Tag: Justice

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Negotiating with God

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Then the Sovereign Lord showed me another vision. I saw him preparing to punish his people with a great fire. The fire had burned up the depths of the sea and was devouring the entire land. Then I said, “O Sovereign Lord, please stop or we will not survive, for Israel is so small.” Then the Lord relented from this plan, too. “I will not do that either,” said the Sovereign Lord.” ‭‭Amos‬ ‭7‬:‭4‬-‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I know God loves and listens to me, but I don’t know what it would take to bargain with the Holy, Righteous Creator of all things! The Jewish people had a knack for negotiating and it came from their bargaining ethics that advocate for integrity and fairness in all business interactions. These principles guide individuals to conduct negotiations in a manner that respects both the letter and spirit of the law. They call it “Kiddush Hashem,” the sanctification of the Name. The act of glorifying God’s name through one’s actions. For example, we think of God’s Laws as the big 10 commandments, but for orthodox Jews, there are actually 613 commandments which continued to expand into the New Testament to over 1,500 commands. The deep level of specificity boggles my mind.

My point; Amos sees has no fear, confidently telling God he has a problem with His punishment. And, Amos had already had this discussion with God over the swarm of locust devouring all the crops, saying, we are too small to survive that! Similarly here, except this time it would be devouring FIRE 🔥. Amos said, Lord, we won’t survive that either.

God relented (nacham: To comfort, to repent, to relent). The root word of nacham is to sigh deeply. What is going on here? God knows Israel’s size. God even knows that Amos would plead on the people’s behalf. More critically, God knows Israel will continue to sin. These passages deal with a difficult, but necessary understanding of God’s character. God is fully, completely just, right and true – full stop. But, God is also merciful and long suffering, fully capable, yet compassionate! That seems impossible for us as humans to comprehend let alone emulate. Yet it is 💯 true.

The other part is easier for us to understand – God hears the humble pleas of a prayer of the prophet – “please stop.” And in these moments we see that God not only hears, but responds to this idea of intercession from the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man. God relents, He pauses to recognize the voice of an advocate! We know by reading the rest of the story, that God eventually delivered the full justice as He had promised. But it’s in this delay, we see God waiting for someone to stand in the way of the path of justice to make a case for mercy. How beautiful is that?

These mini-episodes are all throughout the Old Testament pointing forward for a final enactment of justice, where God’s true and righteous punishment is poured out on the one and only advocate that will take all the sins of humanity upon himself as the perfect sacrifice for all who come under his own blood payment for us. The final outpouring of justice is still forthcoming. The only way to access God’s mercy this time will not be a righteous and humble prophet like Amos, or any of the other prophets. The mercy of forgiveness will only be for those who chose to follow the one worthy – full of perfection and fulfillment of justice – that is Jesus. Paul, wrote in 2 Corinthians 6:2, quoting Isaiah, “Today is the day of salvation.” My interpretation…now’s the time to negotiate with God for His mercy. When all things come to an end, it will be too late.

Prayer

​Dad,
My past, present and future were all settled when I said YES to following you all the days of my life. Jesus as my advocate is all I need to find the mercy I needed. And now is the time for me to pray, asking you for mercy for my friends, family and even our nation. We desperately need you in these days of lawlessness.

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Unprecedented Peace

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“The Lord will mediate between nations and will settle international disputes. They will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer fight against nation, nor train for war anymore.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭2‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Isaiah, writing out God’s prophecies close to 3000 years ago, tells of a future moment where there will be peace among the nations. Scanning the history of the planet over eons of time, this kind of peace would have to be supernatural. Doing a quick search, it seems that historians believe there were some brief couple of centuries of peace. Of course they declared it peaceful because of a few massive global powers that used force to keep it. The first was Rome’s “Pax Romana,” spanning 207 years. There is great book by Tom Holland, called Dominion. Tom believes that Rome was obsessed with law and justice, even to the point of inventing the most hideous means of torture unto death. This sent a message that theft, violence and uprisings would not be tolerated. Crucifixion was perfected by the Romans. In their quest for peace and paradise, they were manipulated into crucifying Christ, who was not only innocent, but he is perfect in all his ways. The second is called “Pax Mongolica” spanning the 13th and 14th centuries. Some would add a third period called, “Pax Britannica,” where British Empire created a 100 year pocket of peace across the globe. All in all, a few hundred years over thousands of years of war, is not much peace. And, none of it was able to last.

