Part 3
“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.”—Revelation 13:1
When discussing the last days, you hear a lot of talk about a New World Order: a global realignment of governments, economics and religion. The hallmarks of a New World Order include three things: a one-world government, one-world religion, and one-world currency. Although we are not there yet, we have watched the framework for these things being slowly developed for many years.
Both Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 use very similar imagery to describe for us a configuration of nations and governments that will exist when Jesus Christ returns. It will consist of 10 nations or a regional conglomeration of nations. It is out of this union of nations that the Antichrist will emerge. According to Daniel 7, he will pluck up or usurp three nations and the remaining nations will hand their power and authority over to him (Rev. 17:12–13):
“And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast.”
Although we have not yet seen the complete fruition of this global realignment of nations, we have certainly seen the framework coming together as early as 1920. Immediately following World War I, the League of Nations was established. Its primary mission was to maintain world peace following the Great War. At the conclusion of World War II (1945), a new intergovernmental organization was established that we know today as the United Nations. Its primary mission, like the League of Nations, is to maintain international peace and security. This was followed by the introduction of the European Union (EU) in 1993. The EU is a political and economic union of many nations. This obvious trend toward nations uniting together to govern has now laid the groundwork for the introduction of the one-world government we see in Revelation 13.
This one-world government will then look to establish a global form of currency.
“Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.”—Revelation 13:16–17
There was a time that this may have seemed out of reach. The possibility of a global digital currency was pure science fiction. The invention of the microchip in 1986, however, opened the door to what we see today. Access to your personal information, financial resources and medical data is capable of being housed on a small chip that can be inserted onto a credit card, in a cellphone or even under the skin.
Some organizations have started giving employees the option to be chipped, including Three Square Market, a Wisconsin-based technology company, that made national headlines after microchipping nearly 100 employees in 2017, and Epicenter, a Swedish start-up that has microchipped an estimated 150 employees since 2015. The technology is here.
A common question that I have been frequently asked recently is: Are the COVID-19 vaccines the mark of the beast? My answer to that is a simple no. It is clear from scripture that everyone who receives the mark of the beast will understand why they are taking the mark. It is more than just to buy and sell, but it is a sign of worship. We will not be fooled or duped into taking it. Those who receive it will do so willingly.
However, what the current pandemic has shown us is how quickly and under what conditions a governmental authority can cause a nation of people to quickly abandon their freedoms for the convenience of commodities. We saw for the first time churches shut down, entire states on lockdowns, and commodities shortages that were not war related. We have seen the polarization of our nation as everything has been politicized and personal opinion has trumped the desire for truth. Talk of vaccine passports without which you can’t travel, go to school, or enter federal buildings are moving from the realm of innuendo to stark realities in many regions. The framework for such a global currency and the imposition of economic restrictions is firmly within grasp.
Scott Burr
Dayspring Community Church
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