godinhistory.com

Introducing “godinhistory.com”

godinhistory.com – revealing God back into history

 Welcome to “godinhistory.com”. As the name suggests, one of the purposes of this site is to reveal that behind the historical process there is a mind at work, an extraordinary and infinite mind within which all life and everything that exists has its origin and being. This mind is not you, nor is it the collective us or the agency of any other race of sentient beings, neither is it the manifestation of impersonal spiritual or material forces or the karmic equalizations of an angry, female earth. Whilst other agencies play their role and are not unimportant within the streams of history, the mind in question, that behind the whole and sum of history’s flow, is the mind of God, the utterly self-existing and self-sufficient Almighty God of the Holy Bible. 

For too long, history has been written and revised and then the revisions revised with little if any reference to the enormous spiritual forces at play. For example, in nearly all historical works of the modern era you will look in vain for any reference to God’s providence and judgment in world affairs. Perhaps in a secular context this is forgivable. What is less so, however, even in a secularized world, is the almost similar lack of reference to the spiritual influences of religious phenomena, in particular the Christian church, in most history writing. Yet the Bible makes it clear that the key to understanding history is to be found in such things.  

How could affairs descend to such a state? It would appear that with the decline of faith and the rise of the enlightenment and scientific worldview within western culture and its academic institutions, from whence the contemporary discipline of history first arose, the spiritual explanation of things dropped out of fashion and was ridiculed. Whereas once upon a time it was the case that providential explanations of history were comparatively common, it would seem that no serious historian would dare write such ‘palpable nonsense’ today. Academic convention and job security among other things insist that this is so. And so the craft of history is reduced to the ludicrous position of (1) not being able to see outside of itself and (2) being in complete denial of the most powerful forces that have shaped the historical process since the beginning of time. If history is serious in seeking understanding of the truth of events, this would seem to be sheer folly. 

This site, therefore, seeks to redress this imbalance and re-establish history along more spiritual lines. I make no apologies for declaring from the outset that I am a Christian and that the writings here included are written from a Christian perspective. Indeed, all articles are or will be written on the following basis, namely that: 

1. God exists
2. God is who the Bible says he is
3. History has happened how it has happened
4.  The historical process is under the sovereignty of God 

Such a basis immediately raises a problem, however, and that is one of theodicy – the apparent contradiction between a perfect, all-powerful and loving God and his presiding over many events which are both violent and disturbing. Too often people in the light of a loving God seek to explain away the more uncomfortable aspects of history or distort the image of God to make things less problematic in this regard, or they avoid the subject altogether, while authors like Christopher Dawkins, as in The God Delusion for example, use such difficulties as a basis to argue that therefore God cannot exist. But God does exist, he is a God of love, he is in control and history has happened how it has happened, and only by confronting history in the wholeness of truth will this anomaly become understandable. A second purpose of this site, therefore, is to pursue this apologetic unashamedly, facing up to the facts of the case and seeking to explain history in the light of the biblical revelation about God and his purposes. The patient reader will discover that far from being an insurmountable difficulty, history in the light of this revelation not only offers an explanation of great coherence, but that ultimately the Christian version of history is the only one that has any real meaning or that makes any sense at all. 

This takes us to a third purpose for godinhistory.com, and that is to reveal something of the bigger picture as to what is going on, or as a friend of mind once put it, the great big why of everything. The world is not as it seems and stands at the threshold of a paradigmatic shift of truly enormous proportions. History is nothing other than the visible manifestation of cosmic events of a scale far beyond most imaginations are able to conceive and of which most are entirely ignorant, events that will soon reach their conclusion. A study of history in the light of God’s word sheds light on these mysteries, and in this sense godinhistory.com, especially through the division of “Mast Ministries”, has a prophetic responsibility of not only making known the divine purpose and the nature of history and how this manifests in the particulars of the historical process, but also what the implications of these revelations might be for us today.  

Introducing “Mast Ministries”

Mast Ministries – exploring the divine mystery of our world

As indicated above, “Mast Ministries” is both a part of yet distinct from “godinhistory.com”.In essence “Mast” is, first and foremost, a prophetic think tank with a commission to take a deeper look at history, the world and its structures through spiritual, prophetic eyes, so as to promote a deeper understanding of our world and these times. In a sense this is little different to what the prophets of old did. When Ezekiel prophesied against the King of Tyre, for example, in chapter 28 of his book, at one point the prophecy transitions seamlessly into a description of Satan:  

“‘In the pride of your heart you say, “I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas.” But you are a man and not a god, though you think you are as wise as a god […]  

“ ‘Because you think you are wise, as wise as a god, I am going to bring foreigners against you, the most ruthless of nations […] They will bring you down to the pit, and you will die a violent death in the heart of the seas. Will you then say, “I am a god,” in the presence of those who kill you? You will be but a man, not a god, in the hands of those who slay you.  

