Restless nations in 2010  

koot van wyk (DLitt et Phil; ThD)

Kyungpook National University

Sangju Campus

South Korea

conjoint lecturer of Avondale College

26 June 2010

"Change, yes we can". This was the wellknown Obama slogan in 2008. The USA changed from cowboy diplomacy of Bush to toothless lion diplomacy of Obama. Bush had war, Obama wants to stop war in 2011 in Iraq and Afghanistan. Israel wants the Iran nuclear facilities destroyed, Obama wants to "contain" them.

2008 was a year of change

Obama chose Joe Biden as his vice-president and he is the peace duck thinking tank behind Obama.  

The USA has very close allies and friends. All first world countries are their friends. England is their friend.

May 2010 brought change

The Prime Minister of England was Gordon Brown but this year on the 11th of May 2010, he resigned. England was without a Prime Minister. "Change, yes we can".

June 2010 brought change

Japan is one of the strongest economies of the world and the First World countries need their economic help. On June 2 2010, exactly 23 days after Gordon Brown, Yukio Hatoyama resigned as prime minister of Japan and was replaced by Kan. "Change, yes we can".

It is almost like "Change, yes we can" is now a disease instead of a cure.

Further change in June 2010

In the USA 20 days after the resignation of Hatoyama, president Obama fired General Stanley McChrystal and the top commander in Afghanistan resigned. The reason he did this is in broad that he wants to exit Iraq and Afghanistan by 2011.

From Cowboy Bush to Toothless Lion Obama. This is how he is seen by the media. "Change, yes we can".

Still further change in 2010

Exactly 2 days later on the 24th of June, Kevin Rudd, the prime minister of Australia resigned and was replaced by Julia Gillard a Welsh born lady born in 1961. Australia has their first woman prime minister. "Change, yes we can".

From the 11th of May 2010 to the 24th of June, no less than three prime ministers of First World Countries resigned. A resignation disease has gripped our world. And we ask ourselves, what do we have here?

What on earth is going on with the world?

The world is divided in groups of countries: 1) First World and Western focussed countries; 2) outlaws: all those whose picture would be placed at post offices under "wanted, dead or alive", Iran, Cuba, North Korea and some Arabic groups; 3) BRIC countries which are Brazil, Russia, India, China who are opportunists who serve as catalysts in the tension between the "cowboys" and the "outlaws". Some say it is a matter of definition and it lies in the "eye of the beholder". As a Seventh Day Adventist we are not interested in any of these groups save to see how prophecy will be fulfilled in the future. The power of the West is economically weakened since October and November of 2008 with the Wall Street collapse. As a result we had in 2010 the PIGS in trouble. They are Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain. It is like a second roller coaster ride.

From "Change, yes we can" the world is now in a "Change, yes we are".

It is in this situation that a Seventh Day Adventist Christian is asking him or herself: what is going on?

There is a prophecy in Psalm 2:1-3

"Why are the nations in an uproar/gathering [ragash]?

And the peoples devising/counting/mumbling [hagah] a vain [riq] thing?

The kings of the earth take their stand.

And the rulers take counsel together."

There is the UN and this meeting and that meeting all trying to work out problems and render stability. There are the pro's and the con's and the catalysts or opportunists. In nature you have your deer and your lion and your vulture or hyena sitting nearby. What the lion cannot finish the vulture or hyena will.

Why are the nations in uproar?

Why are prime ministers resigning as if it is fashion?

Why are some people devising/counting/mumbling vain things? 

Cause and effect will lead these actions of the nations and peoples to end with results through phenomena like ecumenism, relativism without an absolute norm (as for example the Bible) to see themselves as a "global village" and "open minded" and secular and liberated from all ancestor and biblical taboos. Within this mixed "you are OK and I am OK and we are all OK" a shallow concept of "peace" and "we are the world" is formulated. You cannot endorse Buddhism and Christianity at the same time just as much as you cannot endorse Islam and Buddhism and Christianity at the same time but they will want to.

The prophet of Psalm 2 fast forward the event to when these peoples so intermingling, will do their actions "concerning the Lord and concerning His Messiah" (Psalm 2:2c). Of course withdrawal is no option for the Seventh Day Adventist but neither is their networks concepts of intermingling with social, anthropological and psychological "tricks" built in to cowtow a Seventh Day Adventist to reluctantly be coerced to "cooperate".

The Messiah is Christ and He came in 31 CE and will come again in glory at the Second Coming, expected to be soon. And before He comes, Daniel saw what is going to happen:

Daniel 12:1

"Now at that time

Michael [Christ] the prince

Who stands over the sons of your people

will arise [An action in heaven in the Heavenly Sanctuary where He will stand up after He sat down for a brief moment].

And there will be a time of trouble

such as have never occurred

since there was a nation until that time.

And at that time your people,

everyone who is found written in the book,

will be rescued [Second Advent coming of Christ].

Before the coming of Christ, there will be trouble. Why are the nations in uproar and prime ministers resigning one after the other? Why are economies melting? Is the oil drying up in the Middle East that those countries are looking for nuclear alternatives? Is that the big future secret? Is that the time of trouble coming?

His people will be rescued.

Let us make something very clear. The restlessness of the nations is not the time of trouble. We are talking of a prelude to the time of trouble. The prime ministers resigning is not yet the time of trouble. Some more cause and effect will occur before the time of trouble kicks in. The book of Daniel is very enlightening on this.

While everything is changing around us we have an anchor to hold on: the Written Word of God giving us security, inner peace, guidance and hope for the future and eternal life.

Dear God

May our anchor hold and grip the solid Rock.

We are unfortunately not in a position to judge the statement or make a value judgment on it. Politics for Seventh Day Adventists are only important in so far they can clarify the navigation of prophetic events and humans cannot engineer the events from happening. Angels hold the winds of change, says Daniel.