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SELAH 7
After this I saw in the night visions -- a forth beast dreadful and terrible
For this is what the LORD says:
" Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths; ask where the
good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you
said: `We will not walk in it . . . '. " (Jeremiah 6:16)
These words of the LORD, spoken through his prophet Jeremiah, were spoken in a time of devastating war as the Babylonians swept through the nations. In their way stood Israel, alone and unrepentant! The result was that the southern kingdom of Judah was taken into captivity out of the Land and all that was important and familiar was destroyed, for the people would not listen to the voice of the LORD through His mouthpiece Jeremiah. Earlier in verse 14 Jeremiah warned the court prophets and the priests - with their words of `Peace, peace, we have the Temple of the LORD' - that there is no peace! `All is mere deceit', cries God's true prophet. As we have written more urgently recently, there is no great revival . . . there is no taking the world for Jesus . . . there is no Age of Apostolic and Prophetic men of God with supernatural power to rule over the nations. Captivity is as real today as it was in Jeremiah's time, no matter what words are spoken of `peace, peace'. When lined up with Scripture history itself gives a clear prophetic message to `prophets and priests' alike: `This is what the LORD says to His people: Look, an army is coming from the land of the north'!
History, when lined up with Scripture, will speak its own message as surely as did the LORD's word spoken through His servant Jeremiah, for history is a record of the needs of people within the boundaries of State Nations, in and through which their aspirations are expressed. Within these State Nations even the lowliest of men - the poor and the disadvantaged, whose standing in the community is below zero - through to the most powerful of men find their self-esteem or self-worth within a group which, writ large, is called the State Nation. Any such group or nation will seek to increase its standing, which becomes a collective bastion of self-esteem to all those within who will seek to extend that awareness to those without. This leads to what history calls `war'. Man is a restless soul, ever seeking recognition of his worth as a person, or through his belonging to a nation. This can be seen in a most basic way such as in prolonged holidays or the `end of the year' festivities whch stretch through from mid-December to mid-January. However restlessness usually starts up after two, even three, days, with an increasing urge to either return to work or to a normal house routine. Endless holidays or endless peace within a Nation State deny the expression of self-worth. To do less turns men into an animal existence, needing nothing more than food and sleep with the occasional foraging for more food. Within liberal democracies this urge has been channelled into work, with the high-flying business man, the entrepreneur, finding success in professional and commercial life. History and Scripture show that this restlessness cannot be contained within these boundaries for long, for Man in his quest for absolute recognition does not find it in `peace' but only in reaching for that absolute in a struggle with others..
Here we need to step back some five hundred years in European history to see this historical-Scriptural drama taking place in the one continuous event we call history. This takes us back to a defining point in European history, to 1517 the time of the emergence of Protestantism. 1517 saw the break-up of the rule of kings and princes whose territories were scattered over many lands, with ever-shifting boundaries caused by inter-dynastic marriages and the granting of land to members of Royal Houses and petty wars between ruling families. All such earthly Monarchs and their royal families were `ruled over' by the Roman Church which claimed supreme authority over spiritual and secular powers as inheritors of the Roman Empire. The action of Martin Luther in 1517 unwittingly began the break-up of this system of rule, and from the aftermath of this there arose many State Nations, each with their own National Church which confirmed their spiritual anointing. Such a defining moment released what was to become the first Thirty Years War of Europe as kings and princes, freed from the shackles of Universal Christendom, sought to extend their territories. In 1648 exhausted Europe entered into `The Peace of Westphalia' where each of the warring States agreed to and accepted as inviolate national boundaries of sovereign State Nations.
1789 saw the end of this fractious Peace with the beginning of the French Revolution when the `sans colettes' (those without knee britches) stormed the Bastille. This led to the French Revolutionary Wars which swept through Europe, in turn leading to the `terror' of 1794 when the Jacobins rose to power. This was followed by the rise of Napoleon and the Napoleonic wars which went beyond the boundaries of Western Europe. Once again, with Europe exhausted, `The Peace of Vienna' was agreed in 1815 when finally the end of the Napoleonic wars came with the Battle of Waterloo. This Peace, which had lasted for one hundred years, came to an end in 1914 with the beginning of the second Thirty Years European War, which finally ended with `The Paris Peace Treaties' in 1947. This led to `The Treaty of Rome' in 1957 in which the four Great Powers renounced all claims over Germany and Germany renounced its Eastern claims. The Treaty of Rome also saw the establishment of the European Economic Community (EEC) which later was enlarged into the European Union (EU) which would bring peace to Europe for seventy years In 2016 came the UK National Referendum, which resulted in what has become known as Brexit as the UK Parliament announced its intention of leaving the European Union - thereby sealing the simmering unrest amongst the EU member States which will lead to the reformation of the European Union. This was seen by Daniel in the seventh chapter of the Book of Daniel, when in a dream he saw `four great beasts'. As he sought to understand the meaning of this he was shown: (Daniel 7:7)
" A fourth beast - terrifying and frightening and very powerful . . . . . .