“ ‘You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you […]  Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings.                                                                     Ezekiel 28:2, 6-9, 12-17 

Ezekiel observed and recognized in Tyre’s national pride and the king’s arrogant claim to be ‘a god’ the dynamics and influence of the serpent himself, and he wrote accordingly. This might not be literal documentary history, but it is a truer history. It is interesting to relate that Tyre was indeed subsequently besieged and destroyed by Alexander the Great in 322 B.C., never to rise to autonomous power again. Such hubris will always find due nemesis in the abyss, as one day Satan himself will be able to testify. But Ezekiel’s insight was not an instant affair just as the books of prophecy in the Old Testament were not spontaneous writings, but each was the fruit of decades of learning to observe the world with God’s eyes. Absolutely inspired, yes of course, the prophets were writing scripture, but also absolutely informed. The gift of the prophet is the gift to see, but to see nevertheless requires learning in company with divine inspiration. And this is where “Mast” comes in. 

Today it is the Church who has been given this prophetic task. Christians alone have the Holy Spirit and they alone have the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ through which to observe and discern the world. But is the prophetic voice heard often enough? Is the prophetic voice that does get heard sufficient in force, insight and wisdom? It is the aim of “Mast” through research to raise the profile of this prophetic voice for the benefit of both the Church and all who seek to know more of the bigger picture of things.

More than ever the Church today needs to raise its prophetic voice, for there never was such a time as now when prophetic insight was so urgently required to make sense of the times. Just one example will suffice. One would think it would be a simple matter for the church with one voice to condemn the trend of recent years towards the cultural acceptance of homosexuality. Scripture explicitly condemns such sexuality as an ‘abomination’, the inevitable consequence of which is the denigration of the God-given marriage relationship. But this is not the case. Large swathes of the Church worldwide are in apparent confusion over this issue. Why? In all likelihood the desire to love ‘the other’ or the ethics of ‘rights’ has got in the way, or it has not been sufficiently understood just from where such sexuality originates.

With regard to the latter, there is a curious reference in the Sumerian myth Inanna’s Journey to the Underworld to the god Enki (‘Lord of the Earth’) taking ‘dirt from his red lacquered finger-nail’ to form two other gods or demons.[1] There is much to commend the theory that the god Enki, or Ea in Babylonian mythology, otherwise also known as ‘the crafty god’, was the pagan mythological representation of Satan.[2] Given such an association, together with the reference to red lacquered finger-nails and the evident self-love in Ezekiel’s depiction of Satan’s fall quoted above, it is not hard to make the connections and begin to perceive homosexuality as the narcissistic ‘love’ it is arising out of a context of idolatry and self-centredness. I’m not so much referring here to the individuals caught up in the vortex of this problem today, but rather to the spiritual root of homosexuality in Satan’s character and man’s fallen nature. And why is it that toleration and rights for the homosexual are being pursued so vigorously today in particular? Could this not have something to do with the rise of a global and common idolatry throughout the earth under the umbrella of globalization for only the second time in history (the first culminating at Babel where Enki / Ea was worshipped)?

The ethics of ‘rights’ of course sound so moral. Who can argue against honouring ‘the other’ and ‘tolerance’ and ‘equity’ and ‘human dignity’ and any other phrase those pursuing the rights of minorities might care to use? But we need to be careful and recognize just where this loving consideration and talk of rights in this instance comes from. Not all that is morally good is necessarily morally good. We only have to look at the example of Jesus and Peter in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 16. Just after Peter had correctly understood Jesus as ‘the Christ, the Son of the living God’ (v.16), he then made a grave though understandable error. From that time on Jesus began to explain that he must go to Jerusalem, be killed and on the third day be raised to life (v. 21). At this Peter took Jesus to one side and rebuked him, saying: “Never Lord!” “This shall never happen to you!” (v. 22) No doubt Peter was motivated by his sincere love for his friend whom he wanted to protect from harm. From a human point of view this sounds commendable. But in actual fact this was utterly at loggerheads with the purposes of God and facing completely the wrong direction. Similarly, the ethics of rights with regard to homosexuality, though correct sounding, are also in antithetical opposition to the Kingdom of God. Rights which oppose God are wrongs, and are therefore deserving of the same condemnation as Peter, a condemnation that identifies their true source:

“Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

Always it must be God first, and everything else will be put to rights following in this train.

As a prophetic think tank I see four main roles for ‘Mast’:

•  To research history, the world and its structures from a scriptural, spiritual and prophetic perspective. There can be no short cuts here, ‘Mast’ will depend on the quality of this research and research takes time.  

•  To disseminate the fruits of this research.

