By Pastor Hal Mayer
Dear friends,
Thank you for joining us once again at Keep the Faith Ministry for another look at the incredible times in which we live. We stand at the brink of the collapse of the orderly social system that many of us grew up with and desperately want to see continue. But we are about to see very much chaos, especially in the big cities where violence and destruction are endemic and extreme destructive anger is triggered by things that are serious but don’t justify the violent over-reaction that ensues and which we have recently witnessed. Today, we’re going to look at the prophetic revelations that describe the society we find ourselves being forced to face and that we thought would never arise in our lifetime. And the question we are going to try to answer today is what kind of character should we possess when society frays around the edges and unchecked violence is in the streets of our cities?
Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, thank you for giving us Your prophetic word. We need guidance to see what is coming and prepare for it. Please send Your Holy Spirit to guide our study today. And help us to be kind, I pray. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Dark and foreboding storm clouds are gathering on the horizon. Expect heavy weather. It will be unrelenting. The changes taking place to society are forecasting civil war with its destruction and devastation. The battle lines are being drawn. Anarchy, not seen since the French Revolution will overwhelm the cities. The police can do little, if anything. There is little confidence in them. Chaos and social disruption are destined to flood society. Does the Bible give any prophetic forecast of these circumstances?
Let us read from Luke 21:25-28 as we begin our study today. “And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.”
It will be so bad, so evil, so frightening that men’s hearts will fail them. There will be nothing they can do about it. There will be no solution. Do you sense it? Do you see where this is headed? This is one of the signs of Jesus’ coming, for the next verse reads: “And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”
So, we are to expect Jesus to come at the darkest moment. Darkness gives way to brilliant light. But notice how the sea and the waves are roaring. This is war, violent, throat gripping civil war that will leave this nation destroyed and devastated. This represents people that are restless and violent, wave after wave of them doing a work of destruction. Police and national forces seem powerless to stop them. We are there folks! The first wave of the chaos has already happened in the second civil war. But it will get worse. The cities are no place to be living now. If you can still get out and find a place in the country, do it now! Don’t wait a minute longer.
Now, listen to this. It is from Habakkuk 1:1-4. “The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.”
Friends, this sounds like what is happening today, doesn’t it? Violence, iniquity, spoiling, strife and contention, all these are found in Antifa, Black Lives Matter and groups like them. Law enforcement has slacked. In their anger they destroy property and even life and make the lives of people more miserable. But the backlash will also be equally devastating. Instead of working to uplift humanity, they take them down further. Wickedness abounds, and violence and revolution is the result. God may have brought us to this moment for His church to deal with certain skeletons in our collective closet, sins of thoughts and feelings that come from the father of lies and still plague His church 160 years after the first civil war.
George Floyd was raised in Houston. Having served four years in prison for armed robbery, he was involved in church work and various ministries mentoring young people. He also worked for job placement services helping to get people out of the drug scene and into productive life. He had moved to Minneapolis in 2014 to find work.
George Floyd did not resist arrest for suspicion of trying to pass off a counterfeit $20 bill at a local deli (whether he was aware of the counterfeit bill or not will never be known on this earth). But during the arrest police officer Derek Chauvin mercilessly and callously knelt on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, in spite of Floyd’s protests that he couldn’t breathe and protests of bystanders who plead for his life. Floyd died needlessly on the street by the knee of that police officer whose regard for life was shockingly lacking sympathy and a sense of justice.
George Floyd [1]
When I saw the video, my heart was burdened for Floyd and others who have been brutally and needlessly murdered like him. But a larger concern filled my mind. Is this the way God’s true people will be treated, mercilessly and callously, during the final crisis when they are hated and despised by everyone? Will they be meted out what they have not confessed to God and expunged from their hearts?
Listen to this statement from Testimonies to the Church, Vol. 5, and page 452. “While men are sleeping, Satan is actively arranging matters so that the Lord’s people may not have mercy or justice.”
God in His mercy may be giving us opportunity to face our dark corners and make amends and get it out of our system, out of our genetic makeup so He can truly forgive us and restore us.
Civil war started in heaven. “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels. And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” Revelation 12:7-9.
