World Events

World events rush upon us and often take us by surprise. As a Christian I believe that everything is moving towards end times and that events described in the Bible will come to pass eventually. It was thousands of years between the initial promises of a Saviour (Genesis 3:15) and the coming of Jesus of Nazareth but this plus the fulfilment of other prophecies (see Daniel 2 and 7 for an example) give me the confidence that God's word will always be seen to be authentic in the end and will always be fulfilled.

I do not know (not being a prophet) how this emerging conflict between Israel and Iran will turn out and I do not necessarily agree with everything they have done in the last few years. I do, however, see that things are gathering pace and Biblical prophecy is nearing fulfilment.

In light of current world events we all need to be aware that time for all of us is running out. Time is a limited commodity not just in terms of what we can do in any 24 period but in terms of our life span. This means we need to take a relationship with God (or the lack of it) seriously.

Let me leave a few verses from the Bible with you that emphasis the urgency of getting your sins forgiven and being right with God before your life in this world ends.

 for He says,

“AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU,

AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.”

Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION”

2 Corinthians 6.2

Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

Romans 13.11,12

While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child, and they will not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

1 Thess 5.3-8 (this is written to and about Christians)

Please, please, think seriously about you spiritual condition and your need of salvation. This is biggest issue that you will ever consider.

Visit my website www.seekthetruth.org.uk for more information.

All photos courtesy of Unsplash 

World War 2 Artefacts

All pictures courtesy of Unsplash 

As a young boy, I was always fascinated by a few artefacts from World War II that were dotted around my grandparents’ house. These included large brass shells that had been polished and transformed into umbrella stands, some wooden boxes, an old army belt and an actual incendiary bomb that had been made safe.

I was always fascinated by history and would ask my grandfather to tell me stories from his experiences during the war. Even as a young boy I recognised that he had told me stories reluctantly and that these stories had been somewhat sanitised for my hearing.

My grandfather believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour. As a Christian, at the outbreak of World War II, he didn’t want to fight and possibly be taking the lives of enemy soldiers and in effect ushering them into eternity, which they may not have been prepared for. He believed, as the Bible teaches that there are two eternal destinations, Heaven for those that accept God’s forgiveness and Hell for those who refuse the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour.

To avoid being put into this position, he decided to join up early so that he would have a choice where he served. He chose to join the Medical Corp, so that he wouldn’t have to carry arms. 

One of the first jobs he was given to do was just outside Bristol on the Downs. As the bombers flew over from Germany to bomb Bristol, they would send the first wave to drop incendiary devices to light the way, pointing out the targets to the second wave of bombers. He along with a few others were asked to light fires on the Downs to deflect the bombers away from the city, thus saving lives. Obviously, he with his comrades were in great danger. They had to dive into a bunker pulling sandbags over the door while bombs dropped around them.

My grandfather served as part of the Medical Corp in many areas, such as North Africa and Italy, he received many medals for bravery. He did this not carrying guns, but stretchers, pulling many soldiers from the battlefield. His faith in Jesus Christ had taught him to show love to those who had not shown love to him. In fact, he knew that our sin had made us enemies of God. God was not our enemy, we were His!

How did God react to our hostility? Did He treat us as an enemy?  No not at all, the Bible says that while we were still sinners, doing the very thing that God hates… Christ died for us.

Another Christian relative of mine found himself guarding a German war hero, this man had been awarded an Iron Cross by his country for bravery. Some of the other guards treated him badly, but my relative showed him kindness. As a result, he reacted with gratitude and cut a part of the ribbon from his Iron Cross and gave it to him.

God’s love is immense! Jesus Christ died taking the punishment that we deserved.  He expects us to react with gratitude, trusting the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour and allowing Him to lead in our lives.

In the box among my grandfather’s medals is the piece of ribbon that was given, it obviously had great significance to those involved.

When we read the Bible and think of how much God has loved us, how do we react? Do we reject Him or do we worship Him and trust in Him for what Jesus Christ has done on the cross for us?

Messages with Meaning written by Stuart Scammell for 542day and published with permission