Isaiah writes about a peace that will eventually rule and reign from God himself. Isaiah speaks of God’s holy mountain, Jerusalem as the capital of this global peace. We know this has to be futuristic, because Jerusalem has been known for anything but peace. As a global glimmer of hope, Isaiah declares that God will rule and reign over all the earth in all things. Of course God is completely in control of all things and has always been so before creation and time itself. But, God gives free will for humans to govern themselves until the end of days. This is when all things have come to the end, when all things are judged and will come to light. God will bring this unprecedented peace and mediate between nations Himself. No more wars, no more infighting, no more training or preparation for war. God’s peace will rule.

Prayer

​Dad,
With all the wars and rumors of wars there has been a resurgence of fear and hope that the end may be near. In my lifetime, we have not experienced a global war, but there have been conflicts, skirmishes and terrorist attacks around the world. The world is now filled with angry, violent people who spend their time in riots and protests, giving a sense of lawlessness. Peace has been evasive for quite some time. We long for your justice, your judgement, to make all things right. Humankind is not capable of making sustainable peace. We need you!

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The dilemma of suffering.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Why do the wicked prosper, growing old and powerful? They live to see their children grow up and settle down, and they enjoy their grandchildren. Their homes are safe from every fear, and God does not punish them.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭21‬:‭7‬-‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Even with all that had happened to Job – immense loss and excruciating physical anomalies, he somehow held onto his quick wit. This chapter opens with Job wanting to talk to his friends, getting a word in edgewise, because when we are not in pain ourselves, we are just full of unhelpful opinions! Job tells his “comforters,” LISTEN TO ME. It’s the least you can do, “Listen closely to what I am saying. That’s one consolation you can give me. Bear with me, and let me speak. After I have spoken, you may resume mocking me.” ‭‭Job‬ ‭21‬:‭2‬-‭3‬ 🤣🤣🤣.

Job asks the question we all want the answer to, but God will not give it!

WHY?

Sure… why suffering?

But it’s far more than that. Because we are completely and obsessively comparative to others, we want to know about the sense of inequity, the fairness of it all.

Why ME, as opposed to why YOU?

I’ll just say it, “you’ve got to be worse than me, come on admit it!”

Ok, ok, ok – clearly I know I’m not perfect, but there has got to be someone worse than me out there. God… go bless them with suffering.

Job asks a fair, reasonable question, given the limited perspective we have about EVERYTHING. Why do the wicked prosper? Job lists all the incongruities and inconsistencies about suffering. Their livestock breed like rabbits, the kids hop about without a care in the world. They skip, dance and sing with innocent abandonment. Isn’t wealth supposed to be a curse? Aren’t they supposed to be miserable in their miser ways? (I added those last two). The wicked mock God and declare their independence from Him in every way. Plus, they truly believe they made all of it happen by themselves!

Job vomits out his frustration with unfiltered angst. “One person dies in prosperity, completely comfortable and secure, the picture of good health, vigorous and fit. Another person dies in bitter poverty, never having tasted the good life. But both are buried in the same dust, both eaten by the same maggots.” Job‬ ‭21‬:‭23‬-‭26‬ ‭NLT‬‬ Job ends this chapter with a clap-back, “Thanks buds, I appreciate all your advice coming from seats of safety.” He writes, “How can your empty clichés comfort me? All your explanations are lies!” ‭‭Job‬ ‭21‬:‭34‬.

Wow! Job describes his (and our) dilemma but laying out the only thing he can figure out – you’ll find no justice in suffering! In fact, from our angle, our view, our experiences, we only see senselessness. If we think we can find the answer to the disparity of suffering in Job, we will be sorely disappointed. Suffering exists because of our own sin, which results in brokenness. But about the equal distribution of suffering? We just do not know. Only God knows. What we do know and can trust about God knowing all things: He is always right, true and just. Everything – EVERYTHING – He has done, does today and will do tomorrow is forever PERFECT. So we can try to pass the quiz God gave Job in chapters 38 & 39, which I guarantee you will fail. Or, we can have faith and trust the creator of all things, who does all things well. Simple, right?

