A Deeper Dive Into the Book of Revelation - Part 23
The Apostle Paul told us that Jesus would not come back and gather the believers to Himself until “the falling away comes first.” Paul seems to tell us that this great falling away from the faith will happen at about the same time as the Antichrist comes to power during the Great Tribulation. These nominal believers will abandon Jesus in a great falling away. Many of them will deny the faith and turn to a false Messiah.
But who are these people who will fall away from the faith in such great numbers, and why will they fall away?
“Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”—2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (NKJV)
Jesus gave us a profile of these nominal believers in His parable of the Sower.
“As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.”—Matthew 13:20-21 (ESV)
These are “fair-weather friends” of Jesus. As long as circumstances are favorable in the lives of these believers, they may continue to attend church, serve in ministry positions, sing in the church choirs, and participate in prayer groups. But when circumstances turn against them, and they experience severe persecution or difficulties in life, they abandon the faith. Many of these believers will deny Christ and return to their old lifestyles or adopt new religious philosophies.
In Babylon under the rule of Nebuchadnezzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow the knee to worship anything other than the One True God. Because of their refusal to compromise their faith, they were thrown into the fiery furnace, as we read in Daniel chapter 3.
But why do we only read about three Israelites who refused to compromise their faith? There were thousands of Israelites in Babylon at that time who had been conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, who was the “Antichrist” of his time.
It is possible that we don’t read of more Israelites standing for their faith because many of them chose to fall away from the One True God and turn to the worship of false gods in order to save their own lives.
It’s one thing to worship and serve God when times are good and society supports your right to worship as you please. It is quite another thing to continue to worship and serve God faithfully when it puts your life and the lives of your family members at risk.
Sajida’s Story
Recently, my friends and I sat down with Sajida Iqbal, the founder of Noor Ministries in Pakistan. The mission of Noor Ministries is to provide high quality Christian education to poor and underprivileged children of Pakistan who might not otherwise have these opportunities. Currently, they have three schools, eight buses, and more than 50 staff members serving over 400 children in the villages near Lahore, Pakistan.
As we listened to Sajida tell her story, she told us what led her to start this ministry.
In the poor villages of Pakistan, there are many uneducated Christians who struggle to pay their bills and to provide for their families. Most of the landlords and business owners are Muslim. If Christian parents are deep in debt, sometimes they are threatened with legal action by these Muslim landlords and businessmen to whom they owe money. This can be a very serious problem for Christian parents because Christians do not have the same rights as Muslims in Pakistan. If they cannot pay their debts, Christians can lose their homes or face severe punishment from the legal system.
Sajida told us that Muslim landlords and businessmen will often offer these Christian parents a way to get out of debt. If these Christians will renounce their Christian faith and accept Islam, then their debts can be reduced or forgiven.
This is how Muslims are bringing “tribulation” into the lives of Pakistani Christians in order to cause a great falling away of Christian believers there. Through severe financial pressures, many Christians are persuaded to abandon their faith and deny the only true God, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Financial Pressure of the Antichrist
The Bible tells us that the Antichrist will also work through similar financial pressure to compel allegiance and compliance.
“Also he compels all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead [signifying allegiance to the beast], and that no one will be able to buy or sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.”—Revelation 13:16-17 (AMP)
Can you imagine the intense pressure that Christians will feel as they and their families are threatened with financial ruin and possible starvation unless they give in to these demands to take the mark of the Antichrist?
As this happens and people everywhere face this choice which could mean life or death for their families, a heavenly messenger will warn everyone not to take the Antichrist’s mark:
“Then a third angel followed them, shouting, ‘Anyone who worships the beast and his statue or who accepts his mark on the forehead or on the hand must drink the wine of God’s anger. It has been poured full strength into God’s cup of wrath. And they will be tormented with fire and burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb. The smoke of their torment will rise forever and ever, and they will have no relief day or night, for they have worshiped the beast and his statue and have accepted the mark of his name.’”—Revelation 14:9-11 (NLT)
The angel makes it very clear what is at stake in this choice of whether or not to take the mark of the Antichrist. Accepting the mark of the Antichrist will mean eternal damnation with no relief from torment.
On the other hand, refusing the mark of the Antichrist will very likely mean that these Christians and their families will die, most likely as punishment for refusing to take the mark of the Antichrist. This seems to be what the next few verses tell us in Revelation chapter 14:
“This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus.
“And I heard a voice from heaven saying, ‘Write this down: Blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the Spirit, they are blessed indeed, for they will rest from their hard work; for their good deeds follow them!’”—Revelation 14:12-13 (NLT)
And this is exactly what Jesus prophesied when He spoke of these end-time events in Matthew 24:
“Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. **And many will turn away from me **and betray and hate each other. And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.”—Matthew 24:9-12 (NLT)
This choice of whether or not to receive the mark of the Antichrist will likely lead to the great falling away from the faith that Paul wrote about in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, and that Jesus prophesied when he described the “stony ground believers” in His parable of the Sower.
These nominal believers, whose commitment to the Lord Jesus is very shallow, will choose to accept the mark of the Antichrist just so that they can ensure that they and their families will continue to have food on their tables. They will not have the strength of faith to believe that God can provide for their needs in the face of these difficulties.
In making this choice, these people who formerly professed faith in Jesus Christ will renounce that faith by voluntarily receiving the mark of the Antichrist, choosing allegiance to the devil and his cause, and condemning themselves to eternal damnation, just so that they can have a reliable food supply.
In His description of these events, Jesus makes it clear that Christians must endure and stay faithful to the end in order to secure their salvation.
“But the one who endures to the end will be saved”—Matthew 24:13 (NLT)
Those who renounce their faith in Christ in order to have a more secure financial future will end up losing everything.
“If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny and disown and reject Him, He will also deny and disown and reject us.”—2 Timothy 2:12 (AMPC)
