Whilst the media puts us all on information overload, the church largely stays silent. How can Christians understand the nature and purposes of God - and make them known?

There is no shortage of news today. In fact, most people are on information overload! We are bombarded with messages through the internet, from social media, from the TV news, from newspapers and magazines and all the stuff that comes through the letterbox. The world news becomes more depressing every day. The following are a few headlines from the first week of 2016:

Starving people in besieged towns near Damascus / Islamic State beheads more victims and threatens Britain / 47 dissidents executed in Saudi Arabia / Iran and Saudi Arabia break diplomatic contact / North Korea explodes a hydrogen bomb / Stock Market crash in China threatens economy / More migrants drown in boats from Turkey to Greece / Arab and North African men assault women at New Year celebrations in German cities.

But all these headlines are about what human beings are doing in the world. The great missing factor in our news broadcasts is "What is God doing today?"

Silence from the Church

This question should be in the minds of every Christian and on the lips of every preacher in every church in the land! Why is there such silence from church leaders? Do Christians no longer believe in the sovereignty of God? The Bible teaches us that God is not simply the God of creation, who flung the stars into orbit and created the universe – God is still active, sustaining his creation, and communicating with human beings whom he made in his own image.

The media is highly active in bringing us information about what is happening in every part of the world. But why is the church not similarly active in telling the world what God is doing today? The world does not know that God is active in working out his purposes today because there is no word coming from major church leaders and ordinary Christians are so silent. Why are we so timid about being witnesses to the truth? Do we not know that nothing happens in the world that is not either the direct will of God or his allowable will?

The media is highly active bringing us information on what is happening around the world. Why is the church not similarly active in declaring what God is doing?

The Nature and Purposes of GodA lady watches the recent dip in the Chinese stock market. See Photo Credits.

The Bible is packed with information about the nature and purposes of God: how he revealed his truth to the prophets of Israel, how he sent Jesus, our Lord and Saviour, to enable us to know him as our Father, and how he both loves us and is a God of justice, requiring us to be his witnesses to the world.

But God never gives a task without also giving the ability to fulfil it. This is why the Holy Spirit was given to believers to enable them to understand what God is doing and to empower them to speak to others in his name.

God told the prophets that there would come a day when the nations would reach such a point of rebellion against the truth that he would start to shake them like gravel in a sieve. This is reported by Isaiah (2:12-21) and Haggai (2:6-7) and repeated in Hebrews (12:26f), where the purposes of God's shaking of the nations is explained.

Those who understand the truth revealed in the Bible and who also study world history will know that a new phase of history was entered in the early 20th century with the First World War, which signalled the collapse of the great modern empires. This process was accelerated by the Second World War which changed the map of the world and began great movements of population that are coming to a climax today, with vast numbers moving from east to west and south to north. The inevitable clash of cultures is only just beginning, which will intensify instability and violence in the nations.

The Holy Spirit was given to believers to empower them to understand what God is doing and to speak to others in his name.

At the same time, the rise of militant secularism in Western nations is undermining truth, deceiving people, blinding them to the significance of what is happening around them and destroying their ability to resist the power of false religions and philosophies that threaten their security. Western civilisation is beginning to crumble and this is a major reason why God is shaking the nations - to alert us to the danger of what lies ahead.

The Searchlight of Truth

Just consider what God has done in recent years. He has been turning on the searchlight of truth to reveal the corruption that is spreading like a cancer through the Western nations. In 2008 the light was turned on greed and corruption in the banking industry. In Britain this was followed by similar revelations among our politicians and revelations of sexual immorality among church leaders, followed by similar revelations among celebrities who are the idols of modern society.

A major reason why God is shaking the nations is to alert us to the danger of what lies ahead.

Now the searchlight of truth is being turned upon Islam and this is partly why there is such turmoil in the Middle East, where Islam began. God has even allowed the establishment of the Islamic State, whose atrocities have shocked many Muslims who know very little about the history of Islam, the activities of Muhammad, and the teaching of the Qur'an – all of which are reflected in the practices of Islamic State fighters, who claim to be the only true Muslims. Muslim scholars know the teaching and practices of Muhammad, but it has been hidden from the world for centuries. It is now being revealed as the searchlight of truth is turned on.

