Let me begin with a story from 60 years ago. It was early November 1949. “Yes, you can climb up there,” the man said. I peered up into the darkness. It was all blackness, except for a distant blob of dim white light. I put my hands and feet on the rungs, up and up — all was dark. It was an experience that remains etched in my memory of teenage years. One hundred feet, two hundred, more — straight up, the only light was that distant blob. Suddenly I was there. Stepping out through a hole on to a narrow ledge and gripping a rail, being greeted by a welcoming but lonely voice, but most of all, looking around me.
The view was identical on all sides. Nothing to be seen as far as the eye could see, except gray skies and endlessly restless gray seas. This was the southern ocean, the Great Australian Bight. Turning and looking right behind me there was something to see. I was high above the single huge smoke-belching funnel of a 28,000-ton ship.
There are lessons in this. We knew our destination, we knew the date of arrival, but we only had vague ideas of what to actually expect. There was no TV or DVD or sources of detailed information in those days. What really awaited us in Australia?
A journey to the Kingdom
There are some parallels with the journey to the Kingdom, especially the endless restless seas. There had been some massive multi-mile-long swells as we came through the Indian Ocean. The sea and the waves seemed huge; I would not like to have been in a small boat. But compare this to the spiritual journey; think of those who have no spiritual vision, and are not in a solid boat with a captain they trust and who knows his destination.
I was not aware of anyone else who climbed up here to the ‘crow’s nest’, as this lookout is known. I presume they do not need them now, as they have radar. But it has its lessons from the spiritual perspective. The world outlook, any distance ahead, is bleak for most people; the sports decks and the movies and entertainment rooms are the center of their attention. Today, with such an abundance of avenues for recreation available, this is now far more the case. Those with a higher view of life see the destination first; also, they see more readily the hazards they need to avoid along the way.
Our anticipation of life in the Kingdom is limited. We only have snapshots of certain things; the vast detail is still to be revealed by actual experience. Our unanticipated experiences when starting to live in Australia provide a crude illustration. For example, living in a house on a dusty unpaved road — our host pointing out snake tracks, ‘Don’t walk in the long grass, the snakes are venomous,’ he said. The next day a dead black snake hung on the wire fence! We suspended a ‘billy can’ by the gate and the milkman came and poured milk into it. Yes, life was very different.
Modern Israel
The most telling memory of the wider journey of life, both before and after 1949, was the brotherhood’s great excitement with prophecy fulfilling before our eyes. The United Nations voted that Israel should have a homeland in Palestine, so Israel declared itself a nation. War followed and the Arabs were unexpectedly (from the world’s perspective) humiliated. Many dramas followed. Were we on the threshold of the Kingdom? Nearly all thought we were.
It is now more than 60 years since those dramatic days. There have been many crises in the Middle East, but none that can be really tied down to specific prophecies, apart from the endless hatred of the surrounding nations as described in Psalm 83. Questions remain, particularly as to whether the times of the Gentiles are finally fulfilled — since the Arabs still control the sacred Temple Mount, the spiritual heart of Jerusalem.
During my life’s journey, like many others, I have often quoted the words of Jesus that men’s hearts will fail themselves for fear — a sure sign that Jesus is about to return. The cause of those fears have multiplied and changed. In my youth it was the atomic bomb, the invention of the much more powerful hydrogen bomb, the massive rockets that could send men into space and deliver nuclear warheads anywhere in the world. For those with no spiritual vision, the future was very worrying. Russia and the USA were bitter enemies. As a result most people made no attempt to visualize the future with any confidence; few recognized the spiritual ‘crow’s nest’ that was available to them. Many of the less orthodox church groups had a field day of speculation about a “rapture” of the righteous while God destroys the earth.
