REVELATION 13:11-18 THE FALSE PROPHET2010 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Revelation 13:11-18 The False Prophet

Well, this morning as we're in Revelation chapter 13, we're looking at

This second beast that is contained here in this chapter, we saw the first beast last week, which we understood to be the Antichrist, and now as we go forward, there's another beast who has a slightly different role, but is working alongside of the Antichrist.

Now, here in chapter 13, if I could remind you where we're at in the book of Revelation, we've been looking at the outline that Jesus gave us in chapter 1 verse 19, where Jesus tells John to write down the things which he has already seen, and that was chapter 1 of Revelation, the vision of Jesus.

And then he tells them to write down the second part, which is chapters 2 and 3, the things relating to the church. He says, write down the things which are, that is the present time. It was the present time for John, and it's the present time for us as well. Chapters 2 and 3 deal with the things of the church and extends until the rapture of the church, that 2 and 3 is applicable to the present.

Well then, chapter 4 and following makes up the third part of the book of Revelation, where Jesus tells John to write down the things which will take place after these things. And so there's a series of events that are going to happen, that are going to take place, and that's what John has been recording for us from chapter 4 through today in chapter 13, and then through the end of the book of Revelation.

And what are those things which must shortly take place? Well, we're looking forward, first of all, to the rapture of the church when Jesus comes to catch us up, to be with Him in the clouds. And then the Apostle Paul tells us we will always be with Him from then on out. And so we're looking forward to that. We saw that back in chapter 4 of Revelation.

But as the church is caught up and taken out of this world, then this earth is going to go through seven years of tribulation like it's never seen before. And we've seen as we've gone thus far in the book of Revelation, that the earth is going to go through seven years of tribulation like it's never seen before.

Some of the things that are going to be happening during the tribulation, and I think we could all agree that we don't want to be here. It's going to be trouble, it's going to be difficulty and death like the world has never seen. It's going to be intense, that seven years of God pouring out wrath upon the earth.

Well, that seven years comes to an end with the return of Jesus Christ at the battle of Armageddon. He comes back with those that were caught up to be with him. He comes back with the saints and he sets up his kingdom here on the earth and he rules and he reigns for 1,000 years here physically and literally here on earth.

During that time, the earth is renewed and restored. The enemy will be bound for that thousand years and so there will be a time of peace and righteousness and prosperity that is like the world has never seen. You could picture back to the Garden of Eden and kind of what God intended for life on earth to be like. It will be taking place during that thousand year reign of Christ.

Well, at the end of that thousand year reign of Christ, Satan is going to be released for a short time and he's going to lead one final rebellion against God. He will fail, it will not succeed, of course, because Satan will never be able to defeat God. But he'll try one last time and then God will bring judgment upon him. The great white throne judgment of Revelation chapter 20, where Satan and his demons are cast into the lake of fire.

And it also tells us in Revelation 20, 15 that whoever's name is not written in the book of life will be cast into the lake of fire. It's the final judgment for those who have rejected God. But then in Revelation chapter 21 and 22, then we see the new Jerusalem, the new heavens and the new earth, and then the rest of eternity.

And so these are the things which must shortly take place. These are the things that are yet future for us as we study these things today. And as we've been going through the book of Revelation, we're still working our way through that seven-year tribulation period.

And we've got up to about the halfway mark of that seven-year period so far as we've been studying the events that are going on, the seal that is being opened. If you remember, we saw the seal back in chapter 5.

It was a scroll, I'm sorry, not the seal, but the scroll that was sealed with seven seals. And as Jesus opened each of the seals, then there were judgments that were being poured out upon the earth. And so we saw the first seal opened and the Antichrist came forth conquering and to conquer. And then the second seal was opened and there was war across the face of the earth. And then the third seal was opened and there was famine across the earth. And then the

The fourth seal was opened and there was a massive death. There was a quarter of the earth were killed or died at that time. And then the fifth seal was opened and John sees the martyrs in heaven being comforted and told to wait just a little bit longer before justice is done.

And then the sixth seal is opened and there was some catastrophic events going on. Earthquakes, stars falling from the sky, the moon turning blood red and those types of things. Just crazy things that were happening at that time. And then the seventh seal was opened and there was silence in heaven for 30 minutes. And then seven new angels came out.

With seven trumpets and as they are about to sound their trumpets or as they're sounding their trumpets, judgments are being poured out upon the earth. And so we saw the trumpet judgments as well. The first trumpet sounded and a third of the trees were burned.

