Revelation 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
It is of critical importance that as persons move into unchartered waters at home and abroad, the basic principles of God’s kingdom, versus the kingdom of the beast be understood. There is a battle currently being waged in every heart for control of the mind, and God’s kingdom utilizes methods that are quite opposite to what the beast uses.
God’s kingdom has at its core the ultimate good of all humanity, and encourages willing obedience to the commandments of God, based upon love, and an intelligent understanding of God’s purposes for us. It allows us the freedom of choice, and employs methods of resolving difficulties between persons using different currencies than what devils use.
God’s kingdom repays ingratitude with kindness, it quells violence through peace and reconciliation, it seeks the good of those who hate it, and it provides food and drink, and all the basic necessities of life to all, whether they agree or disagree with God.
God takes no delight in the misfortunes and demise of His enemies, for He died to save us all. Now, it is true that in certain instances, God has to employ justice, for where mercy and grace may fail, justice must be served, and in His capacity as The Creator of all, it is His prerogative to dispense mercy as well as justice as He sees fit.
Yet, when God’s track record is closely investigated, we discover that His mercy rules the day, and in all of His dealings with human beings, His actions are heavily tilted towards leniency and kindness. If this were not the case, and if God dealt with us as we deserved, not one of us would be alive today. Let’s read:
Lamentations 3:21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
22 It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Matthew 5:43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Romans 12:17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Thus, when we observe the general tenor in all of the scriptures, we discover that even though there are times when God had no choice but to exercise justice, yet, these instances are the exception rather than the rule, for His grace and mercies towards us greatly outweigh His jurisprudence, for as the Bible teaches us, God delights in mercy.
The beast system on the other hand is a kingdom of darkness, which has as its core, operating principle, the use of force, even if persons may be reluctant to subscribe to its agenda. The so-called overtures to subscribe to the beast under a veneer of seeking the greater good are just an initial charade, because noncompliance will be ultimately put down with a heavy hand.
Satan, who stands at the head of the beast system has no problem with starving folks into submission, if persons do not willingly submit to his bidding, and he won’t hesitate to beat the praise out of unwilling lips. This is because his kingdom is the one that has force as its backbone and any person who disagrees will ultimately feel the ire of the dragon.
In contrast, we observe in the scriptures where God continued to feed and sustain those antediluvians right up until the day of the flood, for God did not withdraw His blessing and kindness from the earth, just because the overwhelming majority of people had forsaken, and rebelled against Him.
The basic necessities of food and drink were always supplied on a regular daily basis, and even folks like Cain, and Lamech who introduced the gross practice of polygamy, continued to be beneficiaries of God’s mercies and blessings. God does not starve persons into submission, for all who choose to serve Him are to do so of their own free will.
Not so with the beast principles, for we have sacred history before us, that when Job refused to yield to temptation, his entire household, together with his animals, pets and servants, suffered from the brute force of devils, and when all these failed of breaking Job, he was afflicted with sore boils from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet.
Thus, we must be clear as crystal when deciphering the beast principles, so as not to subscribe to them under the various veneers by which they are sold. It is a fact that intimidations, hecklings, and other forms of nefarious inducements such as bribes are going to be exhausted first whenever the beast may seek to carry out its agenda, but we should always remember this, that at the end of the day, the beast principles would ultimately lead to the use of force. Always! Let’s read:
Revelation 13: 11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.
12 And he exercises all the power of the first beast before him, and causes the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
14 And deceives 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.
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.
16 And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
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.
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.
[The Desire of Ages pp 435] Lucifer desired God's power, but not His character. He sought for himself the highest place, and every being who is actuated by his spirit will do the same. Thus alienation, discord, and strife will be inevitable.
Dominion becomes the prize of the strongest. The kingdom of Satan is a kingdom of force; every individual regards every other as an obstacle in the way of his own advancement, or a steppingstone on which he himself may climb to a higher place.
Several instances in the Bible clearly demonstrate the development of beast principles as they were implemented by those under influence of devils. In the area of worship, the use of force reared its ugly head. And at other times, when the faithful would not buckle under pressure, they were fed with the bread of affliction.
In the case of those “Certain Jews” who had refused to bow to the golden image in Nebuchadezzar’s day they were first solicited to do so initially, but when solicitations failed, the use of force was resorted to, as will always be the case when beast principles are espoused. Let’s read:
Daniel 3:9 They spoke and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live forever.
10 Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image.
11 And whoso falls not down and worships, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.
12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king.
14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up?
15 Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.
17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.
18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
19 Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore, he spoke and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated.
20 And he commanded the most, mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.
1st Kings 22:3 And the king of Israel said unto his servants, Know ye that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, and we be still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria?
4 And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramothgilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.
5 And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the Lord to day. 6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramothgilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.
7 And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might enquire of him?
8 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the Lord: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.
9 Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah.
13 And the messenger that was gone to call Micaiah spake unto him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak that which is good.
14 And Micaiah said, As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak.
16 And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the Lord?
17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the Lord said, These have no master: let them return every man to his house in peace.
26 And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son;
27 And say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace.
The disposition to starve, threaten, or harm persons with whom we do not agree is the same outworking of the beast principles. The kingdom of God grants to all individuals the freedom of choice, with natural consequences, but the kingdom of the beast uses coercion to exact compliance from unwilling minds.
The use of force by the beast is a principle that has been long in development for centuries, and which will culminate in what Revelation 13 describes as a theocracy, that will begin to enforce its dogmas in ways and means that many thought impossible. As was stated before, it will begin to take shape under the cover of darkness.
