| 28 Jan. 2001 |
|
Rev. 13 |
If you have been here for a while, you know that we are going
through the book of Revelation. Last Sunday, chapter 12, we read
and thought about history's long war between heaven and hell.
The age old conflict between God and Satan, Satan's desire to
destroy Christ, and failing that, to destroy Israel.
Today we get to where God gives us more details, we find out some
more things about what Satan is like, how he does his dirty work
during the tribulation, his various lies and deceptions. Today
we get to the antichrist, a man totally possessed by Satan. We
also get to the false prophet, and the infamous mark of the beast.
Why do we care about this stuff? If the church gets raptured before
the tribulation starts, why do we care? At the end of his ministry,
Paul knew he was about done, and he said something neat to Timothy:
"...there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day:
and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his
appearing." (2Timothy 4:8)
One third of the Bible is prophecy, and 10% deals with the last
days, so God must think it's important. He thinks it's so important,
that He even has a special reward for those that love the idea
of His return, and study the details.
Before we start in Revelation today, before we go look at the
antichrist, there is something more important to think about.
Before we go look at how Satan will control the whole earth for
42 months, control all the finances, have all authority, we need
to remind ourselves of something. Turn to Psalm 2. We need to
see what God is thinking while all these things are going on.
We need to see Satan's rule over the earth from God's perspective.
Verse 1: "Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine
a vain thing?
Psa 2:2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers
take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed,
saying,
Psa 2:3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their
cords from us.
Psa 2:4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall
have them in derision.
Psa 2:5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them
in his sore displeasure.
Psa 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
Psa 2:7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me,
Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.
Psa 2:8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine
inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
Psa 2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash
them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
Psa 2:10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye
judges of the earth.
Psa 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Psa 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the
way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they
that put their trust in him."
We will come back to this Psalm later, because it is the answer
to any questions that Revelation 13 asks, and it shows us the
reality behind all the lies that Satan uses during that time to
make himself appear as God.
Now lets go ahead and turn over to Revelation 13 and verse 1:
"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise
up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon
his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy."
Ten horns, representing ten kings or kingdoms, and each king or
kingdom has ten crowns. Ten is the number of law and responsibility,
the number of rule and authority. Interesting that this is the
last time that the legal matters of the world, world rule, will
ever be in the hands of men.
When Satan tempted Jesus, he offered Jesus all the kingdoms of
the world in exchange for worship. At this future point in history,
Satan's rulership of the kingdoms of the world is just about maxed
out and it's also just about over.
We see that the beast has the names of blasphemy upon his heads,
what does that mean? What is blasphemy? Slandering God, speaking
evil of God, claiming to be God when you are not. We can pretty
well assume that the character of this beast is totally contrary
to true religion, right?
It is important to notice that the beast comes up out of the sea,
this is going to help us figure out where this thing comes from.
Keep your place here, and turn to Daniel 7 and verse 2: "Daniel
spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the
four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.
Dan 7:3 And four great beasts came up from the sea,
diverse one from another.
Dan 7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld
till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from
the earth, and made to stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's
heart was given to it.
Dan 7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and
it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the
mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it,
Arise, devour much flesh.
Dan 7:6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which
had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also
four heads; and dominion was given to it."
Just like in Revelation, the beasts come up out of the sea. The
sea is symbolic for the great mass of mankind, the sea of humanity.
These four beasts are the same kingdoms that Daniel saw in his
vision of Nebuchadnezzar's image. The image with the head of gold,
the shoulders of silver, the belly and thighs of brass, and the
legs of iron, with feet of iron and clay mixed. The kingdoms were
Babylon, the lion, very regal and noble, the head of gold. The
next was Medo-Persia, the bear, the chest of silver, very powerful.
The third was Greece, the leopard, the belly of brass, very quick
in it's conquests. The reason it had four heads was because when
Alexander the Great died, the kingdom was divided up between his
four generals.
Verse 7: "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold
a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly;"
-this is the Roman Empire- "and it had great iron teeth:
it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with
the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were
before it; and it had ten horns." Remember we said that horns
represent power, either of a kingdom, or in this case, the ruler
of the kingdom.
Verse 8: "I considered the horns, and, behold, there came
up among them another little horn, before whom there were three
of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this
horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great
things."
The fourth beast was the Roman empire, it conquered all the others,
and it is from this empire that the antichrist, the little horn
with eyes like a man, and great speaking ability, like a Hitler,
comes to power. Apparently he overthrows three kings in the process.