Truth Brings Freedom

At the same time, many Jews and Muslims across the Middle East - from North Africa to Iraq and Iran - are having dreams and visions of Jesus, as God reveals his truth to them. This is preparing the way of the Kingdom of God, which the writer to the Hebrews says is the purpose of the great shaking of the nations (Heb 12:26f).
So instead of being afraid of all the turmoil in the world today, we should actually be glad to see God at work in his world, shaking all the man-made systems and false teachings that have deceived and enslaved multitudes. It is the truth that sets us free!

Clifford Hill considers the possible long-term implications of the recent deals with China, arguing for the need for spiritual discernment.

The deal struck between China and the British Government allowing China to be involved in the new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point in Somerset is a landmark in relationships between the two countries. But who does it benefit and are there any long-term disadvantages?

David Cameron certainly laid on a royal reception for Chinese President Xi Jinping's four-day visit to Britain, during which he was hosted by the Queen in Buckingham Palace and red carpet was laid out in Downing Street for his visit to Number 10.

Many people in Britain will be surprised that such a reception was given to the leader of a Communist dictatorship with an abysmal human rights record and a reputation for the brutal repression of dissenters.

Courting Chinese Business

The way had been prepared for this visit by Chancellor George Osborne's trade mission to China last month in which he secured a number of business deals with the world's second-largest economy.

China already invests heavily in property in Britain and Chinese firms are currently in the process of purchasing a number of British businesses and even Independent Schools (such as the deal struck last year to acquire the prestigious Chase Grammar School in Staffordshire, where boarding fees are £36,600 a year).

Steel Politics

Xi Jinping's visit to Britain comes at the same time as workers across Britain are dismayed by news of steel plant closures caused by China's action in flooding the world market with cheap steel, resulting from a slowdown in the Chinese economy and their refusal to cut back production.¹ Two months ago the Chinese took stock markets by surprise, devaluing their currency three times, making their export products even cheaper and showing how little they care for the health and well-being of other economies.

The European Union has already taken steps to impose additional import duties on steel from China and similar measures are being considered by the US Government. But will the British Government have the strength and resolve to confront Chinese leaders about this issue at a time when the Conservatives are striving to complete big energy deals, or will they sacrifice the steelworkers in order to pursue their policy? How many thousand steelworkers will be thrown out of work? What is the price of 'Caring Conservatism'?

Whilst the Conservatives court Chinese business, British steelworkers are being dismayed by plant closures as China dumps cheap steel onto the global market.

Hinkley Point Power Station, SomersetSecurity Questions

Another big question is security. A number of MPs have raised concerns about the security risks of giving China a stake in British nuclear power. There are fears that if the Chinese design and build the reactors they could insert 'technical trapdoors' into the reactor systems.

This would enable them to override British controls, or even shut down the plant in the event of any diplomatic dispute between the two countries - such as that which occurred in 2012 when Britain hosted the Dalai Lama, who China dislikes (and who, coincidentally, recently criticised Britain's policy toward China as "Money, money, money – where is morality?"²).

Bernard Jenkin MP, chairman of the Commons Public Administration Committee, was quoted in The Times³ saying "In 2014 the Prime Minister assured the Joint Committee on National Security 'there is going to be a proper NSC consideration of this' and this was welcomed, but there is no indication that ministers have asked for or received a comprehensive analysis or assessment of the risks." He called for the Government to publish a risk assessment for the scrutiny of MPs or a full Parliamentary Select Committee will undertake the task.

Calls have been made for a proper risk assessment to be carried out by the Government, because of concerns over security.

Peng Liyuan, China's First LadyXi Jinping and his famous pop-singer wife are popular with ordinary Chinese people although she entertained the troops in Tiananmen Square soon after they had massacred pro-democracy demonstrators in 1989. He rose from poverty through the ranks to become head of the ruling Communist Party and China's most powerful leader since Deng Xiaoping. But his smiling face and the large sums of money his Government is prepared to invest in British nuclear power plants may not be good for Britain's long-term interests.

Need for Discernment

The big question is whether or not our present political leaders have sufficient spiritual discernment as well as business acumen in agreeing the terms of this deal. It is spiritual discernment that is called for in assessing the long-term prospects.

