Well, that is what we're going to be looking at this morning in our sermon time about every knee bowing down to God and to God alone. If you'll turn with me to Revelation chapter 13, we'll learn about another God this morning who wants you to bow down to him. One of the fun things about being a grandparent is that you get to introduce your grandkids to things that they wouldn't know and with you enjoyed as a child and some of those things are what I used to watch on television as a kid. Joanna, my oldest daughter, has borrowed from me my complete set of the lone ranger episodes who was my favorite hero in my childhood and my children, Maddie Jane, Abigail and Liam, they have all watched every single one of those episodes. In fact, they are telling me things of the episodes that I forgot. Abigail, she has two children, Hannah and Harrison, and I got them interested in the Marks Brothers movies. Now, there's real intellectual fodder. They like things like duck soup and a day at the races, a night at the opera, and their favorite is the big store. What I have not introduced them to and my daughters have asked me to hold off on a little bit is the three stooges. Curly, Larry and Mo. Curly, the famous man who tried to think but nothing happened. They are three comical people that filled up the television and the movies when I was a young person. But you know in real life their lives were rather tragic. They were actually three brothers and some of them were in the act at different times and some were not. Curly was Jerome Lester Horwitz and he died after several strokes in 1952. His brother Schemp was actually Samuel Horwitz who died in 1960. Then Larry, who was really not a brother, he was Lewis Feinberg, died again after several strokes in 1974 at the age of 70. Mo, who was Moses, Harry Horwitz survived them all and lived until May of 1975 when he finally succumbed to cancer. As famous as they are today and they are, they were quite frustrated in the professional careers. They were often treated badly by directors and producers. Some of the things that they had legal rights too that would have made them millionaires. They were denied and they had a lot of health issues and a lot of problems in their different families. But they live on as a legend. In fact in 2012, the three stooges movie came out with Will Saso playing Curly and Sean Haynes playing Larry and Chris Diamantopoulos playing Mo and it was a popular movie just as popular as when the three stooges were running around in the black and white screen. But there's another story that is the backdrop of our lives as well about three other stooges and like the original ones, their lives do not play out as it appears on the surface. Their story has a tragic undertote to it and a devastating ending. Their three characters live on and on and their roles are reprised generation after generation and their story is found in only one place and that is in Revelation chapter 13. I am referring to the stooges of the devil known in theology as the satanic Trinity. They are the great dragon of old himself, the devil, the beast from the sea who is the anti-Christ and the beast from the earth who is the false prophet. One thing that's true about Lucifer, the devil is that he he attempts and he does mimic everything that God does. Whatever God does that is good, whatever gift that God gives to the world that is gracious the devil will take that gift and will mimic it. In place of love he will offer lust. In place of truth he will give you political rectus when it's grace that you need he will offer you license or permissiveness and freedom he will turn into a selfish individualism. He always offers a substitute that looks very similar and feels very similar to the true gift of God but always is the chief substitute that leads inevitably not to life but to death. You can see him do this in the old testament through two magicians called Janice and Jambrace. As Moses worked miracle after miracle they imitated it when roses struck the nile and turned the water into blood. Janice and Jambrace under the power of Lucifer did the same thing and when he struck the dust and turned it into frogs they did the same thing but when Moses turned the dirt into nets they had reached the limits of their satanic powers and they said to Pharaoh we cannot do this for this is the finger of God. Bruce Metzger says in this chapter 13 of Revelation we hear fine two of St. Ann's agents as they appear on the scene. These two along with the dragon comprise a counterfeit trinity. One is a frightful beast rising out of the sea who gives great power to the dragon. The beast symbolizes the Roman Empire which in John's day was the embodiment of the anti-Christ a world power and opposition to the reign of Jesus Christ. Beginning with Julius Caesar Roman emperors had been deified that is they were given the status and the worship due to a God the early ones after their deaths but later emperors even during their lifetimes. Although this policy of promoting an emperor cult came ultimately from the emperor himself the execution of it lay in the hands of his local officials. These political underlings could be aptly represented by this second beast that John sees coming out of the earth and who may later cause the false prophet this is the personification of paganism itself. This mimic this counterfeit this satanic trinity shapes what Apostle John calls the world and is the reason why God out of love for the world sent his son into the world so that those who believe in him would have eternal life. That's why John says we know that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. They appear in this story where they're finally unmasked for who they really are this satanic trinity in Revelation chapter 13 verses 1 through 18. They are the power behind all that is godless the great evil with a capital E behind all that is wicked
