When I was a young girl my parents took me to a seminar on Daniel and Revelation. There on the big screen were pictures of terrifying beasts with horns and fiery red eyes. Sometimes I would close my eyes. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what was in the rest of Revelation. Too scary!
Revelation chapter 13 introduces two beasts, the beast out of the sea and the beast out of the earth. The sea beast is especially wild with seven heads and ten horns. He’s stealthy as a leopard and has a mouth like a lion. Watch out! But the second beast is lamb-like. It looks harmless, but it’s not.
Why did God put scary looking beasts in Bible prophecy? Why did he put harmless looking beasts in the Bible? Good questions to ask! God doesn’t do anything by accident.
Here’s a clue. The Bible says this:
“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness.” Isaiah 5:20a
Satan is very, very evil. Those that follow Satan do very, very bad things. When God tells us about Satan and the earthly powers he controls, He tells us the truth. He does not lie and make Satan seem less evil than he is. God will never make evil look good. So scary beasts are a fitting symbol for powers controlled by Satan (Rev. 13:2). God also warns us about the deceptive ways of the devil and how he will try to make evil look good, especially in the last days of earth’s history.
The Trickster
Unlike God, Satan tries to make himself look good by tricking us.
Satan loves to take the symbol of himself, which is a dragon, and make it cute and likable. There’s bunches of children’s stories and movies with cute, friendly dragons. Think Pete’s Dragon. He also uses the imagery of beasts and makes them look kind and good. You know, especially if they are misunderstood. Satan starts planting seeds in our minds, Maybe the devil can’t be that bad. Maybe he got a bad deal. You know, give the beast a chance, he’s actually better than the prince. Especially when the prince is portrayed as a proud bigoted character. Disney is really good at this. Beauty and the Beast anyone? It’s a fitting movie of just how the devil would like us to see him vs. the prince of peace, Christ Jesus. It’s a false picture of God and a false picture of Satan. But it’s extremely clever!
So remember this – beware of friendly dragons! Likewise, beware of wooing beasts! The more I see how sneaky Satan is the less I want to give him any access to my mind. Don’t be fooled into thinking Disney movies are just fantasy and a harmless, fun way to spend an evening of innocent entertainment. They are very carefully crafted pieces of doctrine. When watched over time, one after another, they will change the way you think.
The following documentary really opened my eyes to how the devil is using even kids movies to plant the seed of a distorted view of the Kingdom of Heaven. You can watch the preview below and rent/or buy by clicking the rent button.
Magic Kingdom from Little Light Studios on Vimeo.
We Can Trust God
The Bible portrays evil as scary looking beasts because Satan and the people he controls are really, really evil. God always tells the truth. He also warns us that the devil will use deception in the last days. He will make evil look good, and good look evil. However, God warns us through his Word about the sneaky ways of the beasts so we don’t have to fear them or be fooled by them. By standing on the truth of God’s word we will be less likely to fall for Satan’s deceptions. God loves you so much. You can trust Him and his Word.
What is your experience with the beasts of Revelation? Do you think we should teach our children about them?
Have you ever questioned the content of Disney and other children’s movies? Leave your comments below and join the conversation.