Prayer

​Dad,
Whew. Every once in a while I get it in my head that I want to know things! Or, even funnier, that I want to control things. My thirst for knowledge of things and my curiosities feel so arrogant and foolish when I read Job. Job’s story helps me not only to be self aware in my lack of wisdom and understanding. It also helps me self correct my thoughts and opinions when going through suffering or being a good friend to someone who is going through suffering. You are so good God! I see it in the ancient text. I feel it in my spirit. Your love and mercy, your justice and goodness are more appreciated and apparent when suffering comes into my view. Thank You!

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Read the season.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“You have rejected us, O God, and broken our defenses. You have been angry with us; now restore us to your favor. You have shaken our land and split it open. Seal the cracks, for the land trembles. You have been very hard on us, making us drink wine that sent us reeling. But you have raised a banner for those who fear you— a rallying point in the face of attack.” Psalms‬ ‭60‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

David writes the song, “Lilly of the Testimony.”

War, war, war and more war – this is one of the major themes of how God either showed His favor or displeasure with Israel. So many wars! Israel wins, God is for them. Israel loses and clearly God used other nations to discipline them. Can you even imagine that battle barometer being used today? Don’t we view war as a straight up attack from Satan lashing out on nations, killing, maiming and displacing the innocent around the globe?

David clearly knew how to read the times and lay the responsibility on God himself. Other than Job and a few other references, Satan is a minor figure in the Old Testament. Fact: The Old Testament emphasizes God’s sovereignty over all nations and events, including wars. God is often depicted as orchestrating events to fulfill His purposes. Satan is primarily seen as an accuser or adversary rather than a direct instigator of war. Is it just me, or do we clearly see war differently today? Oh, we give the nod of sovereignty to God, but oooooh it’s the devil that makes men go mad and drive rulers to evil. When nations attacked Israel, David knew – 100% it was God talking. This song/psalm was one of victory where David’s bloody general, Joab, wiped out 12,000 Edomites. That was just one war out of HUNDREDS.

I am so not qualified to even begin to understand the context of global wars today. But I do know they are very controversial, and in the U.S. folks are super opinionated about these complicated issues. Like we don’t have enough issues of our own 🤪. Every one of these wars go back to deep and divisive conflicts that are older than our country’s existence! It is so arrogant of us to think we have a solution. David was wise enough to go to the source, the truth of God in His justice and judgment. Whose banner did David wave? He said God raised the banner on behalf of those who fear Him. Those who humbly admit their guilt, followed by repentance. That’s what God still wants from us today!

There’s an old song I remember from my youth. It had a line in it that asked this question – “Who’s side are you leaning on?” The song response is “I’m leaning on the Lord’s side!” Truth in such simplicity. Discovering and discerning the times, we can be like David and read the season by starting with God. This would be such a reprieve from all the noise and confusion. For us to hear from God and listen – instead of giving our attention to world leaders and protesters attempting to ferret out the truth.

Prayer

​Dad,
It is psalms like this where I see David’s wisdom of seeking you, understanding what he had done, and quickly humbling himself in repentance. That’s a pattern I can subscribe to. It seems silly for us to try to mentally meddle or verbally engage in global affairs just to feel like we have answers solving eons of human problems. We cannot resolve our own sin, let alone the world’s conflicts. I will continue to lean on the Lord’s side to discern the times in which we live.

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Solomon’s oxymoronic dilemma.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“After much thought, I decided to cheer myself with wine. And while still seeking wisdom, I clutched at foolishness. In this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in this world.” ‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭2‬:‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

When I read about Solomon, in the early years I am impressed by his humility, loyalty and wisdom as he ruled the Israelite Empire. And, an empire it was for sure. Israel extended into the Sinai desert near Egypt in the south and to the Euphrates River in the north. It was roughly three times the size of Israel today and would have included parts of present-day Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. Solomon himself was “greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.” God also granted him wisdom beyond any other human being. And yet Solomon finds himself searching, wanting, still “seeking wisdom.” In chapter two, he goes looking for trouble – “Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life,”2‬:‭1‬.

