The Great Last Days Apostasy
Scroll to read the Preface & Table of Contents.
Preface & Table of Contents
Preface
… and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18)
A lot has changed in the world since I first trusted in Jesus Christ as my personal Savior more than fifty years ago. It was a simpler time back then with fewer distractions. At least, that is the way I remember it. There was no Internet. There was very little on television. The allure of video games, which invaded mainstream culture when I was in my teens, thankfully never ensnared me. Being raised in a conservative Christian family, it was the church that occupied my time and played a central role in my everyday life as a young boy. If the doors were open, we were there.
I have fond memories of sitting in church singing beautiful hymns and listening to powerful sermons by solid, Bible-preaching pastors like Billy J. Crosby, to whom this book is dedicated. Brother Billy, as we called him, in typical Southern Baptist vernacular, was our pastor during my high school years and the man who licensed me to the ministry on June 2, 1985. This year marks my fortieth year in ministry. Brother Billy began every sermon with the words, “I believe the Bible is the Word of God.” His conviction as he preached, and his passion for God’s Word, left an impression that still resonates deep inside me today. He once said, “The Bible says it. I believe it. And that settles it.” He later made this revision: “The Bible says it. And that settles it, whether I believe it or not!” As I heard those sermons as a young man, it was as if the Holy Spirit was talking directly to me.
My parents did not have to drag me to church. I wanted to go. I listened attentively. I took notes. I sang loudly, even harmonizing when I could. Over the years, the church’s impact on my life has continued. Some of my closest friends have been in the church. The Lord called me into full-time ministry through the church. I met my amazing wife, Wendy, in church. The church remains a vital part of my life. I love the church. That is why it grieves me to see how far the church in America has drifted from its biblical and historical moorings. The church today looks nothing like the church of my youth, and call me nostalgic, but I miss Mayberry.
Ironically, it seems the closer we get to the return of the Lord, the further the church gets from Him. This should come as no surprise, since the Bible warns, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). The term for this moral and spiritual decline within the church is apostasy. The American church today resembles the first-century church in Laodicea, to whom Jesus issued a stern rebuke. “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth” (Revelation 3:15–16).
Jesus’ reprimand of the lukewarm Laodiceans should not be construed to mean He was threatening them with the loss of eternal life. After all, eternal life, by definition, can never be lost. The believer’s eternal salvation is secure from the moment he places his faith in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life. Christians are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14). Jesus promised, “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand” (John 10:28–29).
Rather, Jesus was reminding the Laodiceans of His discipline toward those Christians who fall away and become unuseful in the body of Christ. He used a metaphor that would have been clear to those in the Lycos Valley region (modern western Turkey), where Laodicea was located. The ancient city of Hierapolis, about 7.5 miles north of Laodicea, was known for its hot spring water. It was common for hot water from those springs to be brought south to Laodicea either in containers carried by horses or via an aqueduct. By the time it arrived, however, it was often lukewarm and had lost much of its medicinal value. Another city, Colossae, was 10.5 miles southeast of Laodicea. Colossae was known for its cold, refreshing drinking water.
The Christians in Laodicea were neither hot nor cold; they were like lukewarm water. Dr. Tom Constable explains, “Both the hot and the cold water were useful and effective. But lukewarm water was neither useful nor effective. Such was the condition of the Laodiceans.” Jesus exhorted these believers who had fallen away, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent” (Revelation 3:19). Christians who fall away are missing out on the intimate fellowship and abundant joy that accompany a close walk with the Lord (Revelation 3:20; 1 John 1:4).
The American church today is following in the footsteps of the Laodiceans, and we too deserve the Lord’s discipline. The Bible reminds us, “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest His correction; for whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights” (Proverbs 3:11–12). The United States has done more than perhaps any other nation in world history to advance the Gospel. The fingerprints of the Lord are all over the founding and nearly 250-year history of this great country. Yet, the church is falling away, and we are reaping the consequences of our apostasy.