The countryside has changed
What is of particular note as I look back on the journey is how selfish and self-centered people progressively became. ‘The most important person is you!’ became the theme of many advertisements. It was such a contrast to my early memories as a child in the war years; people generally cooperated together in the face of uncertainties, shortages and common dangers. More than ever, we are now traveling through a strange uncharted world. However, the young in the Truth lack the memories to recognize the enormity of the changes. The world around them encourages them at every turn to focus on the transient things of life. What fresh and ever greater challenges to living a steadfast life in Christ await them and everyone else, if the Lord’s coming is still decades away?
Let us now look further back. There are comparisons and contrasts with the world of 2,000 years ago. Jesus was born in 5 BC or thereabouts; it was a time of much anticipation as the 70 weeks prophecy in Daniel had just about expired. We read the gospels and see the limitations to their expectations. Hopes were raised and dashed, then raised again. Recall the conversation on the road to Emmaus: “We had hoped he was the one to redeem Israel.” The reality of the resurrection was the dramatic climax — but right up until the ascension their expectations were still uncertain: “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel.”
The words that are so full of meaning, and challenge us today, are the Master’s final command: “Go into all the world!” Is that just being completed now? He had said:
“This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt 24:14).
Sixty years ago we had brothers and sisters in no more than a dozen countries; now they are in at least 120. All the countries of the world seem to be wired. Our reports on website responses and teaching opportunities are both exciting and a challenge. Our journey has taken a new turn.
There is, however, another perspective to our journey in these days. It was about 75 years from the birth of Jesus to the destruction of Jerusalem. As I look back on the 75-year journey of my life and share my thoughts with those of my own age in particular, we note that we now live in:
- a period of unprecedented material prosperity, as well as
- a period of unequalled moral depravity.
The ‘seas’ of the world have never been so restless. Do we have a spiritual vision with all the answers? Obviously not, but the way ahead for us is to work with and for our Master as never before. With the whole world linked with modern communications, if we dedicated our energies to witnessing at home and abroad, there will be less and less opportunity for the ugliness of the world to attract and distract us. With this objective we will be up in the ‘crow’s nest’ and will be the first to cry, “Land ahead.”
If we stay down by the ship’s rail, the sea will look really fearsome, especially as the weather gets wilder. There, we are close to the roaring waves, with the spray getting in our eyes and our clothing getting soaked. As the sea gets rougher, the danger of falling overboard will increase. The Lord is our captain, though, and he has the fullest vision of the way ahead. He is not susceptible to the folly of trusting in the latest inventions of men, as was the captain of the Titanic.
We largely set the course of our lives when we are young, yet at the time we only partly realize this. If we did not set our course very well, we need the captain’s guidance even more. Sadly, I have seen far too many fall overboard. They did not realize in their youth how much their actions then were going to affect their futures. This is even more critical now; the world is so much ‘in your face’; its power to throw us off course is now enormous, and we may find ourselves swamped by a tsunami of immorality.
Facing the challenges
Yet the Bible pictures many comparable situations. How many rose to the challenge and had a vision from a spiritual crow’s nest?
Take the case of David. As a youth, his life was simple; he was a shepherd boy, but it proved to be an invaluable training ground. Psalm 8 may well have sprung into his thoughts then. He was a protector of the sheep in all kinds of dangers. He had no idea when he went to take provisions to his brothers that he was going to become a hero. His life was a learning curve of faith, and God used him when the time was ripe.
The apostle Peter, in his journey in life, had many learning experiences. Consider his visit to Cornelius and his challenge in conveying that particular knowledge to others. Peter still had to learn lessons of a different nature, as when Paul had to admonish him (Gal 2:11-14).
Our learning is lifelong and sometimes lessons have to be reinforced, as in the life of Jacob. We will only complete our growing up in the Kingdom. Reaching that destination depends on the reality of our efforts to keep growing throughout our journey now.
“O foolish Galatians!” Paul could write, “Who has bewitched you?” Are there situations that threaten to bewitch us? It seems there always will be wayward brethren who have their own agenda contrary to the word of God. It is a tragedy when such accuse each other and threaten to throw the ship off course. When those at the helm fail to follow the captain’s instructions, or change them, it is tragic indeed. What wisdom is needed to get back on the correct course without losing some overboard.
