The Mark of the Beast

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Good morning, Chapel family. Before we dive in to the sermon, I want to give you an update on what The Chapel is doing to help in Ukraine. We have a close connection with a church in Romania, near the Ukrainian border. And they are really stepping up to love their neighbors (this is a picture of some of the church members delivering supplies to refugees). So last week, The Chapel donated over $20,000 to this church. And I just want to read you a few lines from the Thank You note they sent to Pastor Ted:

Dear Brother Ted, I am speechless. Thank you is not enough to express my gratitude on behalf of our brothers and sisters serving on the front line in Romania.

And then they gave a little description of what they’re doing..

All the congregations in our area, under our pastor’s leadership, have opened all available space to house those without relatives or other connections or means to travel into Western countries. They purchased mattresses, bedding, blankets, formula, diapers, feminine hygiene items, clothes, shoes and the like. These people have no money because all banks were closed in Ukraine and the value of their currency is crushed. They fled with small bags so they need to be fed, cared for, many need medicine…and all is provided for free by our partners from donations…

Also because the situation is unthinkable and people unprepared, our trauma healing teams are at work helping them to deal with the situation and find hope and comfort and peace in Jesus. Putting skin on Jesus is only the physical aspect of this effort, the spiritual aspect is a priority. So we needed to purchase Bibles, Christian literature and tracts in the Ukrainian language.

As you can see, it’s a God sized task and He is the One providing, enabling, and empowering our people to serve and cover those huge needs.

I’ll tell you what: I read that, and I just say, “Thank God that he has placed those people in that spot for a time like this.” Amen? So I want to thank you for your generosity to The Chapel—this is the kind of thing it enables us to do. So please keep praying for peace, and keep praying for strength and resolve for the Ukrainians. And we’ll continue looking for ways to help.

Okay—we are taking a few months to walk through the book of Revelation—the very last book in the Bible. And the section we’re going to look at today is probably the most sensationalized part of the entire book. Because we’re going to be talking about the Antichrist, and the mark of the beast, and the number 666. Some of you are thinking, “Ooh—we’re finally getting to the good stuff.” But you’re probably not going to like what I say today.

Because remember what we’ve been saying every week: the book of Revelation is not primarily intended for us to set dates, or match up current events with biblical prophecy, or guess who the Antichrist might be. Revelation is actually a letter written by John the Apostle to a group of churches around 95AD. If I had to summarize the message of this letter, here’s how I’d say it: The world is getting darker. Opposition to Christ and his church is getting stronger. But God is in control, and in the

end God wins. So stand firm in your faith. That was the message they needed to hear back then, and it’s exactly the message we need to hear today. Because it’s getting dark out there, isn’t it?

Now, I want to say something about today’s passage: if you are brand new to church, and you’ve never heard any of this stuff before, you’d probably think we’re crazy. Because today’s passage is going to talk about dragons and beasts and all kinds of crazy stuff. So if you just walked in here today for the first time, you would say, “These guys are insane.” So here’s what you need to know: the book of Revelation is a kind of literature called “apocalyptic literature.” And what that means is that it uses imagery and symbols to convey spiritual reality. In other words, no—we don’t believe there’s an actual dragon and a beast. And that’s not what the Bible is teaching. But it uses those symbols as a graphic way to explain spiritual truths.

I know some of you are thinking, “Why would the Bible do that? Why wouldn’t the Bible just give it to us straight up?” Darrel Johnson is a Bible scholar who explained it like this: “Imagery has the power to go deeper than mere words. Imagery has the power to hook us deep inside. Images can quickly and effectively convey that which we struggle to put into words. Imagery goes beyond the intellect and through the emotions, grabbing hold of us at the deepest recesses of our being.” In other words, because of the vivid images you’re about to hear, you will probably remember what you heard today much more than if it was just a list of facts. That’s just how the human mind works.

So, no: we are not people who think there’s a literal dragon…but listen: we believe there’s a very real enemy. And this book exposes that enemy for who he is. And we need to hear that. Because so many of the battles and problems we face in life are really just surface manifestations of a deeper war this enemy is waging beneath the surface. So as things keep getting darker, if we want to stand firm in our faith, we have to understand this enemy.

So, let’s read today’s Scripture—Revelation 13, starting in verse 1. I invite you now to hear the Word of God…

1 The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. 4 People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?” Now skip down to verse 8…

8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.

9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.

10 “If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity they will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword they will be killed.”

This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people.

