On August 9th of this year, USA Today’s Jefferson Graham wrote, “You will get chipped. It’s just a matter of time.” I imagine many of you, especially those who are older, will respond to that statement, “Oh, no I will not!” But before we go into a state of apoplexy over RFID chips being implanted under the skin in humans, we might want to take a couple of moments to learn more about what is going on in an industry that is growing now - and will likely explode in growth in the next 3-5 years. WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? For those of you who do not know about the RFID industry - you might want to turn back the clock a few years to the Veterinary world announcing that you could put a chip in your pet to verify that the pet was yours. Some, wrongly thought, this would allow a person to actually track their pet wherever it was going. This is not true if the tag used was a “passive tag.” That means that what was injected into your pet (which is about the size of a single grain of rice) does not have its own power supply (a battery of some sort). Instead it meant that if someone found your dog and took it to a Veterinarian, the doctor could detect the chip with an RFID reader - which would transmit the information in the chip identifying the dog as your beloved Fido - along with how to contact you about your pet. The news in the last 5-10 years has been that the RFID technology that has been used in animals was not able to be used in humans for various purposes. At first the vast majority of these applications involved identification or something like a brief medical history showing a patient to have a certain type of medical condition that needs to be communicated quickly if there is a medical emergency involved. WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH BIO-HACKING? What is happening today, that is very interesting, is that there are those who see a whole world of products that can be developed as a result of what we know and are learning from what are now the basic and rudimentary elements of RFID technology. This is where the designation, “Grinder” comes into play. Let me take a few steps back first - and define some words for you. Bio-hacker - A bio-hacker is someone who endeavors to hack or use current technology in ways that will interface with the human body. Grinder - A “Grinder” is a “do it yourself cyborg” who is seeking upgrading his or her body without waiting for the corporate or financial world to say it is Ok to do so. There are now technologies that have been reworked (which is what is meant by “hacked”) so that we can move our hand in front of a locked door and have it unlock. Similar reworked technologies can allow people to open and unlock a computer screen, start a car, or even use a scan of the chip in your hand to put your contact information into a phone. When this kind of “chip” technology was introduced there was a strong reaction against it. Some of that reaction was due to people being concerned about putting something electronic into their bodies - while others, myself included - were concerned about biblical prophecy about a mark that would one day be required to be able to buy or sell in our world. But now such strong reactions have calmed somewhat so that more and more people are being chipped. Noelle Chesley, associate professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, said the following about the eventuality of being chipped in our world. "It will happen to everybody . . . but not this year, and not in 2018. Maybe not my generation, but certainly that of my kids." The idea of a chip the size of a grain of rice is gaining traction in our society. Yet even the world “bio-hacking” causes concerns and red flags to go up in our minds. “Are you saying that someone is going to be able to hack into my body - or my mind - and make me do things?” At the moment such thoughts are merely the musings of movie and television writers. But those who are attempting to do bio-hacking want to access the human body more and more to be able to interface electronics with the electrical systems (read nervous system here) of our bodies. While many of these experiments are relatively harmless - there are those who have tried to implant things in their bodies who have wound up with terrible consequences. One such grinder cut into her hand and later wound up in the emergency room with sepsis. But if you are wondering how close we are to having a real Iron Man - or the ability to hack into our own bodies to make us “spidey-like” or to be a cyborg with superhuman strength - such things are still flights of science fiction fancy. