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Chariot January 2011 - Norm Wakefield Battling the Beast of Self - Part
9
As we continue our study of Revelation 13, we come to the verses where
John introduced a second beast. The focus of our study has been the first
beast, however, there is a relationship between these two beasts. As John
described the second beast, we gain more insight into the identity of the
beast of self. I have suggested and shown that the first beast of
Revelation 13 was John's way of teaching about self under the power and
dominion of sin. The teachings of Jesus in the gospels and Peter, Paul,
and John in their letters taught the same characteristics about the nature
of man under the power of sin. So far we have seen that all twenty
characteristics described in Revelation 13:1-10 can only be true of self,
flesh, original sin, or pride in the heart of fallen man.
Although some of
the characteristics in Revelation 13 may describe one man, an antichrist
figure, such a figure cannot fit the entire profile, therefore, we may
safely and wisely conclude that John did not have such a man in mind when
he wrote this section of Revelation 13. We should not be surprised that
every antichrist type figure in history would be controlled by the beast
of self, therefore, many of these qualities may be identified in him. The
beast of self works in any political leader and his constituents who are
seeking to build an earthly kingdom and looking to government as the
answer to society's problems rather than Jesus Christ. False
Religion Glorifies the Beast of Self.
What happens in
a community of people who worship themselves? If you study world history
and archeology, the evidence is indisputable that wherever a community of
people was established there was some exercise of corporate worship of a
deity. Where did this deity come from? Who came up with such concepts? 21.
The beast of self authorizes false religion.
Then I saw another beast coming
up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a
dragon. He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence.
And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first
beast, whose fatal wound was healed (Rev. 13:11-12).
Why do men create false religions and idols? The Scriptures give us plenty
of insight about this. In Deuteronomy 5:8, Israel was commanded not to be
like everyone else around them, "You shall not make for yourself an idol,
or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in
the water under the earth." Men make idols for themselves–for the beast
of self. Furthermore, they create their idols out of things which God has
created. They worship the creature rather than the creator according to
the apostle Paul's letter to the Romans (1:25).
The apostle Paul
warned the Corinthians, who were facing the same kinds of temptations to
worship idols as the members of the seven churches of Asia. "Or what
agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the
living God" (2 Cor. 6:16). In Paul's second letter to the Thessalonians,
he writes of the great apostasy, "Let no one in any way deceive you, for
it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of
lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts
himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes
his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. "(2 Thess.
2:4). Have you ever considered that Paul was speaking of man-centered,
self-worship exalted as god in the temple of God, the visible church? Paul's
description of the lawless one is identical to the description of the
first beast of Revelation 13!
In John's
gospel, he recorded the Pharisees' (organized religion) response to Jesus'
teaching. "Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but
because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue for they
loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God (John 12:43).
Jesus could see the self-justification (the worship of the beast) in men
who fashioned their religion around public approval. "You are those who
justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that
which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God (Luke
16:15). The apostle John closed his first epistle with, "My little
children, guard yourselves from idols" (1 John 5:21).
The scriptures
above are just a few of many which establish clearly that false religion
or the worship of idols made for the gratification of the beast of self
was in the minds of the Lord and His apostles, and especially the author
of The Revelation. If we hold to
the hermeneutic principles of context is king and clear teaching of
scripture informs us about the unclear, then it seems wise to apply these
scriptures to Revelation 13 rather than import ideas of a ruler of a
one-world government that isn't clearly substantiated anywhere in
scripture.
John was given a
God's-eye view of idolatry or false religion as it rose up out of the
earth. John identified the second beast as having two horns. Horns
was used as a reference to power in the Scriptures whether it was the
power of God (2 Sam. 22:3), the power of the Holy Spirit (1 Kings 1:39),
the power of an evil man (Ps. 75:4), or the power of a king or government
(Dan. 7:8, 11, 20). And the significance of two
was a reference to witness such as the idea that it takes two witnesses as
confirmation. In this case, John saw that the second beast portrayed
itself like a lamb. Does it seem
a stretch to you to think of false religion in this way? Whereas the true
church of Jesus Christ is like the true Lamb of God, the false church puts
forth a false witness on the earth. All false religions fancy themselves
to be powerful and authoritative.
Where does false
religion get its authority and power? John saw that it spoke "as a dragon"
which had clearly been identified as Satan (12:9) and it derived its
authority from the first beast. False religion exercises the same power
and authority as the beast of self! How is this so? Because every false
religion on the planet in the entire history of man is based on
self-fulfillment and the self-gratification of men. In fact, to
the degree that the exercise of religion is based on making men happy by
things of this earth, to the same degree it is a false religion and
exercises the authority of the first beast.
