In the first three postings of his series it was made clear that, just as there had been a Christian holocaust in the past, there will be another slaughter of God’s people in the future. Also made clear is the fact that the descendants of the original religious and political killers will kill the descendants of those that were slaughtered earlier, and for the same reason. Central to that reason is God’s Sabbath–His sign of ownership. The question the signs will answer for those caught in the deadly grip of the Tribulation is simple: WHO IS YOUR GOD?

In this posting we will address the question concerning the “placement” of the “mark” that identified Satan’s earlier victims and will identify the future victims of his hatred–those who will see the error of their ways and turn to the Lord during the Great Tribulation. We will now examine the Biblically PLACEMENT of the “mark” that will identify who will live and who will die.

As stated in the previous segment, God’s true saints have a “mark” or “sign” that identifies them as His true servants. That mark is His seventh day (Saturday) Sabbath, without which one is now spiritually dead and will die permanently in the future. The Lord tells us that the penalty for sin is death. He also identifies sin as the transgression of His Ten Commandment Law. He also warns that to break one of the commandments is to break the entire Law, thereby earning the sinner the death penalty–the fate of anyone who is not a true child of God. God’s true saints have been bought and paid for by Christ’s death. They are the property of almighty God. GOD’S MARK OF OWNERSHIP IS THE SEVENTH DAY SABBATH.

During the reign of the Roman Empire the Catholic Church exercised considerable control over the beast that was the Roman government. This deadly church-state colossus is pictured in Revelation 17:1-5 as a woman riding a beast. This woman caused people to receive the “mark” of Rome–the Sunday sabbath observance–in order to live normal lives. Those who refused to accept the “mark of the (Roman) beast” were tortured to death because they wore the “mark” of God–the seventh day Sabbath. I have seen estimates of between 50 and 150 million people whom the Catholic Church caused to be put to death by the Roman Empire, many, if not most of whom were God’s faithful saints.

The Lord’s Sabbath Law is the one commandment that people of the world, including the church world, will not accept on their “forehead” and on their “hand.” OBSERVANCE OF THE SEVENTH DAY SABBATH IS THE “MARK OF GOD.” However, billions of people unknowingly wear the “mark of the beast” while believing that they are being true to the Biblical God. Never underestimate the power of Satan over professing Christendom. It is as total as it is deadly. This ministry is dedicated to revealing to those within “the church” that they are Satan’s spiritual slaves and have no relationship with the Biblical God. For this reason He commands those who seek Him to “come out of her” (the counterfeit church) in Second Corinthians 6:14-7:1. Read that passage with a heart open to God’s voice.

The “mark of God” is a spiritual mark that is manifested by one’s observance of His Sabbath rules of personal conduct which consist of doing the things of God and refraining from doing the things of man on His “holy day.” The “mark of the beast” is also a spiritual mark that is manifested by one’s observance of Satan’s sabbath rules of personal conduct which consists of doing what the Catholic Church declares is appropriate on her (Satan’s) unholy day. This means that church people desecrate God’s Saturday Sabbath by doing whatever they want to do on that day. This brings us to the question concerning the placement of the beast’s mark on the forehead and the right hand.

Relative to God’s “mark” and Satan’s mark, the placement of the mark is the same, and that the “mark” is spiritual, not physical. The “mark of the beast” is introduced to the salvation seeker in the Book of Revelation. One will notice that the revelation Jesus gave to John was recorded mostly in symbolism. In the case of both marks, the forehead refers to the intellect or mind. It deals with what we believe and what we obey. The hand reacts to the mind’s decision. We think, then we act. The mark in the forehead and the right hand refers to what we KNOW and what we DO. Most people are right handed. The mark being on the right hand refers what we do (work) relative to what we think in our minds. In this way the “mark” (sign) we wear reveals what we think and do.

God has much to say relative to HIS WORDS and man’s obedience to HIS WORDS. Concerning one of His annual Sabbaths we read: “… it will be for a SIGN unto you upon your hand and for a memorial between your eyes (forehead), so that the Law of the lord will be in your mouth ….” (Exo.13:9). Deuteronomy 6:1,6-8 declares: “Now these are the commandments … and these WORDS, which I command you this day, will be in your HEART (mind) …. And you will bind them for a SIGN upon your hand and they will be as frontlets between your eyes.” Deuteronomy 11:18 tells us: “Therefore you will lay up these My WORDS in your HEART and you will bind them for a SIGN upon your hand, and as frontlets between your eyes.” GOD’S SABBATH SIGN REFLECTS WHAT WE DO ON HIS SABBATH. Satan’s sign reflects what we did on the previous day–God’s blessed, sanctified Sabbath–the day He called: “MY HOLY DAY.”

Because God’s Sabbath commandment is special to Him, He went to great lengths to explain it, much moreso than any other commandment. He also made a special covenant with His people relative to His Sabbath commandment which is explained in Exodus 31:12-17.

God’s sign (mark) is all inclusive. To obey His Law is His general sign which denotes one’s standing with Him. The Sabbath sign is the most outwardly obvious aspect of His sign. The Sunday sabbath is the most obvious sign of Satan’s ownership of one’s heart and soul, though there are other obvious and well-known signs such as the observance of Christmas and Easter as well as numerous beliefs, many of which are listed on the homepage of this website.

With the exception of a minutely few true saints, the entire Western world has embraced Satan’s death-producing sabbath, thereby rejecting God’s life-producing Sabbath. The Holy Scriptures tell us that, during the Great Tribulation, many people, including church people, will realize that they had been wrong and will refuse to take the mark of the world-ruling beast. They will pay for their decision with their lives. But the sacrifice will pay off in the future as they are allowed to live in an earthly paradise for eternity.

During the time of world tribulation there will be three categories of people: 1) God’s Very Elect who will be living in peace and plenty in “her (the true church’s) place,” 2) those who bear the mark of the beast who will live under the rule of the church-state government of Satan and his antichrist (human representative) and 3) those who refuse to accept the beast’s mark who will be put to death for their choice of marks. Let us be in the right group now so that when the end of life as we know it comes, our destiny will already be coming to pass. Let us join Jesus in the place of safety He has prepared for those who love Him and who prove their love by obeying His Law. L.J.