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There is a big difference
between the concepts of caused and forced as it relates to the doctrine of the
mark of the beast. As all "Left Behind" fans know, the
fictional Chang character was "forced" to take the mark of the beast
and remained in right standing with God. He was physically held down and
forcibly marked, as the storyline goes. The authors represented God as not
holding him
responsible for this unpardonable sin which was unscripturally depicted as being
forced upon him.
The authors, Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins, were even
questioned by a reader on The Mark Live Global Chat (November 15, 2000, 8:00 -
9:00 EST P.M) as to whether God would hold Chang responsible for receiving the
mark of the beast or if he would be doomed to hell:
05:30:33 PM> MODMSG
ru4ou2:in the case of young chang will he be held accountable or is he doomed
for a life in hell
05:30:56 PM> The Authors: God looks on the heart. He was a believer first,
and thus, always.
According the the authors, being a believer first,
and then being "forced" to take the mark of the beast leaves the
beast-marked Christian in a state of forgiveness in the sight of God.
For a fleeting moment, the thought seems
plausible. After all, it seems reasonable that if a believer
receives the mark of the beast without choosing to do so— such as being
held down and forcibly marked, that God would not hold that person
responsible.
Chang did not denounce the Lord
Jesus Christ nor did he confess the Lord Jesus Christ and denounce
Antichrist. After he was held down
and "forcibly" marked for the beast, Chang spoke up and made the generic
statement:
"Christ is risen indeed" much to the chagrin of the so-called
Christian character, David. David considered Chang's assertion an act of
teenage recklessness. Well, it was an act of uselessness because
the statement was made after he had the the mark of
the beast "forced" upon him. If he had confessed to the New
World Order elitists that he was devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ, the so-called
forced marking would not have been administered. Also, please note that "Christ"
is generic and the beast will rise from the dead, so the statement is totally
noncommittal.)
Since Chang did not confess the
Lord Jesus Christ to his satanist employers, it was possible to write a forced
marking scenario into the storyline.
This
forced marking incident leads us to the question of how a Christian can have the
mark of the beast and be on his way to heaven:
"Oh, but that can't be! God would
not hold Chang accountable for this atrocious sin that was done to him!
one might cry.
That is right. He would not. Chang, or anyone in
real life, will not be "forced" to take the mark of
the beast (and have God forgive them!) the way the scenario in The Mark
was played out...and reinforced in Desecration.
Your response to this might be,
"That's just your opinion! Some
people might be held down and physically forced to take the mark of the
beast! After all, look what happened to Chang."
Remember, Chang is a
fictional character. Fiction is a story that is feigned, invented
or imagined. Just because information is presented in a fictional format does not mean it is
bad. Jesus used pretend stories or parables to teach truth.
However, Jesus' parables never contradicted the truth; they always taught and
illustrated truth.
Covetous false teachers have always used
feigned words to make merchandise of God's people. The Bible says
they will bring in among the people damnable heresies to beguile unstable
souls. The false teachers obviously covet the souls of Christians! They want to get Christians to believe their damnable heresies and to deny the Lord
that bought them! (See 2 Peter
2:1-14) Of course these false teachers are not dummies...they are working to deceive the Christians into denying the Lord while
thinking they are not really denying him. How are they pulling this
off? By redefining and changing what the Bible says about what it really
means to confess with one's mouth the Lord Jesus.
Definitions of
Caused and Forced
Let us look at the word "causeth"
used in the King James Bible and the word "forced"
used in the NIV
translation
and see what both of these words mean and then
we'll plug the meanings back into the context and see what happens...
There is a big difference in meaning between the word
"caused" or "causeth" (King James) and "forced" (NIV) and it is such a
big difference that doctrine is actually changed.
Caused (causeth) means to bring into existence or effect by
agency, power or influence. The King James Bible says,
"And he causeth
all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in
their right hand, or in their foreheads:" Rev. 13:16
Forced
means to compel or constrain to do by the
exertion of a power not resistible. The NIV says,
"He also forced
everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a
mark on his right hand or on his forehead," Rev. 13:16
Since "caused" and
"forced" mean something different, both words are not
correct!
Laws cause people to do things, but they do not physically force them.
People who disobey the law receive a penalty. The penalty can even be beheading,
but it is still a penalty. That is why people are caused to obey. They do
not want the penalty. They make the choice to comply with the law, to avoid
the law by fleeing before the law is enacted or before they are caught, or to
accept the penalty.
"Forcing" people to comply by overtaking them with an
irresistible power removes the power of choice from them. When a
person is forced, someone else is forcing their will on them, so the person who
is forced is not responsible. Everyone who is forced would be in
compliance with the stated law, because no one would be able to have the choice
to disobey. There is no need for a penalty if there is no choice to
disobey.