11 Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its

inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. 16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.

18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666. This is the Word of the Lord.

So let’s talk about three things today: Who the Enemy Is, How the Enemy Works, and How to Resist the Enemy. Who the enemy is, what the enemy does, and how to resist him.

So, first: Who the Enemy Is. Chapter 13 starts out by saying, The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. So who is the dragon? Well, if you go back to chapter 12, it identifies the dragon as Satan: an angel who rebelled against God and was cast out of heaven with his demonic followers. So, keep going…The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2a The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. So whoever this beast is, he gets all his power from Satan himself. Which is a chilling thought. But the obvious question is, who does the beast represent? The first readers of this letter would have immediately been reminded of a very similar vision back in the book of Daniel, chapter seven. Daniel sees not one beast, but a series of beasts coming out of the sea, and one looks like a lion, one looks like a bear, one looks like a leopard, etc.—so the exact same animals. And in that vision, the beasts represent different kingdoms that will rise and fall through history—like Babylon and Persia and Greece and Rome—but ultimately God’s kingdom will prevail. That was the meaning of Daniel’s vision of the beasts.

So now, John sees one creature that seems to combine all those features in one beast. And we already saw that this beast is energized by Satan himself. So who is this? Most Bible scholars say this beast is the Antichrist. But there are actually two different views on what that means. Some people believe the Antichrist is a single figure who will rise up at the very end. And they point to what Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4… 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4a He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped... So the beast might be this single, end-times leader that we call the Antichrist.

But other scholars say, “Wait a minute. Haven’t there been lots of leaders like this, rising up all through history?” So in that view “Antichrist” isn’t a single character; it’s a name for anyone who opposes Christ. And they point to passages like 2 John 7—look at this: …many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. So the Antichrist isn’t necessarily just one person—it’s anyone who’s energized by Satan and teaches false things about Christ. That’s the other view.

You know what I think? It’s both. I believe that Satanic, anti-Jesus spirit has energized leaders all through history. Believe me, when John’s first readers read this, they thought about the Roman Emperors. And they were right! Those emperors were anti-Christ figures. And I can think of a bunch of

other ones in the years since then. But at the same time, I believe there is an ultimate Antichrist who will rise up at the end: that “Man of Lawlessness” that Paul wrote about. So, here’s the deal: even if you and I don’t experience the ultimate Antichrist, because he doesn’t show up in our generation, or because, as some people believe, we’ll be raptured out of the world beforehand—so even if we’re not here for that—the fact is, we will have to face multiple antichrist leaders: strong, influential, political leaders who want us to follow them instead of Christ. Watch out for people like that.

But it gets worse. In verse 11, John says, “Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth.” This one is sort of the sidekick of the first beast. He tells everybody to worship the first beast. Later in Revelation, this second beast is called “the false prophet.” So this is a religious figure who supports the political leadership of the Antichrist. That’s been happening through history, hasn’t it? In Nazi Germany, many Lutheran religious leaders told people they really should swear allegiance to Hitler. In Russia right now, most of the voices in the Russian Orthodox church seem fully supportive of Putin’s war in Ukraine. And in the future, when the ultimate Antichrist arises—probably some kind of one-world government leader—he will be accompanied by this very persuasive false prophet, convincing people it’s their spiritual duty to support their government. And here’s the main point: both of these figures—the Antichrist and the false prophet—are energized by the dragon—Satan himself.

A few years ago, Justice Antonin Scalia, of the US Supreme Court, was interviewed by New York magazine. And in the article, he said he believed in the existence of the Devil. And the interviewer seemed surprised. He said, “Have you seen evidence of the Devil lately?” And Scalia said, “You know, it is curious. In the Gospels, the Devil is doing all sorts of things. He’s making pigs run off cliffs, he’s possessing people and whatnot. And that doesn’t happen very much anymore…It’s because he’s smart.” The interviewer said, “So what’s he doing now?” And Scalia said, “What he’s doing now is getting people not to believe in him or in God. He’s much more successful that way.”

You know, we talk a lot about how the world is getting darker, and there’s this dangerous rise in depression and addiction and hopelessness. And it’s so easy to blame the politicians or the entertainment industry or social media, or whoever your favorite villain is. But Revelation reminds us that the real enemy—the enemy behind all those enemies—is Satan himself. It’s good for us to know that, because when you realize the battle is spiritual, you know you need to fight it with spiritual weapons. It changes how you look at everything.

