QUESTION: Is all this numbering system, everybody having a number and the computerizing of all transactions, banking, etc., which seems to be coming in the near future, the mark of the beast spoken of in the Bible?

ANSWER: No. To my understanding it is not and for the following reasons. The "mark of the beast" is referred to in Revelation 13:16-17. In this case the mark had a religious signification because those who received it were worshipping the beast-verse 12. Also, there were other things these people received besides the mark of the beast: Namely, the number and the name of the beast-it was all pertaining to the system.

The first thing to do in interpreting this text is to find out what the beast was. Also we must understand that the book of Revelation is written in symbolic language and the interpretation of it must be by analogy-that is; each thing mentioned is a drawn picture not of itself but of something analogous to it.

In this 13th chapter of Revelation there are two beasts mentioned, but it is clear that the first beast is the one under consideration here because the second beast caused the people to worship the first beast-verse 12.

Some of the identifying marks of this beast were seven heads and ten horns. There are others also but we use these marks for special identity. In the 17th chapter of Revelation we again see this same beast, having seven heads and ten horns, and with a glamorous woman riding upon him this time. This is important because it identifies a dual personality-a political-religious system. It is a false, apostate, corrupt system to be sure because this woman is described in verse one as "the great whore" and further in verse five as "...MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH."

But this 17th chapter of Revelation proceeds to identify this beast religion in an unmistakable way. Verse nine says, "...The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth." Verse ten says, "And there are seven kings:..." The seven heads represented both the seven mountains and the seven kings. The city of Rome corresponds to this description because she is situated upon seven hills (mountains) and had seven systems of government during the time of her reign as a universal kingdom. The seven kings refer to these seven different systems of government she had. Verse 12 says, "And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet;..." This is a reference to the ten minor kingdoms which came out of the Roman Empire during its decline and fall. These are historical facts.

Rome has been the seat of two major systems of false religion-Paganism and Papalism. This is also an historical fact. Paganism is symbolized in the Revelation by a great dragon having seven heads and ten horns-Revelation 12:3. Papalism is symbolized by the first beast of Revelation 13:1 which also had seven heads and ten horns which identifies it as the same power but in a different form. It was the mark of this beast which is referred to in Revelation 13:16-17.

An illusion is made here perhaps to the custom of marking or branding slaves to identify them as belonging to certain masters. Also certain cults and groups marked or branded their members. In many instances in the Bible allusions are made to general customs and practices of the time with which the people were familiar to illustrate certain truths.

God also seals, or marks, His subjects or "And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads." This company represented the great host of triumphant, overcoming saints (the entire company of the redeemed) because we read in Revelation 3:12, "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God,..." The votaries of this false religion received the name of the beast. The true people of God are all marked with His name in their foreheads.

"Forehead" is a symbol of intellect or mind and God marks all of His true followers with His law written in their minds and hearts-Hebrews 8:10. The members of this or any false religion are all marked with the laws, ordinances, doctrines, rituals and creeds of their respective religions in their minds and hearts-the "mark of the beast." God seals or marks His true saints with His Spirit, the holy Spirit of promise. (Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30; II Corinthians 1:22.) The Spirit of God, with His fruits as described in Galatians 5:22-23 being manifest in the life, is the identifying mark of all true Christians. So likewise, the false and apostate religions mark all their subjects with their spirit and the fruits of it in their lives. God's Spirit is the Spirit of Truth and guides His followers into all truth (John 16:13) and writes the truth in their hearts (II Corinthians 3:3). The spirit of this false system of religion is a spirit of error and marks its subjects with error, superstition, and doctrines of men.

There have been three major systems of false religion dealt with in the Revelation. One is paganism or heathenism (the dragon). The other two are Papalism and Protestantism, symbolized by the two beasts of Revelation 13. The same false spirit runs through the whole line and it is all God-dishonoring. In this way the second beast (Protestantism) caused its subjects to receive the mark of the first beast (Papalism) by injecting into them the same spirit of error, also by copying in their man-made creeds and disciplines some of the errors of the first beast. Also, they patterned their system after the human system of man-rule and human government.

KS-Greetings in love to every reader of the Faith and Victory: It is with great thanksgiving to our wonderful Lord that we tell what He has done for us. I wish we had the words to praise Him, for He is WORTHY of ALL glory and honor!

On the morning of April 17, 1997, we read Psalm 115:11-15 in family worship. "Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord: he is their help and their shield. The Lord hath been mindful of us: he will bless us;... He will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and great. The Lord shall increase you more and more, you and your children. Ye are blessed of the Lord...."

Late that afternoon, Herschel had a flat on the tractor, and was in a hurry to get it fixed before the station closed. It was one of those rare times when no one thought about the whereabouts of our baby, Davis, 14 months, who had been playing outside with the older children. Herschel could see there was no one on either side of the Suburban, but Davis was apparently directly behind. When Herschel backed up, he knocked Davis down and rolled over him. Then, in turning, the front wheel ran over his leg. Herschel thought it felt like one of the children's toys; then he saw his little boy lying in front of the vehicle.... One cannot describe the sheer horror we felt when we saw that such a dreaded thing had actually occurred. By the grace of God we were able to calm down, and immediately brought Davis into the house and began to pray.