Those who are familiar with the history of Israel will remember the lack of discernment shown by King Hezekiah when a number of envoys visited Jerusalem from Babylon about 695 BC, long before the Babylonian Empire became a world power (see Isaiah 39). The King had recently recovered from a serious illness and the political leaders of Babylon sent a gift to him celebrating his recovery. That should have put Hezekiah on alert but instead it was all smiles and warm greetings all round. Hezekiah was so pleased to receive them that he showed them everything in his palace – all the gold and silver and treasures acquired by his illustrious forebears.

The prophet Isaiah was scathing in his rebuke because he foresaw the rising power of Babylon and the day when the Babylonian army would invade the towns and cities of Judaea. He saw the terrible havoc they would create through the destruction of Jerusalem - including the great Temple and the Palace of the King.

King Hezekiah was rebuked by Isaiah for accepting gifts from Babylonian envoys - Isaiah foresaw Babylon's coming rise to power.

Wisdom in Foreign Policy

Have our political masters really taken seriously their responsibility to seek the well-being of this nation by taking before God such a far-reaching matter as our relationship with China? This is where church leaders and politicians should work together, seeking the wisdom of God for our international relationships. The great danger facing Britain is that these deals are struck purely for short-term financial gain without due consideration of the long-term implications. This is where we need the guidance of the Holy Spirit. But only prayer-centred leaders of the nation can ensure making the right decisions.

References

1 Weldon, D. Why British steel is in crisis. BBC News, 21 October 2015.

2 Dearden, L. Dalai Lama on Britain's Policy Towards China. The Independent, 23 September 2015.

3 17 October 2015.

"The axe is already at the root of the trees" (Matt 3:10): Clifford Hill asks if these words of John the Baptist have relevance for us today.

I have always thought that in this verse John the Baptist is speaking about judgement falling upon Israel. That is what all my commentaries say. The axe is about to cut down the tree. But John does not say this. He says that the axe is at the ROOT of the trees, not the trunk!

This changes the meaning of the metaphor: the root of the trees was being cut off so that the "nourishing sap" (to use Paul's words in Romans 11:17) from the root could not feed the tree to produce good fruit. Therefore, it would have to be cut down.

Israel's long-awaited Messiah was about to appear and John's mission was to prepare the way for him. Meanwhile, the spiritual life of the nation was being corrupted by the Scribes and Pharisees whose teachings and interpretations of the Law made life difficult for ordinary people. The Israelites were being cut off from their spiritual heritage in the teaching of Moses and the prophets, so they were unable to read the signs of the times. Jesus wept over Jerusalem: "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes" (Luke 19:42).

Our Spiritual Heritage

In Britain, America and Europe since the Second World War, we have been cutting off our Judaeo-Christian roots. The 'nourishing sap' of the word of God that has blessed our nation for centuries is being cut off at the very time when we most need the guidance and the blessing of God.

Just as Jesus came to Israel at a time when they were cut off from their own spiritual heritage, so now Britain and other 'Christian' nations are cutting themselves off from their own Judeao-Christian roots."

The nations are being shaken with greater speed and severity each day but because the leaders of the Western nations do not know the word of God, they are unable to perceive the significance of what is happening. They do not know what to do: so inevitably they are making all the wrong decisions.

The Greek TragedyProtestors clashed with police outside the Greek Parliament on Wednesday.

In Brussels the Eurozone nations are struggling to save the euro. They may have succeeded in a patched-up deal to stop the Greek crisis bringing down the whole structure of European finance – but they are simply 'kicking the can down the road', delaying the day of judgement. They continue to build up a mountain of debt that will eventually become a volcano that will burst and spill out, engulfing not only Athens but the whole of Europe.

Battle in the Middle East

In the Middle East the power struggle for control of the Muslim world is increasingly centring upon the two behind-the-scenes main players in Iran and Saudi Arabia. With America's President Obama having another year to run, there is huge danger in his desire to be friendly to Iran, despite the recent treaty.

Everyone knows that the Iranian nuclear programme is not just to produce nuclear power for peaceful purposes, because they are sitting on the world's fourth greatest reserves of oil. They don't need nuclear power! What they do want is a nuclear bomb! Then they can control the Middle East and prepare to attack Israel. But if they succeed in their nuclear ambitions, the Saudis will have to do the same. They will immediately purchase a nuclear bomb and the race for survival will be on! Who will blink first?

