Tag Archives: Hamas

Peace That’s Not of this World

March 8, 2024 Tom Vander Well 1 Comment

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
John 14:27 (NIV)

Judas Iscariot is in the process of his betrayal of Jesus. The wheels are in motion and the climactic event that Jesus has clearly stated is about to take place. Jesus knows that He will be arrested, He will suffer, and He will be executed. The religious leaders and the Romans? They’re just the pawns. What’s about to happen is the result of a larger spiritual conflict that has been brewing since before the beginning. As Jesus finishes His last meal with the disciples and prepares, He even says to His disciples, “The Prince of this World is coming.”

I find it fascinating that amid these impending events, Jesus declares that He has peace. In fact, He has enough peace that He will generously give it to His disciples. He also clarifies that His peace is not “as the world gives.”

This got me meditating in the quiet this morning about how I’ve observed the world offering peace.

I watch politicians on both sides screaming of the aisle that their side is the only path to peace and prosperity. The other side will bring only death, destruction, and the end of democracy. So both sides claim they will bring peace if the other side is obliterated, subjugated, and goes away. Peace comes only through the absolute and total destruction of your political enemies.

Last October, a group of terrorists tortured, raped, and slaughtered 1200 human beings. They took others hostage. I’ve been told that this all happened to bring peace to one group of people and will be achieved if the other group of people they terrorized are wiped off the face of the earth. Both groups continue to kill one another to achieve peace.

When I was a young man, it seemed that the world promised peace if you had certain things. Those things could be tangible like money, cars, designer gear, etc. They could also be intangibles like success, popularity, fame, status, and power. This is still the Prince of the World’s game. In fact, it fuels our economy and continues our seemingly endless need for more. If I just add that thing everyone’s talking about to my pile of personal possessions I’d probably feel so content as to never needing another thing.

In my lifetime, I’ve observed that the world’s promise of peace has gotten more insidious with its intangible paths to inner peace. Thanks to social media, the world convinces children and their parents that peace will be yours if you have followers and likes, or because you have a sudden case of Tourette’s or gender dysphoria that makes you special. Peace is promised for the latter at the end of hormones, drugs, and life-altering surgeries.

Jesus promised peace that is spiritual in nature. He said it would come with spiritual oneness that happens when I surrender, follow, believe, and obey. Jesus promises His Spirit to indwell me. That’s the source of the peace. The following, believing, and obeying are rooted in His teaching that there really is something much larger going on in my life in the same way there was something larger going on in the events of His arrest. If He is in me, and I am following His teaching, there is peace that comes with His presence and with seeing the larger, spiritual, eternal perspective which allows me to view my momentary troubles in a very different way.

Peace, my friend.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

No Signs Needed

February 22, 2024 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

And because of [Jesus’] words many more became believers.
John 4:41 (NIV)

For the past four months, since the heinous events of October 7, 2023, the headlines have been dominated by the intense conflict between the terrorists of Hamas and Israel. We have seen heated and sometimes violent demonstrations around the world. We have witnessed the impassioned feelings on both sides of the conflict. What many fail to understand is that the conflict between people groups in this region can be traced back thousands of years. They were as real for people in Jesus’ day as they are today.

In the first three chapters of John’s version of Jesus’ story, he has made a point of the “signs,” or miracles, that Jesus performed. He went on to describe the religious leaders for whom no “sign” was good enough as they demanded a bigger, better, more magnificent miracle, while the crowds who saw Jesus’ miracles/signs at the Temple during the Passover festival believed because of them.

For the largely Jewish audience that John was addressing when he wrote his account, today’s chapter takes a shocking twist. Jesus leaves the region near Jerusalem and heads back north to His home region of Galilee. To get from one to the other in a straight line, Jesus had to travel through a region called Samaria. This was an issue.

