Author: Jimmy Day

One of the things I find fascinating about the Scriptures is that they contain many divine signatures that set them apart from other writings. It’s like God touched the book and left his fingerprints. One of Scripture’s divine signatures is the inspired system of numbers we find throughout its pages.

Meaning NOT Power

The ancient Babylonians were the principal developers of astrology. In their worship system, they had 37 supreme gods, and one of these, the god associated with the sun (Shamash), was foremost over all the other gods. The Babylonians believed that numbers, in some way, had power over the gods they worshipped, so they assigned a number to each of the 36 lesser gods. To recognise Shamash as the greatest god, they added the numbers from one to 36 and assigned the sum to him. Interestingly, adding those 36 numbers together equals 666.

What sets Bible numerology apart is its unique approach. Unlike the Babylonians, who believed in the power of numbers, the numbers in Scripture are used for symbolic reasons. This distinction is what makes Bible numerology so fascinating and worth exploring. Let’s delve into the main numbers that feature prominently in the Scriptures.

Number 1: Unity; New Beginnings

For example, the unity of God is expressed in Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” Jesus described the unity that existed between him and the Father: “I and the Father are one.” There’s also unity between God and humanity: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and humanity, the man Christ Jesus.”

Number 2: Union

There are lots of twos in the Bible that speak of alliance and cooperation.

  • Jesus sent his disciples out two by two (Luke 10:1)
  • Union of husband and wife in marriage. (Ephesians 5:21-33)
  • Partnership between Christ and the church (1 Cor. 12)
  • The Christian Bible is the union of two covenants.

Number 3: Divine Perfection

Three, the number that signifies divine perfection, is a recurring theme in the Scriptures. The Trinity, consisting of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, embodies the fullness of the Deity that lived in Jesus. Israel has the three righteous fathers of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jesus, the epitome of divine perfection, prayed three times in the Garden of Gethsemane. Significant threes marked his crucifixion: he was placed on the cross at the third hour of the day (9 a.m.) and died at the ninth hour (3 p.m.). Three hours of darkness shrouded the land while Jesus was on the cross, and he remained in the tomb for three days and nights. Such divine perfection is truly awe-inspiring and calls for our reverence.

Number 5: God’s Goodness and Grace

The apostle John wrote five books about God’s goodness and grace. As a tremendous act of kindness, Jesus multiplied five loaves of bread to feed 5,000 men, plus women and children—a crowd of about 20,000 people.

Number 6: Human Weakness

Six is sometimes called the number of Man or humanity’s number. People were created on the sixth day and were to labour for six days. Six is one short of seven—the number of perfection. If God is a seven, the best we can do is a six because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” The Greek word for sin was an archery term meaning to miss the mark or fall short of the target. Without God, we’re a six, but with God’s grace, we hit the bullseye every time.

Number 7: Perfection

Seven is God’s number, as God is the only one perfect. Seven appears 518 times in Scripture (74 x 7) and 35 times (5 x 7) in Revelation.

Number 40: Tests and Trials

Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for forty days. Israel was tested in the desert for forty years. We sometimes see the numbers forty and seven interacting together in Scripture, signifying the completeness of a trial or test.

For example, Noah’s flood combines seven and forty in Genesis 7:1-4, “The Lord then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth. Seven days from now, I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.”

The tests & trials brought about completion and perfection. Noah’s flood created a renewed world. After Jesus’ temptation, his ministry commenced. After forty years in the desert, Israel entered the Promised Land.

Number 1000: Divine Totality

The most well-known one thousand in Scripture is in Revelation chapter 20. Remember, Revelation is symbolic, and so the numbers represent something. In Chapter 20, Satan is bound for a thousand years, and the martyrs come to life and reign with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead don’t come to life until the thousand years have ended. They will be priests of God and Christ and reign with him for a thousand years. When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison.

Understanding that the number’ one thousand’ represents divine totality is the key to unlocking at least some of the truth here. Remember, this book is the Revelation of Jesus Christ. One way to read chapter 20 is to see the comprehensiveness of Jesus’ work of salvation. He has defeated death and Satan and set people free. He reversed the curse that kept people bound. The first humans were barred from the Tree of Life lest they live forever. In Revelation, the Tree of Life appears again, this time with an invitation: Let the one who is thirsty come, and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

Why Numbers?

God hides things in Scripture to encourage us to seek and find. Scripture is like a Divine treasure hunt. Immature Christians will want to be spoon-fed like little birds squawking at their mother with beaks wide open. The maturity of our faith should lead us to dig deeper into the pages and pursue manna from heaven.

Solomon wrote, “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” Followers of Jesus are kings and priests, and searching the Scriptures is one of our privileges and responsibilities.

Bible numerology is a fascinating study, and you can dig deeper into it if you want to. But I caution you to be careful of weird doctrines and getting hung up on this. There’s some pretty crazy stuff online about this, so be aware.

 

Further Study

The Digging Deeper Podcast.

The Biblestudy.org website.

I’ve just had seven weeks off—my first long service leave in 32 years of leading Bayside Church. My time away included a break from social media. But that all changed on Monday, my first foray on Facebook for almost two months. And what greeted me? Numerous posts from Christian people who were outraged about the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics.

Now, it wasn’t the entire ceremony that got their goat; it was just one scene, an apparent mockery of Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Last Supper by, wait for it, drag queens.

Christian Outrage

Our history is rich with instances of Christian outrage. When I transitioned from atheism to following Jesus in the late 70s, I was a DJ on a commercial rock radio station. The Christians I encountered were outraged about Rock ‘n’ Roll being the ‘devil’s music.’ We were cautioned about backward masking and how the drums in songs could summon evil spirits. This influenced me for a while, and there was pressure from my church to leave my radio job and stop playing ‘that’ music. I resisted the pressure, and I’m grateful I did. Radio has been a rewarding career for me. When I established Bayside Church, I supported myself, my wife, and my family for many years by working on the radio, as the church couldn’t afford to pay me much.

The outrage has shifted through the years from the satanic panic of the 1980s to the New Age movement and various movies and works of art. In 1988, Martin Scorsese’s movie The Last Temptation of Christ caused an uproar from multiple churches. The commotion gave the film all the free publicity it needed, and people went to see what they weren’t supposed to see. If Christians had ignored it, the movie would have flopped.

The same happened with an artwork called Piss Christ, a 1987 photograph by the American artist and photographer Andres Serrano. It depicts a small plastic crucifix submerged in a glass tank of the artist’s urine. Due to the controversy, Serrano received death threats, hate mail and lost grants. What if Christians had used the photo as an example of the gospel and presented the good news of Jesus entering the mess of humanity? But all we did was complain.

