CHAOS
WHAT CAN CAUSE CHAOS?
Zechariah 12:4 . . . On that day, says the Lord, I will cause every horse to panic and every rider to lose his nerve. I will watch over the people of Judah, but I will blind the horses of her enemies.
Exodus 14:24 . . . Early in the morning, the Lord looked down on the Egyptian army from the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw them into confusion.
Deuteronomy 7:23 . . . The Lord your God will hand them over to you. He will throw them into complete confusion until they are destroyed.
1 Samuel 7:10 . . . Just as Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines arrived for battle. But the Lord spoke with a mighty voice of thunder from heaven, and the Philistines were thrown into such confusion that the Israelites defeated them.
1 Samuel 14:20 . . . Then Saul and his six hundred men rushed out to the battle and found the Philistines killing each other. There was terrible confusion everywhere.
2 Samuel 22:15 . . . He shot his arrows and scattered his enemies; his lightning flashed, and they were confused.
The Lord God can cause chaos for the benefit, protection and defense of his children.
Genesis 7:17, 21-24 . . . For forty days the floods prevailed, covering the ground and lifting the boat high above the earth. . . All the living things on earth died-birds, domestic animals, wild animals, all kinds of small animals, and all the people. Everything died that breathed and lived on dry land. Every living thing on the earth was wiped out-people, animals both large and small, and birds. They were all destroyed, and only Noah was left alive, along with those who were with him in the boat. And the water covered the earth for 150 days.
Isaiah 24:1, 3-4, 10-12 . . . Look! The Lord is about to destroy the earth and make it a vast wasteland. See how he is scattering the people over the face of the earth. . . . The earth will be completely emptied and looted. The Lord has spoken! The earth dries up, the crops wither, the skies refuse to rain. . . . The city writhes in chaos; every home is locked to keep out looters. Mobs gather in the streets, crying out for wine. Joy has reached its lowest ebb. Gladness has been banished from the land. The city is left in ruins, with its gates battered down.
Revelation 6:15-17 . . . Then the kings of the earth, the rulers, the generals, the wealthy people, the people with great power, and every slave and every free person-all hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. And they cried to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the one who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come, and who will be able to survive?”
The Lord God can cause chaos as judgment for sin.
Ephesians 4:17 . . . With the Lord’s authority let me say this: Live no longer as the ungodly do, for they are hopelessly confused.
The confusion of an ungodly life is chaotic.
Ezekiel 34:5 . . . My sheep have been scattered without a shepherd. They are easy prey for any wild animal.
Judges 17:6 . . . In those days Israel had no king, so the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
Lack of leadership can cause chaos.
Psalm 40:12 . . . Troubles surround me-too many to count! They pile up so high I can’t see my way out. They are more numerous than the hairs on my head. I have lost all my courage.
Psalm 55:5 . . . Fear and trembling overwhelm me. I can’t stop shaking.
Psalm 69:2 . . . Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can’t find a foothold to stand on. I am in deep water, and the floods overwhelm me.
Mounting troubles and fears can cause chaos.
Ephesians 4:14 . . . Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth.
Immaturity and inexperience can cause chaos. The more you can grow in godliness, the better you can respond to chaos.
Romans 1:21 . . . Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. The result was that their minds became dark and confused.
Isaiah 19:3 . . . The Egyptians will lose heart, and I will confuse their plans. They will plead with their idols for wisdom. They will call on spirits, mediums, and psychics to show them which way to turn.
Looking to any source of wisdom other than God can cause chaos.
HOW DOES CHAOS AFFECT MY RELATIONSHIPS?
Isaiah 24:10 . . . The city writhes in chaos; every home is locked to keep out looters.
Chaos can cause us to become fearful, defensive and apprehensive of others.
Zechariah 14:13 . . . On that day they will be terrified, stricken by the Lord with great panic. They will fight against each other in hand-to-hand combat.
Judges 7:22 . . . When the three hundred Israelites blew their horns, the Lord caused the warriors in the camp to fight against each other with their swords. Those who were not killed fled to places as far away as Beth-shittah near Zererah and to the border of Abel-meholah near Tabbath.