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE MARK OF THE BEAST? Let me also be clear on another subject that will eventually be mentioned in regard to bio-hacking and the work of Grinders. The rice-sized chip they implant in themselves is not the mark of the beast - just like the ones they put in pets do not make them “pets of the beast.” The biblical passage about this in Revelation 13 And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, 17 and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. Revelation 13:16-17 (NASB) As you can see the marks of the beast is something received on the right hand or forehead. It is something that allows one to sell or to buy. But we learn in chapel 14 that there is also a component to receiving it that involves worshipping the image of the beast. Since the antichrist and the beast have not even been identified yet - since none of these technologies can be used currently as a form of payment as of now - we need to realize that this is not the mark of the beast. Could it be some precursor to the kind of technology that will be used in that day? Maybe, but please try to remember that when credit cards first came out - that some people in the prophecy community said that they were the mark of the beast. What I am trying to say here is that we need to be wise and measured with our comments. When we react with absolute rejection of these technologies and call them the mark of the beast - we often have to eat a whole lot of crow later when they do not wind up as such. With that being said - I would like to send up a warning flag on the whole idea of “grinding” and “bio-hacking.” AMAL GRAAFSTRA, DANGEROUS THINGS, AND BIO-HACKING I recently watched a Ted Talk done by Amal Graafstra, the owner and founder of a company called, “Dangerous Things.” The talk was entitled, “Bio-hacking - The forefront of a new kind of human evolution.” If that title made you raise an eyebrow - it made me raise one too. Graafstra’s talk was fascinating, because it informed me as to what was truly happening in this area of study and inventive fervor. Graafstra is an inventor/entrepreneur who is trying to ride the wave of interest in bio-hacking by providing products and services for those who want to be inventors in this field. Dangerous Things may sound ominous, but it is just a marketing choice that enables Graafstra to have a name that is well known among grinders. His Ted Talk made me aware of much that was happening in the world of bio-hacking. Most of what he said was relatively innocuous, involving those who want to open doors, unlock computers, and even work of prototypes of implants in human ears that allow people to pick up sounds in similar ways that a bluetooth headset would allow someone to hear their cellphone or listen to music from it without the bother of an attached cord. It was also interesting to learn that the work of implanting these devices has begun to shift from the medical field to the world of those who do piercings for a living. SOOOO . . . WHY WRITE THIS ARTICLE IF THIS IS INNOCUOUS? That is a good question. Why am I writing this article and placing it in the “Prophecy/News Update” section of a website? It is because of the statement by Graafstra that this is the next step of human evolution. What I believe we are seeing is the beginnings of something that will have far darker applications in the future. There are currently experiments taking place that are attempting to have humans be able to see in infrared with their physical eyes. There are also others on the fringes of this movement who have as their desire then gradual movement toward cyborgs who are part human - part machine. This is distrurbing to consider. They dream of another step of evolution that will make a better human - by making it something eventually more and more inhuman. Now let me say that we are nowhere near the production of some kind of human/machine hybrid the likes of a Terminator. First of all - God was the One who created all life. We did not evolve to become human beings, we were made by a Creator God Whose purposes cannot and will not be thwarted by the desire to make us superhuman in some perverted attempt to advance the world beyond its “human stage.” Our current humanity is not the latest step in a never-ending evolution to higher forms of being. Our humanity is a gift from God and is the crowning work of creation. The reason things are so messed up on this world is because mankind chose and continues to choose sin and selfishness rather than submission to God and His will. Second of all, God’s purpose in making humanity was for us to be image bearers. We were to be the ones who are made in the image of God - and who reflect that image to God’s glory. His purpose since the fall of humanity into sin has been to redeem a people for Himself who will be transformed by the sanctifying work of the Spirit through the Word of God. All this is so that we would once again bear His image to His glory. REDEMPTION BY TECHNOLOGY OR CHRIS? The attempt at some grotesque man/machine hybrid is only a modern attempt at another tower of Babel, so that we could make a name for ourselves. The end of that road will not be pretty. If by some technological advance a direct link can be made into the human brain, we can be assured that the apocalyptic visions that movie producers and science fiction writers have considered will be the end of men controlled by technology (or worse - controlled by other men who are operating that technology). Do I mean by this come curse upon those who advance technology in our world? No, this is not my purpose. Electronics and technology will continue to advance in our world. But when men postulate that such technology will solve our problems and create a brave new world where we will evolve beyond our current human limitations. That is where I see little more than another feeble attempt to solve the problem of sin and selfishness by sinful and selfish means. It will wind up as just another tower built into the heavens to glorify man rather than God. May we not fall for the same lie yet again. Instead may we look to Christ and the cross - the only instrument of our redemption and the only way to fulfill the plan that WILL prevail to the end.