Nothing’s Changed

What concerns me most is that our default mechanism often appears to be outrage. We hear or see something and go straight to anger rather than calmly investigating the facts. We need to strive for a Christlike response, one that is rooted in love and understanding.

If people had done that with Andres Serrano’s photo, they would have realised it was a protest by the artist, who was concerned that people wore the crucifix as a fashion accessory rather than acknowledging it as an instrument of torture and death. To quote his own words, “When you see it, you’re not horrified by it at all, but what it represents is the crucifixion of a man.” What if we had listened and asked and investigated rather than protested? Piss Christ would have made a tremendous springboard for Christians to share the gospel—the message people need to hear from us, the message Jesus told us to spread—but all they hear is us whining. However, we still need to learn the lesson, as evidenced by many complaints about the scene at the Olympic Opening this week.

Appropriate Outrage?

If we had just calmed down, asked questions and investigated the truth, we’d have discovered that the scene had nothing to do with da Vinci’s The Last Supper but was a nod to Greek mythology and the Greek god Dionysius, the god of celebration connected to the gods of Olympus from which the Olympic games were named. The ceremony’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, said, “You will never find in me a desire to mock and denigrate anyone.” This underscores the importance of investigating the truth before reacting, as it could prevent unnecessary outrage.

So, what have outraged Christians achieved? Has anyone heard the good news about Jesus? Are people getting the message that God loves them and has reconciled them to himself? Not at all. All they hear is the same droning from Christians who get irritated when they don’t get their way. Our actions and attitudes are the opposite of Christlike behaviours and the teachings of Scripture. We must remember that our main goal as Christians is to become increasingly like Jesus and reflect his nature to the world he loves, the world he died to save. This should guide our response to controversial issues.

Paul’s Writings

Paul often used the Olympic games as examples of Christian living in his letters. (Consider 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20; Galatians 5:7; Hebrews 12:1-3. There are many other references, and I encourage you to explore them).

And here’s the thing: There wasn’t a hint of outrage in anything Paul wrote about the Olympics of his day. Not once did he warn Christians not to attend the games, which were centred around pagan worship of foreign gods. Paul didn’t fume that all the athletes who competed in the games from 776 BC to 393 AD did so thoroughly naked. He did not complain that only men were allowed to attend the games. Women were banned. Paul’s tent-making in Corinth with Priscilla and Aquila likely was to build the athletes’ accommodation for the games. Maybe Paul was a fan.

But Emperor Theodosius changed all that in 393 AD by banning the games as a blasphemous pagan festival because he was a, you guessed it, Christian. The modern Olympics were resurrected in 1896 with clothed athletes.

Fun fact: the word gymnasium comes from the Greek word gymnos, which means “naked.” So, if you’re an outraged Christian and you go to a gym, you might like to reconsider.

Jesus Outrage

What made Jesus angry? It’s an essential question because it serves as a model for legitimate indignation.

Jesus was outraged by:

Jesus taught his followers the law of love: love God, love one another, love your enemy, and love your neighbour. He said to treat others as you would like them to treat you. He explained that when we feed the hungry, visit the sick or prisoners, and welcome the stranger, it’s as if we were doing those things for Jesus himself. These are the things the followers of Jesus are to be known for, and plenty of that is happening quietly and without fanfare.

But the world invariably hears our complaining, as it has once again heard this week. Our message is good news, and anything we do or say that detracts from the main message is an enemy of the gospel. How about we stop getting offended on Jesus’ behalf and get on with the incredible work he’s called us to?

In last week’s blog, I explored the context of 2 Corinthians 11 and 12. I specified the nature of Paul’s thorn in the flesh: “I believe Paul’s thorn in the flesh resulted from the harsh experiences, particularly the persecutions he endured for the gospel’s sake.”

Paul’s experiences can teach us some essential lessons, which I’ll explore in this week’s blog. Do you have a thorn in your flesh – a continuous problem or annoyance that makes life challenging? More importantly, like Paul, what can we learn from our experiences?

Prayer

I like the way Eugene Peterson expresses Paul’s words in The Message Bible, “Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees.” When we experience a thorn in our side, does it push us to our knees? Do we pray about it or complain about it? Does it define us and our conversation, or do we Take it to the Lord in Prayer?

A couple of things are worth noting here. Firstly, don’t use the thorn as an excuse not to pray. I’ve heard people say, “It’s just a thorn in my side that I have to bear”—a fatalistic attitude that is the opposite of faith.

Secondly, praying about the same thing more than once is fine. Paul pleaded three times with the Lord to take the thorn away. Pleaded is a legal term “to put forward reasons for a case strongly.” Our youngest daughter, Trinity, who wants to be a lawyer, does this whenever she wants something. She writes a proposal stating why she needs a (rabbit, kitten, new phone, etc) and then asks Christie and me to sit down so she can plead her case. She’s very convincing, and sometimes her “prayers” are answered with “yes.” We can put this same kind of effort into our prayer life until God answers.

Paul pleaded in prayer three times until he got an answer from God. The answer was not what he expected, but it was still an answer. Jesus prayed three times in Gethsemane, “saying the same words.” Jesus prayed twice for a blind man because his sight was only partially restored the first time he prayed.

I encourage you to practice persistent prayer until God answers and then, like Paul, accept God’s answer.

What else can we learn from a thorn in our flesh?

Humility

At the start of 2 Corinthians 12, the apostle writes about visions and revelations from the Lord, of an experience of being caught up to the third heaven or paradise and hearing inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. One can only wonder at these experiences. I’ve had some overwhelming times feeling God’s presence, but nothing like this has ever happened to me.

Paul says, “In order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh.” The weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties Paul endured kept him humble. It’s important to note that the degrees of responsibility will equal the depth of suffering. Jesus put it this way: ” Everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” We may be tempted to want the same experiences Paul had, but we must also realise that those encounters and responsibilities led to immense suffering. Do you want that too?

Dependency

Paul learned that his weaknesses were an opportunity for Christ’s power to rest on him. The change in perspective allowed him to delight (take pleasure) in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties. Why? “For when I am weak, then I am strong.” This is an amazing lesson—one I’m still working on.

Paul told the Philippians that his sufferings had helped him learn the secret of being content in any and every situation and that he could do this through Jesus, “who gives me strength.” We can only learn dependence and contentment when we face adverse circumstances. So, discipline your mind to view these things from a different perspective.

Grace

Have you noticed that God invariably answers our prayers in a way that differs from our expectations? Sometimes, God answers before we pray. At other times, God may answer immediately. But more often than not, the answer is “yes, but not now” or, as in the case of Paul’s thorn, “No, but here’s my grace.” God always answers prayer; as I tell my kids, “No” is an answer!

