Men's Hearts Failing Them For Fear
(Editorial - October 2001)
"Upon the earth distress of nations, with
perplexity; the seas and the waves roaring; men’s
hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the
earth:
for the powers of heaven shall be shaken" (Luke 21:25-26).
The fearful events of September 11, 2001, have surely stunned us all. Thankfully none of the brothers and sisters or their immediate families were killed or seriously injured. Several fled for their lives or were spared from being on the scene by various appointments, but many have acquaintances who perished. Our hearts, our empathy and our prayers are for those who suffered tragic loss as we seek that our Heavenly Father of great mercy will comfort and heal broken lives.
What we can do
From around the world, there has been an enormous outpouring of sympathy and
expressions of support for the United States in these ensuing days. Those living in the
U.S. have felt a great wave of patriotism sweeping the country and, no doubt, most will
have sought to help by giving blood or money or goods to the Red Cross or other relief
efforts. There is something, however, we are uniquely equipped to do for the countries in
which we live.
We know great calamities will occur in these last days. Yet if God would spare wicked Sodom and Gomorrah for the sake of ten faithful persons living there, will He not also defer or soften calamity for the sake of the faithful living in countries today? The principle is seen throughout the history of Israel. They may have deserved divine judgment but that judgment was delayed because of the penitence of Hezekiah and the earnest humility of Josiah (II Chron. 32:25-26; 34:23-28). In the sweep of patriotism, our position as strangers and pilgrims in the earth may be unpopular. Yet the believers can do far more good for their countries by remaining wholly faithful to God and the great principles revealed through our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of the faithful in any place, the Lord may well stay calamity.
Furthermore, to help others we need to intensify our efforts to preach the message of what is coming on the earth. People can be spared in more ways than one if they properly understand coming events. Obviously they can embrace the gospel of Christ and be among those who are gathered to be with him, and to ultimately rule with the Master in establishing a world of peace and godliness. And even if they do not fully embrace the gospel now, people who have heard the gospel may recognize Christ when he comes and readily accept him thus living on into the kingdom of righteousness.
Wake-up call
Any time sudden death occurs on a massive scale, we are brought up short that it could
happen to us. In our mortality, there’s no guarantee we can delay till tomorrow what
we should do today, because there may be no tomorrow. We are all compelled to examine
ourselves and our service to the Lord.
In addition, in this case, as in 1948 and 1967, the prophetic scriptures flood into our minds: "Let the weak say I am strong" (Joel 3:10); "every wall shall fall to the ground" (Ezk. 38:20); "she shall be utterly burned with fire…they shall see the smoke of her burning, standing afar off saying, Alas, alas that great city…" (Rev. 18:8-10). Before our very eyes we have seen a portent of the disaster which will befall the great cities of the world and we have seen the enormity of what a few "weak" fanatics can accomplish. Are we ready for Christ? Each one of us needs to take stock of his/her life. We are in the last days, we know that; if we have become complacent to the nearness of Christ’s return, let this be a wake-up call that he is at the door.
Towering symbol of ambition
There have been many eloquent phrases used to describe the symbolic significance of
the attack on the World Trade Center. The buildings housed more than 150 brokerage houses,
countless bond traders and investment bankers. The toll of missing includes hundreds of
British, scores of Germans and citizens of some 62 countries throughout the world. Truly,
here was a striking symbol of world trade, western global interests and mercantile power.
According to one voice, an icon of western wealth was attacked. All these descriptions
tend to rivet our attention on the materialism which pervades most of our lives.
Here is another wake-up call.
We need to consider our ways and examine the extent to which we are absorbed by worldly success, and the goal of amassing material possessions. Do our lives revolve around the next cruise ship or are we concentrating on the love of God and the next opportunity to help our brethren? Covetousness is termed idolatry by the apostle Paul: "When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, covetousness [avarice, a grasping for more], which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming" (Col. 3:4-6 RSV).
Christ personifies the pursuit of wealth as worshipping the god Mammon which, he warns, we cannot serve and also serve our Heavenly Father. "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on" (Matt. 6:24-25 RSV). With such great focus on the material ambitions of western civilization, we have an opportunity to examine this aspect of our lives. Let us not be swept up in the grasping for more, but let us be content with what God has given us, for it is to the return of Christ that we look for the fulfillment of all our dreams.
Yearning for the kingdom
Behind the events of September 11 was hatred; hatred so deep and so complete that it
blinds its adherents to the enormous suffering caused by terrorist acts against wholly
unsuspecting persons. Several communications have been received since Tuesday, one of
which alludes to the vast union of hate which exists toward North America and Europe in
some parts of the world. The writer notes: "The danger right now is that the U.S.
and Europe will want to take some professions of sympathy at face value. That is just to
ensure survival and would be an absolutely catastrophic mistake."
With the demise of the Soviet Union, we may have questioned what power exists to keep the sea of nations churning, to cause men’s hearts to fail them for fear or to cause the weak to say they are strong. As noted by our correspondent, we have seen pictured on live television a sample of the hatred propelling us to the end of this age.
We know it is coming soon.
Our joy is that, beyond the turmoil, a time of true blessing will be ushered in by our Lord. Not only will there be abundance of food, health and long life, but the knowledge of God’s saving grace will cover the earth as the waters now cover the sea.
May we individually be ready for the return, and may we help many people around us to be spared into the kingdom of our God and His gracious Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
George Rayner and the Editor (Don Styles)