In this thought-provoking episode of Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah delves into the rising trends of a cashless economy and the implications of digital transactions in our modern world. Moving beyond mere convenience, these financial shifts could be signaling much more significant global changes. Join Dr. Jeremiah as he discusses how current technological advancements like human microchipping might align with biblical prophecies, inviting us to reflect on the future’s financial landscape.
00:00:05 Introduction to Economic Chaos: A Financial Prophecy
You can now make purchases with your phone or smartwatch, or buy what you need without leaving home. But is our digital economy a good thing? Today on Turning Point, Dr. David Jeremiah reveals how digital transactions might be more than just a time-saving convenience, but one of the signs of the end times. Here’s David to introduce today’s message, Economic Chaos, a Financial Prophecy. And there’s never been a time like this, ever.
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when more and more we’re moving away from cash and currency and we’re moving toward a digital economy, a cashless environment. And you say, why is that important as we look to the future? Because in the future, that’s how it will work. One man will control the finances of the world. You will have to have his mark or you won’t be able to sell or buy. And it will be hard to understand from our perspective at this point in time with the myriads of people how that could happen. But every year that goes by, we get a little closer to really understanding how it could happen. And it will happen because the Bible produces much information about the economic future. We’re going to talk about that today and tomorrow. It’s a very interesting discussion. I hope you’ll be with us for both days. And if you want to share this material with others, here are some ways to do it. There’s a study guide with all the outlines and scriptures and applications. It’s about 140 pages, and you can get that. There’s a full-length book by the title of Where Do We Go From Here that was published by Thomas Nelson. That’s available. You can get the outlines in the study guide. You can get the full context in the book, or you can get the oral messages on CD and the visual messages on DVD. All of this material we have designed to help you use this material to be strengthened and to strengthen others. Take advantage of this during this series and make sure you get what you need to do what you think God wants you to do as you share this with others. Once again, go to davidjeremiah.org. There you will find everything you need to know about this series. Hey, let’s get started with this discussion about financial situations that we face and will face in the future. Here’s part one of Economic Chaos, A Financial Prophecy. Stylishly bearded and wearing a baseball cap, Juan Osterlin pulls on a pair of surgical gloves and uses a wipe to sterilize the top of his client’s hand. Then with a quick jab, Osterlin inserts a preloaded syringe into the man’s skin and the man gasps as a tiny microchip about the size of a grain of rice and encased in a silicate glass enters his body. It invisibly embeds itself in his hand as the man exclaims, I’m a cyborg. So what do you think? Is that clip from a horror movie or a dystopian television show? Or could it be from the nightly news? Well, this procedure didn’t take place in a dark movie or in the middle of a criminal lair. It happened in the clean and bright offices of a company in Sweden specializing in biochips. The company is called Biohacks International. It’s where Osterlund is the CEO. And he estimates that he has chipped more than 6,000 Swedes during the six years his company has been in business. The microchip that he injects into clients uses radio frequency technology. And you might have a similar chip in your dog or your cat. Chipping pets is a popular way of tracking them if they ever get lost. Some of you probably know about that. But human microchipping is more sophisticated. and it offers a broader range of applications. The chip can be used to open secure doors or log into computers. All you have to do is just wave your hand. It can be used for contactless payments. When the chip is linked with bank or credit accounts, users can access funds by swiping their hand over the payment terminals. Actual credit cards are no longer needed. The technology has literally gotten under your skin. and it’s coming soon to a hand near you. Embedded microchips will offer you a world without keys, wallets, or other encumbering items, a world where everything is accessible with just a touch. In the future, such biochips will detect illness, monitor your vital signs, and send instant messages to your doctor. Of course, they could potentially be used to track your movements, to reveal your secrets, inform a totalitarian government what you’re feeling and saying. This is both exciting and frightening at the same time. Osterlund believes his company’s success is connected to Sweden’s culture of embracing new technology, technology that still frightens people in other parts of the world. The geopolitical situation historically gives us the kind of initial higher trust in the government, he said. I think a lot of people would be way more apprehensive in a lot of countries than we are here in Sweden. Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m very apprehensive about that. It’s bad enough what they can do through your cell phone. If you have something embedded in your skin, you are lost to yourself and you have no idea what’s going on. In fact, I’ll tell you right now, I know enough about what’s happening that you have no idea what’s going on right now just with your cell phone and other devices that you have that you think you’re totally under control. Well, maybe you’re thinking, doesn’t the Bible say something about this sort of thing? Haven’t I heard about something being stamped on our hands or on our foreheads? Yeah, you have. You’re right, the evolving biometric chip technology reminds us of a prophecy that’s found in Revelation chapter 13, verses 16 to 17. It’s a passage predicting something that will happen at the end of history during the Great Tribulation. Now, having heard the story I’ve told you about what’s happening in Sweden, listen carefully to these words from the scripture. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name. Could the technology being produced by Osterlin and many others be our foreshadowing of this mark of the beast we read about in the book of Revelation? That’s really worth considering, so we’re gonna do that. This technology is coming more quickly than we know. It’s ahead of schedule, and I suspect we’ll soon be facing some personal choices here in this country with regard to this technology. The appeal and the convenience of these innovations is palpable. Just think about people like me. I can never find my keys. They’re lost most of the time. Just think about the convenience of not ever losing your keys because they’ve sewed it into your hand. That would seem like a good thing, but the downside of it would not be worth the risk. Just think about this technology in the wrong hands. Could it lead us toward the day when a centralized government will control, attack, punish, and monitor all of us? So yes, without being dogmatic or alarmist, it feels like biometric chips could be a precursor of Revelation 13. And we’ll look at that and its ramifications a little bit more later on in this message. But for now, I want you to consider Osterlund’s claim that people in some countries might be apprehensive of having microchips or similar technologies embedded in their skin. Is he correct? Are people pushing back at invasive technology? Doesn’t look like it to me. I mean, we talk about it, people say they’re upset about it, but nothing ever happens. I see multitudes of people, entire nations, choosing to hardwire their lives to devices and move the physical world toward digital without even looking back. And this includes digitizing our relationships, our news, our entertainment, our politics, our health, and yes, even our money. The move toward electronic finances began back in the early 1900s. I remember this a little bit, not as vivid as I do now having read about it. But it’s when department stores and a few gas companies began issuing their own proprietary cards. Some of you are shaking your heads up and down because you remember that too. That was new. We hadn’t known that before. In 1946, John Biggins introduced charge-it cards, and the Diners Club card showed up in 1950. American Express came along in 1958, and soon thereafter, credit card companies introduced the idea, very lucrative for them, of revolving credit. I hope that doesn’t give you a sick feeling in your stomach when I say that. With the onset of the Internet, everything became digitalized. Today, like it or not, we’re all relying on the security and trustworthiness of electronic systems and massive banks to manage our savings and handle our finances. Few people are stuffing cash under their beds anymore. They’re not stockpiling physical commodities like gold, jewels, or currency. And most workers get their salaries now as direct deposits into their bank accounts. which they access through websites and smartphone apps. We can buy almost anything we want with the click of a mouse or the tap of a finger, downloadable entertainment, mutual funds, household items, and even entire homes. Cash and checks are practically obsolete. Remember those birthday cards with a special slot for a check or a dollar bill? That’s yesterday’s gift. Now grandparents transfer money instantly through apps like PayPal or Zelle, and a growing number of churches collect their tithes through digital platforms. I don’t have a problem with that. It sure does make people more faithful in their giving. But it’s just another illustration of how we’ve made this massive switch from the way we used to do things, and we seem to be moving into this era of comfort with all kinds of digital transactions. One more item deserves mention. This is pretty up-to-date and pretty right on for right now, and that’s the rise of all digital currencies, also known as cryptocurrencies. While national currencies such as the dollar or the euro are officially backed by government reserves, Digital currencies are decentralized. They don’t have a physical foundation in gold or other tangible assets. Instead, cryptocurrencies exist entirely in the world of cyberspace. They are produced online, stored online, and spent online. Now, many see these digital currencies as the wave of the future. They imagine a world where physical currency has been entirely removed and all transactions are processed digitally. Many voices are even declaring the need for a central bank digital currency, CBDC, which would be a government-backed cryptocurrency designed to be the legal tender of a nation or perhaps even the entire world. more and more people in the western world are buying selling and giving not with physical money coins and bills but through a series of touches on a small screen we love the convenience of managing our accounts from our palms for the most of us this technology is still on the outside of our hand in our smartphones but it’s only two millimeters from where Osterlund would like it to be, under our skin. What does all this mean for us for the future? And is it a sign of the end times? That’s the question. How does this affect the followers of the Lamb right now, today? Let’s turn to Scripture for some answers. What does this mean? Well, as we’ve seen throughout this message, it’s difficult to make definitive statements about future events. There are so many variables at play. Even when