There’s a lot of talk these days about how bad things are, and what we should be doing to protect ourselves.  The internet is rich with advice. Some is competent and some is not, but almost all of it involves applying the ways of this world. Some advise us to stock up on stuff, so when there’s a shortage we won’t run out. Others say we should also buy precious metals to help preserve the value of our assets when inflation comes.  The list goes on.

Some of this is OK, but there are a couple of things we should keep in mind when we’re trying to decide what to do.  First, we should know that this advice assumes that the coming hard times are only temporary.  You can’t stock up for life (or even a few years) and eventually you’ll need to convert your silver and gold back into money. So you can only think of these things as a bridge between prosperity past and prosperity future.  But when there’s no prosperity future you’re only delaying the inevitable.

Second, the Bible doesn’t command us to do this.  In fact it specifically admonishes us against it. “Do not store up treasure on Earth,” Jesus cautioned, “For where your treasure is there will your heart be also” (Matt. 6:19-21)

And in His ultimate example, He told the parable of the farmer who had more than his already full barns could hold, so he tore them down, built bigger ones, and filled them.  Just when he finally had enough to feel secure and decided he could relax, the Lord said, “You fool.  This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself.”  He finished with this warning.  “This is how it will be for anyone who stores things up for himself but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21)  Being rich toward God means giving generously to those in need.

Scarcity Vs. Abundance
No matter how we try to justify it, storing up is an act of selfishness.  And it demonstrates a lack of faith by revealing a scarcity mentality when the Bible teaches an abundance mentality.

Let me explain.  A scarcity mentality says there’s only so much to go around, so if I don’t get all I can while I can, some one else will get it and I won’t have enough.  The motives behind the scarcity mentality are selfishness and faithlessness.

An abundance mentality says the Lord’s supply is endless, so I can share what I have now because He’s promised to supply all my needs in the future.  The motives behind the abundance mentality are generosity and faithfulness.

The Biblical model is based on an abundance mentality (John 10:10).  It teaches us to use the extra we have to help those who don’t have enough, depending on the Lord who gave us the extra in the first place to give us more as we need it. Thanking the Philippians for their gifts, Paul wrote, “And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:19). Notice he said “will meet all your needs”.  We don’t give to others solely because God has met all our needs in the past, but also because He’s promised that He will meet all our needs in the future as well.  The Philippian believers were  experiencing  hardship themselves, but still found a way to help support Paul’s ministry. This is what Jesus called being rich toward God.

That Doesn’t Make Sense
I realize this all sounds counter intuitive.  When we’re barely meeting our present needs the natural tendency is to use whatever is left over to make sure we can meet our own future needs.  For many, the last thing on their minds is the plight of others. They don’t see that as their problem.

There are two sources for this kind of thinking.  The first is called the Protestant Work Ethic. This is a  non-Biblical theory wrapped in a thin veneer of Christianity.   It’s attributed to the German sociologist and political economist Max Weber (1864-1920) and holds that hard work is part of God’s calling on our lives and is both a sign of our personal salvation and a necessary component for receiving His blessings.  It’s been summarized by the most popular verse that’s not in the Bible, “The Lord helps those who help themselves.”  If other people are not being blessed it’s because they’re not working hard enough. Helping them out encourages their “laziness” and deprives them of the blessing they would receive by working harder.

God’s ways are not our ways, and the Protestant Work Ethic reeks of humanity. Of course we’re admonished to give our best effort at work.  “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men” (Col. 3:23).    But our generosity toward others is the trigger that releases blessings for us, not hard work. “With the measure you use (in giving to others) it will be measured to you,” He said (Luke 6:38). Paul confirmed this in 2 Cor. 9:6.

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
The other source is our government.  Ever since the Roosevelt era, Americans have been told that our country is too rich and successful to tolerate having things like hunger and poverty in our midst.  Therefore the government would assume the responsibility for eliminating these things by guaranteeing a minimum standard of living.  Programs like Social Security, unemployment insurance, and the various forms of welfare were all instituted to encourage people to look to the government for help in times of need.  Once again, we’re taught that the plight of others is not our concern. If people need help, they can go to the government and get it.

