Economic Disaster Ahead! But the Purpose is Missions?

​"Economic Calm Before the Storm" is a video recently published by the Adventist Review.

It's very interesting that the Adventist Review would publish this video at this time. Is it a warning?

Economic Calm Before the Storm from ARtv on Vimeo.

Several years ago someone gave me the book "End Game Economics: Understanding the Financial Crisis through Scripture Paperback" (2014) by T. H. Aka here. At the time Aka was a financial adviser but was recently voted in as a treasurer at the 2015 General Conference. It's a very interesting book in light of the development in national and global economies since the crashes of 2000 and 2008.

Despite all the theological and ideological pollution and noise out there, Jesus will not return and the world will not end until the Gospel is taken to the whole world. Matthew 24:14, Revelation 14:6-7 are clear about that. Mark 13:10 is especially blunt "And the gospel must first be published among all nations." Despite the work going on in Papua New Guinea, Brazil, and the Philippines, there still remains and estimated 6,664 Unreached People Groups representing 3.08 billion people that have little access to gospel resources. Well over 1.5 billion have zero access to Christians, Bibles, or resources to learn about Jesus Christ. source: JoshuaProject.net

The entire watching universe is waiting for Adventists to take the good news to the unreached so that Jesus can return but every mission statistic gives overwhelming evidence that the majority of people in church are indifferent to foreign missions. The number of people making commitments to foreign mission continues to fall and according to the January 2012 issue of Adventist World people now give less to foreign missions than any other point in the last 90 years. It is a fact that Adventists in North America spend more money on dog food than on foreign missions. Dr. George Knight recently remarked at AIIAS "At this rate of progress it will take eternity to finish the work."

There is a repeating cycle in the Bible that when God's people no longer show interest in making His character of love known to the nations, He allows economic crisis, pain, and suffering to wake them up. Personally I believe that 2000 and 2008 were warning shots over the bow. The next crisis will be ugly and severe. If you have been reading the economic news lately even a lot secular voices are pointing out that the economies are in for a very rough ride sometime in the very near future.

We are given advice to place all that we have upon the altar. I have and I hope you will too. Here are a few quotes to consider:

"I saw that if any held on to their property, and did not inquire of the Lord as to their duty, He would not make duty known, and they would be permitted to keep their property, and in the time of trouble it would come up before them like a mountain to crush them, and they would try to dispose of it, but would not be able. I heard some mourn like this: "The cause was languishing, God's people were starving for the truth, and we made no effort to supply the lack; now our property is useless. O that we had let it go, and laid up treasure in heaven!" EW 57
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"Why did the Lord permit Jerusalem to be destroyed by fire the first time? Why did He permit His people to be overcome by their enemies and carried into heathen lands?--It was because they had failed to be His missionaries, and had built walls of division between themselves and the people round them. The Lord scattered them, that the knowledge of His truth might be carried to the world. If they were loyal and true and submissive, God would bring them again into their own land (GCB April 7, 1903)
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"In the terrible judgments brought upon the ten tribes the Lord had a wise and merciful purpose. That which He could no longer do through them in the land of their fathers He would seek to accomplish by scattering them among the heathen....in the afflictions brought upon Israel, He was preparing the way for His glory to be revealed to the nations of earth...."  PK 292
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