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THE DOWNFALL OF SATAN
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PROLOGUE: THE 'MARK OF THE BEAST' IS HERE!
STARTING: WITH DANIEL'S 70th WEEK
In the past, at the beginning of each page
I explained how that, after examining Daniel chapter 9 and Jesus' Olivet Discourse, we can realize that the
ADDING: CLARIFICATION ABOUT THE MARK
But now, after more recent Bible study and my continued monitoring of world events, I have concluded that another aspect of 'the last days' has come; the 'Mark of the Beast'. It is a 'Mark' that the False Prophet will impose upon the entire world:
The False Prophet causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a Mark FROM their right hand or FROM their foreheads. And that no one may buy or sell except one who has the Mark , or an official name from the Beast, or an official number associated with his official name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number from the Beast, for it is the (identification) number of a man: that number is 666. Revelation 13:16-18
Until recently I had suspected that the 'Mark of the Beast' might be a bar code or QR code tattooed upon a person's skin. Or that it might be an RFID chip inserted underneath a person's skin. But with more recent study I have discovered that, in the original Greek of Revelation 13:16, the words 'forehead' and 'hand' were not written in the
And the Greek word translated 'mark' can also be translated as an 'image' or 'impression' of something. And so I now believe that the Beast's 'Mark' is actually a scan taken from people's faces and hands. These comprise the biometric data being collected today by many nations. And it will all come together in a worldwide system of human registration.
This registration of people will be comprised of three things; all three of which are described in Revelation 13:17:
And that no one may buy or sell except one who has 1) the scan (mark, image or impression), and 2) an official name from the Beast, and 3) an official number associated with his official name. Revelation 13:17
I have not yet identified the Beast's official numbering system, based upon a 6-6-6 format. But God is just and fair. And so when the Beast's 'number' does come, I trust that it will be obvious.
My concern, however, regards the fact that most of us are already accustomed to using facial recognition and fingerprint technology. And so the Mark (
In Revelation God has warned that those who embrace this 'Mark' will suffer
Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice “If anyone worships the Beast and his image and embraces his SCAN , taken from his own forehead or from his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God; which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever . And they have no rest day or night, who worship the Beast and his image, and whoever receives the SCAN associated with his own name.” Here is the patience of the saints. Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. Revelation 14:9-12
CONCLUSION: WE NEED TO FOCUS
And so combining a knowledge of
DO NOT SUBMIT TO THE MARK ( SCAN ) OF THE BEAST!
So what is it that God is calling Christians to do in this hour? To prepare for death. God now calls upon Christians to follow the three young Hebrew men, who went into the fiery furnace rather than deny their God (Daniel 3). And to follow Daniel, who risked the lion's den rather than to cease worshiping the one true God (Daniel 6). God calls upon Christians to hear His word and to understand the choice that now confronts all of mankind:
Therefore whoever confesses Me (Jesus) before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 10:32-33
If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. 2 Timothy 2:12
Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested. And you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death , and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death (the Lake of Fire and Brimstone). Revelation 2:10-11
And they overcame him (Satan) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Revelation 12:11
As I explain in my four web pages about
This was the 'great falling away from the faith' that Paul said would accompany the rise of a 'man of sin' (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). And so today some 'professing Christians' portray the coming of artificial intelligence and other technologies as 'God saving the world'. It is hailed as the arrival of 'peace and safety' (1 Thessalonians 5:3), and of diversity, equity and inclusion. But the simple choice still confronts us. Will we embrace Constantine's 'victory'. Or will we go outside of the world's 'wide gate' (Matthew 7:13) and meet the Savior there?
The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. And if children, then heirs. Heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him , that we may also be glorified together. Romans 8:16-17
Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate (of Jerusalem). Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come. Hebrews 13:12-14
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THE RULER OF THIS WORLD HAS BEEN JUDGED
As He talked with His disciples shortly before His death, the Lord Jesus informed them regarding the Holy Spirit's coming evangelical message to the world. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would emphasize three things:
And when the Holy Spirit has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
It is this third message of the Holy Spirit that this web page is focused upon; the Holy Spirit's declaration
Having dealt with every Satanic tactic as He ruled the universe upon His throne above, Jesus then left that throne and became a Man; so that He might redeem mankind from Satan's power and lies. And so now the Holy Spirit's message is threefold:
THE NATURE OF GOD'S GOVERNMENT
Before time began God the Father purposed to create a universe, along with all of its inhabitants (angels and mankind), that would exist for no other reason than to be used for revealing His own glory. For any other being to have such a seemingly arrogant and selfish attitude would be inappropriate. But for the Father, Who is incomparably holy and glorious, this is as it should be. And so the universe has come from the Father, and exists for the Father (1 Corinthians 8:6).
