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The sins, future and destiny of society
Noah's generation and the city of Sodom experienced judgment because of their continued wickedness. Is the same possible nowadays?
When talking with people about spiritual matters, you notice that they use all kinds of questions as excuses to justify not turning to God such as: Is the Bible really the word of God? Does God really exist? Hasn't the theory of evolution proven that Creation is impossible? Is Jesus really the only way to get to God? They use these questions in a way that allows them to reject God and avoid giving their lives to Him. This writing is about the destiny of society. Just as people can reject eternal life and consider it cheap, so can they be careless about this subject. They fail to note that things can take a turn for the worse and God can withdraw His blessing and protection from our society. The further evil and sins proceed among people, the more likely this is. At some point, we may reach a point where God loses patience and society will be faced with judgement as in the days of Noah and Lot. The Western world may already be close to this point.
"Nicky, Dave said that God does have the right to pose the same question to our current society. What are the differences between the West and the corrupt Sodom? Are we better than the generation of Noah? Or the people of Lot's times? Are we better than the corrupt inhabitants of Ammon? Are we somehow more worthy than Ninenev that was destroyed by God? Based on the evidence from the past, why should God save us since we are doing seven times more evil things than the corrupt people of the past?" (1)
LESSONS FROM HISTORY. History has repeatedly shown the same thing: people don’t learn from mankind’s history or their experiences. They repeat the same mistakes. Even though terrible things happened in the past, people don’t change their ways. They choose the wrong thing, again and again. This is what happens in the economic sphere, in morality, in the choices of leaders and in following them, and in everything that touches human life. If decades have passed since bad times or people themselves have not experienced difficult times, they are more inclined to make the wrong choices. Instead, those who have learned from difficult experiences are more cautious and understand that bad times can happen again. Another thing many people ignore is the history recorded in the Bible. The Bible tells us about many people whose sin and evil met God’s limit. They had to face the wrath of God. These people included the Canaanites, Babylonians, Sodomites and Gomorrans (the latter two were residents of Sodom and Gomorrah. These cities are mentioned in the Ebla clay tablets found at Ebla; they were real places). The people living during Noah’s time, and the tribes of Judea and Israel all faced God’s judgement. The Bible tells us about them so we won’t make the same mistakes; we are supposed to learn from history. They are warnings given to us but we often ignore them. We refuse to believe that God will discipline our generation the same way as He disciplined others.
- (Jer 7:12) But go you now to my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.
- (1 Cor 10:9-11) Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. 10 Neither murmur you, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. 11 Now all these things happened to them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, on whom the ends of the world are come.
- (2 Peter 2:6) And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample to those that after should live ungodly;
IS GOD ONLY LOVE? In modern times, it is common to talk only about God's love, but not about holiness. Let's tell how God loves everyone, but does not judge unrepentant sinners or hardened societies. In this idea, God's approval is based on his work of creation. Love becomes God's only attribute. Therefore, the judgments cannot be accepted. They are considered incompatible with God's goodness. However, God's goodness has two sides. He is love and has loved people (1 John 4:9,10, John 3:16, Titus 3:4, Rom 5:8-10), but he is also a perfectly good and holy God. He is so good that he must hate evil. Or if he accepts evil and sees everything through his fingers, how could such a being be good? Many people have this image of God, but if God does not react to evil and opposes it, he cannot be good. That is impossible. Here is the main explanation of why the judgments happen and why the Canaanites who burned their children in the fire and other societies faced their destruction. It happened because the sin debt of the nations had been filled and the wickedness had grown too great (Gen 15:16: But in the fourth generation they shall come here again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full. / Gen 19:15: And when the morning arose, then the Angels hastened to Lot, saying, Arise , take your wife, and your two daughters, which are here; lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city.). David Pawson explains God's ways of working:
Why does God hate? Why does He kill? Why does He curse? Because He is so good! This does not make any sense to us because we cannot experience perfect goodness and thus cannot even fathom it. But God is so good that He must hate evil. He is so good that he must condemn anyone who is not good. He is so good that He must destroy evil people. In fact, this is the explanation for many of the events described in the Bible. (...) So, here we have the Bible's idea of a righteous God who always acts in a righteous manner when dealing with us. This is why He must – due to his righteous nature – always Punish evil. He would be less than good, less than righteous, if He looked through His fingers at evil and never punished evil. He has to do it. He is so good that He doesn't let anyone get away with bad things unpunished. I consider this good news. It means that we are living in a moral universe; it means that nobody will get off lightly. (2)
A quote from historian Josephus touches on the same subject. Josephus wrote that it was no coincidence that Jerusalem, its temple and Israel were destroyed in 70 AD. The generation of that time was more atheistic than any previous generation. The destruction took place on the same day on which the temple of Jerusalem had been destroyed centuries before:
"I suppose that if the Romans' attack on these villains had been delayed, then the earth would have opened and swallowed up this city, or there would have been a drowning flood, or else would have been destroyed by thunderstorm fire and brimstone, as the land of Sodom was once destroyed. This generation was much more atheistic than those once destroyed in the punishment of Sodom; and even then the whole people were destroyed for their folly." (4)
HOW CAN WE KNOW THAT JUDGEMENT IS NEAR?
