Surviving Times of Upheaval

About 2000 years ago, the disciples in their infinite wisdom thought to give Jesus a guided tour of the magnificent temple buildings in Jerusalem. That must have been special. Imagine how impressed Jesus must have been. (Not!)

It was then that Jesus rained on their parade by informing them that “not one stone would be left upon another, that shall not be overthrown.” (Matthew 24:2)

Now suppose for a moment that you and Jesus were walking downtown past the grandest buildings in your state and after you finished showing Him the grandeur of the architecture, He informed you that it would be utterly destroyed.

That would probably prompt the same questions the disciples had, namely when would this happen and how could they know in advance? (What sign will be given to warn them?)

Jesus tells them they will hear of wars and rumors of wars and explains that “ethnos” (ethnic groups) will be in conflict as will kingdoms, not to mention things like famines, pandemics and earthquakes.

And in the midst of all that, He gives them one mostly overlooked instruction…

“See that you are not troubled”

Can you imagine just being told by Jesus, that the biggest, grandest building in town like maybe the World Trade Center, would not remain standing and times of war and conflict, disease and earthquakes were also coming, “but don’t be troubled”?!?!

Have you ever wondered why Jesus was so emphatic? Wouldn’t it be just a tad concerning if you saw these things happening?

Oh wait… we have seen many of those things and there are more to come. I realize of course that the temple in Jerusalem was totally destroyed in 70 AD fulfilling that part of the promise. From there, some believe it was all fulfilled. Others believe the rest He spoke about is imminent, but we won’t be here.

Regardless of where you land on that subject, you can bank on growing civil unrest, more wars, pestilence and seismic unrest. We will see that regardless of your eschatology.

And in the midst of that we are told emphatically “See that you are not troubled”!

Do you know why that is so important?

When you’re in fear or anxiety, you make poor decisions. Maintaining peace and calm during calamitous times gives you a huge survival advantage.

It also gives you a huge business advantage.

Maintaining peace gives you uncluttered clarity of thought, better problem solving and much more effective communication. This establishes you as an authority and a leader, giving confidence to your team and your prospects, which gives you a powerful competitive advantage.

I hear a lot of people talking about the “end time wealth transfer” (though somehow I have missed that verse). I think they base it on Proverbs 13:22 that says, “the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the just”, but this is not “end time” specific. It’s a standing rule for all generations.

Furthermore, the word translated as “stored up” or “laid up” literally means “hidden”. Who is it hidden for? It is hidden for the just!

What is the defining trait of the just? Romans 1:17 and Habakkuk 2:4 make it clear that “the just shall live (prosperously) by faith”. (See Strongs for details.)

You can’t be in faith and fear at the same time. So if you want to have access to the hidden wealth of the sinner (those who miss the mark), then you must maintain a posture of faith, which necessitates that you “be not troubled”.

How do you do that?

Isaiah 26:3 makes it clear… “You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” In other words, keep your mind and thoughts fixed on the Lord, not on the 24/7 news cycle, and trust God.

Psalm 112 promises, “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord and delights greatly in His commandments… He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established; He will not be afraid, Until he sees his desire upon his enemies. He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor;”

All that dispersing and giving to the poor sounds pretty prosperous to me, despite the evil tidings.

It continues… “His righteousness endures forever; His horn will be exalted with honor. The wicked will see it and be grieved; He will gnash his teeth and melt away; The desire of the wicked shall perish.”

Sounds like the wicked will lose their mind when they see you in peace and prosperity even when the world is coming unhinged. No worries, they will perish because fearful people make really poor decisions. But the “just” make faith-filled decisions from a heart established in faith and grounded in His Word, and they will fare quite well.

So my friend, I want to encourage you today, keep your mind anchored on Jesus, take delight in His commandments (code of wisdom) and expect great things. When the wicked are in fear, when there is great shaking, it is also the best time to make a serious advance.

You will see the shaking. Many will be fearful. Don’t be numbered among the cowardly. It will be your time to take territory, advance God’s kingdom and prosper, which will enable you to “disperse abroad and give to the poor” among many other kingdom initiatives.

Until next time, Keep Pursuing Him!