It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled
underfoot whatever was left. "
These wars, which are yet to come, but are very close, will reveal the final manifestation of the Imperial Power of the Roman Empire, the Fourth Beast that so terrified Daniel and which will once again sweep throughout Europe and beyond: (verse 26)
" But the Judgement will sit and shall take away his dominion and shall
consume and destroy it unto the end. "
Thus has been the past five hundred years of the allotted time of Europe, and beyond into the wider world, until - as seen in chapter 2 of Daniel - Nebuchadnezzar saw: (v34)
" A stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet,
that were of iron and clay, and broke them into pieces . . . "
In this short potted history of man we have seen the same pattern emerging as short periods of peace were followed by short periods of war - peace and war - the freedom of peace becoming increasingly decadent and the following war becoming increasingly terrifying. As we have shown above, in every case when the `peace' ended few had seen how fragile that `enforced peace' had been, for man's natural desire and need for recognition of his worth had been stifled through endless years of `peace'. However man's inability to show prowess over his peers would finally break out as men rallied to the cry for war - the ultimate testing of a man's worth, even to the point of a `glorious' death!
As the end of peace approaches, and pointing towards a coming conflict, fractious times appear which are seen in social unrest, with increasing demands for social and sexual change as people sense a coming change with opportunities for increasing personal self-worth. Today this goes under the wider title of `Moral Relativity', or even `Political Identity'. If such demands are not dealt with by Government, pent-up frustration bursts out resulting in social unrest which eventually spills out beyond national boundaries into surrounding nations. `As it was, so shall it be again', as a demagogue arises and harnesses national frustration to his own desire for recognition for self-worth above all others. It has been said that `strength is in the struggle', but this does not fully express man's desire to be recognised by his peers. This expression should more fully say the struggle - even to the point of dying in that struggle - does not reveal such people's strength, but rather it is the willingness to go to the extreme which is the object of that struggle. It is recognition in remembrance - should the extreme occur - in which a man's strength lays.
Moving back into our five hundred years of European history, and to the Protestant Reformation, it can be seen that Martin Luther was the unwitting cause of those times. He released, if not harnessed, the frustrations of kings and princes whose recognition of their personal pride of position had long been subjected to the universal Roman Church through its ultimate threat of ex-comminication from all spiritual life, which power in those times was personified in the Vicarious Person of the Pope. It should be remembered that Popes, as Pontifex Maximus, ruled as absolute `monarchs' over the Roman `empire' as High Priest and Caesar, that is, Emperor - albeit `ruling and reigning' through blatantly forged Letters or Decretals such as the Pseudo Isidorian Decretal! But, as always with such power centered in one person, it brought continuing corruption and subsequent division and discord, and it was clear that the mighty edifice of the Roman Church needed little to break it open. It led to bitter and vicious religious wars which swept throughout a Europe which had been the cockpit' of war since the advent of Roman Imperial power until in 1648 an exhausted Europe searched for peace. This leaves today's Europe, as in 1517, facing conflict within Europe and beyond.
Why then is there this struggle for `worth and recognition'? Man cannot be satisfied with recognition from his equals but seeks recognition by his superiors, and then seeks to raise himself above them . . . think, workplace ethics . . think, the Monarch giving out honours and titles. The honoured one then expects recognition of his elevated rank by his peers, and it takes only a short step for those with an extreme sense of self-worth to seek more! Such a person with political or social ambitions waits for an opportunity to harness the peoples' frustrations to his own desires - and so a demagogue appears on the world scene!
Now we need to `anchor' this in Scripture in order to see the Scriptural outworking on earth. Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 clearly reveal this spiritual power working in and through earthly powers. First to Ezekiel, who talks of `the prince of Tyre' (the earthly ruler):
" Because your heart is lifted up, and you say `I am a god. I sit in the seat of God . . ."
Later Ezekiel reveals the spiritual ruler: (v 12-15)
" Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre . . . . . `You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the Garden of God; . . . . . You were the anointed cherub . . . . . until iniquity was found in you'.
Isaiah 14 revels the same person, where he says: (v12-14)
" How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning . . . . For you have said in your heart, `I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
. . . . I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High'. "
The apostle Paul refers to this in his Letter to the Ephesian Church: (2:2)
" In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience . . . . "
And here we come to `the cause and effect' of all that unfolds in the history of the world. The prince of the power of the air, that is, Satan, is outworking his desire for recognition by unregenerate man. As we have seen in the Ezekiel Scripture above, Lucifer was once in the Garden of God, but through pride and ambition (as written in Isaiah) he sought recognition to be `above the stars of God (angels) . . . like the Most High'. Cast down to the lower heavens he now works through that same desire for recognition in fallen man to regain what was lost.