and although we might see them as feckless and comical they are extremely effective and their ability to seduce us and lead us to bow our knees to someone the other than god and god alone. Here's what we're going to do this morning we want to understand what the text is saying in all of its symbolism and all of its imagery and then of course apply it to our lives. We need to begin this story back in chapter 12 where the first person of this satanic trinity appears. He is the false god Satan in chapter 12 verse 7. Now war arose in heaven Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon and the dragon and his angels fought back but he was defeated and there was no longer any place found for them in heaven and the great dragon was thrown down the ancient servant who was called the devil and Satan the deceiver of the whole world he was thrown down to the earth and his angels were thrown down with him. Remember that this is the central vision of the book of Revelation. It looks back on the first 11 chapters to explain everything that you and I can see with our eyes and experience in our temporal life and it looks forward from chapter 15 on to the very end of the book to what we cannot yet see because it is not yet happened. It is that true story that once the veil is open we see it. It makes so much sense out of all the suffering and strife and pain and misery in this world. This central section Charles Rudman says is opened with an introductory vision and is in the case of all the main divisions of the book. It indicates that the controlling of the enemies of the church is God's enemy Satan and the behind all the powers of evil. Is the evil of this satanic trinity. I mentioned last week that I hold the classical view that was believed by some of the church fathers like origin and is reflected in the great poem by John Milton called Paradise lost that Isaiah chapter 14 really is a description of Lucifer's rebellion against God where he says I will ascend to the most high God and I will sit on the throne. He attempted this morning star, this chief of all the angels to dislodge God the Father from the throne of the universe and become God himself. Jesus says that he saw Satan falling from heaven like lightning. He said now the ruler of this world has been cast down. He says the ruler of this world has been judged and we see him in a frustrated defeated position but nonetheless going around deceiving people that's why he is called the God of this world by the Apostle Paul. In their case the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God. He appears as a great dragon the serpent of old from Genesis 3 Diabolus, Diabolical the devil and Satanus is personal name in the New Testament given to him by Jesus Christ, Saint Anthony great enemy. And Jesus said one time to his opponents you were of your Father the devil and you do the will of your Father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. For whenever he speaks he speaks out of his own character for he is a liar and the Father of all lies. Just as God the Father has children and followers so does Lucifer Jesus said. God is the author of life, Lucifer is a murderer from the beginning. God is the God of truth but Saint couldn't tell the truth Jesus said if he had to. It's in his character to be dishonest and destructive for he was a murderer and a liar the Father of all lies from the very beginning. And just as God the Father begets a son so Lucifer the the counterfeit God of this world begets a second beast who acts like his Christ. And that is the beginning of chapter 13 this beast that rises out of the sea it is the state the government the one called elsewhere in Scripture the auntie or other Christ. And I saw a beast rising out of the sea with ten horns and seven heads with ten diadems on his horns and blasphemous names on his heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard its feet were like a bearers and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound but it's mortal wound was healed in the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. And they worshiped the dragon. Fred given his authority to the beast and they worshiped the beast saying who is like the beast and who can fight against it. And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words and it was allowed to exercise authority for 42 months or for three and a half years. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God blaspheming his name and his dwelling that is those who dwell in heaven. And also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them and authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation and all who dwell in the earth will worship it. Everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. If anyone has a near let him hear. If anyone is to be taken captive to captivity he goes. If anyone is to be slain with the sword with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints. Now John describes this first beast. He is one who rises out of the sea just like the beast, the four beast and Daniel's revelation in Daniel chapter 7. They come out of the abyss or the bottomless pit or the sea Daniel says. The sea is a symbol of the disturbed, the stormy social and political conditions out of which tyrants always arise. He is described by John as having ten horns. A horn is a strength of power often a symbolical word for a king and here is a description of the ten Caesars that existed up to the time of John's exile and the writing of this book of Revelation. Julius Caesar, Caesar Octavius Adustus, Tiberius Caesar, Gaius Caligula, Claudius Nero and then in one year three different men who led a civil war to grasp the empresship Galba, Vitelius and Otto and then the emperor the Spassian Titus and finally Demetian who was in control of the Roman Empire and who actually had exiled John to the Alapatmos. He had seven heads, that is seven places of dominion because Rome sits on seven hills. He had blasphemous names on his heads like the divine Caesar or the son of the gods or this official inscription found in archaeological diggings. Demetian are only Lord God and Savior and the beast that I saw was like a leopard he said. Its feet were like a bearers and its mouth