Remember these verses?
16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and
poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their
foreheads:
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had
the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. (Revelation
13:16-17)
If you’re like me, you may
have read these verses and wondered how one might survive if you are prohibited
from buying and selling. What alternatives can we imagine?
One alternative that comes
to mind immediately is the formation of a black market (or in this case, it
would be a white market that is officially deemed “black” by the powers that
be.) However, black markets are demoralizing inasmuch as it forces one to live
outside the law. Living in fear of discovery like that is no way to live for
faithful people who are commanded not to fear but be of good cheer.
This brings us to the other
alternative. An alternative economy must be formed on a legal basis, and that
alternative economy must operate on principles other than buying and selling.
This is hard to imagine, but what it amounts to is that of volunteering, giving and sharing. Charity becomes the legal basis
by which the Zion economy must be run at this time. Workers must give their labor
to the Lord, and producers must give their production to the Lord and thereby
make Zion the clearinghouse for where the labor is to be bestowed and where the
goods to be produced must be sent.
This will take a lot of
trust, and will likely not be perfect, but it will be a better alternative than
taking the mark to be part of a corrupt network or living in fear as part of a
black market.
Consecration will be Zion’s protection.
2 comments:
My thought is that we'd all better have multiple skills developed so we can barter both goods and services. Those whose hobby is watching TV are going to be in a world of hurt with nothing to barter.
I would agree with you. In my opinion it’s absolutely necessary to be able to have a group of people (family & friends) in which you trust and are almost if not identical in their beliefs according to the Torah. Just as each of us are gifted unique abilities (visionary, speaking in tongues, prophecy etc.) through the Holy Spirit, would it not be somewhat reasonable to think of each person contributing according to their craft and talent?
I’ve learned the Bible is a pattern. If you consider, the Torah is the first set of patterns and the New Testement is the second set. I could be completely off course with my thinking?
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