The second trumpet sounded and a third of the sea was turned to blood. The third trumpet sounded and a third of the fresh water was made bitter. A third, I'm sorry, the fourth trumpet sounded and a third of the stars were darkened. Then the fifth trumpet sounded and there was five months of torment without death by these demonic creatures.

And then the sixth trumpet sounded and four angels were released and they lead an army that kills one third of mankind. And then the seventh trumpet sounds and the temple in heaven was opened and then seven more angels come forth with bowls or vials of judgment and they're going to be pouring those out upon the earth. And so those are the things that we've seen thus far and it's brought us as far as sequence, as far as the order of events to right about the middle of the tribulation period.

But we've hit a spot in the book of Revelation where it's as if the order of events has been paused for a time. In chapters 10 through 14 of Revelation, we describe them as parenthetical events.

Because it's not the order and the sequence of events, but it's kind of like taking a step back and getting some perspective on some of the other things that are going on. I often liken it to, you know, when you pause a movie to explain to someone next to you what's happening and what the background of that character is and why they said that and what took place over here and so that they have understanding to the scene that they're watching and what is going on on the screen.

In the same way, God has hit pause on the chronology, on the sequence of the judgments of the tribulation to give us insight into some of the things that are going on behind the scenes.

And so we see all of these judgments that are being poured out. But now what we see, especially here in chapter 13, is the work of the Antichrist and the false prophet that is alongside of him. And so we're getting some insight into these things that are happening as we pause kind of right in the middle of the tribulation period. Now, if you remember, the tribulation is seven years long and it's divided into two parts.

It begins with the signing of a covenant, the treaty that is signed by the Antichrist and the nation of Israel. It ends with the return of Jesus Christ. But right in the middle of that seven-year tribulation, there's an event that's called the abomination of desolation.

And that event is when the Antichrist sets up an image of himself in the rebuilt temple and calls all of the world to worship him. That's an event that we will be talking about as we finish up chapter 13 this morning.

That event marks the middle of the tribulation period. So you have three and a half years before that and three and a half years after that. And that's where we are as far as the sequence. The things that we've studied up to this point seem to fit in the first three and a half years. And then as we continue the sequence of events in the tribulation in chapter 15, we'll be looking at the last three and a half years of the tribulation period.

Well, in chapter 12, what we studied a couple of weeks ago, we began looking at this dramatic scene that John was seeing. God was giving him vision of this drama that was being played out and there was three main characters. There is the woman who is the nation of Israel. There is the dragon who is Satan. And then there is the child who is the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

And we saw how the dragon tried to devour the Messiah upon his birth. Then we saw the dragon being cast out of heaven. We saw the war that was going on between the dragon and the followers of God here on the earth. Well, then as we went into chapter 13, a new character was introduced. It's the same drama that's taking place before John's eyes. But a new character is introduced. It's a beast that rises out of the sea.

There in verses 1 through 10, we dealt with this beast who is the Antichrist. And he will be leading a world empire, a revived Roman empire. He'll be a one world ruler, a ruler over the whole earth. This Antichrist will lead a strong rebellion against God through the political powers and the political scene, through military might as well.

Well now as we finish off the chapter looking at verses 11 through 18, we're continuing that drama and now a fifth character is introduced. This time it's a beast, but not rising out of the sea, but rising out of the earth. And so it's a different beast, a different character that is being introduced here in the latter part of Revelation chapter 13. We understand this beast to be the one who is called the false prophet.

The false prophet. There's four points I'd like to share with you about the false prophet from these verses we're studying this morning. And the first point we see in verse 11 is that the false prophet is introduced. Verse 11 says, Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And so this beast now comes on the scene.

This new character is being introduced. This beast that rises up out of the earth. This is...

The person known as the false prophet. He will be referred to later on in the book of Revelation as the false prophet. And so we understand this beast to be that character. In fact, in Revelation chapter 19 verse 20, it tells us that the beast was captured and also with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, which is the

which we'll see that this beast does as we look at chapter 13. And that these two, the beast and the false prophet, are cast into the lake of fire that's burning with brimstone. And so these guys have the ultimate destination of eternal judgment. But here on earth in the tribulation period, they're guys who have great power. And they come on the scene to lead the world in a rebellion against God.

