Greetings,
sometimes I think a chip would be quite handy, especially for those who tend to lose everything all the time!
When I last worked with mooooo cows, the chip was getting introduced and it provided a way to keep track of each animal's 'performance' as well as help in monitoring/controlling the way which each old girl was milked and thereby help decrease over-milking which tends to lead to health issues for the herd. It was strange but nifty from a farmers perspective. [ I didn't use them though - it was other farmers who were trying this new fangled technology out ]
Getting to the business of a mark, I was reading a night or two ago about this in the Old Testament. It was making sense to what I also knew of Scripture being that of slavery, which brought me back to the New Testament writings where we are made fully aware of being bought with a price from the slavery of Darkness and sin. Also that we will either serve One or another as slaves, whether it be slaves to righteousness or to unrighteousness.
Now I do not know because I was not there at the time, but apparently the people deemed useful as slaves were often captives from another land and were branded like cattle to mark them as both slaves and as owned by a certain owner. A slave was a lifelong part of one's household and whether treated well or not, were generally not throw away merchandise. I suppose there was also the responsibility of the owner once a slave was branded/marked, that the owner must take the responsibility that they had in ownership. A two way thing.
From Isaiah 3:24
And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty.
Admittedly, some suggest that the burning referred to here was possibly from sunburn but to me the suggestion is not compelling.
No doubt there are other verses and passages of Scripture that might define this better for us and also provide more references to branding/marking and ownership.
At the Day approaching, there will be those known to the Master of Life and those owned by the master of lies and death.
It matters little if it is a burning brand or a chip because it is who we are known by and therefore who we are slaves to that counts.
I tend to see it all a bit more about the manner in which we decide upon each and every thing before us in this day. One thing is obvious.... the ability to buy or sell or near anything else is getting more and more determined by technology and either accepting to go along with it or not.
Generally speaking the populace of the world are getting slowly cooked like crabs and don't realise what is their fate.
Being a slave is as being in bondage. Are you bound by agreement from yourself and another entity be it for the purpose of shopping and banking or for using software and mobile phones. An agreement is an agreement and being bound by the conditions set forth by the entity is being bound, legally by that agreement that YOU enter into, by choice.
Why would a free man do such a thing?
Can one owned by another do such a thing without the consent of his owner?
Do we as the property of God have any right to become bound by any agreements with the world?
The chip only really helps streamline and keep order in the madness that we as a people are entering into. The real issue, to me, is that of if we are choosing to become the legal property of another for the sake of being able to do things which at base level are to buy and sell. the entertainment and social network side of life is like any luxury we can spend on. we don't need it but we indulge in it.
I also see a distraction being played out. If enough people talk about the chip as being a bad thing, "well", says the reasoning... "I am not getting one of those marks of the beast!!!" so, they don't but at the same time, they proceed with all the agreements, which are a consent made binding by choice and often in older times with a handshake or a nod of that silly thing we carry on our shoulders.... not the chip but the head that agrees and consents.
Open to rebuttal and reproof etc.... moooo!
Bless you ....><>
oh, yes... in that day... go away... I do not know you. (you are not mine)