When the answer is “No,” God provides the grace we need to bear the thorn—this is God’s sustaining grace. Eugene Peterson again: “[God] told me, ‘My grace is enough; it’s all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.’ Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness.”

When facing tough times, I encourage you to change perspective and focus on God’s grace and strength, moving in on your weaknesses. You don’t have to enjoy the hard things life dishes up, but you can endure them. By doing this, you’ll witness God refining your character and providing strength and grace. Learn the lessons from the thorn.

 

Over the years, there has been much conjecture about what Paul called a thorn in his flesh, which he was given by a messenger of Satan. All kinds of assumptions have been made, and we’ll explore these before investigating the context of Paul’s statements.

Guesswork

Context is everything, but if it is ignored, we resort to speculation. For example, some have suggested Paul suffered from a chronic disease like epilepsy, even though there is no evidence for such a claim.

Others have proposed it was an eye disease based on Paul’s comments in Galatians: Although my illness was a trial to you…If you could have done so, I can testify that you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me. Some have interpreted this to mean that Paul had an awful eye disorder, but the original language does not support that interpretation. The word “illness” is not in the Greek manuscripts and has been added by the translators.

Investigating the book of Acts, we learn that Paul had been in Lystra, stoned by an angry mob, dragged out of the city, and left for dead. Lystra was in Galatia, which was a region and not a city. Because of the injuries resulting from being stoned, he remained in Galatia, where the Christians cared for him as he recovered.

Others have suggested the messenger of Satan had harmed Paul in some way while he was visiting the third heaven, but again, this is just pure conjecture and highly unlikely. Still, others say it was Paul’s anxiety or a specific opponent.

Investigation

With all that in mind, let’s investigate what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10: “Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times, I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

The term Thorn in the flesh is an Idiom, one of many that we find in Scripture and still used in everyday life like:

A leopard can’t change his spots (Jeremiah 13:23)

A little bird told me (Ecclesiastes 10:20)

Escaped by the skin of your teeth (Job 19:20)

Fly in the ointment (Ecclesiastes 10:1)

Take someone under your wing (Psalms 91:4)

A thorn in one’s side is a continuous problem or annoyance that makes life difficult. It could be a person, thing, experience, or habit one can’t overcome. The word thorn refers to a bodily annoyance or disability. Paul experienced this in his body (flesh) as a human weakness. The messenger was an angel (in this case, a fallen one!). To torment means “to strike with the fist” and is the same word used for the treatment Jesus experienced before His crucifixion when he was beaten and punched.

Context

The above description is vital to our understanding of Paul’s thorn. Remember, Paul wrote 2 Corinthians as a letter without chapters and verses. Before speaking about the thorn, he had outlined the persecutions and sufferings he had endured for the gospel’s sake:

I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times, I was beaten with rods; once, I was pelted with stones; three times, I was shipwrecked; I spent a night and a day in the open sea.

Paul informs them that he is constantly travelling and faces multiple dangers. He often goes without sleep, food, drink, and sufficient clothing.

He summarises all this by confessing the weaknesses that result from his sufferings. Imagine the result of these experiences in this little man. The physical effects would have been severe, leaving his body scarred and disfigured.

And so, in chapter 12, Paul has had enough and asks God three times for things to change. God answers Paul’s prayer by offering grace, so Paul has to modify his attitude and expectation of God: Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” There it is; the thorn is clearly outlined by Paul in those five words.

I believe Paul’s thorn in the flesh resulted from the harsh experiences, particularly the persecutions he endured for the gospel’s sake. Context is everything.

Paul’s experiences can teach us some extremely important lessons, which will be the subject of next week’s blog.

Jesus taught us not to swear oaths, but there are occasions when we are required to. Should I swear an oath in a courtroom, for example? I’m asked this question occasionally, so writing a blog on this topic would be helpful. Here it is!

The Scriptures

Jesus taught this during his famous Sermon on the Mount. He said, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”

Some translations end with “comes from the evil one,” suggesting that Satan is somehow behind the swearing of oaths. But that’s not correct. Swearing an oath does not originate with a personality such as Satan. More on that in a moment because the word “evil” actually holds the key to what Jesus is teaching.

Changing Scripture

In this section of Jesus’ Sermon, he modifies some of the Scriptures. If you read Matthew chapter five, you’ll notice Jesus say several times: “You have heard that it was said to those of old… But I say to you.” Jesus quotes from the Tanakh (The Christian Old Testament) each time and updates the meaning. His statement about oaths paraphrased several verses from the Tanakh:

  • You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. (Exodus 20:7)
  • Do not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the Lord. (Leviticus 19:12)
  • You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. (Deuteronomy 5:11)
  • If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. But you will not be guilty if you refrain from making a vow. Whatever your lips utter, you must be sure to do because you made your vow freely to the LORD your God with your own mouth. (Deuteronomy 23:21-23; plus, Numbers 30:3-15).

Jesus argues for a better way by teaching that vows are unnecessary. He agrees with Ecclesiastes 5:5: It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.

The apostle James quoted Jesus in his letter: “But above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.” The Greek word “condemnation” refers to an accusation against you by others and does not refer to God’s judgment in this context.

Unnecessary Oaths

Jesus teaches against the use of oaths because they are unnecessary. All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from evil. In other words, oaths are worthless or pointless.

Jesus showed that oaths are unnecessary and have no value. He taught simplicity and integrity by encouraging people not to make things more complicated than necessary. Rather than getting into all kinds of oaths, just a simple YES or NO will do. Keep your communication uncluttered. Be an upright and honest person.

One of the lessons my recently departed dad taught me was always to make my word my bond, a phrase that originated in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. From there, it became an accepted English Proverb: “An honest man’s word is as good as his bond.” “Word is Bond” has been used by several rap artists, stressing the importance of speaking the truth and standing by what you say.

If I tell someone, “I give you my word,” they can rest assured that I will do what I say and do not need to swear an oath to add assurance. My word is my bond. When we live like this, no one can accuse us of failing on our promise, as James suggests.

Everyday Life

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches people how to live everyday life. I don’t believe his comments address an oath like one would give in a courtroom. Jesus is teaching about our communication with one another where just a simple YES or NO will do rather than attempting to back it up by swearing on God, yourself, or something else.