- (Pro 14:34) Righteousness exalts a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.
Since past societies have been destroyed or been faced with judgement because of their sins, the question is, what kind of conditions were present before the judgment? Next, we will study some characteristics common to all those societies mentioned earlier. We will see that modern Western countries share many of these characteristics.Wealth
- (Ezek 16:49,50) Behold, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.
Abundance before judgment was a feature of Sodom. A great doom is usually preceded by a wave of prosperity, and this is what happened in this city. There seemed to be no end to the good times, but safety, abundance of bread and carefree rest prevailed. These blessings are not wrong as such, but people started to take them for granted, which caused them to drift farther away from God and pay more attention to their wealth and wellbeing. When we read the history of the people of Israel in the Old Testament, we can see the same pattern repeating itself over and over again. God blessed his people and gave them wealth. People became rich and prosperous, but then they forgot their Lord, who is the source of blessings. They took lightly the one who made prosperity possible. We read about the situation in Deuteronomy:
- (Deut 32:15) But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: you are waxen fat, you are grown thick, you are covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
One manifestation of God's blessings is spiritual revivals. He doesn't want anyone to drown, and that's why he strongly attracts people just before judgments or bad times (revivals often follow bad times as well). That's what happened about a hundred years ago just before World War II, when the Welsh revival, Pentecostal movement and other revivals prevailed around the world. Another example is the revivals that preceded the War of Independence and the Civil War in the USA.
(...) "Seven years of great plenty" in the beginning of Pentecost and "seven lean years" at the doorstep of the World War. This is how we first prophesied. We also saw that many churches would follow this. The religious situation became harsher. What next? Luther, in his time, expected for the "end of the world". (5)
The United States [of America] has experienced many great movements of God, but two of them have been so powerful and far-reaching that revival is not an adequate name for them. These were so extraordinary in their social and spiritual effects that historians have designated them as the Great Awakenings. During these tremendous outpourings of God's grace, it seemed as if the entire nation was awakening from its spiritual slumber to the bright realities of God's kingdom. Some towns and villages experienced an almost universal conversion, and entire regions were drawn to the truth of the gospel. Great social changes were made and morality grew - not through changes in the law but through changes of heart. One of these revivals preceded the Revolutionary War and the next the Civil War. Both the Great Awakening and both of these wars profoundly changed the spiritual and social fabric of America. (6)
Continuous hardening is an indication of the nearness of the judgments. It means that people go ever deeper into sin and godlessness, and there is more violence (Gen 6:11). Children engage in worse acts than their fathers, just as happened in ancient Israel and Judea. The situation was good at first there: the people were moral. However, as the years passed, the hardening developed further and further. It ultimately led to the judgment of the nation:
- (Jer 16:12,13) And you have done worse than your fathers; for, behold, you walk every one after the imagination of his evil heart, that they may not listen to me: 13 Therefore will I cast you out of this land into a land that you know not, neither you nor your fathers; and there shall you serve other gods day and night; where I will not show you favor.