Example of Being Caused
Suppose the authorities held a gun to your head and ordered you to take
the mark of the beast. This is an example of being forced to receive the mark, correct? No. You
are being caused and faced with a terrible penalty
if you do not comply. If you refuse to take it, you would be shot and killed,
but you would not have been forced. The same goes for the guillotine,
which is the method of execution according to the Scriptures.
Example of Being Forced
If they took the gun and hit you in the head with it so you were rendered
unconscious, and then gave you the mark while you were unable to resist,
that would be forcing you to take the mark.
Your will would have had nothing to do with it. (You will NOT be forced,
this is only an illustration to show you the difference between being
"caused" and "forced.")
Bowing down and worshipping the beast is an act of the will, even if it is
under tremendous pressure. Remember Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These
were the only three Jews who were willing to not be "caused" to
worship the image. I doubt most of the other Jews really wanted
to worship the image but they did not want the penalty (being burned in the
fiery furnace) MORE.
It is not how they felt that counted, but what they actually
did. Resigning oneself to bowing down and taking the mark of the beast,
whether under duress or not, is the deciding factor, according to the pure,
inerrant Word of God. Remember, the severity
of the penalty is not what defines force! Satan
would love to force Christians to worship him and take his identifying mark, but
he is unable to do this. He is capable of deceiving them
into not holding fast the beginning of their confidence steadfast unto the end
so they would spiritually faint and confess Antichrist and take his mark.
He can only do this if they
give heed to seducing spirits through false prophets that tell them via called fiction based on
so-called truth
they can be
forgiven if they do this!
The Bible does not teach that God will send people
to an eternity of smoke and torment in the Lake of Fire because someone else
forced them to commit this unpardonable, irreversible, unforgivable sin. The
Bible plainly says that "If any man worship the beast and his image, and
receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the
wine of the wrath of God...and shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the
presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:" Revelation
14: 9, 10 Receiving the mark and worshipping the beast go together, and no man
can force worship!
The teaching of a Christian being "forced" to take the mark of
the beast, and being forgiven for it, is the most dangerous doctrine to
come upon the church in recent history. It is a
denial of the straightforward Bible doctrine that those who take
the mark of the beast are doomed to smoke and torment forever by making
provision for this unforgivable sin under the false, unbiblical condition of
being forced!
You must rebuke and renounce this doctrine of devils
immediately. Cast down this imagination that is exalting itself against
the knowledge of God before it becomes so firmly entrenched that you believe and
heed it and end up being cast into the Lake of Fire!
Read the the penalty for those who
refuse to be caused to comply with this law:
And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the
name of the beast, or the number of his name. Revelation 13:16, 17
Yes, all will be caused to take the mark of the beast, but
no person will be forced (constrained by a power not resistible.) The overcoming
Christian will either flee and escape the mark or by the grace of God accept the penalty, but a
Christian must not be deceived into thinking that a horrible penalty is the same
thing as being forced. It is NOT. Under no circumstances may a
Christian consent to receive the mark of the beast. To do so would be to forfeit
his salvation. The Bible solemnly warns:
If any man worship the beast and his
image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall
drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture
into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and
brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Rev. 14:9,10
Some Christians will escape being presented
with the test of the mark of the beast if they are living in complete obedience to the Lord Jesus
Christ and are led of the Spirit to a place where he can supernaturally
keep them hidden and protected.
What about a baby or small child? Does an
infant or young child buy and
sell? No. We are of the opinion at this point in time that a baby or young
child—who does not
take the responsibility of participating in commerce and does not understand
what worship means—would not be presented with the mark of the beast.
They could receive biochips, however which
would eventually endanger the child and his family even if it is not the
mark of the beast (due to tracking technology). It is the parents' responsibility to protect the children
entrusted to them by God. However, please
note that the conditioning about being forced
to take the mark of the beast in the Left Behind series is directed toward the
millions of people who are of age and quite capable of making their own
decisions.
Children and the mark of the beast is not
directly addressed in scripture. The Bible says any man, so if the person
is of the age where they are capable, then they would qualify as being under the
heading any man—in our opinion. Even so, babies and children are
capable of being implanted with microchips irrespective of age. Do not permit
this. To do this is to give place to Satan by giving the government permission
to track and thus control your children and the people who live with them—their
parents.
For those of you who are aware that Christians will be here on earth
during the time when the mark is being
mandated, please repent of all known sin and begin serving the Lord Jesus Christ without
reservation now. Give your lives to him now in complete surrender.
Fast and pray for guidance. God might covenant with you to protect you and
keep you safe when the time comes when the world is receiving the mark of the
beast.
related articles:
The
Mark of the Beast Paradigm Shift
LEFT
BEHIND Authors Answer Questions About Chang
Authors
Say Forced Mark is a Very Credible Scenario
Can
a True Christian Willfully Reject God and Take the
Mark of the Beast?
It
APPEARS Christians Will Not Have the Mark of the
Beast?
The
Left Behind Message Board and the Mark of the Beast
Attitudinal Change Plan
return to: Exposing False
Doctrines in the Left Behind Series
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