When I’m asked if I would take THE oath, my answer is Yes, most definitely. I have done so on many occasions and always do so with great sincerity. I have appeared in a courtroom several times as a character witness for someone accused of a crime. I have professed an oath on the Holy Bible: “I swear by Almighty God that the evidence I shall give will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”

I also swore an oath when I became an Australian Citizen in the 1980s: From this time forward, under God, I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people, whose democratic beliefs I share, whose rights and liberties I respect, and whose laws I will uphold and obey.

These days, Conferees can choose between two versions of the pledge: one that refers to God and one that does not. I will always choose the one that refers to God, but that’s a personal choice.

There’s nothing wrong with saying that kind of oath, but keep your communication simple and sincere in daily life.

My interest was piqued in early April when I noticed people posting online about “Draw Out Some Cash Day.” On 2 April, Aussies were encouraged to withdraw some cash to show their banks and retailers there was still a demand for cash.

Draw Out Some Cash Day was a clever and successful protest, with long lines reported at banks as people waited to get cash out – something I do regularly. Wherever I go, I take my credit card and some currency. It proved very useful last year when the Optus Network crashed, and we couldn’t use our phones or Apple Pay.

Plot?

It’s important to realise that the phasing out of cash is not some government plot to control us. Instead, it’s something we’ve driven. In 2007, almost 70% of transactions were made by cash (26% by card). By 2022, these figures reversed; only 13% were paid by cash and 76% by card. The Pandemic accelerated this transition, although cash use has increased slightly since 2022.

At this rate, Australia will be functionally cashless by 2030—earlier if the Commonwealth Bank is correct. Banks are responding to this trend, and cash will be more challenging to get in the future, with ATMs closing or limiting cash withdrawals.

Prophecy?

I realise that for some Christians, talk of a cashless society is frightening or exciting, depending on their temperament. I was first introduced to Christianity in the late 1970s. Bankcards were widely used, and Christians were all abuzz about this being a forerunner to the mark of the beast—if you look closely, I was told, you’ll notice that the “b” looks like a 6. I kid you not!

Since then, sections of the Christian community have been caught up (pun intended) in lots of conjecture about credit cards, microchips, and a cashless society – a “prophesied” scheme of a one-world government to control the masses and persecute Christians.

False Prophet

This view of Bible prophecy is based on a dispensationalist interpretation of Scripture. This relatively modern creation was developed in 1827 by John Nelson Darby of the Plymouth Brethren and spread widely with the 1909 publication of the Scofield Reference Bible. Darby founded the Exclusive Brethren cult after George Mueller (and other Brethren) challenged him about some of his unbiblical doctrines.

Charles Spurgeon also claimed these teachings were false. Thus, much of the modern understanding of Bible prophecy originated from a heretical cult leader and was popularised in recent times by some “Christian” books and movies—hardly a good foundation for understanding Scripture.

Cashless Society

The notion of a cashless society as prophesied by the Bible comes from Revelation 13: [The beast] forced all people…to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name. This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666.

We must remember that John wrote Revelation to seven churches in the First Century. When John told THEM to “calculate the number of the beast“ to identify this man, he wasn’t teasing them to try and recognise someone who would exist two thousand years later. John wrote about a well-known code of the day (gematria) that his readers would understand. Letters had numerical value, and John’s readers would know that he was referring to Nero Caesar (a Greek form of Nero’s name, rendered into Hebrew, gives a combined value of 666).

Currency

John’s words indicate that the Christians’ problem was an economic one. The pagan temples functioned like banks, controlling who received finance and who didn’t. If someone needed money, they’d visit the temple, and the priests would tell them what Artemis (or whatever god was responsible) required. The offerings invariably demanded sexual favours for someone of a higher class or with temple prostitutes. You can see that this could pose a problem for Christians.

What was the mark without which no one could buy or sell? John tells us it was “the name of the beast or the number of its name.” The term “mark” (Greek, charagma) was most commonly used to imprint documents or coins. Charagma was also an imperial seal of the Roman Empire used on official documents during the first and second centuries.

The mark was likely the Emperor’s (Nero’s) inscription on Roman currency, without which one could not buy or sell. Loyal Romans would wear coins on the back of their right hand or forehead to show allegiance to the Emperor.

New Testament scholar Craig C. Hill notes, “The Mark symbolises the all-embracing economic power of Rome, whose very coinage bore the Emperor’s image and conveyed his claims to divinity. It had become increasingly difficult for Christians to function in a world in which public life, including the economic life of the trade guilds, required participation in idolatry.” In 66 AD, the Jews revolted against Rome and coined their own money. Before this, money changers at the Jerusalem temple would exchange coins with the Emperor’s mark with temple coins so that no graven image could enter the temple and defile it.

Fear Not!

I have watched Christians become very fearful about the mark of the beast, a cashless society, and a one-world government, and this fear is ungrounded. Any doctrine that provokes fear is not from God. John writes about this, too, as he encourages his readers to live lives based on love: “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

Christians today should not be looking for the antichrist or the great tribulation, and we certainly shouldn’t worry ourselves about the mark of the beast or a cashless society. We should occupy our time doing good works, living productive lives, making the world a better place and sharing the good news of the Christian gospel. Let’s be looking for the genuine Christ, not the anti-one!

Warning: Some of the content in this blog may be triggering.

Last weekend, thousands of people rallied to protest the increasing levels of violence and other abuse against women by intimate partners. There comes a time when people say enough. That time has come. Among G20 nations, Australia ranks eighth for rates of domestic violence against women. There’s been an almost 30% spike in the rate of Australian women killed by intimate partners last year.

In the Church

A church community should be a safe place where abuse is named, victims are not blamed or shamed, and unequal gender roles are challenged. Sadly, this is not always the case. Domestic violence and other kinds of abuse occur in Christian families to the same degree as outside of the Christian community. Churches can do better. An excellent place to start is the Safer Faith website, which has abundant information, guidelines, resources, and Bible studies to help Christians and our communities be safer.

So, let’s explore some reasons why churches are not always safe and free from domestic violence.

Church Structure

Some church structures can be a critical factor in causing domestic violence. It concerns me that we still have patriarchal churches that are run by men and invariably support men at the expense of women. You can pick these churches a mile away. Check out their websites and observe the leadership structure. I’m not talking just about the staff. Who’s on the Board, the senior leadership, and are women permitted to teach and preach? If they’re all men, run away.

 

These churches invariably espouse Complementarianism, the belief that men and women are “equal but different.” I’m not suggesting that all complementarian churches have an abuse problem, and I don’t deny that there are clear differences between these two genders. Still, complementarianism usually places men in the superior role of leading and women as their “helper,” supporting the man of God. It’s all very Orwellian: All humans are equal, but some humans are more equal than others!