2 Chronicles 20:22-23 . . . At the moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had finished off the army of Seir, they turned on each other.
Isaiah 19:2 . . . I will make the Egyptians fight against each other-brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor, city against city, province against province.
Ezekiel 38:21 . . . I will summon the sword against you throughout Israel, says the Sovereign Lord. Your men will turn against each other in mortal combat.
Haggai 2:22 . . . I will overthrow royal thrones, destroying the power of foreign kingdoms. I will overturn their chariots and charioteers. The horses will fall, and their riders will kill each other.
Chaos breeds panic and often self-destruction follows.
Psalm 133:1 . . . How wonderful it is, how pleasant, when brothers live together in harmony!
1 Corinthians 12:25 . . . This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other equally.
1 Corinthians 1:10 . . . Now, dear brothers and sisters, I appeal to you by the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ to stop arguing among yourselves. Let there be real harmony so there won’t be divisions in the church. I plead with you to be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.
Relationships cannot concurrently experience chaos and harmony.
Matthew 23:28 . . . You try to look like upright people outwardly, but inside your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Chaos prohibits intimacy in our relationships.
James 3:16 . . . Wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every kind of evil.
Chaos is not conducive to healthy, loving relationships.
HOW DO WE RESTORE ORDER IN OUR SOMETIMES CHAOTIC LIVES?
Daniel 2:14-16 . . . When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, came to kill them, Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion. He asked Arioch, “Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?” So Arioch told him all that had happened. Daniel went at once to see the king and requested more time so he could tell the king what the dream meant.
We are to calmly and deliberately respond with wisdom and discretion which we learn from the Word of God.
Habakkuk 1:12 . . . O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal-is your plan in all of this to wipe us out? Surely not! O Lord our Rock, you have decreed the rise of these Babylonians to punish and correct us for our terrible sins.
Should the cause of chaos be God’s judgment of sin, we are to accept his discipline and continue to be devoted to him. Discipline can also be discipling. While we accept his discipline, let us also accept his discipling.
Ephesians 1:11 . . . Furthermore, because of Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us from the beginning, and all things happen just as he decided long ago.
John 16:33 . . . I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.
Our hope and peace are grounded in Jesus regardless of our circumstances. Knowing our future brings order of priorities and security to our lives.
Romans 15:5 . . . May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other-each with the attitude of Christ Jesus toward the other.
We can restore harmony to our relationships by modeling Jesus’ attitude toward relationships.
HOW DO I RESTORE ORDER TO MY INNER SPIRIT?
Proverbs 15:16 . . . It is better to have little with fear for the Lord than to have great treasure with turmoil.
Psalm 61:2 . . . From the ends of the earth, I will cry to you for help, for my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the towering rock of safety.
We are to pursue knowing the Lord God, the Creator of order and peace.
Romans 5:1 . . . Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.
Romans 8:27 . . . The Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.
God is constantly at work to give us inner peace as we follow him. We must not prevent his work in our hearts and minds.
Psalm 39:1-7 . . . I said to myself, “I will watch what I do and not sin in what I say. I will curb my tongue when the ungodly are around me.” But as I stood there in silence-not even speaking of good things-the turmoil within me grew to the bursting point. My thoughts grew hot within me and began to burn, igniting a fire of words: “Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered, and that my life is fleeing away. My life is no longer than the width of my hand. An entire lifetime is just a moment to you; human existence is but a breath.” Interlude We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth for someone else to spend. And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.
Understanding God’s perspective toward life and being confident he will fullfill his promises to us will restore our inner spirit.
Romans 16:17 . . . Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things that are contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them.
We are to guard what we hear and believe, as well as watch the company that we keep. Chaos is often the result of our not being diligent in avoiding that which causes strife and division in our lives.
PROMISES FROM GOD:
Isaiah 45:18 . . . The Lord is God, and he created the heavens and earth and put everything in place. He made the world to be lived in, not to be a place of empty chaos. “I am the Lord,” he says, “and there is no other.”
1 Corinthians 14:33 . . . God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the other churches.
Colossians 1:16-17 . . . Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see-kings, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities. Everything has been created through him and for him. He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together.