How to Face the Future in Times Like
These
Barbara Henderson
It is a dark and stormy night in
America and in the entire world. Evil is
called good, and good is called evil. Families are dissolving right before our
eyes. Financial structures are wobbly at
best. There are rumors that the food
supply is growing increasingly limited.
Water is not even guaranteed in the land of the free and the home of the
brave. And hard work gets you less and less. The global threat of terror is spreading to
the United States. Godless individuals
attack innocent people based on religion and race. The world is going downhill
at an alarming rate. It would be cause for great despair except for the Bible. Because of the Bible we have a somewhat
detailed explanation of what to expect.
Best of all, Christians know the final outcome. The meek shall inherit the earth and delight
themselves in the abundance of peace. We
can’t know the exact details of our personal path ahead or even the details of
the evil that will come to pass before we depart this earth. But, we do have instructions on how to live
our lives, and we know the final outcome.
Psalm 37 is the Psalm by which can
successfully pattern our thoughts and our lives. The entire chapter is at the end of this
article. Let’s start by looking at
verses one and two.
‘Fret not thyself because of evildoers,
neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like
the grass, and wither as the green herb.’
‘Fret not’ means don’t worry. ‘Exactly
how does one not worry?’ you may wonder.
The formula for skipping worry as a part of your daily life is fairly
simple. You determine not to worry to
begin with. The next step is to fill
your mind with the good things of God.
Remember the story from the New Testament where Jesus cast out the
demon. The demon found no place of rest,
so he returned to the man who was his home to begin with. He did not return alone. He took more of devils with him, so the man
was worse off than before the demon had been cast out to begin with. The reason
the demon and his cohorts were able to come back was that the man had swept the
place clean but left it empty. He had
not filled his mind and heart with anything good so evil was able to return.
In order to stop worrying on a
constant basis you have to put good things in your thoughts. The things are continually and totally good
are the teachings of Christ. All of your
daily blessings are worthy of thankfulness to God, but thinking on the good
things of God that do not seem directly related to you at the moment is going
to bless you. So first, you determine
that you will not fret or worry. Don’t
fret about evildoers. Don’t be envious
against the workers of iniquity. To me
that means don’t be ‘jealous’ of their seeming success. Whatever the wickedness of others happens to
be at the moment, their victory is temporary.
Their end is clearly foretold here.
They are going to get run over by the lawn mower, or something sort of
like that.
In determining to think on the things
of Christ you will face the usual three enemies. The first enemy is yourself. We all must fight our sin nature all the
time. The second enemy is the devil and
his demons. They are real. They hate you. They want to destroy you. The third enemy is the world, or more exactly
the world system. The world system is corrupt at its very best. You have to consistently fight against
becoming fonder of the things of the world than you are of the things of
Christ. There isn’t any way out of this
world except death or the rapture. So,
yes, we do have to live in it. We do not
have to assimilate into the population of the world. Do the things Christ says to do and you will
not fit into the world today.
Then Psalm 37 moves on to how to live
and prosper in this world.
‘Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt
thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and
he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust
also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.’
This is the three step program that
transforms lives for the better. These
three steps are complete with promises from God.
Trust in the Lord and do good is the
command. The promise is that you will
live in the land and have food to eat
Delight is command number two. Get to know the Lord better. He is delightful. In knowing Him better He personally puts good
desires in your heart. He gives you a
calling to do things He calls good. Your
personal calling may or may not call for a big change in your life. It may be that you are doing what God wants
you to do already. He may want you to
put more effort into whatever it is that you are doing. He may want you to put less into one area of
your life and more into a different area of your life. He may give you a desire
to do something totally different. As you read and study the Bible you will find
delight in the Lord. Pleasing Him
becomes worthy of your best efforts.
Don’t approach getting to know the Lord better as something
unpleasant. It is work that is
delightful. Look for the Lord’s leading as you study. Remember that God will never lead you to do
anything outside the boundaries of righteous behavior that are set down in the
Bible. God never tells anyone to ‘make
their mind a blank’ when they meditate. He says to meditate on His word all the
time. Follow His instructions and you
will not be sorry.
Commitment
is the third step in
this three step program. It is up to the
Lord to bring things to pass. You have
no need to manipulate or struggle to ‘make’ things come out like you want them
too. Let the Lord bring it to pass. If
you struggle and bully to make things go the way you think they should go then
you haven’t actually accomplished anything except sinning.
Verse seven instructs clearly that we
are not to manipulate or begin to worry about the outcome of anything.
‘7 Rest in the Lord, and wait
patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way,
because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.’
When you have done all you can do it
is time to rest. Rest from worry. There may still be physical work to do. Maybe you can manage your time, efforts, and
money better. Of course you need to
consider these things. But when you have
done all that is possible in the situation you are not responsible for the
actual outcome. That battle belongs to
the Lord. If it is good for His glory
you may see a victory today. If God
chooses to be merciful to sinners, then that is His business. You can always trust God to do what is
right.
While you are resting in the Lord evil
will try to overcome your peace. These
verses tell you what to expect, how to handle the stress, and the ultimate
outcome.
‘8 Cease
from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but
those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while, and the wicked
shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not
be.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth;
and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.’
Personally, I am watching the global
scene. I have to admit that sheer
stupidity and wicked behavior of world leaders does make me very angry. I know this is sin. I don’t want to do that. What I try to remember is that the vast majority
of these people are lost people. They
are headed for hell. They work for the
devil himself, whether they acknowledge this fact or not. I am supposed to be praying for them. I am not supposed to hate them. I would like all humanity to turn to Jesus
and be saved from hell. In the mean
time, as we watch evil advancing around the world, we should not be cast down
or fear the worst. Ultimately we do not
have the mental capacity to grasp the temporary nature of this world and the
timelessness of heaven. According to
God’s word we can be at peace knowing that the wicked of this world will not
always win. Their final defeat will be
permanent. They will be finally and
totally defeated on God’s time frame.