Daniel then sees the Lord Jesus coming in judgement, and the destruction
of the antichrist in verse 9: "I beheld till the thrones
were cast down, - we would say placed in position- and the Ancient
of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair
of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery
flame, and his wheels as burning fire.
Dan 7:10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him:
thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times
ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books
were opened.
Dan 7:11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words
which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain,
and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.
Dan 7:12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their
dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season
and time."
Notice that part of the prophecy deals with the future tribulation
and then the final judgement a thousand years later, and then
Daniel goes back and refers to the first three kingdoms, what
we see today as history. The Persian empire is still around, modern
Iran, the Babylonian empire is still around, modern Iraq, and
the Greek nation is still intact also. Those beasts had their
dominion taken away, but they are still alive. The Roman empire
is currently reviving and growing stronger in the European Union,
and just this week, Germany is working to consolidate it's power
even within the European Union, and some are speculating that
it will cause England and France to pull out. Who knows? We're
close, very close.
Skip to verse 19, this begins a section on the tribulation which
has a lot of detail: "Then I would know the truth of the
fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding
dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which
devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;"
-referring to the Roman Empire-
Verse 20: "And of the ten horns that were in his head, and
of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of
that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things,
whose look was more stout than his fellows." -obviously this
horn is a reference to the antichrist-
Verse 21: "I beheld, and the same horn made war with the
saints, and prevailed against them;
Dan 7:22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given
to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints
possessed the kingdom." -This refers to the second coming
of Jesus Christ-
Verse 23: "Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth
kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms,
and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and
break it in pieces.
Dan 7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that
shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be
diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.
Dan 7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High,
and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change
times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a
time and times and the dividing of time." -forty two months,
three and a half years-
Verse 26: "But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take
away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
Dan 7:27 And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the
kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of
the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and all dominions shall serve and obey him." -this is after
the tribulation, Christ rules the earth-
Verse 28: "Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel,
my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in
me: but I kept the matter in my heart."
When we read this section, there is little doubt that the antichrist
comes up out of the revived Roman Empire, along the way he overcomes
three other rulers or kings, he becomes world ruler, at least
over all of Europe and the Middle East, and he gives the saints
of God a rough time. Verse 25 points out that he has power over
the saints of God for 42 months, which is the same time period
that we saw the dragon pursuing the seed of the woman back in
Revelation chapter 12.
Now lets go back to Revelation 13:2 "And the beast which
I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of
a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave
him his power, and his seat, and great authority."
The antichrist and his kingdom are identified together, I believe
that the rule of the antichrist will certainly include all of
the world that Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome ever controlled,
all of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East toward India.
Will he also exert authority over the rest of the world? Yes.
Some will escape from him, but basically, his rule will include
all the world.
Verse 3: "And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to
death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered
after the beast."
I have heard some Bible teachers speculate that the antichrist
will appear to be raised from the dead, the key word is "appear."
Satan does not have the power to give life, but he is a first
class deceiver, and he has the power to appear to give life
from the dead. Since the antichrist is an imitation Christ,
an imitation Jesus, this is what we would expect. Exactly who
or what is wounded and healed, we don't know.
Verse 4: "And they worshipped the dragon which gave power
unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is
like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?"
We see that the world is worshiping Satan and the antichrist,
they are identified together. The antichrist is not just a demon
possessed man, he is possessed by Satan himself, and has tremendous
power and authority.
Verse 5: "And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great
things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue
forty and two months.
Rev 13:6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to
blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in
heaven.
Rev 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints,
and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds,
and tongues, and nations.
Rev 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him,
whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world.
Rev 13:9 If any man have an ear, let him hear."
Forty two months, three and a half years. The antichrist really
comes into his own at the midpoint of the tribulation, that is
when he begins a great persecution of all Christians and Jews.
He will attack the Jews, whether they are trusting in Jesus as
their Messiah or not, saved or unsaved, and he will try to destroy
every Christian, all that have come to faith in Jesus Christ after
the rapture of the church, after the start of the tribulation.
Verse 10: "He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity:
he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword.
Here is the patience and the faith of the saints."
This is a hard verse, it appears that the normal way of protecting
your self, the normal tactics of guerrilla warfare or underground
resistance are not going to work very well, and it will be a very
difficult and trying time for believers in Jesus.
Verse 11: "And I beheld another beast coming up out of the
earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon."
Up until now, we have been considering the first beast, the antichrist,
now we get a look at the false prophet. With the unveiling of
the false prophet, we have now completed Satan's counterfeit Trinity.
