Dear...
'For assuredly, I say unto you, whoever says to this mountain, "Be removed and be cast into the sea." and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.'
Mark 11:23
The masses in Libya and in a sense, a large part of the Arab world have undergone a sea change in their attitude, from quiet mumblings to bold rebellion. Long repressed, by a potent mix of authoritative and draconian rulers, implicitly assisted by energy dependent Western democracies, it must have been a rude awakening for the rulers of Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Morocco, Jordan, Libya and a whole litany of once comfortable fat cat elites including Saudi Arabia, that the disregarded and much disdained masses, are willing to rise beyond their psychological fear to revolution.
Did they happen to read the call for boldness in faith from Mark 11:23?
I doubt it but in reading Mark 11:23 for the umpteenth time, it seems to speak to me from a different perspective today. For myself at least, I used to take this verse to mean that we must be determined and confident enough to will ourselves in self belief when we ask the Lord for our desires, and He will answer our prayers. As some "revolutionary" pastors at least in approach and thought process have done so successfully in having a no holds barred approach in their exhortation to their flock that God wants to bless us, and the only thing holding us from His blessings is our reticence, our lack of faith, and faith here means to ask with no qualms.
Is this message of prosperity shared by some fully aligned to the will of God? Is Christianity all about grace and no work from us? Is not contentment about thankfulness in all circumstances rather than thanking God only if He gives us what our carnal self desires. In propagating the narrow selfish needs of our natural sinful man, are we diluting the power of the Spirit of God and depriving ourselves of experiencing the glory of God in His way and timing?
Let me share my own understanding and may the Lord ensure that the thoughts shared are truly reflective of His will.
'So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.'
Mark 11:22
You might notice that I have placed Mark 11:22 after Mark 11:23. This is not intentional nor an attempt to slant the Word of God to my agenda. But rather, as led by His Spirit, in reading in reverse order, our good Lord brought me a new clarification of this "moving the mountain" call to faith.
We are believers and followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, who before His return, has left the Holy Spirit to guide, teach, correct and imbue us with the grace and power of God. As Christians, we do not lead the Spirit, but rather respond in faith to His leading. Mark 11:22, Jesus said to have faith in God. As we seek to be in His presence, God will speak to us His will for us, as His Spirit communes with our spirit.
We ask boldly only when we are sure that this is what God so wills, for prayers asked in His will will always be answered. Quite different from asking boldly(as is the popular mantra amongst some)simply because we are told that God loves us and gives us what we want or rather whine for!!
And how can we be sure that what we asked for is the will of God and not ours? If you put God as the sole focus of your life, you will know Him and His Spirit will speak to your spirit.
Late last year, the Spirit of God impressed upon me, as shared previously, on my willingness to now honor Him with my all and even if it means "dropping everything" like Abraham and go where God so leads. I said yes, but since then, there are times when it comes to moving the next mountain, I start to dither and my faith wither.
'Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.'
Mark 11:24
And what about Mark 11:24. Most tend to mistake praying as a grocery list of things to ask God for. Prayer is about taking time out from the world and time in with God. To be still to know His will, rather than going to the cash till that many associate God as and prayers as the key to unlocking the things of the world. In praying, the Spirit of God will commune with us, and God will impress upon our hearts His very thoughts that He wants us to ask for. And our response must be one of honoring Him in where He leads us to, knowing that He will and has provided.
'And whenever you stand praying, "If you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.'
Mark 11:25-26
"Revenge" was the devotion topic I shared with the some students. And revenge is very much on the mind of many in the ongoing turmoil in the Mid-East. But can we learn to be like Nelson Mandela, who are 27 years of imprisonment during the dark days of Apartheid in South Africa, was willing to forgive and worked for reconciliation for the greater good? The Lord reminded me that it is the unsaved that needs our prayers even more and how can one pray for someone that you are angry with, much as there are good reasons to be angry with them?
Society has degenerated because many are not willing to let go and let God. Revolution is an attempt to throw out the old and bring in the new, man's way. God looks not for revolution, but transformation in us His way. Unfortunately, till men learn to put aside their needs and consider the needs of others(the latter can only be sustainable when we lean upon the Lord our God), strife will continue to mark our days on Earth. The devil and its cohorts of fallen angels is the first example of a rebellion gone awry, and much as they have lost, the devil continues to plant that desire to sin or rebel in the hearts and minds of us, the children of God. The victory of the cross is a reality, the devil realizes that. But its desire is for you to join it in eternal damnation, to bring as many of us down with it in the inevitable damnation to which it has been consigned.
God Blesses
Eng Hieang
(8th Mar 2011)
What about devaluation?
The unfettered greed of Western capitalism which led to the sub prime crisis and the irresponsible solution of flooding themselves out of trouble through mass printing of monies is directly responsible for the spiraling prices of commodities, most being priced in a depreciating US dollar. The Mid-East might be simmering, but it boiled over with the unbearable increase in food prices, and is America not only the primary culprit, but also the chief beneficiary being a major agriculture and arms exporter.
Is the present woes an American conspiracy? The late Ayatollah Khomeini, the face of the Iranian revolution of the late 1970s, used to call America the great Satan.
Demon or not, the days might be drawing near when America could possibly write off a substantial part of its external debts through a devaluation of it currency. This is not a revolutionary solution nor unprecedented, for they did it back in the 1970s.
If it happens, and I believe it will, the world is set for a one world economic system that will bring us closer to the entrance of the anti-Christ, for the irresponsibility of the Americans will open the door for professed atheist nations like China and Russia to influence the global system.
Many might be familiar with the Biblical prophesy of Russia leading a huge confederation of armies from the North to invade Israel(Revelations 20:7, Ezekiel 39, Jeremiah 10:22) And this is only possible if USA, the protector of Israel is so incapacitated that they can do nothing to stop it. Peace came to the Middle East only in the days after the Yom Kippur War when a humbled Arab world and a surfeit of US dollars kept the half brothers, the Jews and the Arabs at bay. And are we now seeing the dismantling of this uneasy peace.
America today is half the man of what it was pre-Afghanistan and pre-Iraq. And its reluctance to intervene in Libya is an affirmation of a superpower in decline. The thought was placed in my heart that a devaluation of the US dollar will not just make America a pariah of the world, but will ensure that its role in global matters will diminish substantially. America has been at the forefront of global affairs since World War 2, making deals with the House of Saud(Saudi Arabia) as well as possibly other regimes in the Mid-East to provide protection in return for energy.
Its increased impotence as an economic power is likely to lead to an inward looking USA, especially with the surfeit of natural gas in its home territory which will make it less of an imperative for USA to be a major stabilizing force in the Mid-East.
Are events moving toward fulfilling the prophecy of Gog and Magog and many other milestones that God has told all who care to listen, as markers of the impending return of Christ? Now is the time to turn to Christ and be made ready before it is too late.
No comments:
Post a Comment