We have been reading in Revelation 12 about the dragon, Satan, who is trying to destroy God’s church. Satan always acts through others, preferring to remain hidden behind those who do his bidding. In chapter 13 we meet “the beast out of the sea,” a symbol of pagan authorities that would seek to crush the church. The beast is described in a way that combines the characteristics of the four beasts that Daniel saw (Daniel 7). It would have been clear to John that this beast represented Rome. Remember that John had lived through the destruction and desolation of Jerusalem under the emperor Vespasian and his son Titus. The Roman emperors claimed to be gods, and they demanded that people worship them. But while Rome certainly fits the description here the phenomenon being described did not pass away with the demise of Rome. There is something bigger going on, something that has been at work in the world right through history and is still at work in our time. It is what Paul calls the secret power of lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:7). It takes different forms in different times, but its characteristics and effects are the same. It draws people into mindless devotion to itself and opposes the things of God. It will be obvious in what it will do, but also hidden in that it will be clothed in some form that we will become accustomed to. The world system is not your friend. You must overcome it (1 John 5:4) or else it will overcome you.
Reflect on the extent of the world’s influence on you.
Read Revelation 13:1-10.