It’s the next sentence that boggles my mind. “And while still seeking wisdom… I clutched at foolishness.” What a strange oxymoronic pursuit! God gave him more than enough smarts for several lifetimes, but it wasn’t enough? Proverbs and Ecclesiastes is filled with unfathomable wisdom, plenty to know about God, to love God and how to do right. Everything one needs to fulfill Micah’s self-examined question – what does the LORD require of us? Solomon started out with a life of acting justly, loving mercy, walking humbly with God! It seems as though Solomon’s pursuit of MORE had the strange effect of bewitching his life, family and future.

Solomon had the means and the shadowed motivation of experiencing the only “happiness” most find in the brevity of life? He bought and built anything his heart desired. He was consumed with this one idea, “Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure,” ‭2‬:‭10‬. He did the most dangerous, crazy social experiment any human would attempt, ”So I decided to compare wisdom with foolishness and madness (for who can do this better than I, the king?).” Solomon did it so that we wouldn’t have to… or want to? Plunging himself into deep stupidity. Who would aspire to simultaneously be the smartest and dumbest human? What drove him? I have no idea!

I do know folks that have an insatiable hunger for more. And, conversely, I also know people that seem insanely driven to failure and oddly addicted to foolishness! Both are so sad to watch. I’m not trying to be self effacing, but I am just not smart enough to be one and certainly not dumb enough to be the other! Oh, I want to be wise, but not so much that it drives me to the edge of insanity. I have learned so much from the wisdom God gave Solomon. I’m hoping I will never need his tips on foolishness, other than avoiding them.

Prayer

​Dad,
When I started following Jesus I dove deeply into Proverbs because I was socially delayed as well as lacked discipline. Going through relationships and exploring love for the first time I also spent time in Psalms to learn how to both express and understand the disappointments of life as a teenager. I never did spend too much time trying to understand Solomon and the life lessons he provided. Now, all these years later I understand a little more, but I am still missing the big WHY of his life and Ecclesiastical writings. To have so much and yet still succumb to all the traps of sin and the lusts in our soul, leaves me puzzled still. I do trust you and know there was great purpose in having Solomon record his experiences as the “teacher.” Maybe by the time life ends I’ll figure it all out. Then again, maybe I won’t 🤨.

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What happens when God fights for you?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“During the battle the five kings escaped and hid in a cave at Makkedah. When Joshua heard that they had been found, he issued this command: “Cover the opening of the cave with large rocks, and place guards at the entrance to keep the kings inside.” ‭‭Joshua‬ ‭10‬:‭16‬-‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Joshua records a brief but brutal ending to a war between Israel and the Amorites. King Adoni-zedek of Jerusalem had sent messengers to several other local kings: Hoham of Hebron, Piram of Jarmuth, Japhia of Lachish, and Debir of Eglon, inviting them to join him in defeating Gibeon, a large fortified city and new ally with Israel. Joshua writes, “So these five Amorite kings combined their armies for a united attack. They moved all their troops into place and attacked Gibeon.” Adoni-zedek believed this to be a strategically easy victory.

For many of the battles Israel would face, their enemies began to realize they were going up against Israel’s God – Jehovah, the one true God, The men of Gibeon sent messengers to Joshua asking for Israel’s help. This massive battle is famous because of two miracles. One, God chased the Amorites off with a hailstorm – which killed more men than the battle itself. But this is also the famous story of the sun standing still for a day, because Joshua asked God for more time to finish off the enemy.

The Amorites were exceedingly wicked. God told Moses to completely destroy the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. Why? God told Moses, it will “prevent them from teaching you to imitate their detestable customs in the worship of their gods, which would cause you to sin deeply against the LORD your God.” Just do a search on the immoral things the Amorites practiced while worshiping fake gods. God’s warnings to the Amorites did not persuade them to repent. Eventually God’s judgement was to thoroughly remove them from the earth.