Not only is the sad situation in the American church today inviting God’s discipline, but it also serves as yet another prophetic sign of the times. The church, which should be pointing to the nearness of Christ’s return and sounding an alarm about the urgency of the hour, has itself become one of the biggest signs of the times. To paraphrase my friend and colleague, J.D. Farag, the church has become a victim of “an exceedingly powerful pull from the world and an exceedingly great love for the world, both of which point to the soon coming end of the world" (emphasis added). These days not only is the whole world under the sway of the wicked one (1 John 5:19), but the church is as well.
The church, which is called to shine like lights amid a crooked and perverse world (Philippians 2:15), has become virtually indistinguishable from the world. When Christians love the things of the world more than we love the Lord, we are no longer reflecting God’s love to a world in desperate need of it. “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world” (1 John 2:15–16).
When John wrote, “the love of the Father is not in” those who love the world, he was not suggesting that lovers of the world are not Christians. After all, anytime Christians sin we are evidencing a love for the world—and we all sin. Nothing can separate us from God’s love positionally (Romans 8:37-39). We are in Christ, and our identity as a child of God is permanent (John 1:12; 1 Peter 1:3-5). Yet, if we are not abiding in Christ (Gk. menō, remaining in close fellowship), we are not reflecting God’s love. “But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him” (1 John 3:17)?
On the very night Jesus was betrayed and arrested, He instructed the disciples to abide in Him by keeping His commandments. He said,
Sadly, two thousand years later, the church in America is not abiding in Christ; we are abandoning Him.
It is nearly impossible to miss the cavalcade of signs pointing to the end of the world as we know it. Even the secular world, with little or no knowledge of the Bible, is taking notice. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, by no means a bastion of biblical truth, warns we are living in “a moment of historic danger.” Their Doomsday Clock is a metaphor that advises the public about how close we are to destroying our world with dangerous technologies and unchecked scientific “advancements.” Midnight on the clock represents doomsday.
The farthest the clock has been from midnight is seventeen minutes in 1991, reflecting the global optimism spawned by the end of the Cold War. As recently as 2012, the Doomsday Clock was set to five minutes before midnight. By 2015, it had advanced to three minutes before midnight, and in 2023 it moved to ninety seconds before midnight. On January 28, 2025, the clock was moved to eighty-nine seconds before midnight, the closest it has ever been to doomsday. A rekindled cold war, a global pandemic, deep-rooted division, populist uprisings, unprecedented natural disasters, a flailing world economy, a rising technocracy with its corresponding depopulation agenda, terrorist attacks (both real and manufactured), and other portentous developments foretell ominous days on the horizon.
In my previous three books, I examined a litany of signs setting the stage for the coming Great Satanic Reset and the Luciferian New World Order. The Bible refers to these signs as the “spirit of the Antichrist” (1 John 4:3). The three-volume series, Spirit of the Antichrist Volumes One and Two and Spirit of the False Prophet, focused on the activities of Satan and his earthly accomplices as they seek to establish global dominance politically, economically, and religiously. In this present work, we shift our attention to the church. Are there indications within the church, particularly the church in the United States, that we are getting ever so close to the return of the Lord?
Just as the Bible predicts evil forces within the global elite will conspire to take over the world (cf. Psalm 2), preparing the way for the Antichrist, it also foresees a time when the church will grow cold and become more and more like the world the closer we get to the end of the age. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Timothy 4:3–4). The Lord himself warned, “Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:11–12). Peter foresaw a time when false teachers would infiltrate the church and bring in “destructive heresies” (2 Peter 2:1).
It is evident both biblically and anecdotally that the world is becoming a darker and darker place. Paul stated plainly, “But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13). Depravity is, after all, a degenerative disease. It does not get better with time. Satan is the god of this age (Galatians 1:4), and the more time he has to wreak havoc the worse things will get. Even a cursory glance at the world around us indicates evil has cascaded to a magnitude heretofore unseen in the world. Many authors and teachers within the Bible prophecy arena, myself included, have highlighted these external signs of the times through books, conferences, interviews, and more.
My goal in writing The Great Last Days Apostasy is to expose one of the most obvious, yet neglected, prophetic signs of the times: apostasy in the church. In our fixation with geopolitical, technological, economic, and other developments that point to the looming New World Order, is it possible we have failed to peer inside our stained-glass windows and steepled buildings to examine the state of the church? As hard as such self-reflection may be, it is vital for such a time as this. Addressing apostasy in the church has at least three worthy benefits.
