“Every time I look around, it’s in my face.” The lyrics from the aptly named tune How Bizarre released in 1995 by the New Zealand rock band OMC, are applicable every day. Something is in your face every morning whether you start the day with a Twitter feed, a Facebook post, tune into the TV, radio or spend a quiet moment reading or meditating. All around you can see, sense and hear chaos and calamity, division and unity, peace and prosperity. The world never stops cranking out a plethora of noise and activity to occupy the heart and mind of every living creature on the planet. Where it comes from, what it means and what you do with it is what matters.
It’s not difficult to see we are in the midst of a changing world order. Transitions cause havoc in politics, society, business, churches – you name it. Populist upheaval from Paris to New York City and everywhere in between reminds us economic and geopolitical systems are in a struggle for survival. The deeper dive is the struggle for the mind and soul of men, women and children…born and unborn. With everything in your face, it’s easy to lose sight that “..our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12. The struggle is not against income inequality or socialism, the struggle is against the lies of the evil one. How bizarre.
You want bizarre? “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say…'” Genesis 3:1. How bizarre is it that a snake can talk? More bizarre is that Eve didn’t think anything of it and had a conversation with the snake. At some point a talking snake questioning and changing God’s words didn’t seem so strange. This is the nature of the battle we still fight today. If the enemy can make bizarre so commonplace and in your face each day, maybe you won’t even hear what God says anymore.
In the Bible, God addresses every subject that gets in your face. The Bible talks about the devil and hell, but many churches and believers don’t want that conversation in their face. It’s more palatable the way C.S. Lewis wrote in his book The Screwtape Letters….“We must picture hell as a state where everyone is perpetually concerned about his own dignity and advancement, where everyone has a grievance, and where everyone lives with the deadly serious passions of envy, self-importance, and resentment.” Geez, sounds less bizarre and more familiar.
The enemy is in your face each day and he has been since the beginning when “God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1. Each of us know there is more going on than meets the eye and things aren’t quite right; everything is off. The enemy prefers to deal in being a little off, not quite right. Remember his first words were, “Did God really say…” Genesis 3:1. When you doubt God or what He says, or relegate Him to a position one degree less than complete sovereign Creator, YOUR struggle has just begun. If you started a journey at the equator and flew around the earth, one degree off would land you almost 500 miles off target. The longer you travel off course from God’s truth the further you will be away from God. Guess it begs the question if He is your target?
The world is more than just not quite right, folks. Christians know what is right even if they don’t like it. “Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the King.” 1st Peter 2:17. ‘Proper respect’ means not trashing someone who has a different opinion than yours on social media or in a private conversation. ‘Loving the family of believers’ means not being a part of any hatred regardless of your belief on same sex marriage or the church not sanctioning same sex marriage. The only way to ‘fear God’ is to know Him and what HE says about a subject. ‘Fear’ is a healthy respect and reverence for what He is, does and has done…and says He is going to do.
In the scripture above, ‘honoring the King’ means the earthly king. This means honoring Obama, Trump and God only knows who comes next. “Everyone must submit to the governing authority, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgement on themselves.” Romans 13:1-2. How much more in your face can God be on this subject?
The mayhem we are watching across countries and continents is in your face each day and it’s far from over. Your faith may be private, but what collective society believes about God has a public effect each day. The changing state of governments, businesses, schools, churches, personal relationships…everything, is a reflection of our belief and unbelief in God and his Son, Jesus. Your belief in Jesus, who He is and what He accomplished is the primary focus for the enemy.
Most everyone claims to have a faith in God but they have a hard time with Jesus and believing everything in the Bible. Your belief or unbelief doesn’t effect God’s truths or his existence, but it does effect you….and the world we live in.
Every day the enemy is in your face coaxing your faith and belief in God and his Word to be a little off. Start your day drawing near to Christ and knowing His truth. Don’t let bizarre get you even a little off target.