15 Babylon Rising
Discovering Revelation • Sermon • Submitted
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Question 1: What about the Dinosaurs?
Oh, that’s easy. :)
Dinosaurs were created by God on day six of creation, approximately 6,000 years ago. Dinosaurs were originally vegetarian. During the global flood, many were buried and fossilized, but two of each kind survived on Noah’s ark. Dinosaurs eventually died out due to human activity, climate changes, or other factors.
Did you know that the Bible says predators like Lions will one day be vegetarian again?
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” Says the Lord.
Interestingly, Lions are omnivores today—they eat prey, but they also eat grass and other vegetation.
Some wonder, if God created everything to live forever and not die, then what about carnivores? How did they come to be? In Genesis 3:17-18 gives us a clue:
17 Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. 18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field.
It’s probable that when God made changes like bringing thorns and thistles into existence, he also anticipated the need for herd thinning, and cleaning up dead things and waste. These seem to be adaptations to God’s original design to account for the problems that sin and death bring into the world. A god who created the world in the beginning, doesn’t seem to have had any problem adapting it, and he won’t have any problem adapting it back to the original design when the time comes.
Question 2: Is Baptism for the Dead Biblical?
29 Otherwise, what will they do who are baptized for the dead, if the dead do not rise at all? Why then are they baptized for the dead?
this verse, written to the believers in Corinth, is often misunderstood and is the one and only Bible verse used to determine what the Bible says about the baptism for the dead.
As we seek to understand the meaning of this verse it is wise to remember this verse’s context and also to search through the entire Bible to determine the accuracy of a theological concept.
2 Corinthians 13:1 says that, “By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established.” Therefore, we should look for a consensus from the Bible to determine what the Bible really says about the baptism for the dead.
The idea of being baptized for a dead relative is found nowhere in the Bible. In fact the only person who can in any way be a substitute or proxy for humanity is Jesus Christ. The Bible makes it clear that you cannot attain salvation based upon another human or even your own works.
Ezekiel 18:20 supports the idea that a person is saved or lost based on their own actions. “The son shall not bear the guilt [sins] of the father, nor the father bear the guilt [sins] of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.”
While alive, a son cannot save the father or cause the father to lose his salvation by his deeds. In the same way we cannot be saved or lost by the good or bad deeds of another person. This is also true after death. Once a person dies, their future life and resurrection is based on their actions and accepting Christ while alive.
So, the Bible doesn’t support the idea of being baptized for anyone, whether alive or dead, except yourself.
But what does 1 Corinthians 15:29 mean, then?
If you read the context of the chapter, Paul is facing off with Christians who are being taught that there is no resurrection. In the original greek language there were no punctuations, so translators are left to assume where the sentences break and what was a question or a statement. Many translations put the first question mark after dead: “what will they do who are baptized fore the dead?” But Paul can sometimes be a little sarcastic. He could also have been saying, "what will they do who are baptized? Join the dead, if the dead don’t rise at all?” He’s saying, what’s the point of being a Christian at all or being baptized, if we’re all just going to die and that’s the end?
Look back at 1 Cor 15:16-17 and you’ll see the parallel to verse 29:
16 For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. 17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!
giveaway
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Upcoming Topics
Upcoming Topics
Our subject tonight: Babylon Rising. Tonight’s going to be one of those nights when all your hard study is really going to pay off. We’re going to crack the lid on the 13th chapter of Revelation, and I know that what we find is probably going to change the way you look at world history.
Then on Friday night, we’re going to be talking about death. Now of course, that’s not everybody’s favorite subject, but the Bible DOES deal with death extensively, and that’s a good thing, because you and I are both going to die if Jesus doesn’t come before that happens. Death is one of those things we all have in common - and it’s also one of those things that people really struggle to understand, because the world is full of conflicting theories. You’ll be amazed at how clearly the Bible speaks about death - and how much information it actually provides.
Just to make sure we cover everything, we’re going to be having an extra meeting or two, so this coming Saturday morning at 11 a.m. we’ll be looking at “Secrets of Answered Prayer.” And this is no gimmick: there really IS a key in the Bible that ensures that ALL of your prayers get answered, all the time. I’m sure many of you would be interested in learning about that.
