By Pastor Greg...
A Mexican bandit made a
specialty of crossing the Rio Grande from time to time and robbing banks in
Texas. Finally, a reward was offered for his capture, and an enterprising Texas
ranger decided to track him down. After
a lengthy search, he traced the bandit to his favorite cantina, snuck up behind
him, put his trusty six-shooter to the bandit's head, and said, "You're
under arrest. Tell me where you hid the loot or I'll shoot." But the
bandit didn't speak English, and the Ranger didn't speak Spanish. So, the Ranger asked a local to translate his
message. The terrified bandit blurted out, in Spanish, that the loot was buried
under the oak tree out behind the cantina.
"What did he say?" asked the Ranger. The translator replied, “This
man says he no afraid to die!"
We live in a world filled with
deception. It is so bad that we have
learned to trust no one. For instance, if
someone came along and offered to remove all your trials and difficulties in
this life, would you accept their offer?
Naturally, you would ask, “What’s the catch?” Nobody gives us something for nothing. There is always something they are not
telling us. This is exactly what Satan
will do one day. Working through a false
prophet – this “Beast from the Earth” – Satan will deceive all of
humanity. He will offer much, but it
will come at a great cost.
In Revelation 13 we are
introduced to two “beasts” who are empowered by Satan. We meet the “Beast from the Sea” (this is the
Antichrist), and the “Beast from the Earth” (this is the False Prophet). Both of these individuals are great
deceivers.
(Revelation 13:11-18) 11 Then I saw another beast come up out of the
earth. He had two horns like those of a lamb, but he spoke with the voice of a
dragon. 12 He exercised all the authority of the first beast.
And he required all the earth and its people to worship the first beast, whose
fatal wound had been healed. 13 He did astounding miracles,
even making fire flash down to earth from the sky while everyone was watching. 14 And
with all the miracles he was allowed to perform on behalf of the first beast,
he deceived all the people who belong to this world. He ordered the people to
make a great statue of the first beast, who was fatally wounded and then came
back to life. 15 He was then permitted to give life to this
statue so that it could speak. Then the statue of the beast commanded that
anyone refusing to worship it must die.
16 He required
everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on
the right hand or on the forehead. 17 And no one could buy or
sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the
number representing his name. 18 Wisdom is needed here. Let the
one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is
the number of a man. His number is 666. [1]
The deceptive lies performed by
Satan continue in this “Beast from the Sea.”
This False Prophet will appear to be somewhat
gentle and unassuming; like a lamb. This
person is given authority, as seen by the two horns, but is not a political
leader; there is no crown. Once the
Antichrist kills the two witnesses from chapter 11 and takes his place in the
Temple, this false prophet directs the world’s attention to that false messiah.
This false prophet erects a
statue or image of the Antichrist in the new Jewish Temple (it is the
Abomination of Desolation mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 24:15) and forces the
world to worship this image. It seems
the people will not do this freely because the false prophet kills anyone who
does not worship the beast. Through the
antichrist and this false prophet, Satan will control everything. There will be one government, one economy,
and one religion. And those who
surrender to this control will receive a mark on their hand or their forehead;
without it, they will not be able to buy or sell anything.
This false prophet literally
decides who gets to eat. Of course, I
imagine there will be some who refuse.
After all, we know human nature. People
hate being told what they must do.
Those who refuse will have to go into seclusion; they will need to hide
somewhere. But with all the disasters
that have struck the earth up to this point, surviving in the world will be
difficult. After a year of hardship, I
suspect some will give in, worship the beast, and receive his mark. I imagine that human trials and hardship cause some people to surrender to this
great deception.
[Let me pause for a moment here
and say that many men and women have tried to discern the meaning of the number
666. John tells us it is the number of a
man. In other words, it represents
imperfection… it is less than perfect.
The Kingdom of God is represented
by sevens; Satan’s kingdom is represented by sixes. So, it is a false kingdom; a kingdom of the earth. My advice is to stop worrying about the
number and instead focus on the fact that people will worship the antichrist
either freely or by coercion.]
Let me ask you this question
again. If someone offered to take away
all your trials and difficulties, would you accept? This is what the “Beast” is offering during
the Tribulation. He is offering food and
protection in exchange for the worship of
the Antichrist. And, as I said, some
will comply freely while others will be coerced. I suspect many who initially rejected will
eventually surrender and receive the mark because the trials and difficulties
of this life were too great. They give in, so their present life would be
more tolerable. “What’s the harm,” they
may say. But what they fail to realize
is that in the life to come they will be judged for their actions. They will face God’s wrath on Judgment day
because they traded the comforts of this life for an eternity of judgment (see
Revelation 20:4).
In Mark 8:36 Jesus says, “For what does it
profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” [2] This is the great deception happening
here. The Antichrist and the False
Prophet want the world to exchange their thoughts of eternity for the comforts
and safety of this life. Satan’s greatest deception is to fool others
into to thinking there is no judgment and that there is no afterlife. Truly, Satan’s threats are empty; he can only
take someone’s physical life. The Lord warns us about this lie. Jesus says, “Do not fear those who kill the body but are
unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul
and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).
Oh, I know we are not living in
the End Times; the False Prophet is not here today forcing us to worship the
antichrist. But let me ask you this; have
you compromised your faithfulness to Jesus?
Have you sacrificed the worship of God for the earthly pleasures and
securities in this life? Do you walk
away from following Jesus because it is too difficult or too demanding? Does obedience to Jesus “cost” too much? Have you exchanged eternity with God for all
the comforts of this world? Are you just
like those in John 6:66 (creepy, ain't
it?). According to John, many people
deserted Jesus because his teaching was too hard to accept.
According to the Apostle Paul, “the sufferings of
this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be
revealed to us” [3]
(Romans 8:18). How very true. And so, the mark of a believer is someone who
has their heart focused on eternity. And
they will suffer anything in this life that threatens to compromise their eternal rewards; they would rather die than
worship the beast.
Sad, isn’t it, that we have
become more concerned about the pleasures in this life than with where we will
spend eternity. There may not be a mark
on our hand, but when we trade the eternal promises of God for the temporary
pleasures and comforts of this life, a mark is placed on our heart. For, “He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in
this world will keep it to life eternal” [4]
(John 12:25.
[1] Tyndale House Publishers.
(2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Re 13:11–18). Carol
Stream, IL.
[2] New
American Standard Bible: 1995 update.
(1995). (Mk 8:36). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3] New
American Standard Bible: 1995 update.
(1995). (Ro 8:18). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (Jn 12:25). La
Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
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