“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now — and never to be equaled again.” (Matt 24:21 NIV)
“Thou art my hiding place; Thou dost preserve me from trouble; Thou dost surround me with songs of deliverance.” (Ps 32:6-7 NASB)
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The subject of, “Peace of God” have been widely and deeply studied by many teachers of the Word. The aspects of God’s salvation and making peace with our Maker had been covered by many. One missing piece however is how we can reconcile this peace to events that happen around us and how our new found peace can be useful to us. I hope that through this study, our perspective of God’s peace will help transform the way we view things around us. Some of the topics covered are not new, though I tried to expand and expound a bit on them. Others though are new. But what matters most is we receive the message of the Lord and use it to overcome evil with good. The more we can receive, the greater our role to stand as well as to apply them in our lives.
The greatest value of God’s peace is not just the stability it brings but the power of the presence of God which transforms our personal lives into His mighty fortresses! It is this power of His presence that changes lives. There can be no lasting peace that man can produce on earth. We have manufactured everything we needed but we cannot fake peace. If it were so, there would have been no single incidence of war, battles, quarrels and violence in the past one hundred years or even in one year. This proves how petty, how shortsighted we are and how vulnerable our human laws and agreements are without the Prince of Peace. Only the Lord can bring healing to our divisiveness and it begins with His peace residing inside the hearts of everyone. The Scriptures are clear that the day of the Lord is fast approaching when His army prepared in battle shall be exactly as depicted in Joel 2:28-31:
“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.”This day of the Lord shall be great for those who have prepared for His coming and it will be dreadful for those who have scorned, disregarded or were indifferent to it. His army shall stand because they have learned to abide in His peace.
Edison Macusi Bonn, Germany"This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,' says the Lord Almighty. (Hag 2:6-7)
Today we can’t afford to live in extravagance. We are all living in a world whose economy had just been shaken from the 1997 Asian financial crisis to the American mortgage crisis this year…the economic recession that the world is facing right now can tip the balance of power and set in events that would bring a deeper depression and hardship to everyone. Almost all people have complaints against their governments, but this is clear that not even the world’s most powerful government can solve its own people’s problem. The Katrina debacle to the now financial crisis in Wall Street has it all proven that no government can eventually pay for all the entire financial burden that companies whose wrong decisions and actions brought it into this mess. All governments built by men will always be fragile without the strength and protection of Christ.
Every time an economic downturn occurs, companies and individuals alike will either experience pain or gain. Those who will survive the downturn will be stronger when they will come out but those who will not survive will be gobbled up by those who will. Those who have foreseen it coming would have gotten ready ahead and prepared for such events as economic recession. They would have been quick, ready and sell out their stocks and pack up. Investments in land as well as its development would be seen as one of the most stable ones during these times. Immunity to recession in the global community is not easy unless one has been living in isolation or one has already experienced one in the past and has laid down strong financial muscles in place.
We might ask why do recessions occur? And why does God allow it? Recessions do not simply imply shrinkage of money or stocks. It can imply shrinkage of all other businesses too such as the fast food industry or the cosmetics industry. It is truly revealing that the Lord would want to bring economic recession to the whole earth today in many ways we might not have seen. The whole earth today is in agony for the fulfillment of the revelation of the sons of God. Recession or economic shaking will release many people from the captivity of thinking that they have it all; an insurance of the present economic system. This shaking of God is brought about by our false belief systems. It will show the true colors of many nations, friends and alliances will be made and wrong friendships will bind many into future conflicts they have never imagined to come; while the right decisions will bring out the best of friends in the hard times. It will purify and cleanse the people prepared by the Lord to be used by Him in His vineyard. Others will have to start anew and build a deeper foundation.
“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)"I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!” (Luke 12:49)
Every skyscraper is tested by how strong the steel trusts and beams it has, how deep its foundations are and the quality of cements used. When you build a skyscraper, you won’t use a loamy or clay soil to build on it; you will look for the bedrock, you will dig deep enough to anchor the trust beams into the bed rock. Once an earthquake occurs, a skyscraper which was not founded on a solid rock will fall and break endangering not only the loss of an edifice but the lives of thousands.
A great team of engineers and architects would see to it that what they are building and designing won’t simply last for a few earthquakes—they design it to last for 500 years. Likewise, the shaking of God is like a furnace of fire by which Jesus has lit the fire. This fire will burn up every chaff in its pathway will consume the hay and stubble in many Christians who have been hiding in the promises of earthly wealth. No one will survive it except the gold, the silver and the bronze.
