I opened my newsfeed on FaceBook and found an article about a high school teen in Washington DC provoking a response to a Native American elder. The teen was wearing a red MAGA hat and the Native American beating a drum was a Vietnam Vet. The outcry on social media was loud. Then another story broke where the Native American elder was the one who provoked the teen and the outcry against him was just as loud. If the story didn’t contain enough controversy, another story revealed that a black hate group was taunting the teens and the Native American elder claimed to be running interference between the two groups. And the rage on social medial started coming to a boiling point. Amidst so much bad, where can you find any good?
I opened a magazine to read about developments in our government. The shutdown has gone on longer than any previous shutdowns, with both parties digging in their heels deeper and deeper, finding an end in sight seems to be a work in vanity. With the positions clearly marked out, it’s nothing more than a power struggle and the citizens are the collateral damage. As the shutdown continues some 800,000 federal workers have missed two paychecks and most are living paycheck-to-paycheck. The ripple effect of the shutdown is predicted to have strong negative effects on our economy and making our nation vulnerable to outsiders. Amidst so much bad, where can you find any good?
I turned onto the news and witnessed a disturbing video showing the Governor of New York signing an abortion bill into law. New York now protects women’s rights to opt for an abortion into the third trimester so long as “the woman’s life was in danger” or if “the (baby) could not survive outside the womb.” When the bill was officially signed, the legislators erupted into a raucous applause. The sad irony is that while signing this aggressive abortion bill into law, New York has suspended Capital Punishment since 2004 because it was viewed as unconstitutional (or immoral?). Amidst so much bad, where can you find any good?
I opened my bible and started to read. The Apostle John had been banished to the island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea (part of the larger Mediterranean Sea), just west of Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). The churches in the region were facing two foes standing against them. While a secondary conflict came from local Jewish Synagogues, their primary source of conflict originated from persecution by the Roman Empire. If written during the time of Domitian’s reign (A.D. 81-96), the church was seeing unprecedented attacks while the Domitian initiated emperor worship. Loyalty to the State or to Jesus was the line in the sand and it looked like God was doing nothing about it.
God’s been accused of slacking his duties before. Job claimed he could run the universe better than God could. Habakkuk wondered why God had done nothing about Israel’s continued lack of justice. When God said he was raising up Babylon to punish Israel, Habakkuk couldn’t believe it. While Israel was bad, Babylon was worse; how could God do that? Finally, when the disciples were caught in a storm at sea, Jesus was sleeping on the job.
So John witnesses a revelation from God. As he’s invited into the heavenly realm he sees God firmly established on his throne. Twenty-four elders were sitting on twenty-four thrones which surrounded God’s throne. Flashes of lightning and rumblings of thunder burst from the throne. Before the throne was sea, so still it looked like glass and clear as crystal. Four living creatures sang day and night of God’s holiness. Then the elders bowed in reverence to God laying their crowns before him (Rev. 4).
Here is where you find the good amidst so much bad. For God to remain on his throne means he has not been removed and his enemies cannot threaten him. God will lead John to realize that judgment will come to those who have threatened, persecuted and bullied his people; that justice will be swift and sure. In other words, God’s got this and we need to stop worrying or panicking. As Habakkuk came to realize, we (i.e. the righteous) live by faith (Hab. 2:4) not by fear, and we believe that “the Lord is in his holy temple, let all the earth be silent before him” (Hab. 2:20).
Soli Deo Gloria!
(i.e. only God is glorified!)