As Matthew Henry once wrote, “Eve was not taken out of Adam’s head to top him, neither out of his feet to be trampled on by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected by him, and near his heart to be loved by him.”

Church Teaching

It’s easy (and lazy) to quote isolated verses out of context. I heard of one guy who beat his wife while quoting scriptures on submission: “Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord,” clearly ignoring the previous verse: “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Paul affirms that husbands should love their wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. I’m pretty sure Jesus doesn’t beat up his church (or anyone else, for that matter). Jesus stood up for the victims and showed compassion and grace. We are to follow his example.

Submission has been used for centuries to suppress women. I have heard of multiple occasions where a pastor has instructed a woman to stay with an abusive partner, to submit to him and to be the best wife she can be. The inference is that the violence is somehow her fault, and if she were a better wife, he wouldn’t hit her. If you’re in a situation like that, THIS PASTOR encourages you to get away to safety as quickly as possible and reach out for help.

Church Emphasis

Another woman told of her minister advising her that her husband might stop hitting her if she had more sex with him. This stereotype is emphasised by some of today’s megachurches that stress the manly man versus the feminine submissive woman who looks after the home and keeps her husband happy. Consider the recent Stronger Men’s Conference, complete with monster trucks, a sword swallower, a wrestling match, motorcycles, and pyrotechnics. In contrast, the upcoming women’s conference is all pretty and pink and looks like a promo for Barbie. Aussie megachurches are much the same.

Pastor Josh Howerton recently got himself into trouble for propagating this same trope at his church in Dallas, where he gave a “gold nugget of advice” that his mentor had given him for couples intending to marry. He encouraged men to do whatever their fiancés wanted in the lead-up to the wedding and then told the women they needed to do the same thing for their husbands on the wedding night: “Stand where he tells you to stand, wear what he tells you to wear, and do what he tells you to do.” With this level of objectivation and misogyny, this guy needs to get a new mentor.

These churches encourage men to be Wild at Heart and to recover their masculinity, strength, and roughness. Women are to delight in their men’s strength, look up adoringly at them, and think how lucky they are. Teaching like this leads to all kinds of abuse that, sadly, we see regularly reported by news outlets.

Other Causes

In the same way that some churches and Bible teachings characterise women as subordinate to men, pornography does the same thing. In porn, “females are characterised as subordinate to males, and their primary role is the provision of sex to men.” Much porn is gonzo, a genre that depicts hard-core, body-punishing sex in which women are demeaned and debased. It won’t be long until the man who consumes this rubbish wants to try it.

Domestic violence can be caused by alcohol abuse or drug use, which can lead to higher levels of aggression by perpetrators. Pregnancy may also intensify the risk of domestic violence, as can financial hardship and unemployment.

Solutions

What I’ve written about here is complex; we all have a role. If we know someone who is violent or abusive to their wife or girlfriend, we need to act. Dads can talk to their sons about respect for women and healthy models of masculinity. All men can behave considerately towards others. Appropriately, the focus for International Men’s Day for 2024 is Positive Male Role Models.

We guys can also teach others to resist the sexist rhetoric of public figures, be they politicians, pastors, or influencers like Andrew Tate. We can warn of porn addiction that can lead to sexualised violence and be educated on the dangers of social media and the sheer vitriol and hatred of the online space, and the algorithms that continually dish up more of the same.

We can advocate for women’s rights and believe that women deserve equal rights to men in every sphere of life. We can nurture our children, nieces, and nephews by having honest, frank, and healthy conversations about these challenging issues.

And that’s where the church can shine by modelling respectful relationships in which everyone is equally worthy of respect, dignity, and love, regardless of who they are. We can healthily teach the scriptures focusing on the Royal Law and the Golden Rule: love your neighbour as yourself and treat others as you would like to be treated.

 

For Further Help:

National Sexual Assault, Family and Domestic Violence Counselling Line.

Phone: 1800 737 732 Web: www.1800respect.org.au

First point of call for access to all services across Australia (24 hours a day).

Bayside Church Pastoral Care Phone: 0401 721 912

Next year will mark the 110th anniversary of Anzac Day when thousands of brave young men went ashore on a foreign beach in a distant land.

In a display of courage, determination, and mateship, these Australians and New Zealanders created a legend that, when retold today, evokes pride and passion in a new generation of Australians.

1915

In 1915, Australian & New Zealand Soldiers scaled the heights as they were met by merciless fire from Turkish guns, but they hung on, dug their trenches, and prepared to attack.

From April to December of that year, the Allied forces held on till the order came from London for the withdrawal. By then, 7,600 Australians and nearly 2,500 New Zealanders had been killed, and 19,000 Australians and almost 5,000 New Zealanders had been wounded. French casualties were as high as the ANZACS, and Britain lost three times as many. Turkey lost 86,000 troops.

ANZAC Day

From 1916 onwards, ANZAC Day was established on 25 April—the day the ANZACS landed at Gallipoli—as a memorial to honour and remember those servicemen who lost their lives serving their respective countries. Since then, ANZAC Day has been extended as a memorial to all people who sacrificed to preserve the freedom we enjoy today.

The battles at Gallipoli forged the Anzac spirit of courage under fire, selflessness, unwavering loyalty, tenacity, and mateship. The legend of the Anzacs has transcended time to become a symbol of what we value as Australians.

The Man with the Donkey

On Anzac Day, we stop to remember and reflect on the sacrifices of people who served our nation in times of war and peace. One such person is John Simpson Kirkpatrick, a swaggie, cane cutter, miner and sailor from Australia, who landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula on 25 April 1915 at a place now known as ANZAC Cove. With his donkey Duffy, he became the best-loved figure at Gallipoli as he carried the wounded to the dressing station.

Known as “the man with the donkey,” he transported the wounded day after day amid fierce shrapnel fire. He was shot dead on 19 May that year. Kirkpatrick served in this way for just three weeks, and we remember his heroism, courage, and sacrifice over 100 years later.

One thousand nine hundred years earlier, another man with a donkey rode into Jerusalem, also on his way to sacrifice his life for others.

Lest we Forget

ANZAC Day is a Memorial Day lest we forget those who gave their lives to purchase our freedom in this world. We Christians also recall and reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus to buy our freedom not only in this life but also in the one to come.

Our Bayside Church community is in the midst of grief as we stand alongside a family whose eldest daughter took her life a week ago. The family are foundational church members, joining Bayside Church in its first year in 1992. So, they are well-known and deeply loved. The pain they and others are experiencing runs deep. And so, I write this blog hoping to comfort anyone who faces the depths of grief and loss.

The Psalms

The Psalms are an excellent source of the expression of genuine faith. The 150 Psalms can be divided into three main groups:

Group 1: Everything is lovely; praise the Lord, hallelujah.

