Introduction
There is a passage of Scripture in the Old Testament that I have been reminded of late. The Scripture often pops up and is used as a prophetic exhortation to us today. This group of men within the nation of Israel was said to have understood the signs of the times and knew what to do. By now I am sure some of you know that these are the men of Issachar.
We learn from the Scriptures that Issachar was the fifth son of Jacob and Leah. The name Issachar comes from a combination of Hebrew words, “man and wages.” It can be translated several ways, “he will bring a reward, man of wages, man of hire.” Needless to say, there was something profitable associated with him. He and his four sons went with Jacob into Egypt. Just before Jacob passed away he blessed his sons. Issachar’s blessing begins with him being called a strong ass, trust me, this was a compliment. Issachar died and was buried in Egypt and after the Israelites’ exodus from Pharoah’s tyranny, his descendants formed one of the tribes of Israel and numbered more than 60,000 fighting men. By the time of King David the Tribe of Issachar was numbering around 90,000 men. Here is the key Scripture I mentioned earlier – “men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do—200 chiefs, with all their relatives under their command” (1 Chronicles 12:32). The men of Issachar had understanding, discernment, perception and knew what Israel was to do. The context was such, men from each tribe came to support David’s kingship while he was being pursued by King Saul (1 Chron 12:1–40). The main emphasis is the Israelites’ determination and desire to help David and establish David on the throne.
Knowledge and Wisdom
I want to take a moment and think about “understanding the times and knowing what to do” in our present day. I am sure we all understand the importance of acquiring knowledge and rightly applying wisdom to our lives and circumstances. Maybe some of you have heard that a tomato is a fruit. That is knowledge. Wisdom is rightly applying that knowledge by not putting a tomato in a fruit salad…
Knowledge is the collection of information and facts about something or someone through learning and experience.
· Knowledge involves organized data.
· It is selective by nature, in other words, you only acquire knowledge of what you study.
· It gives you greater understanding.
· Knowledge increases your intellectual abilities through learning.
Wisdom on the other hand is the ability to judge and make right choices and decisions in life.
· Wisdom considers the knowledge learned.
· It can be applied to all aspects of life, not just what you learned specifically.
· Wisdom gives us the ability judge, discern and how to make wise choices, based on the knowledge we have acquired.
· Wisdom is cultivated and developed when put into action. Wisdom can learn from its mistakes.
The men of Issachar knew the signs of the times and how to apply that knowledge so that the Nation of Israel could succeed. Do you think this has any relevance for us today? Does that grab your attention? This is what I think. They understood the situation between King Saul and David. They discerned what God was doing. They saw people gathering under David’s flag. Maybe they even perceived that King Saul was operating under the influence of an evil spirit. The 200 saw the signs and as a result were able to help Israel move forward in God’s plan.
I think of several passages of Scripture when thinking about knowledge and wisdom.
· Col 2:2-3 - My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
· Prov 1:7 - The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
· Prov 9:10 - The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
· Daniel 12:4 - But you, Daniel, close up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.
Daniel is letting us know that in the time of the end, knowledge will increase. Knowledge in and of itself is not good or bad. It is the application of the knowledge that is essential; rightly applying knowledge and truth is key. Just think about what man has accomplished in the last 150 years. We have learned how to harness the power of mighty rivers by building dams to produce electricity, let alone nuclear power or now solar energy. We have built soaring bridges across great chasms, and tunnels under the ocean. We have drilled and mined earth’s resources to heat our homes and fuel our factories. We have created computers capable of putting satellites in orbit and even placed men on the moon. Now we are even looking to go to Mars. All this is because of our pursuit of knowledge and exploration.
The idea of increasing knowledge is not new and goes way back to the Tower of Babel. God saw collective humanity planning to build a tower reaching to the heavens. How scientifically developed the people were at this time is unclear. The Great Pyramids found in Egypt is evidence of a high degree of mechanical knowledge. It is important to note that God stated, “nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them” (Gen 11:6b). This implies the builders of Babel were at least on the verge of great technological leaps.
