Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Peace and Safety

"While people are saying, "Peace and safety", destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape."
1 Thessalonians 5:3

When Paul wrote those words to the Thessalonians, he was talking about eschatological matters; the second advent of Jesus Christ. It will be a glorious day and it will be a day of mourning and destruction. Some will go on to eternal peace and joy, while others will move on to an eternity of separation from God. It will not end well for those that refuse faith in Jesus. Fear will rule the day among the unbelievers.

And is fear not the major issue of our time? The world is rife with fear and fear mongering. Everyone seems to be afraid of something. Global Warming (now called climate change), currency failures, ISIS, ISIL, Al Qaeda, the Russians, the North Koreans, the Iranians - these things all strike fear in the hearts of westerners just as the Third Reich did in 1939 when blitzkrieg brought Europe to its knees.

My personal opinion about many of these things is that they are manufactured by western governments to control their populations for the advancement of the American Empire and consolidation of the financial and corporate interests that actually rule the world. Constant fear mongering, defensive posturing and promotion of hate with an attitude of fear toward perceived enemies in the interest of maintaining control is the rule of the day.

We even fear the weather. We can't go to work or to school or to church if the weather is a bit threatening because something awful might happen.

You know what? Something awful might happen in any second, in any day in any year at any time.

Why is it that we live in an age where we expect protection and peace and safety all the time and we  are willing to give up the most basic of our freedoms to ensure that nothing bad happens?

It's time for the fear to stop. We have to stand up to it, look it in the eye and say, "No More".

Brethren, we are better than that. We have something that all the nations, governments, corporations and banks that control this world do not have!

1 Thessalonians 5:5,6

"But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this Day should surprise you like a thief in the night. You are all Sons of the Light and Sons of the Day.   We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like the others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self controlled."

Ephesians 6:10-12

"Finally be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

Fear is the opposite of faith. We need to stop allowing fear to rule our lives so that we can actually live. It is the last major tool that Satan has at his disposal and it works in the world and seemingly in God's church. It has to stop. We have to stop allowing it to dictate where we go, what we do and how we vote. If fear is not conquered, in the end, we become slaves. God did not intend us to be slaves to anything but His righteousness.

It's time to re-examine our approach. Just sayin'.