What is the mark of the beast according to Les?
The mark of the beast is an 18-digit computer number placed on the right hand or forehead, possibly visible only under ultraviolet light, enabling electronic buying, selling, and salary transactions. It is tied to the Antichrist, appears during the tribulation, and believers will not be present to take it.
Les teaches that the mark of the beast is not merely a symbolic idea but an 18-digit computer number. He explains that the false religious leader will cause all people, small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand or forehead so that no one may buy or sell unless they have the mark, the name of the beast, or the number of his name. He notes that computers are based on numbers, pointing to the universal product code and its three sets of numbers. Since computers came on the scene in the early seventies, he has been convinced the mark is an 18-digit computer number put on the hand or forehead, maybe visible only under ultraviolet light, so that at a checkout line or when receiving salaries, a person simply shows the number and everything is electronically computed. He says it will not come until the Antichrist comes and the tribulation begins, and believers will not be there, so a Christian does not have to worry about being forced to take it.