Just think. If those living
hundreds of years ago had had their wish that God end evil immediately, then
you and I would have never been born.
God has a plan, and it does include the birth and lives of many
people. It appears that the end of this
age will soon be here, but God is the one who knows. In the mean time we can trust God to do what
is right, to care for His children, and call the lost to repentance.
Read the rest of the Psalm at the end
of this article. The Lord repeats that
He will help His children and that we have a wonderful future. He repeats that
the wicked will not triumph over His goodness.
Transgressors will be cut off.
God has wonderful blessings for His children.
Let us all begin to work at following
the instructions in this Psalm.
Fret not.
Trust, delight, commit.
The wicked are facing a judgment that
the children of God will never face.
The children of God are assured of a
wonderful eternal future in heaven with Jesus Crist and all other believers.
We that wait on the Lord to bring
about His kingdom in His time will not be ashamed. Let us have enough mercy on the wicked to
pray for them. Evangelism is the way to
have a good effect on this world now.
Tell the world that Jesus saves. Everyone will face their eternal
destiny when their earthly life is over.
Believers in Jesus Christ will face a life of wonder and joy in heaven.
The wicked will face an eternity without hope or joy. Let us have enough mercy to sincerely pray
for the lost.
Remember that there really is a better
world coming. Fellow believers will meet
us there. Do your duty today and tell
the world that Jesus saves. Even better,
tell your family, friends, co-workers, and everyone you meet.
‘Will
the Circle be Unbroken?’
That was supposed to be the end of
this article, but it seems like I must add one more thing. Whatever we must face in the future, or
whatever we are facing today, it is no worse than what some people faced in the
past. For an example of right actions
under extreme conditions the Bible gives us the example of the three Hebrew
brothers. They were taken from their home and placed in a pagan
environment. From the very beginning of
their captivity they determined to follow God at all costs. Eventually, the king commanded that they bow
down to a golden image of him or be thrown into a fiery furnace. The brothers
did not bend in their determination to serve God. They said that God could protect them if He
chose, but if God chose not to protect them – well – so what? They still would not bow to the king, so the
king had them tossed into the fire. I
know a lot of people today face dreadful tests of their faith. Some are life threatening, and some
Christians are martyred every single day for refusing to bow down to someone
demanding they turn from their faith in God.
The Bible is correct when it says there is nothing new under the
sun. Evil hates good. It will be like that until God Himself
changes things. In the meantime,
Christians are to be like these Hebrew brothers. We are to stay faithful to God. We know that in any circumstance that God is
able to deliver us if He chooses to do so. He may choose to take us directly to
heaven instead of delivering us. He may
allow us to go through lengthy trials.
Our duty is to stay faithful to God no matter what the difficulties we
face. We know it may mean death or
persecution. But we also know that it
might mean a miracle, which is what happened with the three Hebrew brothers.
One like the Son of God walked with them in the fire and kept them safe. This is a literal record of actual
events. However, it seems to have
application to some trials that are not quite so fierce. Sometimes it seems like we are facing a
furnace of fire. Sometimes it seems like life is just too hard to
continue. Here is a song that sings of
the story of the brothers, and how their faithfulness was rewarded in a mighty
way. We don’t know what God’s particular
plan is four our lives, or how He will resolve our trials. However, we can be certain that the Fourth
Man in the fire will be with us through whatever trials we face. Enjoy ‘The
Fourth Man in the Fire’
Psalm 37 King James Version (KJV)
Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither
be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like
the grass, and wither as the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; so
shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and
he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust
also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
6 And he shall bring forth thy
righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently
for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of
the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath:
fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but
those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while, and the wicked
shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not
be.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth;
and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
12 The wicked plotteth against the just,
and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
13 The Lord shall laugh at him: for he
seeth that his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn out the sword,
and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as
be of upright conversation.
15 Their sword shall enter into their own
heart, and their bows shall be broken.
16 A little that a righteous man hath is
better than the riches of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be
broken: but the Lord upholdeth the righteous.
18 The Lord knoweth the days of the
upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever.
19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil
time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
20 But the wicked shall perish, and the
enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into
smoke shall they consume away.
21 The wicked borroweth, and payeth not
again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.
22 For such as be blessed of him shall
inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.
23 The steps of a good man are ordered by
the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.
24 Though he fall, he shall not be
utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.
25 I have been young, and now am old; yet
have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
26 He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and
his seed is blessed.
27 Depart from evil, and do good; and
dwell for evermore.
28 For the Lord loveth judgment, and
forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the
wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land,
and dwell therein for ever.
30 The mouth of the righteous speaketh
wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.
31 The law of his God is in his heart;
none of his steps shall slide.
32 The wicked watcheth the righteous, and
seeketh to slay him.
33 The Lord will not leave him in his
hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.
34 Wait on the Lord, and keep his way,
and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou
shalt see it.
35 I have seen the wicked in great power,
and spreading himself like a green bay tree.
36 Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was
not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
37 Mark the perfect man, and behold the
upright: for the end of that man is peace.
38 But the transgressors shall be
destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is
of the Lord: he is their strength in the time of trouble.
40 And the Lord shall help them, and
deliver them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because
they trust in him.
