Recently, I have been reading some historical fiction based on the times during WW1 and events proceeding it. I must admit that I had an idealized vision of my mind of what America was like during that time. I didn't know that this was when the Klu Klux Klan was rampant. I had forgotten about the Great Depression and how it destroyed many families. I didn't know much about the gangster control of large cities. I didn't even think about the persecution and judgment endured by different people groups. It wasn't a time of peace as I thought. People weren't any better than they are now.
I don't think I'm the only one who gets a little idealistic when I look at the past. It's hard not to look at a different time and say it had to be better than now. When we watch the news and we see rioting, police men killed at point blank, and children being massacred in Pakistan, how can we not look back and think "If only we lived in another time"?
The problem is that no matter what time we go to in history, evil still exists. History shows us wars, abuse, tyranny, massacres, selfishness, greed, and hatred.
The world Jesus was born in to was much the same. This was a world ruled by the Roman empire. Their reign brought stability, but they ruled with an iron fist by the power of their well trained army and sustained themselves off the taxes of the territories conquered. This tax load was heavy on the poor farmers (who made up the majority), but there wasn't any mercy if they couldn't make their payments. "The Romans would sometimes destroy an entire village for late payment either enslaving or killing all its inhabitants. When an individual could not pay his debts, he was often tortured. We have accounts of tax collectors first torturing the head of the household for non-payment. If he still did not pay, they would torture the man’s family while he watched" ("Who Were the Romans"). Click here for the entire article. For the average person living during this time, there wasn't any hope of change. There wasn't someone they could call out to to help save them from the injustices they were experiencing. The Roman empire was a vast, unstoppable force. And the alternative to Roman rule wasn't that much of an upgrade. Man isn't a creature of peace.
But into that dark night shone a light. For the first time in centuries, there is hope that man can change. That he can become something better than he is. That he can become free in the truest sense. That maybe there was a chance that all that was wrong in the world could be made right.
"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this." Isaiah 9:6-6
I italicized the words government because they encompass several important ideas. The first is that God desires to reign. But it's necessary to note that his reign is unlike any other reign in history--it is one of peace and justice and it is a reign that doesn't end. But the biggest difference is that His reign isn't set in a country, or a system, or a building. His reign begins in our hearts. His kingdom is the kingdom of believers, of those who call upon His name.
And His reign can only bring peace as we submit to it and as we reach out to make a difference in the world in which we live. We cannot be surprised by evil, but we know how to overcome it.
"And they overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony..." (Revelation 12:11).
