"Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.” Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Numbers 13:27-33
The aim of all so-called news media programs today, is not to inform, but to render us anxious, angry, upset, irritated, disgruntled, overwhelmed, bewildered and hopeless. Even those few that seek to inform us of opposing views in an attempt to make us aware of what is really going, still fail to provide any answers, solutions, or hope for the future.
Where once we thought our elected representatives and the news media would be the watch dogs for us of threats to our freedoms and independence, and our God-given right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, now they have become little more than puppets of regimes, movements and governments that seek to destroy us from within.
Every area of our society today, including those in governmental positions of leadership, (not all, thank God, but far too many), the "news," social, communications and "entertainment" media, elementary, secondary, intermediate and higher education institutions at every level, those controlled by the National Education Association and Colleges and Universities, big tech corporations, and far too many in the banking and economics sectors, have been or are now being run by those dedicated to taking away every freedom we now have and making us totally dependent on government to provide as it sees fit for every aspect of our lives, not for the common good, but to centralize power in the hands of a few who would seek to position themselves as God.
But there is hope, and there is one place to find the truth and to find a confident assurance of a future filled with hope, joy, goodness, and peace. It is a place not found in the wisdom of men, but in the power of the presence of God by the Holy Spirit.
The Scriptures tell us that we are in this world but not of it. Jesus, Himself said that in the end times, in the last days, we would hear of wars and rumors of wars, but not to be troubled.
"And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows". Matthew 24:4-8
"And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you: 6 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 7And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet. 8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows. 9 But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them. Mark 13:5-9
There is no doubt we are in perilous times. But there is still hope. All is not lost, though some would try to convince us otherwise, and so pressure us into giving up, giving in, demanding us to sit down, shut up, and accept the inevitable. The devil is still a liar and the father of it. In these last days he and those who serve him are multiplying their efforts to remove Jews (Israel) and Christians off the face of the earth, because we are the last hindrance, they think, to their world of wanton sin, evil, destructions, murders, lusts, and unchecked human rule over the masses. But it is not us who hinder them. It is the Holy Spirit restraining them from the wholesale takeover of the world, while we the Church of the Living God are still here.
How foolish are the God haters! Inspired by their father the devil, they even have the hubris to think that they can control the forces of nature, the weather, the sun, the wind, and the seas. But they cannot, nor will they ever. So, their next best hope is to remove those of us who believe in God and resist their ungodly ways. Even as they sought to kill Jesus for doing good and going about healing all who were sick and oppressed of the devil, and calling sin, sin and exposing their evil deeds to the light of the truth of God's Word, so too, they now seek to kill us, the Church, His body, who wholeheartedly serve Him with our lives, declaring the truth of His Word in love, and lifting up the name of Jesus, worshiping God, and God alone; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
"This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come." 2 Timothy 3:1
Yes, persecution of Christians and Jews is on the rise. But, fear not! God has not and will not abandon us.
Consider the story of Haman and Mordecai. Haman sought continually to have Mordecai killed; even going so far as to compel the king to entrap Mordecai in a royal decree that would force him to renounce his faith in God and bow to Haman. But God turned the tables on him, and the gallows he built to hang Mordecai on, the king ordered him to be hung on instead, because he lied about Mordecai to hide his own ambition to become the ruler over the people.
Or consider Joseph and his brothers who tried to kill him, but failing that, they sold him into slavery, thinking they would be rid of him and then be free to control their father's possessions. But God turned Joseph's destiny around and moved on Pharaoh's heart to make him second in authority over all Egypt. Then when his brothers and their father were desperate in the midst of the famine in Egypt, they came to him, not knowing he was their brother, to buy grain because there was no other place to find it. And Joseph had compassion on them, and forgave them of their treachery and by it saved all of Israel.
What the devil intended for evil God turned around for good.
"And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him. 16 And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, 17 So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. 18 And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. 19 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? 20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. 21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them." Genesis 50:15-21
Though, in our country today, we are still enjoying relatively peaceful lives, we yet hear of, and see the horrors being perpetrated on our fellow believers, persecuted for their faith in God. Nations that are sold out to the devil seek to destroy us and the nation of God's Covenant people, Israel. Not because of any evil that they or we have done but being demonically inspired, as Jesus said, they hate us because they hated Him.
"Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: 15 For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist. 16 And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. 17 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake. 18 But there shall not an hair of your head perish. 19 In your patience possess ye your souls." Luke 21:14
"If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin. 23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. 25 But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause." John 15:18-25
How then are we to live in this present environment?
Hold fast to the truth. Do not be intimidated by the threats of the wicked. They will soon be cut down as the grass. Live our faith boldly and let our light so shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father in Heaven.
Pray and keep on praying for the lost. Pray in the spirit and the understanding. Pray for those who spitefully use us and persecute us. Pray for those who labor in the Word and in doctrine, for Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, and Teachers. And please, as you are able, give to support those who are proclaiming the Good News to the poor, the Word of God, and ministering healing, salvation, deliverance to the lost of the world and hope and encouragement to the body of believers everywhere.
The report of the world is fear and foreboding. The report of God's Word is we who love Jesus are more than conquerors. Whose report will you believe?