Satan is the author of war and prejudice and he brought it here. And he has gotten all of us to participate with Him in making war on heaven. And he will create a time of trouble such as never was so that, if possible, we will make the ultimate decision to determine to resist God’s law no matter what. He is the father of lawlessness. The riots are the outworking of the spirit of lawlessness in reaction to the same spirit in society and law enforcement. Neither side is able to be held accountable.
Follow me as I read from Patriarchs and Prophets, page 102. “The issues of the press teem with records of murder—crimes so cold-blooded and causeless that it seems as though every instinct of humanity were blotted out. And these atrocities have become of so common occurrence that they hardly elicit a comment or awaken surprise. The spirit of anarchy is permeating all nations, and the outbreaks that from time to time excite the horror of the world are but indications of the pent-up fires of passion and lawlessness that, having once escaped control, will fill the earth with woe and desolation.”
Do we see atrocities that have become so common that we hardly notice them? Do you sense the hatred and anger? Do you see the pent-up fires of passion and lawlessness that are about to escape control and fill the earth, especially the cities, with violence and desolation? Satan is stirring up the world with anger and a spirit of revenge and retaliation that is from hell. And he even gets some of God’s professed people involved in the public protests.
Are we entering the war now? Will it escalate beyond our ability to comprehend? Are you getting prepared for when it does? Friends, we need to consider carefully what influence we attach to the three angels’ messages by our speech and actions. Don’t place yourself where your message is mixed with politics or the clambering for social justice. Give yourselves to ministry and uplift some soul and point them to the Savior. There is no human solution to the injustice, for men’s hearts are still carnal. It won’t do any good to try to change society, for Satan makes sport of the carnal hearts of men. Carnal action is met with carnal reaction. Sin is heaped upon sin. They are under his control and nothing good will come of it, only more darkness, violence and fear.
We are also warned not to taint our end-time message by linking with political movements that tend to bring a spirit of controversy around us. Listen to this from Testimonies to the Church, Vol. 1, and page 421.
“Those who feel called out to join the movement in favor of woman’s rights and the so-called dress reform might as well sever all connection with the third angel’s message. The spirit which attends the one cannot be in harmony with the other. The Scriptures are plain upon the relations and rights of men and women.”
The women’s suffrage movement was a political equality movement. It was the beginning of the feminist movement. It had some good aspects to it but was fraught with evils that were difficult to see back then because of the enthusiasm for justice that attended them. Today, there are movements like Black Lives Matter that also have some good objectives in view, but again they are fraught with issues that are difficult to see due to the excitement that attends them. Black Lives Matter has issues. For example, it was started by feminists; two lesbian women later joined by a very vocal trans-gender woman and has the purpose of promoting their gay ideology as well as opposing police brutality. You can check it out on their own website. No political movement or organization is worth muting the voice of the three angels in your life and ministry.
Herstory [2]
Joining with such movements is dangerous for God’s people for they will be cast in the light of those with whom they are identified. We cast our message to the ground and confuse people with our political stand. We lose our influence with those that are on both sides of the great controversy. Better to follow the Bible’s injunction and get out of the way and “Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.” When indignation flares up God tells His precious people to hide themselves. But instead some of them, even ministers, get involved in the protests. It’s hard to believe! Far better to stay aloof from political movements and instead work to uplift the downtrodden and oppressed by individually seeking to help them.
So we are not to be involved with political movements but in our personal lives we must get rid of even subconscious prejudice and minister in our sphere to those who have been downtrodden.
The senseless death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody was tragic and unnecessary and the global reaction to the very public killing was dramatic. Peaceful protests were initiated in 750 cities across America linked to the Black Lives Matter movement against police brutality. But some of the peaceful protests were hijacked by vehement mobs and violence erupted in many cities and in at least 16 States and 4 territories of the United States. Hostility to the police because of brutality and racism quickly spun out of control. Anarchy ensued and law enforcement retreated. Protests quickly spread around the world in 60 countries and in every continent except Antarctica.