What about our modern society and its development? We can see characteristics similar to the society of ancient Israel. Our previous generations honoured Christian values and were closer to God. They did not have computers, cars or material goods to the extent that we have now; neither did they have the kind of immorality we have today. One need only watch some shows on the television to see examples of that immorality. An old lady who has already passed away tells us what life was like some decades ago. She describes material poverty, as well as the moral situation then and now:
But I have to ask: why are people not grateful now? They have food, warm food at school, everything. But they are fussy about food: "I don't want to eat this or that!" Back then, I would have been grateful if I had even bread every day; that was not always the case. That was what life was like back then. This is why the modern generation should know what was the starting point when Finland became independent. It was not easy; by no means. (...) Somehow all the people in Finland were closer to God then because the difficult times caused people to turn to God. Nobody made fun of other people's clothes at school, even though sometimes boys came to school wearing women's shoes. Many boys did not have men's shoes: they wore what they could get their hands on, and the same applied to clothes. Many boys had a flowing women's coat. Everybody could see that the coat had been made for a woman but nobody jeered at the boy because of it. We were happy as long as we had something to wear. ... At that time, there was already this restlessness in the world and there was a lot of it. It was not such restlessness that people were afraid of war, it did not exist yet. I understood that humanity has somehow drifted away from God. People did talk in a civilised manner and had high morals. Drinking or swearing in public was very uncommon then. If there was a party or a gathering, people never cursed or came to the party drunk. People considered such behaviour substandard. Booze and swearing were left out at the times when Finland became independent because people were closer to God, thanks to the times of revivals. This influence lasted until the 30's or even the 40's. People did not talk dirty or rude in public. Everybody was very well-behaved, and polite towards women. Violence was very rare, too. The entire village disapproved if someone hit a woman. Later then this violence began to increase. I fully understood the reason. As people began to reject God and distance themselves from God, the world began to swallow the young. The enemy of the soul began to bring his own doctrines. People used ugly language that was rare before. It still feels bad for me when I hear people in public or in the TV or radio cursing... A responsible person who has experienced these two eras had to be worried about what was to come. Praise the great Lord that He has not allowed the Word to be lost among us altogether! People started to destroy, and later on even question the existence of God! It was a horrible thing to hear for a person whose life God had guided all the way, to whom God was always talking, always explaining things, and who clearly saw that God exists. Is this how far Finns have come from God? What will happen to the nation if it rejects God this way? (7)
Television and its programs are one indication of the change. This media has been in general use for well over 50 years, but during that time there has been a constant change in a more immoral direction. TV show creators and channel owners are like Manasseh, who deceived his own people into sin and hardening, which then led to the destruction of the nation (2 Chron. 33:9,10: So Manasseh made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to err, and to do worse than the heathen, whom the LORD had destroyed before the children of Israel. And the LORD spoke to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not listen.). This is hardly anyone's intention, but the programs are an indication of the direction of development. In our society, people boast about sin, just like the people of Sodom and ancient Israel did: "The show of their countenance does witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe to their soul! for they have rewarded Evil to themselves.” (Isaiah 3:9).If we use this as a benchmark, we have already reached the same situation as the ancient societies. The next quote is about the change that one can see in TV programming. Although the writer is considering a period of only ten years, looking at even this short period of time will show us what has happened. A TV critic describes his observations:
The time has come to stop the bar
Do you remember when the reality veteran Survivor started in Finland in 2001? The nation was shocked by this immorality. The competitors plotted, lied and stabbed each other in the back. The only thing people say about Survivor now is that it is one of the best reality shows ever. Nobody is shocked by the show anymore. The phenomenon is about a natural law like gravity. Once the bar has been lowered, the bar starts to lower itself downwards. Just imagine if in 2001, a pretty woman on TV showed off her tits and begged for money by trying to get horny men to send as many text messages as possible. Such an idea would have been completely rejected then. Today, this is quite normal. In the meantime, you can imagine a list of the most outrageous reality TV series - all the world's worm-eating and stupid island singles. If you were outraged by all such shows, you would not have time for anything else. The falling bar breaks the laws of nature anyway. First of all, the bar doesn't even stop at the ground, but goes below it. Second, the drop goes on forever. Now that we have a horoscope show Astro-tv, next we have a horoscope show featuring bikinis. Then the bikinis can go too. Of course, I might be wrong, and the bar is starting to rise again. I really hope I'm wrong. (8)
The same picture of change and the development of sin in society can be seen from the announcements in which a couple of Finnish TV channels advertised their programs. They bring out the same trait that characterized the societies of Sodom and ancient Israel: boasting about sin. This did not occur in television companies a few decades ago. The programs were advertised with the words:
- "Naughty, brave, lecherous..."
- "If morale is loose on weekends, then on Mondays it is lost."
