Preparation Is Essential
Copyright ©2019 by The Good Elder. All rights reserved.
Recently, I found myself thinking on a sermon distributed in 1903 by Bishop William S. Crowdy (whom I affectionately call "the Prophet) entitled, "Gentiles Prepare War". I am convinced that we're living in those "end times" that he and other men of God foresaw. Yet, the apocalyptic literature and prophecies are as mysterious as they are urgent. Given the rather abstract nature of such texts, what should one do, even if one is persuaded that 1) these prophecies are true, and 2) these times are upon us? The following message flowed from those moments of contemplation.
When we think about our school days gone by, we may recall the environment at the school, its own being-ness, with not only classes and instruction, but also with activities, clubs, athletics, etc. It is an institution with its own culture. The same can be said for college days, for military service, and even with religion. We have participated in (or are participating in) the culture of an institution, which exists for the purposes of preparing the participant to successfully manage something beyond itself.
Due to the institutional culture, however, this preparatory function may not always be perceived or even be known about. In fact, our participation in the institutional culture may become so important or influential to some participants until the promulgation of the institution and culture may become more important than the higher end for which the institution was established.
And so, many students, service personnel, religious practitioners, etc. become lost, stuck in their respective institution or mindset developed within its culture, not remembering that the whole point of staring out was to eventually leave, or at minimum, be prepared for what was coming next. By the time that the next thing is upon us, be it a career, an enemy combatant, a spiritual crisis, or a prophesied eventuality, one can see, in retrospect, the value in those preparatory moments. One can appreciate all that study, all those prayers, all those exercises, all that training... it was to help him/her to handle and overcome certain trials and challenges which he/she could not previously foresee.
The Prophet said, "Gentiles, prepare war. Israel, prepare to meet your God." With each passing day, we are able to see with increasing clarity that God is certainly working; thus our preparation is essential.
In the haunting scripture from Joel 3:9-10, we find the LORD sending a chilling word to the Gentiles, "Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near..." In the preceding verses, it seems as if this war is the judgment or punishment of those nations which participated in the break-up and scattering of Israel. Joel chapter 3 reads:
[1] ...in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
[2] I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for My people and for My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted My land.
In the eyes of some, this may seem a bit unjust, in that it was God Himself Who warned Israel countless times, "If you act up, I'll destroy the Temple, put you out of the land, and scatter you among the heathen." Where, then, is the justice in this proclamation against the Gentiles?
I contend that such a proclamation has its origins in the so-called "Dream of Horror" when God spoke to Abraham (Genesis 15):
[13] ...Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
[14] And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
In short, God prescribed the what, but not the how. Egypt, for example, did not have to forget how Joseph saved their country and enslave/mistreat his descendants. All the Israelites had to do was to give service in a foreign land. Similarly, in the days after Solomon, the Assyrians and the Babylonians and the Romans did not have to treat Israel as they did. The descendants of the Biblical Israelites could have, for example, been brought by ships to the "new world" humanely. They could have, like some of the European immigrants, been bonded as indentured servants instead of being considered (and treated as) sub-human or even as property. For, just as God promised correction to Israel for their sin, He promised to restore them (even if just a remnant) in the last days; and He promised to judge those who scattered and oppressed His people and desecrated His Temple and land.
When we consider the history of the world in the last 2,000 years, we find that, especially among those who displaced Israel, there has been almost perpetual war. The Greeks and Romans literally marched around the globe conquering people, they even sent armies back to Canaan four times (the Crusades) in an attempt to gain control of it. Europe, ironically under the control of the Holy Roman Empire, used fear and war to control the continent (and then, the world). The Conquistadors came to the Americas and wiped out and pillaged the native peoples. The Imperialists went to Africa to colonize and to dispossess the native people of their natural and mineral wealth, and their people (continues to this day). The United States, the supposed beacon of democracy, peace, and freedom in the world, has been fighting a war somewhere for over 75% of its existence.
Even now, in the media, news shows and even printed media are more concerned with presenting two opposing arguments than they are with uncovering and publishing the truth, which does not have a "side". Reality TV and many blockbuster movies focus on artificial drama and gratuitous violence to entertain the viewing public. Even now, the fight to arm teachers in classrooms (in Florida), as ridiculous as it sounds, has passed a bill out of a committed in the Legislature and could actually become law!
For 2,000 years, the wicked in high places have ingrained in the minds of the masses that war is a necessary way of life. As morally bereft as this seems, we must concede that, as Rabbi Levi S. Plummer said, "They are doing their job!" God sent word to the Gentiles, "Prepare war!" And they have perfected the craft.
The problem for the modern day Israelite is, of course, that we are not preparing to meet God! In fact, as the Prophet said, so many "...have never heard of God."
Just like the student who is afraid to face life after high school, like the soldier who has a hard time dealing reintegration into civilian life, like the religious practitioner who finds it hard to cope with a difficult life challenge... Israel has become lost in the culture of the institution, be it the secular culture of the West, with its permissive and even hedonistic tendencies, or lost in the culture of a religious organization or tradition, fixated on rituals, regalia and politics, and never discovering the essence of true religion.
James teaches us (chapter 1):
[26] If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.
[27] Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
Religious teachings (especially those taught and/or endorsed by the Prophet) are designed to help practitioners come to the understanding that we are in the world, but not of the world. Yes, we live here. Yes, we must make a living and interact with people here. Yes, we are subject to the trials and challenges the beset those who walk on these mundane shores. But, we are not to conform to the ways we see here. We are not supposed to be perpetually adversarial, we are not to seek to be divisive, nor given to covetousness or jealously. We should not do to others what the world has done to us.
Instead, we should remain in the awareness that, just as God is One, so is all of His Creation.
The Lord GOD is supreme above all and in all, so why would we participate in the foolishness of pitting one spark of God against another?
In fact, those who follow the Way of Israel are supposed to infuse the people with whom we come in contact with the higher Light that God that should pour into this world through us. And, we learn how to do this by infusing light into those challenging situations which come up in our own lives.
We can't help somebody else to overcome sin and wickedness unless we, too, have learned how to do so ourselves. We can't be an example of faith unless we, too, have lived by faith and used it to cross our own troubled waters. How can we bring Light to the world, when we, by our thoughts and actions, continue to reject God's Light?
Light transforms and perfects that which was (in) darkness; but ironically, just as many of us are literally afraid of the dark... spiritually speaking, many of us are afraid of the changes that embracing the Light more fully would cause in us.
We ask, "Who would I be?" but the scripture says, "It does not yet appear..."
We ask, "Where will I end up?" but as God said to Abraham, "Keep going until I tell you to stop!"
Yes, we've been given the teachings, the rituals, and the practices. But, have we been preparing? Have we been praying regularly, communing with God? Have we been actively removing negative character traits from our minds and hearts? Have we been actively trying to reconcile with people we've hurt or are at odds with? Have we given thanks for the good times and for the challenging times? Have we been meditating and learning how to hear and be obedient to the still small voice? Or, are we just going to church, maintaining a habit, merely supporting a culture or continuing a family heritage?
James tells us (chapter 2:19) that even the devils believe in God and tremble; and we see their steadfast dedication to God over millennia as strife and warfare remain central elements of today's global status quo.
Are we working with equal diligence to meet God? We can't just walk up on God. Preparation is essential.
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