Harold Camping & his end-times fiction

Harold Camping’s Failed Judgment Day Prophecy

Excuse me may 22nd will be judgment the second day of judgment day. Well we don't know what how what's going to happen uh to family radio on that first day or to any to the banks or anybody else. We have no idea at all.

But it's going to be horrible. It's going to be a horror story that we absolutely cannot conceive of. Millions of people will die on that day and every day thereafter. And it's it's uh this this kind of conversation about what what will we do the next day.

That doesn't make it's nonsense. It's utter nonsense. Because it is going to happen. This is what the bible teaches. We don't we don't. This is not not something where. Yeah yeah there's a tiny tiny tiny tiny chance it might happen.

It is going to happen. And thus goes the prophecy.

Of mr harold camping of family radio. You know we're only just a few days away now from his judgment day prophecy may 21st 2011. This is not the first time that harold camping has tried this. He has a long history of this a long history of people trying to correct him uh but he continues on on his path of of doing these types of things and so it's important to have a response as as a ministry apology at christian ministries uh wants to do outreach to people who are like harold camping and to his followers.

And so we need to respond to this uh in in the same way we've done in the past to other religions like jehovah's witnesses and mormons and and the like. And it's really the same kind of issues that that arise.

And so let's take a look at how should we deal with someone like harold camping uh that has a long history of false teaching and and and and speaking falsely in god's name and and and even coming up on on saturday you know a clear and direct prophecy that he's attributing to god.

I mean this is not uh you know harold camping likes to sort of uh parry the the claim that you know you're prophesying this and say no this is what god says is in his word. And so really that really kind of ups the ante actually because what he's saying is is this is in god's word.

And we know as christians that the bible says that in second timothy 3 16 through 17 uh big passage on on on the word of god there but really important aspect of it is it says all scripture is god breathed theon ustas god breathed.

And so it's it's from god. And and uh and it's important to see that when when harold camping says that this is in the bible it's guaranteed the bible guarantees it which is what i'm seeing on the signs all over all over town uh as i drive around the bible guarantees the date he's putting these words in god's mouth.

And so how do we deal with someone that does that type of thing. Well we need to deal with it the same way god has always told us to do it. And he has really some really powerful tests in the bible on how to test to whether to know whether or not someone's actually you know a teacher from him or someone from him or not.

And in one of the things that that makes the bible unique uh amazingly unique in world religions is is that the bible in the bible god bases the veracity of his word on the fact that he's going to tell us history before it even happens.

And he gets it right every single time. Now you got to consider something that only the true and living god can do that only a god who's all powerful that actually governs this universe and controls all things and carries everything along to its intended destination.

Only a god like that could actually make that sort of a claim. Now listen religions do try to tell the future and when they fail they keep pushing along and moving along with the failed prophecies in their past.

But you see in the bible god when he came into a relationship with the israelites he came into relationship with them and he gave them tests to protect them. Now think about the revelation here you get a revelation that lasts that's being uh given over a period of 1500 years by about 40 different authors uh you got different geographical locations you have different time periods and many times even different cultures uh that are surrounding them at the time but one unified message and and full of prophecy full of prophecy.

And you you're commanded by god to test uh people who claim to be from god that includes moses that includes elijah jeremiah isaiah uh john james uh peter paul and yes jesus he needs to pass those same tests that god had already laid down for a prophet.

And in deuteronomy chapter 18 verses 20 through 22 god actually gives us a test if you shall say in your heart how should we know the word which the lord has not spoken. And that's the question how do we know if this guy's from you god i don't know if he's speaking truth if he's actually sent by you and god gives you the test when a prophet speaks in the name of the lord and the thing follows not nor comes to pass.

That is the word which the lord has not spoken the prophet has spoken and presumptuously you should not be afraid of him. So there's there's the test in the bible if you have a false prophecy you put words in god's mouth and then you it doesn't happen.

You're a false prophet. Period. No second chances. That's all there is to it. And on may 22nd it's important for the world to know that god had already prepared his his people. For people like harold camping he's he'll be exposed once again as a false teacher and a false prophet trying to lead people astray.