was like a lion's mouth and to it the dragon grave his power and his throne and great authority. This beef has each one of the parts of Daniel's four visions. He says the mouth of a lion like the king of Babylon who was symbolized as a lion with wings and a man's head. Strength of a bear like the Persian empire that had in Daniel's vision two ribs hanging out of its mouth for the meads and the Persians the meadow Persian empire. He looked like a leopard, the symbol of Alexander the Great's empire. Alexander used to go into battle. Great general that he was with a leopard's head over his his head and its its cape. It's draped down his back. In fact the Roman legions whenever they marched each one of their cohorts had a standard and the standard bear always was clothed with a leopard's skin and he had the strength of the iron beast the invincible image of Rome and to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and his authority. This beast out of the sea has almost supernatural dominance and invincibility and lasting power. In fact I would suggest to you my friends that Rome is not fallen. Rome continues on to this day. Even in America the power of our government is the power of Rome. H.C. loophole was a evangelical Lutheran pastor and teacher at the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran seminary in Columbus, Ohio. It's one of my favorite commentators for obvious reasons but he's also a good exegete of the Old Testament scriptures and he writes about these beasts in the book of Revelation. Here's what he says. It may be correctly observed and argued that the pattern of empire developed by the Romans has been followed by practically all of the succeeding world powers to date. Roman law is said still to be the pattern of jurisprudence in the West. Roman classical literature dominates the literature produced since that time. In fact the powers that can be said like to have in any sense a world dominion are merely segments of this old Roman empire and so the fourth beast is still in a sense alive through Rome even the Rome was overthrown. It flatters our vanity little that the Bibles are not seen to deem our modern achievements, our inventions and forms of progress in science and arts worthy to be mentioned at all and that is because they are really something that was always latent in Roman achievement and are now under the power of Rome coming to fruition in our day. Look at our government. We have a Senate. Rome had a Senate. What is the standard of our military? It is an eagle. In fact it's a symbol of our country an eagle that was on the standard bears of all of the units of Rome as they conquered the world. What is our motto on our money? You say it's in God which is it is not? It's the Roman motto a pluribus unum even written in Latin. The many become one. If you go to our capital city all the all of the buildings reflect a Greco-Roman architecture. It is amazing how much Rome is influenced the very way of life that you and I consider to be American. And here is John saying that this Roman empire cannot be killed. Look what he says in verse three. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound but its mortal wound was healed and the whole world marveled as they followed the beast and they worshiped the dragon. Grant Osborne says those who see the Roman empire as the beast believe that this was chaos that rained from AD 68 to almost 70 after the suicide of Nero when civil war broke out and three pretenders claimed the throne in a single year. The recovery of the empire under emperor Vespasian seemed miraculous. Any other empire would have crumbled and fallen to pieces had there been three men. Now imagine that three men who claimed the presidency of the United States and all went to war with one another and divided the country but didn't stop Rome. They simply inserted another emperor into the process and the machine we ground on and the world marveled because the beast was invincible. This beast, Rome and all of its political power, will be given authority and power and dominion to make war on those who do not bow to them and the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty blasphemous words. It was allowed to exercise authority for 42 months it opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God blaspheming the name in his dwelling. That is those who dwell in heaven and it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people in language and nation and all who dwell on the earth were worship at everyone whose name has not been written in the book of life. In other words you say Caesar is Lord or you die. You don't negotiate with the beast the beast knows no such thing as they taunt the beast doesn't want to live and let live or get along it gives us two choices prison death if we don't worship it that's what John says if anyone has an ear let him hear if anyone is to be taken captive to captivity he goes if anyone is to be slain with the sword with the sword he must be slain he's quoting Jeremiah chapter 15 verse 2 you either bow to the beast or go into prison captivity either worship the state or to the sword you go to martyrdom. And so John says here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints this is the first of two warnings he gives us in this text the first one calls for endurance that we will not give up or give in we will remain faithful to God into his Christ and to faith literally faithfulness that we will be loyal to Christ in his kingdom you'll see this repeated picture throughout the rest of the book of Revelation these beast with horns and crowns mimicking Jesus Christ acting in his way calling the world to a parody of religion so grand osborne says this begins the great parody or the great imitation while the dragon year serves the role of God the beast from the sea takes the role of Christ and with the second beast the false prophet the three become a false trinity that guidance are on the throne horns of this beast indicates that while the dragon is the king of an evil empire the beast is his military