, these people who claim authority from their dreams live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at supernatural beings. Now we know from scripture that Satan can also come as an angel of light and in our dreams to deceive us through dreams. There are those who follow dreams and visions apart from the word of God. There are those creating angel dust and follow angels. There are those that bark as dogs and meow as cats and say it is the spirit of God. The word of God says that the Holy Spirit of God will only point us to Christ Jesus. He's our helper, he's our guide, and he will empower us to share the word of God. So if you're caught up in extremism, may I ask you to go back to the word of God. In Jude verse 11, it describes three deceptions. There is the deception of killing, and that refers to Cain who killed Abel. But killing also includes the unborn beloved. Will God stand by forever? No, he won't. And then there is the deception of greediness for money, which was the sin of Balaam. Is money your God? Then there is the deception of rebellion against God. Can you think of any current rebellion against God? There is a deception and defamation of God's character to the highest level of religion in the world. The deception is rebellion against God, and that we can mix the gods of wood and stone, the gods of Baal, the god of Islam, and the gods of other religions with the one and only true God. Does the Bible say that that can be done? May I remind you of the account of the golden calf in the desert. The nation of Israel made a golden calf as their God, and they danced around it. When God saw it, he was ready to destroy the whole nation of Israel. Yet the text also tells us that at the same time they wanted to arrange a feast for God. But God will have none of that. He is the only true God. So Moses had to plead with God not to destroy the whole nation of Israel. And then there is a great deception of God's character, which excludes judgment and sin. Even atheists can make it to heaven if they do good, says the Pope. If you believe the Bible, please read all of it and read the book of Revelation. Read this book, beloved. Trust this book because it is inspired by God. It is written by God. Please trust this book. Do not trust man. Do not trust ideas of man, but rely wholly on the one living and true God. And God will judge. And yes, he is a God of great love. He is a God of love, but he will not create a new heaven and a new earth where he will permit sin back into heaven. You see, he will create a new heaven and a new earth without sin. I have to tell you, sadly, if you're not cleansed from your sins and born again through the Son of God, and if you do not do the will of God, the Father, after you're saved, you will not make it to heaven. This is what the Lord Jesus said in Matthew. And he said, many will say, Lord, Lord, have we not healed in your name? Have we not driven out satanic beings in your name? And he will answer and say, yet I know you not. Only if you do the will of my Father will I acknowledge you before my Father. Then great deception and rebellion by Satan and those satanically inspired is to say that Jesus is not the only way. They say God is a God of love, and what God said in his Bible, that his Son Jesus is the only way, is not true. They may not say it directly, but they imply it. They say that there are many ways to God. They say fundamental Christians are caught by a sickness. Such people that say these things will hate true Christians and those that follow the Word of God. Satan turns around to create half-truth, and he declines to let us know the truth through creating deception and lies. True Christians love and give their lives so that others might be able to live eternally. Millions are destined for hell if you believe the lies of Satan, beloved. God loves you. He has told you this truth in his Word. And then false teachers and those who teach deception and rebellion against God's way of salvation, they decline the Word of God. There's a wonderful verse, most of you know it by heart, and it says in John chapter 3, 16, for God so left the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. If you truly believe that, and if you say you do, and you're born again, may I ask you, are you doing the will of the Father? Are you staying away from sin? Are you following Christ? Are you loving your sisters and brothers? Are you reaching out to others to give them the truth of eternal life? You see, Jesus did not have to die if there's another way. There is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. I plead with you. I beg with you. I ask you. I ask you for your own sake. You're not doing it for me. You're doing it for yourself. Turn to the Word of God, the Bible, and read it yourself. If you reject this, oh, I will feel so sorry for you. I will weep for you because you are on your way to an eternal hell. And God says, let me reason with you. Let me reason with you. Come to repentance. You see, God is not willing that anyone should perish, but that all come to repentance. Won't you repent today? In John chapter 3, verse 36 says, he who believes in the Son has everlasting life, and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. Now, as we go on into Jude, into the book of Jude in verses 14 and 15, Jude reminds us, and he says, listen, the Lord is coming with countless thousands of his holy ones to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against him. The apostle Paul said in Galatians chapter 1, verses 8 and 9, but even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. And the gospel is clearly, clearly described in God's holy book, the Bible. Please read John chapter 3. Please understand what it means to be born again. Please read Matthew chapter 7, where Jesus reminds us to do the of the Father after we are saved. I urge you, beloved, follow him. And then Jude calls us to remain faithful later on in verse 20, but before I go there, I'd just like to point out that we do live in the end times, and Jesus is returning very soon. There is a great falling away. Eighty percent of those in the United States of America say that they're Christian. Many say they're born again, but they do not live the life that God has prescribed for us in his word. Only 20 percent go to church. There will be a coming world political leader to deceive many. There will be a coming world religious leader to deceive mankind. Many are deceived now, but God, God reasons with you. And as I said before, he's not willing that any should perish. Can you repent? Can you receive that great salvation? Yes, you can. God wants to give you new hope, new joy, and love, and a new start today. But you must be sincere. You must count the cost of following as a Christian, because it's not just saying the words and then turning back to our old ways and living a life that is totally opposite to God. Beloved, this is not what a safe Christian should look like, beloved. Now Jude encourages true Christians in verse 20, and he says we must build each other up in the most holy faith. We must pray in the power of the Holy Spirit. In other words, we must