And then, there was the vaccine. Some took it without question, while others refused. Those who refused were told they should be concerned for those around them, if not for themselves. Many were subjected to ridicule if they didn’t take it. All kinds of rumors circulated about the potential negative effects of the shot. Some were probably true, while others were just conspiracy theories intended to sway people to their way of thinking. All of a sudden, lines were being drawn. People on all sides were making decisions based on information that, to this day, we don’t know if it was true or not. The needs of the many overrode the desires of the few. At least, that’s what we were being told.

For some of us, the issue became complicated. A few years earlier, we had to place my Mom in a Nursing Home. She had developed dementia, and it finally reached the point that my Dad couldn’t take care of her at home. My sister and brother had both passed away, and I lived about one hundred miles away. It was not an easy decision. By the time the virus hit, my Dad had also passed away, so there was only me. For several months, no visitors were allowed in the Nursing Home. We were forced to stand outside the window and communicate the best we could. With Mama having dementia, communication was almost impossible.

As nursing homes scrambled to protect their patients and staff, they decided that only people who had taken the vaccine would be allowed to visit their family members. I had to make a decision. I have been blessed with good health, and I thank God for it. I have never taken the flu and pneumonia shots that are recommended each year. I seldom go to a doctor. But now I’m being told that once the nursing home opens back up, I will not be able to see my Mom unless I have taken the shot. Well, it was not a hard decision. I was going to take care of my Mama. So, like millions of people all over the world, I took the vaccine. To my knowledge, there were no side effects.

Now, let me see if I can tie all of this together. Obviously, there is nothing wrong with having a stamp on your hand for the reasons I mentioned in the previous devotion. You can also understand the microchip to a point. Since technology will be incorporated into future events, people opposed to the chip say it is the Mark of the Beast. They say that a cashless society is one of the signs of the last days. Well, the Bible doesn’t say anything about a cashless society. It simply says that people can’t buy or sell without the mark. The mark could still allow a person to use cash or a check. But when you stop and think about it, we are largely a cashless society today. Most of us use a credit card for everything we do. I seldom use cash. Those who use a cashless society as a sign of the Mark of the Beast are taking scripture out of context. Unfortunately, many things related to the last days are not based on what the Bible says, but rather on what they have been falsely taught through the years and stubornly refuse to turn loose of.

Here is the defining line on the Mark of the Beast. According to Revelation chapter 13, the primary purpose of the mark is to identify those who worship the Beast. The word, worship, is also used in chapters 14, 16, 19, and 20. The Mark of the Beast is all about worship, which has been the goal of Lucifer from the time of his rebellion. He wants to be worshipped as God. The ability to buy and sell are all secondary to worship.

While the things I’ve mentioned regarding ink stamps and microchips have nothing to do with the real Mark of the Beast, they are preparing a generation who doesn’t know God to readily accept the “mark” when it becomes the real thing. Without giving it a second thought, many will stick out their hand and accept it without question. Interestingly, with the stamp and the chip, they say the best place to put them is precisely where the Bible told us they would be two thousand years ago.

Things that were started with no ill intent can become disastrous. The challenge is to be Biblically sound in our response, and that only comes from knowing what the Bible says. We must not give in to fear or the cunningly devised fables of man. It also helps to remember that “greater is He that is within us than he that is in the world.”