A lot of the world is in shock right now, and I suppose it should be, owing to all the evil things happening right out in the open. The enemy and his servants are doing what he intended all along, it’s just that such blatant evil as intentionally killing innocent people has always been rightfully unacceptable to society at large, so such behavior has been kept more or less under wraps until now. Things have changed, and it’s rather surprising to see this darkness and its adherents so openly challenging the moral limits we have always recognized, but maybe we shouldn’t be so surprised after all because this kind of behavior has always been a big part of the human psyche, at least for some.

Although we are witnessing the sudden unraveling of social norms in a lot of places, to be gob smacked by the ferocity with which it is occurring is to be somewhat uninformed of the extent of evil, and this tendency of folks is precisely why decent people are in shock to see it. In other words, there is no limit to the depths of moral depravity to which men will immerse themselves once they abandon the commandments of God, and we’re experiencing that very behavior in these latter times. We’ve read about it happening before – how entire societies can be transformed into bastions of repulsive wickedness like Sodom, for instance. Now our generation can see it first-hand. And those of us who recognize it for what it is are rightfully appalled.

Though we are present in this age to witness the moral depredations of the society in which we live and the despondence they evoke in our hearts, all is not lost. Amid the destruction of cities and the failure of human resistance to successfully thwart this inclination toward hopelessness, if we but look in the right direction, we will be able to discern a light – the Light – of salvation. If we don’t realize it by now, there’s a very slim chance we will ever understand it, but we, as physical human creatures, do not possess the capacity to defeat this darkness of evil that is rapidly overcoming our world. But there is One who does. He is the Author of the salvation of mankind, and He offers us the only Way out of this desperate situation we are in. He is Jesus Christ, who at the culmination of this human existence, will take up His scepter and His eternal crown. He will also take us, His followers with Him, to ever reign as our King.

One need only look at the news and at the destruction being levied upon so many places in the world to begin to fathom the reality that this world will not be able to repair itself. This war which mendaciously wends itself through regions of the world and hearts of men is different from those great wars men have waged in the past, for this one, in addition to the devastation being wreaked on nations and for indiscernible causes, is one which demands that we take a moral stand, either we watch the evil taking place, knowing fully of the wrongfulness of it but take a supportive stance nevertheless, or we reject any possible moral justification for what we see happening, for it is only within the constraints of this choice that we may be able to discern that great Light of Jesus Christ.

One of the great revelations God gives us is the understanding that, contrary to what we’ve always been misled to believe, wars are only waged to kill and destroy. They are not waged because of territory, or because of resources. Wars are not fought in order to conquer nations. Wars are fought because when men, created in God’s image, are killing each other, Satan is at his highest pinnacle. All of those other excuses might sound reasonable, but the evil one is the author of war and destruction, and he doesn’t need oil. If he wasn’t in charge of men’s behavior, we might be able to figure out how to share resources, but by his direction, we prefer to kill over them. We do not have to, and we’ve never had to.

We must recognize and understand the situation we find ourselves in, and if we would seek a way out of it, we have to find the Light. It’s not hard and His burden is not heavy, but if we haven’t made the decision to seek Him, we’d be well advised to do so, for time’s a wasting and we probably don’t have much left.

Find a church with a devoted preacher and get to know Jesus Christ. Get out that Bible, read it, and pay attention to what it says. You’ll find an inexplicable peace of mind in His kingdom, no matter the state of the world.

May God’s blessings find and keep us.

MK

Called, chosen, and faithful. When Christ finally drops the hammer on His enemies, He will be accompanied by His army of followers who will be called, chosen, and faithful. [Revelation 17:14] – They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

This is where we fit in, fellow believers. Remember, my beloved brothers and sisters who follow these posts in Malaysia, in Kenya, Myanmar, Mexico – all of you from the far reaches of the world and regardless of any former belief system you have held, you who seek to discover your place in the grand scheme in which Jesus Christ will be the Sovereign – this is how we get where we need to go. Isaiah 41:9 – [Isaiah 41:9] I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you. Therefore, we are called by the Lord to come into His Kingdom. Yes, we have a standing invitation from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself – a calling – which we must not ignore! If we do not give our utmost attention to properly answering this call, we risk the most horrific eventuality that can come upon our souls, which is the dreaded fate of not being chosen for His mighty army.

When we take His invitation lightly, and are careless in our response, we become bound to a horrific and eternal fate. One fellow was observed at a reception who was not properly prepared to be attending, and this was his lot: [ Matthew 22:13,14] “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  “For many are invited [called], but few are chosen.”

To be called, and chosen, are great honors bestowed upon us by the Lord Jesus, but the faithful part is all on us. Are we being faithful to the calling to which He beckons us? Are we being faithful to Him? In the big picture, nothing else matters at all. It doesn’t matter if our designated existence in this life requires us to be a woodsman in Bavaria or a rickshaw operated in Mumbai, a hairdresser in some New York salon, or maybe even an old hillbilly blogger in the Ozarks, our number one objective in this life should be to do whatever we can to please our God, our Creator. For by doing so, once He calls and chooses us, we satisfy that “faithful” part of called, chosen, and faithful.