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Getting cash to buy bread in Weimar Germany Many really don't know what is actually happening with the current FED policy called, Qualitative Easing parts 1, 2, and now 3. We are being told that this is a stimulus for our sluggish economy. There are little more than empty promises that this will help put more money into our economy - thus making it more solvent and better for all of us. Such statements are policy statements at best, and lying propaganda statements at worst. What is slowly happening with these moves by the FED is that our money is slowly being made worthless green pieces of paper. The only inaccuracy in that statement is that this is a slow process. Unfortunately there is going to be a day very soon when we will experience a crash similar to that which was experienced by the 1920's Weimar Republic in Germany. Let me explain a little more - and hopefully also tie this to what is going to happen in these last days. The Weimar Republic was the government in Germany after WWI. Due to a number of different factors, this government was facing great financial difficulties. During WWI Germany had borrowed tremendous amounts of money. The debt of Germany had risen from 3 billion to 55 billion marks. The way the government decided to deal with this was to "monetize" the debt. To "monetize" a debt simply means to print money to pay it. The problem is that the printed money has nothing to back it and make it worth anything. The result of monetizing their debt was disastrous. Since their money was worth nothing - it created hyperinflation. The price of everything went through the ceiling. The way the German government dealt with this was to further print worthless money. By 1922-23 hyperinflation exploded and the result was skyrocketing prices for EVERYTHING! Rising prices is something that we've learned to deal with - and some say that we will see increases in prices - but that inflation will remain under control in all of our Quantitative Easing - or monetizing our debt. To give you a little better idea of the increase of prices in Germany I will offer an example. In July of 1914 you could buy a loaf of bread for 1 mark. After they monetized their debt with their own version of QE-1, prices began to soar. By July of 1922 that same loaf of bread cost 100.6 marks. But even though that kind of inflation seems outrageous, it was nothing compared to what was to come. German government officials decided in 1922 to buy some of their debt in the form of bonds from the world markets. They did this by printing a whole lot of worthless paper money. Their hope was to create a stimulus of their economy through these actions. But what happened turned German financial markets - and prices in the street into a disaster zone. A loaf of bread shot from 100.6 marks in July 1922 to 2785 marks by January 1923. But this was nothing compared to the hyperinflation that was about to be released. A year later, in July 1923 a loaf of bread would cost 194,000 marks - and by November of that same year, 1923, the cost of a loaf of bread shot to 726,000,000,000 marks. All because the nation thought they could print money to deal with their financial problems. This seems crazy when you read it, I know, but it is all in the history books and can be verified quite easily. The decision today to initiate QE-3 is a step toward a financial cliff over which it is almost beyond our power to now avoid. The FED has stated that QE-3 is an effort to buy hundreds of billions of dollars of our government's debt bonds in the open market. What are we going to use to pay for them? Money that will be printed by the FED. What backs that money? NOTHING! We are attempting to do what the Weimar Republic did from 1914-1923 - but think we can do it without any financial repercussions. Here is the truth - we cannot! This move to initiate QE-3 is simply another order to start the printing presses of the FED. We are printing money that one day won't be worth the paper it is printed upon. What is even crazier is that the Legislative branch of our government just voted to continue to fund itself at current levels for the next 6 months because very few have the guts to tell the collective United States electorate that the emperor doesn't have any financial clothes. They are more interested in being re-elected than in doing the hard work of governing responsibly. By the way this required a bi-partisan response from both Republicans and Democrats. Hardly anyone is willing to say the truth about all this - even fewer are willing to tell us we are far beyond broke. We are flying down the path of the Weimar Republic - and no one is willing to be honest about it. Now, how does all this fit in with the Biblical last day's scenario? First of all, it is a preface to a world without cash. Since pretty much every currency is going to be worthless - why have money at all. There will be moves to remove cash from society - and for the world to work only within the framework of electronic money. This move will help us toward the