Instead of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we have Satan, the
antichrist, and the false prophet, a false trinity, a trinity
of liars. Satan knows that the best lie is the one that looks
the most like the truth. If you wanted to pass off phony $20 bills,
you wouldn't print them on pink paper and put David Letterman's
picture on them, right? Same principle: Satan structures his deception
to be as much like God's spiritual reality as he can get it, so
he even copies God's way of doing things down to even having his
own trinity.
Verse 1 told us that the antichrist comes up out of the sea, or
from the gentiles. This verse tells us that the false prophet
comes up out of the earth. The Bible doesn't give
little details like this unless there is a reason, so I believe
this tells us that the false prophet will not be a gentile. Since
that only leaves us one option, he must be a Jew, or have an Israelite
background. Years ago I worked with a Catholic who had gotten
saved, we talked a lot about prophecy, and he thought that the
false prophet would most likely be a Pope. His thinking was that
after the rapture, there will still be churches full of unsaved
people, and which church is the biggest? The Catholic church is
the largest church in Christendom, who more likely than an unsaved
Pope to head up a world wide, unsaved ecumenical church?
Question: what if the next Catholic cardinal to
become Pope, or the one after him, has an Israeli heritage? Or
better yet, a mixed Arab/Israeli heritage, to speak peace to both
Arabs, Jews and Christianity? If the Pope in office after the
rapture was to happen to be from that particular background, wouldn't
he make a dandy peacemaker? Food for thought.
The verse also says that the second beast will have two horns
like a lamb, but speaks like a dragon. This is a mixed metaphor.
Horns speak of strength, while a lamb speaks of gentleness and
harmlessness. This person will appear to be gentle, and at the
same time, he will speak as a dragon. Don't get me wrong here,
I don't want to seem as if I am throwing off on Catholics, but
you can see how the idea of an unsaved Pope leading a totally
unsaved church on behalf of Satan would fit this concept perfectly.
And if it makes any difference, over the centuries, various Catholic
writers in the Roman Catholic church have said exactly the same
thing, so I am not being bigoted here, it's just that the shoe
fits.
Verse 12: "And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast
before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein
to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
Rev 13:13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come
down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,"
Just as the office of the Holy Spirit is to direct men to worship
the Lord Jesus Christ, the office of this false prophet is to
direct men to worship this antichrist. He also has powers like
Elijah, and is able to do apparent miracles.
Verse 14: "And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by
the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight
of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they
should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword,
and did live.
Rev 13:15 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."
We live in interesting times. In the book of Daniel, we are told
that in the last days, knowledge would increase. In computing,
there is an axiom known as Moore's Law, which states that technology
will enable computer processing power to double every 18 months,
and it does. Did you know that the amount of data traveling across
the Internet doubles every 100 days?
How many of you saw one of the Robocop movies? In Robocop, there
was the idea that biotechnology would permit the total interfacing
of man and machine, a cyborg, part human and part mechanical.
Thursday I downloaded several articles relevant to this issue,
let me read you a bit here. "It is anticipated that 98 percent
of the human body will have the potential to be replaced by machines
by 2025, and within ten to 15 years all people with medical needs
or disabilities will function with the help of some sort of implanted
chip. Already work has begun on implanted chips that could be
used to treat psychiatric disorders. Patients would no longer
be responsible for taking vital medicines, as it would all
be done remotely. You could have a scenario where insurance
companies refuse to insure you unless you agree to have a chip
implant to monitor the level of physical activity you do."
So this verse about the image of the beast having life is a technical
possibility, or probability, within the lifetime of every one
of us.
Verse 16: "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:
Rev 13:17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had
the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name."
How many of you have ever heard of a device called Digital Angel?
I copied this article from Fox News. Last October 30th, a company
called Applied Digital Solutions put Digital Angel on the market.
Here's what it does: "A network of satellites sends a positioning
signal to a chip implanted beneath your skin. That chip, powered
solely by body heat, relays the signal and your body's vital stats
to a ground station. Since Applied Digital Solutions is primarily
an e-commerce solutions company, one way the company wants to
see the chip used is for identification and authentication
for electronic commerce. "You want to access
and go online with your MSN or AOL account, you'll have Digital
Angel transmitting your profile on request." The same could
be true for Amazon and any other electronic retailer.
One-click shopping is somewhat obsolete when competing against
something that identifies you by your mere presence."
If it makes you feel any better, the company has gotten so much
bad publicity from what it calls "Christian Fundamentalists
worried about the devil" that it has backed off from the
implant idea, and is now offering it as a patch, or something
that you put in your watchband. That's really comforting... The
technology to implement exactly what the Bible has said for 2,000
years now exists today, it is no longer just prophecy, it is reality
just waiting for God to throw the switch and raise the curtain
on the last act.