Let's see how
practical this was for the first readers. "The Ephesus goddess Artemis, sometimes called Diana, is not quite the
same figure as was worshiped in Greece. The Greek Artemis was the goddess
of the hunt. The Ephesus Artemis was a goddess of fertility and was often
pictured as draped with eggs or multiple breasts, symbols of fertility,
from her waist to her shoulders" (unmuseum.org). The Artemis cult was the
cult of the prostitutes. How could the believers in the seven churches
join such a trade guild that required contributions to and worship of such
self-gratifying false religion? In Thyatira, and probably in the
entire region, to be in a trade guild, one had to worship the idol of the
guild. "Pagan feasts, with which immoral practices were associated, were
held, and therefore the nature of the guilds was such that they were
opposed to Christianity" (Pilgrimtours.com/greece/info/thyatira). How were
believers to view these idolatrous, false religions?
John painted the
picture well and with great insight. All false religions are Satanic and
ultimately worship self, the first beast. Self, the antichrist, places
itself in the place of worship in all false religion. It was true in the
mid-first century and it is still true today whether it be in a Baptist,
Methodist, or Catholic church on any given Sunday, or in a Buddhist or
Mormon temple. If the primary concern is the earthly happiness, comfort,
and prosperity of the worshippers, then the first and second beasts have
risen from the earth in those locations and the worship is selfish,
man-centered, and satanic. Are there not many two-horned witnesses in
communities around the globe masquerading as the lamb? Should we be
surprised at the powerlessness of the gospel when the "good news" is
actually what the dragon would want to be preached? Shall we bow down to
self-esteem, self-gratification, self-fulfillment, self-actualization,
self-help, self-seeking, and self-enrichment and call this true religion?
May God forbid!
In the presence
of the first beast, self, such worship is demanded. "And
he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast."
Where the beast of self reigns in the heart of a man, he cannot and
will not endure anything in his worship experience that doesn't consider
his own desires, dislikes, and standards of righteousness of highest
priority. That's why people hop from church to church.
Self is in search of a worship center and community of like-minded people! What insight John was given
about the authority of self in the heart of men in a corporate, worship
setting! 22. The beast of self can be
described as having been "wounded"
by the sword of God and has "come
to life."
He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of
heaven to the earth in the presence of men. And he deceives those who
dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform
in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make
an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life
(Rev. 13:13-14).
If we are to
think that John had an antichrist figure of history in mind, a man who
rules a one-world government, then we might now envision that this man at
some point in his political career was wounded in the head by a would-be
assassin, but miraculously survived. His survival was so impressive that
he won the allegiance of the entire world and thus became the leader of a
global antichrist empire. Even more spectacular, when he was struck with
the sword in the head, he died! (13:3). We almost imagine a decapitation,
don't we? Yet, this man came back to life, and was catapulted into world
prominence.
Do you think the early
readers understood such a possibility?
May I suggest a
more likely understanding supported by the teaching of Jesus in the
gospels, Paul, and John in their letters that would have been very
encouraging and instructive to the early church and to us? False Religions Can Be Violent
Since the
purpose of this series is alerting and equipping us to battle the beast of
self, I won't go into a full explanation of what is said in verses 13-14
about the second beast. Suffice it to say that false religion has always
expressed great wrath (fire) against its opponents. As one studies the
history of the Catholic Church, Islam, or Hinduism for examples, their
histories are marked with times of great violence and murder of everyone
who doesn't convert to their religion. It is the explanation for Islamic
jihad and terrorism. This was especially true in the period of history
surrounding the writing of The
Revelation. False Religions Gain Attention Through Miracles
Furthermore,
putting on a show of miracles (mimicking the third person of the Trinity)
has always been characteristic of false religions founded upon
self-ambition and self-significance. Jesus warned of people such as this
in the Sermon on the Mount when he said, "Many will say to Me on that day,
‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out
demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'"(Matt. 7:22).
Leon Morris, author of
Tyndale's New Testament Commentary on Revelation wrote, "Magic was a common practice among first-century
priesthoods as a means of impressing the gullible." (p. 171). Philip
encountered both of these beasts in Samaria. "Now there was a man named
Simon, who formerly was practicing
magic in the
city and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone
great;...And they were giving him attention because he had for a long time
astonished them with his magic arts" (Acts 8:9-11). The apostle Paul faced the beasts in Ephesus, so surely John,
who co-labored in Ephesus with Paul for over a year was familiar with the
miracles wrought by false prophets. "And many of those who practiced
magic brought
their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone; and
they counted up the price of them and found it fifty thousand pieces of
silver" (Acts 19:19).
There was a
reason that John tied the fact that the second beast "makes fire come down
out of heaven" and "deceives" and tells "those who dwell on the earth to
make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to
life." I explained the fatal head wound in part four of this series (www.spiritofelijah.com/chariot). Why did John think it was necessary to repeat this
characteristic with the addition that the wound was by a sword?