In comparison with God the Father, the souls of angels and men amount to nothing more than 'dust and ashes' (Abraham's words in Genesis 18:27). Or as the apostle Paul put it, we amount to nothing more than 'clay' in the hands of a divine Potter (Romans 9:21). The idea of the Father's predestination of all things has been called '
But while the Father has planned to achieve His goals by working from outside of the universe, the revelation of His glory has also required His 'presence' within the universe. The revelation of God's personal character has required Him to interact with angels and men upon a 'level playing field' of objective righteousness, truthfulness and justice.
And so while God the Father might be described as the Trinity's 'Chairman of the Board', He has appointed His Son to be the 'Chief Executive Officer' of His plans for the universe; to be the morally accountable 'Lord of Hosts' toward angels, and the 'Face of God' toward humanity.
We see this distinction between the Father as 'God', and the Son as 'Lord', in the words of the apostle Paul:
For us (Christians) there is one God, the Father; of whom are all things, and we for Him. And one Lord Jesus Christ; through whom are all things, and through whom we live. 1 Corinthians 8:6
We also see it in Isaiah's prophecy regarding a coming Savior:
For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given. And the government will be upon His shoulder. Isaiah 9:6
And we see it in the Father's glorification and reward of the Son for fulfilling all of the Father's plans in righteousness:
But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness. Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.” Hebrews 1:8, Psalm 45:6
Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation. A tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation. Whoever believes will not act hastily. Also I will make justice the measuring line, and righteousness the plum line. The hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters will overflow the hiding place. Isaiah 28:16-17
He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities. Isaiah 53:11
THE TABERNACLE MODEL
These distinct roles and activities of the Persons of the Trinity were revealed in Moses' Old Testament Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was a long rectangular tent, with one door on its east end, facing the sunrise.
Within the Tabernacle the three Persons of the Trinity were symbolically represented. Upon entering the Tabernacle a person first came into a room called 'the Holy Place', where the priests of Israel entered many times each day to perform their religious tasks. Within this Holy Place there was a Lampstand on the left (to the south) symbolizing the Holy Spirit.
THE LAMPSTAND
And on the right side (to the north) there was a table with 'Show-Bread' upon it. The Hebrew word 'Showbread' can be translated 'bread of the Face', or 'bread of the Presence'. And the Showbread symbolizes the Son of God, Who is God's 'Face' and 'Presence' for humanity.
THE SHOWBREAD
Beyond the Lampstand and the Bread there was a veil dividing off a farther room in the west end of the Tabernacle, called the 'Holy of Holies'. It was here that God the Father was symbolically represented; as dwelling above the Ark of the Covenant between angels. And within the Ark was placed the Law of God; the 10 commandments engraved upon stone. This represented the Father's requirement of perfect righteousness in the fulfillment of His will.
THE ARK IN THE 'HOLY OF HOLIES'
Israel's priests had everyday access to the symbols of the Son and the Holy Spirit in the 'Holy Place', but were forbidden to enter (or even look) into the Holy of Holies and the presence of the Father. Although all of the ceilings, walls, and the Veil itself portrayed angels throughout the entire Tabernacle, human beings were only allowed to enter the outer room; where the Son of God and the Holy Spirit dwelt. This was a picture of mankind's relationship with God; that our direct interactions with God have only been with His Son, and with the Holy Spirit.
No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the arms of the Father, He has revealed Him. John 1:18
Mankind has had a relationship with the Son of God from the very beginning. It was the Son of God Who created Adam and Eve in Eden, and then walked with them in the Garden. And it was He Who instructed them concerning the Father and His commandments. This is why the Son of God is represented within the Tabernacle as 'the Bread of God's Face or Presence' in our lives.
That God might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but that man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. (Deuteronomy 8:3, Matthew 4:4, Luke 4:4)
VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE REALMS
This distinction, between the secret things of the Father and our own visible world, was described by Moses. Moses defined our visible world as morally defined by the Law of God, with all of its inhabitants accountable to obey that Law (including both the Son of God and the Spirit of God):
The secret things belong to the Lord our God. But those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever; that we may do all the words of this Law. Deuteronomy 29:29
Quantum physicists have also discovered that there is an unobserved realm all around us, defined by 'waves of potential or possibility', and that it exists side-by-side with our own visible realm. When these invisible 'waves of possibility' cross over into our observable world, they become real, tangible, measurable things.
