Love Your Neighbor, Be Political!: A Reflection From Lebanon About Faith in Politics
June 10, 2021
Summer Repost: The Commodification of Mission in the Muslim World
June 24, 2021
by Nabil Habibi
At the time of writing of this blog post, over 2 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been given out. Even as mass vaccinations have been progressively proving their effectiveness, we continue to hear certain vaccine fears broadcast on different media outlets.
While some fears can be termed rational, reasonable, or expected, others have tended to be rather illogical. It makes sense to ask questions concerning short and long-term side effects of new vaccines; however, I have seen a substantial number of my Christian friends express fears that the new vaccines contain the “mark of the beast” mentioned in The Book of Revelation.
At its very basic and simple level, the fear is like this: Covid-19 vaccines contain some kind of secret chip that is injected into your arm. Once injected, this chip fulfills the end-time prophecies of Revelation concerning submission to the eschatological beast before the final judgement.
It might be tempting for theologians to outright reject such theories without interacting with them; however, since it seems to me that a certain faction of our Evangelical family has been fervently seeking present-day applications of the prophecies and images of Revelation over the past decades and more, and since I feel that this notion concerning the vaccines is taking root in Arab Evangelical churches, I feel compelled to write a rebuttal founded on biblical theology. I believe this argument is seriously flawed on two different levels, biblically and logically/theologically.
Most scholars agree that the Book of Revelation was probably written in the 90s of the first century CE when the imperial cult in the Roman province of Asia (modern day western Turkey) gained ground demanding that the Emperor Domitian be worshipped. This led to persecution of religious systems refusing to worship him, including Christianity, and particularly the churches in Asia minor that John addressed in his letter.
Revelation is a mixture of Old Testament-style prophecy and apocalyptic genre. Thus, similar to the book of Daniel, it reports a series of visions by the speaker. It moves from an introduction and letters to seven churches in Asia minor (Ch. 1-3), to a series of three visions concerning seven judgements each (seals, trumpets, and bowls of wrath; Ch. 4-16), to oracles against Rome (Babylon) (Ch. 17-19), and finally to prophecies about the end times and the return of Christ (Ch. 19-22).
Being apocalyptic literature, Revelation contains symbols and numbers. It is crucial to understand that these must have been intelligible for the church of the first century (John clearly says in 1:4 and 1:11 that he is writing to first century churches in Asia Minor). Hence, the key to a correct interpretation of any of the various images in Revelation is to first understand the meaning of the image in its literary context and early church audience, and then move on to understand the implications of the church today.
The term “mark of the beast” (or mark) occurs seven times in Revelation (13:16, 17; 14:9, 11; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4). In every single mention it is associated with the notion of ”worshipping the beast.” Space does not suffice to go over each of the mentions, but one example is representative of the rest. Read with me the encouraging and challenging words of 20:4-6 (italics mine):
I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshipped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years…Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them…
This beast figure must have made sense for the first readers of the book. It might then refer to the Roman Empire or the emperor, Domitian. Some interpreters see that the beast refers to all empires of this world across human history. Others argue that the beast refers to a future political leader who will be the Antichrist. I think that for the purpose of this blog, the identity of the beast is not crucial.
What is crucial is to note that the beast persecutes Jesus followers (“beheaded”). This persecution comes from the church’s refusal to worship the beast. Rather, Jesus followers choose to show allegiance to Christ over and against life-threatening societal pressures to bow to evil. This is the same picture we see every time the beast and his mark are mentioned in Revelation.
The message of Revelation for the persecuted church of the first century is then crystal clear: Christians must be ready to face death for their faithfulness to the Lordship of Christ and their refusal of the idols of this world. Christ’s return will bring them reward and justice. Even if you consider the beast to be a future being or a contemporary political figure, we do not fight it through refusing vaccinations and searching for the number 666 on medical supplies. You do not worship the beast and refuse its mark by declaring Christ as Lord. You declare Christ your Lord through obedience to Him in the face of persecution and resistance to the reigning empires of the day.
But even on a logical/theological scale, that is, even if we do not read Revelation and attempt to understand it in its context, what does all of this say about the God that you worship? What God is this who can embrace you and lead you into a life of obedience and service, but then he suddenly rejects you, considers you an enemy, and throws you into fire because you unknowingly put a smart chip in your body? What salvation is this that can be lost by a shot in the arm? This jars with the scriptures from Genesis to Revelation. This jars with the life, person, teachings, and work of the revealed Word of God, Jesus Christ our risen savior!