List of George Floyd protests in the United States [3]
List of George Floyd protests outside the United States [4]
George Floyd protests [5]
Police abandoned a precinct in Minneapolis and rioters burned the police station down. A black policeman in Las Vegas was shot in the head, killing him. Four officers were shot in St. Louis. In fact, at least 22 people died in the violence, some innocent bystanders, some participants in the violence and some of them law enforcement. Many officers, rioters and protestors have been wounded.
More than 400 law enforcement officers injured in riots across U.S., 2 dead [6]
At Least Five Police Officers Reportedly Shot, One On Life Support As Rioters And Law Enforcement Battle Across The Country [7]
George Floyd protests [5]
Police officers also abandoned their posts of duty in some precincts and allowed the rioters to do their work of destruction unresisted and unrestrained. Buildings and businesses of black and white were destroyed and looted. Looters smashed store windows and ransacked the shops; even the headquarters of CNN was attacked. Night after night, the violence continued. There was so much hatred in the streets that some national and local politicians jumped on the bandwagon trying to ride the wave of anger and enthusiasm for anarchy and destruction because it served their political objectives.
CNN Puts Up Fence Outside Atlanta Headquarters Amid Ongoing Protests [8]
Calls to eliminate police altogether even led to the Minneapolis City Council to officially abolish the police force and replace it with a “community led model,” whatever that is. No one knows how that will work. Seven Minneapolis police officers resigned, with another seven in the works, for lack of support from city leaders and the police department.
7 Minneapolis Officers Quit in Wake of Protests [9]
The four Minneapolis police officers, who used excessive force that triggered the rioting, have been arrested and at least one has been charged with two counts of murder in the death of George Floyd.
Another black man was gunned down by police at a Wendy’s drive-through in Atlanta after he tried to escape arrest. He was unarmed and was shot in the back, killing him. Rioting ensued and the Wendy’s store was burned to the ground.
Protesters burn down Wendy’s in Atlanta after police shooting [10]
Do you feel like things are spinning out of control, that chaos, violence and disorder are now the order of the day? Are you confused as to what is really happening? Do you have confidence that the news media is telling you all the objective facts? Will peace ever reign again?
There is even a more sinister side to the riots. Some of the funding for groups that have been rioting has been provided by the Catholic Church.
LifesiteNews.com published an article called US bishops caught funding radical groups supporting riots, calling for ‘death’ to police.
The explosive article claims “A new investigation by the Lepanto Institute has revealed that the bishops in the United States, through their Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), are funding organizations that support riots and whose goal includes not only defunding police, but even killing them…”
Imagine that! The ecumenical unity, love promoting Catholic Church has been caught fomenting disunity and hatred through groups that are also promoting the end of the rule of law and the end of America.
The institute “pointed to four groups who have received money from the CCHD and are now agitating against law and order in the United States amid the riots in the wake of the death of George Floyd.”
One of the organizations, the New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice (NOWCRJ), “received $150,000 from the CCHD over the last three years, including last year’s grant of $50,000.” On May 30, the Lepanto Institute reported, “NOWCRJ posted a video on [T]witter of a protest they were participating in, chanting ‘Death to the racist pigs,’ about police.”
Similarly, the Workers’ Center of Central New York received $200,000 over the last few years. On May 29, the organization wrote on Facebook that “these riots and lootings are taking back what the masses of working black and brown communities are owed. Riots and protests are necessary tools and we fully support… An injury to one is a [sic] injury to all.”
Additionally, the Workers’ Center explicitly and publicly called for defunding the police in a Facebook post earlier this month.
Both the NOWCRJ and the Workers’ Center of Central New York display a clenched fist as their logo. As the Lepanto Institute pointed out, the clenched fist “is a hallmark of Marxist revolution.”
The third group working to undermine the rule of law in the United States is The People’s Lobby Education Institute, based in Chicago. The CCHD gave $165,000 to the group in the last three years. Through social media, the group repeatedly called for the defunding of the police as well as the defunding of prisons.
The Workers’ Defense Project received as much money from the CCHD over the past three years as did The People’s Lobby Education Institute. In a tweet, the group accused Houston police of “murdering PoC [people of color] with impunity,” followed by the obligatory call to defund the police.