His purpose, that is this beast, the false prophet, is to deceive the earth and cause them to worship the beast. That is his goal. That is his role in this final scene of the tribulation period. And so with the false prophet, it's often been noted, we have an interesting thing going on here, somewhat like an unholy trinity.

You know, you have the triune nature of God, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. All of them are God. All of them are equal. They are one. The Holy Spirit is not God. Jesus is not the Father. You know, they're distinct. They're separate. And yet, they're one God. Well, in a similar way, Satan here seems as orchestrating his own triune thing, his own trinity in the work that's going on here. So you have the dragon...

which we talked about in chapter 12, who's giving power to the beast, the Antichrist that we saw in chapter 13, verses 1 through 10. And then now you have the false prophet. So in the same way as you have the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, you have the dragon, who is Satan, the Antichrist, and then the false prophet.

And so there's this unholy trinity, this unholy union of these three individuals that come on the scene to lead the world in rebellion against God. And you can see a reference to these three all together in Revelation chapter 16 verse 13. We'll get there in a couple weeks. But how each of them are sending forth evil spirits to lead the earth together

to the battle of Armageddon. And so you have the dragon, the beast, and then the false prophet. Well, he comes on the scene and he says that he has two horns like a lamb. Now, horns in the scripture are usually referred to or they're symbolic of authority.

You remember the beast, the Antichrist had ten horns and the dragon as well had ten horns in this vision that John sees. And so they had great authority but here the false prophet has not as significant or not as great authority. He has authority, he has two horns like a lamb.

And the comparison to being like a lamb also has some interesting pictures because he comes on the scene and he seems harmless, he seems gentle, but then notice he speaks like a dragon. And so although he seems harmless, he seems gentle, he seems to be, you know, a good guy, the reality is he's inspired by Satan. He speaks like a dragon.

To speak like a dragon speaks of the power of the things that he says, but also the deception that is taking place. And that's something we'll see here in chapter 13. This is something that characterizes the work of the false prophet. There's great deception that goes along. And so Satan being the father of all lies, Jesus said, is the inspiration behind this false prophet who comes on the scene.

And so here we see, first of all, the false prophet being introduced. Like a lamb, he has a little bit of authority. He seems harmless, but he speaks like a dragon.

Well, as we go on in verses 12 and 13, now we see that the false prophet causes all to worship Antichrist. This is his main purpose. That's why he's on the scene. His goal, his objective is to cause everyone to worship the Antichrist. Verse 12 says, And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence and causes all the earth...

and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed. So this false prophet leads a movement of worship of the Antichrist. He leads essentially a one world religious system where he causes the whole world to worship the beast. Now last week we talked about the Antichrist and how the Antichrist will lead this one world government. He'll be a world leader.

The false prophet along with him then will lead a one world religious system to worship the beast. And so you see these two creatures, these two beasts working side by side and hand in hand. One is leading the world politically, the other is leading the world religiously and causing the world to worship the beast.

Notice it says, "...he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence." The first beast is the Antichrist, who we saw is powered by Satan.

The false prophet will exercise that same power. Again, the same inspiration of the devil that is leading the Antichrist will be in the false prophet. He will be empowered by, inspired by Satan, and he'll be able to exercise authority in the presence of the beast. There's going to be some radical things going on.

so that he can cause the earth to worship the beast. The religious system that he sets up is for the worshipping of the Antichrist. It may be a little bit hard to believe and understand from our perspective. We look at this and we say, "Well, how would anybody fall for this?" Because we all know about it. It's all been declared. It's all written in the scriptures here. It's been known for centuries. How would anybody fall for this?

This false prophet is going to come on the scene and he is going to exert great authority and power and the world is going to fall for his deception. One of the big things that will cause the world to worship him, it says that he causes them to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed. Three times here in chapter 13 there's a reference to some type of wound and then healing that takes place

In the Antichrist. We don't know exactly what it is, but there's some type of wound that he receives and then he is miraculously healed. And whatever it is, whatever the circumstances are between that wound and the healing, it's really impressive. And it's part of why the whole world will worship him.

It's part of why this false prophet's objective will be fulfilled because of this miraculous event that happens in the Antichrist. The world is going to watch some type of event where the Antichrist is maybe assassinated or there's an attempted assassination or maybe as I described last week, maybe there's an epic battle between the Antichrist and the two witnesses of chapter 11. Whatever the case may be,

The world knows about this and it's radical to them. Well, it's reason to worship him because he was mortally wounded and yet he was healed. He was revived. So the false prophet causes the world to worship this antichrist who survived this deadly wound. Verse 13.

