I have this burden in my heart for the past two days. We are living in dangerous times though exciting also. We are living at the edge and precipice of history. One of the things that makes this time very dangerous is that it is the last days. Though we are not yet in the 70th week of Daniel, no doubt, it is fast approaching. It does not take much of spiritual insight to see that. The other thing is that there is a thin line between truth and error. Sometimes it could be so subtle. Therefore we who teach and instruct others must be very wary what we say, especially as concerning the issues of the End Times. If a true believer in the Lord sleeps now in the Lord, he or she goes to Heaven. On the other hand, if he or she lives on and takes a wrong turn, he or she might wind up in Hell. This is what makes this time a bit dicey. We who instruct others in the things of God as touching the End Times must not suffer our zeal to override our reason. Why? Because we are living in precarious and perilous times. Two, we are in combat with a very crafty, subtle, slimy, cranky and greasy, and wicked enemy. He is also a stager. He has been around for ages before we were born, before man was even created. He is a veteran. We must not be ignorant of his devices(2 Cor.2:11). But thanks be to God, we have the Holy Spirit(1 Jon.14:15-18, 2:20). We must not depend solely on our knowledge, wisdom or experience to deal with him. We must be rooted in the word of word and His graces that flow from His word and the guidance of His Spirit from within and without us(Jon.14:15-18; 1 Cor.2:10,11). For sometimes, He speaks from within us and without us, and also from godly saints amongst us, even from nature(Ps.19)]. We must not under-estimate the Devil. One of the cardinal rules of warfare is that one must not under-estimate one’s enemy. To do so is to court disaster, capitulate to the enemy; it is tantamount to committing suicide.
In the body of Christ, there are believers at various stages of spiritual growth. With reference to maturity levels – there is no doubt that there is a broad spectrum when it comes to where believers are in their walk with God – but we are supposed to be headed in the same direction, minding the same thing, speaking the same thing(Phil.3:15,16). We have the infants who need be carried and are fed on milk.
“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”(1 Peter 2:2-3 KJV).
There are the toddlers who though have begun to eat adult food, still need a lot of milk, and cannot walk on their own for too long, especially in difficult terrains, they must of necessity be carried on the shoulders of others, their fathers and older siblings. They are restless and listless. They have a tendency to wander off. They are quick to forget due to decreased attention span. They, alongside the older children are wonderful copycats. Sometimes, they are unable to distinguish jokes from truth. There are those who are carnal. These are the youths. They have begun to assert their independence, but their decisions border on high adrenaline, androgen and estrogen levels, on sentiments and peer pressure rather than on reason and common sense. This is what the Scripture refers to as carnal mind. It is in enmity with God. It cannot please God.
“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”(Romans 8:5-17 KJV).
Then we have the old cows who have much sense. They are spiritual.
There are lots of vanity and frivolity in the youth. Childhood and youth, they are vanity
“Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity.”
Eccl.11:10 KJV).
“But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.”(1 Corinthians 2:15 KJV).
They are discerning. They have the gift of discerning of spirits. They have eaten the strong and hard meat of the word of God. Over the years, they have habitually exercised their senses to discern both good and evil.
“For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”(Hebrews 5:12-14 KJV).
When they get to the hay, they eat the leaves and leave the sticks. So, regardless of where we are as individuals, there is no room for imbibing a false sense of security even though that is what is being preached from the pulpit. Much of the time, we speak to the older cows who by reason of experience are able to distinguish truth from error. There is no substitute for sagacity, wisdom acquired through years of experience.
We must remember that we are not all at the same level of Faith. There are children to be protected, nursing mothers, the elderly, the disabled, the underprivileged, ignorant and foolish youths. Not all are resolute in their faith to die for Christ. Some are very vulnerable.
“We that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not to please ourselves”(Rom.15:1).
