Another reason they defied the government was that Koresh influenced the mentality to members of "It's us against them." With this teaching, Koresh led the Branch Davidians to believe that anyone who was not a member of the group was evil and was to be dammed when the time came for the Second Coming. He also taught that all activity, which took place outside the Mount Carmel compound, was evil. He also told the group that they would need to be prepared for a holy war with unbelievers of their faith. He prepared them by having members watch videotapes of wars and battles, to refrain from eating for extended periods of time and as stated earlier, practice survivalist tactics. People who were considered unbelievers were also considered evil. The main group of unbelievers was eventually seen as the government agents who raided the Mount Carmel Center.

The Branch Davidian's belief that they were living in the end of time fueled their determination to defy the government. To feel that one does not have much to live for or has nothing to lose gives the implication that he or she does not care for much, even their lives. No matter what members of the Branch Davidians did, whether illegal or not did not matter, as long those actions taken by members were done in the name of the Messiah they did not need to worry. In other words, if they did not obey the commands of the Messiah members had nowhere to go, everything to lose and eventually be lost with those who are unbelievers. One must remember, members of the Branch Davidians were to be the chosen people at the end of time so it did not matter what they did, they were going to be with God.

The element of paranoia also made Koresh an effective leader. Researchers have found that most spiritual leaders generally become dangerously extreme when either they or their members face crisis to their well-being or establishment. This means if a situation is brought forth which is hostile towards or threatening control over his or her group, the reaction of those leaders can take on drastic measures. Essentially, when a spiritual leader like Koresh feels this way, the same feeling is spread throughout a group as if it were a form of pestilence. When this feeling of unease and irrational fear was set in the minds of the Branch Davidians, the control that Koresh already had over the group greatly increased. Koresh showed this in many ways according to the activities members were not supposed to participate in. First, members were not permitted to leave the Mount Carmel compound. Koresh did not allow members to leave because he did not want any influences of unbelievers to derail his teachings and he also told the Davidians that everything they need was there in Mount Carmel. The Davidians were not allowed to watch television. Television was viewed as evil. It was forbidden for the Branch Davidians to learn what was going on outside the walls of the compound.

Through their history, beliefs and determination, one person sits at the center of it all, David Koresh. As it is well known by many, he was the leader and main cause of the Branch Davidian's battle with government agents. Even though we can research the previously explained aspects of this group, one must try and determine how Koresh was able to have such a powerful influence over the members of the Branch Davidian group. As described earlier, one of the general characteristics of a cult is that it has a charismatic leader who is able to impose his of her will on those who will follow and lead many to believe that he or she was sent by a higher power to achieve certain tasks. By theological definition, the meaning of the word charismatic means to be able to relate to or possess divinely inspired powers of healing, prophecy and the gift of tongues. This description epitomizes Koresh. In other words, the affect Koresh had on members of the Davidians spiritually was equal to that of the effect of a star struck

Some common words found in the essay are:
Branch Davidians, Mount Carmel, Carmel Koresh, David Koresh, God Third, Book Revelation, Branch Davidian, Branch Davidian's, Miller According, Coming Christ, branch davidians, mount carmel, david koresh, seven seals, book revelation, carmel center, mount carmel center, waco texas, seventh-day adventists, led branch davidians, george roden, mount carmel compound, holy spirit, minds branch davidians, formed own organization,
Approximate Word count = 3305
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page double spaced)