Prophesying Peace

 From early times the prophets who preceded you and me have prophesied war, disaster and plague against many countries and great kingdoms.  But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the Lord only if his prediction comes true. --Jeremiah to Hananiah in Jeremiah 28: 8-9 NIV

This past week has been pretty heavily filled with troubling news of the state of the US and world economy, the changing (or vanishing) moral values of my country and others in the world, social unrest, wars and rumors of wars, various natural disasters, and even cruelty to animals. Just turn on the television and watch, and "The sights you see will drive you mad" (Deuteronomy 28: 34 NIV).

I cannot point you to a political savior, or some educational program that will stem the tide of broken homes. I cannot think of a way to stop hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires, nor can I prevent diseases such as cancer from touching you (or a family close to you).  I'd love to tell you, "this wound is not serious" (Jeremiah 6:14), but it is.

I have something even worse to tell you--it's getting worse, and it's going to keep getting worse, unless this nation and this world turn back to God in humility and repentance and begin to obey Him.  I'm simply citing what the prophets wrote down, centuries ago.

Prophesying Peace

Deuteronomy chapter 28, for instance, seems to accurately describe all the things we are beginning to encounter today.  It can be summarized in two parts: (1) If you bless and honor God and His laws individually and as a nation, He will bless and prosper every facet of your life (even preventing disease and natural disasters), both individually and collectively; (2) If you turn away from God and do not obey His laws, both individually and collectively, He will curse you in every aspect of life (even bringing diseases and natural disasters), and eventually hand you over to a conqueror. Don't just take my word for this. Follow the link and read it for yourself.

When I see this distressing news all around me, I recognize it as a symptom of a spiritual decline, while it seems that many people around me dismiss God and are still looking for a physical, earthly solution.  What solutions do we have? Some people say the results of this upcoming US election will decide the fate of many nations.  Some people are looking for a scientific breakthrough. Some keep saying that if we just "believe in ourselves" and "spread a little love" that the chaos around us will go away.

I've heard these ideas often enough that they seem like prophecies to me; however, they have never come true.  They've been coming for decades, and yet things keep getting worse.  So, I'm ruling them out as false.  There must be another path to peace!

The Prophet Truly Sent by the Lord

It seems to me that there are only two ways to achieve peace on a large scale: (1) Take away the crowd's power and ability to resist (i.e. an enforced peace), (2) Change people's hearts until they no longer want the things that cause unrest.  I don't want the first choice. This is what God predicted (even promised) for those who reject Him.  In the past, this was accomplished by the Babylonians and the Romans, to name two.  Someday, it will be accomplished by a great political world leader, who the Bible calls the Antichrist, who will come with a bow (but no arrows) and will conquer (Revelation 6:2).

The second choice is Christ, who now proclaims peace in the hearts of those who know Him (Zechariah 9: 9-10; Luke 4: 16-21), and who has promised (read: prophesied) He will someday bring peace to the earth as well (see Matthew 23: 37-39; Jerusalem ironically means "City of Peace").  This first peace, which He has already brought, is a peace in our hearts. It is a freedom from the entrapment, shame, and punishment of sin.  It changes us (2 Corinthians 5:17). Because it is so disconnected from our circumstances, it is a peace that lasts when there is no peace around.
  
So what Jesus Christ prophesied has come true--from His death to His resurrection, from His message to His mission. What He promised, He did. Shouldn't we recognize that He has "truly [been] sent by the Lord" to bring us the "solution" to all our problems?  Since He fulfilled His promises, can't we trust Him that He will fulfill the last one (upon His return)?

Since some people have said that blog posts of this sort are "too depressing," I want to end this post with a clear message of hope, which is the entirety of my intent.  Although circumstances are bad (and if we linger on them, we can get depressed), there is a clear path to peace, a clear lasting joy, and an enduring hope.  They are all found in a personal relationship with Christ.  Seek Him. Know Him. Follow Him. Obey Him.  Christ has spoken peace into a troubled world, so believe what He said!

Trust and the Sabbath

Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work....For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.--Exodus 20: 9-11

For some time now, I have been pushing myself so hard in my work that I've pretty much worked right through the weekend.  Besides the fact that I feel guilty about my failure to take a proper Sabbath, I've heard (and can personally confirm) that this kind of schedule is bad for creating burnout and heightening stress levels.  So, this past weekend, I really tried to stop. I really did. I ended up feeling restless and even bored, and found myself switching the computer on again, just to fill the boredom.

