Over the years, I have heard conspiracy theories about many things. For example, it wasn’t Lee Harvey Oswald who killed President Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963, but rather it was (take your pick) the CIA, Mafia, Castro, LBJ, Teamsters, Freemasons, etc. Another one: Elvis is not dead; in fact someone apparently saw him in Selkirk recently…
Since the Coronavirus Pandemic has hit, there have been a number of “Conspiracy Theories” about it. There are people who are saying that the shutdowns, the wearing of masks, taking the vaccine are all part of a government plan to take over control of our lives.
There are also many who disagree and say this is simply another pandemic, similarly to those all through history, such as the Spanish Flu of 1918-19, the Black Plague, etc. We can expect one of these every 100 years or so.
Now back to those conspiracy theories: there are some Christians who agree. As one pastor recently put it: “This Coronavirus Pandemic is a dress rehearsal to work out the bugs for the globalist agenda of a one world government.” He says that the vaccines will have a computer chip in them which will be used by the AntiChrist for the Mark of the Beast as described in the Book of Revelation in the Bible.
All this has caused a lot of confusion amongst Christians. To top it off, there are many people, good people, wonderful Christians, on both sides of the issue. If it weren’t for this pandemic, they would be agreed on most other Biblical and theological issues.
About that Mark of the Beast, people have asked me, “Do you think taking the vaccine with that chip would be wrong for a Christian?” and my response is, “Not at all.” First of all, there in no such chip in the vaccines. Second, it cannot be the Mark of the Beast and let me explain why. In Revelation 13:16-17, it says, “He (the Anti-Christ) also forced everyone… to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark.”
This Mark has to be instituted by the Antichrist himself and it will be offered to all the people of the world to take as a sign of their belief in him as God. Everyone will clearly know what they are doing when they take the Mark: saying yes to the Antichrist as God. It will have nothing to do with a pandemic. And here is the clincher: the one who is offering that Mark, the Antichrist, has not even emerged on the scene! When he comes, everyone will know, I reassure you.
Probably the closest and most accurate thing you can correctly surmise is that the technology is now readily available which can fulfill this prophecy. But at this point, we are nowhere’s close to that the Mark being instituted and trying to tie it into today’s health crisis is simply not good Biblical exegesis.
So how should we look at these conspiracy theories? Are they correct? My suggestion that the best
way to know for sure whether any of them are true is through the passing of time. Time will tell, I assure
you, whether they were right or wrong. So for myself, I have adopted a “wait and see” attitude.
One final point: when we study the Bible and the things Jesus told us that about His second coming, such as his statement in Matthew 24:36, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father”, we have to conclude, that if He doesn’t know the time, obviously, neither can I. But He did say this: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come” (Matthew 24:42.) So I live as if His return could be at any moment, yet I recognize that it may not be for a long time. God’s timing is always perfect.
So if all this leads to the return of Christ, I’m thrilled. If we’re to remain and keep serving Him, I love that option too.
Either way, I win.