The advancement of mankind’s technological accomplishments is too numerous to number. Knowledge and Science and Technology, although increasing at an impressive rate, do not answer mankind’s problems. Each new gadget or iPhone excites us for a while but does not give a sense of meaning to our lives. Technology cannot rid us of lustful desires or greedy competition. It seems like Paul’s sums it up in 1 Cor 8:1 – “knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.” He goes onto address this again in 1 Cor 13:2; I can possess and fathom and understand all knowledge but end up with nothing if I do not have love.
A New Command
It is important to understand the signs of the times and have an appropriate response in our day and age. Jesus interacts his disciples as he approaches Jerusalem and his death on the cross. He speaks of being with them for a little while longer. Peter wonders where he is going. Jesus responds in the midst of this encounter with these words, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35). I would suggest that Jesus understood the signs of the times and knew what was needed to make his bride succeed. Jesus’ life brought new dimensions of love that world had never seen. Humble. Selfless. Pure. Compassionate. Patient. Sinless. Forgiving. Faithful. Commitment. Obedient to the point of death. He knew that love conquers all and asks his disciples to do the same. The expression of Christ’s love through his disciples is Jesus’ strategy to see the world evangelized.
We are told that the love of many will grow cold because of the increase of lawlessness in the last days (Matt 24:12). Lawlessness is the disregard for the knowledge of God and one of its side-effects is cold-heartedness. This affects both believer and unbeliever. We must learn to understand the times in which we live and respond in Christ-like love and not react in the ways of the world. Worldly love can be shallow, love that breeds a sense of entitlement, or love that pressures you to conform or perform. God is love and that is main message of the Gospel.
Signs of the Times
We need to know the signs of the times. We live in a day and age of social media, headlines and tweets – but this is not understanding the times. It is knowing what is shaping and molding society. It is discerning what is going on behind the major events in the world. What current events, ideologies, or trends are forming around us? Understanding the times is discovered on our knees in prayer, not scrolling through Facebook, Fox News or CNN. It is important to know current events, but it is God who gives us the discernment of those events. Understanding the times is exciting at this moment in history. It places great significance on the church as we move towards the return of Jesus Christ.
However, I want to remind us that the men of Issachar also knew what to do in those times. As important as knowledge is, the men of Issachar did not stop there. They had a sense of what to think, how to control their emotions and how to act in righteous wisdom. They knew the role their lives had to play in light of the moment in which they lived. They were looking as to how they could help the nation of Israel move forward with David as King.
The same is true for us today. There are people who are discerning the times but then not acting in Christ-like love. Knowledge must be applied rightly as wisdom and love in action. The church must not become angry, take sides on this or that issue. Our message is that of love and coming to Jesus. An invitation into a new kingdom experience. We are looking for ways to advance the church and speed the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (2 Peter 3:10-12).
In Conclusion
I hope that we are more aware of what understanding the times means for us today. There is a lot of prayer time that is needed to accurately discern the signs of the times, and much less browsing the internet. We all know the importance of concerted and united prayer. The beauty of prayer and ministering to God and ushering in his Spirit is so essential is these days. This helps us to expose a spirit of fear and welcome the Spirit of power, love and a sound mind. Another of my chief exhortations to the Body of Christ is this – get into the Scriptures. We must be people of the Word, not people of the podcast. There is so much misinformation and misinterpretation out there. It is dangerous to approach the Scriptures with predetermined thoughts. We must not let the signs of the times define what Scripture must say. These two points, Prayer and Bible Study, are essential for godly understanding.
The men of Issachar knew how to wisely apply what they understood. How can we live honouring Jesus? How do I live a life of meaning and significance? It is simple in my book. Love God and Love People. Live lives that are holy and godly and honour God. I am reminded that wisdom is connected to the respect and reverence for God. Love and wisdom are directly related to how we treat people. I love God’s people and growing and maturing together into Christ. But I also love rubbing shoulders with those who do not know Jesus. I enjoy interacting, talking, laughing and doing life together. All the while, praying and looking for opportunities to share my faith.
Let’s pray…