A mindful moment.

​Before this reflection, let us remember the words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew:

​"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."

(Matthew 5:9, NIV)

​

​Today, we honour the lives lost in conflict. We wear the poppy, some white, some red, but we all pray for peace. Our faith calls us to seek the Kingdom of God, a place where war cannot exist.

​We must listen to those who saw the horrors. Wilfred Owen spoke against the great lie of war, condemning:

​"The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est / Pro patria mori."

​Harry Patch confirmed the grim truth:

​"War is organized murder, and nothing else."

​Even those who commanded felt despair; General William Tecumseh Sherman said:

​"I am tired and sick of war. Its glory is all moonshine... War is hell."

​Our Christian faith demands that we stop excusing war. As C.H. Spurgeon taught:

​"I wish that Christian men would insist more and more on the unrighteousness of war, believing that Christianity means no sword, no cannon, no bloodshed..."

​Our hope is found in God’s promise to guide us away from destruction:

​"They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." (Isaiah 2:4)

​Building this peace takes courage—a deeper courage than fighting. Albert Einstein challenged us:

​"We must be prepared to make heroic sacrifices for the cause of peace that we make ungrudgingly for the cause of war."

​We must work for it every day. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. taught us that:

​"It is not enough to say 'We must not wage war.' It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it."

​Let our act of remembrance be a promise: to follow Christ's love, turn away from hatred, and finally learn war no more.

​Amen.

*Image sourced from Gemini*

Relax to the sound of rainfall.

What if we aren't the "goodies" after all?

What if propaganda from all sides of all conflicts reveals a darker truth?

There are no heroes only villains and their victims. The broken cisterns of this world are truly overflowing.

There are no righteous, no not one!

There never have been, for all our supposed righteousness is as filthy rags.

It is a sad reality that so many, even those of the faith, seem to effectively kneel before Ares.

This idolatry of violence and war is in such contrast to worshiping at the feet of the Prince of Peace.

Sometimes it feels as if the entire world is marching toward destruction and chaos.

Worst of all is that we know the mistakes made in our histories, but we seem to learn nothing from history (other than that we learn nothing).

We do it all again and again.

Sin after sin.

When posterity comes to judge us will they look upon the arms trade unchecked, the governments unhindered in iniquity and the vast lands of earth bursting into flame?

Or will they look and see a people who voiced against the arms trade, the war mongers and the hell fire worshippers?

Either way, it is hard to not get depressed.

But, take heart peaceful brothers and sisters (or those who are unpeaceful but on the cusp of repentance).

Though this dark night of evil brings such bitter sorrow, joy comes in the morning.

That morning will come and swords will be of no use, for the learning of war will be no more.

Swords will be ploughs and spears will be pruning hooks.

Will it happen before or after the King arrives?

God knows the answer to that one.

For only He knows the day and the hour.

But, what if instead of trying to fulfill the rapture racket people get on board with what the God of love whose gospel is peace is doing?

All creation is groaning in birth pains.

All things become new.

Let us heed the encouragement given by Adin Ballou:

"The earth, so long a slaughter field, Shall yet an Eden bloom. The tiger to the lamb shall yield, And war descend the tomb."

Amen

Choose this day who you will serve!

Will you kneel to Ares or Christós?

O Lord, let it be Christós!

It is hard to be optimistic or positive given how much is going on in the world. Nonetheless let us dare to dream of a better, more peaceful world, where quiet and peacable peoples may thrive. Many of us are exhausted and overwhelmed, but the struggle and pilgrimage towards peace continues in various pockets of society across the world. May the lights still shine. As a Christian I look to the Prince of Peace as the author and finisher of my faith. There is great darkness in the world, but a much greater light.

Adin Ballou, an American Christian pacifist and abolitionist wrote a book called Christian Non-Resistance, in all its important bearings, illustrated and defended (1846), which was widely read and admired by Leo Tolstoy. There is a short poetic part in the book that says:

​"The earth, so long a slaughter-field,

Shall yet an eden bloom;

The spear shall be a harvest-tool,

The trumpet's voice be dumb."

Another version is cited as ending:

"The tiger to the lamb shall yield and war descend the tomb," which captures the same powerful anti-war sentiment. It evokes the biblical imagery from Isaiah.

​"The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them." (Isaiah 11:6 KJV)

The same verse, Isaiah 11:6, in the EasyEnglish Bible is:

​"At that time, wolves and lambs will live together. Leopards will lie down with goats. Calves, lions and fat cows will live together. A small child will be their leader."

The literal fulfillment of Isaiah 11:6 is tied to the establishment of Christ's eternal kingdom, where there will be no more death, sorrow, or pain (Revelation 21:4). The danger will pass as a child can play near wild animals in peace and security under the perfect reign of the Messiah.

I believe His kingdom is both now and not yet. In other words: Christians live in the time between Jesus' first coming and his second coming. The kingdom is already here, but it is not yet fully here. This means we must continue to ​"Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it." (Psalm 34:14)

Pax et Bonum

Soli Deo Gloria

A mini message reflecting on Acts 8:1-5