While some physicists have wanted to debate at length about the unseen realm, and what this division between the visible and the invisible means, others have viewed such discussions as pointless. They have instead responded by saying 'Shut up and calculate!' In other words 'Stop talking about things that you can't even see! Instead work with what you can see, and create what you can create!'. It is such practical reasoning that has taken mankind into outer space, has invented the computer, and has designed CT machines for our medical care.
And it is this same common sense logic that God commands for humanity: that we must focus exclusively upon our freedom of choice in our visible, morally defined world. The Bible tells us that God the Father has indeed predestined all things. But it also tells us that we have complete power over our own destinies; through the moral choices that we each make in our relationships with the Son of God in the 'here-and-now' of this present world in which we live.
The Son of God revealed all of these truths (about Himself and His Father) to mankind from the very beginning in Eden. And He informed us that it would be our response to Him alone, in our visible world, that would define each one of us morally and determine our eternal destinies.
For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son; that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. “Most assuredly, I (Jesus) say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life. And shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life". John 5:22-24
And this is the testimony: that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life. He who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 1 John 5:11-12
The Bible declares that when Adam disbelieved and disobeyed the Son of God in Eden, every member of the human race was also individually and consciously sinning within him (Romans 3:23, 5:12). We were all using Adam's body to perform one physical act that each of us was individually choosing to do. The explanation for this is a 'Trinitarian Union' of mankind within Adam. Just as one God is three Persons, so one man was at the same time many persons.
This is why a sentence of death hangs over every one of our bodies from the moment of its conception in our mother's womb; because when Adam sinned and brought death upon himself, each one of us was sinning and bringing death upon our own selves as well.
There is a branch of Christian Theology that denies God's claim that we all sinned in Eden, and that death is the direct consequence of our own choice. That branch of Christian thought is 'Augustinianism'; started by Augustine around 400 AD. Instead of upholding the truth about the universal sin of mankind in Eden, Augustine denied this and instead blamed all of mankind's guilt, suffering and death upon God.
Augustine claimed that God '
God's sovereignty is the 'apron' that Augustinian theologians hide behind. They praise themselves for their 'God-honoring humility', and pronounce thunderous warnings against anyone else who hasn't made God's sovereignty their 'first principle' and theological 'cornerstone'.
Roman Catholicism, Calvinism and Reformed Theology are all Augustinian in their handling of mankind's sin in Eden. As the apostle John has pointed out, Augustinian theology accuses God of breaking the 9th Commandment: "You shall not bear false witness!".
If we say that we have not sinned, we make God a liar, and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:10
The apostle Paul condemned such thinking as 'intruding into things that can't be seen' (Colossians 2:18). Just as angels in ancient times were condemned for leaving their appointed place and having sex with women (Genesis 6:1-2, Jude 6), so also Augustinian theologians have left mankind's 'place of encounter' with the Son of God. Instead they have fabricated an entire systematic theology about what God the Father is supposedly doing behind His veil, within the 'Holy of Holies'. Therefore they fulfill John's words: 'The truth is not in them'.
THE NATURE OF THE BATTLE
I believe that long ago, before God's formation of Earth or the human race, Satan chose to contend against God for ownership and rulership over the universe. Seeing that the Father had appointed His Son to be the Lord of the universe, and to bring all of the Father's plans to completion IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, Satan aimed his tactics toward the One who dwells 'on the north side' within God's heavenly Tabernacle:
How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will also sit on the mount of the congregation, on the farthest sides of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the Most High'. Isaiah 14:12-14
Satan planned to use a knowledge of right and wrong to 'argue his case' in the Father's great heavenly courtroom, as well as to test the character of the Son of God directly as He labored to fulfill the Father's will. The word 'satan' means 'adversary' or 'opponent', and this is what Satan chose to be.
In the interest of genuine truth and justice, God the Father allowed Satan to bring his legal challenges. We see glimpses of Satan's 'legal rights' before the throne of God in his access to Adam and Eve in Eden, and his opportunity to tempt them. We see it in Satan's challenge to God about the character of Job. And we see it when the Holy Spirit led the Lord Jesus into the wilderness to be tested by the devil (Mark 1:12). This all reflects the Father's steadfast commitment to absolute fairness and transparency.