And it's important for anybody who's a follower of harold camping right now to just to hear this you can turn from this man is a false prophet. You don't need to fear him. You can turn from him and turn to christ place your faith in him for salvation for forgiveness and and get plugged in.

We our ministry would love to be a part of helping you to get plugged into a healthy church. Be important to to really get under the care of of the pastors of that church um and have them be able to guide you and to and to walk through this with you.

Uh but but really important to know that you don't need to fear a false prophet like harold camping. And when he exposes himself as such you you can leave and you can turn to christ and put your faith and trust in him and him alone.

Testing Prophets by Their Teaching and by Scripture

Um next next important thing to look at would be when somebody claims to be from god you're going to look at their teachings in deuteronomy chapter 13 which is one of many passages you can show um the test that god gives in verses one through four deuteronomy 13 one through four is that even if somebody comes and they have signs and wonders they have a miraculous ministry.

Looks good. Seems like it's pretty good thing going on here. It looks like it's from god. But then but then they lead you after other gods gods which you have not known they're a false teacher. And you can see that clearly because you see here's the the nature of the revelation of god is it's from god's mouth god breathed.

And so god is the one guiding this revelation. When god speaks that settles it. And so when somebody claims to be from god but then they violate scripture they violate what god has already spoken. Then you know they're not from god because god is not going to contradict himself.

God's not going to talk out of both sides of his mouth so to speak. And so you know he's not from god. So in many other passages isaiah 8 20 to the law and to the testimony if they do not speak according to this word it's because there's no light in them.

Jesus says uh that to father sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth. John 17 17 we're commanded as christians to test all things hold fast to that which is true. The bible commands believers to to to be testing and filtering people like this through scripture.

You look at the testimony of the believers in the book of acts and in berea. You know when paul goes into berea he says they're more noble-minded than those who are in thessalonica. Because when they had heard paul teach they they they accepted these things.

They were open-minded. And they searched the scriptures daily to see if what paul was saying was so. Uh harold camping has a long history of false teaching. He teaches a modalistic view of god. He denies the trinity.

It's one of the first uh heresies refuted by the christian church in the second century. He teaches a form of annihilationism. He denies total depravity and original sin. And we can go on and on and on.

Harold Camping’s Counsel to a Worried Relative

But i wanted to play for you a clip that i actually heard. I've been listening to a lot of harold camping lately. I've been listening to a clip uh from harold camping's uh family radio ministry um or organization.

And i wanted to let you listen to a clip about a man who's calling in about uh wanting to lead his his four-year-old. I think it's his four-year-old niece um into salvation or to he's worried for her.

He answers the question quite differently than a christian would answer uh this question. Uh go ahead and listen to this.

Now from you so shall we take our first call tonight please. Welcome to open forum good evening.

Brother camping. I have a question first. I'm concerned about my own the date of may 21st with family and friends and others. I have a four-year-old niece who and i don't think she's heard anything about may 21st from her parents and i'm curious as to how to go about it.

Uh speaking.

About this with her. Well the first thing to do is you don't want to offend the parents. I mean they will be very unhappy if they're not agreeing at all. But what you can talk to your niece about is we have to obey god.

So lay down some fundamental principles that we are to love god and want to obey everything. And whether she hears specifically about judgment day or not uh that's not first of all important. What is important.

That she hears about the importance of wanting to serve god and encourage her to pray that she might truly be a child of god. And and that you you will probably be safe to do with even though you are not able to talk specifically about may 21.

And that'll that'll already be a long ways in the right direction. Because your niece if she is not interested at all then you know there's no point even in talking to her about may 21. But on the other hand if she becomes intensely interested then you pray for wisdom.

There may be a time when you can also mention judgment day. But first of all talk about god and her relationship to god. That's that's the big important thing to start out with.

Well there you go. Uh not quite the message of the new testament. Uh by any means. Um and it's important to see the distinction there that that when you look at the new testament you see jesus as he comes into his ministry the first thing he's preaching is repent and believe the good news.

