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RACING TOWARDS THE MARK
"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"
Rev.13:16,17
The Mark of the Beast
Michael Roy
"He causes all, both small and great,
rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or
on their foreheads, that no one may buy or sell except one who has the
mark or 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 it is the number of a man: His number is 666" (Revelation 13:16-18).
This prophecy is truly remarkable. Think about it: Nearly
2,000 years ago the apostle John, who prior to meeting Jesus had been a
simple fisherman, predicts that a global economic system will one day be
instituted in which everyone will be forced to receive a number, without
which they will not be able to buy or sell. It is only since the advent
of computers and electronic banking that this prophecy could be
fulfilled.
There are currently a number of methods commonly used for
purchasing items. You can use cash, you can write a check, or you can
use a credit or debit card.
Another means of transferring money that is already being
used in various countries, and is being promoted in many others, is the
smart card. These look like an ordinary credit card, but there's a big
difference: They have a tiny computer chip embedded in their plastic.
These electronic marvels not only give you instant access to your bank
account, but they can also contain all your passport information, your
medical record, driver's license, photographs, welfare eligibility and
all sorts of other data. Over 90 million health smart cards are in use
in France, Canada, Germany and Britain today.
We are well on the way to eliminating cash. Advocates of a
cashless society have many compelling reasons why. A primary one is that
cash is the mother's milk of drug smugglers, who often deal in cash a
suitcase-full at a time. With no cash, the sale of illegal drugs would
be greatly hampered. In fact, law enforcement agencies say that to
eliminate cash would eliminate most kinds of criminal activity.
Your Own Personal Microchip Implant
Before cash, checks and credit cards can be phased out
completely, an absolutely foolproof identification system must be
developed and implemented. Retailers must be sure that the person
presenting a card for a transaction is actually the owner of that card.
A cheap and workable solution would be to take a chip
similar to those used in smart cards and place it under your skin. Once
the chip is implanted it could be read by an inexpensive scanner, much
like the one that reads bar codes in your local grocery store. You would
then become your own smart card-and the very [difficult and] expensive
problem of making sure the owner of the card is who he says he is, has
been solved!
A global cashless society is in the making. Fiber optics,
satellites and computer databases have the potential to control the
world in a way that boggles the imagination. The governments of
Australia, Israel, Singapore and Thailand are pursuing policies to
eliminate cash and checks, while many other countries are testing
various methods of doing business without currency. For the first time,
the hi-tech means of fulfilling the chilling vision the apostle John
received nearly two thousand years ago is here.
The Power Behind the Throne
Remember, the coming world leader will demand the world's
worship not merely because he has a severe ego problem.-He will be
possessed by Satan himself. "The dragon [Devil] gave the beast his power
and throne and great authority" (Revelation 13:2 NIV).
Satan has always wanted to be God. This is why he fell in
the first place. The prophet Isaiah wrote, "How you are fallen from
Heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! ... For you said to yourself, 'I
will ascend to Heaven and rule the angels. I will take the highest
throne. ... I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most
High.' But instead, you will be brought down to the pit of Hell, down to
its lowest depths" (Isaiah 14:12-15 TLB)
This is what Satan is really after when he causes his
puppet, the Antichrist, to set up the coming one-world credit system: to
force the people of the world to bow down and worship him.
Watch Out for 666!
So there will be more to accepting the "mark of the Beast"
than merely an economic decision. Though disguised as a technological
breakthrough for the betterment of society, voluntarily receiving it
will primarily be a spiritual decision to accept and worship the demonic
Antichrist.
This is why the Bible warns, "If any man worships the beast
and his image, and receives his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God. ... And they have
no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and
whosoever receiveth the mark of his name" (Revelation 14:9-11, KJV). God
would not mete out such stiff punishment for simply accepting an
identification and credit mark that allows you to buy your groceries!
So when you see a world government arise and its leader
demands your allegiance, your loyalty and even your worship, don't fall
for it. Regardless of the economic incentives offered or the retribution
that threatens those who refuse his mark and number, give your love and
worship to the true God, your Creator, who loves and cares for you, and
will see you through the days ahead if you put your trust in Him.
- Excerpted from The Future Foretold
[end of article]
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