The people in the Samaritan region were Jews who hundreds of years before Jesus had intermarried with non-Jewish inhabitants during the time when the northern kingdom had been taken into exile by Assyria. To Jesus’ people, the Samaritans were half-breeds (or mud-bloods if you’re into the whole Harry Potter nomenclature). Good Jews would walk miles out of their way to avoid walking through Samaria. I can’t help but think about the delineations drawn today between Israel and Palestinian regions and the antipathy between them. Jesus was like a Jew walking into and through Gaza or the West Bank.

Jesus not only leads His disciples directly through Samaria, but He strikes up a conversation with a Samaritan woman. It was socially unacceptable for a Jewish man of Jesus’ day to speak to any woman in public. Jesus strikes up a conversation with a Samaritan woman. If Jesus was playing poker with the cultural rules of His day, His conversation with the Samaritan woman was Him going “all in.”

I find it fascinating that John shares this episode so early in his version of Jesus’ story. John’s audience was well aware that the Jesus movement had torn down traditional social and cultural distinctions between men and women, Jews and non-Jews, along with slaves and slave owners. In writing about Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman, their two-day stay with the Samaritans there, and the Samaritans’ belief in Jesus, John was providing his readers with the reason that Jesus’ followers were so revolutionary in crossing such entrenched social mores. It’s what Jesus did Himself, and the example Jesus commanded them to follow.

As I meditated on this in the quiet this morning, I couldn’t fail to notice one small detail that I find of profound importance. John has already established how important Jesus’ “signs” and miracles were in leading His Jewish audience to believe in Him. When it came to the Samaritan woman and her people, there were no miracles worked. There was no “sign.” Instead, John specifically states that these socially unacceptable half-breed deplorables believed Jesus simply at His word.

I’m reminded this morning that as much as the world has changed since Jesus’ two-day stay in Samaria, the human condition hasn’t changed. People groups still hate one another with generationally perpetuated hard hearts and homicidal intensity. Individuals still seek “signs” from God as a prerequisite to belief. I find in the despised Samaritans an example I hope I emulate every day on this chapter-a-day journey: Simply taking Jesus at His word without the need for any other signs.

I couldn’t help but think of the episode John will share in the final chapters of his account. The risen Jesus invites Thomas to touch His wounds and verify that it was really Him. After Thomas proclaims his belief, Jesus responds “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

God, make me less like Doubting Thomas and more like the Samaritans.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

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Was, Is, & Will Be

November 1, 2023 Tom Vander Well 1 Comment

“New wine will drip from the mountains
and flow from all the hills,
and I will bring my people Israel back from exile”
Amos 9:13 (NIV)

In John’s Revelation, God is repeatedly referred to the One “who was, and is, and is to come.” The fascinating thing about this phrase being used repeatedly inside a work of apocalyptic literature is that the words of the prophets are layered with meaning, referencing things that were in the past, events that were imminently current, and events that were yet to be in the future. The words of the prophets are not so much “either it means this, or it means that,” but rather “Yes, it means this and it means that.”

I didn’t plan this quick trek through the ancient prophet Amos because of the current events unfolding in the middle east between Israel and Hamas. That said, I have found it virtually impossible not to read the ancient words of the prophet Amos in context of these current events.

In today’s final chapter, God through Amos boldly predicts that disaster is going to fall on the people of Israel. He says that many will die, but then says, “I will shake the people of Israel among the nations.” The chapter ends with a vision of restoration in which the nation is rebuilt and prosper. So let me unpack my thoughts based on “what was, what is, and what is to come.”

What was…

Exile is a perpetual theme throughout the Great Story. In fact, some scholars say that it is the pre-eminent theme of the entire thing. It’s first revealed in Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve sin and are cast out of the Garden of Eden into a sinful world. The rest of the Story is about humanity finding itself back in the Garden with God in the final chapters of Revelation. God calls Abram away from his home and into exile in a land God would show him. Abram’s grandson and great-grandchildren would find themselves living in exile in Egypt, where they will be enslaved for hundreds of years.

