Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer carries a weight that Scripture itself bears, a cry for God to act according to His own character. The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, and He does set the boundaries and times of nations. What you have laid before Him is not a small thing; it is the very kind of intercession that pleads with the Almighty to restrain the destroyer and turn the hearts of rulers. And He hears. The eyes of the Lord roam the earth, and His ears are open to the prayers of those who seek His face. There is no waste in this.
Yet as you press into this burden, remember that the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. That is the beginning of wisdom and the first step away from compromise. Evil always knocks softly at first, asking only to be tolerated, accepted, reframed. But God does not negotiate with it, and neither can we. When a nation’s leaders begin to call good evil and evil good, when those who govern hate what is right and love what is corrupt, calamity is not far behind. That was true in Samaria and Jerusalem, it was true when Solomon’s heart drifted toward the abominations of the nations, and it remains true. The prosperity and stability of a people cannot long outlast the moral foundation that God ordains. Silver was counted as nothing in Solomon’s day, but the glory soon departed in the face of tolerated idolatry.
Do not mistake God’s patience for indifference. The Preacher observed that when sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, the hearts of people become fully set to do wrong. But the wheel of justice does turn. The wicked will not escape; evil itself will slay them, and their candle will be put out. There is no need to envy those who seem to thrive by wickedness, for their end is fixed, and the day of the Lord will make all accounts right. He has made all things for Himself, and even the one who does evil is reserved for the day of judgment.
In the meantime, what He asks of you is reflected in your own prayer. Continue to lift up those in authority, not only with petitions for their restraint but with a genuine longing for their salvation. That is exactly what pleases God, who desires all to come to the knowledge of the truth. Rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to evil. When you do what is right, you have no reason to fear. And when you pray for them, you are agreeing with the very intercession of Christ, the originator of our salvation, who was made like us in every way to bring many sons to glory. He ever lives to make intercession, and He shares that ministry with His body, the church.
So keep your own tongue from evil and your life from the appearance of it. Shun the very shadow of compromise, not from self-righteousness, but from a heart that stands in awe of the Creator. The wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God, but the quiet, persistent prayer of a righteous person accomplishes much. Rest in this: our Captain has already defeated the ruler of this world, and though he rages for a little while, the outcome is certain. The golden vessels of the temple may seem lost in a corrupt age, but the Lord knows those who are His, and He will restore what has been plundered. Keep walking in the fear of the Lord, hating evil, clinging to what is good, and trusting that He rides forth victoriously for the sake of truth, humility, and justice.
Yet as you press into this burden, remember that the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. That is the beginning of wisdom and the first step away from compromise. Evil always knocks softly at first, asking only to be tolerated, accepted, reframed. But God does not negotiate with it, and neither can we. When a nation’s leaders begin to call good evil and evil good, when those who govern hate what is right and love what is corrupt, calamity is not far behind. That was true in Samaria and Jerusalem, it was true when Solomon’s heart drifted toward the abominations of the nations, and it remains true. The prosperity and stability of a people cannot long outlast the moral foundation that God ordains. Silver was counted as nothing in Solomon’s day, but the glory soon departed in the face of tolerated idolatry.
Do not mistake God’s patience for indifference. The Preacher observed that when sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, the hearts of people become fully set to do wrong. But the wheel of justice does turn. The wicked will not escape; evil itself will slay them, and their candle will be put out. There is no need to envy those who seem to thrive by wickedness, for their end is fixed, and the day of the Lord will make all accounts right. He has made all things for Himself, and even the one who does evil is reserved for the day of judgment.
In the meantime, what He asks of you is reflected in your own prayer. Continue to lift up those in authority, not only with petitions for their restraint but with a genuine longing for their salvation. That is exactly what pleases God, who desires all to come to the knowledge of the truth. Rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to evil. When you do what is right, you have no reason to fear. And when you pray for them, you are agreeing with the very intercession of Christ, the originator of our salvation, who was made like us in every way to bring many sons to glory. He ever lives to make intercession, and He shares that ministry with His body, the church.
So keep your own tongue from evil and your life from the appearance of it. Shun the very shadow of compromise, not from self-righteousness, but from a heart that stands in awe of the Creator. The wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God, but the quiet, persistent prayer of a righteous person accomplishes much. Rest in this: our Captain has already defeated the ruler of this world, and though he rages for a little while, the outcome is certain. The golden vessels of the temple may seem lost in a corrupt age, but the Lord knows those who are His, and He will restore what has been plundered. Keep walking in the fear of the Lord, hating evil, clinging to what is good, and trusting that He rides forth victoriously for the sake of truth, humility, and justice.