It says, He performs great signs so that He even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. So in addition to the Antichrist receiving this miraculous healing, the false prophet causes people to worship the Antichrist by performing these great signs.

These great and miraculous things. And he gives one example. One example of the signs that the false prophet will be able to do is he'll be able to make fire come down from heaven to the earth in the sight of men. So he will be able on command to call down fire from heaven in front of everybody.

We're not talking about a magic trick here. We're talking about a real power that is being demonstrated and displayed. Now, if you could picture with me, you remember the prophet Elijah and the events that took place on Mount Carmel. There on Mount Carmel, he challenged the prophets of Baal.

And he said, hey, let's let the God that is real answer by fire. And we can determine once and for all if your God is real or if my God is real. And so the prophet Elijah calls for this demonstration to take place. And the nation gathers around and the prophets of Baal, they set up their altar and they call out to their God Baal.

They call out and they dance and they worship and they cut themselves and they scream and they do everything they can, but that God does not answer by fire. Elijah starts to taunt them, hey, maybe you're on vacation or maybe he's asleep or maybe you need to cry louder and so they go. But eventually, Elijah says, that's enough. You've had a good part of the day here to call on your God and he hasn't answered by fire. So he sets up an altar to God.

He pours water on it. You remember the account there in the book of Kings? He drenches it completely and then he prays to God and God answers by fire. And fire comes out and consumes the altar and consumes the sacrifice and consumes all of the water that had been poured out upon the altar. A great miraculous work. And it caused people to realize that God truly is God and that these other idols that they were worshipping were not God.

So as you're picturing that scene, now look at the false prophet and imagine the power of deception that would be going on when the false prophet is able to say, "I know who God is and I operate on behalf of God and I can prove it." And he calls down fire from heaven to the earth and the sight of men. And people see this incredible display of power

And he says, worship the beast, worship the Antichrist. He's the one we're to worship. This deception will not be, you know, what we encounter today in the subject of false doctrine or cults, false religions. There's great deception in those things. And being delivered from those deceptions really takes a miraculous work of God. But the deception that will be happening in that day...

As the false prophet is on the scene, it will be deception like this world has never known before. How many will follow what this false prophet says as he demonstrates that kind of power, these great and miraculous signs? Well, the world will follow him. Paul explains to us in 2 Thessalonians 2 that the coming of the lawless one, that is the Antichrist, is going to be according to the working of Satan.

Paul says, "...with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish." And he says, "...because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved." Paul says, look, when the Antichrist comes, he's not just going to be just some kind of charismatic guy that comes on the scene. He's going to come with the power of Satan.

With power and signs and lying wonders and this powerful deception. And the world is going to fall for it because they did not receive the love of the truth that they might be saved.

Those who reject the truth, those who reject Jesus Christ right now are setting themselves up to fall for this powerful deception that will come along with the Antichrist as the false prophet is there alongside of him working these incredible and fantastic miracles. I think that fantastic is a good word because wouldn't you like to see fire called down from heaven? That would be spectacular, right?

But the work here of the false prophet, although spectacular visually, is inspired by Satan and will be used to lead the earth away from God. To blind them, to keep them from receiving God, to keep them from being forgiven, and to condemn them eternally to hell. Paul says, because they did not receive the love of the truth that they might be saved.

Listen, the time to receive the truth is now. A lot of people put off that decision, that time. I know it's the truth, but I'm not going to fully receive it. I'm not going to act on it until later. But that's a very, very dangerous thing to do because the time to receive the truth is now. There is a great strong delusion that is coming for those who reject the truth. And that means for you and I as believers that the time to share the truth is now.

That the time is limited because we know these things could begin at any moment. We need to share the truth now because the time for them to receive the truth is right now. And it's a limited time. Those who reject the truth, those who do not receive the love of the truth, they will be subject to this great delusion, this great deception that comes on the scene.

The false prophet will use these signs and wonders. Now God foretold these types of things happening in Deuteronomy chapter 13. He told the people that there will be false prophets who come among them. He told His people they will come with signs and wonders.

Deuteronomy chapter 13 verse 3, he says, And so he says, when a false prophet comes with signs and wonders, that you're not to follow after him just because he has signs and wonders.