Today is a blessed, rainy day here in the Ozarks. We’ve had hardly any rain for about six weeks or so, and things were getting dry enough around here that everyone was starting to worry about fires, but maybe that fear is allayed for the time being. One of my biggest fears, though, is looking at the state of the world we’re living in and realizing how many people are living with their attention turned to world events and away from the God to Whom we need to bring our cares for His consolation. As the golden hickory leaves become rain-sogged and drop to the ochre ground, so our fellow humans fall to the merciless swords of war, plagues, and all sorts of evil, souls bound for lesser places because they do not answer the call. For how can we be chosen if we do not answer the call?

[Revelation 3:20] – Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. It’s a standing invitation, all you have to do is open the door for Him and He’ll take care of the rest.

May the blessings of God find and keep us.

MK

Sometimes I find myself battling against frustration over the things that are going on in the world today and I know I’m not alone. There is comfort to be had, though it might not be where we think, where we look. How can a person look at the horrible pictures of butchered children, young children intentionally injured and/or killed? Is this what humanity has become? My own answer to this is a resounding NO! At least for the humanity of humans, this is not who we are, nor who we were created to be, and we do not have to accept any presumption that we are part of the evil we see but cannot stop.

Of course, frustration ensues when we have to witness our whole existence turned upside down. The human psyche was not designed to accommodate this level of evil. Witness the soldiers who take part in it, coming home to live in drug abuse or even suicide! It’s too much for anyone with a shred of conscience to endure, but of course they don’t think about lying awake at night listening to the screams of toddlers being massacred, of mothers begging for their lives to be spared while they’re busy impressing their buddies with their ruthlessness. God did not create people to act like this, and many of the actors who play the roles of butchers of innocent human beings pay a steep price even before this life is over, but surely and forever in the next.

As I’ve written before, and shall continue to remind people of conscience, there will be a reckoning for all of this. The Almighty God sees every detail of what’s going on, and every drop of innocent blood is duly noted for the judgement of those who shed it. There is not, nor can there ever be, any justification or rationalization for the inhumanity of killing innocent people – especially children. I know our ancestors here in America were guilty of the same behavior towards the Indians, and I’d like to think I’d be of the same mind about their treatment as I am about the Palestinians and Lebanese today. In fact, I know I would – I don’t think that as a Christian, a true follower of the Covenant of Jesus Christ, anyone could believe otherwise, murdering innocent people is wrong! it’s a horror wrought by Satan himself, and people who commit such barbarism are undoubtedly possessed by the evilest of demons from the bottomless pit. But therein lies the rub – if we allow ourselves to be overcome by hatred and the desire for vengeance, the same enemy wins against us as the one who is in charge of the atrocities being committed.

Frustration at the evil we witness in the world can overcome even the staunchest of believers, so it is imperative that we trust in God who has the power to – and undoubtedly will – bring justice upon the perpetrators. Satan uses this very frustration to serve his purpose – especially against believers – for many are sure to be overcome by hatred. We must not let this happen – the very evil we abhor is a powerful and multifaceted weapon – that hatred, because it ultimately has the same effect on our spirit as the evil itself. No matter how horrific their behavior, we must bear in mind that they are still human beings, even though for the duration of their barbarity they are under the control of Satan.

Jesus warns us of that very danger when He admonishes us to love our enemies, because even the vilest of people can turn away from their evil and repent, and if God can forgive them, then we must be able to do the same. No other religion outside of true Christianity teaches this level of forgiveness and even compassion for one’s enemies and this is one of the end products of Christ’s love for all people. He gives everyone every chance to come into His kingdom, and He sees both the evil of those who slaughter innocents, AND those of us who have allowed hatred to get the better of them, an act of submission to the same devil. He said the Father makes His rain fall on both the good and the wicked, and if we’d like to be in the same mindset as Him, we must learn to love our enemies. Love is the key to being a faithful servant of Jesus, and it is disturbing to hear public speakers from politicians to (even “Christian”) preachers advocating war and violence spurred on by the very hatred they should be condemning.

The Bible says in more than one place that God is love. If we could begin to fathom the depths of His love, we’d certainly have a better understanding – and appreciation – of Him. He is merciful beyond anything we could ever imagine, and when we would like to get close to Him, we must always remember to call on Jesus – no one can serve the Father who rejects the Son. That’s important to know, especially when you take into consideration that Jesus died on the cross of His own free will, so that we could be saved from the damnation of this world and that lake of eternal fire that ultimately awaits all who reject Him. This is as real as it gets, folks. The end is getting close, get to know Jesus and be prepared for what’s coming upon us. You’ll be eternally glad you did.

And don’t ever let the stranger cause you to hate people.

May the blessings of God find and keep us all.

MK