First, it may lead to repentance on the part of some believers who have drifted away from the Lord in their Christian journey. Remember Jesus’ admonition to the lukewarm Laodiceans. “Therefore be zealous and repent” (Revelation 3:19). It is paradoxical to me that so many Christians who have an interest in Bible prophecy are simultaneously neglecting their personal spiritual growth. Can immature Christians ever really be well-grounded in eschatology? It seems like many Christians are leaning over their skis, to use a Colorado metaphor, with their interest in Bible prophecy and disinterest in other spiritual disciplines. God’s Word encourages us to “Abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming” (1 John 2:28). Before we can look eagerly for the Lord’s return, we must first look inwardly at our walk with Him. By examining the state of the church perhaps we will encourage some lukewarm believers to grow in their faith.
Second, focusing on the worsening apostasy in the American church will add to the already considerable catalog of signs pointing to the nearness of Christ’s return. This in turn will encourage students of Bible prophecy to “eagerly anticipate” the Rapture, as Scripture exhorts us to do (Romans 8:19, 23, 25; 1 Corinthians 1:7; Galatians 5:5; Philippians 3:20; Hebrews 9:28). There are mixed emotions here, of course. While we are saddened by how far the bride of Christ has drifted from the Bridegroom, we are nevertheless energized by the implications of such apostasy. This is true of all prophetic signs of the times.
For example, we are concerned about the burgeoning global technocracy that I addressed in my previous book, Spirit of the False Prophet: Rise of the Global Technocracy, but we know the construction of a planetary control and surveillance grid is necessary for the Antichrist’s regime, which means Christ’s return is nearer than ever before. We cringe at the drumbeats of war that portend end times battles like the one in Ezekiel 38-39, yet we are encouraged that all these things must take place before the arrival of the great and glorious Kingdom of our Lord. As we observe the world, and the church, falling apart, we realize things are coming together precisely as God’s Word predicts.
Third, studying the biblical principle of apostasy reminds us that even though many Christians will fall away, the church will prevail in the end. It is, after all, the Lord’s church, and there is always a remnant. (I will have more to say about the remnant principle in Chapter Two.) Jesus told Peter, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Peter failed miserably the night Jesus was betrayed and arrested, and yet he later became a powerful witness for Christ in the early church. Likewise, the church itself, notwithstanding its current apostate condition, will one day play a prominent role in the glorious earthly Kingdom when Christ returns to take the throne.
As always, I encourage you to read this book with a critical eye and analyze everything through the lens of Scripture. If you have questions or comments along the way, please reach out to us here at the NBW Ministries office. My staff and I would love to hear from you. You can reach us online at NotByWorks.org.
Thank you for reading The Great Last Days Apostasy. I hope you learn a few things from this book, but mostly I hope you come to know the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior if you do not already know Him. This happens the instant you place your faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who died and rose again to pay your personal penalty for sin. He alone has the power to forgive sin and give you the free gift of eternal life.
If you are already a Christian, I pray you will recognize afresh the amazing love of our Lord, Who loves the church even in its dire state. May this book alert you to the serious problems within the American church today, call your attention to further signs of the times indicating the nearness of Christ’s return, and awaken in you a desire to see the church be found “without spot and blameless at our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing” (1 Timothy 6:14).
J.B.H.
I have fond memories of sitting in church singing beautiful hymns and listening to powerful sermons by solid, Bible-preaching pastors like Billy J. Crosby, to whom this book is dedicated. Brother Billy, as we called him, in typical Southern Baptist vernacular, was our pastor during my high school years and the man who licensed me to the ministry on June 2, 1985. This year marks my fortieth year in ministry. Brother Billy began every sermon with the words, “I believe the Bible is the Word of God.” His conviction as he preached, and his passion for God’s Word, left an impression that still resonates deep inside me today. He once said, “The Bible says it. I believe it. And that settles it.” He later made this revision: “The Bible says it. And that settles it, whether I believe it or not!” As I heard those sermons as a young man, it was as if the Holy Spirit was talking directly to me.