In writing to the Galatians, Paul reviews the journey the nation had traversed, the promises to Abraham, the Mosaic Law, and now the way that Christ had set them free. Yet, Paul was afraid he had labored over them in vain (Gal 4:10). We have to recognize that it is God’s will to challenge those who follow Him, to test their faith. No sailor ever learns to sail if the sea is always calm.
A new focus to our message
A key question! Does the direction of our witnessing need to change due to the changing seas our ship has encountered? The thrust of Paul’s ministry differed according to his audience and his perception of their needs, such as on Mar’s Hill. It seems to me that the audience has changed during my 60 years in the Truth; therefore the emphasis of the message has to change, although essential content does not. At the beginning the emphasis was more on learning and understanding the Truth correctly. But now the emphasis might shift womewhat to meet the challenge of a totally godless age. Around us is an anemic church environment that largely preaches a ‘Me’ gospel of present prosperity: ‘Accept Christ and be rich!’ Note how Paul challenges the Galatians:
“Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” (5:7).
In this age of unprecedented material prosperity, coupled with unequalled moral depravity, it is one thing to know that which is true, and quite another to live a life that shows:
“…we have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves to righteousness” (Rom 6:17,18).
With the current financial anxieties, it may be that the collapse of the ‘prosperity God’ will be a blessing in disguise — for those who worship in the Temple of Mammon. Violence is greatly increasing — every year becomes more like the days of Noah. Our witness ought to attract those who are revolted by the way of life around them — and we can do this by public proclamations as well as personal example. We should note that the many parables of the Master about the Kingdom were really about how to be worthy to be accepted into the Kingdom! Let us follow his example. It may well be that the level of response we get will become less and less, as was the experience of Noah and Lot. But we cannot be hermits living separate from the world, in our own little caves. Because the world is becoming such a dark place, we have to shine as lights in the darkness while the sea and waves roar. We will save ourselves by our efforts to save others.
We cannot walk alone; we must understand that in two senses. The first sense is that the Lord’s spirit is with us, and in him we move and live and have our being. The writer to the Hebrews put it this way:
“Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’ So that we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear: what can man do to me?’ ” (13:5,6).
The second sense is the point Paul makes in Galatians 6: that we have each other and must help each other along the road. As this world grows darker and the “sea” even more tempestuous this factor is going to be as important as any other. What does Paul say to the Galatians?
“If anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him (or her) in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ” (vv 1,2).
We must work on ourselves and each other to see that Christ is formed in us. The failure of many Galatians to do this is what gave Paul such anguish:
“My little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you” (4:19).
The world is trying ever harder to be formed in us, and what is happening all too often is that we put aside a separate room inside our hearts — for that world! It may be hidden away, but it is there, and it will not stay hidden.
We do not think of it as “our worldly room”, of course. No one wants to compare themselves with Lot’s sons-in-law, who declined to go with him and the angels. But even Abraham thought at first there could be 50 righteous in Sodom. In the end he was content to think there must be at least ten there. Will this world get as bad as Sodom and Gomorrah?
Righteous Lot was “greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked” (2Pet 2:7), but our righteousness is not our own, it is from and through Christ. In accepting that wondrous fact, let us say with Paul, as we strive to complete the final stages of our journey:
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal 2:20).
As we partake of these emblems, let us think of restocking the rooms in our hearts so that Christ can more truly dwell there. This task can be a communal effort, a responsibility to help each other along the road, especially those who are more prone to stumble in the darkness, and who are not with us in our fellowship today. It is the responsibility of each one of us to help each other, for in doing that we help ourselves to complete the journey. There is light ahead, it is growing brighter. Oh what joy — and that joy in anticipation can be ours as we share this spiritual meal.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One