Introduction: What have we learned so far? The world will be
divided into two groups. One is faithful to our Creator God
and the other rejects God and is faithful to human
achievement. Those who reject God get worse and worse and
their ability to think clearly is impaired. The identifying
characteristics of those who choose God, according to
Revelation 14:12, is that they have faith in Jesus and they
are faithful to God’s commandments. Revelation 14 accords
perfectly with the idea that God’s faithful people rely on
Jesus for their salvation, and not on their own works. But
at the same time they understand that relying in faith on
Jesus means taking seriously His sacrifice and directions
for our life. What other consequences arise from this great
divide? Let’s plunge into our study of the Bible and learn
more!
I. The Walk
A. Read Ephesians 2:8-10. Are we given salvation
based on our works? (No! Our faith in Jesus and
not our works save us. Salvation is a gift from
God.)
1. Why were we created? (To do good works.)
2. Why would Ephesians 2:10 talk about walking in
good works? What does that mean? (It means the
direction of our life is in accord with God’s
commandments – which He prepared beforehand.)
3. I just read an article stating that our
salvation turned on our obedience to the law.
Is that true? Or is that heresy? (There is a
fine but very distinct line. Choosing to rely
on Jesus for our salvation means choosing to
rely on His direction for our life. This
direction is found in the Ten Commandments.
This attitude is very distinct from those who
believe that their obedience to the
commandments is a requirement for salvation.)
B. Read Romans 8:1-2. What is the “law of the Spirit
of Life” and how is it different from “the law of
sin and death?” (It is no accident that “Spirit”
is central to our law. The Holy Spirit guides us
regarding what is right and what is wrong. It is
the victory of Jesus that gives us that freedom.)
C. Read Romans 8:3-4. How can the law be “weakened by
the flesh?” I thought it was engraved in stone!
(Weakened by the flesh refers to us. We cannot
keep the law. Jesus has done what we cannot do.)
1. What does it mean that Jesus “condemned sin
in the flesh?” (It means that He gave us
victory over sin. He showed us very clearly
what Satan wants to do to us. His life
revealed the issues in the great controversy
between good and evil.)
II. The Mark
A. Read Revelation 13:15. We have previously traced
the history of Babylon and its founder, Satan.
Satan’s goal is to have us worship him and his
anti-God philosophy of life. What is part of that
goal? (To kill those who refuse to accept his view
of life. To kill those who refuse to deny their
Creator God. These faithful saints demonstrate
their choice by holding to the downstream beliefs
that follow a belief in Genesis. We have
previously learned that these downstream beliefs
are Creation, the Sabbath, marriage, and
sexuality.)
B. Read Revelation 13:16-17. What other consequence
flows from refusing the mark of allegiance to
Satan and his allies? (Economic boycott. We cannot
sell what we produce, and we cannot buy what we
need.)
1. Is that happening today? Are those who
believe in the Genesis account of marriage and
sexuality losing their jobs?
C. Read Revelation 13:5-7 and Daniel 7:25. This time
period, three and a half years, or 1,260 days is a
very specific identifier. If you add the time
context of Daniel 7 we see that this is connected
with the “fourth beast” which is the Roman Empire.
To what entity does this point? (Barnes Notes
commentary on this text, along with other older
commentaries, explains the traditional Protestant
teaching that this refers to Papal Rome.)
1. Papal Rome is the Catholic Church. How can
this great body of Christian believers be
included in the philosophy of Babylon?
D. Read 1 Timothy 2:5. Who does this say is the “one
mediator” between God and men? (Jesus.)
1. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 969,
refers to Mary as the Mediatrix. How can Mary
be a mediator between God and man when the
Bible states that Christ is the only mediator?
(This points out part of a serious problem
with Catholic theology. Not only do we have
Mary inserted between the individual and God,
but we have priests inserted through the
confession. Claims about the authority of the
Pope reduce further the direct relationship
between the individual and God.)
2. How does this conflict with 1 Timothy 2:5 fit,
if at all, into the historic problem of
relying on human effort rather than relying on
God? (This is another aspect of reliance on
humans rather than God. Protestants who
believe they are saved by their works,
Christians who believe they can reject
sections of the Bible they dislike, all join
in the same error of rejecting God in place of
human works and thinking.)
3. What is the obvious problem with focusing on
the Catholic Church when discussing the choice
between the Mark and Jesus? (We have a
specific and limited time period that is
related to the rise of the Roman Empire. Many
different groups and philosophies fit into the
enduring religious philosophy of Babylon.)
III. The Seal and the Robe
A. Read Revelation 7:2-3. What is this seal? (It is a
mark on the forehead of those who serve God.)
B. Read Revelation 7:4. Are the number of those who
are sealed limited? (The text says 144,000.)
C. Read Revelation 7:9-10. Are the number of those
who are wearing white robes limited? (No! They are
so numerous that they cannot be numbered.)
1. What should we conclude from this about those
who are saved? (Those who have chosen God are
either sealed or wearing a white robe.)
D. Re-read Revelation 7:4 and re-read Revelation 7:9.
Are those who are sealed and those wearing robes
limited by their tribe? (The description in
Revelation 7:4-8 is limited to “the sons of
Israel.” While Revelation 7:9 reveals that “all
tribes and peoples” are wearing the white robe.)
E. Read Ephesians 1:13-14. What does this text say is
the seal of God? (The Holy Spirit.)
1. Let’s examine these verses in some detail to
see how they relate to Revelation 7 and our
discussion of the Mark of the Beast. How do we
acquire the seal of Ephesians 1:13? (We
believe “in Him” and “the gospel of your
salvation.”)
2. Is this connected to the seal and the robes of
Revelation 7? (Yes! A seal in the forehead
reflects our belief in salvation through grace
alone. The white robe of righteousness is
Jesus covering us with His righteous deeds.
See the parable of the wedding garment in
Matthew 22:1-14, Zechariah 3:1-4, and
Isaiah 61:10. But see Revelation 19:8.)
F. Let’s continue with the seal described in
Ephesians 1:14. How is the Holy Spirit a guarantee
of our future inheritance in heaven? (When we are
in heaven we live with God. The Holy Spirit, as
part of the Trinity, lives with those who invite
Him into their life. Living a life in accord with
the leading of the Holy Spirit not only separates
us from those who follow human authority, but it
gives us the experience of heaven.)
G. You may have noticed my “But see” reference to
Revelation 19:8. Read Revelation 19:7-8. How does
the bride obtain this fine linen? (It is
“granted,” given to her. I do not believe that
this means that the robe of righteousness is the
result of our works. Otherwise, Philippians 3:9
and Romans 3:25-26 could not be true. More
important, the big picture is that the saved
reject reliance on the idea that we look to human
effort. Instead, Revelation 19:8 reinforces the
idea that our choice has consequences in the way
that we act.)
1. Read Matthew 22:10-12. What clothes was this
man wearing? (His own clothing. He refused to
change to the garment provided by the King.)
a. What does this teach us about the linen
of Revelation 19:8. It forecloses the
idea that our clothing is acceptable,
much less “fine linen.”)
H. Friend, which will it be? The Mark of the Beast or
the Seal or Robe of God? Why not, right now,
accept Jesus as the One you will follow?
IV. Next week: The Seal of God and the Mark of the Beast:
Part 2.
Copr. 2023, Bruce N. Cameron, J.D. Scripture quotations are
from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing
ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All
rights reserved. Suggested answers are found within
parentheses. If you normally receive this lesson by e-mail,
but it is lost one week, you can find it by clicking on this
link: http://www.GoBible.org. Pray for the guidance of the
Holy Spirit as you study.