It was clear to the five kings in cahoots with each other that they were losing, so they fled to the hills and all five of them hid in a cave at Makkedah. As they were seen running from the battle, the Israelite men reported it to Joshua. After the Amorite armies had been defeated, Joshua returned to the cave and had the five kings brought out. He had the five kings laid out on the ground and told his own commanders to put their foot on each of the Amorite king’s necks. As they did this, Joshua told them to never be afraid, but instead be strong and courageous – a life tagline for him. Then Joshua killed each of the five kings by impaling them on sharpened poles, where they hung until evening. As the sun was going down, Joshua gave instructions for the bodies of the kings to be taken down from the poles and thrown into the cave where they had been hiding, Joshua‬ ‭10‬:‭24‬-‭27‬. Five Amorite kings died a horrible death – befitting the horrible life and leadership over the people they were suppose to serve. Joshua was indeed a warrior leader over Israel and God honored him by giving him many battle wins over their enemies.

Prayer

​Dad,
Wow, wars were brutal then and still brutal today. We live with sin that is so ubiquitous, so invasive, that it rises to the level of mass murder of our enemies. War is hell! I find it interesting that there are times that you judge nations or groups of people yourself, directly punishing them with floods, famines or even storms. Yet, other times you used people, leaders, rulers or kings to make war against a people group, effectively judging them through annihilation. I would much rather have you fighting on my behalf than doing it on my own! Thank you for a future where there will be no more wars. I look forward to that day.

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What’s in your soul?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Arise, O Lord! Stand against them, and bring them to their knees! Rescue me from the wicked with your sword! By the power of your hand, O Lord, destroy those who look to this world for their reward. But satisfy the hunger of your treasured ones. May their children have plenty, leaving an inheritance for their descendants. Because I am righteous, I will see you. When I awake, I will see you face to face and be satisfied.” Psalms‬ ‭17‬:‭13‬-‭15‬ ‭NLT‬‬

David often writes about the theme of justice. Justice is one of those common ideals that everyone wants but can’t agree on how to deliver it. The other theme is the wicked. For the atheist/agnostic, the question of evil becomes difficult to explain its source. Of course there’s the nurture vs nature arguments, but if it truly comes from genetics – where or how did it begin. Truth: there are wicked people who do evil just because they can, there’s a desire to do so. Why? God declares that wickedness or evil resides in the human heart and its beginnings stem from disobedience, desires and flat-out rebellion. So, in reality, it is “nature,” at least genetically so. But, it’s in all of us! Every single human is quite capable of doing evil for no other reason than the deep disordered desires to be wicked and do horrible things. Our culture has lost its bearings on what defines wickedness, but any honest human has to admit it exists.

This Psalm, likely written by David, addressed an especially wicked act, ordered by King Saul and carried out by his henchman- Doeg. The scene is out of 1 Samuel 22, where Doeg went to Nob and slaughtered the entire town in cruel cold blood! Vs 19 -“Then he went to Nob, the town of the priests, and killed the priests’ families—men and women, children and babies—and all the cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.” Why? because Saul found out that Ahimelek had fed David and his men.

Interesting that in David’s description and summation of wickedness, he wrote, “destroy those who look to this world for their reward.” What rewards come from wickedness? I think it’s the self determination of being a god and refusing to yield or obey the one true God. This self determination goes to our head, corrupting and hardening our heart. On the other spectrum is being satisfied, satiated and content for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness – Godly pursuits with Godly rewards. David’s final remark about his own righteousness seems to be the results of obedience to God. When he awakes… in other words, after he dies what happens to him? David knows, he will wake to see God face to face! What happens when you die? Many foolishly believe that since they come from nothing, they return to nothing – annihilation. They just cease to exist. That’s their hope? It certainly is evident that if one believes in nothing, and nothing matters, and their end is nothing as well – doesn’t it make sense that there is no reason to do right, or be right? If annihilation is their end, why not live life any way one pleases? According God, that’s a massive mistake. Hebrews writes, “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” Whose face will you see after you die? What’s in your soul?

Prayer

​Dad,
I’m with David on this subject of wickedness, justice and righteousness! I do not think my life would have gone well without your intervention. I may have tried to live right or do right, but would not have been able to follow through with it. Eventually I would have given up and just tried to do whatever satisfied me at that time. Basically do whatever I wanted to do! You not only saved me from becoming a horrible version of myself, you gave me so much more to live life to the fullest. Thank you. After I die and then I wake, I too will see your face and be glad!

