The ominous point, according to the Journal? “Mr. Xi and his allies aspire to dethrone the U.S. as the world’s premier power. What will President Trump do about it?”
As the vast technological array of bristling military power passed before the likes of Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin, China’s special friend, Kim Jong Un, the North Korean dictator, and 20-some other leaders, a singular message was clear – the world’s largest army is deliberately preparing to do battle with the world’s most powerful military. The highly symbolic military spectacle, China’s first in six years, was presaged by comments from Xi noting that humanity now faced a choice between peace and war, with China now “unstoppable.”
It was also no small irony that the massive, uber-precision military assemblage rolled through the infamous Tiananmen Square where young Chinese unsuccessfully struggled for 51 days to embrace democracy 36 years ago.
President Trump’s response? As the Economist magazine reported, the President took to his Truth Social media, messaging Xi to “give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States.”
According to the WSJ lead editorial Sept. 4, the ornate and highly orchestrated parade should serve as “a wake-up call about the balance of military power. Mr. Xi showed off everything from undersea vehicles to new intercontinental ballistic missiles.”
What does that mean? “He’s building a military that can get what it wants when it decides to move, and don’t think his ambitions stop at swallowing the vital U.S. friend Taiwan.”
Vast changes underway
Even as overt military posturing shocked the western world, dramatic changes in other quarters continued.
“The post-American world economy has arrived,” declared Adam Posen in Foreign Affairs in September, reflecting the continuing turbulent economic upheaval spawned by whipsawing tariffs and ever-shifting economic policy from the Trump administration. Previous Seeking the Way columns chronicled the dramatic changes in long-standing international relationships and how they may possibly pave the way for the emergence of the prophetic Thērion (Revelation 13).
As the current Presidential administration withdraws or upends economic accords, a geopolitical vacuum increasingly expands. As nature abhors a vacuum new leadership – especially currently from the People’s Republic of China – rushes in to fill the void.
A new reality
In all of this, one may hear the historic echo of Thucydides from his chronicles of the Peloponnesian War: “The growth of the power of Athens, and the alarm which this inspired in Sparta, made war inevitable.”
On the same day as the China Tiananmen Square extravaganza , the global markets responded by investors selling off long-term bonds from several countries, expressing fresh concerns about ballooning debt and unrestrained national spending.
End of an Empire
Why is this of continuing concern? In a Foreign Affairs column titled “America’s coming crash,” renowned economist and author Kenneth Rogoff summed it up: “For too long, the status quo approach in Washington has been to ignore the massive debt problem and hope that a return to miraculous levels of growth and low interest rates will take care of it.”
Those days – together with a possible hope of “miraculous levels of growth” – may quickly be coming to an end, as Rogoff explains:
“The United States is approaching the point at which the national debt could undermine not only the country’s economic stability but also the things that have sustained its global power for so many decades, including the military spending that it has leveraged in many ways to maintain the dollar’s formidable influence over the global financial system since World War II.”
An increasing perception, as profiled in the Economist and evidenced by Xi Jinping’s attraction of a fresh group of leaders, including India’s Modi? “China has become a global leader and the source of stability and prosperity.” Why? “The origin of uncertainty today is America, he [Xi] argues, which is unleashing trade wars with almost everyone, and undermining its own network of military alliances and security partnerships.”
As noted in prior columns, world tensions tighten to a point where the unexpected could suddenly become real. God remains in control and learning more in how to align with His will is more critical than ever.
“They came to pass”
The prophet Isaiah thundered: “The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth, and I announced them; then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass” (Isaiah 48:3, English Standard Version).
As events advance and speculation arises concerning possible biblical connectivity and what is called the “end times,” it is important to remember the words of Jesus Christ: “concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36, ESV). His point? “Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (verse 42).
What then, can we do? If economic systems can be weaponized and military alliances can crumble, where do we find stability? How do we navigate uncertainty – and what is our role?
The Bible is plain in these matters: “Don’t put your trust in human leaders; no human being can save you” (Psalm 146:3-4, Good News Translation).
Instead, we are to look to God, who is all-powerful and in control, even when events seem to be spiraling out of control. The Bible is clear that the fellowship and assembly that Jesus called His own would remain on this earth until His coming. This is a spiritually focused assembly where truth is taught from the Bible, giving people hope and guidance, including how will God transform the earth and bring lasting peace with the ultimate solution – what the Bible refers to the Kingdom of God.
Much more will take place on this earth as biblical events mount up. Will the Thērion rise from the sea in the coming years? (Revelation 13). Only God knows the timing.
Reverential trust
But there are things we should embrace now. Now is the time for reverential trust in God – what the Bible sometimes translates as “the fear of God.” We are directly told: “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man” (Psalm 118:8, ESV). As the prophet Isaiah assures us confidently, we can be certain that God will plainly make His Word known and announce His plans, before “suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.”
Next up – more on what the original disciples understood
Also, wondering why this is being published? Read more here.
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