“…his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.” (1 Cor 3:13-15)
We can rephrase “each man’s work” to mean each man’s heart. It is the heart of man that determines the quality of his job, the quality of his persona and the strength of his character. A quality with a gold seal speaks of the quality of workmanship which has been approved of Christ. When we think of gold, we think of the highest value in precious metals. Precious metals are in fact measured by how much they compare to a gold standard. Before paper money and credit cards were in use, gold and silver coins are the means to buy and sell in the market. Gold in the Bible does not only symbolize purity but also it means a radiating character. In fact the items in the Holy of Holies are covered with beaten gold. Gold is symbolic of the purity and holiness of God which means above reproach or blemish.
When Jesus Christ walked the earth, he often mentions, who convicts me of sin? A silver quality may not completely depict the holiness required of a gold standard but still a silver quality means purity. Silver is also purified by fire. The longer it has been put on the fire, the clearer and shinier it becomes. Mirrors of today maybe made of glasses, but before, these are mainly made of high quality silver which can better reflect the image of a person. A silversmith will not stop the fire until he has seen his own image on the molten silver. The Lord will not stop either until He sees His image stamped on us because we were shaped and made up in the image of God.
The prophet Malachi wrote,“He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross. He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord.” (Mal 3:3 NLT)
What is a dross? The greatest enemy of silver is corrosion. Corrosion comes on easily on silverworks made with low quality while the higher quality silvers will last for a long time. This is the reason why silver used in dental works are usually made of strong high quality silver. A sword made of silver when not used and maintained will easily corrode in time. Either reactive oxides in the air or fungi can form a layer on the silver that can degrade its value. Jesus said, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees” (Matt. 16.6 KJV). Leaven simply means yeast which is a form of fungi, symbolic of sin in the Scriptures. Christians who carry a lot of dross can only be refined through the fiery furnace of affliction.
Thus, economic recessions which are not limited geographically depict this godly shaking occurring all over the globe. It is a godly shaking taking place all over the world to prepare the hearts of the people of God for His coming. Jesus will not come as a beggar asking people to receive Him. He will come as a King for a lovely queenHis Bride, awesome in deeds and beauty. The continuing verse in Malachi says, “He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord.” Hardships can sometimes be the only way by which God can talk people into action. His shakings are meant to inform the believers and unbelievers alike…problems and diseases are consequences of sin which is spoken of as a corruption of the flesh.
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal life.” (Gal 6:7-8 NASB)
This godly shaking right now is both a consequence of our sin and the corruption in the market place. We are living in the end of the age. We shall reap what was sown, both good and evil. Haven’t you observed the increasing degree of depravity of man in crimes, drugs, syndicate, death, riots and unrests? This is the reason for the shaking, to call forth into repentance every erring believer and to drive the unrighteous to the cross of Jesus. He will purify every one of us so that we will come out of the shaking stronger and able to offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord. When the Lord said, 'Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea,’ He had spoken in a serious tone that warns us of His impending judgment. He had shaken this world before to such a magnitude that Noah’s generation perished except for himself and his family. The Lord is making clear a demarcation point between the righteous and the unrighteous, the obedient and the disobedient, the faithful and the betrayer. The sea swallowed the people of Noah and all their monies and valuables perished with the flood. The sea represents God’s shaking not just the literal sea but also the sea of peoples in the earth today. We just had a real experience of what happens when God wakes up the sea; He has indeed hidden a vast armory beneath the earth that can shake and cause trembling to anyone if they learn about how precarious we really are. The 2004 tsunami tragedy was just like what happened in Noah’s day…fault lines and deep sea volcanoes snapped causing a massive damage and carrying with it not just a few lives but more than two hundred thousand that perished instantly.
The question is, are you ready for the fire? Has the fire of God consumed your heart? Fire is also symbolic of purging. Take gold again. Gold like silver is refined through the fire where dregs separate from the precious metal as it passes through the fire. Our present afflictions, sufferings, trials are meant to do just that, to refine our character and to form in us a needed dependence on God. These are sometimes circumstances which God uses to teach us and lead us into the right directions.
