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“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.” (Matthew 25:1-4).
When we made the choice to life a live of preparation, we expected potential ridicule from society, possibly even friends and neighbors. What many of us never expected was the attack on our faith and our prepping plans. Numerous times now, acquaintances, friends, and even other believers have questioned how I can spend any amount of time preparing for surviving while claiming to be a Christian. They quote Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount when He instructs, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Matthew 6: 19-20).
Is it possible then for preparing for the collapse of society to intersect with the faith of the Believer who also knows Jesus taught the importance of looking, “at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matt 6:26). The reality is that these two ideas are not mutually exclusive. It is possible, and responsible, to be both a Christian and a prepper. Jesus also preached the importance of being prepared when he spoke of the ten virgins waiting for their bridegroom. The difference in being prepared and storing treasures on earth is the idea behind it. Jesus does not rebuke preparation; he simply cautions against allowing that preparation to become your main focus, your idol.
Stand firm in your faith; love and trust Him while preparing for the future.
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Today in Christian History
Many of us are aware of the Marlon Brando film Mutiny on the Bounty. However, in true Hollywood fashion, there are many pieces of the story left out.
And the ending stops way short of the whole truth.
On April 28th, 1789, a man named Fletcher Christian staged one of the most famous mutinies in history. They set the captain of the HMS Bounty, Lieutenant William Bligh, and his supporters adrift at sea while they navigated back to Tahiti where the sailors had become enamored with island life. After dropping several crew members off, they captured some women, took some slaves, and traveled over a thousand miles to an uninhabited landmass called Pitcairn Island. Drunkenness, fighting, disease, and murder took the lives of all the men save one, Alexander Smith. He found himself the sole survivor of the crew surrounded by an assortment of women and children.
Then Smith found the old neglected copy of the Bounty’s Bible. Reading the Scripture, he was convicted, and he began instructing the people in the ways of God. The message of the Gospel and Christ so transformed this colony that 20 years later, in 1808, when the Topaz landed, the crew found a society of Christians living in peace and prosperity, free from crime and disease—including mutiny. This Bible is now on display in the church in Pitcairn, a testimony to the transformative message of Christ.