Then on Saturday night, “God’s Strange Act.” This is possibly one of the most misunderstood subjects in Bible prophecy: what actually happens to people who reject the gift of salvation? What is their ultimate fate? And how can you reconcile a God of love with the idea that not everybody’s going to make it into heaven?
Then on Sunday, our subject is, “A Desolate Planet,” because some people DO make it into heaven. Where, exactly IS heaven, and what is it going to be like? Why does Bible prophecy seem to talk about a moment when the planet is broken down and desolate? What is the New Jerusalem? How does THAT factor in to our ultimate reward?
On Tuesday night, we’re going to do something a little bit different: How to Postpone Your Funeral. I’m going to show you something remarkable from the Bible that some Christians have noticed over the years - and those who adopt the principles we’re going to study have been proven - statistically - to live much longer than the rest of the population - up to TEN YEARS, in fact.
This is something you’re not going to want to miss, because not only do these people live LONGER, they also live BETTER. That’s on Tuesday night.
But for tonight, our subject is Revelation 13 — Babylon Rising.
Over the last few meetings, we have been looking at Revelation chapters 12 & 14 - the very heart of the book of Revelation. Tonight, we’re going to look at Revelation 13 . . .
. . . and here’s the strange thing about tonight’s study: what we’re going to look at is something that MOST Christians used to know. There used to be widespread agreement. Then, just over a hundred years ago, that suddenly changed, and in place of what most Christians knew with certainty, we started writing wild books about the antichrist based on just one or two Bible verses. Some people said the “beast” of Revelation was a computer in Belgium. Other people said it was Ronald Wilson Reagan, because he had three names, and they all had six letters: six, six, six! In recent years, we had books saying Barack Obama was the antichrist, but that was while he was in office. Since he’s no longer president, they’ve moved on to other ideas.
It’s like we’re playing pin-the-tail-on-the-antichrist.
But tonight, we’re going to put all those books aside and just use the Bible. I want to show you what just about everybody used to know.
But before we get started, I’m going to put a few conditions on our study.
Condition number one: I want you to follow this study all the way through to the end, and I don’t want anybody jumping to conclusions before we’re finished. It’s important that we gather all the biblical evidence - and if you jump to conclusions BEFORE we do that, I can almost guarantee: you’re going to be wrong.
Condition number two: It has always bothered me that so many people, when they study Bible prophecy, go running for the beast and they skip right over Jesus. It’s important to remember - every step of the way - that if Jesus isn’t the most important part of the story, then you’re probably reading the Bible wrong.
We have to remember that the main point of Revelation is Jesus.
And those are my two conditions: we have to keep our eyes on Jesus, and NO jumping to conclusions. Does everybody agree? Good. Let’s pray.
Prayer
Prayer
Father in heaven, tonight, it’s with a sense of excitement that we turn to the pages of Bible prophecy, because we know that this Book is Your voice, and we fully expect to hear You speak. Give us hearts to understand what You’re saying. Forgive our sins, and cover us with the blood of Christ. Give us the ability to think clearly, and see clearly - and give us a deep desire to follow Jesus - for we pray it in His wonderful Name, Amen.
Okay: let’s dive right into the prophecy:
In Revelation 13, John is experiencing a vision, and in that vision, he’s standing on the beach, and he sees something VERY strange.
Revelation 13:1-3
And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
Who is the dragon? It’s Satan - that’s something we already saw in our study of Revelation 12.
And I saw one of his heads as if it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
And there you have it: one of the most unsettling passages in the Bible. John is on the beach, and a very strange animal climbs up out of the water. It has the body of a leopard, it has the feet of a bear, the mouth of a lion, and the dragon gives it its power.
So what in the world does this represent?
Let’s start unpacking the evidence. One of the first big clues we find is where the animal comes from - it comes from the SEA. And if you read the WHOLE Bible, it’s pretty easy to figure out what that means.
Over in Revelation 17, there’s a companion prophecy that goes hand-in-hand with Revelation 13, and it provides a little more detail:
It’s another vision with a strange beast, and this one has a woman - in fact, a prostitute - riding on its back.
Revelation 17:15
Then he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.”