My parents did not have to drag me to church. I wanted to go. I listened attentively. I took notes. I sang loudly, even harmonizing when I could. Over the years, the church’s impact on my life has continued. Some of my closest friends have been in the church. The Lord called me into full-time ministry through the church. I met my amazing wife, Wendy, in church. The church remains a vital part of my life. I love the church. That is why it grieves me to see how far the church in America has drifted from its biblical and historical moorings. The church today looks nothing like the church of my youth, and call me nostalgic, but I miss Mayberry.
Ironically, it seems the closer we get to the return of the Lord, the further the church gets from Him. This should come as no surprise, since the Bible warns, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). The term for this moral and spiritual decline within the church is apostasy. The American church today resembles the first-century church in Laodicea, to whom Jesus issued a stern rebuke. “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth” (Revelation 3:15–16).
Jesus’ reprimand of the lukewarm Laodiceans should not be construed to mean He was threatening them with the loss of eternal life. After all, eternal life, by definition, can never be lost. The believer’s eternal salvation is secure from the moment he places his faith in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life. Christians are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14). Jesus promised, “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand” (John 10:28–29).
Rather, Jesus was reminding the Laodiceans of His discipline toward those Christians who fall away and become unuseful in the body of Christ. He used a metaphor that would have been clear to those in the Lycos Valley region (modern western Turkey), where Laodicea was located. The ancient city of Hierapolis, about 7.5 miles north of Laodicea, was known for its hot spring water. It was common for hot water from those springs to be brought south to Laodicea either in containers carried by horses or via an aqueduct. By the time it arrived, however, it was often lukewarm and had lost much of its medicinal value. Another city, Colossae, was 10.5 miles southeast of Laodicea. Colossae was known for its cold, refreshing drinking water.
The Christians in Laodicea were neither hot nor cold; they were like lukewarm water. Dr. Tom Constable explains, “Both the hot and the cold water were useful and effective. But lukewarm water was neither useful nor effective. Such was the condition of the Laodiceans.” Jesus exhorted these believers who had fallen away, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent” (Revelation 3:19). Christians who fall away are missing out on the intimate fellowship and abundant joy that accompany a close walk with the Lord (Revelation 3:20; 1 John 1:4).
The American church today is following in the footsteps of the Laodiceans, and we too deserve the Lord’s discipline. The Bible reminds us, “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest His correction; for whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights” (Proverbs 3:11–12). The United States has done more than perhaps any other nation in world history to advance the Gospel. The fingerprints of the Lord are all over the founding and nearly 250-year history of this great country. Yet, the church is falling away, and we are reaping the consequences of our apostasy.
Not only is the sad situation in the American church today inviting God’s discipline, but it also serves as yet another prophetic sign of the times. The church, which should be pointing to the nearness of Christ’s return and sounding an alarm about the urgency of the hour, has itself become one of the biggest signs of the times. To paraphrase my friend and colleague, J.D. Farag, the church has become a victim of “an exceedingly powerful pull from the world and an exceedingly great love for the world, both of which point to the soon coming end of the world" (emphasis added). These days not only is the whole world under the sway of the wicked one (1 John 5:19), but the church is as well.
The church, which is called to shine like lights amid a crooked and perverse world (Philippians 2:15), has become virtually indistinguishable from the world. When Christians love the things of the world more than we love the Lord, we are no longer reflecting God’s love to a world in desperate need of it. “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world” (1 John 2:15–16).
When John wrote, “the love of the Father is not in” those who love the world, he was not suggesting that lovers of the world are not Christians. After all, anytime Christians sin we are evidencing a love for the world—and we all sin. Nothing can separate us from God’s love positionally (Romans 8:37-39). We are in Christ, and our identity as a child of God is permanent (John 1:12; 1 Peter 1:3-5). Yet, if we are not abiding in Christ (Gk. menō, remaining in close fellowship), we are not reflecting God’s love. “But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him” (1 John 3:17)?
On the very night Jesus was betrayed and arrested, He instructed the disciples to abide in Him by keeping His commandments. He said,
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. …If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love (John 15:4-5, 10).
