The worship of the state or its leader is a real and pressing threat to all Christians. Statism can easily become false religion and idolatry whenever the state claims divine prerogatives and privileges for itself. This is the very essence of the beast. Anyone who confesses that “Caesar is Lord” is denying that “Jesus is Lord.” Graphic illustrations of this are the swastika and the Nazi salute to Hitler—relatively recent manifestations of the mark.