Group 2: Everything is not okay. I’m struggling intensely, but the Lord is going to rescue me.

Group 3: Everything is not okay. I’m struggling intensely and praying hard, but God seems absent. These are the lament Psalms and make up almost one-third (42 out of 150) of the Psalms. Let that sink in.

Psalm 88

One such Psalm is Psalm 88, which Charles Spurgeon described as follows: “In this Psalm, Heman makes a map of his life’s history. He puts down all the dark places through which he has travelled. He mentions his sins, his sorrows, his hopes (if he had any), his fears, his woes, and so on. Now, that is real prayer, laying your case before the Lord.”

Please read and reflect on this Psalm and the raw and honest words the author uses. He was overwhelmed with troubles, drained of strength and abandoned by God. Although he prayed daily, he felt cut off from God’s care. “My eyes are dim with grief. Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me?” The Psalm concludes with, “Darkness is my closest friend.”

The Psalm title instructs the music director to set the song to Mahalath leannoth: “The Suffering of Affliction.” This contemplative poem helps us understand that human existence is not always easy. Wherever we live, whoever we are, and whatever faith we have, there will be terrible times when we wonder where God is and why he let “it” happen.

The lament Psalms sanction our grief, honest questions, expressions of doubt, and anger at God. I am so grateful that the Holy Spirit inspired their inclusion in the Scriptures.

Express Yourself

When life is unfair, we suffer and grieve and have many unanswered questions; it’s okay to say exactly how you feel. That’s what Heman did. Over 2,700 years since it was written, we’re still reading Psalm 88 because Heman expressed himself. Imagine if he had bottled up his feelings because he didn’t want people to think he wasn’t a real man.

All the Psalms were sung publicly in the community. Heman voiced his feelings in a community of people who could support him through his grief. I am so grateful to belong to an authentic community of faith where we can be honest.

Good Grief

Grief is a process with many ups and downs. Losses that cause grief include the death of a loved one, a friend, or a pet, the ending of a marriage, or a miscarriage or stillbirth. We grieve the loss of friendships, a job, health, and life changes like retirement or moving house. We’re pained when dreams fail, future plans don’t eventuate, or our financial security is shaken.

Grief is a proper emotional response to these and other losses. In Bible times, grieving people would dress in sackcloth and pour ashes on their heads. Jesus spoke of this as a favourable expression of sorrow. Our modern Western mindsets could benefit from the example of our Eastern friends, whom we often judge as “over the top.” A healthy expression of grief is one way to live through it.

The fact that the lament Psalms like Psalm 88 are included in inspired Scripture tells us a lot. It tells us that God is totally okay with human grief and with humans expressing that grief. He’s alright with being questioned, with people being angry with him and accusing him. God is not going to smite you, turn away from you, or stop listening to you, and he will not have a holy huff. “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Resist Platitudes

In my work as a pastor, I have noticed how uncomfortable we Aussies tend to be around death, grief and loss. And in our discomfort, we tend to say thoughtless things. My eldest daughter told someone this week that a lifelong friend had just ended her life. His response? “Well, life goes on.”

If you don’t know what to say, say nothing. Be present and listen. Give a hug or an arm around a shoulder. Don’t say, “I know what you’re going through” unless you do. Give practical help where possible and let people know you’re thinking of them, but don’t be intrusive. Resist platitudes like:

  • There’s a reason for everything.
  • They’re in a better place.
  • Time heals all wounds.
  • They wouldn’t want you to cry.
  • It’s all happened for the best.
  • It’s time to put all this behind you.

The last one is only for the grieving person to decide.

Not Okay

People say, “Well, everything will be okay,” but none know that will happen. What if things aren’t okay? Not everything ends well, even in the Bible, and a faith that tries to convince you otherwise is bogus.

Christie and I have a friend in South Africa who lost her son in a tragedy many years ago. At the time, she was a member of a Word of Faith church and was told by her pastor that she didn’t need to grieve because Jesus “has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.” When we met her, she still hadn’t grieved her loss.

The Hebrew word translated borne means to be lifted like Noah’s ark on the flood waters. It’s a stunning picture of God’s promise to carry us as we live through grief. It reminds me of the Footprints story.

Because of Jesus, we have hope in the resurrection of the dead; we do “not grieve as others who have no hope,” but we still live our way through grief. Today, our friend has processed her heartache and joined a Christian community free from toxic positivity.

Weeping and Laughter

The Psalms intertwine joy and grief, rejoicing and mourning. This is a very realistic picture of life. At funerals, stories are told that make people laugh, but we also cry. If you’re living through grief and loss, I encourage you to be gentle with yourself and incredibly honest with God. As you live your way through grief, something beautiful happens within. Paul wrote about it like this: “The Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

If you are struggling in any way and need support, please call
Lifeline Australia: 13 11 14
Pastoral Care Phone: 0401 721 912

I want to share my recent experiences with you in this blog. I am neither a doctor, medical practitioner, dietician or nutritionist. I am writing about my experience and what I learned from it. This is my journey, and I hope it encourages you and helps you on yours.

COVID Kilos

I know I’m not alone in this, but at the start of the first lockdown in 2020, I started eating quite unhealthily. While I still went for a brisk walk each day, I enjoyed way too much chocolate and other snacks most evenings, which went on for the two years of lockdowns. The result? I found myself the heaviest I’ve ever been and tipped the scales at 96 kg.

I’m tall and could carry the extra weight without anyone noticing, but I noticed. My shirts and trousers seemed to shrink every time they were washed, and some no longer fit. I needed to choose: either I bought new clothes or lost weight. I decided on the latter.

A Shock

The decision to cut the COVID kilos was spurred on by a visit to my doctor for a regular check-up, including blood tests. The results alarmed me because they came back indicating that I was pre-diabetic and needed to go on medication to correct it. I asked my GP if there was anything else I should do. He poked me in the belly and said, “Losing some of this would be a good start.” I’ve known him for a few decades, so his response did not surprise me.

It was the incentive I needed, along with the increasingly tight clothing, to do something to correct the two years of less-than-healthy eating and subsequent weight gain.

My Response

From that day, I started eating healthily and exercising. My exercise schedule included (and still includes) three gym sessions per week, Pilates once a week, and brisk walking every day. That, combined with eating high-fibre fresh fruits and vegetables, lean protein, and good fats, led to a steady decline in my weight over the next year or two. I’ve avoided starches and processed “foods” as well as sugar, chocolate, and high-carb, sugary drinks.