Good and bad mixed up
- (Isaiah 5:20) Woe to them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
One characteristic of the ancient kingdom of Israel before its judgment was calling evil good and good evil. They rejected what was considered right before and began to favor wrong things. The preachers of the new morality were respected and even called heroes. What about the situation today? It is not much different from ancient Israel. All along, things have been accepted that previous generations thought were wrong. This includes abortion (Thou shalt not kill), promiscuous sexual relations (Thou shalt not fornicate) or homosexual behavior. They have become accepted and respected in one generation, because earlier they were considered wrong. They have been defended with human rights and equality. People do not accept the traditional view that they are a question of lusts and world of thought and sins for which we should repent. It is easy to find a reason why a change in society has taken place. Basically, the reason is that God is no longer believed to be the starting point of morality. If man's origin is from an ape, as Darwin's theory requires, it is natural that different opinions exist. Then all kinds of concepts seem equal, because morality has no fixed point. The same theme appears in a prophecy given to Salvation Army founder William Booth (1829-1912) near the end of his life. Its first paragraph tells how a new generation of political leaders will rise to rule Europe - a generation that no longer fears God in the slightest. That is one of the reasons why a change in morality has taken place and why things that were previously considered wrong are called good.
1. "Then there will be politics without God... The day will come when the official state policy of the entire Western world will be such that no one at any governing level will fear God anymore... a new generation of political leaders will rule Europe, a generation that will no longer be in the least bit afraid of God;Attitude towards strangers
- (Ezek 22:7,29-31) In you have they set light by father and mother: in the middle of you have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in you have they vexed the fatherless and the widow. 29 The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yes, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully. 30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none. 31 Therefore have I poured out my indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed on their heads, said the Lord GOD.
- (Ezek 16:49,50) Behold, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.
Attitude towards strangers, people from other countries and refugees, is one factor that can influence the fate of society, like in ancient Israel. This does not mean that we should give refugees everything -- expensive homes, money to live with and everything ready -- on a silver platter: This could easily cause people who are out of a job or otherwise disadvantaged to feel envious. However, one cause of godly judgement may be indifference or downright violence. If society treats refugees poorly and starts to hate them, its debt of sin is close to God’s limit. A prophecy from the 1960s describes this. It tells also about TV shows and their content:
People will accept what they see and they will not have only one alternative to watch on TV; instead, they will have plenty to watch. The TV will work just as the radio. We will be able to switch from one show to another, and all of them will be full of violence. People will consider this entertaining. The worst imaginable murders and scenes of violence will be staged for people to see, and such behaviour will spread through society. Sexual intercourse will be shown on TV. The most intimate of things that should only be part of a marriage, will be shown onscreen. This will happen and you will see it taking place. The laws we now have will be broken and amazingly lecherous things will be shown to us. People from poor countries will flood to Europe. They will also arrive in Scandinavia and Norway. People will not like the refugees being here, and they will be harsh towards them. They will treat them more and more like Jews before the war. This is when the debt of sin will be filled. This will happen right before Jesus Christ returns – and before WWIII. It will be a short war. Everything I have experienced about war will be like child's play compared to this. It will start like a regular war but it will spread and end with atomic bombs. The air will be so polluted that people will not be able to breathe, and this will happen on several continents. America, Japan, Australia – the rich countries. Water will be polluted. We will not be able to cultivate the land in these places. The people still left in the rich countries will try to escape to the poorer ones that are undamaged. They will be treated there like we treat them here, and they will not be willing to accept us. (9)
Critical attitude towards the Gospel. One piece of evidence showing that judgement is near is the fact that people's attitude towards the Gospel and Jesus Christ is critical. This is what happened before the destruction of Jerusalem and Israel: the people rejected their Messiah. God offered them eternal life and blessings but they rejected these and objected to them until God lost patience. Paul wrote about his people:
- (1 Thess 2:15,16) Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: 16 Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins always: for the wrath is come on them to the uttermost.
What about the situation today? There may not always be outright opposition like in the days of Paul but people in the West are rarely positive towards the Gospel. They are open towards all other philosophies but not towards the Gospel about Christ. They speak of being tolerant and objective but many societies in practice reject the idea that God is the Creator and Jesus is the only Saviour. An example of negativity is trying to get Bible reading, prayers, and the teaching of creation out of schools and society. Our society is increasingly moving in a direction where God and the gospel of Jesus is hated. A good example of a negative attitude can be found in the history of the people of Judah. In the last stage, God’s messengers were mocked and His word was despised. People did not want God in their society, and so God took his protective hand away from society:
- (2 Ch 36:15-17) And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place: 16 But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy. 17 Therefore he brought on them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand.