Global Insecurities

With the rising tide of terrorism from militant Islam, the threat to world peace grows daily. So too does the danger of worldwide financial collapse. In Beijing the Communist rulers are struggling to control their stock market casino as the gambling fever that grips the nation has paved the way for a gigantic double-dealing con-trick that has swindled millions of small investors out of their savings. Clearly there is no way that a massive $3.5 trillion could have gone through a life-and-death cycle in a mere 80 trading days of normal commercial activity! Yet, the all-powerful commissars of China are powerless to protect their own people from financial disaster.

For those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, there have been warning signs of these global problems for a long time. Many Christians believe that a critical point in world history will occur around the time of the Feast of Tabernacles this year which coincides with the Lunar Eclipse, the 'Super Blood Moon' on 28 September, 2015.

Whether or not this is the case, we are certainly living in volatile times. What can be done? The most effective thing Christians can do is pray – but we need to know how to pray and what to pray for. This is where knowledge of the Bible and an understanding of the nature and purposes of God are essential.

The most effective thing Christians can do is pray- but we need an understanding of how to pray and what to pray for."

When we can understand what God is doing, we know how to pray. We should be praying for our nation; for repentance for all we have done that is contrary to the word of God and the way we have cut off our spiritual roots. God is slow to anger and abundant in mercy. It is time to call upon him for help. Never was there greater need than today.

'God's Faithfulness – Stories from the China Inland Mission and OMF' by Rose Dowsett & Chad Berry (OMF International, 2014, 338 pages, available from OMF for £8.00)

This is a unique anthology of forty stories which testify to the faithfulness of God over the 150 years of OMF/CIM. Here are stories of tragedy, triumph, sorrow and joy, God's provision and many answers to prayer.

OMF International was founded in 1865 by James Hudson Taylor as the Chinese Inland Mission, so the book celebrates 150 years of service in East Asia. Hudson Taylor, after his dramatic word from the Lord on Brighton beach, served in China for nearly 50 years. However, although the book gives some outline of the mission's beginnings in the 1860-80's and developments since 1949 when the staff had to leave China, it is not a history book.

It is a series of amazing stories of ordinary people performing extraordinary exploits for God - in Thailand with leprosy patients at Manorom hospital and in Phayao, planting a Bible college and, in 2004, ministering to tsunami survivors. In Malaysia, Brian and Esther Newton planted a hundred church groups in Sarawak with tribal communities, the result being that the area is now fifty percent Christian. Robert and Ruth Erion ministered close to the border of Malaya and Thailand with communist insurgents. In Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, missionaries were able in the 1960s and 70s to develop literature materials and then a Christian curriculum for the government from kindergarten to university.

This book contains a series of amazing stories of ordinary people performing extraordinary exploits for God."

Most heartening of all is to read of individual new believers who took on the mission outreach, in particular Mongolian nomadic herdsmen Erdene, Mishig, Tuya and Bolar. The testimony to their service for the Lord is that in 1990 there were fewer than ten known Christians in the country and today there are more than fifty thousand.

This book will encourage all of us who have been involved with OMF over the years but also any Christians who have been unaware of what God has done in South East Asia.

Clifford Hill looks at drugs and money laundering in the banking industry...

HSBC has been a lot in the news recently, not simply for the celebration of its 150 year anniversary, but for what many commentators have said to be its questionable banking practices. The revelation by a Geneva-based whistle-blower that hundreds of wealthy clients have been shielded from tax obligations by the use of a private bank, has created both political and moral shock waves. This is being investigated in London and now HSBC says it is considering moving from London. Is this just coincidence?

The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) was born in controversy following the two Opium Wars, in which Britain inflicted what 20th Century Chinese historians labelled “A Century of Humiliation” upon China.

The 1830s was a time when Britain faced economic ruin, largely because of its enormous trade imbalance with China. The British were addicted to drinking tea: huge quantities of tea together with silk and porcelain were imported from China, but the Chinese wanted very little manufactured in Britain. Instead they demanded payment in silver. Stocks were rapidly running out in the British Exchequer. In 1833 Britain passed the Act of Emancipation setting African slaves free in the Caribbean islands and other parts of the British Empire. But this cost the Exchequer £20 million in compensation paid to the owners of slaves (though not one penny was paid to the slaves themselves, an injustice that is yet to be acknowledged by any British Government!).

