Page 84 - The Mark of the Beast

Judges 3:1-4
Now these are the nations which Yahweh left, to test Israel by them (that is, all Israel
who had not experienced any of the wars of Canaan; in order that the generations of
the sons of Israel might be taught war, those who had not experienced it formerly).
These nations are: the five lords of the Philistines and all the Canaanites and the
Sidonians and the Hivites who lived in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon
as far as Lebo-hamath. They were for testing Israel, to find out if they would obey the
commandments of Yahweh, which He had commanded their fathers through Moses.

God wants His children to be delivered from all bondage to the flesh. He wants them
to rule over all the beasts in the land. The reason that He doesn’t dispel all enemies from
the land at the moment of the saint’s new birth in Christ is so that He might test them to see
if they will obey Him. He tests the love of all Christians in this way, for Christ said, “If you
love Me you will keep My commandments.” We must learn warfare in order that we might
prove our love for Christ.
If we understand this purpose of God, it will bring us to view our temptation to sin in
a new light. We will not lightly sin if we understand that disobedience is evidence of a lack
of love for Christ. The apostle John wrote the following:

I John 5:3
For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His
commandments are not burdensome.

I John 4:18
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves
punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

It is the disobedient who are punished. John therefore says that those who are perfect
in love have no fear, for to be perfect in love is to be perfect in obedience. The obedient need
not fear any punishment.
Let us begin to think of obeying God in terms of loving Him. If we love Him we will
crucify the flesh. If we love Him we will subdue and rule over the beast nature. The Lord
allows us to be tried by the presence of sin in our flesh that we might prove our love for
Him.
The highest manifestation of the divine nature is love. If we love Him and love one
another then we have become like God. We bear His image and His likeness when we walk
in love.
If we say we are not able to walk obediently in all things before God, we are actually
saying that we are not able to walk in perfect love. Yet God has given us sufficient grace to
walk in love all the time. We need never choose to walk apart from love.
The mark of the overcomers is love, whereas the mark of the beast nature is
selfishness. Those who attain victory over the beast, his image, and the number of his name
are those who love God. Those who receive the mark of the beast are those who love self.
Which mark will you receive?