Thought for Today
Genesis 9:15 I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.
2 Samuel 11:1 In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle
Mark 13:7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come.
James 4:1 Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you?
Today is a day of remembrance. Today is Israel’s equivalent of September 11th or December 7th for the U.S.A. Irrespective of one’s nationality, without any regard to one’s faith or lack thereof, today should be a day of mourning and prayer for all of God’s children. Once again, we hear of (or violently endure) wars and rumors of wars. Despite Jesus’ words, we should be alarmed. Humanity’s history of violence seems not to have taught us any lessons.
October is not in the spring of the year. Neither is December. Modern technology has provided us with the ability to brutally slaughter each other year around. Few countries today have kings, but battles rage around our globe continuously. Any tinpot dictator or brute willing to impose his or her will on others can instigate wars. Our technology has even allowed us to remove any warring impediments of gender or age. Child soldiers of both genders can easily be trained, have been trained and are being trained to fire assault rifles. Regrettably, assault rifles are shamefully easy to procure. Profit rules over morality.
The reasons for wars are often presented as being complex and difficult. Every aggressor throughout history has pleaded the complexity of the cause along with the reluctant necessity of the aggression. Sadly, since the first human bashed another human over the head with a rock, the cause has essentially been the same, ‘you have something I want and refuse to give it to me.’ The Epistle of James is correct, “Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you?”
The Bible speaks to both war and peace. The Old Testament books of Kings and Chronicles relate the relative times of war and peace for the kings of Israel and Judah; e.g., “2 Chronicles 14:1 His son Asa succeeded him. In his days the land had rest for ten years. 2 Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God. . . . 4 and commanded Judah to seek the LORD, the God of their ancestors, and to keep the law and the commandment. . . 6 He had no war in those years, for the Lord gave him peace.”
As a Christian, reading those stories of the kings of Israel and Judah, I notice that repeatedly the kings who were judged ‘good and right in the sight of the Lord” were those who put their trust in God. They encouraged worship and obedience to God’s laws and commandments. As God promised and made good God’s promises throughout scripture, those kings were rewarded with peace.
I understand Jesus’ words when he said, “Luke 12:51 Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division!” The division Jesus promised has always been part of humanity since the days of Cain and Abel. It is the result of the “cravings that are at war within” to which James refers.
Today, on this day of remembrance, as I say prayers to God for the Israelis who were so brutally slain, as I pray for those Palestinians who have since been slain, as I pray for peace in the entire region and throughout that region and around the globe, I will remember those other words of Jesus, “John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” What is that peace Jesus left with us? All we have to do is obey, "Luke 10:27 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself."
Stay safe, pray for love and peace, trust God,
Pastor Ray