It is nearly impossible to miss the cavalcade of signs pointing to the end of the world as we know it. Even the secular world, with little or no knowledge of the Bible, is taking notice. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, by no means a bastion of biblical truth, warns we are living in “a moment of historic danger.” Their Doomsday Clock is a metaphor that advises the public about how close we are to destroying our world with dangerous technologies and unchecked scientific “advancements.” Midnight on the clock represents doomsday.
The farthest the clock has been from midnight is seventeen minutes in 1991, reflecting the global optimism spawned by the end of the Cold War. As recently as 2012, the Doomsday Clock was set to five minutes before midnight. By 2015, it had advanced to three minutes before midnight, and in 2023 it moved to ninety seconds before midnight. On January 28, 2025, the clock was moved to eighty-nine seconds before midnight, the closest it has ever been to doomsday. A rekindled cold war, a global pandemic, deep-rooted division, populist uprisings, unprecedented natural disasters, a flailing world economy, a rising technocracy with its corresponding depopulation agenda, terrorist attacks (both real and manufactured), and other portentous developments foretell ominous days on the horizon.
In my previous three books, I examined a litany of signs setting the stage for the coming Great Satanic Reset and the Luciferian New World Order. The Bible refers to these signs as the “spirit of the Antichrist” (1 John 4:3). The three-volume series, Spirit of the Antichrist Volumes One and Two and Spirit of the False Prophet, focused on the activities of Satan and his earthly accomplices as they seek to establish global dominance politically, economically, and religiously. In this present work, we shift our attention to the church. Are there indications within the church, particularly the church in the United States, that we are getting ever so close to the return of the Lord?
Just as the Bible predicts evil forces within the global elite will conspire to take over the world (cf. Psalm 2), preparing the way for the Antichrist, it also foresees a time when the church will grow cold and become more and more like the world the closer we get to the end of the age. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Timothy 4:3–4). The Lord himself warned, “Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:11–12). Peter foresaw a time when false teachers would infiltrate the church and bring in “destructive heresies” (2 Peter 2:1).
It is evident both biblically and anecdotally that the world is becoming a darker and darker place. Paul stated plainly, “But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13). Depravity is, after all, a degenerative disease. It does not get better with time. Satan is the god of this age (Galatians 1:4), and the more time he has to wreak havoc the worse things will get. Even a cursory glance at the world around us indicates evil has cascaded to a magnitude heretofore unseen in the world. Many authors and teachers within the Bible prophecy arena, myself included, have highlighted these external signs of the times through books, conferences, interviews, and more.
My goal in writing The Great Last Days Apostasy is to expose one of the most obvious, yet neglected, prophetic signs of the times: apostasy in the church. In our fixation with geopolitical, technological, economic, and other developments that point to the looming New World Order, is it possible we have failed to peer inside our stained-glass windows and steepled buildings to examine the state of the church? As hard as such self-reflection may be, it is vital for such a time as this. Addressing apostasy in the church has at least three worthy benefits.
First, it may lead to repentance on the part of some believers who have drifted away from the Lord in their Christian journey. Remember Jesus’ admonition to the lukewarm Laodiceans. “Therefore be zealous and repent” (Revelation 3:19). It is paradoxical to me that so many Christians who have an interest in Bible prophecy are simultaneously neglecting their personal spiritual growth. Can immature Christians ever really be well-grounded in eschatology? It seems like many Christians are leaning over their skis, to use a Colorado metaphor, with their interest in Bible prophecy and disinterest in other spiritual disciplines. God’s Word encourages us to “Abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming” (1 John 2:28). Before we can look eagerly for the Lord’s return, we must first look inwardly at our walk with Him. By examining the state of the church perhaps we will encourage some lukewarm believers to grow in their faith.
Second, focusing on the worsening apostasy in the American church will add to the already considerable catalog of signs pointing to the nearness of Christ’s return. This in turn will encourage students of Bible prophecy to “eagerly anticipate” the Rapture, as Scripture exhorts us to do (Romans 8:19, 23, 25; 1 Corinthians 1:7; Galatians 5:5; Philippians 3:20; Hebrews 9:28). There are mixed emotions here, of course. While we are saddened by how far the bride of Christ has drifted from the Bridegroom, we are nevertheless energized by the implications of such apostasy. This is true of all prophetic signs of the times.