He says God allows that to test the hearts of the people, to see if you really love God with all your heart and with all your soul. If you're really fully committed to God, it will be evidenced by whether or not you follow the signs and wonders of the false prophets. Now, signs and wonders were done by Jesus as well. So we learn something about signs and wonders.

Just because they are accomplished, just because there's miracles happening, doesn't mean it's from God. Now when the message that is being brought forth is in agreement with the scriptures and what the Bible teaches, and there's signs and wonders that accompany that message that agrees with the Bible, those signs and wonders are testifying to the truth. Testifying truth.

to the genuineness. For example, as Jesus proclaimed the Gospel and worked miracles, He called His miracles out. He told the Pharisees and the religious leaders to check out His miracles and to check out His message. His message was in agreement with the Word of God. His miracles then testified that He indeed is the Son of God that He claimed to be. But just because there are signs and wonders doesn't mean that a person's message is right.

And so we need to listen to the words and follow the word of God. When signs accompany a message that is contrary to the Bible, those signs then are not testifying to the message. Instead, they are just used to deceive the people. And God says in Deuteronomy 13, there's going to be false prophets who use signs, who use and do great wonders.

But they're going to be testing you to see if you will really follow my commands, God said. You see, because those signs that he's talking about, those false prophets will commit, will be used to deceive people to say, okay, now let's not follow God this way. Let's go over here and serve this God in this way. And if the people turn from God to worship these other gods and follow these signs and wonders, it shows that they do not love God with all their hearts and with all their soul.

So there's a great danger for just following after signs and wonders. There's a great danger for just trusting in the miracles. We need to listen to the message and we need to check it out against the Word of God. The false prophet will come on the scene. He will do these incredible miracles to lead the people away from God. And it will be very clear in his message that he is not from God because he will cause the world to worship him.

the Antichrist. He'll cause the world to worship this man. And it will be very clear, this is not from God. But the world will be deceived. So the false prophet causes all the world to worship Antichrist. Because of his wound that was healed, because of these great signs and wonders, there's going to be a great deception that takes place upon the earth. Well then it goes on a little bit further even, in verse 14 and 15, where the false prophet sets up the image of

The false prophet sets up the image. Verse 14, Notice again, he was wounded by the sword and lived. A reference to this fatal wound that he received and yet was healed.

This false prophet will deceive those who dwell on the earth. Again, the world is going to be subject to this great deception that goes on, this great delusion that God will send. Paul tells us in 2 Thessalonians 2. And they're going to worship the beast. And then the false prophet is going to suggest, he's going to tell the world, hey, let's make an image to this beast so that we can worship him.

And this will be fulfilled in what we call the abomination of desolation. Daniel spoke about it in chapter 9 of the book of Daniel. And Jesus made reference to it in Matthew chapter 24. The abomination of desolation. Jesus said in Matthew 24, 15, when you see the abomination of desolation, He says, then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

It marks the second half of the tribulation period. Things are going to get more intense and worse than the first half of the tribulation. He says, when you see that, it's time to get out of there and flee from Judea when this event happens. So the false prophet is in the process where he's part of the work of setting up this image there within the temple that will be rebuilt. This false prophet was...

there on the scene calling fire down from heaven the Antichrist is essentially rising from the dead there's this powerful deception so the world will fall prey to this suggestion to make an image to the beast then verse 15 he was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed now we see

some pretty incredible things happening. First of all, notice he was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast. The word granted. Another reminder, as we've seen throughout the book of Revelation, that in all of this, God is in control. And he's only letting out the amount of authority that's necessary to accomplish his purposes.

And so the false prophet here is given power, granted power. He's given authority. God's in control, but he allows this to take place. And there's something pretty incredible going on here because he's granted power to give breath to the image of the beast. So there's this image that is set up, this image of the beast. And the false prophet is given power to animate this image.

Now there's a lot of talk and speculation that I'm not really going to get into about what this could mean. How is the image given breath? It could be technological, could be some type of robotic thing, I think probably more sophisticated than Pirates of the Caribbean, not that kind of animation, but something technological like that. It could be biological.

You know, there's something that's happening with the image that is related to some type of, you know, biological explanation. Or it could be supernatural. It could just be demonic. It could be something to that effect. If you want to play around with an idea in your head...

then you can kind of go way out there and say, well, maybe this is some type of clone of the Antichrist and maybe that was the source of his healing, the way he was able to be healed. And some have suggested that. There's lots of speculation, lots of ideas about what the image of the beast exactly is and how it's fulfilled. However it's fulfilled though, it's an image of the beast. It's set up within the temple and the false prophet is given power to animate it.

