Posted on 04/04/2015 11:00:20 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
“The mark of the beast has absolutely nothing to do with “Rome.”
Since “there is nothing new under the sun” even if it WERE all about Rome it would as well be all about tomorrow.
During parts of the first few centuries of Christianity, Roman citizens and most conquered peoples had to swear allegiance to the Roman Emperor as a god. Of course Jews and Christians would not. If such people were lucky enough to avoid death, they were severely restricted in employment and commerce. They did not have ‘the mark of the beast’, papers verifying their alliegence to the Emperor, so they were VERY restricted in earning a living.
BTW, in gematria, the number of Emperor Nero Caesar was 666. The Epistles were written firstly, to an audience that were contemporary with Jesus, who were interested in what was THEN happening, not interested in happenings occurring 2,000 years hence!
Given that Nero committed suicide in 68AD, you may say that interpretation of ‘the number of the beast’ makes no sense if John’s Revelation occurred in the 90s, as many scholars contend. Consider though, the Temple was THE center of Jewish life, yet there is absolutely NO reference to its destruction in 70AD anywhere in the New Testament. It is difficult to believe such an ommission if it had already been destroyed. A date PRIOR to the destruction makes much more sense, as does the ‘number of the beast’ representing Nero Caesar.
Does any of this preclude a system still to be developed, of say, microchips embedded in hands, as a requirement to conduct commerce? Or Christians having to wear yellow crosses and Jews wearing yellow stars of David? Not necessarily, but again, remember the Epistles were written to a contemporary audience first and foremost. Revelation 13 closes with this verse: “This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666.”. Many Jews and Followers of the Way living then, would have understood ‘666’ to mean Nero Caesar, not some person living 2,000 years later.
“Is not having sex before marriage a grave sin against the Lord? “
Is not Marriage the very thing which obviates that sin?
Since gay “marriage” is also a pagan ritual specifically mocking God, ASSISTING in the mockery is a sin in ITSELF.
You mean other than Jesus's prophetical reference that not one stone would be left standing on top of another? But that was prophecy at the time, not established historical fact.
I see I am not the only one starting to really wonder...
There will be a time that every person must accept the mark, or they will not be able to conduct business.
I once read an article that attempted to debunk ‘the mark’ as an actual physical mark, but more of a spiritual mark.
Right now if one even dares to say you are a Christian business owner, you are surely damned by the secular world.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3275589/posts?page=25#25
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All tyranny is a precursor to the Man of Sin.
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As to what is new under the sun, Haman was the first, and precedent setting “Man of Sin,” and that goes back centuries before Yeshua was born.
The mark is something that also marks a point in time, exactly 3.5 years before all of Yeshua’s elect are resurrected, and saved by their incorruptible bodies.
It is clear that has not yet come.
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Phylacteries have no connection to the marking of every living person by the ruling king, placing his personal on them.
Phylacteries were a creation of false religious rulers.
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IT is the Symbolism I was referring to.
Witnessing, yes; Casting pearls before swine, no.
Sorry, I should have said the Epistles. Of course Jesus predicted its destruction and that of Jerusalem in 70AD.
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But the mark is not about symbolism; it is about separation.
Separating men from their Savior.
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Spot on.
nerates
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Meaning please? Not familiar with that word.
should have been the full word ‘degenerates’. Large fingers, small screen and tiny letters keyboard.
How about an RFID chip without which you cannot buy or sell, anything.
Oh, okay. :) Thanks. I don’t know how people can deal with “typing” on those iddy-biddy screens.
As a man I don’t let my fingernails grow long, but women with long nails seem to use the nail point quite effectively in typing ont he little screens.
its symbolic of doing just that yes
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