We could see no blood anywhere. Davis was crying, and when I took him in my arms, he felt normal. Still, not knowing yet where the injury was, we expected to see him breathe his last any second. We prayed and knew God would not take our baby unless it was right. We had given Davis to Him at birth. We also knew that, without a doubt, we were praying to an omnipotent God Who had raised the dead to life, and could help us.

As we walked into the house, Herschel's mother was ringing our phone, and when I told her what had just happened, she immediately hung up and called around. We are blessed to have several saints living within a mile or two. Soon, they began coming in. I asked someone to fix Davis a bottle, but he fell asleep before it was ready. We then began to examine him, and did not see any sign of injury until we took off his shoe. There was some discoloration on the bottom of his foot, a little swelling, along with some marks on both sides of his knee. No broken skin, and apparently no broken bones! We all began to realize that the Angel of the Lord had camped about us, and we had just witnessed a great MIRACLE. Just a few more inches, and the story would have been completely different.

That night, Davis slept all night. The next day, he crawled around and played happily. By evening, he was putting weight on that leg, and even took a few steps. The following morning, he was walking all around, occasionally getting down to crawl. Surely the Lord has increased us more and more, for it is like He has given us our children twice. Thank the Lord for His great mercy to us. What a mighty God we serve!

We also want to thank the Lord for touching our son, Walter, age 7, when he had the flu in February. His fever was so high it caused him to have a seizure. I was home alone with my children, and at the moment did not recognize it for what it was. Naturally, I was greatly frightened, and I thought I was holding my dying child! As I called on God for mercy, I felt a great peace. I do not know what danger he was in, but the LORD heard our cry for help, and came to our rescue. How thankful we were to be able to call the saints. They come quickly, and oh, what a comfort they are!

Long overdue in your hearing is thanksgiving to God for healing our son, Loren, of a health problem. This was a burden we had for almost two years, but the healing is complete. Thank the Lord.

We desire to raise our children to trust God. He is surely giving us the foundation to build upon. Our battles right now have a lot to do with the temporal burdens of life.... I am sure we are not alone in that! But we want to love the Lord more than anything, and not let the cares of life choke our spiritual growth. By His grace, we will live for Him and give Him whatever He calls forth from our lives.

Let us all be true and faithful to Him, and to one another. Again, we magnify His precious name. -Herschel and Jeanne Eck, Caitlin, Walter, Loren and Davis

MS-Dear Publishers of Faith and Victory: I would like to subscribe to your magazine and am enclosing the amount of subscription, plus a small love offering.

A few words as to why I am interested in your magazine. I am 53 years old and have been a Christian just over a year. My mother was a Christian at the time of my birth. My great aunt was staying with mother to help her at this time and Aunt Cora McMillan prayed for a blessing from God to be on that baby, me. She also gave me my middle name, Ray, after "Ray Key," whom she respected very much.

Aunt Cora has long gone to be with the Lord but I believe her prayers over the years, and those of my mother, Flora Keller, have stayed with me until I accepted the Lord as my personal Savior.

Mom is now 91 years old and still reads your paper faithfully. I have become so familiar with this paper over the years, I now want to become a subscriber myself....

Thank you, -Kenneth Keller

Grand Cayman-Dear Brother: I am writing this letter because I have read Personal Experiences of S. O. Susag. I am a Christian in the Church of God and I am going to continue to serve the Lord and work for Him, whatever He asks of me to do. I also believe in Holy Spirit healing and would like to become like Bro. S. O. Susag someday. I have a lot of faith in the Lord. My parents are both Christians, which I believe helps me to have faith in Jesus. My mother has been a Christian for over forty years, and my father for about twenty years.

One of my reasons for writing to you brethren is because the doctor says I have a virus in my body that they can't do very much about, but right now I am not sick. So I am asking you to pray for me, and whatever you can do for me by faith in the name of Jesus. Please pray that I may be delivered from this sickness in Jesus' precious name. Amen.

Yours faithfully, -James A. Bodden

NC-Dear Bro. Murphey: Praise the Lord. I give glory and praise in the name of Jesus. I thank the Lord that I am still saved.

I send tracts out. I have a mailing list and am steadfast in sending the tracts out. What a blessing all of you wonderful saints are in publishing the tracts to help lost souls through our Lord Jesus Christ. May God bless you all.

Thank you, -Sis. Carol McCain

MI-Dear Bro. Wayne: Greetings to all of you in the dear and sweet name of Jesus. I praise the Lord for all He has done for me. He has healed me many times through the years of my life, and I love Him for it. I tell Him every day how much I love Him. Jesus is the love of our souls! I wouldn't want to live without my God, and am so glad we have heaven to look forward to. I thank all of you for the good Faith and Victory paper. It is a wonderful paper and a great blessing to my soul.

I am now feeling sick with the flu, but Jesus will heal me from it. He has never let me down yet. He doesn't forsake His children.

May God bless all of you dear loved ones in body and soul. I love you, and many thanks for your good prayers.