TWO MATTERS TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT
When we are considering the damaging things and judgement, we must understand two important things. These are:
• God does not want to judge us; He wants to change people. • Accidents and natural disasters are not always the result of sin.
God does not want to judge us; He wants to change people. We must understand that God does not want anything bad to happen to any society. This is a misconception. He may judge a society because of what the society has done but He actually wants every person in each society to turn to Him so that judgement can be avoided altogether. This is proven by several verses in the Bible:
- (Ezek 18:23,32) Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? said the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? 32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dies, said the Lord GOD: why turn yourselves, and live you.
- (Ezek 33:11) Say to them, As I live, said the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn you, turn you from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?
- (2 Peter 3:9) The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
A good example of this is the attitude of Jesus. Since He is the Son of God and a perfect image of God (John 14:9: Jesus said to him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet have you not known me, Philip? he that has seen me has seen the Father; and how say you then, Show us the Father?), He did not want Jerusalem to be destroyed; He cried for the city. This proves that God wants people to be saved, to turn to Him and change. This is always what God wants:
- (Matt 23:37-39) O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you that kill the prophets, and stone them which are sent to you, how often would I have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and you would not! 38 Behold, your house is left to you desolate. 39 For I say to you, You shall not see me from now on, till you shall say, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.
- (Luke 19:41-44) And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, 42 Saying, If you had known, even you, at least in this your day, the things which belong to your peace! but now they are hid from your eyes. 43 For the days shall come on you, that your enemies shall cast a trench about you, and compass you round, and keep you in on every side, 44 And shall lay you even with the ground, and your children within you; and they shall not leave in you one stone on another; because you knew not the time of your visitation.
Accidents and disasters are not always connected to sin. Another misconception is that if a society or a person experiences something bad, it is always because the person or society is worse than others. The destruction of Jerusalem was naturally foreseen, but Jesus denied the concept that everything that happens to us is in connection to sin. This does not have to be the case. Instead, he directed our attention to the fact that everyone must repent or they will drown. Paul later discussed the same subject:
- (Luke 13:1-5) There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And Jesus answering said to them, Suppose you that these Galileans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, No: but, except you repent, you shall all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen, on whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think you that they were sinners above all men that dwelled in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, No: but, except you repent, you shall all likewise perish.
- (Acts 17:22-30) Then Paul stood in the middle of Mars' hill, and said, You men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious. 23 For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore you ignorantly worship, him declare I to you. 24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwells not in temples made with hands; 25 Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he gives to all life, and breath, and all things; 26 And has made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. 29 For as much then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like to gold, or silver, or stone, graven by are and man's device. 30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commands all men every where to repent:
David Pawson teaches about the same thing when talking about the tsunami that happened a couple of years ago on Boxing Day. He warns us away from deducing that all disasters are clearly directed at someone. This may sometimes be the case, but it is not a general rule:
Let us return to the question of natural disasters. We can view them from a biblical viewpoint. First of all, I don't think that the tsunami was directed to anyone in particular. I mean that I do not believe that God selected a specific location or time for the tsunami and the ensuing earthquake. I have heard that some people believe so. I have heard someone say that the place was especially selected. I heard a Muslim mullah say that Allah directed the tsunami against the prostitution taking place in the mostly Buddhist Thailand. He conveniently ignored the fact that Sumatra, a Muslim country, suffered the most. I also heard a Christian preacher say that the tsunami was directed towards Sumatra because Christians have suffered so much in Indonesia and Sumatra is part of Indonesia. He conveniently disregarded the fact that the tsunami caused the most devastation in India in the province of Tamil Nadu that is the most Christian part of India. 13% of the people in Tamil Nadu are Christians, and many Christians in Sri Lanka live near the coastline. This is why I don't believe that we could say that God directed the tsunami against a particular group of people. Neither do I believe that the time was carefully selected. The disaster took place on Boxing Day, a Christian holiday, and during a full moon, which is naturally connected to Islam, but I don't believe that the tsunami was directed to a particular time or place. (10)
GETTING READY FOR THE FUTURE.
