In Berlin men glare at each other over a wall which separates one part of the city from another, and, in many cases, one group of relatives from another Thousands of lives have been risked and some lost in overcoming this man-made obstacle In Cuba men and women groan under the yoke of a man who has destroyed their industry, taken away their freedom and ruined a once prosperous country In the Middle East nations are brought to the verge of war over the amount of water each may use from the river that forms a common boundary between their countries The Greeks and Turks battle in Cyprus, Vietnam is a battle ground, Russia and China claw at each other, and Africa is a powder keg.
Everywhere there is dissension, misunderstanding and war, either cold or hot The issues in each case are complex, and it is hard for an outsider to understand the problem, much less to find its solution In spite of excellent news coverage, it is difficult to accurately follow developments in countries where unfamiliar customs and unpronounceable names obscure the facts A century ago, a country like America could remain aloof from most of these upheavals Comfortably insulated by two oceans, it could mind its own business and let the rest of the world do likewise With the ad-sent of the airplane, however, distances have melted, and we can no longer ignore political developments in other countries An ocean is no longer a protection, and events in Europe, Asia, Africa or South America concern us as much as events in Canada or Mexico or in our own country.
A few months ago we heard one of the candidates for election to the office of president of the United States assuring the people that his political party knew how to handle this or the other difficulty, and, by so doing, avoid the risk of war At one time the speaker went into great detail to convince his hearers that the only way to keep peace is to be strong enough to keep any other nation from starting a war for fear of reprisals, only by being in a better position to cause ruin to our opponents could we be sure there would be peace Our weapons must be more terrible, our stock pile greater and our finger perpetually on the button which could put in motion the most disastrous chain of events the world has ever seen This, of course, is not a new idea, and many people feel it is our only recourse It was surprising, therefore, to hear him conclude his talk by saying that we must be strong in every way especially spiritually, for “in God we trust” That brought to mind the advice of a former president “Trust in God, but keep your powder dry” Every coin minted in the United States bears the legend, “In God We Trust” As a national motto, it could not be improved, but most people seem to feel It really means “The Lord helps those who help themselves.”
Statesmen, who take seriously their responsibilities tor keeping the peace, spend long hours weighing decisions, keeping in touch with changing world conditions, and deciding which man will do the best job in each place It is a nerve-wracking and unenviable position to be in, and after they have done their best, they are often blamed for conditions over which they had no control The trouble stems from the fact that men are attempting to sole the world’s problems without taking into consideration the plan of God as outlined in the Scriptures In magazine articles recently I have twice seen the comment that men want God to be on their side, without trying to put themselves on God’s side.
Much bloodshed and heartache could have been eliminated if the powers of the world had realized that it was part of God’s plan for the Jews to return to Palestine, and it was useless to oppose it Thousands of years ago this fact was put on record in the Bible “For I will take you (Israel) from among the nations, and gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land” (Ezekiel 36 24). This did not fit in with the plans of the Arab nations and they have gone to great lengths to try to prevent it, but Israel is a nation today in the same country they inhabited centuries ago, in spite of all efforts to defeat and dislodge them. England’s early interest in a homeland for the Jews died when she was faced with the fact that she needed Arab controlled oil, but all her efforts to prevent refugees from getting to Israel were futile. No nation, or combination of nations, can successfully oppose the will of God.
Thousands of dollars are spent in an election year by each of the opposing candidates for election to impress on the people the necessity of putting this or that man in office, and stressing the fact that the safety of the nation depends on a wise choice. Yet we are admonished by God in Psalm 146:3: “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help”; and in verse 5 of the same Psalm: “Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God.” There are no unforeseen circumstances with God. He does not have to change His plan at the last minute because of some unexpected development. In Isa. 46:9, 10 He says: ” . . . For I am God and there is none else: I am God and there is none like me. Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.”
The problems that plague the heads of nations today are not to be solved by men. Only by divine intervention, when God sends His beloved Son again, will the troubles of the world be put to rights. Many people have looked around and decided that things will always be as they are, with small modifications, but even this was foreseen by God. The inspired Word, recorded by Peter in his second Epistle, Chapter 3, verses 3 and 4, predicts that ” . . . there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”
The insoluble problems vexing the statesmen of all countries today will only be solved when Jesus returns to the earth and reigns in Jerusalem, the future capital city of the world, and we are assured that He will do just that. Micah 4:2,3 tells us of conditions in those days, which are not very far away. “And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”
This is disarmament in its fullest sense, not “peaceful coexistence” or “cold war.” It is real peace such as man has never known and cannot attain for himself without God’s help. Anyone who truly desires peace will seek it where it can be found, and join his prayers to those of the many who say, “Even so come, Lord Jesus.”
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One