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What impresses God?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast. Shout aloud! Don’t be timid. Tell my people Israel of their sins! Yet they act so pious! They come to the Temple every day and seem delighted to learn all about me. They act like a righteous nation that would never abandon the laws of its God. They ask me to take action on their behalf, pretending they want to be near me. ‘We have fasted before you!’ they say. ‘Why aren’t you impressed? We have been very hard on ourselves, and you don’t even notice it!’ Isaiah‬ ‭58‬:‭1‬-‭3‬a NLT‬‬

Basically, God tells Isaiah, “let it rip!” Tell all, tell it loud and clear. Don’t hold back anything when announcing the sins of the nation.

Immediately, God sets out to describe the comparison between how Israel sees themselves and how He sees the state of the country. God says, “look at them, don’t they act so pious!” They act like a righteous nation, sacredly adhering to the laws of God. In their confidence they pray and cozy up to God. Then in the most visible acts of spirituality, they fasted and asked, “God, why aren’t you impressed?” They were impressed with themselves and could not understand why God would not take notice of all the spiritual advancements they had made. What happened? Why such the disparity? How does God see the corporate condition of Israel’s heart? Especially when Israel sees themselves as a smashing success or at least an earnest effort to do so.

God tells the country what he is actually looking for, what makes a nation, a people, physically and spiritually superior. God looks for obedience that affects both the upper echelon of leadership to the lowest of those who were often cheated and abused and used to advance the power and wealth of Israel’s leaders.

God tells them exactly what they were actually doing. “I will tell you why! It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves. Even while you fast, you keep oppressing your workers. What good is fasting when you keep on fighting and quarreling? This kind of fasting will never get you anywhere with me. You humble yourselves by going through the motions of penance, bowing your heads like reeds bending in the wind. You dress in burlap and cover yourselves with ashes. Is this what you call fasting? Do you really think this will please the Lord?”

God is certainly not against fasting, penance and prayer. Isaiah tells them “No, this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people. Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.” It’s both and! It’s spiritual acts of humility AND physical acts of caring for the least, the needy and poor – connecting spiritual to social responsibility.

So what impresses God? Micah 6:8 tells us succinctly: “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” As leaders in government, business, health, education, protective services, technology and churches, we would be wise to be both spiritually humble and socially active. To be just and merciful.

Prayer

​Dad,
There has been such a tense and active discussion about our spiritual verses social responsibility. These ancient words you spoke to Isaiah, should be just as powerful today as when they were written. Your Word is eternal! I’ll admit, both the spiritual and social behaviors are hard! They are not hard to speak of in words, but oh so difficult to practice in obedience. Help us as citizens of earth and heaven. Help us as leaders who guide others to be just and merciful. Amen.

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Jerusalem has its day.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see. For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you. Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the Lord rises and appears over you. All nations will come to your light; mighty kings will come to see your radiance.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭60‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jerusalem had, has and will have its day! God seems to really care about cities, especially Jerusalem. There are more than 300 cities mention in the Old Testament and hundreds more in the New Testament. When Robin and me had the privilege of going to Israel, I realized the importance of geography, specifically the cities where all the people of the Bible have lived. I believe that a third of our theology is found in the geography of the land of Israel. It’s hard to completely understand God’s entire story without having a grasp of the history of the region.

You actually can feel the city’s significance as you ascend into Jerusalem. Millions of people want to visit just to see, even touch a part of the history of these ancient places. Jerusalem continues to play an important role all the way through to the end of days. Revelation mentions the new Jerusalem in Rev 3:12, 21 and 2:10.

Isaiah prophetically predicted the true central, and extraordinarily eternal coming of the Messiah into this famous city. “The glory of the Lord rises and appears,” over Jerusalem and “all nations will come to your light.” The importance of cities has me thinking a lot about my own city of Los Angeles, City of the Angels. Maybe I am being too negative or critical, but LA hasn’t felt all that angelic for sometime. I am very thankful for the myriad of nonprofits and ministries that are helping the poor, the disenfranchised and the homeless, but it is tough work! Our streets of LA and the surrounding suburbs have thousands of mentally ill or desperately addicted men and women pandering and panhandling our streets everyday.