What does water represent in Bible prophecy? Peoples, multitudes, nations and tongues. Large bodies of water are used to represent large groups of people.
Back in John’s day, the Jews actually referred to the Gentile nations around them as “the sea,” and they considered their own country as an island in the midst of the sea.
With that context, we can know that the beast in Revelation 13 comes up from the Gentile nations.
And of course, in Bible prophecy, an animal (or a beast) simply represents a political power or a kingdom. We saw that in Daniel chapter 8, where a ram was used to represent Persia, and a goat was used to represent Greece. This beast is a kingdom that rises up from the Gentile nations.
But you’ve got to wonder why in the world it looks so strange. It’s made up of all these different animal parts, and I’m guessing you’ve never seen anything that looks like in the nature reserve. This is actually a good indication that this is symbolic language, and to understand what John is getting at, we have to read the rest of the Bible.
Remember: roughly two-thirds of the language and imagery in Revelation COMES from the rest of the Bible. And in this case, there’s no question where it comes from - it comes from Daniel chapter 7. Let me show you something really fascinating:
In Daniel 7, Daniel has an almost identical vision. Pay very careful attention to the details.
Daniel 7:2, 3
Daniel spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea.
and four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other
This vision is almost the same as Revelation 13 - but instead of seeing one big conglomerate animal, Daniel sees four separate animals coming out of the sea. These are four different kingdoms that come up from the Gentile nations - and we know that the animals represent kings and kingdoms, because Daniel confirms that just a few verses later:
Daniel 7:17
Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth.
Do you see how easy this is, if you just take the time to read it all? The Bible says a beast represents a king - and it also represents a kingdom. How do I know that? Look at verse 23:
Daniel 7:23
Thus he said: “The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth…”
In Bible prophecy, an animal (or a beast) is simply a king or a kingdom. What we have in Daniel 7 is another parallel prophecy, like Daniel 2 and Daniel 8. If you remember, those chapters showed us a series of Gentile kingdoms that conquered each other and became the dominant superpower in the region.
Daniel 7 is going to cover the same ground, and it’s been a while since we looked at it, so let’s do a quick review.
In Daniel chapter 2, Nebuchadnezzar had a dream about a massive statue, made up of different metals. The head of gold was who? Babylon. The chest and arms of silver were . . . the Medes and the Persians. The belly and thighs of brass were . . . Greece. The iron legs represented the Roman Empire, and the feet of iron and clay predicted the fragmented Western Empire, after 476 AD.
Then we looked at Daniel chapter 8, and this time, it’s Daniel having the vision. There was a ram with uneven horns, which represented who? * The Medes and the Persians.
Then he saw a goat, which represented Greece - and the goat had one notable horn which represented who? Alexander, the first king. That horn broke off, and was replaced by four new horns, which represented the four divisions of Alexander’s empire.
Then we saw a little horn that came from one of the four winds - one of the four points of the compass - and that pointed forward to the Roman Empire in both phases: the united Roman Empire, and the divided Roman Empire. There was a lot of detail in that part of the prophecy, and we didn’t have time for it all, but I think that after tonight, a lot of those details are going to make sense.
Tonight’s prophecy is going to cover the same ground - the very same kingdoms - but it’s going to give us even MORE detail. In Daniel chapter 7, Daniel sees four animals, and they’re the very same animals listed in Revelation 13. Pay attention carefully:
Daniel 7:4
The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off;
and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.
Let me ask you a question: what was the first kingdom in Daniel chapter 2 - the head of gold? It was Babylon - and that’s also what this lion represents. Back in the ancient world, the lion was a well-known symbol for the Babylonians . . .
. . . and the walls of ancient Babylon were covered with pictures of lions with eagles’ wings. This was a fresco recovered from the palace of Nebuchadnezzar himself: and you’ll notice it’s a lion with eagle wings. This was a VERY well-known symbol for the Babylonian Empire, and Daniel’s original audience would have known that right away.
The winged lion represents the Babylonian Empire. And what do wings represent? They usually represent speed. Habakkuk 1:8 tells us that the Chaldeans (or the Babylonians) would invade Israel with the speed of an eagle “that hastens to eat.” In Jeremiah 4:13, it says that the horses of the Babylonians were “swifter than eagles.”