I am very focused when I set my mind to something, a quality that has served me well throughout my life. So, I maintained my healthy discipline throughout 2022 and 23. The result was a total weight loss of 17 kilos. I still had to buy some new clothes, but now it was because my old ones were too loose!

I returned to my doctor for blood tests. The results showed that I was no longer pre-diabetic, and I came off the medication. I am NOT suggesting that weight loss can prevent or heal all medical conditions, but it has worked for me.

God’s Help

I don’t want to underestimate the encouragement I received from God and the scriptures in my weight loss journey. Losing weight is hard, and keeping it off is equally as tricky. But God is always present to help us. And that’s a key: constantly relying on the strength of the Holy Spirit.

The fruit of the Spirit includes forbearance and self-control. Forbearance means patience and restraint, and self-control is self-evident. We need these qualities with whatever we set our minds to achieve. So many other scriptures are helpful, and I’ve included a list at the end of this blog.

What Else?

If you want to lose a few kilos, there are a few other things that I’d encourage you to consider. Firstly, talk to your doctor and ask for their guidance. You may be on medication that makes weight loss difficult or have conditions that need to be monitored. Ask their advice about foods to avoid and discover what works for you.

Secondly, be realistic about your body type and work with what you’ve got. The media constantly bombards us with “beautiful” bodies. Social media is the worst. I especially feel for young people who are confronted with unachievable body images, often from photoshopped pictures. A few people are genetically blessed, but most don’t fall into that category. You can’t change your genetics, but you can make the best of what you have.

Lifestyle Choice

Achieving a healthy weight is a lifestyle choice. Understand that certain foods are not appropriate for you and find alternatives. Be aware of instant gratification. Ask yourself, is the short-term enjoyment of this (fill in the blank) more significant than the long-term enjoyment of the benefits of sustaining a healthy weight—of feeling better about myself, being healthier, and being more comfortable in my clothes?

Healthy eating and exercise are lifestyle choices that help you avoid fad diets and the trap of losing weight only to gain it again. They also allow you to embrace a health-giving future. People live longer than ever, but our extra time sometimes reduces our quality of life. Rather than lifespan, we should make healthspan our focus. Why would we want to live longer if the last decade or two of our lives were spent in doctors’ surgeries and specialists’ waiting rooms?

Patience

The weight loss journey is long. Patience is critical, especially when your weight plateaus, which can last weeks or months. Stay cheerful, optimistic, and focused on the benefits during these times.

I’ve also found planning to be incredibly valuable. Making a meal plan, preparing food in advance, and cooking extra so there are lunches for the next day(s) are all good tips. And don’t get addicted to the scales. If you use them, make sure they are good ones and have an accountability buddy if you need one.

By doing all this, I lost excess weight and feel great and full of energy. I am now maintaining weight by embracing a healthy lifestyle, exercising daily, and eating well. I hope my story encourages you to do the same.

Scriptures to Help You

Proverbs 16:3, Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.

Psalm 145:15-16, The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

Psalm 63:5, I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

Lamentations 2:22-23, The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Philippians 4:6-7, Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Isaiah 40:31, Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.

Romans 12:1, Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

Matthew 4:4, Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’

Isaiah 26:3, You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you.

Psalm 32:8, I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

1 Corinthians 10:13: No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity.

And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?

You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honour God with your bodies.

1 Corinthians 10:31, So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

Hebrews 12:11, No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those trained by it.

Matthew 6:25, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”

1 Timothy 4:8, For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.

1 Corinthians 9:24, Do you not know that all the runners run in a race, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

 

The last few years have been a momentous time around the world. We’ve experienced a global pandemic, worldwide floods and fires, plus wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and other places. International tensions are at their highest for some time. Add to that the dire economic challenges many people face because of high inflation, and you might be tempted to think that this is the most challenging time to be alive.

My purpose in this blog is NOT to minimise the genuine hardships and suffering being experienced by many people today. But it may be helpful for our sense of perspective to revisit a time in history that is often described as the worst time to be alive.

When it Wasn’t

When you read “the worst time to be alive,” what comes to mind? Maybe it was the 1300s when the Black Death, a bubonic plague pandemic, wiped out half of Europe’s population. Or was it 1918 when one of history’s bloodiest conflicts ended, only for a global pandemic to begin? The Spanish flu killed more than 50 million people, primarily young adults.

Was it a few decades later when the world was once again plunged into a global war? 1943 was the worst year of World War Two, witnessing some of the largest and bloodiest battles as well as the climax of the Nazi’s genocide of the Jews. At the same time, around 3 million people in the Bengal province (modern-day Bangladesh) died due to famine and disease.

When it Was

But, as bad as they were, none of those were the worst times to be alive. The very worst time in recorded human history was the year 536. That year, a shadowy fog plunged Europe, the Middle East, and parts of Asia into darkness, day and night—for 18 months.

Sixth-century historian Procopius wrote, “For the sun gave forth its light without brightness, like the moon, during the whole year.” Summer temperatures dropped by over two degrees, ushering in the coldest decade in the past 2000 years. China experienced summer snow, crops failed, and people starved. One Irish text from the period describes “a failure of bread” that year. Local conflicts raged under such stressed conditions.

It was the worst time to be alive, with some conditions very similar to those we’re experiencing today because of climate change—drought, less rain in some places, and flash flooding in others.

Just When you Thought …

I’m sure you’ll agree that all that sounds like an awful time. But it got worse. Five years later, in 541, the bubonic plague struck the Roman port city of Pelusium on Egypt’s Nile Delta. Known as the Justinian Plague, it quickly spread and killed up to 50% of the population of the Eastern Roman Empire. These cataclysmic events plunged Europe into economic stagnation for a century.

I find this fascinating and strangely comforting. It’s easy for us to look around the world today and despair. But people in the past have faced far worse than we do today. The human race is incredibly resilient.

What Caused it?

The cause of the dark clouds in the Dark Ages has, until recently, been a mystery. According to the Science.org website, “an ultraprecise analysis of ice from a Swiss glacier…has fingered a culprit—a cataclysmic volcanic eruption in Iceland spewed ash across the Northern Hemisphere early in 536.” Two other massive eruptions followed, in 540 and 547, plunging much of the world into a Volcanic Winter.

When a volcano erupts, it emits sulphur, bismuth metal dust, and other substances high into the atmosphere, forming an aerosol veil that reflects the sun’s light into space, cooling the planet.

The discovery is intriguing and current because, as I write this blog, Iceland’s volcanos are once again threatening to erupt. Yesterday’s news from the Icelandic Met Office warned that an eruption could start with very little warning time. The hazard level was raised to indicate an impending eruption.

