“And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” (1st Tim. 6:8)
Very few people who profess to serve the Lord Jesus Christ stop to consider the reality of this verse, and only for the singular reason that, in what are called the affluent nations, they have so much to lose. Those who have lost everything to fires, floods, tornadoes and other such disasters could explain it to you well, nothing left, everything gone but the clothes on their backs.
There is, almost always, some form of assistance for those we speak of, and although the road is difficult, they can once again realize a life of some similarity to the one they had before, of relative comfort.
“All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Matt. 24:8)
There seems to be in these days two classifications of people, those who envision times getting better, these days are nothing more than a rough section of road, and those who foresee an apocalyptic future, one where mankind is forced into a brutal world, scavenging for survival. The question is not which of these two you adhere to, but can you release everything you have, all that you have worked diligently for by the sweat of your brow if your Father in heaven takes it from you, can you be content with only food and raiment?
“And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” (Luke 9:58)
A nice verse, a wonderful verse. Now, apply it to yourself.
The darkest scenario then, the bombs have fallen, there is nothing but rubble for as far as the eye can see. Will you drop to your knees and praise His name, or will you worry? Will you say, “Thy will be done,” or wonder if He has deserted you and left you to your own devices?
Perhaps this one. Martial Law has been imposed, no one is allowed outside of their home for any reason, anyone caught outside will be shot, no questions asked. I think you can take it from here, use your imagination and conceive a scenario that is beyond your control, and then ask yourself, could I be content in those days?
A line from an old movie for you.
“Chance favors the prepared mind.”
And then truth from the Word of God.
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Prov. 3:5-6)
He will direct your path through the rubble, but it may not be to a better life, it may not be as Job’s seven-fold increase. It may be towards death, and a painful one at that.
I do not know what the final few days or weeks, perhaps even months, will be like where you live before the Rapture, but I do know this, and it bears repeating again. The chaff and wheat must be tossed into the air many times together before they are separated, and the wind must be blowing strongly.
Has the Most High caused your fears to dissipate as these days grow more evil, or do you still fear?
“Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1st Thess. 4:18)
The sincere heart that serves the Lord Jesus Christ to the glory of God does not question His will for us, we may fear, but not for long, we may not be immediately content, but we have a hope that cannot be diverted or dissuaded because of the circumstances we may find ourselves in. And those circumstances may indeed become dire, if it may be called that, in the future for you.
Our brothers and sisters that came before us hid in caves, were fed to the lions, were burned at the stake, suffered all manner of pain and torture. Yet the mind that served Christ within them was content with food and raiment, and in where the Lord had placed them.
“Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: and thy glory above all the earth;” (Psalm 108:5)
Again, I repeat myself, for these four words should be burned into your soul.
Thy will be done.