second thing that is being prepared in our day - biometric chips or some other device that will have all our financial, medical, and government records on them. Thus we can run the back of our hand over a scanner or stand in front of a camera and have all our finances done electronically. This paves the way for the antichrist to institute a program where he will control all spending - and will tie it to worshiping him. The third thing that will happen is that great chaos will sweep over the world in the wake of the dollar and the euro crashing and becoming utterly worthless over a short period of time. Remember what happened in the wake of the Weimar Republic's financial stupidity. A period of horrific financial depression resulted - followed by the rise of a very charismatic leader named Adolph Hitler. When people are struggling to be able to survive - they will follow anyone - even a crazed, satanic dictator. What is about to happen worldwide due to the crash of the dollar and the euro is going to make the Weimar Republic financial disaster look like a picnic in the park. QE-3 is going to result in financial disaster. The worthless paper money that will be pumped into our system is going to do nothing except further depress it in the end. Prices will one day begin to explode - first by 10% all the way to 100% over a few years. The real disaster will come quickly as that horrific 100% increase will be eclipsed by 1000%, 100,000%, and even 1,000,000,000% increases in prices throughout our economy. IT IS COMING! The only way that we can avert it is to face up to the foolishness of what we are doing currently. That will radically affect the elections this Fall - not toward a Republican or Democratic leanings. It will require us to elect HONEST politicians who will tell us the truth - in all of its ugly overtones - and in all of its horrible consequences. But, to be honest, I don't see that happening. What I see is eminent financial disaster - followed by a descent into chaos and anarchy. Why? Because have not nor will we learn from the history of the Weimar Republic. But I truly see that what awaits us in this difficult repeat of history is something far more sinister than Adolph Hitler. The one who will rise to power over the rubble of world economic disaster (and most likely a major attack on Israel - see Ezekiel 37-38) will fulfill much prophecy in doing so. But, do not fear, little flock, for this has all been prophesied previously. Yes, things will get very difficult - and the world will face a 7 year period unlike anything it has ever seen or ever will see. But you, saints of God, lift up your heads - for in the midst of the chaos, destruction - your redemption draws near! Biometrics, Fingerprint Technology, and the Mark of the Beast It seems that lately when anything is mentioned about either Biometrics or fingerprint technologies, there is a knee-jerk reaction among some Christians and conservatives. The truth is that not only do these two groups oppose such things, but also many liberal rights or human rights groups oppose these things as well. So where should Biblical Christians come down on an issue like this? Is there an inherent evil in these things? Could it be that a Christian could be taking the dreaded “mark of the beast” when they participate in technologies like this? These are things we should discuss in light of the technologies that are right on our doorstep. Recently Apple bought the fingerprint technology company AthenTec. Many who watch the smartphone market are saying that it is possible that Apple will put this fingerprint technology in the iPhone 5 in order to protect uses from fraud – and to allow Apple iPhone users to use their phones to buy anything safely. Those using the Android operating system on their phones are quickly following suit in the use of such technology in their applications. Japanese officials are considering using such technology in speeding up the airline process at their international airports. Even our schools are getting in on the use of such technology to improve security and speed up transactions. Moss Bluff Elementary School wanted to use a Biometric system that measures the unique structure of blood vessels in a person’s hand to make cafeteria lines move quicker at their school. Florida schools are considering biometric scans prior to using library privileges or boarding school buses. Some Minnesota schools are already using fingerprint technology to verify parents who pick up their children from school. This technology is coming – and we need to be ready for it. The problem is that some Christian groups are saying that any use of technology of this kind constitutes accepting the mark of the beast spoken of in Revelation 13:15-18. Their stance is a flat-out rejection of anything that even remotely has to do with such things. But before we reject this technology, we probably ought to take a look at this passage and seek to understand it better. And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed. And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six. (Revelation 13:15-18) There are several things we should be aware of in connection with the infamous mark of the beast. These are things that will keep us from the kind of “knee-jerk” reactions that make people think we are nuts for even