And he would call people to come to him in faith to trust in him. He says truly truly i say to you he who hears my voice and believes him who sent me has eternal life and does not come into judgment but has passed out of death into life.

When when paul is is preaching the gospel he says god commands men everywhere to repent. And he's calling people to repent and to believe in christ. And you see peter preaching repentance and faith in christ.

When you see uh paul is now confronted with his jailer. And the jailer says what must i do to be saved. He doesn't answer the question like harold camping does paul says believe on the lord jesus christ and you will be saved.

A person that's preaching the gospel is calling people to turn from sin to put their faith in christ to trust in him and him alone and what he's done on their behalf. And does that mean that change occurs absolutely.

There's the regeneration or new heart being involved by the spirit of god and a life that's changed afterwards. But that life that pursuit of good works and and glorifying god and honoring god is not part of uh what.

What makes us justified before god. Paul says in romans 3 28 we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. When this man calls in about his four-year-old niece the message coming from the christian church and from harold camping is very very different.

To tell your four-year-old niece to to pray more and to to seek to obey god more. And to and oh and maybe we can get to the may 21st. Uh prophecy thing is not the gospel. It's not the good news. The good news is that god was in christ reconciling the world to himself.

And paul begs people i beg you be reconciled to god. He made him who knew no sin to become sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of god. It's a it's a different message. It's a different gospel.

There's no call to turn from sin to trust in christ to to have faith in him for salvation. And so it's critically important for people to understand particularly if you've been a follower of harold camping that the message the god coming from harold camping the gospel coming from harold camping the teachings and the prophecies coming from him clearly mark him out as one that causes divisions among us.

And clearly mark him out as somebody that's not from god. He is not a a teacher from god. He is somebody that has demonstrated clearly over a long period of time that he rejects biblical authority that he does not submit truly to the word of god and its teachings.

He does he he does not exegete the text of scripture to draw out uh what is it what is it saying what does it mean. Uh he has this system of eisegesis where he reads into into the text his own ideas and he acts as though that is what the text is saying.

He has a strange view of of numerology and he he attributes uh these these arbitrary uh things to certain numbers in the bible like you know two means uh the believers and their witness and all these different things.

And it could just as easily be 12 it could just as easily be 70 it could just as easily be any any any number of numbers. And it's just completely arbitrary assignments that are harold camping's own ideas that he now forces onto the text and he forces his followers to agree with them.

And so it's critically important if you have been a follower of harold camping we care for you. And there there is life in christ there is forgiveness there is salvation. There is good news. And you can feel free to abandon and leave somebody that's a false teacher and a false prophet like harold camping has clearly demonstrated that he is.

And i encourage you to get a hold of our ministry defendthefaith .org and to get a hold of us. We'd love to help to point you in the right direction and get plugged into a healthy well-balanced uh church uh that's that's near you um and get into the care of of some solid pastors.

And and all that goes along with what god has clearly said is the picture of being part of the body of christ um but most importantly being being united to jesus in his death and his resurrection and and and and receiving salvation and forgiveness through him and through him alone.

Jeremiah’s Warning Against False Prophets

And so um we we thank you for watching this video. Our prayers and hearts go out to those who are being deceived by this that this man and uh we just we we pray for those that will be the wreckage of of mr harold camping on may 22nd.

And uh we just pray that that's got to be glorified and and and saving those people and bringing them into a saving relationship with him. And i just have one last word for uh harold camping and that that comes from the book of jeremiah.

Jeremiah chapter uh 23. It starts in verse 29. And i'll read that as we as we finish this video he says is not my word like fire declares the lord and like a hammer which shatters the rock. Therefore behold i'm against the prophets declares the lord who steal my words from each other.

Behold i'm against the prophets declares the lord who use their tongues and declare the lord declares behold i'm against those who have prophesied false dreams declares the lord and related them and led my people astray by their falsehoods and reckless boasting.

Yet i did not send them or command them. Nor did they furnish. Do they furnish this people. The slightest benefit declares the lord. In the last part of that chapter god says i will put an everlasting reproach on you and an everlasting humiliation which will not be forgotten.

Thank you for watching god. Bless you.