CHRISTIAN LIFE TRAINING DATE: March 12, 2014 TITLE: “THE IMAGE AND MARK OF THE BEAST” MAIN SCRIPTURE: Revelation 13:15-18 KJV “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save that he had the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore and six. Revelation chapter 13 is one of the most discussed and debated chapters in the Bible—especially the last half of the chapter, where we see the false prophet forcing all the world to worship the image of the beast, who is the antichrist. What has led up to this point? A downward economic spiral, eruptions of worldwide chaos, the nation no longer significant—and into this mess walks a seemingly perfect leader with all the answers to the world’s problems. A charismatic individual who promises peace, and for awhile, seems to deliver it. The world will instantly be attracted to and will blindly follow this leader. His early popularity however, will fade in comparison to the way the world will respond when they see him apparently assassinated, and then resurrected to life. A hoax? Demonic power? We are not sure, but it is certain that this is not a genuine resurrection, for only Jesus can do that. A second beast, one with the docile appearance of a lamb but the deadly voice of the dragon will come on the scene as a priest of a new world religion. He is the false prophet who will appear to be mild, like a lamb but with the deadly bite of a ravenous wolf. The false prophet will perform signs to mimic the power of God, such as calling down fire from heaven. Now, the two witnesses discussed earlier truly will call down fire, but their power will genuinely be from God. The false prophet can only copy. He can ask the world “Who is like this one who can die and rise again?” meaning the antichrist, but the antichrist is nothing at all compared to Christ, and even Satan, controlling the evil pair, cannot do so without God’s authority. We might think it’s crazy that people can be so deluded by a false prophet but false prophets have deceived many for thousands of years. There are many who stand in the pulpit and speak the name of Christ but it does not mean they are preaching God’s Word, and for some, their purpose is more to fill their bank accounts rather than the kingdom of God. But because they are charismatic individuals, and because people do not know the Word of God, they can easily lead astray. Cult leaders Jim Jones and David Koresh began as strong teachers but the Word of God was replaced with the words, opinions, and charisma of man, and tragedy was the result. There is nothing wrong with having opinions, but God’s Word is the defining factor. Opinions must not replace that. But even with all the false prophets who have led people astray through the centuries, this false prophet of Revelation 13 will lead the whole world astray. An unholy trinity of Satan, the antichrist, and the false prophet will imitate and mock everything that is of God, and even the attributes that we know of God—His omnipresence, His omniscience, His omnipotence—will be imitated (but never duplicated!) The false prophet’s role is to make everyone worship the image of the beast that he is going to set up. There has been a lot of speculation as to the type of image. The idols mentioned in the Old Testament had no power to speak, but this idol will be given (note that word given) power to speak. One prevailing theory is that it will be computer-generated, which makes sense in our technological society. Note that this is not called a statue but an image, a LIKENESS with the breath (not literal breath but appearance of life.) Remember the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the Old Testament? King Nebuchadnezzar commanded all of Babylon to fall and worship his golden image when they heard the music. Those who refused he ordered slain. Of course, we know how well THAT plan succeeded! Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused and were thrown into the furnace, BUT God was with them and they walked out of it alive. The people who refuse to worship the image of the antichrist will definitely be slain. We may wonder, “How will they know who’s doing it and who isn’t?” Just look around. Nothing is really private anymore. If the government can already—today-- track everything that we do, say, write, spend, etc. then knowing who is participating in the antichrist’s worship services really isn’t going to be that farfetched. Fifteen or twenty years ago, we would have not believed such things to be possible. George Orwell’s 1984 portrays a government controlling every part of life. That may be fiction but God’s Word is truth, and what John records in Revelation is coming. We might not know the who, or when, or all of the how, but we know it will come. If people can already be tracked electronically, then we know that it will be possible for the antichrist, who came promising everything and ended up controlling all, to do so. Daniel even prophesied that there would be an increase in knowledge in the last days, and those words fit no time like right now. The antichrist will control every aspect of life—and he will pay particular attention to the economic area. He will control it by domination. All people—no exemptions-- will be commanded to take the mark of the beast. A “mark” means an identifiable sign that sets apart. John states that the mark will be either in the forehead or the right hand. There has been an implant designed in recent years that can give some idea what this might be like but we don’t really know for sure. At first the designers intended it to hold people’s medical records. Imagine—quick access to medical records in an emergency. Sounds like a good thing to have. Track children who are lost or abducted. Well—who would be against that? Doesn’t everyone want their child to be safe? Then the idea moved to—well, maybe we could put all the banking information on it—no one would have to carry a wallet. Good news for everyone but muggers and pickpockets. So we can see how people could be persuaded to take this mark. Remember, the antichrist came on the scene claiming to have all the answers. All the solutions. This will all sound like a great idea until it’s not just an idea any longer. This will be a mandate, and people will not be able to buy food, medicine, clothing—any necessities-- unless they have it, for he will control the buying and selling. And why choose the forehead for the mark? The antichrist wants to imitate God and Christ. God will seal His 144,000 Jews with a mark on their foreheads, so it’s no surprise the antichrist will want to do the same. God also wants control of every aspect of our lives but He wants to lovingly direct us, not dominate us. (How is it that the antichrist seems more concerned—even with his evil motive-- with imitating Christ than some Christians do today?) The world is already moving toward a “one world religion,” wanting to universalize beliefs. They want harmony among all religions and claim to be “all searching for the same thing.” Harmony among all religions except Christianity, that is. Christianity is viewed as “terroristic” and a threat even now. When the antichrist steps on the scene, a one world religion will not only be accepted, but welcomed. So here we are at the number of the beast, and likely the most sinister number on earth. The number 13 has nothing on “six hundred threescore and six” or in its more common abbreviated form 666. Those who make a joke of this number have no idea what they are mocking. Right now, it is still just a number. Some may wonder, “So why this particular number?” Six has long been recognized as the number of man, and the Scripture confirms this in Rev.13:18 and in other places. Seven has always been a number associated with God and perfection. Even those who don’t know the Lord consider it a “lucky number.” Through a process called gematria in which numbers are assigned letters and letters are assigned numbers (i.e., Roman numerals), numerous theories have popped up as to the identity of the antichrist and the significance of this number. A recent theory has even tied it in with a major world religion using this process, but the truth is, we don’t know who the antichrist will be, and we don’t really know why that particular number is chosen for the mark. Another truth is, we don’t have to know. God is telling us enough so that we know that something terrible will be happening to those left behind in the rapture. If Jesus is our Savior, we can thank God that we do not need to worry about who the antichrist and false prophet are, or why that particular number. We can thank God that we will be with Him at that time. But He wants us to know enough that we will be concerned for those loved ones that don’t know Jesus. Do we want them to have to go through this? If they won’t listen now, they can say “I wish I had listened when they told me about Jesus,” but how awful if they cried out in the midst of all the horror, “Why didn’t they tell me about Jesus?” We take the time to go to God about physical needs, emotional needs, and financial needs but how often do we pray for people who don’t know Christ to come to know Him? How often do we take the time to talk with them? Yes, this is scary, but our concern should not be for us but rather for those who are not saved. When Jesus is our Savior, the Adversary can come against us but he cannot overcome us! We close a grim chapter with the comfort of God’s Word. “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” 2 Cor.1:21-22 NKJV “O Lord, there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.” 1 Chron.17:20 NKJV
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 02:23:46 +0000
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