It doesn’t take an expert or a psychic to realize there is much chaos, conflict, and desire for control in our world today. Strangely enough, there are elements that cause some people excitement. It’s hard to imagine a person who would be excited about war, but social media and the news are full of it.
Jesus talked about the chaos to come, and one of the places recording it is Matthew 24:6-8 NKJV: "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows."
Mark says it this way in Mark 13:7 ESV: "And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet.”
Luke 21:9 NIV records, "When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
Some people, a minority but a loud one, are excited about the war in Iran because they believe the final war has been ignited. Others are broken-hearted about the loss of life and the fear and trauma so many are experiencing. Some are terrified.
When we truly follow Jesus, we have great compassion for hurting and fearful people, and we know that when He returns the world will be set right.
But we also know that in this world there will be chaos, pain, and war. And in the face of it all, Jesus says do not be troubled, do not be alarmed, don’t be frightened.
He says no one knows the time or the hour. All throughout history from the very beginning when He first returned to heaven, people have been thinking that every new conflict was the beginning of the end. We do not know. We just know that God keeps His word, and one day it will be the end of time as we know it.
Psalm 46 says that both ruin and revival come and the hand of God is active in both. We know for sure that He is ultimately in charge, and He knows what is going on. Though we don’t understand all the why’s and what’s and how’s, we know this one thing for sure: God is in control and our job is to trust Him.
In these days of conflict, we are to remain hopeful and trusting. We are not to claim to know things that are beyond our pay grade. We don’t need to have an answer for everything that’s happening.
We are called to pray for others, for wisdom, and for the world.
We are called to be hopeful and uplifting because when people are in chaos and fear, a person with hope stands out. In 1 Peter 3:15, Peter tells us that in troubled times we should be ready to give a reason for the hope we have. Our certain hope is in the resurrection of our true and living King.
We are called to make sure that our faith is not in a person, a political party, or our personal performance. “I will not only shake the earth but the heavens too.” By this God means that He will sift out everything without solid foundations so that only unshakable things will be left (Hebrews 12:26-27). As the old song reminds us, “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.”
I believe this is happening today. I do not know what next year will hold. I don’t even know about tomorrow. But I do know that troubled times cause people to reassess and rethink where we are putting our trust – what we are living for and who we are living for. Don’t panic, but don’t let this opportunity pass you by either.