Both of these sources had the effect of taking God out of the equation so after a couple of generations of this, most of us no longer see Him as our Provider. Regardless of what we  repeat with bowed head around the dinner table, the truth is that too many of us look to ourselves, or if we’re among the 41 million people currently receiving food stamps, to our government for our daily bread.

Two Ways To Go
So there are two approaches we can take in these uncertain times.  The way of the world is to “Look Out For Number 1” by trying to stock up enough stuff to see you through the difficulties ahead, leaving others to fend for themselves or rely on government help.

The Bible’s way is to “Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You” by seeking out people in need and helping them with the extra the Lord has provided for you.

If you believe as I do that we’re pretty far into the End Times and things aren’t ever going to get better, but will more likely get worse, then the most practical solution is to start relying on God right now.              “Seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well,” He said (Matt. 6:33).  He was referring to things like what we’ll eat and drink, and what we’ll wear.

Take some of your excess and find someone you can help with it. With one out of every 7 home mortgages in arrears, one out of every 6 employable adults either unemployed or under employed, and poverty levels at a 15 year high there’s plenty of opportunity.

I’ve said before that doing this pays the best return on investment available anywhere.  Your generosity will be rewarded in this world (2 Cor. 9:11) and you’ll be storing up treasure in the next one (Matt. 6:19-21). I call that getting double your money back.

But Wait, There’s More
In addition, you’ll be learning how to live by faith in the One who has promised to meet all your needs and who never breaks His word, instead of relying on the uncontrollable ways of the world.  Then if things get really bad and your neighbors have exhausted the supplies they stored up, you’ll be able to help them. And in doing so, you’ll know from experience that God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work (2 Cor. 9:8).

And finally, you can not imagine the change in perspective adopting this approach will give you. While others are plagued with uncertainty, you will experience a peace that transcends human understanding.

He will confirm the covenant with many for one ’seven.’ In the middle of the ’seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him. (Daniel 9:27)

Judah’s King Hezekiah had become deathly ill during the reign of the Assyrian King Sennacherib. But when he prayed for recovery the Lord agreed to extend his life by 15 years, confirming His promise to defeat the King of Assyria at the same time. As a sign of this confirmation, He had Hezekiah watch as the shadow caused by the sun reversed course and went back up 10 steps on the stairway of Ahaz (Isaiah 38:1-8).

After Hezekiah had recovered Merodach-Baladan, the King of Babylon, sent envoys with letters and a gift to congratulate him on his return to good health. In a reckless display of hospitality, Hezekiah took them on a grand tour of the palace, showing them everything including the armory and the treasury. “There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them” (Isaiah 39:2)

Isaiah conveyed the Lord’s displeasure. “Hear the word of the LORD Almighty,” he said. “The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD. And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

“The word of the LORD you have spoken is good,” Hezekiah replied. For he thought, “There will be peace and security in my lifetime.” (Isaiah 39:5-8)

About 100 years later, Nebuchadnazzer fulfilled this prophecy on his way home from defeating the combined forces of Assyria and Egypt at the Battle of Carchemish. Remembering the stories he’d heard of Israel’s wealth as a boy, he surrounded Jerusalem. Taking Daniel and other princes of Israel hostage, and completely stripping the temple and the treasury of its wealth, he carried everything off to Babylon. Daniel and his three friends, known to us as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, were castrated and made administrators in Nebuchadnezzar’s government.

Hezekiah knew this wasn’t going to happen immediately and, in the short-term thinking common to politicians of his day and ours, was comforted that the consequences of his ill advised actions wouldn’t be felt during his reign, even though they would be partly responsible for the nation’s eventual downfall.

What’s Going On Here?
By now you’re wondering why I’ve put these prophecies of Isaiah 39 (fulfilled) and Daniel 9 (still in the future) together. Well, in the Isaiah passage we see the typical politician’s mentality of making short term decisions without taking their long term consequences into consideration. They convince themselves that by separating the cause from the effect, they won’t be blamed if things don’t turn out well.

As an example of how this works today, the practice of granting government backed mortgages to people who couldn’t afford them really had its beginnings in the Carter administration. It was a social experiment that proved to be financially unsound. Ignoring the dire predictions of experts, President Clinton dramatically expanded this program and every president since then continued to support it. But in most peoples’ minds, do they share the blame for the financial meltdown this program triggered, or was it just the guy in office when it happened?

