With an utterly underwhelming lack of response to my last post on "what action hero are you", I've decided to go back to my prophetic music series. If you haven’t read the first two posts in this series, read here and here first.

Satan has a far greater understanding of the power of music than we do. It’s why he is giving so much time and effort into making sure all sorts of music that directs men away from Jesus gets thrust into the ears and hearts of men today. According to the Psychology Press, “music is a complex acoustic and temporal structure that induces a large variety of emotional responses in listeners.” Scientists and psychologists have debated much over the issue of music and its affect on human emotions. Practical investigations have demonstrated that basic emotions, such as happiness, anger, fear, and sadness, can be recognized in and created by musical stimuli. Some hospitals are even using “music therapy” to make people feel better and heal faster . The simple question which continues to baffle scientists is simply “how can vibrating air and sound waves affect human emotions?”

Sound waves alone do not have the direct power to influence the way a human feels or thinks, so there must be another unseen factor that causes movement of the human heart. If there is no natural explanation available, perhaps it is because the influence is supernatural? I think the reason is clear - there is some sort of spirit associated with music. This added supernatural dimension behind the vibrating air and sound waves certainly does have the ability to affect the human heart.

Satan’s worship movement

Satan, with the armies of hell fully backing him and his plan, is raising up a global worship movement in which he and the Antichrist will be worshipped and obeyed by several billion people. (Rev. 13:4-13)

Music is already playing a big role and its importance to Satan’s end-time plans will only escalate as the hearts of billions are drawn covertly into hatred of God. Psalm 2 gives us a glimpse into the nations’ ultimate rejection of God and His ways at the end of the age, but the deep hatred David prophesies of does not just develop overnight. Paul describes it in Romans 1:18-32 as a process that begins with the “dulling down” of one’s convictions about God’s nature and heart of gratitude towards Him, trusting in one’s own wisdom and strength, entertaining desires for pleasure and want in things apart from God, and giving one’s loyalty to idols and other worthless, lifeless things. The message coming through so much of the music Satan is spewing out today is moving the hearts of men in that very direction. Music today exalts human desire and lust and exalts the humanistic agenda and need for none but himself. Music that makes men “feel good” in their self-righteousness apart from the Lord and His righteousness is just the beginning of the deception that will eventually lead to men openly worshipping Satan and blaspheming God in the darkest hour of human history. I believe Al Gore’s “Save Our Selves” music concerts that took place in the summer were just firstfruits of the humanism movement that is gaining strength and building in intensity all over the globe. It’s no oddity at all that music was one of the driving forces of the humanistic campaign to help save the environment.

Worship

Worship, in a simple definition, is agreement and a pledging of one’s loyalty to another. Satan’s worship movement will cause the earth to have a deep heart connect and agreement with him, and will cause the earth to pledge their loyalty to him. Because his goal is to divert loyalty to Jesus and the true worship movement, he raises up two important players in his movement to accomplish his goal - the Antichrist and the false prophet. Revelation 13 gives us frightening insight into these two men:

4 “So they worshiped the dragon (Satan) who gave authority to the beast (Antichrist); and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast (Antichrist)? Who is able to make war with him?”
8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him (Antichrist), whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
12 And he (false prophet) exercises all the authority of the first beast (Antichrist) in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast (Antichrist), whose deadly wound was healed. He (false prophet) performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.”
(Rev 13:4,8,12-13 NKJV)

Satan fully knows the role of music in God’s end-time strategy and is focusing much time and energy in attempting to counterfeit the true worship movement. The record industry today is full of covetousness, immorality, and darkness.

Imagine demons appearing as “angels of light” (2 Cor. 11:14) in massive humanistic “worship” festivals attended by millions of people. Verse 12-13 tells us that Antichrist’s “right hand man”, the false prophet, will use many great false signs and wonders to convince millions of people of Antichrist’s authenticity. Satan will use all of the tools at his disposal - not just false music and false preaching but signs and wonders - to deceive many into worshipping him.

9 The coming of the lawless one (Antichrist) is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception... (2 Thes. 2:9-10)

24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. (Mt. 24:24)

In Revelation 13, John tells us that The image of the Beast and the mark of the Beast will be two components that will mobilize and finance the Antichrist’s global worship movement. The image of the Beast will mobilize Antichrist’s worshippers the mark of the Beast will provide economic support for the Antichrist’s worship movement - refusing to worship the image and refusing to take the mark incur severe penalties for those who resist.

Satan is so much more deceptive, crafty, and patient than we think - he will take his time in his attempt to deceive as many people as possible. Even many believers professing Christ today seem to be able to move in and out of all sorts of dark music by claiming God’s grace to be able to “block it out” or “ignore the lyrics”. I wonder if we really perceive or understand how deceptive Satan’s schemes are. I think if we really understood, we would think twice about what we listen to or give our ears and time to. I think I’ll devote an entire post in this series to that very topic, so let those provoking sentences just wet your appetite for what’s to come in a few posts.

In the next post in the series, I’ll highlight some of the scriptures on Jesus’ worship movement, and where I believe music will take the body of Christ before Jesus returns.