arm his enforcement which has a parody of the seven horns or the power of the lamb this antichrist as we call him not a person but a movement a spirit in the world of rebellion against God he needs legitimacy he needs to be baptized as a God himself and so Lucifer creates for him a second beast a false Holy Spirit who rises out of the earth known in chapter 16 by his true name the false prophet then I saw another beast rising out of the earth had a two horns like a lamb but it spoke like a dragon it exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence and makes the earth and the inhabitants worship the first beast whose mortal wound was healed it performed great signs even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of the people and by the signs that it was allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell in the earth telling them to make an image of the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived and it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain 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 so that no one can buy or sell in this it has the mark that is the name of the beast or the number of its name this calls for wisdom let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast for it is the number of man and the number is six six six this second beast rises out of the earth the place of mankind and his machinations and his machinery it has two horns like a lamb it looks like Christ it looks spiritual it looks religious it looks even Christian but it speaks like a dragon if you listen to the voice of this false prophet it doesn't bring you to God but seduces you away from him Jesus said beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves twice in this passage it says that this second beast could exercise its powers in the presence of the first beast in other words it is civil religion that only exists that the will of the state and in fact is sanctioned by and supported by the state it performs great signs it works in a way to cause people to be impressed with the government to lead people astray from true religion and point the world towards a devotion to Satan this civil religion turns the state into a god and a savior and legitimizes the persecution of those who are loyal to Christ overseas and it was allowed to give breath to the first beast that is the state so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain and just as in our most totally religion christianity people who come to believe in God have a mark placed upon them on their foreheads a label a brand mark as Paul calls it the tells the world that they love God and are loyal to Jesus Christ and have entered into his kingdom the church so this false prophet this false religion gives us a new baptism he baptizes us with a new mark not the baptism in Jesus name but the mark in the name of the state and this calls for wisdom john says for insight to know that the name and its number is six six six there is been an ocean of ink spilled on tried to explain whose name this is and they all fall short it's called Gammahtria it's it's we do it today in sometimes in code where we we take a letter of the alphabet and we give it a number a is one and b is two and c is three and then we add up in code military code does this a lot it adds up the letters in a word and gives it a number so that those on the other end can decipher what it is this number of this name is six hundred and sixty six it's been postulated that it means the Pope Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Alexander the Great Hadrian the Emperor the sum of all the Caesars from Julius Caesar to the Spazion the Empire of Rome itself Nazi Germany most popularly Caesar Nero but none of them work to make it Nero you have to take the Latin and translated into Hebrew but that only adds up to six hundred and sixteen but if you take the Greek word for Caesar translate into Hebrew and then take out one letter it makes six hundred and sixty six let me give you a simpler solution these numbers in Revelation are all symbolical one is the number of God here or Israel the Lord our God is one three is the number of the Trinity Father Son and Holy Spirit four for the world the north south east and west the four ends of the earth six is the number of man who was created on the sixth day and seven is the number of God's perfection just as the angels in heaven sing holy holy holy to the triangle perfection perfection perfection so this satanic Trinity always fall short of perfection its humanism deified in the human state and in a man-centered religion and therefore its number is six six six six it's not a singular person John says there are many anti Christ the world he says this is the spirit of anti Christ to deny that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh and is the Christ it's a spiritual movement to take man and put him on the throne instead of God the same thing that Lucifer tried to do and because six always fall short of seven tries will he can never become seven so man try as he might can never become God he will be as Leon Morris says always falling short for all of sinned and falls short of the glory of God ball says where Hendrickson says he will never attain to perfection and therefore he will always fail fail fail fail and all he attempts to do without God in Christ and as Charles Erdman said this image of six six six all we short of perfection is simply a promise of tribulation and martyrdom and distress for the world you want to know what the market of the beast is I'll show you turn to first John chapter two John the author of this epistle John the author of the revelation is going to tell us what it is not a great mystery unless you don't have the spirit of God to understand first John chapter two do not love the world or what is in the world if anyone loves the world the love of the Father is nodding in for all that is in the world now listen the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not from the Father but is from the world and the world is passing away with