The Beast

The Beast

Revelation, Part 18, Revelation 13:1-10

Introduction

- On Wednesday night (plug for Wed) we saw a great application for us:

-- WE KNOW THE ENEMIES BATTLE PLAN!

- Today, WE have access to God in prayer

-- Because of what Jesus did on the cross we have a direct line to God

-- Through this access to God we ought to have comfort and safety to act.

- IMP: Those who are lost will NOT come to you

-- You need to go to them!

-- This is the mission of the church

-- This is where we need to spur one another on today

- Knowing what Revelation says is only the beginning of our purpose

-- Acting and taking the Gospel to others is WHAT we must do

-- But more than that; understanding what we are called to do is VITAL!

- Today begins the study of Chapter 13

-- In this chapter we will examine the beast, the anti-Christ, the false prophet, and of course the relevance of the number 666

- The importance of this sermon is vital to your survivability as a Christian

- God needs you to understand these messages (we will conclude Wed night)

- They explain the clear and present danger that we face as Christians

-- Without this knowledge I tell you we are living in a world of denial

-- Understanding the mission of Satan is mandatory for ANY Christian

- Read Revelation 13:1-10

Ω Point 1 – The Beast

- Satan appeared on the Earth and sought to attack the woman (Israel)

-- In Daniel and Revelation the Beast seen are portraits of last human gov’t

- They represent a time BEFORE the return of the Messiah

-- IMP: When Jesus returns the beast will be the dominant force here

- The beast mentioned in Daniel will be the revived Roman Empire

-- Daniel covers this completely in Daniel 2, 7, and 9

-- The beast represents human opposition to God; not a creature

-- Daniel 7:17, “The four great beasts are four kings (literal people, not animals) that will rise from the earth.”

- What is important is there are obvious similarities in the dragon/beast

-- The dragon and the beast have multiple heads and crowns

-- The dragon calls the beast out of the sea (represents giving authority to)

-- The head wound of the beast reflects back to Gen 3:15 (enmity … crush)

- What Daniel saw was that this beast comes from the sea

-- This sea is figuratively referred to here and it is the sea of humanity

-- He doesn’t rise from ocean (John would’ve used “leviathan” (Genesis))

-- Instead, he is seen coming from the sea … that is the sea of humanity

-- This tells us clearly: the anti-Christ will be a man

- The 10 crowns represent the 10 Kingdoms (similarities to the dragon)

-- These make up the initial kingdom to be established by the anti-Christ

-- His authority over the Earth is supreme; it is vicious; without mercy

-- There is nowhere to hide and from those who serve him

-- IMP: Get this: Satan has absolute power from God!

- In his own show of defiance, he places a blasphemous name on him

-- This name will signify his defiance to God, and those who follow him

-- Rather than creation worshiping God, he will demand worship

-- The name is less important than the action: IMP: he calls himself “god”

-- APP: This … is … blasphemy!

- The kingdom of Antichrist will be a world kingdom with a world capital

-- This means that all control will be held solely by Satan

-- Through him all things will be said, done, bought, and sold on this Earth

-- Those living on the Earth during this time will have one option:

-- Worship Satan (follow his rules, etc.) as “God” or be destroyed

Ω Point 2 – The Man

- This is the anti-Christ’s entrance onto the world:

-- John says, “I saw one of his heads …”

-- Re: The heads represent the succession of kingdoms throughout history

-- These kingdoms opposed to God’s redemption through Israel’s Messiah

-- (Slide shows Kingdoms again, Rev 11 study covered this)

- This Seventh head represents the “Revived Roman” kingdom

-- This head (as John sees it) has recovered from a mortal wound

-- This 7th or “Roman Head” is led by the Antichrist, empowered by Satan

- Daniel also noticed one horn among the 10 and describes its appearance and actions: Daniel 7:8, “I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.”