06.05.06

06-06-06

Posted in Uncategorized at 11:57 am by Perry

     Alas, this Tuesday is the sixth day of the sixth month of the year 2006.  You know what that means don’t you, the devil will father his son the antichrist, the earth will go into turmoil, spiritual warfare will break out and people will start to show up missing in the rapture just as Tim LeHay predicted; right?  Well, in actuality, not so much. 
     Just as dispensational hype and hysteria is nothing new, neither is this day.  In the year 1906 the date was 06-06-06 and yet we have not seen the emergence of “the” antichrist and to my knowledge life has gone on as normal in the past hundred years with people “eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage”.  So, if all of this hype over a number was shown to be false before then why do people get hyped over this coming Tuesday?  It can all be traced back to the predominance of Dispensational teachings and a poor interpretation of the book of Revelations. 
     Without delving too deeply into those issues let’s instead go straight to what the Bible says about this issue of the end times, the antichrist, and the mark of the beast, 666.  First and foremost, Jesus says that “you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place but the end is not yet” (Matt. 24:6) and that “concerning that day and hour  no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matt. 24:36).  Jesus follows that last verse by saying that the last day will be preceded by people “eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage” (Matt. 24:38) just as we live our lives today.
     What are we to learn from this?  There will be no sign such as a date or mark that is to indicate that the end is near.  We will continue in our lives as we have always done and will always do and the end will come without a preceding period that is to make us aware that the end is near. 
     But what about the antichrist, doesn’t the Bible teach the end will culminate in “an” antichrist becoming all powerful and ruling over the world forcing a mark upon all of the people?  Scripture tells us a story which is quite contrary to this understanding.  The antichrist is only mentioned four times by name in scripture and only by the Apostle John.  So, let’s examine what John has to say concerning the antichrist.
     John says in 1 John chapter 2 that “many antichrists have [already] come” (vs. 18) and that the antichrist is “he who denies that Jesus is the Christ” (vs. 22).  John later re-affirms that is chapter 4 by stating that “every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God [and] this is the spirit of the antichrist which you have heard is coming and now is in the world already” (vs. 3). 
     The scriptures teach that the antichrist is not a singular person but instead every person who goes out denying that Jesus is the Christ.  This fits the very grammatical definition of the word antichrist which means to be against or opposed to the Christ which is Jesus. 
     So, what about the number 666?  Are we to anticipate that a day will come when we will be branded with a symbol or mark that indicates the end is near and that the antichrist has come?  Well, we have already shown that we are not to look for signs of the end nor are we to expect a single antichrist to emerge so this idea must be false but lets examine it more thoroughly from the scriptures to prove the point.
     The number 666 emerges in Revelations chapter 13:16-18: 
And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.

     If you read on chapter 14 introduces the elect of God emerging from Zion in John’s vision with the name of Jesus and the Father written on their foreheads.  Look around, do you see a mark on the foreheads of those you recognize as being part of God’s elect?  Of course not, these writings are part of an apocalyptic writing and must be interpreted as such.  Previous efforts have been made to claim that social security numbers, identifications chips, and the sort were being introduced as the mark of the beast but have proven not to be so.
     In conclusion, we as Christians are not to be so terribly obsessed with the end of the age as if it were fearful and something to be afraid of.  The Bible teaches that we have hope and joy in our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ and that our lives should reflect that at all times.  In fact, Jesus says that the end will come when the “gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:14); that to me sounds like a pretty glorious way to end this age.  With that said we are to remember Jesus’ commission (Matt. 28) and preach the glory of Christ warning them that a day will come when judgment will be enacted.

** This lesson was adapted from a lesson by Pastor Paul Orrick**

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