And historically, that’s absolutely true: Nebuchadnezzar wasted no time in his conquest of Jerusalem.
Now for the next animal:
Daniel 7:5
And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. it was raised up on one side, and had three ribs
in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: “arise, devour much flesh!”
This is mostly review, from a new perspective - so you tell me: which kingdom follows Babylon? It’s the Medes and the Persians.
The last time we saw them, they were a ram with uneven horns - and this time, it’s a bear that’s raised up on one side. That’s because it was a coalition government - and if you remember, it was a lopsided coalition. The Medes came first, but then the Persians later joined them and became - by far - the more powerful part of the empire.
This one is really easy:
The bear is Medo-Persia. And why does it have three ribs in its mouth? Historically, we know that Babylon had three key provinces: Babylon, Lydia and Egypt - and the Persians managed to capture them all.
Do you see how easy this is when you take the time to read it all? Eventually, all the pieces just start falling in place!
On to the next animal:
Daniel 7:6
After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird.
The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.
Now: you should be able to tell me which kingdom comes next. Who is it? The Greeks. And you’ll notice: the leopard has four wings - so if Babylon was fast, the Greeks were TWICE as fast. Alexander conquered the whole known world in four years flat. (In Daniel 8, you’ll remember: Greece was a goat moving so fast that its feet didn’t even touch the ground!)
It’s doubly fast, and it also has four heads. Why? You’ll remember, in Daniel 8, when the big horn broke off, four little horns came up in its place - and those were the four generals who split up the empire. After Alexander died, the Greek empire split into four parts.
There’s no question about it:
The leopard is Greece.
So what kingdom would you expect next? The Romans? You’d be absolutely RIGHT:
Daniel 7:7
After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong.
iIt had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet.
One quick question: the legs on the statue - the ones that represented Rome - what were they made of? Iron. There’s no question that this is talking about Rome.
it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.
How many horns did it have? Ten.
Now let’s do a little bit of math. So far, we’ve had seven heads, because we’ve had four animals, and the leopard had three extra heads. Are you with me? Now we have ten horns.
Compare that with the beast of Revelation 13, and you’ll see that it ALSO has seven heads and ten horns. There’s no question that Daniel 7 is the key to Revelation 13!
The fourth beast is the Roman Empire. It has iron teeth like the legs of the statue, and it has ten horns like the ten toes on the statue’s feet. And those ten horns are the ten divisions of the Western Roman Empire - the ten kingdoms that come out of western Rome.
How do I know? The Bible says so:
Daniel 7:24
The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom.
Do you see how easy Bible prophecy can be . . . if you just let it speak for itself? This prophecy is a repeat of Daniel chapter 2, but with more detail, and from a different perspective.
We already know that the Western Roman Empire broke into ten general regions:
You had the Anglo-Saxons up in the north, who eventually became the British.
You had the Franks, who became the French.
The Visigoths settled in the region that eventually became Spain, and
the Suevi moved into what we now call Portugal.
The Burgundis occupied what is now Switzerland and part of France, and
the Alamanni eventually moved into the region now called Germany.
The Lombards started in the north, but eventually moved into Italy . . .
. . . and there were three more tribes: the Ostrogoths, the Heruli, and the Vandals - and those three tribes no longer exist.
Now so far, that’s all review. We’ve already covered all that history when we looked at Daniel chapter 2 - and that means we were able to move really quickly.
But now the prophecy is going to break into some new territory, so we’re going to start moving MUCH MORE SLOWLY. There are details here that you do not want to miss.
Are you ready? Okay:
Daniel 7:8
“I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them . . .”
Now remind me: what does a horn represent? It’s a king or a kingdom, and now we have a little one - that comes up among the other horns.
“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.
This horn is different. It has eyes like a man - and in the ancient world, eyes represented intelligence or craftiness. Second Chronicles chapter 16 tells us that the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the earth searching for us - and this horn also has eyes.
And it speaks “pompous words.” In the Old King James translation, it says that this little horn speaks “great things.”
So what in the world does this little horn represent? It actually proves to be the very same thing as the beast of Revelation 13 - but what, exactly, is it?