Okay—point number 2: How the Enemy Works. If I had to describe the strategy of Satan, I would say this: he exerts a tremendous pressure on people to conform to his system. He exerts tremendous pressure on people to conform to his system. And in this passage, you see that pressure taking several forms—see if you recognize any of these…

First, there’s Cultural pressure. Verse 3 says The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. So there’s this sense that everyone around you is falling in line and looking at things in the same way. And if you don’t, there must be something wrong with you. You’re on the wrong side of history. Just a small example: ever since 2005, the same song has been played every New Year’s Eve, just after the ball drops in Times Square. Imagine there's no heaven, It's easy if you try, No hell below us, Above us, only sky. Imagine all the people, Livin' for today. Oo-oo. Catchy tune, everybody swaying back and forth in their New Year’s hats. Here’s the second verse: Imagine there's no countries, It isn't hard to do, Nothing to kill or die for, And no religion, too. Imagine all the people, Livin' life in peace… That’s become the international anthem of New Year’s Eve. If we could just get rid of this embarrassment called “religion,” we’d all be better off. Never mind the fact that countries who have actually done that—abolished religion—have carried out the most unimaginable violence in history.

We’re all supposed to feel warm and fuzzy and unified and sing the song together. That’s a tiny example of our culture’s pressure to conform. Have you felt that pressure—at your job? At school? Revelation tells us that pressure will increase as we get close to the end. Social pressure to conform. So be ready for that.

But there’s also Legal pressure. In verse 14, it says they’ll set up an image of the beast, and all who refuse to worship the image will be killed. So this pressure to conform will be backed up with legal consequence. If you don’t fall in line, you’ll be breaking the law. Right now, in Russia, there are thousands of people sitting in jail cells. Why? Because they dared to protest Putin’s war in Ukraine. And in Russia, that’s not allowed. Don’t you have a huge respect for people who are protesting anyway? But it’s a frightening thing when you can’t live in line with your conscience, without getting into legal trouble. And Revelation is warning us that the days are coming when that’s going to be the reality not just in Russia or North Korea, but all over the world. There’s a day coming when choosing to stay faithful to Jesus Christ, and sharing what your faith says about the value of human life, or sexuality, or the danger of religious nationalism, or other issues, will mean exposing yourself to legal trouble, and possibly death. So be ready for that.

And then, thirdly, there’s Economic pressure. Verse 16 says the second beast forced everyone to receive a mark on their right hand or their forehead, and they couldn’t buy or sell unless they had the mark. And then it says that mark is the name of the beast or the number of its name, which is 666. Oh man, here we go. This is one of the most debated parts of Revelation.

Let’s start with the number part. What does it mean that the number of the beast’s name is 666? For years, people have tried to decode that number. There are actually systems where you assign a certain number to every letter of the alphabet, and so people have tried to spell out the names of certain leaders and add the numbers up to 666, to identify the Antichrist. It’s ridiculous. You should see some of the things people have come up with. Look: this is not a secret code. Throughout the Bible, the number 7 represents the perfection of God; the number 6 represents the imperfection of humans. Remember what day of creation humans were created on? The sixth day. So 6 represents the imperfection and incompleteness of humans without God. And when you stack three 6s on top of each other, it’s like you’re piling up imperfection and incompleteness. So I believe the number 666 represents trying to make life work without God—like, “imagine there’s no heaven. Imagine if we were our own gods.” Which is exactly what the beast wants us to do. It’s the mark of life without God.

Okay, so what about the forehead or the right hand? I mean, is this a literal mark that people will put on their bodies, or, like some people think, a microchip that people will have embedded under their skin? It might be. That’s possible. But it’s also possible that again, this is symbolic. Remember what God told his people back in the Old Testament? He said my laws—the Torah—“are to be for you like a reminder on your hand and a sign on your forehead.” Did he mean they should actually write Bible verses on their hand and their forehead—physical marks? Probably not. Having God’s Word on your forehead and your hand meant you belonged completely to him. And therefore, if you have the Beast’s name on your forehead or your hand, it means you are completely loyal to him. In other words, you’ve totally bought into this anti-God world system. You’ve drunk the Kool Aid. You’ve decided to conform. That’s what the mark of the beast means.

So look: if someone offers you an actual mark—a tattoo or a microchip—on your forehead or your right hand, don’t do it! But the more important thing is what that mark represents. So…back to the economic pressure. A time is coming when only those who have sworn allegiance to the government and its anti-God system—only those people—will be able to buy groceries and shop at Walmart and

do business. Whether it involves a physical mark or not, you will have to declare your allegiance to the government in order to take part in society. And if you resist, life is going to be really tough. So don’t be shocked when that happens.