Verse 18: "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."
Back when Nebuchadnezzar set up his great idol outside of Babylon,
the one where everyone had to fall down and worship when music
was played, that idol had some interesting dimensions. It was
66 cubits high and six cubits wide. And anyone who refused to
worship this 66 by 6 idol was killed. What happened in the days
of Daniel prefigures what will happen to believers during the
time of the tribulation. That is the general idea behind this
whole thing about the mark of the beast and the 666. It is Satan's
way of forcing people to worship him against their will.
As long as I have been a Christian, I have heard speculation as
to what the number 666 means, or who it might refer to. Let's
just stick to what we know for sure. Seven is the number of completion
or perfection, the number of God. Six is the number of man, and
it falls short. The beast is a man, he is not the Messiah. The
antichrist is not a real Christ, he is just a man who is totally
given over and controlled by Satan, no more, no less.
While I was working on this sermon, and thinking about how this
would apply and be useful to all of today, one thought jumped
out and grabbed me: Satan has been working on his lies and deceptions
for thousands of years, he wants to control the world, this is
his time- and this is the best he can come up with?
In Isaiah chapter 14:12, we see what God thinks about this usurper,
this would-be-God:
" How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the
morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken
the nations!
Isa 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into
heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will
sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the
north:
Isa 14:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will
be like the most High.
Isa 14:15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides
of the pit.
Isa 14:16 They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and
consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to
tremble, that did shake kingdoms;
Isa 14:17 That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the
cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?"
Satan has waited for thousands of years to have his 42 months
of power, and God asks him: "Is this the best you can do?"
And how about man? So quick to believe and run after a lie, so
quick to turn away from God: Let's go back again to Psalm 2 and
see what God has to say about it. If you have never noticed it
before, Psalm 2 is divided into three parts: in verses 1 through
six, it is Jehovah God who is speaking. Starting in verse 7, and
going through verse 9, it is the Lord Jesus Christ who is speaking.
And in verses 10 through 12, it is the Holy Spirit that is speaking.
Verse 1, this is what God is thinking during the tribulation:
"Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
Psa 2:2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers
take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed,
saying,
Psa 2:3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their
cords from us.
Psa 2:4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall
have them in derision.
Psa 2:5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them
in his sore displeasure.
Psa 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill
of Zion."
Satan is a liar and the father of it, he is a loser, but people
believe him. When people set themselves in rebellion against God,
they will believe almost anything, no matter how stupid or unlikely
it might be. The whole idea is so absurd that God horse laughs
them. The words for laugh and derision have the idea of pure mockery.
And then He deals with it. Satan and all that follow him are in
major grief, and then God sets His own King in Jerusalem, the
Lord Jesus Christ, not some satanic, antichrist pretender. His
King is the Lord Jesus Christ, and He is the one speaking to us
in the next three verses:
Verse 7: "I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto
me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee." -this
refers to the resurrection day, Jesus Christ is the first begotten
from the dead-
Verse 8: "Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for
thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy
possession.
Psa 2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash
them in pieces like a potter's vessel."
When Jesus comes back, all the nations of the earth, and all the
Satanic powers of earth and hell will not be any problem for Him.
He will throw out the rebels and establish His own rule over those
that follow Him. Jesus is loving and kind and patient with those
that follow Him, but the day is coming when those who continue
to rebel will regret it.
Starting in verse 10, the Holy Spirit, our Comforter, our Counselor
gives everybody some good advice:
"Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges
of the earth.
Psa 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Psa 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the
way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are
all they that put their trust in him."
Satan has nothing to offer the world but lies, deceptions and
grief. God offers to us truth, judgement and mercy. He provides
us with a way of escape. Blessed are all they that put their
trust in Him. Have you ever put your trust in Him? If
not, what are you trusting in? Yourself? If Satan is not powerful
enough to save himself, if the kings of the earth are not powerful
enough to save themselves, what makes you think you're powerful
enough to save yourself?
Are you trusting in your good works to save you? Jesus Christ
has done the only work that God cares anything about. The work
of His Son on the cross is the only work that God cares about,
if you come up and offer your work in place of the
work of Jesus Christ on the cross, the only thing you do is insult
God. That is not a good idea, trust me.
Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.
If you have never trusted Jesus Christ for salvation, would you
do it as we sing a simple chorus that I think we all know, Our
God is an Awesome God. You can come right up to this altar and
receive Jesus Christ for salvation, would you do it today?
I will help you. We will sing through it several times, will you
join me in praise to God right now?