If the churches to whom John wrote saw us searching for secret numbers and fighting scientific vaccines, they would be shocked and say to us, “Our Christianity was death for Christ with joy.” The Christianity of millions of Jesus followers in the Arab world and beyond today is death for Christ, service to the poor and the marginalized, and a commitment to faithful humble living in a sinful and power-hungry world. But a Christianity that searches for scientific conspiracies against it does not resemble the Christianity of the New Testament in any way, shape, or form.
What if our church discussions during these turbulent times centered around hope rather than fear? How is our faith in a resurrected savior impacting the way we deal with death? Rather than cowering in fear from imaginary conspiracies, why not lead the drive for vaccines and life? Why not give our bodies willingly for experimentation, in hope that discoveries will save more lives? Why not open our churches and homes to care for the sick?
“Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades” (Rev. 1:17-18)
Praise be to God now and forevermore.
When Nabil is not lecturing in New Testament Studies at ABTS he is busy engaging in political advocacy, serving the youth at his church, and hanging out with his super cute toddler and baby and charming wife
6 Comments
You state that it’s because of a secret chip that’s injected… the Vax card that you receive post vaccination is the surrogate for a potential chip. Without it life is becoming more limited… how much of a stretch is it that the card you hold in your hand can be considered the mark?
Thank you RnM for your comment. I would reply by saying that life is already limited, and has always been limited, in different ways and forms.
The apostle Paul was able to travel all the way to Rome to present his case in front of Caesar because he was a Roman citizen. Non-Romans did not have this privilege. As a holder of a Lebanese passport I need a visa to travel to most countries in the world. Add to that I need to apply months in advance and turn in tens of documents in order to visit another country for a few days. My sons needed to present their medical documents (a folder showing that they have been receiving regular doctor checkups, have all their vaccines in order, and do not suffer from any medical conditions…etc.) before entering any school or daycare centre in Lebanon. All of our credit cards have chips to work. These chips are issued by financial companies.
Of course I could go on, but I think I got the idea across. The mark of the beast in Revelations is tightly linked with worshiping the beast over and against worshiping Christ. I fail to see how I am not worshipping Christ by taking a vaccine to protect myself and my neighbours.
Solid points… thank you for the thoughtful response. I will lose my job by not taking the Vax but will lose my soul if I take the Mark… some clarity was needed.
My wife and I felt similarly regarding the Mark and its place in history and there should be a tighter link to worship of the beast. But then we considered how nefarious would it be just to start off with coaxing people to take it ‘for the good of humanity’ and then eventually rolling it into ‘if you want to live, not just buy and sell, you need the shot/passport’.
Thank you for the conversation!
I hear you. I might lose my job for a host of reasons. I might not be able to travel for a host of reasons. For example, if I carry a weapon I can’t board a plane. In a sense, choosing not to vaccinate oneself against Covid-19 is to choose to carry a threat to other people in society. A very real threat that has killed millions and continues to take lives every day all over the world. But I understand the concerns of people who are uneasy about our governments forcing the vaccine on us.
Personally I see it as a choice and consequence. I refuse to vaccinate during a deadly pandemic. The government refuses to grant me access to public areas where I might endanger others. It is a choice I have made.
I believe the chip and the mark of the beast are straw arguments. If you take the bait and believe your life will extend a second beyond when the Lord calls you it can be compared to offering a pinch of incense to false gods. My wife went to the emergency room. a few days ago. Instantaneous the divined she had Covid and proclaimed it . Theses vaccination discussions sayin you must get it to protect your neighbors is a ruse . It is a type of mind control for people who wANT TO SURRENDER TO SLAVERY . I am williningy a slave to jesus but no other. Yous your brain do not just jump on the stupid train.
Thank you Gerald for taking the time to reply to this email. I took the vaccine. I a still serving the Lord with freedom. I fail to see how abiding by medical procedures to stop the pandemic is slavery.
At the same time, I think we already abide by certain “controlling” rules to make sure life goes on fairly for all society. We have to drive by the rules on the roads. We could choose to ignore the rules and call them “mind control,” but driving rules have been proven to make our roads safer (just come to Lebanon and check out our driving).
So if drive safely, am I attempting to extend my life? am I offering incense to false gods? On the contrary, I am being faithful to the body that God has given me, a body I use to take care of my family and serve the Kingdom. Now if the driving rules clash in any way with my ability to proclaim Jesus as Lord, then yes, I would challenge them and proclaim my faith.
There is no evidence or argument to be made that taking the vaccine lessens my ability to proclaim Jesus as Lord. There is no evidence that the vaccine does more harm than good. There is ample evidence that it does more good than harm. I say that as we take it, we are showing love to our neighbours and faithfullness to our God-given bodies.