mentioning such things. It will also help us to be taken seriously when things like this come up in conversation and we realize that people are hurting their testimony by saying ignorant things when commenting on such matters. I remember times when people were wigging-out over credit cards and the magnetic strip on the back side of them. I was warned by “prophecy kooks” numerous times that even having a card like this meant I had taken the mark of the beast. Thank God I had a mentor who taught me to look to the Scriptures themselves and not get caught up in the goofiness that often surrounds too much of what passes for serious discussions of biblical prophecy. Let’s note several things that will help us identify the mark of the beast. First, we need to see the context of all this - Revelation 13:11-13 says, “Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon. He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men.” Before we freak out about biometrics or fingerprint technology, we might want to check the news. Because to my knowledge – nothing like what we see in these three verses has happened yet. I know of no character who has wielded worldwide authority – and who has received a fatal wound that has been healed. I know of no one who has afterward constructed an image (Greek “ikon” – meaning a physical representation of something – i.e. a statue of sorts – except this statue has some serious stuff it can do – that even Disney animatronics has yet to crack). This authority figure called the “Beast” is not currently forcing people to worship this “statue” doing “great signs” and even making fire fall from heaven. If that is the case – and I believe it is – then these current technologies do not involve receiving the mark of the beast. They may be precursors to technologies that will be used for this purpose – but honestly – we don’t even know that yet for sure. Let’s look at more here. This shady character, the Beast, has yet to make a statue speak – or have it kill those who will not worship him. (Greek, “proskuneo” which means to bow or prostrate oneself before another, i.e. worship) I will note that this “mark” is forced upon people and that it is received on their right hand (which I find very hateful to left-handed people –methinks the Beast needs some sensitivity training toward the left-handed – at least that is what our current society might think) or on their forehead. I also am not aware of any move to restrict ALL buying and selling to this method. If these things are not happening – or more correctly – have not yet happened – then the “mark of the beast” in its biblical form is not yet among us. Then what do we make of all these goings on among us? Well honestly, it is the march of technological progress. It also may be how technology is moving toward a time when the “mark of the beast” is going to be applied to those who worship Satan and his representatives – i.e. the Beast and his buddies in Scripture. Other than this – it is just technology on its ever progressive march on our world. Of course many of you non credit card holding people may reject this – since I am a current credit card holding dupe who is merely working for the man – or Satan – or the illuminati – or some other boogie-man that is popular at the current time. I mean, I do have a MasterCard – even though Jesus is my only Master and Lord. I do have a Visa – even though Jesus is my only true visa that will allow me to enter heaven’s gates. I don’t think I have a Discover card – even though I’ve discovered the glory of God in the gospel. I definitely don’t have an American Express – and I’m glad, because there are no corny ways to refer to that spiritually. For those of you who seem to enjoy freaking out about these matters . . . I am sorry to have to say things that make it harder to blow a gasket about such things. I do encourage you to do more serious study on such things from a purely biblical perspective. It would help us shed some of the “crazy-people” labels that are put on us when we talk about anything concerning biblical prophecy. We do need to remember that it is the “Revelation of Jesus Christ,” not the Revelation of the most recent goofy theory used to scare the snot out of people and sell prophecy books and web sites. Oh, one last thing . . . I am truly sorry for those who are itching to make some serious money on their next “mark of the beast” book, but this is the biblical take on this subject. But I do hope to help a biblically minded person learn to reject anything that does not have the “mark of the Scriptures” on anyone’s supposed take on the “mark of the beast.” |
What is the Prophecy/News Update?At Calvary Chapel of Jonesboro, we believe that history is moving toward fulfilling God's plans and purposes. In an effort to help us be prepared for His appearing - and also to chronicle news items you just won't see in the national media - this page is devoted to sharing those items and their possible significance to Thank you for visiting our website! Everything on this site is offered for free. If, however, you would like to make a donation to help pay for its continued presence on the internet, you can do that by clicking here. The only thing we ask is that you give first to the local church you attend.
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