All Men Are Like Grass

A voice says, “Cry!”
    And I said, “What shall I cry?”
All flesh is grass,
    and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flower fades
    when the breath of the Lord blows on it;
    surely the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
    but the word of our God will stand forever.

Isaiah 40:6-8 English Standard Version (Emphasis added)

There is a lot of fear in the United States right now. You listen to voices on both sides of the political divide and they tell you that the other party is intent on destroying America. If Trump wins, we are doomed to a fascist dictatorship. If Biden wins, we are doomed to a communist dictatorship. People on both sides are gripped with a palpable fear that all that they know and love is at stake with this election, so much so that they are willing to take up arms, shoot, and kill for their cause.

Sadly, church-goers are not immune to this level of fear mongering. On the contrary, we are prone to add to our fear for the nation a fear for the Church as well. I read a recent quote by one of Trump’s sons that Donald Trump is committed to “protecting God.” I will refrain from a tangent on what I think of that sentiment out of fear that I will end up saying something nasty. Suffice it to say, God does not need Trump’s or anyone’s protection.

As crazy as things are right now, it is important for us as Christians to remember that God is still in charge. As the prophet Isaiah wrote, human beings are as grass. We are here for a season. Like the flower, we sprout, we bloom, and then our glory fades. Nations, political parties, individuals, all are temporary and will someday be no more. However, through it all, God remains and His Word and His will continue forward unstopped.

Recently, I reread Matthew 2. After the birth of Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, King Herod sought to kill the child. This is part of the Christmas story that does not often make it into the Nativity scenes. Yet, as scary as that must have been for Mary and Joseph, the end of the chapter concludes with King Herod dead, and Jesus very much alive.

In the same way, at the crucifixion of Jesus, the followers of Jesus felt as though all hope was lost. The one they called Messiah was executed. The Jewish and Roman authorities nailed Him to the cross. That was Friday, but then Sunday came. The stone was rolled back and there was Jesus, not dead, very much alive!

The same pattern has played out through every season of attack on God’s Church. Roman emperors tried to destroy the Church. Where are they now? French revolutionaries tried to stamp out the Christian faith, yet the faithful remain. Communists and Islamists around the world have arrested and imprisoned and kill believers, yet they have not stopped the Church.

Our God does not need protection. The Church will remain long after America is forgotten, long after the Democratic and Republican parties have been abandoned to the ash heap of history, long, long after either Donal Trump or Joe Biden. Christian, have no fear, for the Word of our God stands forever!