Angry Nations – Being a Pilgrim

“The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one. … But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury.”
Psalm 2:2, 4-5 NLT

Thinking about it, I’m not aware of a war being overtly waged today against God. Plenty of other wars but not one that is anti-Christ. But then, my thoughts continue to explore the reasons for why one nation battles against another, and then I wonder that wars being fought today are against God purely because their origins are in the wickedness and evil promoted by the devil. Wars fought through reasons of hate, greed, lust and any other attributes of devilish wickedness are anti-Christ.

So why should God laugh at them and not just leave them to their evil ways? No doubt they will find out soon enough. But the psalmist puts his finger on the human attribute of arrogance. As we look around the world today, we find that the rulers of despotic states have one thing in common – an bloated sense of their own importance, displaying breathtaking arrogance. On their way up the political greasy pole they manage to get to a point where they become a leader, and then set about removing their opponents. Of course, we can look back in history and see that not many of these rulers died peacefully in their sleep.

God doesn’t sit on His throne in Heaven laughing with malice though. Because He is love and righteousness, these two qualities combine with a firm but gentle humour; to think that human beings should set themselves up as effective gods in opposition to Him is a laughable matter indeed. And then there will be the day when the “kings of the earth” will stand before Him to give an account of their lives. A video of their life will roll before them, but it will be a video seen through God’s eyes and at the end of it, God’s righteous anger will initiate a terrifying rebuke. Then there will be that awful moment when the Judge pronounces His verdict – Guilty! And the door to hell will open before them.

Hebrews 10:31, “It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God”. We pilgrims are of course aware of the future set before us, and we respond to God with love and obedience. Not for us the trappings of political power, of arrogant leadership. We stand with the psalmist when he wrote, “A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked” (Psalm 84:10). The “kings of the earth”may live in splendid luxury. They may have servants who run at their beck and call. But one day they will be terrified in God’s presence, all their plotting having come to nothing.

Dear Father God. Your patience with the arrogance of the nations is breathtaking. But we live in a moral universe and You will administer justice one day to balance the scales. Thank You that we can rest secure that You have all under control. Amen.

“Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one. “Let us break their chains,” they cry, “and free ourselves from slavery to God.””
Psalm 2:1-3 NLT

The first three verses of Psalm 2 shows us a picture of rebellious and jingoistic nations, with leaders who have discarded God to the point that they want to be totally atheistic with no mention of God and His Son allowed their societies. Such examples are communist nations, particularly in the Far East, with China, for example, having a largely atheistic population. Instead they promote Marxist ideologies that they say replaces any need for a belief in a god. In fact, the state has become the “god” for the people. North Korea is a country where leaders are deemed to be divine. But why are such nations so angry, angry to the extent that they want to battle any other nation to fulfil their “futile plans“. Such a geopolitical scene dominated the politics of the psalmist’s day and nothing has changed in the 21st Century. National names may have changed but the sentiments are still there.

The Jews are God’s chosen people. They were before David’s day and nothing has changed since, but this may explain why nations are so angry. Nations intent on living wicked and evil lives are anti-God and anti-Jew, even to the point of irrationality. And they get angry and make plans to get back at God and His people in any way that they can, as any follower of Middle East events can see. So, in a sense, the anger and plotting becomes an obsession, binding them with chains of hatred and effectively enslaving them in their fight against God. Mistakenly they think that if they can eliminate God’s people, then they would have eliminated God Himself.

So how do we pilgrims respond? One prayer I have been praying is from Psalm 122:6, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: May those who love you be secure“. And we pray this prayer about Jerusalem because God’s people, the Jews, live there, and we want God to show them mercy and forgiveness, security and their ultimate salvation. We also bear in mind that Jesus will return to the Mount of Olives, now subsumed within Jerusalem, when He comes again. Acts 1:11, “‘Men of Galilee,’ they said, ‘why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven'”. And it will be there that Jesus will rule and reign, from His throne in Jerusalem. Exciting times ahead. We don’t know when Jesus will return but we must be ready. It could happen at any time.

Dear Lord Jesus. We pray today for peace in Jerusalem, and we also pray for your return soon. In Your precious name. Amen.