Now, remember: no jumping to conclusions, and no running ahead. We need to gather all the evidence from the pages of the Bible, and make sure that we’re reading this in context.
And there are three things we already know about the little horn, because the Bible pointed them out:
We already know that it MUST be a small kingdom that rises up among the divided fragments of the Western Roman Empire - because horns are kings (or kingdoms), and this little horn comes up among the other ones.
We also know that it has to appear on the world scene some time after 476 AD, because that’s when the Western Roman Empire collapsed.
And we also know that it “uproots” three of the other horns, and destroys them.
That’s what we know, with absolute certainty, so far.
And our next clue comes from Daniel 7:24:
…he shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings.
Not only does it destroy three of the other kings, but the Bible says that this kingdom - this horn - is somehow different - it stands out in some way from the other kingdoms - so let’s add that to the list:
It’s not like the other kingdoms. Somehow, it’s different - it’s unique. That’s clue number four.
Clue number five comes from verse 25:
Daniel 7:25
He shall speak pompous words against the Most High...
So what does THAT mean? The little horn speaks “pompous words” or in some of the older English translations, it says “great words.”
Well, if you go back to Revelation 13, the meaning actually becomes quite clear. It says:
Revelation 13:5
And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies...
What does this kingdom speak? Blasphemies - and of course, “blasphemy” is a religious concept, and puts this kingdom squarely in religious territory.
But what does it mean to speak “blasphemies”? Does it mean that the little horn uses bad language?
Not quite. We need to read this passage the way John would have understood it back in the first century - and back in John’s day, “blasphemy” had a very specific meaning.
For example, in John chapter 10, the religious leaders of Israel accused Jesus of committing blasphemy:
John 10:33
The Jews answered Him, saying, “For a good work we do not stone you, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a man, make yourself god.”
Of course, Jesus was never guilty of blasphemy, because He IS God - but do you notice what blasphemy meant in the world of the Bible? Blasphemy was putting yourself on par with God.
That’s what Lucifer did: he coveted the throne of God and wanted to be worshipped. Blasphemy is claiming to BE God or claiming to have some of the attributes that belong to God alone.
This is exactly what Paul predicted about the “man of sin” in Second Thessalonians 2:
2 Thessalonians 2:4
…who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
This is one of the hallmarks of the antichrist. Just like Lucifer, the man of sin lays claim to the throne of God - and this is why Revelation 13 says the dragon gives the beast “his power, his throne, and great authority.”
Lucifer is the inspiration behind this power. The little horn is a power that claims to BE God, or to have the POWER of God.
That’s what blasphemy was in the world of the Bible.
The Bible gives us another very specific example of blasphemous behavior, and again, it’s another story where the religious authorities accuse Jesus of blasphemy:
Mark 2:7
Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?
Look at this carefully. Did Jesus have the power to forgive sins? Of course He did. But do you and I have that ability? Absolutely not. If you and I claim that we can forgive sin, then we’re claiming to do something that only God can do.
The little horn speaks blasphemy: so let’s add that fact to the list:
It speaks “great words” or “blasphemy.”
Now for our next clue, also from Daniel 7:25…
He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High…
The Bible says this is a power that persecutes God’s people - and Revelation 13 confirms that:
Revelation 13:7
It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them.
This is a power that turns its wrath against anybody who doesn’t cooperate. So let’s add that to the list:
According to the Bible, it’s a persecuting power.
Now for clue number seven, which you’ve already seen. It’s Daniel 7:25:
He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law.
This is a persecuting power that tries to tamper with God’s times and law. And to be sure, we already know who did that - but remember: no jumping to conclusions. I know that a lot of you have already figured this out - but remember your promise: we’re going to see this through to the end!
For now, let’s just add it to the list:
The little horn thinks to change “times and law.”
Now for the eighth identifying point, which also comes from Daniel 7:25:
…then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.
Now we have to do a little bit of math. How long is a “time, times and half a time”
Well, a “time” is a year. In Daniel 4, it says that Nebuchadnezzar went insane for seven times, which was seven years. The original language for the word “time” in Daniel 7 is idan, and if you translated that literally into english it would sound something like, “a time around the sun, a couple times around the sun, and a half a time around the sun.” “or one calendar year, two calendar years, and half a calendar year.” Idan is a “period of time” measurement that can only indicate the passing of a year.