HSBC was born in controversy, at a time when Britain was struggling to pay China for its growing addiction to tea..."

The Opium Trade

The East India Company had for some time been exporting opium from its poppy fields in India. By 1838 this trade reached 1400 tons of opium a year, which was doing immense harm to the population in China, millions of whom were now addicts. The Emperor of China appealed to Queen Victoria, citing the harm that was being done to his citizens by the immoral actions of the British. But his letter never reached the Queen. It was said to be “lost in transit” (no doubt diverted by some corrupt official).

The Emperor of China appealed to Queen Victoria by letter, but it mysteriously disappeared and never reached her..."

Send in the Navy

China reacted by closing the port of Canton and seizing and destroying 1,200 tons of opium in the East India Company’s warehouses. The British answered by sending the Navy – at that time the most powerful fleet in the world – to destroy Chinese ships and occupy the port. Thus began China’s Century of Humiliation with an ‘Unequal Treaty’ whereby China was forced to pay compensation to Britain and to grant British colonial status to Hong Kong. This unjust settlement of 1842 led directly to the Second Opium War of 1856 to 1860, when France joined Britain in invading Chinese ports and enforcing a settlement that legalised the opium trade and opened the Chinese interior to British merchants.

Just five years later HSBC was founded, primarily to deal with the huge profits from the opium trade, providing banking facilities for wealthy entrepreneurs who were happy to make fortunes out of a trade that many considered to be unethical. Now, 150 years later, they have been caught pursuing another trade that many would also consider to be unethical. They are reported to have provided facilities for storing the wealth of over 100,000 of the world’s richest individuals and organisations by offering them the anonymity of the Swiss private banking system.

Tax Evasion

According to reports in The Guardian,¹ evidence was given to the British tax authorities and to the British Government in 2010 of those individuals and corporations who were using the HSBC system; yet only one individual has been prosecuted for tax evasion. HM Revenue and Customs justify this by saying that they have used the information to recover millions of pounds in unpaid tax and have thus benefited the Exchequer more than if they had pursued these matters through the courts. But is this really an ethical use of national tax policy?

In effect HMRC are saying that money is more important than righteousness."

But there is no doubt a further reason for the Government not wanting to expose the alleged misdemeanours of powerful banks that are said to have aided clients in tax avoidance schemes. It is well-known that revenue from the City of London plays a major part in the British economy and anything that disturbs the activities and prosperity of the City could have a devastating effect upon the national economy.

Stephen Green

Perhaps the strangest element in the entire HSBC saga is the appointment of Stephen Green as Minister of State for Trade and Investment from January 2011 for two years. He had been working for HSBC since 1982 and had been its CEO and latterly Chairman, reportedly earning more than £25 million a year. If the Government had known since 2010 the information provided by the whistle-blower on HSBC’s alleged tax evasion services to clients, why did the Government honour him with a peerage and appoint him as a Minister of State? What was David Cameron’s role in this appointment?

Stephen Green had been at the helm of HSBC when it was fined by the USA for money laundering for Mexican drug cartels, as well as running a banking system in the Cayman Islands (where it had no staff and no office), and assisting states such as Iran and North Korea to break international sanctions.

Christian Initiative

Stephen Green is also an ordained Anglican minister and I was introduced to him by Dr Rowan Williams when he was Archbishop of Canterbury. I met him a number of times without knowing the nefarious practices in HSBC that were allegedly taking place behind-the-scenes. I had high hopes that he would back a Christian initiative to launch a new national newspaper in the UK which would break the monopoly of secular humanists on British journalism.

That initiative had the backing of many leading Christians as well as Christian journalists, but it required a substantial capital investment for a successful launch. Stephen Green could, of course, have provided this out of his own pocket without calling upon investment from the bank. But instead of seeing it as a faith project for which God would supply the prosperity he looked at it as a banker and said it was not a sound investment. He did not catch the vision of a newspaper declaring the truth of the word of God to the nation. In hindsight, maybe he feared the same for his bank!

References

1 The Guardian, 9 February 2015