And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and unto the Lord for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace (Jeremiah 29:7)
This was the Lord's instruction to the children of Israel when they were held captives in the city of Babylon. As Christians, this scripture also emphasizes the relevance of our sojourn in the nation where we live. In our case, we are not in captivity, but the lord has placed us here with the same expectation. Put simply, we're responsible to God and to the country to seek its peace and pray to the lord for it.
Firstly, He said we should seek the peace of the country. the word 'peace' here doesn't just refer to calmness and quietness or absence of hostilities. It's derived from the Hebrew word 'Shalom' means completeness, wholeness, perfect well being, welfare, prosperity, and health. 'Seeking the peace of the nation' means doing everything possible to have a nation where everything works and guarantees the comfort of its people. So, it doesn't matter where you are, or what you do, this is a call to you as an individual to seek the progress of the nation.
The Lord also charges us to pray for the country. This is our solemn and sovereign responsibility. 'To pray' means to intervene or to mediate. That means you should intervene in prayer for your nation. We all want to be able to move in our streets freely and fearless of molestation; we want to commute on better roads; we want law and order without abuse of human rights; we want a cleaner environment; we want to put a stop to frequent electric power interruptions and minimize the use of generators; we want to see a better nation were its citizens are treated with respect and decency; we want to live in a world free of global warming threats, war and terrorism. These are some of the things we should pray about, and we must do without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:17); we must not give up!
Therefore beginning from your immediate sphere of contact, do your bit to ensure the peace and prosperity of the country. Remember, in the peace of the nation is your own peace as an individual. Therefore, seek the peace of your country; work and pray for her well being, for if things go well for the country, things will go well for you.
BIBLE STUDY: I Timothy 2:1-2
This was the Lord's instruction to the children of Israel when they were held captives in the city of Babylon. As Christians, this scripture also emphasizes the relevance of our sojourn in the nation where we live. In our case, we are not in captivity, but the lord has placed us here with the same expectation. Put simply, we're responsible to God and to the country to seek its peace and pray to the lord for it.
Firstly, He said we should seek the peace of the country. the word 'peace' here doesn't just refer to calmness and quietness or absence of hostilities. It's derived from the Hebrew word 'Shalom' means completeness, wholeness, perfect well being, welfare, prosperity, and health. 'Seeking the peace of the nation' means doing everything possible to have a nation where everything works and guarantees the comfort of its people. So, it doesn't matter where you are, or what you do, this is a call to you as an individual to seek the progress of the nation.
The Lord also charges us to pray for the country. This is our solemn and sovereign responsibility. 'To pray' means to intervene or to mediate. That means you should intervene in prayer for your nation. We all want to be able to move in our streets freely and fearless of molestation; we want to commute on better roads; we want law and order without abuse of human rights; we want a cleaner environment; we want to put a stop to frequent electric power interruptions and minimize the use of generators; we want to see a better nation were its citizens are treated with respect and decency; we want to live in a world free of global warming threats, war and terrorism. These are some of the things we should pray about, and we must do without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:17); we must not give up!
Therefore beginning from your immediate sphere of contact, do your bit to ensure the peace and prosperity of the country. Remember, in the peace of the nation is your own peace as an individual. Therefore, seek the peace of your country; work and pray for her well being, for if things go well for the country, things will go well for you.
BIBLE STUDY: I Timothy 2:1-2