So a time is a year. “Times” would be two years. And “half a time” would be half a year. “Time, times and half a time” would be three and a half years.
This is a period of time that shows up all over the place in Bible prophecy - but in the book of Revelation, it states it just a little bit differently:
Revelation 13:5
…and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
It’s the same amount of time - it’s still three and a half years - but now it states it as 42 months. And in other places, like Revelation 12, it states the same period as 1,260 days.
It’s all the same amount of time.
1 year is 12 months, and in the Jewish calendar, 360 days.
So, 3 1/2 year is 42 months or 1,260 days.
Now let me ask you something we learned in Daniel chapter 9: in Bible prophecy, what does a day represent?
A year. This is talking about 1,260 literal years. So let’s add that to the list:
It would persecute for 1,260 years. And now we’re finished. There are probably a few more points that we could cover, but I think we have enough for a positive identification:
It’s a small kingdom that shows up in Western Europe, some time after 476 AD when the Roman empire broke apart into ten tribes.
It destroys three of the ten barbarian tribes. It’s a different kind of kingdom - there’s something unique about it.
It speaks “pompous words” or “blasphemy,” which means that it claims to hold the place of God.
It’s a persecuting power that goes after people who disagree. It thinks to change God’s times and law. And it persecutes the world for 1,260 years.
Now I don’t want anybody to speak out loud. But most of you can already see who or what this is talking about.
You know who this is, don’t you?
This is US. This is the Christian church in the Dark Ages.
Don’t forget: the biggest problem in Bible prophecy isn’t atheists - it’s not communists - it’s not unbelievers - and it’s not Muslims.
The biggest problem is US. The Christian church.
The painful truth? Revelation 13 isn’t pointing at somebody else, it’s pointing at us. This is our own Christian history. This is the organized church of the Western Roman empire, and it’s describing how we behaved during the Dark Ages.
Just like the Old Testament pointed its finger at Israel, the New Testament points its finger at US. This is describing a terrible moment when you and I compromised, and we did some really terrible things.
And honestly? We might as well admit it, because the world KNOWS we did these things. Just look at the evidence:
It was a small kingdom among the tribes of Western Europe. Let me ask you: did the Christian church of the Middle Ages create a small religious nation or power in Western Europe?
Yes, we did. And it’s still there. Instead of waiting for the kingdom of Christ, after Constantine, we turned the church into a political power. We married the church and the state.
Did our little Christian kingdom rise to power after 476 AD? Yes, we did - and I’ll show you that in a moment.
Did our little Christian kingdom destroy three of the barbarian tribes of Western Europe? Yes, we did! And WHEN did we do that?
After the collapse of Western Rome, the Emperor Justinian, who lived in Constantinople at the time, handed the keys of the Western kingdom to the bishop of Rome. He did that in 533 AD.
That’s the year he declared the bishop of Rome to be (and I quote) the “head of all the holy churches.” He was busy in the east, so he gave the west to the church.
There was just one little problem: there were three barbarian tribes who refused to accept the authority of the Roman bishop: the Vandals, the Heruli, and the Ostrogoths.
So together, the bishop of Rome and Justinian’s army waged war against those tribes.
In 493, they defeated the Heruli - and the defeat was so resounding that today, the Heruli no longer exist. You can’t find them anywhere!
That’s one horn, pulled up by the roots.
In 534, they turned their attention to the Vandals in North Africa. The Vandals were such a fierce tribe that to this day, when somebody destroys or defaces a building, we still call it “vandalism.”
But the armies of Rome were too much for the Vandals, and in 534, they simply ceased to exist. They just can’t be found.
That’s two horns, plucked up by the roots.
Then in 537, they went to war with the Ostrogoths, or the Eastern Goths. By 538, the Ostrogoths were destroyed - the few remaining soldiers disappeared into the woods - and we never heard from them again.
That’s all three horns - suddenly gone.