The organization also praised homosexuality, the practice of which, according to Catholic teaching is an act “of great depravity.”
Several other groups funded by the CCHD have signed a Solidarity letter from the Immigrant Justice Movement, which called “to dismantle the police state by defunding and decreasing police budgets…”
“The bishops’ Catholic Campaign for Human Development states that it is “pro-life, pro-family, and pro-community and will never do anything to undermine that commitment…” Yet the conference is funding organizations that promote homosexual lifestyles and Marxism. How does that mission justify fomenting the end of the rule of law?
“In a previous investigation, the Lepanto Institute found that ‘at the very core of the CCHD is a philosophy of revolutionary leftist ideologies.’ The 2015 investigation looked at several groups funded by the CCHD, giving the reader ‘an idea of just how Catholic money is being funneled to Communist, pro-abortion, pro-homosexual front groups.’
“…the network of CCHD-funded groups pushing radical ideological agendas under the banner of justice clearly follows the Marxist paradigm and has since the founding of the CCHD.”
It should be no surprise that the Catholic Church is involved in fomenting radical revolution. It has been doing so behind the scenes for years, while at the same time on the surface promoting peace, unity and love.
US bishops caught funding radical groups supporting riots, calling for ‘death’ to police [11]
US Bishop’s Agency Funds Groups Calling for the Killing of Cops, Rebellion and Rioting [12]
We have been warned of this in God’s word and more pointedly in the Great Controversy, page 581. “God’s word has given warning of the impending danger; let this be unheeded, and the Protestant world will learn what the purposes of Rome really are, only when it is too late to escape the snare. She is silently growing into power. Her doctrines are exerting their influence in legislative halls, in the churches, and in the hearts of men. She is piling up her lofty and massive structures in the secret recesses of which her former persecutions will be repeated. Stealthily and unsuspectedly she is strengthening her forces to further her own ends when the time shall come for her to strike. All that she desires is vantage ground, and this is already being given her. We shall soon see and shall feel what the purpose of the Roman element is. Whoever shall believe and obey the word of God will thereby incur reproach and persecution.”
The riots in many cities are an evidence of the nearness of the end of time and the coming of Jesus. Let us consider the prophetic warnings of the state of society.
Listen to this statement from Education pages 227 and 228. “At the same time anarchy is seeking to sweep away all law, not only divine, but human. The centralizing of wealth and power; the vast combinations for the enriching of the few at the expense of the many; the combinations of the poorer classes for the defense of their interests and claims; the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed; the world-wide dissemination of the same teachings that led to the French Revolution—all are tending to involve the whole world in a struggle similar to that which convulsed France.”
Have we witnessed these conditions recently? Antifa is a worldwide anarchist group that wants to do away with all law in all developed countries. They are so hostile to the principles of the rule of law that founded the United States that they will do anything to accomplish the destruction of its Constitution. They will piggyback on and even hijack any movement that arises and mix it with violence and vandalism. Activists even took over and barricaded a 6-block residential section of Seattle, calling it “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone,” or CHAZ, with no laws and no police force. Guards, some of them armed, check IDs upon entry.
They are actually the outworking of a long series of issues and teachings leading to the same place the nation of France experienced in the French Revolution. The United States was established on the principles of Protestantism and Republicanism, which are the antitheses of the French Revolution. There can be no peace with Antifa.
Actually, those responsible for the loose morals of modern society of which many don’t realize are really the pastors and priests who teach that the Sabbath of the moral law is changed to Sunday. But even if the church has authority over earthly matters, it still has no authority to change the law of the One who says, “I am the Lord, I change not.” Malachi 3:6.
This teaching tends to reduce the importance and respect for the law of God in people’s minds. And people think they can sin and not suffer the consequences. Immorality has now spread to every level of society. It is a pandemic if there ever was one. If the truth were told, the anarchy we see today is traceable to the disrespect for the law of God as the moral standard as taught by religious leaders and teachers. And it’s been going on for centuries.
Christ’s disciples asked him a question “…what shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world?” Christ’s first words in answer to their question was, “Take heed that no man deceive you.” Matthew 24:3 and 4.