I could go on to discuss the theme of exile in the life of Jesus, the Acts of the Apostles, and the book of Revelation, but for now, let me stick to the fact exile was already an established theme of “what was” in the days our blue-collar prophet Amos was preaching to the people of ancient Israel.

What is…

The world at the time of Amos is primed for an extended period of history in which a succession of human empires will rise to control large portions of the western world. The land of Israel and Judah are nestled in a strategic crossroads between Persia, Europe, Arabia, and Africa. Any empire wanting to expand into those areas must go through the lands of the Hebrew people.

Just as Amos is prophesying exile to the northern kingdom of Israel, his prophetic successors to the south will soon begin to predict the same fate for the Hebrew people in Judah.

And, that’s exactly how it played out. It begins with the Assyrian empire who will conquer Israel (but not Judah) about 30 years after Amos’ proclaimed it. The Assyrian empire gave way to the Babylonian empire who conquered Judah and carried the likes of Daniel, Ezekiel, and Nehemiah into exile in Babylon. The Babylonians were conquered by the Medes and Persians, the Persians by the Greeks, and the Greeks by the Romans.

What is to come…

This is where things get really interesting, because the promises of restoration are layered with meaning that will only be revealed as future events play out.

First, there is a remnant of Hebrews who returns to the land during the Persian empire and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple there. That story is told by Nehemiah and Ezra.

As part of the description of restoration, Amos states that “new wine will drip from the mountains.” For any follower of Jesus, this echoes the very words of Jesus when He said that His teaching was “new wine” that won’t work in “old wineskins.” Jesus predicted a bold new era in which Jerusalem would be destroyed and God’s kingdom would expand to include peoples of every tribe, nation, and language. Jerusalem and the temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. and over the coming centuries the Hebrew people would be scattered among the nations.

Then, of course, we fast-forward to 1948, when the contemporary state of Israel was established by the British and the United Nations. From around the world, Hebrews returned from twenty centuries of exile to live in the very land where Amos prophesied almost three thousand years before.

And, that’s where I find myself sitting with wonder in the quiet this morning. What does this all mean? I’m not entirely sure. There are a lot of modern day would-be prophets who will confidently sell you their books and tell you exactly how the prophecies in the Great Story will play out. They’re always wrong. Jesus Himself said that He didn’t know the day and the hour of the events “yet to come.” Personally, I embrace that as an indicator I should humbly plead the same ignorance and rest comfortably being in Jesus’ good company.

And yet, the connection of what was, and what is leads me to believe that there is more to all of it than mere historical coincidence. It leads me to believe that everything, somehow, is playing out in relation to that what Jesus and the prophets envisioned as that which is yet to come. There is a Great Story being told. In the grand design that Paul described as “all things working together” I and my story are part of that Story.

How?

Someday I will know. That’s yet to come.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Lessons Then and Now

October 26, 2023 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

You put off the day of disaster
and bring near a reign of terror.
Amos 6:3 (NIV)

It was an all-night music festival and make-shift campground. Hundreds of young people gathered to have fun and dance through the whole night. Suddenly, the electricity was cut. Stage lights and music became instant silence and darkness. Then the bullets from Hamas terrorists started firing indiscriminately into the crowd. By the time the massacre was over, some 260 young people lay dead.

In the aftermath of the October 7 terrorist attacks, one of the predominate themes coming out of Israel was the complete and utter surprise. The government and army were unprepared. They didn’t see it coming. “We failed,” one official said matter-of-factly to the press, offering no elucidation.

As I continue my chapter-a-day trek through the ancient prophecies of Amos, I can’t help but think of the eery parallels with current events.

In today’s chapter, Amos describes the people of ancient Israel feasting, drinking, and partying to music. He then contrasts this with a prophecy of sudden terror and destruction that will come when another nation attacks. He describes a house full of dead bodies and a family member hiding among the corpses in fear of his life. Amos calls out ancient Israel’s complacency and pride lulling them into a false sense of security. The description reads like a description of the October 7 massacre and aftermath.

