Many who watch world events with an eye on biblical prophecy suspect that the end-of-the-age years may be close by, if not even upon us. Fascinating though this can be intellectually, for many it is a very scary prospect. I’ve spoken to many people in recent times who veer from being apprehensive to downright terrified at the idea.

I fully sympathise. Having had to guide two vulnerable teenagers through the horrors of lockdown, the thought of having to care for them if we have to live right through times of tribulation is daunting to say the least.

We don’t know exactly what we might be faced with, and the situation will quite likely vary from place to place. Persecution, and the inability to openly share the gospel, is already a reality in many countries, while China already employs social tracking.

There may be things that we can do to prepare ourselves on a practical level, but in many ways, we need to prepare ourselves spiritually first.

If refusing the ‘mark of the beast’ means that we cannot buy or sell, that could mean not being able to work, buy food, pay our electricity and water bills, or anything else. It could lead to the ultimate price of martyrdom. And even if it is not the tribulation immediately facing us, there are still very challenging times ahead. 

There may be things that we can do to prepare ourselves on a practical level, but in many ways, we first need to prepare ourselves spiritually.

Courage

In the face of serious adversity, will we have the courage? I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately – because I’m not naturally brave in the slightest! My daily reading recently was an old one (written by Adrian Plass) on Peter’s denial of Jesus, which I found very helpful in this context.

Let us first look upwards to our Lord, and not to the challenges that surround us.

He wrote –

“Peter, surrounded with questioning enemies, perhaps more ready to mock than to attack – he crumbled. Yet I think it did him good. Knowing his weakness, he would be able to look for strength. For, as Paul discovered, ‘it is when I am weak that I am strong’. In our weakness, we have nowhere to turn but to God … as a result we are able to draw on the strength of God himself. It was that which in the end would allow Peter not only to stand up and follow Jesus, but to die for him.”¹

We need to focus on drawing spiritual sustenance from God, to know him even under times of pressure, as Stephen did when facing the ultimate trial: “Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:54-55) Let us first look upwards to our Lord, and not to the challenges that surround us.

Helping the most needy

As we saw during the panic-buying-induced fuel shortages last year, it was a culture of me-me-me that both caused and exacerbated the problem. This kind of attitude is anathema to the gospel.

It struck me reading Acts 11:27-29 that when the prophet Agabus predicted a famine that would spread across the whole Roman world, the disciples at Antioch decided to gather money to send to the church in Judaea. They would have known that they were likely to be hit by the famine themselves, yet they didn’t hoard all they could lay their hands on. Rather, they thought only of the poorest, and did what they could to alleviate their situation.

As we saw during the panic-buying-induced fuel shortages last year, it was a culture of me-me-me that both caused and exacerbated the problem. This kind of attitude is anathema to the gospel.

That’s a challenge to me, as I’m a natural hoarder. For years I have kept enough food stores to feed my hungry teenage hordes (it feels like that – even if there are only two!) for several weeks if something happened – what I call my siege preparations. But the reality is, beyond doing a ‘Joseph’ and putting aside enough for several years, there will always come a time when supplies will run out, and we’ll be in the same position as those who started with nothing.

Hence the necessity for reserves of deep, spiritual sustenance.

Trusting for miracles

As we face the very real possibility of great persecution and need, we need to prepare to seek God for everything. We may need faith, as Elisha did, for multiplication of food in scarcity (2 Kings 4:42-44), cleansing of water when supplies run dry (2 Kings 2:19-22), healing when medications run out (2 Kings 5:9-14), and supernatural protection when danger threatens (2 Kings 6:15-19). Yet we need also to be prepared for God not intervening in ways we hope – as Daniel’s three friends were (Dan 3:17-18).

So, to prepare, we must soak ourselves in the word of God and in his presence. Train by putting ourselves deliberately in positions where we need to rely entirely on God – perhaps by stepping out to witness to others in situations where we would never have dared before, and pray boldly for miracles. Let God himself lead us to what we must do.

Sharing what we have

We need to be prepared to share what we have. It’s so easy to cling to material possessions in times of insecurity. Of course, a certain amount of wisdom in putting money aside for a rainy day is always sensible – and very much recommended where it can be done without causing further shortages for others – but more radical measures will be needed.

Acts 4:32-35 is a lesson to us all here.

“And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each as any had need.”

Not existing but flourishing

In response to my earlier article, Christ our only hope, there was a comment by one of our readers, Edward Barnes, which reflects on this passage in Acts, and which I feel may be a word for the season that we face:

“As we face looming global crises in the cost of living, I believe that God has equipped the body of Christ with all the resources necessary, not just to exist, but to flourish in the times that lie ahead. Sometimes that will entail releasing what is locked up in corporately owned property and investments (‘church assets’), but also personally being able to go beyond our current levels of charitable giving for the sake of one another. It starts with us: are we truly living by faith?”

I believe that God has equipped the body of Christ with all the resources necessary, not just to exist, but to flourish in the times that lie ahead.

Edward said that it took him time before he felt he could post this, as, he says, “I'm not sure I'm ready...” I’m not ready, and perhaps you aren’t either. In which case, now is the time to ask God to prepare us: to be ready to relinquish greed, entitlement, and dependence on the things of this world; ready to share our worldly possessions with the family of God, and others in need; ready to put our trust in our Lord fully, come what may. It may be that we can even flourish in this way, as the early Christians did. I note that nearly all the multiplication of food miracles in the Bible were in the context of sharing.

Let us not look around with fear, but instead, “lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28).

Notes

1 From Day by Day, Volume 1, The Bible Reading Fellowship (1993)