The future of society and how a some societies have faced destruction in the past have been discussed above. These examples are a warning to us not to drift into the same path. But, as noted, difficult times may also be due to factors other than some particular judgment. Difficult conditions and periods can exist in all kinds of societies without any particular connection to the evil of society. Good and bad times can vary in all societies and it is worth considering. Unfortunately, this is not always thought of today. We are not thinking the future to very far. It is thought that everything will continue as before and there will be no bad times. Policy-makers and individuals continuously take on more debt instead of trying to get rid of the payments burdening them (Rom 13:8: Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loves another has fulfilled the law.). People refuse to believe that harder times are ahead for us, even though many have warned them. A female prophet, now deceased, wrote about this. She wrote about the bad times that are coming:
He said: "Finally, I give the Nordic countries a blessing of growth." He already announced this famine in 1974. He said: “First there will be worldwide unemployment, then there will be a worldwide economic recession. This is immediately followed by a worldwide catastrophic famine. From the fields which you are now planting and turning into forests, you will uproot the trees; then you will be in a hurry to get food for the world, because I will finally give the Nordic countries the blessing of growth." He did not say what is happening in Central European countries, what is happening because of pollution or what is happening there, but he said: "Put three years' worth of grain and seed in storage in Finland; yes, dry grain is preserved." What do we have in stock? Isn't it almost like there are sterns in the boat! This is where we are when our people do not obey, no matter what you tell them and the Lord wants to help our people so that we can help others! (11)
Another example is the life of Joseph. As we read the Biblical account of Joseph, we see how he was able to explain Pharaoh's dreams. Bad times were coming and Pharaoh's dreams were a warning about it. However, when Joseph was able to give an explanation for the dreams, it was possible to prepare in time. The difficult period was not as difficult as it would have been if no preparations had been made. Major problems did not occur because people were ready for the worst. Here is a good model for us too. Difficult times are easier if you are even a little prepared for them. Years with small harvests can come in agriculture and other problems can come, but the problems can be reduced.
- (Gen 41:25-31,34-37) And Joseph said to Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God has showed Pharaoh what he is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one. 27 And the seven thin and ill favored cows that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine. 28 This is the thing which I have spoken to Pharaoh: What God is about to do he shows to Pharaoh. 29 Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: 30 And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; 31 And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous. 34 Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years. 35 And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities. 36 And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the famine. 37 And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants.
Even more important than being prepared for this life, is that we are prepared for eternity. The Bible says that we are eternal beings. If this is true, we should take this into account. We should all turn to God before it is too late to be forgiven for our sins and get eternal life from God. If this has not yet happened in your own life, you can simply confess your sins to God and turn to Jesus Christ. The Bible shows that if you turn to Him and welcome Him, you will receive eternal life as a gift. This is shown by the following words of Jesus:
- (John 5:40) Search the scriptures; for in them you think you have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. 40 And you will not come to me, that you might have life.
So, if you have turned to Jesus Christ and received Him in your life, you are a child of God and have eternal life. You have the eternal life regardless of what you feel right now. Do not base your assurance of salvation on your ever-changing emotions, but rest in the word of the Bible and on Jesus Christ, just like the anchor of a ship is never thrown inside the ship but always outside.
- (John 1:12) But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name
- (1 John 5:11-13) And this is the record, that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He that has the Son has life; and he that has not the Son of God has not life. 13 These things have I written to you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may believe on the name of the Son of God.
THE PRAYER OF SALVATION: Lord, Jesus, I turn to You. I confess that I have sinned against You and have not lived according to Your will. However, I want to turn away from my sins and follow You with all my heart. I also believe that my sins have been forgiven through Your atonement and I have received eternal life through You. I thank You for the salvation that You have given me. Amen.
REFERENCES:
1.
Nicky Cruz:
David Wilkersonin viimeinen varoitus (David Wilkerson: A Final
Warning), p. 46
2. David Pawson:
Miksi Jumala sallii luonnonkatastrofeja?
(Why Does God
Allow Natural Disasters), p. 58,60
3.
Josephus Wars of the Jews, 6.4.8.581. 4. Josephus Wars of the Jews, 5.13.6.570
5.
Frank Bartleman: Azusa-katu 312 (Azusa Street), p. 224,230 6. Rick Joyner: Ennen taivasta (A Prophetic Vision for the 21st Century), p. 297 7. Kerttu Kalmari: Jumalan ihmeitä, p. 12,19,25 8. Marko Ahonen: Huuhaata, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat 14.7.2010 9. A Norwegian Prophecy. Emmanuel Minos has told people about it. 10. David Pawson: Miksi Jumala sallii luonnonkatastrofeja? (Why Does God Allow Natural Disasters), p. 87,88 11. Kerttu Kalmari: Jumalan ihmeitä, s. 217,218
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Jesus is the way, the truth and the life
Grap to eternal life!
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