A Revelation Invitation

(The “Daniel 7” series begins here.)

“I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.” (Daniel 7:11-12 ESV)

And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. (Revelation 19:20-21 ESV)

When I was a child, my family visited a state park in Oklahoma. Among the sights was a small herd of buffalo. I stood in awe as I gazed at these massive, formidable creatures. They paid us no attention as they grazed on the prairie. My dad, an avid amateur photographer, could not resist the urge to hop the fence to get a closer shot. Having watched enough Westerns to know what a herd of buffalo could do, I was scared for my dad and wanted him back. Their potential to harm was not imaginary. My dad was indeed taking a risk to approach them. Fortunately the buffalo paid him no mind and he returned to me safely (with some great photos).

The beasts in Daniel and Revelation were not benign; they were truly dangerous. The beasts represented Rome in all its power, lethality and corruption. This beast could kill and often did. To its enemies, Rome’s armies would conquer, ransack and enslave them. To revolutionaries, criminals and Christians, Rome would take the sword to them. It was massive and it was formidable, the greatest, fiercest empire the world had known. However, Daniel and John both described the ultimate fate of this usurper of the throne in heaven—destruction in the lake of fire, a comfort to Christians. My father put himself in danger when he hopped that fence. But our Father in heaven is invulnerable to the beast. He swats the beast as I would a mosquito if I may contribute my own metaphor. Consequently, Rome’s sword was not the real danger.

This beast has been reincarnated throughout the ages. Christians still have nothing to fear of its power. Nonetheless, we are vulnerable to the beast’s deceptions, the real danger to Christians. Daniel described the horn speaking boastfully while John observed that the beast deceived those who received its mark and worshiped its image. In our day many churches are in peril for promoting Christian nationalism. Some feel a need to restore the nation to a former “Christian” state. That goal is misguided. Rather than reforming the beast, the beast will deceive and transform the church. The “throne” in Washington (or wherever) has been assimilated by the forces of evil—insatiable lust for power, militaristic, decadent, arrogant. Christians are warned not to hitch their wagons to it. We are foremost subjects of the eternal kingdom of God, not a corrupt nation that is destined for destruction.

Because we have conquered death through Jesus Christ, the sword of the beast is not the real threat. The beast can kill us but cannot destroy us. The beast will be thrown into the lake of fire while we will rise to live again. No, the real threat of the beast is the allure of its strength and its luxury. Let us not succumb to its deceptions, but rather stand apart from the beast to stand with the Lord.

Lord God, give me wisdom to discern. Give me faith to follow your kingdom whose throne is in heaven which I cannot see. I confess that the allure of the beast is strong. The ease that it promises is tempting. But your way is the true way and it is the eternal way. Amen.

(Part 8 of “Daniel 7” is here.)