A World at War

Am I the only one who feels like the World has gone crazy?

At the time of writing there is war between Russia and the Ukraine and believable threats that it will escalate into a world war.  We hear reports of more than half a million Russian soldiers being killed or injured and another frighteningly high number, including many civilians, on the Ukraine side.  War between Israel and Palestine has seen many tens of thousands lose their lives and horrendous atrocities almost daily.  A quick look at Wikipedia names 5 major wars, where 10000+ people lost their lives in a single year and 15 'lesser wars', with 1000+ lives lost in each conflict in the last year or two.

Has God lost the plot?  Why doesn't He put a stop to it all?

Almost all wars, even those with 'religious' connotations, are because of a lack of love and / or a greed for something that someone else is perceived to have.  The tenth Commandment (the first set of written laws that God gave mankind), tells us not to covet. 

“You must not covet your neighbour's house. You must not covet your neighbour's wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbour.”  (Exodus 20:17 NLT)

Jesus Christ's first 'law' was that we should love God and His second was that we should love our neighbour.  This is part of the New Covenant (formal agreement), made between God and Mankind.  Declaring war on a whole country is surely about the most unloving thing that anyone can do.

Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”  (Matthew 22:37-40 NLT)

In a world at war, it is clear that a whole lot of people are simply not following these two very simple commands from God.  If we do everything our own way, how can we expect God to intervene and save us from the consequences?  If we want the peace that He offers, we should at least do whatever He tells us.  He doesn't cause suffering - we do that all on our own.

But, was this situation unexpected?  Was God caught unawares?

Quite the opposite, Jesus Himself and many prophets foresaw that this would happen - because God knows very well that human beings are never going to keep to His guidelines.  But, God has a plan - a plan for a New Heaven and a New Earth.  This one will wear out (as some scientists are now predicting). You can read about it in the bible. 

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared...  (Revelation 21:1 NLT)

So, when will this happen?  

It will begin to be put in place when Jesus Christ returns, which will trigger a whole sequence of events leading to the New Heaven and New Earth.  But, God hasn't told us when that will be - although many Christians don't expect that it will be very long now!

Jesus replied, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in many parts of the world, as well as famines. But this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come. (Mark 13:5-8 NLT)

Is this a new idea?

The truth is that a wider war has been going on for much longer than we realise.  There is a war between good and evil.  Mankind first saw it when Adam and Eve were tempted to deliberately disobey God and eat the fruit from the tree that God had forbidden them to eat. It has never ceased and will not until the last days, when evil will finally be defeated.

Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. (1 Peter 3:11 NLT)

 God doesn't want war and suffering, but while we keep doing just whatever we want, it will continue to happen.

The first Psalm (from a book full of prophetic music recorded in the bible) tells us that God is very able to look after those who will choose to reject evil, follow His ways and commit themselves to serving Him - through the Lord Jesus Christ.

How blessed is the person, who does not take the advice of the wicked, who does not stand on the path with sinners, and who does not sit in the seat of mockers. But he delights in the LORD's instruction, and meditates in his instruction day and night. He will be like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in its season, and whose leaf does not wither. He will prosper in everything he does. 

But this is not the case with the wicked. They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not escape judgment, nor will sinners have a place in the assembly of the righteous. 

For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will be destroyed. (Psalms 1:1-6 ISV)