While driving down my own main street a woman crossed the street against the red light, she was not only completely naked, but she had a needle dangling from her arm as she zombie-walked to the other corner. It was crushingly sad to see her in such desperation. We need the light and love of Jesus to penetrate our dark streets of lawlessness, rage and hopelessness. My suburb city and Los Angeles need the angels of God just to bring the possibility of hope. Jerusalem will have its final days, but until then I pray that Los Angeles, New York, Portland, Austin, Detroit, Chicago and Washington DC will have the light of Christ shone down upon us.

Prayer

​Dad,
I see the brokenness within our cities and I pray. I pray that Satan would be banished from our city and that your mighty warrior angels would return to being hope, love, justice and righteousness. I want children to be able to walk their neighborhood in safety. So that single moms can shop without fear of street thugs. So that fathers would quit filling the bars and return home, spending what little money they make on the families instead of their cars, their beer and their drugs. Bring Your light into our dark streets Oh God! May your glory rise once again. Amen.

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The reckoning.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“And they said, “We give thanks to you, Lord God, the Almighty, the one who is and who always was, for now you have assumed your great power and have begun to reign. The nations were filled with wrath, but now the time of your wrath has come. It is time to judge the dead and reward your servants the prophets, as well as your holy people, and all who fear your name, from the least to the greatest. It is time to destroy all who have caused destruction on the earth.” ‭‭Revelation‬ ‭11‬:‭17‬-‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Revelation, singular, as in the revelation of John, given to him by Jesus, while imprisoned on the island of Patmos. The year, mid-90s AD, very late in John’s life. The book has both fascinated and frustrated millions of people over these 2000 years. The book contains elaborate visions of angels and demons, battles and prophecies of things far into the future. Yet, this is not a book of fiction, but of facts.

Why is it in the Bible? It is believed that it was written to give hope! The world, as it has been since the fall, is in constant chaos. And, in the first century, persecution, torture and death were ubiquitous- most did not escape Rome’s fury to crush this religious sect, proving the power of its empire. Yes, it’s also the finality of this world and the warnings that come with choosing not to reconcile with God. But it’s also a picture of Christ’s supremacy over all things, not just death, hell and the grave, but of evil itself.

It is the final cosmic battle that takes place on this created sphere called Earth! Here in chapter 11, the dreaded seventh trumpet brings the third terror! The elders fall before God’s throne and speak. They conclude that the time has come to bring final justice and final judgment to the planet filled with “orgizó” intense anger. God would bring his own divine and perfect “orgé” wrath, putting an end to earthly reign of chaos and destruction. People actually crave justice, which is often attributed to a limited or bent sense of truth. But deep down inside, humanity believes that ultimate evil and wrongs against innocence should be judged and punished.

The elders final words are a chilling agreement with God’s holiness – “it is time.” The time will come when God will destroy the destroyers! God will judge the dead and reward those who fear His name. I believe that every human on the planet, down deep in their soul, knows they were created, knows right from wrong, and knows there will be a reckoning of all things! I believe God imprinted these truths into us as created beings.

Why do we pursue everything but God? We prefer to believe a lie. We prefer to chase anything and everything that would keep us away from the mirror of truth – that we are broken souls in need of salvation. This is why the book of Revelation is such a mystery to us. The truth has been revealed and written long ago, and even if one has not read God’s Word, there is still that beautiful ache and longing of truth seen in the physical, spiritual world around us. Every single American knows about the book of the end. Yet, we play games to avoid the pain and shame of truth. We believe that shame and truth are toxic? Wow. That’s really messed up! The final reckoning is coming. For those oppressed, vulnerable and marginalized- this is hope. For those living the lie of power to do whatever they want, apart from God – this is judgement.

Prayer

​Dad,
I can’t say that I am a fan of the world coming to an end, knowing there are many who have not yielded their heart to you. However, I am all for the finality and wrapping up of all the evil and injustice that has happened in the history of humanity. I completely understand the days of reckoning ahead and hold fast to your grace and mercy, knowing that my sins are covered by Jesus death and resurrection. I have seen a few cycles of the church believing that the rapture is any day now. I believe it will happen, I also believe we do not know when that will take place. My trust is wholeheartedly in you and you alone. Amen.