And that means that by 538 AD, the power that Justinian promised to the bishop of Rome became a reality. All of the obstacles were gone. And that started the unchecked political rule of Christianity in the west. We started to interfere with politics - the church called the shots with the governments of Europe - and over and over, we tried to reassemble the Western Roman Empire.
It all gets underway in 538 AD: exactly the way the Bible predicted.
Now let’s look at our fourth identifying point. The Bible said that this kingdom would be different from the rest. And of course, that was absolutely true with the Christian church of the Dark Ages.
It was a kingdom ruled by clergy - a religious kingdom that used force to compel the conscience of the world. There was no king - there was no parliament - there was just a church government that told the kings of Europe what to do.
Does it fit? Yes, it does.
The fifth point: it would speak “great words” or “blasphemy”.
Now I’ve got to be honest: this part isn’t easy to look at, because now we have to be honest with our own Christian history.
But did we do this? The sad truth is: yes, we did.
Let me show you some unfortunate examples. These are going to be kind of embarrassing for Christians, but we DID say these things, and it’s high time we admitted we did it.
Let me show you some of the stuff we were saying back in the Dark Ages.
In the 19th century, towards the end of the Dark Ages, Pope Leo the Thirteenth said, “We hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty.”
Now it’s easy to think that the reason we said that is because the church belongs to God, and we are His representatives - but that’s NOT what we meant.
Pius the Tenth spells it out a little more clearly.
The Pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ, Himself, hidden under the veil of flesh.
Now let’s be honest: that’s not the kind of thing we should have been saying!
And I wish it was only this one time that it happened, but we said this stuff again, and again, and again!
Let me show you:
Back in the year 1512, Christopher Marcellus stood up at the fifth Lateran Council - the last ecumenical council before the Reformation started - and he spoke these words to Pope Julius the Second.
…for thou art our shepherd, thou art physician, thou are governor, thou are husbandman, thou finally art another God on earth.
Now you’d think that Christopher Marcellus would get disciplined for saying such pompous things, but the fact is that on that day, we all applauded. Why? Because this is what the church was teaching.
Boniface the Eighth said the same thing:
“I am all in all, and above all, so that God himself, and I, the Vicar of God, hath both one consistory, and I am able to do almost all that god can do.”
The Bible said that the little horn would speak pompous words, or blasphemy - and the sad truth is . . . that it fits.
This is an entry from Ferrari’s Ecclesiastical Dictionary, a well-known and highly treasured work that was assembled in the 1700s.
The pope is of so great dignity and so exalted that he is not a mere man, but as it were God… the pope is called most holy because he is rightfully presumed to be
such… Hence the Pope is crowned with a triple crown, as king of heaven, and of earth, and of the lower region. Moreover, the superiority and the
power of the Roman pontiff by no means pertain only to heavenly things, to earthly things, and to things under the earth, but are even over angels, than whom he is
greater. So that if it were possible that the angels might err from the faith, they could be judged and excommunicated by the Pope. For he is of so great
dignity and power that he forms one and the same tribunal with Christ. So that whatever the pope does, seems to proceed from the mouth of God.
The pope is, as it were, God on earth...
You know, I could probably go on for hours, because this was such a rampant problem during the Dark Ages - but I think we’ve made the point. Does it fit?
Tragically, the answer is yes.
Point number six: the little horn would be a persecuting power.
We probably don’t have to spell this out, because most people know this is true. And if you didn’t know that Christians used to persecute, just start reading some of the books written by modern atheists - they’re more than happy to point this out.
But Christians have been slow to admit it. We’ve been slow to apologize for the crimes of the church. But in our hearts, we all know it happened.
In the “Western Watchman,” back in 1908, one author finally told the painful truth: “the church has persecuted. Only a tyro in church history will deny that.”
Here’s what it looked like, back in the darkest days of the Christian church. This is a page from ecclesiastical law.
The church may by divine right confiscate the property of heretics, imprison their persons and condemn them to the flames...
Do you know that during the Dark Ages, the church killed as many as fifty million people - just because they believed differently from those in power?
We’ve had some really dark days. Back in the 1572, on the Feast of Saint Bartholomew, we suddenly gave a signal that it was open season on so-called “heretics” in France - and up to 30,000 were dragged from their homes and put to death in a single day. And we were so excited about what we’d done that we rang the bells in the church, and we commissioned a special medal to celebrate.