As for Daniel’s prophecy, its importance here rests in the word “confirm”. The Hebrew word literally means to strengthen, as in making it binding. It means the coming ruler won’t negotiate this covenant, he’ll just give it the force of law.  This implies that at least the general points of the agreement will already be in place.

Here’s where it gets interesting. This has not been announced in the main stream media yet, but there is a hint in diplomatic circles that the goal for this round of direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians might be an agreement in principle that will be executed later. One editorial I read said the implementation could follow the agreement by as much as 10 years.

It may be just coincidence, but 10 years is the maximum duration permitted in Islam for a peace treaty with a stronger enemy. Such treaties are only allowed for the purpose of buying time to acquire enough additional strength to defeat the enemy, and while they can be broken as soon as sufficient strength is achieved, they can’t last more than than 10 years.

Followers of Islam point to Muhammad’s Treaty of Hudaybiya as their example. It resulted from his contention with the more powerful Quraysh of Mecca that forced him to leave the city and take refuge in nearby Medina in 622 AD. According to Arabic history Muhammad had dramatically increased the strength of his forces by 628 but instead of attacking offered the Quraysh a 10 year treaty of peace, to which they agreed. 22 months later when the opportunity presented itself he attacked and conquered the unsuspecting city. Yasser Arafat used this example to justify his diplomatic policy whenever he was criticized by the Arab nations for offering ”concessions” to Israel.

I’m just offering conjecture at this point, but given 1) the propensity for politicians to make agreements that ignore future consequences, 2) the Islamic justification for breaking treaties when it suits them, 3) the wording of Daniel’s prophecy, and 4) our presence in the End Times, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see something like this happen as a result of the current talks.

Keep in mind, the treaty doesn’t have to be for 10 years in order to meet the Islamic requirement, that’s just the maximum amount of time allowed. It could just as easily be for 7 years.

The Current Situation
So here’s the current situation. On one hand, the world is becoming ever more insistent in its demand for peace in the Middle East. But peace is impossible to achieve under the current circumstances. None of the parties involved in these negotiations can bring peace to the Middle East. Those who could make it happen weren’t invited to the talks and don’t want peace, but don’t think they’re strong enough to go to war yet. Therefore an illusion of peace has to be created, allowing them the time they need to become strong enough to attack, just like Muhammad showed them.

With the illusion in place the US negotiators can go home proclaiming peace where there is no peace (Ezekiel 13:10). Like Hezekiah, they’ll comfort themselves with the hope that they won’t be blamed when the shooting starts, not realizing that their ongoing betrayal of Israel will be partly responsible for America’s demise.

An illusion of peace is the best available outcome for these talks, and to achieve even that, Israel will have to be made less able to defend itself when the day for war arrives, as it inevitably will. From the very beginning, experts have been warning that the final outcome of the Middle East peace talks will be war.

The Bible says a false peace will precede war in the Middle East. Through a series of events such as preliminary battles (Psalm 83, Isaiah 17) and meaningless peace agreements the Israelis will come to believe the threats to their national security have been removed, and they’ll let down their guard. A that point a coalition of Moslem nations will attack with such force that nothing short of God’s direct intervention will save them. But He will intervene and Israel’s enemies will be defeated (Ezekiel 38).

That’s when a powerful man will come forward with the suggestion that it’s time to enforce a covenant that’s already been negotiated between the combatants. This time the world will be convinced that real and lasting peace has finally come, and this man will be hailed as a great peace maker, unlike any the world has ever seen (Daniel 8:25).

Will the agreement currently being negotiated be the foundation on which this coming world leader will restore peace after the Battle of Ezekiel 38? That’s not for us to know. But given the times we’re in we shouldn’t be surprised if it turns out that way.

Epilogue
Alas our story doesn’t end here because, as it is with the current talks, the peace brought about by this great leader will also turn out to be false and will bring Israel into the worst time in their history, the worst time in the history of the world.

After presenting himself as their savior, he’ll turn out to be their destroyer and once again they’ll find themselves on the brink of utter defeat. That’s when the Lord will pour out His spirit of grace and supplication, Israel’s eyes will be opened to their true Messiah, and He will again intervene on their behalf to destroy their enemies (Zechariah 12:10, 14:3). This time the peace will be real and the remnant of Israel will be ushered into their glorious Kingdom Age.