Dr. William
Hendriksen, author of The Gospel of
Luke, in his New Testament Commentary Series, commented on the mention
of fire when John the Baptist
described Jesus' baptism (Luke 3:16-17). "Often in Scripture fire
symbolizes wrath" (p. 210). He went on to say that John had both Jesus'
ministry of sending the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and Jesus' work of "winnowing"
when He returns in judgment and wrath against the wicked to be in view.
In Revelation
13, let's be reminded that in every way possible self seeks to portray
himself as God. Self exalts himself as an unholy trinity masquerading as
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In these verses, John was describing how
the beast of self counterfeits the work of the Holy Spirit in false
religion through miracles and pours out wrath from heaven. The connection
between the false teaching of false religion and its wrath is that it is a
natural reaction to being wounded unjustly–and that's the victim
mentality of self. It is always wounded unjustly and must react by
returning evil for evil. Self's head was struck a fatal blow at the cross
by the sword of the Spirit, the living Word of God, Jesus Christ. There
self suffered a death blow. However, until Jesus returns, self lives to
strike back! He who was smitten has risen to destroy his enemies (just
like Jesus), and he does it as false religions violently attack
Christians. In so doing, Satan and his agent self make war with the
saints, "who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of
Jesus" (Rev. 12:17).
The reason I
believe this interpretation of Revelation 13 is that it keeps Jesus Christ
and the gospel at the center of the conflict, it is confirmed and
complimented by the teachings of Jesus and the apostles, it makes sense in
the flow of the historical and literary context of the book of Revelation,
and it is testified to by history and experience in the lives of the first
readers as well as our lives. What does this have to do with you?
We need to
examine ourselves to see if when we go to church we are consumed with what
we think, like, dislike, or disapprove. Are we consumed with worshiping
Jesus Christ or worship styles we enjoy? The body of Christ needs
discernment regarding miracles of TV evangelists and false teachers who
preach attaining the American dream of health and prosperity. Caution
should be exercised that we don't create our own image of Jesus Christ:
one which makes our will the determining factor in our salvation?
Times haven't
changed since Jesus Christ came to earth. You face the same battle and the
same spiritual beastly foes of self and false teaching in your religion as
the seven churches of Asia Minor. Take a look again at these qualities of
the beast in Revelation 13 and ask yourself, "Do I recognize this beast
and am I at war with him or am I the beast?! 1.
The beast
of self rose up before the devil. 2.
The beast
of self rose up out of the sea of man. 3.
The beast
of self is deluded about its power and authority. 4.
The beast
of self is deluded about its knowledge and perfection. 5.
The beast
of self blasphemes God (proclaims himself as God). 6.
The beast
of self acts like wild beasts which pursue their prey. 7.
The beast
of self has its power and authority from Satan. 8.
The beast
of self suffered a fatal head wound at the cross. 9.
The beast
of self continues to live. 10.
The beast
of self is worshipped and followed by the whole earth. 11.
To
worship the beast of self is to worship Satan. 12.
The beast
of self will reign in man until Jesus returns. 13.
The beast
of self blasphemes the work of God in Christ. 14.
The beast
of self blasphemes the church of Jesus Christ. 15.
The beast
of self battles against the saints and overcomes them. 16.
The beast
of self has been given universal authority over all of mankind throughout
all of history. 17.
The beast
of self is worshiped by all who dwell on the earth except believers in
Christ. 18.
Understanding
these things requires the ministry of the Holy Spirit. 19.
The beast
of self fights spiritual battles with physical rather than spiritual
means. 20.
The beast of self is conquered by perseverance and faith in
believers. 21.
The beast
of self authorizes false religion. 22.
The beast
of self can be described as having been "wounded" by the sword of God and
has come to life. Would
you like to be on the Elijah Ministries Prayer Team? The backbone of Elijah Ministries is the prayer team who pray diligently for God to turn the hearts of men to Himself, their wives, and their children. Before I leave to speak, I send out a prayer team invitation to those who will intercede for God to work for His glory in us as a team for the Kingdom. Not only is it a blessing to those whom I speak and myself; but it is also a reminder to the team about the direction of their own hearts. If you would like to enter into the labor together with me, you may go to my website and click on "Prayer Team". Has Norm's Chariot or other resources been an encouragement to you? As a nonprofit organization, Elijah Ministries needs support from people like you in order to function. If God has ministered to you through Elijah Ministries and Norm Wakefield, would you consider supporting the work? You can do so here. (Elijah Ministries is a tax-deductible 501c3 and is financially accountable to an overseeing board of 8 non-paid members from around the country.) The Chariot is also available as a podcast. You can automatically receive the Chariot each month in iTunes by subscribing here. (An RSS capable browser such as Internet Explorer 7 or Safari is required.)
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Wakefield 01.11 To unsubscribe, click here.
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