pray with higher help. If we live this life without higher help, we cannot do it. And Jesus reminded us in John chapter 15 that he is the vine and we are the branches. He will help us through his Holy Spirit to live this Christian life, but you must draw back near to him. You must go to the Bible. You must pray. You must reach out to God, draw near to him, and he will draw near to you. And then in Jude verse 21, it says we must be patient in the mercy of Jesus and not be deceived. We must keep ourselves safe in God's love. We must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. And then in Jude 1 verse 23, it says we must try to help others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. We must hate the sins that contaminate sinners, but we must love those that hate us. We must love you even if you're going the wrong way. And we're not any better. We are just sinners saved by grace. And so we must reach out to you in love. We must touch your lives. We must try and help someone yet to avoid this place, this terrible place of hell. Now you might cry out and say, how can I do that? I have tried. Now, beloved, perhaps you have tried in your own strength and you cannot succeed in your own strength. The same Jesus that the world now starts to reject has set us free. And in John chapter 8 verse 36, it says, therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. And so believe you are free from fear of man. Believe you're freed from the power of unbelief. Believe you're empowered through the Holy Spirit. If you ask for cleansing anew and asking the Father to fill you with his Holy Spirit, you can't say no to sin through Christ, but you need Christ to help you. For he that is in you is greater than he that is in the world. That refers to the devil and that refers to the Lord Jesus Christ. If you're truly born again, he is in you. He is with you. He's willing to help you to live this Christian life. And so believe you're freed from fear of man. And set free. Number two, run to Jesus when tempted and believe he will give you the victory. In John chapter 15 verse 5, we are told that without Jesus we can do nothing. And then in 1 Corinthians 15 57, it says that Jesus is the victory. And then the third point, live free from fear, free from self, free from sin. Believe you can live free through Christ. Do it. Faith is the victory according to 1 John 5 4. And then do it in obedience. Because John chapter 8 verse 36 says, therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. Yes, you can follow Christ in spirit and in truth. Ask the Lord Jesus to set you free and be obedient to his commands. Now, I have made an acrostic which is called BRL. I've made it for myself to remember these three steps. And BRL reminds me of Braille. You see, when we cannot see, we touch Braille and then understand. And so, beloved, we cannot see the Lord Jesus Christ at this moment. We don't have the spiritual eyes yet to see him. We will see him face to face one day. But for now, I let a B, which stands for belief, the letter B for belief, remind me that I am free in Jesus because faith is the victory. So B stands for belief. And then R stands for I need to run to Jesus because I cannot manage. I need to run to him when I'm tempted. I need to run to him for the right way. He is the victory, says 1 Corinthians 15, 57. And so I need the B, I need the R, and I need the L. I need to live in the light which is the Lord Jesus Christ. I need to be in faith with what Jesus has told me. And he said, put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh. I need to be obedient, but I can live this life in faith, in obedience and trusting the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, may I ask you, are you deceived by the world, by your own thoughts, by Satan? Deception is the act of making someone believe something that is not true. Perhaps you are an unbeliever watching this video. The Bible says in Acts chapter 3 verse 19, repent ye therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. And beloved, you could start a new life today. Repent before the Lord, ask him for forgiveness, beg God to have mercy on you and to save you. God will do so through his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, if you are sincere. Won't you pray right now? Won't you call out to God to save you? Once he saves you, you will know it and heaven will come down and glory will fill your soul when at the cross the Savior makes you whole. Your sins will be washed away and your night will turn to day. It starts with your willingness to repent and to humble yourself before God. May I ask you to do that? If you repent and God saves you, then start your new life today. Start by reading the Bible. I hope you have a Bible in your home. If not, ask in a church for a Bible. They will give it to you. Read the Word of God every day. Start praying every day and find a Bible-believing church or a Bible-believing fellowship. If you cannot find true believers, start your own fellowship and start with others in your own home. So now let us close in prayer. And Heavenly Father, we come to you in Jesus' name, giving you all glory. We also give glory to you, Lord Jesus, because you're not only able to save us, but you're also able to keep us from falling, keep us from the deception of our own flesh, keep us from the deception of the world, and keep us from the deception of the devil. Keep us from falling and bring us with great joy into the Father's glorious presence without a fault. And then, Lord Jesus, I pray for those that are willing to repent and I ask that you would save those who are repenting. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for doing that. And then thank you, Lord Jesus, for setting us all free. We repent anew and ask specifically that you, the Son, sets us free from besetting sins, the sin that so easily besets us. And then many of us, Lord, have allowed ourselves to be deceived. We have failed. Please forgive us. Cleanse us anew and lead us in the way of righteousness. Cleanse us of deception. Cleanse the church in North America of deception. Cleanse all pastors of deception. Cleanse the politicians of deception. We plead with you that you come in revival with your Holy Spirit. Although we are not worthy, rend the heavens, dear Heavenly Father. Come and let the fire of the Holy Spirit awaken us and start with us. We now give you all glory and honor to you who alone is God and our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. All glory, majesty, power, and blessings are yours now and forever. Amen. And amen. Thank you so much for listening to this message. May God be with you as you start to defend and proclaim the faith. May the Lord Jesus Christ and his Holy Spirit with you as you try and snatch perhaps just one soul from hell. Will you believe Jesus' promise that you are set free to do his work? Do not be misguided by deception. And those of you who have repented before the Lord for the first time, may God be with you and reveal himself to you and be merciful to you and grant you that great salvation. Thank you for joining me and goodbye for now. Thank you.