The Heresy Hunter

Look out folks, once more society is trying to get us good, honest Christians to take on the mark of the beast!!! It's obviously either a conspiracy against us or an overly-active imagination. Excerpt from St. Louis Today:

Is 'mark of the beast' in Real ID Act?

Derek Kravitz
POST-DISPATCHJEFFERSON CITY BUREAU
03/22/2007

JEFFERSON CITY — A dire, apocalyptic prophecy in the Bible's Book of Revelation is getting a new audience: state legislators.Several evangelical Christian groups say the federal Real ID Act, which will standardize state drivers licenses and link them to corresponding national ID numbers by 2009, represents the "mark of the beast," the devilish number 666 that is attached to the godless.The nearly 2,000-year-old passage is referenced along with the prophetic locusts, plagues, oceans of blood and rivers of fire found in the Bible. Soon after, according to scripture, the antichrist takes control of the world and Jesus Christ returns.In short, new national ID numbers could spell the beginning of the end, some Christians believe

"This is getting treacherously close to prophecy in the scripture," said Irvin Baxter Jr., founder and president of Endtime Ministries in Dallas.And some Missouri legislators are listening.

...Most religious scholars agree that this beast in Revelation is a metaphor for the Roman emperor Nero who persecuted Christians and Jews in horrific ways that were likely to be remembered only a couple of generations later when Revelation was written.

These stories are sure good for business if you're into the sensationalism of preachers like Irvin Baxter, Tim LaHaye, Grant Jeffrey, Jack Van Impe, John Hagee and Hal Lindsey!