Evil seems to be winning in all spheres around the world. During the tribulation, an unholy trinity will ascend to power. Amid chilling prophesies ahead, Pastor Lutzer provides hope for those who worship the Risen Christ. Circumstances are not always what they appear to be!
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Transcript: Welcome to “5 Minutes with Pastor Lutzer.” I’m so glad that you joined us again as we study biblical prophecy. If you were with us last time, you know that we introduced the concept and the teaching of the Bible about antichrist. We’re going to continue that today and give you a very quick overview of what he’s going to do and his end. The passage of scripture that we have in mind is the 13th chapter of the book of Revelation.
Now, let’s remember that Satan has always wanted to duplicate God and the Trinity. So we have in this chapter an unholy trinity. If we take time to read the verses for example as the chapter opens it says that the dragon gives power to the beast. The dragon, actually, is opposite of God the Father. So he represents God the Father in this very unholy trinity. He is the dragon. The beast turns out to be antichrist, and as we learned last time all who dwell upon the face of the earth shall worship him, except those whose names were written in the Lamb’s Book of Life from before the foundation of the world.
Well, that’s two members of the unholy trinity but we also have in this chapter a third member of the trinity, representing the Holy Spirit. The Bible goes on to talk about another beast who is given authority but the responsibility of this beast is not to draw attention to himself but to cause those who are on the earth to worship the first beast, namely antichrist, and of course as all of us know that’s exactly the ministry of the Holy Spirit of God. Jesus speaks of the Spirit that He will not speak of Himself but He “will draw men to Me,” Jesus says. And this beast is going to do that.
Well, as you know, this is a very famous passage of scripture. I hope that you take time to read it on your own because it ends with the fact that you cannot buy or sell unless you have the mark of the beast. In other words there’s going to be a global economy that undoubtedly, in my opinion, is going to be digitized so that unless you are a part of the system you will not be able to buy or to sell. Now today we can understand how easily this can be done. Because if we have a cashless society and everything is done online and everything is done electronically, if you do not worship the beast you are either going to be starved or the text says here you will be killed with the sword. Now we know that there are going to be people in the tribulation who are believers and I hope to explain that in a future episode and they will not worship the beast and as I’ve already mentioned they will be put to death, either with a sword or they will starve to death. One way or another the beast is going to coerce everyone to worship antichrist.
What a chilling experience. But I can’t leave you there today. I want to give you some hope. I find this so exciting. In chapter 13 it says that the beast kills believers with a sword. They certainly appear to be losers, don’t they? But if we go to chapter 15, we discover that they are winners. Let me quote it. “And I beheld as it were a sea of glass…and them who had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his name, they stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of the Lord, and the song of the Lamb, saying, ‘Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name?’” Losers in chapter 13, dying as martyrs. either with a sword or of course as I’ve emphasized starving to death, but they in chapter 15 have been raised to worship the Lord Jesus Christ and they are spoken of as having gotten the victory over the beast.
I have to tell you that eventually the beast—this is chapter 19—and the false prophet, they are thrown into the lake of fire. But the dragon isn’t. He is going to be thrown into the lake of fire but that will be later, and we’ll explain that as this study continues.
For today I want to leave you with a thought that I hope you never forget. Things are not what they appear to be. It certainly seems as if evil is winning; seems as if antichrist is winning when all the world worships him. That’s chapter 15. But we have to be surprised and overjoyed at what two or three chapters in the Bible will do. It paints a different picture. I’m so glad that you joined us today. I hope that you subscribe and follow us. But in addition to that, let your friends know about this series of messages and as for today you go with God.