•  To be a prophetic voice in the world, primarily forthtelling (revealing the biblical and spiritual dimension to things), but sometimes foretelling (giving warning / prediction), but only as scripture allows and only ever as and when God leads.
•  To expose and engage untruth, falsehood and idolatry

A paradigmatic encounter

 “Mast” started in 1998 when God began to ask me a very simple but strange question: “What do you see son?”  

The first time this happened I was walking down a typical suburban street in England. The suddenness of the question and its source took me aback a little, and I didn’t quite know how to respond. I had walked down this particular road hundreds of times before and nothing struck me as being out of the ordinary this time. However, having developed a passionate interest in the relationship between God and history in the years since becoming a Christian, I intuitively sensed that God was directing me to see deeper into the world around me. This was confirmed later in the year while taking part in a ‘Walk of Reconciliation’ between Paris and Marseilles in France, during which young Christians from all over Europe marched to acknowledge the wrongs of the Albigensian and Children’s Crusades of 1208 and 1212. I had volunteered to be a driver and head chef for a team of youngsters. Consequently, I had little time for walking, except on the last stretch into Marseilles. It was while I was walking over a high ridge on the plateau overlooking Marseilles that I heard God ask me a second time: “What do you see, son?”

Now, despite the obvious panorama that must have been before me it was very hazy at the time and one couldn’t see very much at all. But at that exact moment a local Frenchman on the team, whom I had never seen or spoken to before, started to walk alongside me and, without any prompting whatsoever, immediately began to talk about the landscape that one might see if there wasn’t any haze about! “You can’t see it of course,” he said pointing wildly, “but over there is the sea … and over that way are the mountains, beautiful mountains, but of course you can’t see them either. Never mind … au revoir.” And with that he was off!

The theme continued during the final farewell service that concluded this ‘mission’. During the time for prayer another stranger approached me and told me that the Lord had given him a picture word for me. He then described how the Lord had shown him that my journey was like a spiral staircase. At that present time I was climbing this staircase and couldn’t see very much. But in the future this staircase would emerge in sunlight onto a rooftop from which I would be able to see very clearly what it was the Lord was calling me to do. He further added that there were people who were waiting for my ministry.

Finally, you may be wondering why the name ‘Mast’ was chosen? There are several thoughts behind this:

• The image of a mast suggests on the one hand a transmission or receiving mast, and this reflects the research and dissemination aspects of the ministry.
• On the other hand, the image also suggests the mast of a vessel on the sea, and this reflects the prophetic role of the watchman and observer searching the horizon, as well as that of mission.
• Preeminently, however, the letters in ‘Mast’ reflect the phrase ‘Mountains and the Sea’, admittedly in slightly rearranged order, but nevertheless chosen to honour God’s initial revelation with the whole suggesting perfectly what the ministry has been called into being to do.

With these thoughts I humbly submit “godinhistory.com” and “Mast Ministries” for your consideration.

 Summary and site geography

In summary, there are two distinct streams to this site: 

godinhistory.com is the web name under which all the different aspects and ministries located on this site operate, but which also has the following specific objectives: 

1.  To reveal the workings of God through the historical process
2.  To re-establish and deepen an understanding of God in history
3.  To discern and make known God’s purposes through history

Specific “godinhistory” features on this site are: 

• God in History Dictionary – a formal collection of shorter articles dedicated to revealing God in the particulars of history as well as expounding the theology that underpins godinhistory.com
• God in History Special Articles – more involved articles that will be posted as soon as they become available.
• godinhistory.com post – a more informal and occasional newsletter / blog containing relevant news, musings and discussion specifically on the “godinhistory” theme

Mast Ministries is the prophetic wing of godinhistory.com. Even though it shares the historical objectives of “godinhistory.com” and is very much an integral part of it, the objectives of “Mast ministries” are distinct in their own right, having the primary agenda to illuminate contemporary developments and the nature of the world in the light of God’s word. 

Specific “Mast Ministries” features on this site are:

•   Mast Ministries Newsletter – an occasional newsletter devoted to “Mast Ministries”
•  The Mast – an occasional journal of “Mast Ministries” containing in-depth and serious articles on related topics as well as prophetic commentary on contemporary events. 
•  Mast Feature Articles – some of the articles published in The Mast will be collated into special feature articles on their own pages, while further feature articles will be introduced as soon as they become available. 

Notes 

1.  “godinhistory.com” and “Mast Ministries” are very much work in progress and are a rolling development designed to stimulate ongoing learning and discussion in their respective fields.
2. The above section on “Mast Ministries” is a shortened version of an article that first appeared in Mast Ministries Newsletter, June 2006 

© David Eason 2007

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[1] Poems of Heaven and Hell From Ancient Mesopotamia (Penguin Classics Series, 1971), p. 144.

[2] For example, see Peter Goodgame, The Giza Discovery, www.redmoonrising.com, pt. 6, pp. 6ff