Hope Amid the Turmoil

I recently read an article from England that someone sent me about the climate crisis and how it seems to almost have become a cult. I thought one of the comments at the end of the article was very good. The person comments that it is one minute to midnight and the Lord is right at the door, but the people are being told the crises in the world are caused by man and man needs to save it. He says there is no reference to repentance as the Kingdom of God is near and He is the one to save us. I thought what this person said was very good. The problems in our world now cannot be solved by man but only by God and they will continue to get worse until we repent, and the Lord returns to save us and set up His Kingdom on earth during the Millennium. We must make ourselves ready for this wonderful day when the Lord returns. The world is a very dark place right now and we as Christians need to show our light in whatever way we can to help many who are struggling today. The Holy Spirit is our guide, and we should try every day to be led by the Spirit and not the things of this world. Our mainstream news is one of the worst and I try not to listen to it anymore than I have to, only for local updates. We have had major flooding and landslides with lots of destruction here in British Columbia, so we have needed to watch for updates on what was happening. This has affected highways, bridges, and rail lines. Farmland has been flooded and crops destroyed, livestock and chickens have been killed, people’s homes flooded and a large number of evacuations, delivery of goods stalled as roads, highways and rail lines were impacted by flooding and rockslides with 5 killed. Many towns have been impacted including Vancouver which was basically cut off from the rest of Canada as the main arteries were all affected. Therefore, we need to know what is happening. It will take years to recover from this. In one way it was nice as there was minimal talk of Covid which is usually their priority! It just goes to show that one’s life can change in an instant. That is why we need Jesus to help us through all of this. We are now getting another round of a lot of rain so, as my friend Jackie says, we must pray for no more rain right now!

I am finishing this article on Nov. 28, 2021, the first day of Advent on the Christian calendar. This is one of my favourite services at church as it is full of the Glory of God at the first Advent and acknowledging His coming again soon at the 2nd Advent. It is the first day of the week leading to the 1st Advent of Jesus Christ at His birth. In the sermon this morning the minister referred to John 1:1-2, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.” Jesus was the Word, the spoken Word of God Himself. He said that Jesus was already in a living relationship with God before the Universe was created. Jesus Christ is Creation (Psa. 33), Revelation (revealing of God Himself) and Deliverance and Salvation (His mercy and grace). He wants to be in a relationship with us and keeps calling us to Him. So far many are still not hearing His call, but we are in a fallen world and deeply in need of our Saviour to save out of the mess we are in. It is amazing how much has happened just since I started this article yesterday. The rain keeps falling here in British Columbia, we have had a 7.5 earthquake in Peru, the La Palma volcano keeps erupting, and there are worries now about Long Valley Caldera super volcano in California. These are only some of the many events happening around the world today. “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” (Rom. 8:22-23). As we look forward to the 2nd Advent of our Lord Jesus Christ let us not forget Him. He is our hope. I was thinking this morning that the first day of Advent is six days from the celebration of His Birth next Saturday. We know this is not the actual date but I am talking about the timing, could it represent six days since Christ created the world until His return on the seventh day? It was just a thought. Anyway the time is near we can all feel it I’m sure.

“God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high: Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?” (Heb. 1:1-5).

I’m sure we can hardly wait to meet our God, our Saviour!