As the calendar page turns once more and another year now belongs to the ages, we hear numerous trumpets of warning with dire predictions of the future. One major network opened the new year with an article that began with the following lines:
America and the world could look glaringly different by January 1, 2025, depending on the outcome of a momentous crush of conflicts, pivotal global elections and geopolitical forces that will create critical moments in the year ahead [1].
The words of Jesus come to mind when He spoke, in the context of the last days, of “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” (Luke 21:26).
Some fear the present conflict in the Middle East will expand and intensify; others wonder how much longer the struggle in eastern Europe will persist. The global effects of climate change promise to wreak untold havoc in both destructive weather patterns and social upheaval throughout the world. Still more suffer angst regarding the global economy, while even more ask if the pending U.S. election cycle will conclude with American democracy still intact. And the United States isn’t the only country facing such perils, as nationalistic movements of an extremist nature continue to advance throughout Europe [2].
Some tell us to ignore all the bad things going on, whether in the world or the church. Many such persons blame classic Adventism’s focus on the last days and the coming time of trouble for what they are pleased to denounce as “fearmongering.” But it was Christ Himself, in such Gospel chapters as Matthew 24 and Luke 21, who gave many details of the coming crisis and urged His followers to rejoice when they see such things transpiring:
And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh (Luke 21:28).
Notice Jesus didn’t say, Just keep your focus on Me and forget all the trouble coming on the world. Our Lord never placed a premium on ignorance. He never urges His followers to isolate themselves from reality. Instead, He urges us to face with world and all its problems through the lens of hope in His soon return, and to focus on readying our hearts and lives to both proclaim His final message and to meet Him with characters fit to inhabit the courts of glory.
God Still in Control
In other words, regardless of what the new year may hold, the Christian can sustain unbending confidence in the promises of God’s Word. The book of Revelation is clear that ultimate global chaos will be held in check until God has a people prepared to reveal His character to the world and meet Him in peace when Christ comes back:
And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.
And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God, and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads (Rev. 7:1-3).
In a promise directed specifically at God’s end-time church, the modern prophet writes:
Not one cloud has fallen upon the church that God has not prepared for; not one opposing force has risen to counterwork the work of God but He has foreseen. All has taken place as He has predicted through His prophets [##3|Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, vol. 2, p. 108.##].
At the bottom line, the world cannot experience physical devastation, nor can freedom be sundered by tyranny, until God’s final message is given to humanity through the proclamation of Biblical precept and practice. Whatever fears may ravage human hearts in these tumultuous times, those adhering to Holy Scripture can face the coming year with confidence. God is still in control. And until He has a people prepared to deliver His final warning, His mercy will continue to linger and the door of probation stay open.
REFERENCES
1. Stephen Collinson, “What’s at stake in 2024,” CNN, Jan. 1, 2024. https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/01/politics/2024-whats-at-stake/index.html
2. Ibid.
3. Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, vol. 2, p. 108.
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan