Choose whom you will serve

Humanity is divided into two, and only two, groups, the followers of the Lamb and the devotees of the Beast.

In the Book of Revelation, every man either “Tabernacles in Heaven” or is numbered among the “Inhabitants of the Earth.” The terms are not geographical or spatial but reflect the leader served by each group. Men either belong to “Heaven” or the “Earth.” Those who elect to follow the Lamb “Tabernacle in Heaven,” but the “Inhabitants of the Earth” choose to submit to the “Dragon” and consequently await a grim fate.

The “Inhabitants of the Earth” swear allegiance to the “Beast from the Sea,” thereby, taking its “Mark” or “Number.” There is no third alternative, no neutral ground. This group includes men and women from “every tribe, people, tongue, and nation.” No one is excluded based on ethnicity, nationality, or gender. What qualifies someone for membership in the group is submission and devotion to the “Beast.”

[Photo by Jens Lelie on Unsplash]

Everyone who elects to follow the “Lamb” has his name written in the “Book of Life,” men and women who were redeemed by the “blood of the Lamb” regardless of their “tribe, people, tongue or nation.” Neither ethnicity, nationality, nor gender makes any difference in whether anyone is included in this company.

In the Book of Daniel, the citizens of the Empire heeded the king’s “herald” by giving homage to the golden image “erected” by Nebuchadnezzar. By swearing loyalty to him, they avoided death in the “burning fiery furnace.” Only the rare citizen who refused to submit suffered that fate– (Daniel 3:1-6).

In Revelation, the “Inhabitants of the Earth” seal their terrible fate by swearing allegiance to the “Beast from the Sea.” Therefore, they are doomed to the “Lake of Fire.” The penalty intended by the Babylonian Empire for disloyalty becomes the destination of men who refuse to follow the “Lamb wherever he goes,” the one true Sovereign of the Universe.

The men who “Tabernacle in Heaven” are identified as “saints,” “lampstands,” those who have the “Testimony of Jesus” and “keep the faith of Jesus.” They refuse to give their allegiance to the Imperial “Beast” and suffer the consequences – economic deprivation, persecution, and martyrdom. They are found standing with the “Lamb” on “Mount Zion.” Rather than the Beast’s “Mark,” they have the “Seal of God” inscribed on their foreheads.

OUR CHOICE

What distinguishes the followers of Jesus from the “Inhabitants of the Earth” is not their geographic location or ethnicity, but their absolute loyalty to the “Lamb.” They “follow him wherever he goes” even when doing so means death. In this way, they “overcome” as he did and avoid the “Lake burning with fire” - “They overcame the Dragon by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, and because they loved not their lives until death” – (Revelation 3:21, 12:11).

Their names are “written in the Book of Life.” They will not taste the “Second Death.” Instead, they will experience the “First Resurrection” and reside in the city of “New Jerusalem” - “And he that sits on the Throne shall spread his Tabernacle over them.”

There is no “safe zone” anywhere on the Earth, no holdout nation to which we may flee. There is no room for compromise. The “Beast” is granted authority over “every tribe and people and tongue and nation.” The Empire’s reach touches every corner of the planet, every man, woman, and child. Total commitment to the “Lamb” is our only escape and refuge from the wrath of the “Dragon.”

Either we “follow the Lamb” no matter the cost and thereby inherit life, or we render homage to the “Beast” and its image, and consequently undergo the “Second Death.” Jesus or Caesar. Christ’s Kingdom or Beast’s Empire.

We must decide to whom and what we give our loyalties. There is no “dual citizenship” or room for split loyalties in the Kingdom of God. At the critical moment, will we follow the “Lamb wherever he leads” no matter what or submit to the “Dragon” and his loathsome creature, the “Beast from the Sea”?

The Devil and the political powers of this age that serve him demand absolute loyalty and obedience. There is no room for compromise. Nevertheless, despite their demands and pretensions, Jesus is the only rightful absolute monarch of the Cosmos.

How we respond to Jesus of Nazareth will determine whether our names are “written in the Lamb’s Book of Life,” or erased from it forever. If we refuse to give total allegiance to him and his Kingdom today rather than to the World Empire, the day will come when we may face the “Lake of Fire.” The would-be disciple who refuses to deny himself and take up Christ’s Cross is not worthy of the Lamb of God.

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SEE ALSO:

• Greatness in His Kingdom - (His disciple is called to engage in self-sacrificial service for others just as Jesus gave his life as a ransom for many – Mark 10:35-45)

• Fleeting Power - (In the end, only God’s kingdom will prevail and endure. All other political powers are transitory, and already they are passing away)

• Servant or Caesar? - (Satan offered Jesus unlimited political power to achieve his messianic mission if only he acknowledged the Devil as his overlord)