Jesus essentially answered His disciples by explaining to them that based on the information He was about to share they would have the ability to discern between truth and error and they were not to let any person, or the events themselves, to blind them to the truth by allowing a false narrative to cause them to vacillate in their understanding.
Many of God’s people are falling for the false narrative the Satan has put up. He gets emotions stirred up, and it is hard for many people to resist getting involved. People debate back and forth. Their emotions get involved and they sin against one another. They say unwise things that should not be said. And they get drawn in deeper. Friends, we should avoid all such controversies.
The purpose of the riots and bloodshed is to goad the government into totalitarian and dictatorial control. Remember, the Catholic Church and the globalists hate, literally hate, American freedom, especially religious liberty.
Under the coronavirus, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye the United States went from being a representative republic to a totalitarian regime with fifty states each interpreting the US Constitution and Bill of Rights as they choose, or in some cases ignoring it all together, without ever asking the people for their input. And almost everyone went along with them for fear of the virus, or fear of being shamed. Now we are locked in a struggle to see just how much of our republic we can retrieve.
Then the riots began creating chaos and disorder, which is pushing the nation further toward authoritarian rule. The world seems to rush from one fearful, chaotic event to another, from one hyped news cycle to another. Has there ever been a more frenetic pace? But keep in mind that Satan has planned it all and God is letting him do it. Satan wants to draw you into it, and God wants to draw you away from it. That’s what’s happening, my friends.
What happened during the French Revolution and what is taking place in our own “land of the free” is surprisingly similar. Perhaps you will see the prophetic connections too.
We read the statement from the book Education page 228, but let us read it again. “At the same time anarchy is seeking to sweep away all law, not only divine, but human. The centralizing of wealth and power; the vast combinations for the enriching of the few at the expense of the many; the combinations of the poorer classes for the defense of their interests and claims; the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed; the world-wide dissemination of the same teachings that led to the French Revolution—all are tending to involve the whole world in a struggle similar to that which convulsed France.”
Prior to the French Revolution there was the centralizing of wealth and power. The rich got richer at the expense of the poor who only got poorer. The masses were so oppressed by taxes, levies, tithes, penance, rent payments and other charges from state and church that they barely had enough money to eek out a living. This did not sit well with the masses of poor people who were constantly being ripped off. When there is an economic crisis people blame their leaders. And if they are desperate they will do desperate things to find relief. More than 200,000 people were on welfare, which was doled out from the King’s treasury. That is a lot of people for medieval France! This made them angry and it finally exploded and the people rioted. This made them angry, because there was nothing they could do about it. They realized that the only way out was revolution. Change the whole system of government.
Today it’s the same. The poor are frustrated with the government. They are on welfare but to keep getting payments they have to stay poor. They barely have enough to eek out a living. But to make matters worse there is more consolidation of wealth today than ever before. Tech companies and big corporations are taking in huge revenues. And the top leadership are examples of the super-rich who are making huge personal wealth at the expense of the people. This creates feelings of bitterness among the poor of whom they take advantage.
The French Revolution also saw the poorer classes join together in associations or ‘combinations’… for the defense of their interests and claims.
Today, we have this too. Black Lives Matter is such a “combination” or association. So is Antifa, loosely. So are community organizing groups that prey on the discontent of the poor with their government. And many other organizations. Trade unions are also associations.
The killing of George Floyd was the trigger that led to “the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed,” and anger at police brutality motivated the protests, some of which became violent. Anarchy rejects law and order because it is the basis of the system that also uses the law to abuse the masses and keep them from getting ahead.
Also, the teachings of atheism led to the overthrow of religion in France. And today a secular, godless population that has no use for God has taken over the narrative of most policies. It portrays divine law as a crutch that thinking people don’t need. Friends, whenever the Bible is turned away, the people become oppressed eventually and revolution is the inevitable result.
