Psalm 119.19 says; ‘I am a stranger on earth.’ These words introduce, within the longest of the psalms, a theme of conflict. The follower of God finds himself in a hostile environment. In such an environment the word of God remains our guide. It is striking that the previous verse, familiar to many, refers to ‘wondrous things’ found in the law of God. Here is our stronghold against the in-coming unhelpful influences.

I realised that:

• Most of the Bible is written by, or to, or about, those following God in a context that is hostile to their faith.
• A huge emphasis of the Bible is to equip God-followers to live well in this hostile world.

I have therefore written a series of articles under this title: ‘stranger on the earth.’ I do not consider myself an expert, nor a success.

In the famous chapter on heroes of faith (Hebrews 11) the writer refers to those men and women as “strangers and exiles on the earth” (v13). Each one lived away from ‘home,’ expressing their heroic faith in an environment hostile to that faith.

The apostle Peter addresses Christians with similar wording, “strangers in this world” (1 Peter 1.1).

Might this contribution be a blessing to walk in those shoes and be counted along with the great cloud of witnesses!

We can now realise the scene, and understand the mutual relations. The existing communities, the religious tendencies, the spirit of the age, assuredly offered no point of attachment – only absolute and essential contrariety to the kingdom of heaven. The “preparer of the way” could appeal to neither of them; his voice only cried “In the wilderness.”

Far, far beyond the origin of Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes, he had to point back to the original Paschal consecration of Israel as that which was to be now exhibited in its reality; “behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.” If the first great miracle of Christianity was the breaking down of the middle wall of partition, the second – perhaps we should have rather put it first, to realise the symbolism of the two miracles in Cana – was that it found nothing analogous in the religious communities around, nothing sympathetic, absolutely no stem on which to graft the new plant but was literally “as a root out of a dray ground,” of which alike Pharisee, Sadducee, and Essene would say: “He hath no form, nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him.”

(lengthy quotation from Sketches of Jewish Social Life, Dr Alfred Edersheim)

There are numerous tensions in Scripture; apparent contradictions which contain great truth and provide inspiration and motivation for the followers of Jesus Christ.

Two quotations from Revelation highlight this:

They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been. (Rev 6.10-11)

This is a prayer for justice, akin to many of the Psalms; longing for the righteousness of God to be victorious.

The divine response, ‘wait a little longer,’ is one of reassurance.

The second quotation is;  They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. (Rev 12.11)

We as believers share in the battle. We play a part in the defeat of Satan.

There is mystery here. 12.11 refers to action and commitment. 6.10-11 refers to prayer, dependent on God to act on behalf of His people. God has ordained that we will serve and pray as part of God fulfilling His word.

So with the final victory -although certain, we are drawn in to play a part; costly and therefore important. This point is not unimportant, nor cursory, nor token. It is real – God genuinely includes us in His plan to bring in His kingdom.