Our Response

I am not suggesting that any imminent eruption may be as destructive as the one in 536. But what if it was? What if the world was plunged into semi-darkness for a year or two? How would we respond and cope with this?

Would some of our Christian friends dive into bizarre conspiracies as they did during the recent pandemic? Would futuristic interpretations of Revelation zoom around the internet? Or would Christians follow Jesus and humbly seek to serve those most impacted by the disaster? I hope it’s the latter.

The last few years have shown us that modern people are not exempt from natural or human-made disasters. We must prepare for future catastrophes and pandemics that may affect this planet. Today’s world is not somehow exempt from these things. Please choose now to act in a way that reflects our faith in the one who came to serve and give his life to others.

The apostle Peter encourages us to “stand firm in the faith because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of suffering. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.”

If you’ve been around Australian churches for any time, you will have heard about the 17th-century prophecy concerning the Great Southland of the Holy Spirit. We sang about it with gusto in the Nineties until we realised the lyrics offended some of our indigenous friends. So, what is this prophecy and has it been interpreted correctly by today’s church?

Expedition

It all began a little over 400 years ago (1605) when a Portuguese explorer, Pedro Ferdinand de Quirós, secured sponsorship from Pope Clement VIII and King Philip III of Spain to seek out the southern continent – Terra Australis Incognito (Unknown South Land).

According to historian Gunter Schneider, “It was felt that an undiscovered southern continent had to exist because the known land masses of the southern hemisphere were not sufficient to balance those of the northern half of the globe.” We are amused by this assessment today, but it was considered factual then.

De Quirós, a Catholic Jew, set sail from Peru to discover and create a holy settlement called The New Jerusalem so that the indigenous people “may have knowledge of the Gospel and be brought into Spiritual obedience.” Where and what he found has caused much debate.

Declaration

In May 1606, de Quirós proclaimed: “Be witness the heavens and the earth, and the sea and all its inhabitants, and those who are present, that I, the Captain Pedro Fernandez de Quirós, in these parts which up to the present time have been unknown … [W]ith authority from the Supreme Roman Pontiff, Clement VIII, and by order of the King, Don Philip III, King of Spain … I take possession of all the … lands that I have newly discovered … and all this region of the south as far as the Pole, which from this time shall be called Austrialia del Espiritu Santo.” And no, I didn’t misspell Australia.

De Quirós named the land in honour of Philip III of Spain of the House of Hapsburgs, who ruled Spain then and was known as the House of Austria. The name did not come from Terra Australis Incognita. He likely named it such to ingratiate himself with the king in the hope of receiving money for future expeditions. Austrialia del Espiritu Santo translates as the Austrian Land of the Holy Spirit.

But de Quirós hadn’t discovered the southern continent, only the largest island in what is today known as Vanuatu.

Motivation

Australian historian Manning Clark described de Quirós as “one of the flowers of the Catholic reformation, part of that movement of religious idealism and of missionary fervour which strengthened the church after the disasters of Luther and Calvin.” The Catholic Reformation was a counter-movement seeking to gain ground the Roman Church had lost to the Protestants.

De Quirós, with the backing of Pope Clement VIII, sought to bring the salvation offered by the Catholic Church to the pagans and convert them to Catholicism. He named a stream running into the island’s bay the river Jordan and declared the New Jerusalem would be built amid the coral reefs! His religious fervour caused great unrest amongst his crew.

The colony was soon abandoned due to the understandable hostility of the Ni-Vanuatu people, and on 8 June 1606, de Quirós set sail to return to Peru. He had travelled more than 38,000 kilometres, never to raise another expedition, and died in 1614 thinking he had stood on the land mass of the southern continent.

Fiction

Much of what we’ve heard about Australia as the Great Southland of the Holy Spirit is a myth. While I don’t doubt de Quirós’ missionary zeal, he wasn’t a seer and didn’t make any prophetic declarations about our nation. The apostle Paul encourages us to “have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.” We would do well to heed his advice.

We would also do well to remember that God’s Kingdom isn’t a geographical location. Jesus taught the very opposite. When the Pharisees asked him when the kingdom would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God is not coming with something observable; no one will say, ‘Look here!’ or ‘There!’ For you see, the kingdom of God is [within] you.” Consider those words in light of those that preach the Great Southland “prophecy.” They say revival will come to Australia because of a declaration of the Catholic missionary. Jesus told us not to say, ‘Look here or there.’ God’s kingdom is not a geographical location; it lies within the hearts and lives of all people who consent to God’s rule.

God’s kingdom attracts people “from every nation, all tribes and peoples and languages.” No ethnic group has a geographical advantage! God does not favour one nation over another. “For God so loved the world“ stands at the very heart of the gospel.

Colonisation

The world is outraged today when one country invades, annexes, or occupies another, and rightly so. And yet, this is what Christians and churches celebrate when they buy into the so-called Great Southland prophecy.

De Quirós declaration spoke of hitherto unknown parts that he possessed in the name of Jesus, St Francis and John of God, and all the professed members of their Orders. He also added “in the name of King Philip III” because he was paying the bills.

It must be remembered that people already owned and occupied these lands. It appears that little consideration was given to a statement made by Paul in Acts speaking of the human race, “[God] marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.” Colonisation ignored this truth and stole land from indigenous peoples. It was (and is) the ultimate affirmation of white supremacy.

While I acknowledge that our forebears did this, it does not absolve us of all responsibility. We must recognise past injustices, apologise, and work in unity with Indigenous people to find a shared future where everyone is respected.

Conclusion

Pedro Fernandez de Quirós was not a Prophet Over Australia. His declaration was a politically and institutionally driven grab for land already occupied. None of what he “prophesied” came to pass, much like many of today’s so-called prophecies. In recent times, modern “prophets” have proclaimed that Trump would regain the presidency (in 2020) and that COVID-19 would be over by Passover 2020. They were wrong on all counts and are a blight on a genuine and precious spiritual gift that is intended to strengthen, encourage and comfort God’s people.

The Scriptures encourage us to test prophecy, but so many of God’s people gullibly soak all this stuff up and confuse emotional hype for the presence of God.

It seems we contemporary Christians are addicted to the spectacular. Something exciting has always got to be “about to happen.” The ‘revival carrot’ is dangled in front of people to keep them engaged. This year’s vision (or conference) has got to be bigger and better than last year’s. “What’s next?” we ask instead of simply getting on with what God has already placed in our hands.

Compare this to the Scriptures’ teaching on simply committing ourselves to following and living like Jesus. Eugene Peterson calls the Christian life a long obedience in the same direction. Let’s get on with living authentically with Jesus and each other and stop buying into godless myths and old wives’ tales.