God does not author evil in our lives, but He uses circumstances meant for evil and turns them into good. He uses them as a tool to cleanse our lives. When gold comes out of the fire, it is red hot and pure. Likewise when we come out of a fiery trial, we are consumed with a passion for Jesus. We do not come out weak but strengthened and able to succor those who will undergo the same circumstances as we had. This passion for Jesus is the fuel that will ignite the fire and consume any evil in our lives. We must learn to receive not just the blessings of God or the victories that we have wrought with Him, but also welcome God’s purgings with a character of resolve and strength. God sits as a judge and tells when things should stop through. Have you wondered why trials seem so long at times? Have you wondered why it seems so hard? The Scriptures tell us why…
“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” (James 1:2-4 NLT)
The end goal of any trial in our lives must be seen as a chance or opportunity to grow over in any areas needing attention. In fact, God does not send any trial that does not have an equivalent of character that needs refining. Every time I have a trial I always ask what is God teaching me here? What do I need to learn from here? The goal of the Lord in trials we experience is not to punish us but to transform us into His image. Trials are useless when we don’t get out renewed with clearer visions, stronger resolve and transformed in our character. We must therefore learn to ask ourselves what aspect of Christ’s character we are presently learning from. We must all do this if we want to be true Ambassadors of Jesus Christ on earth. When we avoid these opportunities to straighten out any lacking character in us, we will end up weaker and our journey becomes longer and harder. The apostle Paul gave an advice that is apt for everyone to follow especially when we are in the midst of a trial; “Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world” (Phil 2:14-15 KJV). He wrote this epistle for the Philippians church while imprisoned which makes it all the more compelling as the apostle in spite of a grim environment manages to even console and give advice to his disciples and children in the Lord. This is a classic study providing evidence that a Christian is not to be controlled by what is happening around him but by what is happening inside him. Paul’s true strength comes into play in his trials as it shows who he really is. It shows his character, his longings and his selfless care for the churches of God. You may not believe it but when the Lord sees our reactions to opportunities he sends to us, He weighs them on how they measure according to a Christ like character, and when we pass, He tags it, “quality check-pass on to the next stage.”
“We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.” (Col 1:28-29)
“For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.” (Rom 8:19 NASB)“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.” (2 Cor 5:20 KJV)
All creations expectantly wait for an army of God that exhibits the very nature of Christ. It cannot be done without the shaking happening in our lives. We all as delivered to every trials and tribulations so that we can have a share in Christlikeness. Ambassadors are sent to represent his country’s interest. If we do not learn how to be citizens of heaven now, how can we more fully represent Him before other people? We have been bought with a price, the shakings will come but how we go through the shaking will determine if we have buried our foundations deeper into the Rock. The deeper we anchor ourselves into the Rock, the more secure and the higher we can can go up.
“For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor 3:11)“For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” (1 Cor 6:20 NASB)
“and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness. Now these things happened as examples for us, that we should not crave evil things, as they also craved.” (1 Cor 10:4-6 NASB)
“For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Cor 4:17-18 NASB)
All the people that drowned in the judgment of God during the days of Noah cried for mercy. None of them received one except those living inside Noah’s ark. King David wrote, “ Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to Thee in a time when Thou mayest be found; Surely in a flood of great waters they shall not reach him. Thou art my hiding place; Thou dost preserve me from trouble; Thou dost surround me with songs of deliverance” (Ps 32:6-7 NASB). When disasters strike and we have been warned already by God that we should leave the area before hand, it would be foolish to expect another kind of mercy. God’s mercy is never a license for carelessness. Noah’s generation was offered warnings for one hundred years but they have ignored not just Noah but God Himself who was speaking through this great prophet and patriarch. The Lord will continue to reach unto us but there will be clear demarcation lines after several ways that God has already reached unto us and we rejected His offer of help. The raging waters during the days of Noah saved only those who were inside the Ark. The distress of the seas that will come upon our times will become more evident as the days unfold and as we move nearer to the end of the age spoken of in Matthew 13:39, 49
“… the harvest is the end of the age…” (Matt 13:39 NASB)"So it will be at the end of the age; the angels shall come forth, and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will cast them into the furnace of fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt 13:49-50 NASB)
"And when you hear of wars and disturbances, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end does not follow immediately." Then He continued by saying to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven…"Woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land, and wrath to this people, and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. "And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. "And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. (Luke 21:9-11, 23-27 NASB)
“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now — and never to be equaled again. (Matt 24:21)The end of the age will be the culmination of good and evil. It will be the harvest of everything sown in the flesh and in the spirit. There will be great distress in the nations and great earthquakes, roaring waves and seas. When you think about all of these, it signifies the end of the age and we have seen some forewarnings of how it will look like in the coming days…the death of thousands unequalled in history for catastrophe has been shown by an undersea quake which caused a roaring wave to cast its death spell upon thousands during the Asian tsunami catastrophe last 2004. Sadly this catastrophe is just a sign of what might take place again when people will not repent of their sins; in fact the American economic crisis this year will be remembered not only as a recession but it will be a depression just like the economic depression in 1929. Though this maybe the case, there is a way out; distress does not only mean physical disturbance but includes economic disturbances as well.