I know what some of you are thinking. You’re thinking, “This is the most depressing sermon I’ve ever heard.” And I’ll be honest with you: this is one of the hardest sermons I’ve ever written. There were a couple of evenings this week when Norma Jean texted me and said, “Are you coming home any time soon?” And I said, “Honey, this sermon is a beast.” And I didn’t even mean it as a pun. This is rough stuff. And I don’t particularly enjoy teaching it. But you know what? Oncologists don’t really enjoy telling their patients that their tumor is malignant. Cardiologists don’t really enjoy telling people their arteries are clogged, and they better make some changes. Those aren’t fun things. But man, I’m grateful for doctors who speak the truth, aren’t you? And I’m grateful that God speaks this truth to us in the Scriptures. This is like God’s fatherly warning to us that there’s a real spiritual enemy named Satan. And therefore, the battle is going to get fierce. But here’s the great thing—here’s why this is ultimately not depressing at all: God doesn’t just tell us to get ready for the battle; he tells us how to win it.

So—last point: How to Resist the Enemy. As the pressure to conform gets stronger and stronger—and it will—here’s the key to resisting. It’s just a half a verse, and you probably didn’t pay much attention to it. But this is the key to everything. The second part of Revelation 13:10 says this: This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people.

Some of you are disappointed with that. You’re like, “That’s it?” Patient endurance and faithfulness? I thought it would say, “This calls for an aggressive counter-attack.” “This calls for violent opposition.” “This calls for casting out demons and hitting the Devil back harder than he hit us!” Nope. After warning us of the blasphemous, arrogant, abusive ways that we’re going to be pressured by Satan to conform to this world, God says, “Your job is to patiently endure and be faithful.” That’s it! Patient endurance and faithfulness. There’s a calmness in those words. There’s a confidence in those words. There’s a lack of panic in those words. Patient endurance and faithfulness.

And here’s what I realized: all through the Bible, when God’s people are being persecuted and suffering, this is what God calls us to do.

In the book of Exodus, when the people of Israel are pinned up against the Red Sea, with the Egyptian army closing in, look what God tells Moses—Exodus 14:14…The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. Sounds to me like patient endurance and faithfulness.

1 Peter 4:19… So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. Sounds like patient endurance and faithfulness.

How about Ephesians 6—tell me this isn’t exactly what we’ve been reading about in Revelation today—Ephesians 6:12…12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. That’s exactly what Revelation 13 has been telling us, right? The real enemy operating behind the scenes! So what should we do? Verse 13: 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to…what? …stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. In other words, patient endurance and faithfulness.

“Patient endurance” means you expect things to get hard, and you hang in there. You don’t bail out; you don’t quit; you hold your ground.

And “faithfulness” means you stay faithful to Christ, despite the pressure or cultural unpopularity: you keep on praying; you keep on serving; you keep on gathering with other believers to worship. You refuse to bow down to the idols everyone else bows down to.

The key to winning the battle is patient endurance and faithfulness. You know why that’s true? Because Jesus already defeated the most powerful evil in the universe. See, the strongest evil in the universe is not the Antichrist or even Satan. The strongest evil in the universe is death. The Bible says death is the last enemy. And at the cross of Good Friday, and at the empty tomb of Easter Sunday, Jesus defeated death. He was dead, and he came back alive. And that is the truth that changes everything! Because if he can prevail over death, there is no kind of tribulation that’s too big for him. Amen?

It’s all about Jesus. He fights for us; he protects us. And when we really believe that, the more we will respond to the pressure of life with patient endurance and faithfulness.

Tomorrow when you wake up, and you start thinking about all the pressures of the day, say a quick prayer—before you even get out of bed. Say, “Lord, give me patient endurance and faithfulness.”

When you’re about to merge onto Route 3 during rush hour, say (keep your eyes open when you say this), “Lord, give me patient endurance and faithfulness.”

When you see everyone at work or school conforming to the world’s values and celebrating sin, don’t get belligerent or panicky; say, “Lord, give me patient endurance and faithfulness.”

There is so much power in patient endurance and faithfulness.

Guys, we have real spiritual enemy named Satan, and sometimes it seems like he’s winning. But God is in control. And in the end, God wins this whole thing. So stand firm in your faith.