Man-made theocracies and democracies are two systems which are, for the most part, essentially at odds in their perspectives and in their operations. In man-made democracies persons enjoy the freedom of speech, and the freedom to worship according to the dictates of one’s conscience.
But in man-made theocracies, persons are forced to live and worship according to all the dictates of the state. Morality is mandated and the government’s concepts of right and wrong are urged upon the people on pain of various punishments, and in some cases, even death.
In some such countries, persons are forced to smile when their dear leader is present. Emotions as well as their organic feelings, and convictions of one’s conscience are put under bit and bridle, and those who dare to differ are often ostracized, punished, beaten, and sometimes go missing without a trace.
The images we saw recently of some women being beaten into compliance in Afghanistan are the same outworking of man-made theocracies, and even if there may be some variations and different levels of force, it’s the same spirit of Revelation 13 at work.
Here in the land of the free, and the home of the brave we have enjoyed those freedoms which our democracy brings. Folks enjoy freedom of speech, freedom of religion, or freedom from religion if we so choose, and the basic freedom to work for our daily bread is essentially available to all, some more, some less.
But, the scriptures warn us in Revelation 13 of a coming theocracy that will seek to impose its own views and perspectives on its citizens. Morality will be enforced, the dictates of one’s conscience would be trampled upon, and the freedoms we now enjoy will literally go up in smoke.
Under this new order, mandated worship of the beast would be touted as something that is for the greater good of the citizenry and ultimately, those economic sanctions mentioned in Revelation 13 will be leveled against all those who dare to differ.
These cryptic statements may seem implausible to some at the moment, but if we were to drill down in to what is looming on the horizon, we would clearly see the use of force as a core operating principle, beginning to take shape.
To put it plainly, a looming theocracy with several autocratic tentacles is just over the horizon, and as those beast principles begin to pervade every social, religious and economic sector we will find ourselves in a bind that will force persons to make some very difficult choices and decisions.
In other words, it is coming down to the basics of bread and butter, according to what is written in Revelation. Let’s read:
Revelation 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.
12 And he exercises all the power of the first beast before him, and causes the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
The first beast mentioned in Revelation 13 was a persecuting power, which enforced its dogmas on those under its jurisdiction, and which ultimately resulted in the horrors of the dark ages. The state’s interpretation of the Bible was made the standard of godliness for all, and dissenters found themselves having to hide in caves and dens of the earth.
But since that time, the very same beast principle has dressed itself in new sacerdotal garments, it has gone to department stores, and purchased modern suits and ties, and it has now taken up residence in philosophies, ideologies, and concepts that seem on the surface to have the greater good of the people in mind.
Whenever, and wherever persons are being denied the basic necessities of life for no other reason than not sharing the same convictions of conscience as do others, there the beast principle will be raising its ugly head, as the book of Revelation declares will be the case in the not too distant future, Let’s read:
Revelation 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.
16 And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
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.
The word “Cause” has very interesting definitions, according to the dictionary!
[1] Something that brings about an effect or a result.
[2] To compel by command, authority, or force.
[3] A person or thing that gives rise to an action, phenomenon, or condition.
[4] To make (something, especially something bad) happen.
Thus, as we move into unchartered waters in the history of our world, all those who desire or intend to survive the coming theocracy, will have to have other ways and means by which they will live, and according to the scriptures, these ways and means cannot be tethered in any way to the conventional systems we have come to depend on.
Believing, trusting, and obeying Jesus Christ is the only system that would be able to withstand the onslaught of economic and religious pressures that will be brought to bear on those certain Jews who will dare to differ in their convictions.
Hence the reason why it cannot be stated enough that we must learn to trust in God now, while there is opportunity to do so, for trusting in Him who is invisible does not happen overnight. It takes time, and an experimental knowledge of The God whom we serve, to confidently relinquish earthly systems.
To trust in God for everything that pertains to life does not happen quickly, and thus, at every step of advance towards God’s kingdom, our faith would be given opportunity to grow and become strong and durable, because faith that is not tested cannot be trusted.
Those mighty promise God has given us to live by must be experienced in real time on an ongoing basis, so that whenever the rug is pulled out from beneath our feet, it will be seen that we had built upon The Rock, and not upon the stand.
The following therefore are the promises that are given in the Bible, to mitigate as much as possible the beast principles, whenever and wherever they will come into play. Let’s read:
Psalms 91:1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the
Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flies by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.
Isaiah 33:15 He that walketh righteously and speaks uprightly; he that despises the gain of oppressions, that shakes his hands from holding of bribes, that stops his ears from hearing of blood, and shuts his eyes from seeing evil; 16 He shall dwell on high: his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. 17 Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.
Isaiah 4:5 And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defense. 6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the day time from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.
Jeremiah 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusts in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. 8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreads out her roots by the river and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
[The great Controversy pp 631] The heavenly sentinels, faithful to their trust, continue their watch. Though a general decree has fixed the time when commandment-keepers may be put to death, their enemies will in some cases anticipate the decree, and, before the time specified, will endeavor to take their lives.
But none can pass the mighty guardians stationed about every faithful soul. Some are assailed in their flight from the cities and villages; but the swords raised against them break and fall as powerless as a straw. Others are defended by angels in the form of men of war.
It's about time that we believe God for those days mentioned previously are not in the distant future. In fact, in certain instances the time is here and the place is now. Thus, we will end with a passage of scripture that would enable the true Christian to withstand, and survive the beast principles, when they begin to overspread the land. Let’s read:
Daniel 12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the book.
3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
God Bless!