For example, we are concerned about the burgeoning global technocracy that I addressed in my previous book, Spirit of the False Prophet: Rise of the Global Technocracy, but we know the construction of a planetary control and surveillance grid is necessary for the Antichrist’s regime, which means Christ’s return is nearer than ever before. We cringe at the drumbeats of war that portend end times battles like the one in Ezekiel 38-39, yet we are encouraged that all these things must take place before the arrival of the great and glorious Kingdom of our Lord. As we observe the world, and the church, falling apart, we realize things are coming together precisely as God’s Word predicts.
Third, studying the biblical principle of apostasy reminds us that even though many Christians will fall away, the church will prevail in the end. It is, after all, the Lord’s church, and there is always a remnant. (I will have more to say about the remnant principle in Chapter Two.) Jesus told Peter, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Peter failed miserably the night Jesus was betrayed and arrested, and yet he later became a powerful witness for Christ in the early church. Likewise, the church itself, notwithstanding its current apostate condition, will one day play a prominent role in the glorious earthly Kingdom when Christ returns to take the throne.
As always, I encourage you to read this book with a critical eye and analyze everything through the lens of Scripture. If you have questions or comments along the way, please reach out to us here at the NBW Ministries office. My staff and I would love to hear from you. You can reach us online at NotByWorks.org.
Thank you for reading The Great Last Days Apostasy. I hope you learn a few things from this book, but mostly I hope you come to know the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior if you do not already know Him. This happens the instant you place your faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who died and rose again to pay your personal penalty for sin. He alone has the power to forgive sin and give you the free gift of eternal life.
If you are already a Christian, I pray you will recognize afresh the amazing love of our Lord, Who loves the church even in its dire state. May this book alert you to the serious problems within the American church today, call your attention to further signs of the times indicating the nearness of Christ’s return, and awaken in you a desire to see the church be found “without spot and blameless at our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing” (1 Timothy 6:14).
J.B.H.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: FALLING AWAY
The Departure
Apostasy in the Last Days
Shipwrecked in the Faith
Apostasy and Eternal Salvation
The Seriousness of Apostasy
Does Apostasy Mean You Were Never Saved?
A Sign of the Times
Chapter 2: WHAT IS THE CHURCH?
Misconceptions about the Church
Defining the Church
When Did the Church Begin?
Biblical Symbols of the Church
The Purpose of the Church
How God Is Using Israel
How God Is Using the Church
The Remnant Principle
Chapter 3: FALLING AWAY BIBLICALLY
The Secularization of the Christian Worldview
Postmodernism in Historical Perspective
Why Do You Believe What You Believe?
Where Has the Bible Gone?
A Straw in the Wind
Hell? Yes!
Chapter 4: FALLING AWAY ESCHATOLOGICALLY
Mishandling Prophetic Passages
Allegorizing Prophetic Passages
Confusing Prophetic Passages
Overlooking Prophetic Passages
Misunderstanding Prophetic Passages
Misapplying Prophetic Passages
Neglecting Prophetic Passages
Abusing Prophetic Passages
Chapter 5: FALLING AWAY MORALLY
Moral Failures in the Pulpit
Pornography and Promiscuity
Homosexuality and Gay Marriage
The Transgender Movement
The Sanctity of Life
Nibbling Leads to Swallowing
Chapter 6: FALLING AWAY SOCIALLY
Agents of Light in a Dark World
The Separation Principle
In the World but Not of It
Social Clubs in Church Clothing
Do You Seek Here Often?
The Secularization of Worship Music
Bursting the Bubble of Pop Psychology
Godless Government Schooling
Chapter 7: FALLING AWAY EVANGELISTICALLY
The Gospel: Lost in the Shuffle
The Performance Gospel
The Puzzling Gospel
The Purpose Gospel
The Prosperity Gospel
The Pluralistic Gospel
The Pretend Gospel
Chapter 8: FALLING AWAY ACADEMICALLY
Liberalism Isn’t Just for Politics
Doctrine is Dead (A Satirical Lament)
Nothing New Under the Sun
What Does God Know and When Did He Know It?