we have general principles and prophecies from God’s Word to guide us, we have to be careful about turning those principles and those prophecies into specific predictions about people, places, and events. So I don’t want to leave the impression that a Swedish biochip is necessarily and definitively the biblical mark of the beast. I don’t really believe that. But it’s hard not to see some obvious trend lines. And there’s one thing I can say with confidence. Money will play an essential role in all of the events of the future, including the end times. There’s a couple of chapters in the book of Revelation where the economic center of the world at that time, Babylon, is destroyed. And it occupies dozens of verses talking about the destruction of Babylon, the center of monetary world. So money’s always been important in the past. Everything connected with economics is increasingly important today. But it’s driving our world. I think we can assume money will remain important in the future. and that it will dominate our world even more in days to come. Get ready. So the Bible is rich with information on this topic. Specifically, scripture reveals that money will have an impact on the end times, both leading up to and during the period known as the Tribulation. Let’s talk about three of the most important financial signs of the end time. Number one, the addiction to money. Can you be addicted to money? Do you know anybody that’s addicted to money? 2 Timothy 3, 1 and 2 says, but know this, that in the last days, perilous times will come for men will be lovers of money. It’s easy to think of Wall Street when we read these verses, but we also must grapple with this personally. Paul said that the end times will be a period defined by rejecting what is good and running to embrace what is evil. And much of that will be centered on an ever-increasing appetite for money. That matches what Paul had previously written to Timothy, a verse that’s often misunderstood, but listen to it carefully. For the love of money is the root of all evil, for which some have strayed from the faith and their greediness and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. I always like to tell people that Paul did not say that money was the root of all evil. How many of you know money’s neutral? It’s what we do with money that creates the issue. And Paul said in Timothy, it’s not money that’s evil, it’s the love of money. I want you to listen to something that John Piper wrote about this. He said, God deals in the currency of grace, not in the currency of money. Money is the currency of human resources. So the heart that loves money is a heart that pins its hopes and pursues its pleasures and puts its trust on what human resources can offer. So the love of money is virtually the same as faith in money. Belief and trust and confidence and assurance that money will meet your needs and make you happy. And there are many, many people that you and I know, that’s what drives their life. They believe that if they get enough of it, if they can just get a little bit more of it, And if they can store it away, they’re going to be okay, and they’ll be ready, and they can relax and not worry. And it seems like it takes them all their life to do it, and just when they get what they think is enough, they die. And they give that money to somebody else who hasn’t worked for it and usually doesn’t know what to do with it. And you know the story. There are so many people that you and I know who try to insulate themselves behind a fortress of materialism. They put their hope in money as a means for buying protection and purpose, power and pleasure. They wear money on their sleeves like cufflinks so others will think more highly of them or at least be envious of them. They invest everything in what is temporary and completely ignore what is eternal. Our addiction to wealth will only grow stronger as we approach the end of history. So let me just say to you, don’t let it happen to you. This is our culture, but it cannot be our character. Later in this message, I’ll give you some safeguards that have helped me. You don’t want to let money get control of your life. If you become addicted to money, it will ruin you and everyone around you. I’ve seen it over and over and over. It’s just a sad thing to see people get addicted to money. And you know in your heart that it’s going to leave them empty and sad. Every day, if you watch the news, there’s a story about that. And you can study it for yourself. Then here’s another thing that seems quite interesting because there’s a lot of discussion about this right now, and that’s the acceleration of inequality. The last days say that there will be an increasing amount of inequality as far as wealth is concerned. As I’ve been saying, the tribulation is the coming seven-year period during which God will complete his discipline of Israel and bring his wrath to bear on the evil of the world. Within the book of Revelation, chapter six through 19, the future period of tribulation is described. It’s a good thing to read Revelation six through 19, but don’t do it before you go to bed. Read it in the morning. Because if you read it at night, you will not go to sleep, I promise you. At the beginning of this section in Revelation six, we read about things that will occur near the beginning of the tribulation. And I want you to listen to this passage carefully, and then I’ll explain to you what it means. When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, come and see. So I looked and behold a black horse and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, a quart of wheat for Denarius and three quarts of barley for Denarius and do not harm the oil and the wine. Now that’s kind of a wordy statement, but what’s going on here? The passage describes the seal of judgment during the tribulation, and it paints a picture of worldwide famine. The black horse is a symbol of famine, and it is a time of judgment when resources will be sparse. Many will be thrown into abject poverty and hunger and despair. In those days, a denarius, which was what you get for working for one day, a quart of wheat will sell for a denarius during the tribulation period. A quart of wheat wasn’t very much. In fact, it was not enough to sustain a family. And then it goes on to say that three quarts of barley could also be bought for Denarius. Imagine a day of back-breaking labor, getting up early in the morning, going out and working your tail off, if I can use that expression, and come back and realize all you got that day was a quart of grain, and it isn’t even enough to feed your family for one day. The Living Translation puts it this way, a loaf of wheat bread or three loaves of barley will cost a day’s pay and don’t waste the olive oil and wine. Now this verse describes a period of time when basic staples and supplies will be outrageously expensive because of the broader condition of the world. We know it as inflation. We’ve experienced that periodically in our world’s history. One of my favorite stories about this is what happened in Germany when inflation happened. And it took so much money to buy food at the grocery store, you couldn’t carry it in your car. And there’s this story about a man who went to buy groceries, and in order to have enough money to buy groceries, he had to take a wheelbarrow and fill it up with money because everything was so expensive. He went to the grocery store, bought his food with all that money. And when he came out, somebody had stolen his wheelbarrow because it was way more valuable than anything that was in it. That’s the kind of disparity that there will be in terms of financials in that time. The tribulation will be a period of extreme economic inequality. Most people will struggle to find basic supplies just to get through the day. Yet, perhaps those who gave themselves most fully to an addiction of money prior to the tribulation are going to have a hard time just getting enough money to get through the day. They will continue to indulge in a luxurious lifestyle, but they won’t have any way to support it. Now, it says something here about oil and wine. It says, touch not the oil and wine. Oil and wine were the commodities of luxury, of well-heeled people. They didn’t deal in barley and wheat. They dealt in oil and wine. And the scripture says don’t touch that. So all the wealthy people kept all their wealth. All the poor people got poorer and poorer. It sounds like a description of socialism. Socialism cries out for equality and they say, everybody’s going to be equal. Let’s make everybody equal. If you study any socialist nation, you discover what a joke that is. What happens is the poor people get poorer and the people who control the wealth get richer and the disparity in the economy is gross. I believe that when Jesus comes back, socialism will be rampant on this earth. So here’s another area in which COVID-19 fired up the wrong rockets. While millions of Americans lost their jobs in 2020, the net worth of American billionaires rose by 35%, from $3.4 trillion in January 2020 to $4.6 trillion in May of 2021 during COVID-19. An old saying goes like this, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. And we’re seeing that truth today. And we’ll see it even greater of inequality as we get closer to the tribulation. What we’re seeing now, and this is on the news about every day, about the inequality of income. Why is it, it goes into this whole thing about privilege and why some people have some money and other people don’t. Well, don’t be surprised by that because that’s the front edge of what’s going to happen in a full-blown way during the tribulation period. The issue of income equality will be a big driver in the tribulation chaos. And can you imagine that and the popularity of the word affordability right now? Everybody’s talking about equality, affordability, and, of course, the inroads of socialism into some of our major cities driving that topic. You’d almost think you had read the script when you read the scripture because it’s happening. The early stages of it are in operation right now. We’ll have more about this tomorrow here on Turning Point. I hope you’ll join us then. Make this a daily habit as we open the Scriptures together. Recently, I’ve met so many people who tell me that they just never miss Turning Point. They listen every day. Some people have told me they haven’t missed it in years, that every day they listen, and then on the weekends they watch. I cannot tell you what it means to us here at Turning Point to know that we have such faithful people who hang in there with us every day and study with us and have a desire to know the truth. I hope you’ll continue to do that as God gives you His strength, and we’ll be here for you the best we can every day. We’ll see you tomorrow. Thanks for listening. Have a good day.
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For more information on Dr. Jeremiah’s series, Where Do We Go From Here?, please visit our website where we also offer two free ways to help you stay connected, our monthly Turning Points magazine and our daily email devotional. Sign up today at davidjeremiah.org slash radio. That’s davidjeremiah.org slash radio. Or call us at 800-947-1993. Ask for your copy of David’s new book, Understanding Biblical Prophecy, a 30-day Bible study. It’s a powerful resource, and it’s yours for a gift of any amount. You can also purchase the Jeremiah Study Bible in the English Standard, New International, and New King James versions, available in a variety of handsome cover options. Get all the details when you visit our website, davidjeremiah.org slash radio. This is David Michael Jeremiah. Join us tomorrow as we continue, Where Do We Go From Here? on Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah.
