Rambling Thoughts of a Southern Lady: Psalm 72 and Revelation 13

Today I read Psalm 72. It was written by Solomon, David’s son. In this Psalm a king asks God to help his son rule the nation justly and wisely. I immediately thought how wonderful it would be if the president of our country and Congress would ask God for the same help. I usually stay away from political debate because to be honest, sometimes I can’t remember why I support a particular candidate. I can assure you that I read about the candidates, listen to their platform and make a decision. With my short term memory problems, many, no most, times I don’t remember what led me to that decision. So this is tricky ground for me but I feel led to say it.

The Psalm lists the qualities of a good leader. Some of them are that he/she should judge the people rightly, stand up for the poor and the children, come down hard on cruel tyrants, let righteousness burst into bloom and worship the Lord. Can we say that our leaders in Washington have any of these qualities? I don’t believe that we can about most of them. God desires rulers to be just and righteous. Think how much the United States would change if our leaders would commit to being just and righteous.

In 1 John 2 we read of the antichrists that will come before the tribulation. In John’s day there were antichrists who claimed a faith in God but were denying and opposing Christ. This is impossible to do because Christ is God’s son, the Messiah and our salvation. To deny Christ is to reject God’s way of revealing himself to the world. The Message translation of verse 2 says:

So who is lying here? It’s the person who denies that Jesus in the Divine Christ, that’s who. This is what makes an antichrist: denying the Father, denying the Son.”

I believe that we have many people in our government who fit this description including the person in the Oval Office. 2 Thessalonians 2 speaks to the “Man of Lawlessness”. This person will “defy and then take over every so-called god or altar. Having cleared away the opposition, he’ll then set himself up in God’s Temple as “God Almighty”.

Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness because he wanted to rule the world through Jesus. When Jesus refused all the temptations presented him, Satan had to start over. In Revelation 13 the person that Satan chooses to take Jesus place and run the world for him is depicted as a beast out of the sea to which Satan gives political power. There will also be a beast out of the earth that will do great miracles. These two beasts will work together to capture control over the whole earth. My study notes have this to say:

“Because the beast, the Antichrist, is a false messiah, he will be a counterfeit of Christ and will even stage a false resurrection. People will follow and worship him because they will be awed by his power and miracles. He will unite the world under his leadership and he will control the world economy. People are impressed by power and follow those who display it forcefully or offer it to their follower. But those who follow the beast will only be fooling themselves. He will use his power to manipulate others, to point to himself and to promote evil plans. God by contrast, uses his infinitely greater power to love and to build up. Don’t be misled by claims of great miracles or reports about a resurrection or reincarnation of someone claiming to be Christ. When Jesus returns, he will reveal himself to everyone.”