Closing the Gap on the Gap Theory
Chapter 9: FALLING AWAY POLITICALLY
Christians Are an Easy Mark
Evil is the New Good
The Overton Window Needs Cleaning
Christian Nationalism, Horses, and Sandwiches
Why NAR is DOA
The Seven Mountain Mandate: A Dangerous Ascent
Chapter 10: WHERE DOES THE CHURCH GO FROM HERE?
The Evidence of Apostasy
The Centrality of the Word of God
The Bible Is Inspired.
The Bible Is Inerrant.
The Bible Is indestructible.
The Bible Is Influential.
The Anvil or the Hammer?
EPILOGUE: A FEW GOOD FOOLS
APPENDIX A: 160+ VERSES PROVING JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH ALONE
APPENDIX B: SEQUENTIAL ORDER OF END TIMES EVENTS
APPENDIX C: NONNEGOTIABLES WHEN CHOOSING A LOCAL CHURCH
The Departure
Apostasy in the Last Days
Shipwrecked in the Faith
Apostasy and Eternal Salvation
The Seriousness of Apostasy
Does Apostasy Mean You Were Never Saved?
A Sign of the Times
Chapter 2: WHAT IS THE CHURCH?
Misconceptions about the Church
Defining the Church
When Did the Church Begin?
Biblical Symbols of the Church
The Purpose of the Church
How God Is Using Israel
How God Is Using the Church
The Remnant Principle
Chapter 3: FALLING AWAY BIBLICALLY
The Secularization of the Christian Worldview
Postmodernism in Historical Perspective
Why Do You Believe What You Believe?
Where Has the Bible Gone?
A Straw in the Wind
Hell? Yes!
Chapter 4: FALLING AWAY ESCHATOLOGICALLY
Mishandling Prophetic Passages
Allegorizing Prophetic Passages
Confusing Prophetic Passages
Overlooking Prophetic Passages
Misunderstanding Prophetic Passages
Misapplying Prophetic Passages
Neglecting Prophetic Passages
Abusing Prophetic Passages
Chapter 5: FALLING AWAY MORALLY
Moral Failures in the Pulpit
Pornography and Promiscuity
Homosexuality and Gay Marriage
The Transgender Movement
The Sanctity of Life
Nibbling Leads to Swallowing
Chapter 6: FALLING AWAY SOCIALLY
Agents of Light in a Dark World
The Separation Principle
In the World but Not of It
Social Clubs in Church Clothing
Do You Seek Here Often?
The Secularization of Worship Music
Bursting the Bubble of Pop Psychology
Godless Government Schooling
Chapter 7: FALLING AWAY EVANGELISTICALLY
The Gospel: Lost in the Shuffle
The Performance Gospel
The Puzzling Gospel
The Purpose Gospel
The Prosperity Gospel
The Pluralistic Gospel
The Pretend Gospel
Chapter 8: FALLING AWAY ACADEMICALLY
Liberalism Isn’t Just for Politics
Doctrine is Dead (A Satirical Lament)
Nothing New Under the Sun
What Does God Know and When Did He Know It?
Closing the Gap on the Gap Theory
Chapter 9: FALLING AWAY POLITICALLY
Christians Are an Easy Mark
Evil is the New Good
The Overton Window Needs Cleaning
Christian Nationalism, Horses, and Sandwiches
Why NAR is DOA
The Seven Mountain Mandate: A Dangerous Ascent
Chapter 10: WHERE DOES THE CHURCH GO FROM HERE?
The Evidence of Apostasy
The Centrality of the Word of God
The Bible Is Inspired.
The Bible Is Inerrant.
The Bible Is indestructible.
The Bible Is Influential.
The Anvil or the Hammer?
EPILOGUE: A FEW GOOD FOOLS
APPENDIX A: 160+ VERSES PROVING JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH ALONE
APPENDIX B: SEQUENTIAL ORDER OF END TIMES EVENTS
APPENDIX C: NONNEGOTIABLES WHEN CHOOSING A LOCAL CHURCH