DO NOT give any counsel unless you are sure it is biblically proven. I believe this, I believe that. Can you prove them from the Scriptures? Are your beliefs biblical accurate? I say this to the elders amongst us. DO NOT tell anyone that the current RFID is not the real McCoy. Oh! the Rapture has not yet taken place. The antiChrist is not yet in manifestation. We are not yet in the 70th week of Daniel. We are not yet at the MIDPOINT of the 70th week of Daniel. The antiChrist has not yet been unveiled. The Great Tribulation has not yet begun. The current RFID is not connected to TRADE LICENSE. It is not up to 18 digits. Therefore it is not the real McCoy. How do you know? Is it not what you read somewhere or told by someone else? Are you the manufacturer? Are you a software engineer? Do you know all that is inside it? Even if it turns out that this is not the final version, then, it could be part of the final solution (more like a jigsaw puzzle) type component that fits in with the others to implement the draconian measures that the man of sin will impose, a beta version that will in the near future become the real McCoy. I have heard several ministers, even those I revere, say this with authority, I marvel. Do you know there are those who respect you and your word? They may be emboldened to take it, particularly younger believers who are computer savvy and are after high end six figure jobs in the big corporations and high tech industries.
Why is it that Satan wants to reprogramme us all into humanoids by turning us into cyborgs? Why do they want us to become cyborgs? Is it only lest we lose our jobs to robots? Why do they want us all to become automatons or zombies? Are you cocksure about the eventual and ultimate outcome of the current RFID? Is it the precursor, a beta version of sorts or the real McCoy? What does it matter if it is the precursor, a beta version or the real McCoy? Do you not know that the precursor can very quickly metamorphose and transmute into the real McCoy? The truth is that it can be upgraded automatically online even without the permission and approval of the wearer. It is better to err on the side of caution and reason than frivolity and unbounded and biblically unfounded overconfidence. We must thread with caution and reserve. The Scriptures no where tell us the Mark Of The Beast cannot be in use before the beginning of the 70th week of Daniel. What the Scriptures say is that the False Prophet, the enforcer of the antiChrist will make it mandatory beginning from the midpoint of the 70th week of Daniel by linking it up with buying and selling and therefore boycotting those who refuse to wear it on their persons.
“And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, And deceiveth 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. 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. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 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. 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.”(Revelation 13:11-18 KJV).
Economic boycott is a very powerful tool to coerce the recalcitrant to submission. It is as good as death sentence. Death by starvation is one of the most painful. The victim dies by degrees. The body eats up itself until it expires. Anyone who has fasted for forty days and forty nights has died and resurrected. All that while, the body is breaking itself down to provide food for itself. Biafra failed not primarily from saboteurs and lack of arms but from economic boycott. Hunger and starvation are powerful weapons of war.
Is it right to tell believers not to “fear” The Mark Of The Beast? There is legitimate “fear.” We “fear” the fire, we cannot put our hands in it. We “fear” to cross the road when there is an oncoming vehicle. We “fear” to jump into the deep when we do not know how to swim. We “fear” to jump off the cliff lest we get precipitated into a macadamised thoroughfare. These are legitimate fears. It is a matter of common sense. But common sense am told is not very commonplace. Believers should “fear” taking The Mark Of The Beast because we are warned of the eternal consequences: the WRATH of God abides on anyone who wears it.
“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and 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 ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”(Revelation 14:9-12 KJV).
Unbelievers do not “fear” The Mark Of The Beast because they are appointed unto wrath(Eph.5:6; Col.3:6). They love the goodies associated with it: the fiat currency credited to their accounts, the handouts and food stamps, becoming global citizens, citizenship without borders, junketing the globe etc: very exciting, and makes life more wonderful, at the very least, temporarily. As we instruct the people of God, we must not suffer our zeal and knowledge to befuddle our minds and becloud our reason. We must beseech ABBA to keep us away from the sin of presumption which the psalmist refers to as the Great Trangression.
“Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.”(Psalms 19:12-13 KJV).
Are we sure those who wear the current RFID do not go to Hell when they die? Some of them are already dead from various causes. Will anyone forgive us, who by reason of our counsel ends up in Hell, who otherwise, without our overzealous utterances, would have gone to Heaven? Are we going to be rewarded in Heaven for saying things we ought not have said? I wonder!
Avraham Shallom.
Mt Zion Heritage Ministries 