Sharper Iron — Come Lord Jesus! O Little Flock, Fear Not the Foe

Rev. Sam Wirgau, pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Ossian, IN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Revelation 13:11-18.

The dragon finds another ally in his war against the Church in the beast from the land. This second beast has an appearance that mimics the Lamb, indicating that this beast represents those religious forces that attack the Church through false doctrine. This second beast deceives the world to worship the first beast through religious lies and marks all false worshipers as belonging to it. Since Christians have been marked as God’s in Holy Baptism, they are not marked as belonging to the beast, and they suffer from it. Yet the Lord is faithful in preserving those whom He has marked as His own; Christians do not need to fear the mark or the number of the beast.

“Come Lord Jesus!” is a series on Sharper Iron that goes through the Revelation given to St. John. Although some look at Revelation with fear, it is a book of supreme hope in our crucified, risen, and ascended Lord. The book of Revelation gives a heavenly perspective on our earthly circumstances so that the Church in every generation is challenged, comforted, and assured of final victory through Jesus Christ.

Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen.

Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund, where your investments help support the work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit lcef.org.

Revelation 13:11-18

The Second Beast

¹¹Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. ¹²It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence,^[a] and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. ¹³It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, ¹⁴and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of^[b] the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. ¹⁵And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. ¹⁶Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave,^[c] to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, ¹⁷so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. ¹⁸This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.^[d]

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Footnotes

Revelation 13:12 Or on its behalf
Revelation 13:14 Or on behalf of
Revelation 13:16 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface
Revelation 13:18 Some manuscripts 616

Rev. Timothy Appel

Although a mathematics degree may not be incredibly helpful to (proudly born-and-raised Texan) Rev. Timothy Appel while hosting Sharper Iron, his love of CFW Walther and the season of Easter will come in handy. His Call is shepherding the flock at Faith Lutheran Church in Godfrey, Illinois, and he’s also husband to wife Kristin and dad to their growing basketball team of children. When he’s not carrying out pastoral duties, you may find him reading “The Lord of the Rings,” snacking on Reese’s peanut butter cups, playing dominoes with his boys, or studying up on Texas history (including Sam Houston, of course).