But where did we learn to do stuff like that? Did Jesus ever burn people at the stake? Did He ever run a torture chamber? Of course not: but WE began to punish mere IDEAS more severely than actual crimes.
In effect, the church became like Cain. We started to murder Abel because his faith was different from ours. We started to follow the dragon, and not the Lamb.
Let’s just own it. Let’s apologize for it, and get on with the business of following Jesus.
Does it fit? Yes, it does.
The seventh point: the little horn would think to change times and law.
And there’s no question about this one:
Back in 1661, Pope Nicholas said this:
Wherefore, no marvel if it be in my power to disperse with all things, yea, with the precepts of Christ.
Now, did we really have that power? Of course not. But we told ourselves that we did!
Again, from Ferrari’s Ecclesiastical Dictionary.
The pope has power to change times, to abrogate laws, and to dispense with all thigns, even the precepts of Christ.
Now, could we REALLY do that? No. But we THOUGHT we could.
And you tell me: what law did we change? The fourth commandment. Without any permission from God, the church tried to change the Sabbath, because we valued our own judgment above the words of the Bible.
This is something that we’ve seen before, from Heinrich Holtzmann:
The authority of the church could therefore not be bound to the authority of the Scriptures, because the church had changed… the Sabbath into Sunday, not by command of Christ, but by its own authority.
Does it fit? There’s no question about it. Now to the last point:
This was a power that would reign for 1,260 days - or years.
This is VERY interesting. Do you remember what year the Ostrogoths were defeated? It’s important - because that’s the year that the power given to the bishop of Rome became a reality.
It was 538 AD.
If you go 1,260 years into the future, you SHOULD be able to find something significant. You SHOULD find an end to the bishop’s power.
And in fact, that’s exactly what happened.
It brings us to the year 1798.
At Christmas time, 1797, the impact of the French Revolution was being felt all over Europe - and in the city of Rome, there was an ambassador from France by the name of Joseph Bonaparte.
Now, if that name sounds familiar, it’s because Joseph Bonaparte was Napoleon’s big brother. And Joseph Bonaparte believed deeply in the principles of the revolution. He wanted to encourage the Italians to get rid of the monarchy and establish a republic.
So at Christmas time, 1797, he threw a big party - a “republican” party - and it got out of hand. The drunken crowd spilled out into the street, and Pope Pius the Sixth sent in the army to take control of the situation.
But in the process, he accidentally killed Brigadier General Duphot - a high-ranking French commander. And for Napoleon, that was the last straw.
In February of 1798 - RIGHT ON TIME - another French general by the name of Berthier marched right into the city and forcibly took the bishop of Rome off his throne. He confiscated the lands of the church, and Pope Pius the Sixth died in captivity. And this was after spending the previous couple years defeating the monarchies and confiscating the properties of the church all over Western Europe.
The church’s power over Western Europe was finally broken.
Right on schedule.
So now: let’s take another look at it:
There’s only one thing in all of world history that matches all of these points. This is a picture of US. This is the organized Christian church - in the west - during the Dark Ages.
There’s just no question about it, because it doesn’t fit anything else. Not even close.
And here’s the troublesome part - the Bible says the beast makes a comeback:
Revelation 13:3
And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast.
Are we going to do it again?
You’ll have to keep coming to find out.
But here’s the lesson for tonight:
You and I have a choice to make. When we followed the dragon, we made big compromises, and the cause of Christ suffered greatly because of it.
You and I can’t afford to do that again. If we want to be safe in the last days, we need to be with the Lamb of God.
Let me ask you: who are you following tonight?
Prayer
Father in heaven, thank You for being so open and honest with us. Thank You for holding up the prophetic mirror to show us what it looks like when God’s people start to listen to the dragon. Like ancient Israel, we admit that the Christian church doesn’t always behave like it should, and we’re asking - that in our lives - people would recognize the clear influence of Jesus.
Let us look like Him. Let us SOUND like Him. And let us be ready when He comes - in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Good night, folks - and don’t forget - our next meeting is “Revelation’s Keys of Death.” Good night, and thanks for coming out.