Anything today that causes distress will not actually lessen as we approach the end of days, rather, it will increase in degree and magnitude because God has to judge the earth for the sin of man. When the personification of the sin of man who is called the Man of Sin will be revealed, the last judgments will be poured out by God. This is not to merely kill humans, but rather judgment is the last resort of God to forewarn mankind of the paths and consequences of their decisions. His mercy will be the time to prepare; it maybe hundred years from now or fifty years more but that does not make any difference, it will still come.
“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now — and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect — if that were possible.”
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. "Therefore keep grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. "Therefore keep 24, 35-42)
The Lord must have seen and known our times even beforehand since He is the Alpha and the Omega—He knows the end from the very beginning. This is what makes Him different from any impostors, accuracy and precision is one hundred percent. His words as He Himself mentioned will never pass away though we may leave the earth and though the earth maybe destroyed by water or by fire. He characterized this age to be filled with deceivers even preaching, “He is indeed the Christ” using His name to proclaim another gospel. Isn’t this rampant today?
There are many sects professing He is the Christ but do not believe in His deity nor in His doctrines. Some even proclaim their gifts come from Him but then what? Use it to manipulate and gain advantage from ignorant people deceived by their clever and subtle prevarications. Lies will be exposed by the truth and a false gifting will be exposed by a real one just as Paul the apostle exposed the false gifting of Elymas the sorcerer. Only a real teacher can expose a false one and only a true apostle can expose those who are not. This is why Paul and even John the beloved mentions and warns the churches about false apostles in their epistles.
“But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun." Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.” (Acts 13:8-12)
Deceptions and marked false gifts will abound as described but our refuge shall be the fortress of Truth. The Lord shall be our guide; His Holy Spirit will always be more powerful than any lies or gifting of the enemy because He has overcome the world already! We will understand those who are false because we will know they glory not in Christ nor have the true glory of Jesus Christ residing in them. Above all a passion for Jesus Christ will always consume every sin hiding in nook and crannies in our lives because our “God is a consuming fire” (Heb. 12:29 KJV). The fire of God will consume even the false Christs and prophets; lies will be easily disarmed because the fire of God will consume all darkness. No lies can hide exposed under His light. Our everyday lives would have been different if we can see this glory shining upon every Christian; but the truth is, it is in fact shining in the spirit but we do not see it physically with our own eyes.
The glory we carry in this fallen vessels are indeed aromatic and we can only understand that it is indeed scented with a Christlike life when we are touched by His hand, His healing, His truth, His love and His compassion through another vessel. This is why the Lord is very patient to each one of us because the renewal of one person’s life can change and influence the attitudes, behaviors and perspectives of others. You can change the world, you can reform it but what does that mean to you when you are not reformed yourself?
Thus, we experience, “light afflictions”, for the Lord wants to bring about this glory in earthen vessels, the glory of a Christlike character which is more precious than refined gold or any earthly possession. Our spiritual gifts and talents and character will always be more valuable than any treasures this world can give for. Our destiny will always be more valuable than simply being a CEO of the largest retailer in the country. Your destiny in Christ Jesus cannot be valued more because it is priceless! Our trials therefore are meant to bring purity and mastery…this is one way the Lord is refining and purifying our character to bear His glory, “For everyone will be purified with fire” (Mark 9:49 NLT). Through the fire, pretenders will soften and either repents or leaves the fellowship, discarded just as chaffs are thrown away.
Many are preaching Christ but the greatest preaching anyone can have is a Christlike life; this life is a greater witness than an apostle who does not exude the inner life of Jesus Christ. The fire of trials will reveal those who have true devotions from those who do not. In a desert biome, seeds of flowering plants sprout only after being cracked open by fire. Hard life or poverty does not have to serve as a debacle to any people. Rather, it should motivate us all to strive for the best that we can reach for, living for Christ everyday. This should not drive us to imagine quick relief, because if we do so, we might end up in the
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