And to animate it in such a way that, notice, it says that the image of the beast should do two things. Number one, he should be able to speak. So he gives breath to the image and then the image is able to speak. There's some type of supernatural thing, some radical thing where the image is able to talk on its own, to speak on its own.

Now maybe it's just a big deception, you know, like the Wizard of Oz, he's behind the curtain, you know, the false prophets back there saying, Hey! Worship the Antichrist, you know, that kind of thing. But it seems to suggest here that there's something more than just some simple trickery that is going on. Because he's granted power to give breath to the image of the beast. And so there's something happening here that is beyond our natural explanation.

some special authority that is given to him for this purpose. And so the beast, number one, will be able to speak, but then number two, the beast will be able to cause those who do not worship the image to be killed. So the beast is going to have, I'm sorry, the image of the beast is going to have some kind of power to be able to talk and to be able to recognize when people are not worshiping the image of the beast and put them to death.

How exactly is that going to be fulfilled? Man, there's, you know, you could talk all day about the list of speculations and the what-ifs. We don't know. But the reality is, this is what's going to happen. The false prophet will give life to this image, breath to this image. It will speak and it will cause those who do not worship the image to be killed.

So the abomination of desolation is set up. Here it's the work of the false prophet who's come alongside the Antichrist to cause the world to worship him. Well then number four, we find in verse 16 through 18 that the false prophet requires the mark.

Verse 16 and 17 says, He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name. The mark of the beast. Here's another example.

where we have more speculation than we could really get into today. Tons of ideas about the mark of the beast. A lot of things that are talked about. Sometimes, I would issue this caution, sometimes,

Because there's a lot of speculation, a lot of things that seem to make sense, Christians can speak about the speculation of how this might be fulfilled as if it's the absolute certainty of this is what is going to happen. And I would encourage you to be careful with that. Don't get ahead of yourself. We're free to speculate and it's kind of fun to do so, to imagine how is this going to take place? How is this going to happen?

But we don't know exactly how this is going to be fulfilled. We have ideas, we have thoughts, but it's vague enough to leave room for, well, God could do something that we have not yet thought about. So this false prophet comes on the scene and he causes everyone to receive a mark on their right hands or their foreheads. So he causes everyone to receive a mark and then he ties...

financial transactions to that requirement of having the mark of the beast. But notice it says, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. And so there's a lot of different things that could be going on here. Now some have suggested, and it's possible, you know, the mark of the beast could be something as simple as a tattoo.

And the tattoo is the mark which then you're able to show and then you're able to buy and sell according to what you need to do in order to survive. Now, of course, the most popular idea these days and for the past probably 20 years is that the mark of the beast is some type of microchip that is implanted within the hand or the forehead.

And there's a lot of interesting connections there and that is indeed a great possibility. But again, I would hold you back and say, listen, that is not for sure exactly what is going to happen, but that is a great possibility that that could be fulfilled that way. And the technology is there. That's what's incredible about this. In November of 2004, so talking six years ago,

Mexico implemented this type of technology within some of their government things and their federal prosecutors got these implants into their arms, not actually in their hands, but in their arm between their elbow and the shoulder.

And these implants then give them access to restricted areas within the Attorney General's headquarters. And so there's the issue there of the great crime rate of the drug lords and that kind of thing. And so in order to beef up security, they implanted their employees. I think it's about 160 employees at that time were implanted with these microchips that then...

gave them access to the buildings and the doors inside the buildings and so on and so forth. And so they were able to secure themselves in that way. And so the technology is there. I was looking at an article this morning

It's back from June of this year that there was a guy in Australia who opted to receive a microchip implant. It was not a government thing like in Mexico. It was just his voluntary thing. He says, the reason why I wanted this was pretty petty, he says. I just want to get rid of my keys. And so he has this chip implanted into his hand.

And then he's able to walk up to his door and it unlocks as he opens it because it registers the chip. And he's working to get his motorcycle and his car, you know, set up the same way so that he just gets in the car and he's able to start it because of the chip that's in his hand. And actually there's a video of it. If you want to see the chip being implanted, it's a little bit gross and there's a little bit of blood that squirts out. But...

But it is pretty interesting to watch. And if you want to, if you're interested, I posted it on my Facebook and my Twitter account. So you can click on the link and watch the video if you want to see something gross.