But Satan was not alone in his tactics. The Bible indicates that one third of the angels may have joined with Satan in his declaration of war against God (Revelation 12:4, 7-9). And beyond that, Satan also enticed mankind to join him; to obtain the knowledge of right and wrong that God had made available in the Garden of Eden, but had forbidden us to have.
In order for humanity to freely love and honor God, or to oppose Him, God made Himself 'vulnerable' with mankind in Eden. The Son of God shared 'the secret of His strength' with Adam and Eve, just as Samson had shared the secret of His strength with Delilah (Judges 16).
God's commandment to Adam and Eve was to simply believe and obey Him concerning a knowledge of right and wrong; warning them that if they ate the forbidden Fruit they would be committing a crime worthy of death. God's commandment represented one simple question; 'Would we love and trust God, and could God trust us?' This one commandment summarized the first half of Moses' 10 commandments; the commandment to love God.
The apostle Paul tells us that Eve was deceived by the devil (1 Timothy 2:14). She believed that she would be able to achieve righteousness through a knowledge of right and wrong, and thus to rise above any condemnation (a concept that the Bible calls 'the works of the Law'). But Adam saw the entire picture. He not only saw that he would need 'some morality', but he also saw his need to prevent anyone else from becoming more righteous than himself; tempting them, deceiving them, and leading them to moral failure, condemnation and death if necessary.
God's original intention was that as Adam showed his respect for God by believing and obeying Him, God would actually enter Adam's body through the Holy Spirit and share His own righteous character with Adam. The love of God would flow from Adam's heart, fulfilling the second half of the 10 commandments toward his fellow man. And that is still God's way of righteousness today. But through disbelieving and disobeying God, Adam and all mankind fell short of God's plan:
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23
In choosing not to believe God (thus closing his eyes to all that he knew about God), and then murderously committing himself to the downfall of others who might choose a different path, both Adam and the rest of us fulfilled the words of the prophet Jeremiah:
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who can know it? Jeremiah 17:9
THE NATURE OF JESUS' VICTORY
In his initial rebellion, Satan committed himself to morally testing and challenging the character of the Son of God. But when Satan secondarily enticed mankind to join him in his rebellion, he also took something HOSTAGE that was very precious to God; a human race created in the image and likeness of God. And so having seduced mankind into sin, Satan believed that God would be forced to either righteously destroy the human race, or to morally compromise with Satan and share governance of the world with him.
In response to Satan's challenge, the Son of God first committed Himself to becoming human, and to living a perfectly righteous life in the face of every temptation that Satan could throw at him. And then beyond that, the Son of God surrendered Himself to a criminal execution upon a Roman cross. He did this in order to make forgiveness and salvation possible for a human race that had actually put Him upon that cross, and was then testing His obedience to the Father as they tortured and killed Him.
And thus through His self-sacrifice Jesus went beyond Satan's mere legalism to reveal a wisdom, love and mercy unique to God:
Mercy and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed. Psalm 85:10
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne. Mercy and truth go before Your face. Psalm 89:14
For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. Romans 5:10
For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. James 2:13
Before creation began the Father purposed to defeat and humiliate Satan by doing the last thing that Satan would have imagined; giving His own Son over to death in order to provide salvation for sinners. And so while the Father watched from heaven above, and His Son suffered miserably upon a Roman cross below, Satan sought to turn Them both away from Their purpose by pointing out the great wickedness of those for whom Christ was dying.
TThen I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come. For the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. Revelation 12:10
VICTORY THROUGH ABRAHAM'S SEED
One of the great themes of the Bible, announced by God to Adam, Eve and Satan in the Garden of Eden, was that someday someone 'born of a woman' would defeat Satan:
And I (God) will put hostility between you (Satan) and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed (Christ). He shall strike your head, and you shall strike His heel.” Genesis 3:15
This prophecy foretold that Satan would someday confront Someone called 'the Seed of a woman'; a virgin-born Savior for mankind. Satan would bite the heel of this 'Seed', causing Him to suffer. But with that same heel this 'Seed' would crush Satan's head.
.This early promise of a woman's 'Seed' is picked up again in Genesis chapter 12. There God began to speak to Abraham about a 'Seed' who would someday be born into the world biologically through Abraham and his family. And God made two promises concerning this 'Seed':
The apostle Paul tells us that these two promises constitute the Gospel of Jesus Christ:
And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying “In you all the nations shall be blessed.” Galatians 3:8
And so for a fuller understanding of Christ's victory over Satan, I would refer my visitor to the first four pages of this prophecy section, which correspond to four links in an important prophetic chain:
