Conversations with God 3
Opinions on the Mark of the Beast and The Singularity
“We are told to remember the idea, not the man because a man can fail. He can be caught, he can be killed and forgotten, but 400 years later, an idea can still change the world.” - V for Vendetta
Have you ever wondered how movements are born from an idea? An idea can be so tenacious that individuals from all economic backgrounds, language barriers, and geographical borders come together to build around it. The story of Christ is a great example of this concept. During the reign of the great Roman Emperor Julius Caesar, a peasant in an unknown part of the world inspired a movement that eventually overtook the same Empire that put him to death. Two millennia later, the movement of Christ persists through all economic backgrounds, language barriers, and geographical borders. The Christian Faith continues to grow and is more popular than ever. After all, in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please God …. God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.”
So what’s the hook? Is this article about Bitcoin, AI, the metaverse…or any of the topics I frequently write about? Sometimes I just want to free-flow my thoughts and not be limited. People who have been reading my blog for a while know that I’m a Christian, and sometimes I just want to write about God. A topic that fascinates me at the moment is the philosophy of society as it approaches the technological singularity. The singularity is a belief that technological growth will become uncontrollable and irreversible at a point in the future. Resulting in drastic changes to human civilization. Christianity accounts for this moment in time and warns us in the book of Revelation to be wary. This period will be filled with deception from false prophets and the dreaded Mark of the Beast. Revelation 13:16, “And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or their foreheads.” I would consider myself to be a technology enthusiast… a cyberpunk. As a Christian, my moral compass is guided by the Bible and governed by Christ. The intersection of my moral philosophy and cyberpunk nature results in someone who roots for rapid technological advancement, but also clamors for individual digital sovereignty. In laments terms, “I want flying cars, but I don’t want to violate the covenants that I’ve made with God.”
The value of individual digital sovereignty in the age of singularity is the power to not be forced by any governing body to engage in a control system. Multiple open-sourced protocols provide alternate ways to interact with vital systems. Revelation 13:17, “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.” Many will engage in this system by choice. Some for convenience, others to keep up with the latest trends, some convinced by ‘influencers’, and others forced by their governments. The choice to opt-out is the power of the people. Today we build technology to advance our capabilities but tomorrow we need technology to guarantee our very existence. * dramatic pause * . We also want the choice to opt-out if society is going down a path that we simply don’t agree with. The vast majority of the world is easily influenced by advertising and mass marketing. Some of that propaganda spewed by the media goes directly against Christian beliefs. As Malcolm X once said, “The media's the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that's power. Because they control the minds of the masses.” Therefore, like-minds must pioneer alternative paths through open-source technology to preserve our digital sovereignty in the future ruled by the singularity. We cannot have a centralized entity limit access to vital systems and services. The future must be decentralized.
I was born for such a time as this - Esther 4:14
God reveals who you are to yourself. I remember when I first found God, I was not happy with the decisions I was making up to that point. I thought my problem was that I was too much of a radical free thinker and that I needed to reign it in to become successful. The opposite was true, I wasn’t radical enough, then God revealed to me that I need an environment shift. I needed to surround myself with like-minds to hone my talents. Which is the complete opposite experience than what I expected. I thought God would limit me and make me like everyone else, but he made me even more me…a better me. The story of Jesus Christ is one of a radical. Someone willing to break social traditions to pioneer a counter-cultural revolution. Not based on control, wealth or violence, but on peace. Jesus Christ’s sermon on the mount is probably one of the most profound articles of literature that I’ve ever read.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” - Matthew 5-7
My faith is very important to me. Every once in a while, I’m going to write an article about it. If not for anyone else, then for me. Be sure to check out a deep philosophical conversation that I had with PIVX Blockchain advisor and Digibyte Foundation Co-Founder, Hans Koning.
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