This experiment revealed some weaknesses in me that I need to correct. It also made me think a little more about the purpose of the Sabbath in Biblical times.  Most obviously, it was symbolic of the rest that we could find in Christ, who opened the doors of heaven for those who believe in Him (see Hebrews 4: 8-11).  Without minimizing this very important meaning, I also wanted to point out some subtler messages that the sabbath rest sends.

To a mostly agrarian society, the idea of completely stopping all work one day of the week was pretty radical. A lot can happen with livestock in one day (obviously, the Bible made allowances for helping an animal in distress on the Sabbath).  Also, if a person is harvesting a field and has to stop for a day of rest, what could happen to the unharvested crop in the meantime? This carries forward today, even in non-agrarian jobs, when a worker has to leave a project half-completed, and wonders if he or she did "enough" to stem the work overload when Monday comes.

There is also the worry about finances that creeps over people when they are not working. Taking a whole day off makes people very aware of the fact that they are not making money at that moment, especially those who make little money anyway, or those who have a lot of bills.  Since money buys food, clothing, and shelter, and these things are essential for life, taking a day off is almost like jeopardizing survival.  It can be scary!

On top of these basic worries, there is a feeling of lost esteem that can overtake people who are used to actively working at a job.  There may be few people to interact with on a day off, and no accolades or any kind of emotional reward.  This is perhaps the most subtle loss of all.

So, I guess what I'm saying is that, besides the spiritual symbolism, the Sabbath is a trust exercise that God established to teach us about Him and to clear up our misconceptions about work.  We can get so involved in our work that we begin to think we can control our futures and buy our salvation and security with our efforts, and we begin to value ourselves by our labor. God wants us to see that He guards our interests, provides for our needs, and gives us the value and attention that we secretly desire--but we need to trust His word on it!  Through Christ, God's only son, God has prepared and established a future for those who know Him which can never be taken away--not even by a catastrophe that sweeps over us in one day. The work of preparation, and the work of salvation, is already done. Now He just wants us to enjoy it with Him.

Let me reiterate my point: Work is good, but it serves a different purpose from establishing salvation, protecting our futures, or giving us our value. God has already done all of that, so if at all possible, we should take time from our labors to acknowledge and truly enjoy this new-found rest with Him.  That is what the Sabbath is for--a weekly reminder of God's power and provision.

Heed the Warnings

The evening news has been rather disturbing this week, bristling with stories of Christian persecution worldwide, as well as a declining moral climate and an increased acceptance of sin, especially in the legal arena.

Meanwhile, I have been reading through Jeremiah again.  I don't think I'm imagining things when I see similarities between the ancient Jewish culture in that book and today's culture.  The prophet told those people to repent or face punishment, and in chapter 18, he went through an elaborate demonstration and object lesson to convey this message. Even so, the leaders and officials seemed unimpressed.  They scoffed and said, "It's no use. We will continue with our own plans" (Jeremiah 18:12). These days, a similar reply would be, "You go your way, I'll go mine."  Even the threat of God's wrath, or of suffering and danger, was not enough to shake them or change their minds.

I bring up Jeremiah because I am concerned for the United States and many other so-called Christian countries of the world that have been making world news headlines recently with immorality and scandal. If God judged sin in those days with drought, famine, plague, violence, and ultimately invasion from a foreign power, what is to prevent Him from judging sin the same way now? I'm also deeply concerned that I've been seeing the same unimpressed, lackadaisical response to the threat of God's wrath in today's world as there was, long ago.

This is all very troubling. I could delve deeply into the situation, but there is not enough room in this blog post, or my schedule.  Besides, my main point is to call my readers to prayer and revival.

The sky is not falling; God is still in control, no matter what the newspapers say.  However, where there is sin to be given up, we should seek the Lord's forgiveness and change our ways. It is time for Christians to gather and pray for each other, and to pray for revival--a return to the Lord and His ways--worldwide.  The world doesn't need our charity as much as it needs our Savior.  It doesn't need our condolences as much as it needs His comforting.

I am praying nightly for these things. Care to join me? Set aside some time every evening, perhaps right after the evening news goes off on television, to pray for your neighbor, your nation, and any country in the world that you heard about on the news.  It may only take a moment, but it is a significant step!  Ask the Lord to reveal sin and bring about a desire for Him in the hearts of those you are praying for (that includes yourself and your own household).  Pray for the missionaries, preachers, and lay ministers.  Petition the Lord for a harvest of souls, and a change in the world through revival. Pray for the Lord's guidance and protection in this increasingly dangerous world. See you at the prayer closet!

Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.  Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts.  Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. (Isaiah 55: 6, 7 NIV)