Prior to the French Revolution the Roman Catholic Church murdered or drove out of France all the protestants (see Henry White, the Massacre of Saint Bartholomew, chapter 14, page 34). The result was two-fold, there was a great loss of biblical faith, and a loss of the middle class. The French Protestants were the middle class, the engine of the economy. Their biblical faith was in opposition to Rome’s ridiculous mummery. Their removal sent the French economy into a tailspin. Today, the Roman Catholic Church has driven all opposition to her teachings out of sight through the ecumenical movement. In fact, Rome has handed Protestants a few theological concepts that have helped them adopt some of her teachings as their own (See The Great Controversy, page 445). Their attachment to biblical doctrine is more distant than ever.
France lost its economic stability with the massacre of St. Bartholomew and by the time of the revolution was in economic crisis and nearly bankrupt (See The Great Controversy, page 283). The people were frustrated and angry. Today, the United States is $26 trillion in debt. It is only that its currency is the reserve currency for international transactions that it hasn’t collapsed under the load of debt. This gives the Federal Reserve almost unlimited ability to degrade the currency by adding more money into the system. Otherwise, the United States would be in economic crisis and would be bankrupt. When the currency is no longer the reserve currency, the United States will come under unbelievable stress that we have never seen before. And a scene of chaos and violence will erupt that has never been seen before either.
US Debt Clock [14]
The Bastille in the center of Paris was a symbol of royal tyranny. The prison for political prisoners was there. Among the French Guards there was sympathy for the revolution, and they refused to intervene when the people began a general riot. They remained in their barracks. “Intoxicated with liberty and enthusiasm” the people stormed the Bastille to show their anger at the abusive and brutal system of royal power. They released the prisoners and killed the governor of the Bastille and the “mayor.” They also killed three officers of the permanent Bastille garrison, and two retired soldiers.
Today, excited with the Black Lives Matter movement, people all over the world protested against police brutality. Mobs of anarchists who are enthusiastic at the opportunity to create general disorder rioted, destroying shops and burning some of them down along with a police precinct. The police largely stand by or abandoned their precincts because their political leaders sympathize with the “cause” and want to let it happen. Some police officers have been killed too because of general anger at the police.
Anarchy Engulfs Minneapolis: Police, Firefighters Stand Down As Rioters Burn City to the Ground [16]
Minneapolis Mayor Defends Stand-Down Order As Rioters Burn Police Precinct [17]
During the French Revolution there was a general disregard of law and order. Likewise, there was a general disregard of law and order among the rioters and the modern protests. “Defund the police” became the cry of the anarchists and others. Destruction of property and looting was common. Murder and other violence was a feature also.
The new religion of the French Revolution was reason. The weekly rest day was set aside. Today, the new religion is environmentalism. Pope Francis has made this one of his key positions. But the Catholic Church and most Protestant churches still sets aside God’s true weekly Sabbath and replace it with a fake day. Thus religion is corrupted and the deceptions of Satan are everywhere.
During the Revolution atheism was also on the rise, as it is today in many countries. It stands in opposition to morals that would elevate a nation and promotes all manner of sin from abortion to LGBTQ lifestyles to prostitution and corruption of every species. And defiance of God and His law is reaching new heights in politics as well as personal life. There has never been so bitter an opposition to the eternal and unchangeable truth than presently.
Environmentalism As Religion [18]
In France, licentiousness knew no boundaries. It became like Sodom. Today, licentiousness has become very public, from political leaders to business advertising to religion. It’s everywhere, even more so in secret.
In France marriage was reduced to a mere contract of a transitory character. One could enter and exit marriage at will. Today, the wreaks of marriage are everywhere. People don’t see it as a lifetime bond anymore.
Unemployment during the Revolution was very high in France. It is high today around the world because of COVID-19. Can you see the connection between COVID-19 and the unrest? The killing of George Floyd was the trigger, but the under lying causes of the unrest are many.
Employment Situation Summary [19]
The centralizing of wealth and power created great disparities between rich and poor gave the French Revolution impetus. Today, the massive infusions of cash have all but stripped out the middle class.
There are many other parallels between the French Revolution and our own time, like broken promises of political leaders, the attacks on religion, corruption of business and politics and in the courts, increasing crime, failure of public education, inflation, underlying anger at the political elite, the spirit and teachings of the upheaval spread to other countries, violence against dissidents, etc.