all of its desires but the one who does the will of God abides forever that's the mark of the beast lust and covetousness and pride the lust of the flesh ignoring the needs of the spirit the pursuit of the material things rather than the pursuit of the kingdom of Christ and the pride of life that cannot repent of sins bow to God and trust in Jesus Christ that's the mark of the beast it's something that we assume on ourselves when we no longer want to follow Jesus Christ but want a new God that's what this vision points to and here's the second warning this calls for wisdom so how do we apply this to us well the nice thing is I don't have to come up with the applications because John's given them to us in his two warnings he said first of all there's a call for endurance there's something to be said friends of just not giving up on Christ and Christianity in the church there are a lot of people giving up a lot of people walking away from the church because it's harder to be a Christian in the world than to be a world thing and so it calls for endurance I wish I had time this morning to point to you every time in the book of Revelation John calls for patient endurance it was Jesus who said the one who endures to the end will be saved it's a call for faithfulness of loyalty to Jesus Christ one who will confess Christ even in the face of death for by grace you have been saved through faith without faith that is impossible to please God the righteous man shall live by faith we walk by faith and not by sight there was a loyalty we have to have for Jesus Christ God knows those who are his and let everyone who names the name of the Lord abstain from wickedness Paul writes and thirdly there's a call for wisdom where do we receive wisdom James says we ask for it and we go to God's word all scriptures inspired by God and profitable for teaching for reproof for correction for training and righteousness that the people of God might be adequate ready for every good work it is the church that teaches us the word of God that brings us into this life of wisdom that helps us to understand the things of God for the natural cannot understand the things of God there are foolishness to him because he cannot appraise them but we Paul says we have the mind of Christ that we might understand all things that's the application that we endure all the difficult things of Christian how because of the invincible power of the love of God for nothing will separate us from the love of God not death or tribulation things in heaven and things on earth not wickedness not suffering nothing will separate us from the love of God which isn't Christ Jesus our Lord it is the love of God through Jesus Christ that enables us persevere to the very end where does faithfulness come from it comes from the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ faith is a gift of God for by grace you have been saved through faith and not every self it is the gift of God it's Jesus Christ who brings us the gifts of repentance and faith that we might attach ourselves to him confess him be loyal to him be faithful unto death he said in this book of Revelation by my grace and it's the Holy Spirit who gives us the church and in the fellowship of that church he gives us wisdom that we might understand the things of God things that I has not seen and near has not heard in things which have not even entered into the heart of man all that God has prepared for those who love him this is why Jesus says go and make disciples of all the people on the earth by baptizing them in name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit give them the love of God and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit and so that is the great benediction now made the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all now and forever more amen
most people in this world don't believe these things yet but when they're bellious full of a father who was a murderer and a liar from the beginning of a Christ who can do nothing but a press and tax and conquer them and a false prophet who leads them in the world of deception they will see the true God they will turn and say may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be on me and on my children and they will endure to the end and they will be saved and so will you let's pray father we acknowledge that the Bible is true and we know what the scripture says that the whole world lies under the power of the evil one that father we would remind you this morning even as we remind ourselves that we are not in the world we belong to Christ and the kingdom of God we want to thank you for saving us from our sins and for shedding your love abroad in our hearts the Holy Spirit who brings us into fellowship with you and your son and all the other believers in the world the one who gives us a wisdom that is from above peaceful and pure and encouraging we have loved ones who don't know you yet they are under the foolish and destructive administration of these three stages this false and satanic Trinity this counterfeit God who's leading them from worse to worse deceiving and being deceived we pray for them that your love and grace and truth might break through and bring them to repentance and faith and so we pray this morning that if there are people here young or old who've not yet known an intimate life with the triune God who've not come to this one true God and lift in them up higher and higher and sung to him louder and louder this great truth that if you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ you will be saved you and your household we pray this day the Christ might give them the gifts of repentance and faith and that the Holy Spirit might open up their hearts to comprehend all that you have for them and that your love might conquer them today and lead them into your eternal kingdom we would ask this because it is your pleasure and your will and honors Christ because it builds your church around the world because it saves us from the evil one and so we pray deliver us from evil in Jesus name amen