This morning, I sit in the quiet and ponder similar events both ancient and contemporary. What are my take aways?

The first thing I thing about is a warning against complacency. Ancient Israel was enjoying a boom of prosperity that was rooted in greed, corruption, and idolatry. Things were great in the moment for the fortunate and affluent. They didn’t want to listen to Amos’ words of warning. In similar ways, the U.S. before 9/11 and Israel before October 7, were not prepared for the instantaneous terror that was unleashed. How do I keep my mind and spirit honed to the realities of evil and hatred, and not get lulled into a false sense of security?

The second take away for me is the spiritual rot that lay at the root of Amos’ prophetic messages. God, through Amos, is begging for people to repent of their greed, their lack of concern for the poor and needy, and the self-centered rigging of systems to pad their pockets and get away with corruption at the expense of others. As a disciple of Jesus, how do I daily live true to the virtues of charity, generosity, compassion, and contentment in a world that teaches looking out for numero uno?

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

“The More Things Change…”

October 17, 2023 Tom Vander Well 1 Comment

“The Lord roars from Zion
and thunders from Jerusalem…”
Amos 1:2 (NIV)

It was a time of incredible prosperity and affluence for the kingdoms of Israel and Judah when God called Amos to proclaim his message. Amos was not a noble member of the court like Isaiah. He didn’t hail from blue-blood priestly families like Jeremiah or Ezekiel. Amos was a blue-collared common man. He was a shepherd. He worked with his hands harvesting figs to make ends meet.

What Amos sees around him is that the rich get rich off by oppressing the poor. The powerful use corruption to keep themselves in power. The weak don’t stand a chance. And it’s not just the northern kingdom of Israel or the southern kingdom of Judah. It’s everyone in the region. At the feet of the powerful and wealthy lies hatred, human trafficking, violence, genocide, greed.

So God gives Amos a message. The Lion of Judah is about to roar.

As I read today’s first chapter of the prophet Amos’ message, I couldn’t believe how relevant it felt to today. Just a week and a half ago, the terrorist group, Hamas, brutally attacked Jewish communities just outside of Gaza. Screaming words of hatred, women and children were killed. Babies were cut from their mother’s wombs. Infants were beheaded. Families were kidnapped. A girl was raped next to the body of her dead friends.

Amos’ opening message addresses the kingdoms surrounding Israel and Judah, including Gaza which was Philistine territory in that day. God through Amos, describes their behavior that has stoked His anger. It seemed to me that it came right from this past week’s news:

“…she took captive whole communities.” (vs. 6)
“…she sold whole communities of captives to Edom disregarding a treaty of brotherhood.” (vs. 9)
“..he slaughtered the women of the land.” (vs. 10)
“..his anger raged continually and his fury flamed unchecked.” (vs. 10)
“…he ripped open the pregnant women in order to extend his borders.” (vs. 13)
“I will send fire on the walls of Gaza that will consume her fortresses.” (vs. 7)

Amazing.

As I read today’s chapter in the quiet this morning, I couldn’t help but think of the prophet Amos as an Oliver Anthony of his day belting out his own version of Rich Men North of Richmond. Amos sees the same things in his day that Oliver Anthony sings about from his perspective today. There are double standards. The rich get richer by oppressing the poor. Corruption flourishes and the powerful get away with their crimes. As Bob Dylan sang, “You know the Golden Rule? The one who’s got the gold rules.”

The more things change, the more they stay the same. History changes. Technology changes. Knowledge increases. Yet, the human condition remains the same. We need justice today as much as humanity has ever needed it. So, I’m anxious to hear the cries of the blue-collared working man’s prophet, Amos in the days ahead. If the human condition and the circumstances haven’t changed all that much since his day, and it appears that they haven’t, then I think he just might have something relevant for me, my life, and my times.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.