Then this month, November 8th, I don't know if you guys saw this article, but it was entitled, Look Out, Your Medicine Is Watching You. There's this company that is working on ingestible microchips that would be implanted within your medicine. So when you take your medicine...

They explained that the stomach acids actually activates the microchip and then sends information to a patch that's on your skin that you can then send with your cell phone or you can send over the internet to your doctor and it keeps your doctor updated on when you're taking your medication and these types of information about the medication and what's going on when you take it.

pretty radical right pretty incredible I don't know if anybody wants to be swallowing that type of technology but but these things the point is these things are there you know it very well could be that this is something that is used by the false prophet in the Antichrist in order to implement the mark of the beast now I should underscore it doesn't have to be that and I think that's important but it could be and that's what makes it so interesting

And so the false prophet here causes everyone, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave. This is pretty amazing. This mark of the beast is required for everybody. It's going to be part of the deception and people will be lining up to receive the mark. Now can you imagine that? Can you imagine that?

kings, queens, princes, presidents, millionaires, billionaires, they will be lining up to receive this mark. Now today, you know, if...

Someone running for election said, okay, what we're going to do is we're going to implant a microchip and we're going to keep track of everybody and, you know, come on in, get signed up, get it implanted. You know, there'd be huge outcry. No way. There'd be all kinds of fights. Sure, some people would be all for it, but there's no way that you could get everybody to be excited about this idea. But that is a testimony of the type of deception that will be going on. And so he's going to require...

And the earth will comply. They will receive the mark of the beast. He says that they will receive it on their right hand or their foreheads. And so you get two options.

Now, I think that's important too because it really indicates here that this is something that is literally going to happen. It's not a figurative, you know, like just swearing allegiance by raising your right hand and, you know, pledging allegiance to the beast, you know, that type of thing. But there's something physical that's happening either on your right hand or on your forehead. The result will be no one can buy or sell without this mark.

Now that could be easily done with a microchip because you could have your credit card information or your bank account information and just swipe your hand and then the transaction occurs. But it also could be as simple like a Costco membership, right? So you show the tattoo, you show the mark, whatever it is, and then you're able to purchase from that merchant.

This mark, well, it says that they'll receive either the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name. And so here we have some, you know, interesting distinctions that are made here. It's the mark of the beast or the name of the beast or the number of his name that is being received. And so...

It's possible that this is a combination of things. Maybe you have options, you know, you can get the different designs when you go get the mark. Maybe his name, just speaking, you know, just merely hypothetical. Maybe his mark is an actual tattoo. But maybe if you say, I don't want to receive his mark, I want to receive his number, that's when you get like a microchip implant. Maybe there's, you know, different types of things that are going on here.

Again, it's not very specific. It doesn't tell us and it doesn't have to be something that we understand right now. It could be completely different. The point here though, really is not so much about how it's implemented, but what it means. And that is something that we need to make clear. Receiving the mark is swearing allegiance to the beast.

That's what the act of receiving the mark is. And so, you know, if the mark of the beast is some type of microchip implant, it does not mean that we have to be freaked out about advances in technology and think that somehow, you know, they're going to make us take the mark. Listen, those who receive the mark of the beast will not take it accidentally or unknowingly.

And we'll see that very clearly next week as we get into chapter 14. Because it's going to be very clear. Those who take the mark are those who are worshipping the beast and their eternal state will be determined by receiving the mark. It will be swearing allegiance to the beast and condemning yourself to hell. That's what it will be and that's what it will mean to take the mark.

And so there's no need to fear microchips in the sense that they're going to force the mark of the beast upon us. I say bring it on. I've got one of those cards that has the microchip in it so I can just wave it by the machine instead of sliding it.

It's not a whole lot faster or easier, but I say bring it on, man. Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Yeah, advance it. Go forward. Let's vote for it. You know what I mean? Like, let's bring Jesus back quickly. But whatever the case is, the receiving of the mark of the beast is going to be an allegiance to the Antichrist, an allegiance against God with the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. Verse 18. Here is wisdom.

Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is 666. And so here we have the famous, the infamous 666. In Hebrew, as well as Greek, their numbering system was their alphabet. And so the idea here is that

You add up the numbers, which is the alphabet, and then the number is 666. That was something that did take place in those days. So they found some graffiti, archaeologists found some graffiti in Pompeii when they're digging up the ruins. They found some graffiti on a wall where someone had written, I love her, whose number is 545.

