All of us feel a bit beaten up by life right now. And some of us feel a lot beaten up. We ride emotional roller coasters, sometimes from hour to hour, as we face a variety of challenges we never dreamed of just a few short months ago. As Christians, we know in Whom we place our trust and what our future holds. But when it comes to this world, things keep shaking, while conflicting information and professional opinions bombard us through the news and social media. We become confused as to who or what to believe from such sources. Conspiracy theories abound that seem to carry some credence according to apparently credible new information coming to light. It can overwhelm us if we don’t follow the Biblical exhortation to, “set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand” (Col. 3:1 NLT).
I fight my own battles to maintain that focus. Anger and frustration have been my default more often than fear during this time, although I’ve had my share of that emotion too. I’m angry at the misrepresentation, outright lies, and pseudo-journalism found in our media. I am also frustrated and grieved (and yes, sometimes frightened) at how evil seems to be winning while the nice, orderly little world I’d like to live in is becoming less and less of a possibility. I also find myself sometimes resenting the suffering and deprivation the collapse of that neat little world might bring.
As enlightened believers, we know we are in a fierce spiritual battle for the souls of mankind, for cultures and nations. We know that though we are not fighting against flesh and blood, Satan often uses people to advance his destructive, deadly purposes. We are also aware that God is doing good things but they don’t seem as dramatic or forceful, or swift-acting. We want Him to work now and with our strategies and our answers. We tend to attribute more power to injustice and wickedness than it actually possesses so it can be easy to sink into fear, despair, self-pity, or bitterness.
But we must encourage our hearts. The reality our Lord promises is growing in the here and now. Jesus told us to pray that the Father’s will be done here on earth as it is in heaven. He said that the heavenly Kingdom would be within our own hearts. And he called us to be His hands and feet, His voice, to a lost and dying world as the light of His glory pushes back the darkness.
The Bible is overflowing with Scriptures that assure us of God’s prevailing power, His overarching justice and His ongoing victory. He dwells in believers by His Holy Spirit and we share His victorious, resurrection life as we overcome the world through our faith (1 John 5:4-5). He is the King about whom the angel Gabriel said in Luke 1:33, “[He] will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!” He is the object of Daniel’s vision in Daniel 2:34-35 in which a stone fell from heaven and crushed to dust a statue that represented the various kingdoms and rulers of the world. That stone, God’s Kingdom, then became a huge mountain that “covered the whole earth” (vs. 35 NLT). No matter the schemes of puny human beings, Jehovah God will one day stand upon this earth and, “every knee [will] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:9-11 NLT).
That tidy little world I wish for existed at the beginning but the first human disobedience ruined it forever. God promises a far superior, restored creation that will last for eternity and where we will rule and reign with Him if we endure hardship faithfully (2 Tim. 2:11-12). Our Father asks us to focus on that reality and embrace it with the hope that will not disappoint (Rom. 5:1-5).
God’s far surpassing victory and our victory through Him are broad topics that impact our lives powerfully. My next few blogs are going to be about various areas of life where we need to understand this grand triumph in order to be encouraged during this “present darkness.” Please watch for, “Hell Will Not Prevail Against the Christian.”
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