In closing we need to leave the unregenerate worldly scene and look towards what should not be in the redeemed people of God for, sadly, `the prince of the power of the air' is always at work in the Church. Paul, writing to the church in Rome, had much to say about this, particularly in chapter 8: (v 2-11 in part)
" For the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death . . . . For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the (Holy) Spirit, the things of the (Holy) Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace . . . . But you are not in the flesh but in the (Holy) Spirit, if indeed the (Holy) Spirit dwells in you . . . . And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the (Holy) Spirit is life because of righteousness . . . . But if the (Holy) Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His (Holy) Spirit who dwells in you. "
Scripture speaks louder and more clearly than any of man's writings, and this desire for recognition of self-worth by a superior person (for recognition by a lesser person brings no satisfaction to a person's self-esteem) can only be found in our death and new life in Christ Jesus - as Paul writes to the Philippians: (2:5-11)
"Your attitude should be the same as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant . . . . He humbled Himself and became obedient to death . . . . Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place . . . . to the glory of God the Father. "
We close this `In Brief' with the words of our opening Scripture:
" For this is what the LORD says:
Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths; Ask where
the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.
But you said . . . . . "
Man, both unregenerate and redeemed, has been given a moral choice, which is to accept God's `ancient path' or accept the `whispers' of the serpent `who now works in the sons of disobedience' to achieve his ambition. The words of John Wesley come to mind: `If your heart is where my heart is, in Christ Jesus, then I say, give me your hand'. Wesley saw and believed in the One Body of Christ, bound together as one people, each one equal and of equal worth. As Paul the apostle says, when writing to the Romans: `If we are children, then we are heirs of God, and co-heirs with Christ if indeed . . . . Who being in the very nature God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped'.
If this is not so . . . if we find our recognition of self-worth as citizens of a Nation State or members of a political party, or in our wealth, or in our standing in our community or Church life, or any other means than in Christ Jesus alone, then surely, as Friedrich Nietzsche once said, `we have abandoned (God) spiritual life and received our satisfaction through morality' (good works). Sadly, much of what we see in the Western Church has turned into need for self-worth, seen in our work or the ministry we undertake for God in the Church. In so doing we divide the wholeness of the One Body into many parts, but at the same time we should recognise the many gifts given by Jesus for His Body which should be used without envy, discontent or discord - for that will surely happen when we listen to the `whispers' from the prince of the power of the air and seek recognition of our own worth over others rather than outworking our unique gifting from Christ Jesus:
" So that the Body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the
faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining
to the whole measure of the fulness of Christ. " Ephesians 4:12-13
In the immediate days that lay ahead of us this `unity in the faith' will increasingly be tested to the full. We have seen above that in 1517 Martin Luther unwittingly broke up the universal catholic understanding of the oneness of the Church (albeit a thoroughly corrupt system which led to the first Thirty Year War that tore through Europe in violent religious wars). In the coming testing will we see a largely inept Church, although thoroughly confused, being led into a true Spiritual Restoration in unity in the faith and made ready to be a witness to the world of God's only Salvation through acceptance of Christ Jesus? In this coming world-chaos we shall see - as we said earlier - the fulfillment of Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a `great image with legs of iron, it's feet partly of iron and partly of clay'. Later, `in the first year of Belshazzer, king of Babylon' Daniel saw in a dream and vision the fulness of Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Four great beasts, which are four great kings, arose out of the earth. The fourth beast which so troubled Daniel had `ten horns that were on his head and another horn, which came up before which three fell'. A continual reading of Daniel 7 reveals the wars that break out against the saints - that is, unredeemed Israel, in `the Time of Jacob's Trouble'. If we break into this terrifying poetical wording we can clearly see the coming violent secular and religous wars which will be more destructive than those which the Protestant Reformation released.
We write this edition of our `In Brief' series to give understanding of `the real Brexit', which is a `real war' in the heavens and on earth. It is not a battle between the powers of darkness and the power of the Light, for the Light has overcome the darkness. This `real war' will be one last effort by `the prince of the power of the air' to destroy, if that were possible, God's witness through the ministry of the Oneness of the Body of Christ, of the `Light of the world' who has come in the Person of Christ Jesus! In Christ Jesus alone is found the peace which quells man's restless serch for recognition. In the coming turmoil and chaos in a confused and broken world men will look for a Peace which the world has not given, indeed it cannot! Within the `outer Church circles' there is increasing talk of a Remnant, which can lead (and indeed this did happen after the 1967 outpouring of the Holy Spirit) to elitism within the Body of Christ. In the `1517 Reformation' a Remnant was seen, for the Lord of the Church will not allow His Church to die. However in that Reformation the Remnant was caught up in the break-up of universal Christendom into National Churches, which fuelled the religious wars of those chaotic times. In this Reformation - and we are not talking of Revival or Restoration of the status quo ante - the Remnant which is forming through a sovereign work of the Holy Spirit is being formed for its work within the Church, if indeed the Jeremiahs of today's Remnant respond to the Holy Spirit and not to the voice of man, however well intended (as happened in the 1967 outpouring).
`The Word of the LORD' in Jeremiah's time was: `Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths; ask where the good way is, and walk in it'. The growing Remnant within the Church will be accepted and called upon by a thoroughly confused Church (but not, as in Luther's time, thoroughly corrupt) to faithfully point to those ancient paths, `for
the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry for the edifying of the Body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith . . .' Do not doubt that this Remnant within the Church will fulfil its calling and will remain faithful to its task until the end, for the Lord's family will be restored through acceptance of the ancient paths as a witness to the world of the Glory of God!
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You may E-mail us at: derek@northernstyletrust.com or Telephone (01493) 444494 (UK)
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