And this was in Greek. Now this was before phone numbers. It wasn't an address. What the person who wrote this was saying was, hey, I really dig this girl. I think she's cute. And if you add up the numbers of her name, you take the letters of her name and use their numerical value, it adds up to 545. That was something that was common because their numbering system was also their alphabet in Hebrew as well as in Greek.

And so what is talked about here then, his number is 666, that probably as you add up,

The characters, as you add up and do the calculations, that it equals to 666. Now, of course, this has caused a lot more speculation, a lot of many, you know, calculations that people have done. And they've, you know, said, well, the Pope, okay, if you do it this way and you do it this way, then, you know, it adds up and he is the Antichrist because it's 666.

Then they accused John Knox, Martin Luther, Napoleon, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Cesar Nero. All of these guys, if you manipulate their names just right, you can get them to come out to 666. And so people are trying to calculate today. They're looking at politicians who are on the scene. Okay, well let's convert it to Hebrew and then add up the numbers and try to get to 666.

Now, I don't think that that is really what the intent of this is for. But notice it does say, let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast. And so, that is appropriate. I think the timing is just off. Paul tells us in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 that the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the Antichrist is going to come when the thing that is restraining him is taken out of the way.

That is, if you will do a good study of 2 Thessalonians 2, you'll find it's the rapture of the church. When the church gets caught up out of here, he says in verse 8 of 2 Thessalonians 2, that's when the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming. And so it's only after the church is out of the picture that the lawless one, the Antichrist, is revealed. Now he may be on the scene,

He may be alive today. He may be in world power today. But it will not be revealed that he is the Antichrist until the church is out of here. And so as it says here that we're to calculate the number of the beast,

I think this is here not for us, because the Antichrist isn't going to be revealed until we're out of here. And so this is for the people who are alive during the tribulation period, so that they can, it'll make sense then, they will understand at that time, it will be revealed, and they can calculate the number of his name, and it will help them see through the deception that is going on.

So that they can know this is the Antichrist. I can't receive his mark. I'm not going to swear allegiance to him. Oh, all the world thinks he's the Messiah. They think he's the Savior. They're worshiping him. But I've done the calculations and I see it's very clear. His number is 666. And so it will be something that God will use there during the tribulation period to keep people

from receiving the mark of the beast, along with some other things, and we'll deal with that next week in chapter 14. So here in chapter 13, verses 11 through 18, we have this false prophet, this guy who comes on the scene, he causes all the world to worship Antichrist with these great deceptions and miracles. He sets up this image to the beast and requires all of the world to receive the mark and to swear allegiance to the beast, to side with him and to seal their fate.

to eternal judgment. The consequence of following the religion of the false prophet is eternal judgment. And that's tragic. But it's also the consequence for following any false religion. Jesus said very clearly in John 14, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Jesus is the way. And there is no other way. And anyone else who offers a way...

is a liar. It's deception and many are deceived and that is why as believers you and I the time is right for us now to share the truth to break through the deception because those who follow false prophets and false religions will not be saved. Jesus is the way the truth and the life. When the false prophet comes on the scene Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 2

The people are going to receive it because they did not receive the love of the truth. Right now is the time for us to receive wholeheartedly the truth. You remember God says in Deuteronomy 13, I'll allow these false prophets to come in to test and see whether or not with all your heart, with all your soul, you love me and you'll follow me. Now is the time to make that commitment, to receive the truth wholeheartedly, to love God with all of our heart and with all of our soul.

God is already taking care of everything that we need. He died upon the cross for our sin. He shed His blood so that we could be forgiven. So that we could have new life and the promise of eternity with Him. He's done the work. But it is our responsibility to receive it. To respond to it. To believe in Him. To trust Him. And to follow Him with all of our hearts. We don't have time.

to be half-hearted as Christians. Because those who are half-hearted will be tested. That's what God said in Deuteronomy 13. You'll be tested with deception. And if you follow the deception, it shows and it proves you did not love God with all your heart, with all your strength. There's a great danger. We want to be half-hearted because we like sin. We love sin. We don't want to be fully committed. We want to just kind of be enough to be saved.

But that's a dangerous game to play because of this great deception that's already at work and that is coming with a force like this world has never seen before. The time is now to fully give ourselves over to God, to surrender completely to Him, to love Him with all of our heart and with all of our soul. Hold nothing back. Let's give it all to God. Let's pray.

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