These Tumultuous Days
These are sure days of upheaval, unrest, disunity and unkindness. Every day the news seems to get worse. Just when we dare to think things are improving we are told about some new problem. It’s easy to find ourselves worried and fearful.
There is great value in remembering that Jesus said there would be days like this and that He would remain with us through it all. In John 16:33 He said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” In Mark 13:7–8 (KJV 1900) He said, “7 And 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.” He also said that He would be with us always, even unto the end of the world. He said that He would never leave us nor forsake us.
Jesus spoke at length about dealing with anxiety in Matthew 6:25–34 (KJV 1900). He said, 25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
We can find rest by talking to Father about the things that cause us worry, stress, and anxiety. Laying our cares and anxious thoughts upon Him, and trusting in His faithfulness to be working for good. It is perfectly acceptable—even advisable—to do this several times in a single day.
We see only the temporal, but we look forward to the eternal. We do not fit here, but we fit there. This is why we are encouraged by Paul in Colossians 3:2–4 (KJV 1900)to “2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” Our ultimate future is secure. Our lives are safely stored away in God right along with Jesus Christ Himself.
One way we set our minds on things above is by remembering that what’s happening here can serve to draw others to consider Jesus. According to 2 Peter 3:9, Father is not willing that any should perish, but that all would put their trust in Jesus and find eternal life. With that in mind, the best thing we can do is express love and peace to those who are in bondage to the ruler of this world and, if they ask, tell them who it is that gives that love and peace to us.
We can also build one another up and encourage one another. We are built for relationship, and when we help our sisters and brothers, our anxiety and worry take a backseat to the peace and joy of fellowship. This is faith working itself out through love. It is godly, and it is profitable.
I worked in the computer software industry for 36 years. One fundamental rule of computer data processing is, “garbage in, garbage out.” In other words, if you put bad data into the computer, you are going to get incorrect results.
Philippians 4:4-8 (KJV) tells us that the same thing is true of our minds. It says, “4 Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice. 5 Let your moderation [gentleness] be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be careful for [anxious about] nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep [guard/protect] your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
When we lay our anxiety and concerns on Jesus, the peace He has given us is allowed to take over in us. When we let go of such things, we yield to what the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, is doing in us. One aspect of the fruit He is producing is peace. That peace can be suppressed when we put our attention on what may happen and what we must to prevent or at least minimize it. Giving things to God is important, but we can also stem the tide of bad input being out into our computers.
Verse eight urges us to think on certain things. These include:
Things that are true. John 14:6 tells us that Jesus is truth. He is truth with a capital T because whatever He says is truth by definition. He spoke into being all that is, and it exists and is held together because of Him. Jesus is the life because He is the source of life. There is no true life apart from Him.
Things that are honest. This refers to things that are venerable or honorable. Things that deserve our respect and worship. There is only One that is completely honorable and deserving of worship and that is God. The Holy Spirit within us guides us into all truth according to John 16:3. By relying on Him, trusting that He is doing that, we find ourselves disquieted in the face of dishonesty and untruth. Similarly, we find ourselves at peace when we focus on what Father says is true.
Things that are just. God is just. When we recognize this, it alleviates a lot of negative feelings. In the end, the enemy and those who have chosen to believe his lies will not just get off the hook. Romans 3:26 tells us that God is just, and He is the justifier of those who have faith in Jesus.
Things that are pure. This word is a form of the word we translate holy, saint, or sanctified. If we think on the things that are pure, holy, and sanctified, we may remember that we who are in Christ are called those things. Nearly all of Paul’s letters refers to the believers as saints. We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24 (KJV 1900) that “the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” When we agree with God about who we are, we find that we are no longer easily moved to worry and fear.
Things that are lovely. These are acceptable things, agreeable things, things that are pleasing. If our minds are filled with such things, we find them spilling out to others. This is what witnessing looks like. We do not need to awkwardly find a way to interject Jesus into every conversation. Instead, we can rest in the knowledge that the Spirit is producing fruit in us and simply know that His fruit is showing up in ways that others can see. What could be more lovely than love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control? These are all aspects of the fruit He is producing in us and we can trust Him not to let it go to waste.
Things that are of good report. One thing that is of good report is the good news of Jesus Christ. When we remember that we are forgiven, spiritual fruit is more effectively borne. In 2 Peter 1:9 (KJV 1900), Peter says that “he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.” The things to which he is referring include virtue, knowledge, self-control, patience, godliness, kindness, and love. Reminding ourselves of the good news of what Jesus has done for us and made available to everyone causes us to grow in grace and the knowledge of the Lord. It causes us to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit to those around us.
Things that have virtue and things that are praiseworthy. These things benefit us when we put them into our minds. As we think on such things all the negativity, divisiveness, conspiracy, and anger begin to wane. Rest, peace, love, and compassion begin to grow.
Father is completely trustworthy and He will not fail to deliver the inheritance you have been promised. We read about this in Hebrews 6:13–20 (KJV 1900) “13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, 14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. 17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: 18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: 19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; 20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus,…”
In these tumultuous times, rest in this hope. Know that our hope does not disappoint. Here is the way Paul put it in Romans 5:1-5 (KJV 1900) 1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
Do you see that? In Jesus Christ we have peace with God. By faith in Him we have access His grace and we are able to rejoice in the hope we have of sharing in the glory of God. Because of all this we can face tribulation knowing that by it our patience, experience, and hope will grow, and that hope, which is an anchor for our souls, will not end in disappointment. We know this deep down because the love of God is poured all over our soft loving new hearts. Consequently, we can live the truth of 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV 1900) For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
