Those who rule the nations know that real strength does not come from the power of might but rather from the power of truth and the clear expression of it. Governments are more afraid of the communication of truth to the masses than the armies of an opposing nation. Hence, they censor, bribe the press, work out tax deals to muffle the church, and control public education. But there is a spiritual force in the world that eludes them; it is not in books nor on television; it cannot be trapped or restricted in any way; it is always free, and exists in the depths of human consciousness.
No amount of money or millions of troops, no organizations or revolutions can accomplish what an unarmed Christian can produce as a completely free man expressing what he knows to be just, independent of government psycho-babble instilled in him from childhood.
The completely free man will say in truth what is in his heart, in the midst of a thousand men who by their resignation to evil and lifestyle demonstrate the exact opposite. It seems that he who speaks his mind is a loner, but in reality, he is speaking what is on the hearts and minds of many others who don’t know how to express their feelings.
And, just as in the infant days of the Radical Reformation, when a fresh and new idea in the hearts of a couple of young men, became the general opinion of a great movement. At present many, who possess true freedom, ask, “What can one person do against all this world of evil and corruption which overwhelms us? Why should I speak out? Why should I risk so much? Perhaps the end times is not as close as some suppose? And, why should I struggle alone against the world, family, and friends? Isn’t it better to go along with the current? If anything needs to be done wouldn’t it be better to work in concert with others?”
Having left the most powerful of weapons – Holy Spirit ingrained thoughts and expression – which moves the whole spirit world, every man uses his own devices to solve the world’s problems, not noticing that every social issue is the direct result of this faulty methodology. The very foundation of the existing problems, against which he wages his battles, is a diversion from the truth to make concessions that stifle the power of Heaven, which was meant to assist him. It is as if a man was given the sharpest of swords and he contents himself peeling carrots in the enemy’s kitchen.
We all hear the complaints about the senseless condition of the world and country which is 180 degrees out of sync with the truth and yet we refuse to use the most powerful weapon we own – the consciousness of truth and the fearlessness to express it. But, on the contrary, we make a grand show and pretense of opposing evil, while unconsciously we destroy our weapon, and sacrifice it to the crises of imaginary conflicts. I am not a fan of Luther but he was right:
“If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ.”
“Wherever the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved and to be steady on all the battlefield besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that one point.”
If only Christian men would boldly and clearly express the whole truth in the face of the world and not rely on that which has no power – external aids – but would trust in that which is always powerful and free, we would see a turning of the tide of evil and souls being won to Christ. My prayer is that this end-day movement would see Christians, within the Anabaptist camp – as in days of old – be the forward element in this battle to reclaim what the Devil has captured and holds hostage. This will not happen unless the Anabaptists find their voice. This will not happen by relying on the universities and the educated. It will only happen when you and I fearlessly confront evil wherever it raises its ugly head and it will only happen when we count the cost.