And I saw a beast
rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its
horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a
leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth.
And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. -Rev. 13:1, 2
I
recently read a blog written by a professor from Warner University. He was
commenting on a book that was written in defense of creation, and explaining
that the authors of the book did not have the academic credentials to write
authoritatively on such a topic. He asks how the authors are competent to
address college biology instruction since they do not possess master’s degrees
in biology. That is a fair question if our concern is primarily college
degrees, but when do we forget about such things in favor of seeking the truth?
The fact that this professor challenged the credentials of the authors rather
than the assertions they made raises such a question. Are we really looking for
truth, or do we simply take the word of those who have worldly credentials?
Scripture
reminds us that God is not subject to the standards, or the wisdom of the
world. But God chose what is foolish in
the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the
strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are
not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in
the presence of God (1 Cor. 1:27-30). God told the people of Israel, For as the heavens are higher than the
earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts
(Isa. 55:9). If we believe these statements to be God-inspired truth, why
do we continually measure truth against the standards set in place by man? Those
who continue to seek God’s truth find themselves in the same position as
Christians in the first century. We stand in opposition to a beast.
Historically,
the Church of God has interpreted the symbols of the 13th chapter of
Revelation in one of two ways. F.G. Smith and many of the early teachers of the
movement taught that the first beast in chapter 13 represents the man-made
Roman Church. (I make no pretense about the fact that I believe this
interpretation to be true.) Others believe that this beast represents some form
of emperor worship. My contention is that regardless of which interpretation we
follow, we find ourselves standing against the same type of beast today.
Whether we consider the beast Papalism, or worship of the government of man, we
are in a position where the standards of man oppose God’s Word.
There is
nothing wrong with education, and certainly nothing wrong with pursuing the
knowledge of God. However, it seems that sometimes we value the things we have
put in place so much that we forget that God’s truth is greater than our ideas.
We forget that God’s truth is eternal, and is to be discovered by His people,
not created by them. Os Guinness wrote, “With postmodernism teaching that truth
is ‘created, not discovered,’ the premium on the ‘best and brightest’ increases
and the prize becomes the triumph of intellect over reality” (A Time for Truth, 60).
We may
not admit it, but God’s truth is reality even when it is contrary to our
opinions and ideas. We can make every attempt to rationalize and explain it
away, but we cannot change the truth any more than we can change God Himself.
To attempt to do so is to follow the way of the beast. And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous
words…It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his
name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. Also it was allowed
to make war on the saints and to conquer them (Rev. 13:5-7). The word “blasphemies” literally means
“vilification.” So the beast that man has created vilifies the work of God. It
vilifies the truth of God, and makes war on the saints who live in light of
this truth. Is this not what is happening when those in positions of influence
attack the credentials of those who are brave enough to stand upon God’s Word
even in a hostile environment? The desire for truth has largely given way to
the rationalization of man’s structures. Guinness explained the results of such
an occurrence, “In short, rationalization not only quenches the true Christian
spirit, it helps turn the revolutionary into the routine, the insight into the
institution” (The Last Christian on
Earth, 142).
The
beast in John’s vision must have been an awesome sight: and they worshipped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who
can fight against it?” (Rev. 13:4). The institutions we have put in place
today are no less impressive. Man stands in awe of his own creation as it leads
us into the wilderness. It turns our attention from the source of all truth,
and speaks blasphemies as it teaches us to deny the Word of God. We look back
on history wondering how man could be misled by some of the tyrants who have
appeared through the course of time. We wonder how we could be so gullible as
to accept some of the ideas that we have put in place, and how we could have
denied what God had taught so clearly in His Word. We see the results of man’s
rule in the world, and in the church, but we seldom seem to learn from history.
The people of God were oppressed when the “church” decided that they were not
adequate to read the Word and apply it under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
When the common man had nothing to offer God, and the Word was given only to
those in positions of man-made authority dark times ensued.
Are we
really that much different today? By whose authority do we live? Where do we
look for truth? There is nothing wrong with books, and those who write them.
There is nothing inherently wrong with our institutions of education. But are
they really the final word? Are they an avenue to find the revelation of God’s
truth, or have we elevated them to the position of a beast?
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