“Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. –Jesus, Matthew 24:4-14

The war between God who is good and Satan the fallen angel who is evil still rages on.  Who do we choose daily and stand beside when pressed for an answer?  Our decision is a matter of life or death.  Our behaviors will reflect our belief and commitment to our decision in every day life.  Our decision affects others who are confused and looking for answers for life, too. Who do we obviously worship?  Who is paramount in all we think, say, and do—even if our brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, aunts and uncles, husbands or wives, mothers and fathers do not agree?  Do we worship the beast of gossip, assumptions and preconceived judgements?  Are we fooled into living a life that craves the applause of others so much that we will say and do nothing to get it?  Will we allow the beast of self-worship fill us with arrogance, envy, pride, and jealousy for what others have while believing the lies told to us?  Will we be led by the beast who is the author of hate and confusion who teaches us to spew false teachings about God that destroy relationships with our loved ones?  It can and will happen if we do not stand firm in complete devotion and worship of Jesus Christ, our Savior AND our Lord.

Jesus knows what we are going through now and what we will face later and He promises to be with us “unto the end of the age.”  Do we really believe Him—or not?  Our faith is tested in trials each day to make us strong, says James.  James and the other disciples went through trials that seem unthinkable to us today as most of us hide out in the “comfort zones” of our homes, churches, and community.  In the days now and in the days to come we must take an honest, sincere stand for who we really believe because our behaviors are already being critically judged by our loved ones, friends, and our enemies.  (Nation against nation, brother against brother, etc.)

Who will that be? What will we say?  How will our lives be lived?

Revelation 13, The Message

The Beast from the Sea

13 ^1-2 And the Dragon stood on the shore of the sea. I saw a Beast rising from the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads—on each horn a crown, and each head inscribed with a blasphemous name. The Beast I saw looked like a leopard with bear paws and a lion’s mouth. The Dragon turned over its power to it, its throne and great authority.

^3-4 One of the Beast’s heads looked as if it had been struck a deathblow, and then healed. The whole earth was agog, gaping at the Beast. They worshiped the Dragon who gave the Beast authority, and they worshiped the Beast, exclaiming, “There’s never been anything like the Beast! No one would dare go to war with the Beast!”

^5-8 The Beast had a loud mouth, boastful and blasphemous. It could do anything it wanted for forty-two months. It yelled blasphemies against God, blasphemed his Name, blasphemed his Church, especially those already dwelling with God in Heaven. It was permitted to make war on God’s holy people and conquer them. It held absolute sway over all tribes and peoples, tongues and races. Everyone on earth whose name was not written from the world’s foundation in the slaughtered Lamb’s Book of Life will worship the Beast.

^9-10 Are you listening to this? They’ve made their bed; now they must lie in it. Anyone marked for prison goes straight to prison; anyone pulling a sword goes down by the sword. Meanwhile, God’s holy people passionately and faithfully stand their ground.

The Beast from Under the Ground

^11-12 I saw another Beast rising out of the ground. It had two horns like a lamb but sounded like a dragon when it spoke. It was a puppet of the first Beast, made earth and everyone in it worship the first Beast, which had been healed of its deathblow.

^13-17 This second Beast worked magical signs, dazzling people by making fire come down from Heaven. It used the magic it got from the Beast to dupe earth dwellers, getting them to make an image of the Beast that received the deathblow and lived. It was able to animate the image of the Beast so that it talked, and then arrange that anyone not worshiping the Beast would be killed. It forced all people, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to have a mark on the right hand or forehead. Without the mark of the name of the Beast or the number of its name, it was impossible to buy or sell anything.

Solve a riddle: Put your heads together and figure out the meaning of the number of the Beast. It’s a human number: 666.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Jesus warned his disciples who left everything behind to follow Him, “Beware of false teachers.”  Before the final battle, Believers of Jesus will be challenged. God promised, though, that no spiritual harm will come to believers, although they might have to endure persecution and pain.  We must discern false prophets who claim to perform miracles and exercise authority from God.  God’s Holy Spirit was sent to help us by leading us to all Truth.  Listen to Him!

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” John 16:13

If we are amazed, distracted, and influenced by the “beast;” signs of beastly behaviors will begin to appear in our lives such as slander, gossip, envy, pride, arrogance, sarcasm, self-edification, and pride while comparing ourselves to each other—all traits of the beast who worships the Dragon, namely Satan, the fallen angel.  In the end, it won’t go well for us.  We must evaluate and ask ourselves; Is it really going well for us now to carry these traits?

These questions of resolve must be asked daily;

Have I been claimed and tattooed by the beast as being on his team OR have I offered by whole “created in God’s image” being back to God as an offering of holy worship to Him? 

Is my name written in the palm of God’s hand as His child?  Is Jesus my Savior and Lord—or not? 

Without looking inside my heart, will others know to Whom I belong?

Lord,

Thank you for revealing the “end of the age” to John so that we may evaluate our lives lived for you now in preparation to see you face to face. We are not perfect but we are, without a doubt, perfectly forgiven when we repent of all our sins to you.  Thank you for teaching us your ways. Thank you for helping us know you more each day as the Holy Spirit reveals Truth to us.  Thank you for clearly showing us the traits to acquire and those to avoid. Help us to accept your discipline as a Loving Father to a precious child would be—all for our good and Your glory.

In Jesus Name, Amen