The French Revolution did not just happen overnight. It took approximately 200 years for the French government, the Roman Catholic Church and society to deteriorate to the point where the French Revolution was possible. All that time the arch-deceiver was working in the background to bring about the revolution and the Reign of Terror. The United States did not just wake up one morning and put into place all the same issues that brought about the French Revolution in America. Nor did any other Protestant nation. It has taken the arch-deceiver almost 200 years to bring about the decay in society that has brought us to this point. An evil master mind has been at work both in bringing about the French Revolution and the decline of nations. Don’t think it is going away.
There is a scripture that describes this. It is found in Isaiah 14:16-17. “They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?”
What is the source of racism? Where does it really come from? Evolution, championed by Charles Darwin, was actually the basis of racism. The title to the first edition of his most important book reads; Origin of the Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life. (Title Page)
Darwinism’s thesis was that some races are better than others and therefore some are less valuable than others. Nothing could have supported the Nazi’s in their quest for a super-race better than Darwin’s work. And the American slave was treated brutally too on the same basis. And love of slavery still resides in many hearts especially in the south. But there is hatred even in the North.
So what was Darwin talking about? In The Descent of Man, Darwin made this statement: “At some future period, not very far distant as measured by centuries, the civilized races of man will almost certainly exterminate and replace throughout the world the savage races.” Page 193.
The Descent of man [21]
Evolution is Satan’s little black box. And many Christians who believe in the biblical account of creation harbor some of Darwin’s thinking. This rubbish has to be cleared away before the soul can really love as Christ loved, and be ready to receive the latter rain. There is no place for this subconscious prejudice in heaven. The Spirit of God has to search out all of it and remove it before we can be ready for eternal life. That’s the personal reason why God is allowing all these protests and riots to take place now.
How should we live in these uncertain times when civil war looms on the horizon? Should we join in the general disorder? Should we protest? Should we join political movements or political campaigns? Or should we take a different tack? What should be our mission?
First, we are to control our thoughts. “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8. Don’t dwell on the injustice that you see. Turn your mind heavenward. Don’t let the enemy steal your peace.
When trouble comes, the Christian is bound by love to do what he can to alleviate suffering. Comfort the afflicted. Encourage the weak and those that are discouraged. God wants us to be like Christ. Be compassionate for the disadvantaged and oppressed. Works of kindness and love will go a long way to alleviate individual stress and feelings of rejection. And it will spiritually strengthen you to resist being drawn into the conflict. And you will generally be out of the fray when doing the works of Christ to uplift the fallen race. Let kindness and compassion be your protest against injustice and oppression. Let your soul be molded by Christ, and you can meet every form of injustice and violence with peace and calm assurance of your father in heaven.
More importantly, you are a witness to the gospel of Christ. Here is a statement from Letters and Manuscripts, Vol. 12, Letter 11, 1897. “From this time believe that the Lord can do all things, that He can make you a consistent Christian who wears the beauty of His heavenly character in the home life. A loving, loveable Christian is the most powerful argument in favor of the truth. Love your Saviour. Have your heart saturated with the holy oil that is emptied from the two olive trees.” Zechariah 4:11-14.
We also have a very important message to proclaim. The three angels’ message is a summary of all of scripture. It is the message for the end-time. And it is suited to meet the need of weary humanity that is tired of the news cycle. It gives hope to the hopeless. It gives joy to the sorrowing. We must not get it tangled up in political movements. Let your words be simple, and in harmony with Christ’s instruction in Matthew 5:37. “But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.”
And if you find in your heart that it has been tainted with the dark black sin of prejudice ask God to forgive you and take it away. Ask him to give you the compassion and tenderness of Christ for the oppressed.
Let the words of President Abraham Lincoln sink deep in your experience. “I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day.”
Let us pray, our Father in heaven, thank You for Jesus who gave us guidance and an example of how to live amid injustice and unfairness. He was treated more unfairly than any was ever treated in history. Yet You were silent and at peace. Give us Your peace in the midst of protests and violence. Walk with us in the heat of conflict. Steady us when we are afraid. And we’ll praise and thank You for being our God who delivered us from all evil. In Jesus name, amen.