GOING BACK TO THE BIBLICAL BASICS - PART ONE

Ecclesiastes 1:18 – “for in much wisdom is much grief and he that increases knowledge increases sorrow”

MY TRANSLATION: “the more knowledge you acquire on anything or issue the more you understand that you cannot do much to end it or change it”

The world in my view

We live in a world that seems to be changing fast and heading towards self destruction. The world becomes dangerous by the day with even death that once shocked people becoming as normal an occurrence as eating the next meal. Despite this, we have set goals and principles that we follow to better our lives as individuals or countries. In recent days and months perhaps years, in the world, world bodies like the UN, UNESCO, WHO and leaders G7, ASEAN, EAC, locally, local bodies made up of Governors, Senators, MCA’s, Corporate Entities, opposition parties and individual families have met and held conference after conference, seminars and meetings to debate and ‘solve ‘problems.  Other than reports gathering dust in many offices, the success rate is not visible. New problems and issues keep cropping up.

The entire world including my own country needs less conferences and seminars, less talk shows, meetings and consultations. They need higher intervention leading to a more concerted effort to address war, unemployment, desertification, diminishing food production and agriculture, corruption, hunger, lack of clean drinking water and mitigate drought. In Kenya, there is a need to bring the ever publicized human wild life conflict that leaves fellow men hungry, angry, poor, dead or maimed to an end. Dogmatically, the entire world from boko haram stricken Nigeria, gun totting America, ambitious Asia, Ebola stricken West Africa to ethnic and tribally inclined Africa needs to go back to basic Biblical principles of “doing to others what you would like them to do to you” (Luke 6: 31),” and Loving their enemies and praying for them” (Mt 5 43-44). It is true that, if you don’t like it done to you, then neither does any other person. Most of all they need to return to God if any good is to be experienced. Someone might ask what God? My answer is, the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Moses and Jacob (Israel). The world seems to have forgotten God. World leaders need to take heed to Biblical teaching. It is no secret that the early founders of great nations used it for reference even in writing their constitutions.

Overreliance of the “learned” people and “think tanks” not a panacea to world problems”

Our learned professors, researchers, lawyers and doctors have become “less knowledgeable.” Sadly, God’s servants made up of primarily the prophets, priests, pastors and self proclaimed ‘apostles’ are busy clamoring for the same titles of doctors, professors so as to impress a world that does not really care or, is too angry and hungry to care. They are outdoing each other in a circus like frenzy to woo gullible followers hungry for the ever elusive “breakthrough”. Most of the flock is so mesmerized by the false hoods that when the truth is revealed, they cannot break out. These human titles mean nothing. To a hungry person the title ‘bread, or ‘super loaf” or ‘baked beans’ on a loaf is more helpful when he is holding the loaf than doctor, dean of students, professor and others. To the downtrodden, the street urchin dubbed “chokora,” to the “squatter” and the “hustler,” the title Excellency or honorable means nothing. What would be of more helpful would be holding a piece of paper with the title ‘job’s’ description and salary,’ the title ‘employment’ on an appointment letter for them or a ‘Title Deed” to arable land for the squatter. For the people who live in drought stricken areas the title “water harvester” on a water tank in their compound would go a long way in breaking the monotony of facing and fighting game rangers during the dry spell and wild animals like elephants during the rainy planting season when their crops mature.

The Biblical Book of Jeremiah talks of a time when the world’s wise men, priests and think tanks (made up of wise men) would be confounded (Jer 8: 8-9). This is true of the world today. Every solution by the wise seems to lead another problem. Drugs given for tuberculosis lead to wiser TB viruses that defy cure, the aids virus mutates to fight drugs, getting rid of some rulers like Gaddafi (Libya), Saddam (Iraq) & Said Barre (Somalia) that seemed wise has led to anarchy. Was it wise? This is debatable. A new constitution for Kenya that seemed wise and was done by a myriad of wise men meeting for months on end has led to confusion after confusion. Even the proponents of the same constitution are calling for a referendum to change it. The prophet Isaiah asks, “Where are the wise” (Is. 19:12)

I want to say that they have forsaken God, both world leaders, policy makers, world shapers like doctors, teachers, lecturers and priests. They could have made and brought a difference in the world. The majority of medical doctors, engineers, environmentalists, teachers, professors; lecturers are busy taking care of the ‘self. It is not uncommon for them to be accused of misconduct. The ranges across the divide. This includes having illicit sexual affairs with their students and patients, selling and leaking exam papers, working hard to amass as much wealth as possible in as short a time as possible to the detriment of service provision, corruption and destruction of the environment. The ‘men of God’ are busy trying to outshine not only one another with who is more powerful and wealthy than serving the one who called them. These priests and prophets are full of false prophecy (Jer 8:10-11), strong drink (Is 28:7), and are not averse to misleading and lying to their flock or performing false miracles for money. (Jer 6:13)

Spiritually, the devil destroys people for lack of knowledge and those with knowledge lack of understanding of the power of the knowledge they posses. Some reject knowledge because it is too wonderful to comprehend or too awful to take. The Lord says or “laments” in the book of Hosea 4:6 that His (the Lords) people perish for lack of knowledge, He (the Lord) adds that because the people rejected knowledge, He (the Lord) would reject them and their children. We need to wake up to the truth and change.

Step one is for all of humanity of goodwill to go back to Biblical basics, pray for forgiveness and deliverance then return to the worship of the one true God. Then the world will receive much needed relief.