Yours in Christ, -Sis. Olive Getterson

OR-Dear Bro. Wayne and all at the Print Shop: Greetings in Jesus' name. We ask God's blessings on all there and that He will reward your labors with souls brought to Jesus for salvation.

So many each day are called into eternity without any time to prepare or get ready to stand in the last great judgment. So many are ignorant of their need for salvation while they are on the time side of eternity. Satan is surely loosed from the thousand years of being bound and is deceiving the nations, even as the Word of God has foretold.

Daily we pray for our unsaved loved ones, the loved ones of all the saints, as well as for all the unsaved in the world. May God help all who are trusting in Him to so live that our lives will bring no reproach on His name, and whatever influence our lives have on others will be for good and not for evil.

With Christian love,

God has been going before us here at the Print Shop. We are enthused about what is happening, and the opportunities there are to further His kingdom.

By the diligent labor of the workers, 3,984 copies of the reprint, Evening Light Songs, were shipped to the binders on May 19. We are expecting the books to be cased in a hardback cover and returned to us, ready for sale, within a couple of weeks.

We have not been satisfied with the work we contracted to have done on the hardback cover of the songbook in previous printings, so we located a company in Illinois which would reinforce the spine of the books to the casing. Although this will increase our production expense, we feel the satisfaction of those who purchase the book is worth it.

Currently on the press is the adult version of Touching Incidents, a book which has been out of print for many years. We have received a number of requests for this book and feel it is a classic which will be a blessing to those who read it. If you enjoyed Touching Incidents for children, we encourage you to get this edition when it becomes available.

As soon as Touching Incidents is off the press, we plan to print the book, Moral Law, authored by Bro. Clifford Wilson. It is an in-depth theological treatise on man's fall into sin, and the journey that leads back to holiness before God. This book will be over 300 pages long, and announcements will be made as to availability as progress is made in printing.

Next spring will mark our 75th year of publishing, and we feel it would be appropriate to mark that milestone with a reunion of former workers and an open house for the new facility, if it is finished. We will keep you informed as plans develop.

Who are we? Where are we now, and where are we going?

These are questions that must periodically and systematically be defined by any group or organization. In particular, it is the vision and self-identity which the Church of God must clearly understand about itself, and vocalize and teach to those new in Christ.

This need for a vision that makes for cohesiveness can lead into grievous error if not fixed within the bounds of the Bible and inspired by the Holy Spirit. The result of a vision outside of God's Word results in a manmade organization, by whatever name, where the keeping of outward observances and traditions are substituted for genuine spiritual unity.

When we feel the need to identify ourselves as something more than simple followers of Christ-when we are unsatisfied with that distinction alone-it could be that the flesh is at work, subtly seeking to glorify itself by assuming a title or an identity with a movement or a cause orchestrated through the flesh.

In the early 1500's, Martin Luther brought forth the dispensation of Justification. Then John Wesley, in the 1700's, was an instrument in the hand of God to teach of a sanctified life. At that point, the only thing lacking to make the Church what it was in its inception, was unity. Therefore in 1880, Daniel Warner, under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, preached that Christians should come out from the confusion of sectarian bondage. Many responded by offering the hand of fellowship to every blood-washed believer.

Over 100 years have passed since that time and there is a need, as we await Christ's reappearance, to keep the fires of fervor burning. But in doing so, we do not look for another Gospel dispensation, for the Church is complete through justification, sanctification and unity.

Christ Himself prophesied what would take place during this waiting time and illustrated it with the analogy of the ten virgins, (Matt. 25:1-13), which contains a warning for us to keep oil in our lamps. To do this, we must approach God often, and draw from His vast storehouse of blessings for new anointing. We should not let the cares of life cause us to become lethargic.

Not only is a waiting time dangerous because of the peril of lethargy, but because of a vulnerability to rashness. When Moses went up on Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments, the children of Israel grew weary while awaiting his return. They needed an identity of worship. This they did by melting precious metal to make for themselves a golden calf.

In this waiting period, let us not grow weary and foolishly attempt to create something to rally around. We have Christ to rally around. That is enough. The "golden calf" in many cases is nothing more than the desires and doctrines of men, and how inferior it is to worship an institution of man when we can worship God.

We are in the time when our purpose is to "occupy until He comes." (Luke 19:13.) One definition of "occupy" is, "To engage, employ, or busy oneself." What are we to be busy at in this evening time?

"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." Let us keep occupied spreading the gospel, so when Christ returns, the percentage of those ready to meet Him will be higher because of our efforts.

Through supporting the work of the Lord with our resources, our time and our talents, we stay involved, alert and encouraged, and avoid the threat of stagnation.

So what are we to rally around and what is our identity? Our identity is found in Christ. He is our rallying force. Our purpose should be to lift Him up in our daily lives, and in our individual spheres of influence. This we must do so that others will come to Him and be saved. To accomplish this task, we must keep the Holy Spirit fresh within us and our energies focused on becoming more like our Saviour.

This must be our vision, and if we faithfully follow it, we will rejoice to see our Lord in the skies.