You've all
heard the saying, History repeats. You also likely heard the saying, History
does not repeat but it does rhymes. Both these statements are pointing to a
true phenomenon, but they both fall short of describing what is really
happening.
The real
lesson of history is actually an observation of science and wisdom. It is this:
cause and effect. The same things happen because certain causes have
predictable effects. It really is that simple.
The Romans
opened their borders to mass immigration, therefore they lost their kingdom.
Cause and effect.
The
Carthaginians sacrificed their children in the fires, they could not, therefore,
raise the manpower to continue to fight the Romans. Rome won. Cause and effect.
Nations which
seek to rule over peoples, we call it empire or colonialism, always attract the
very foreigners they seek to rule to the centre of their power structures, and
they lose their own authority in their own nations. Cause and effect.
Nations that
offer overwhelmingly generous welfare to their native citizens, as Rome did,
end up hollowing out their own strength and being ruled by others who do not
rely on that welfare. Cause and effect.
If you want
to understand where the world is going, you have to study history, because
history documents for us what has happened and what was the result of those
things happening. And we see a lot of consistent patterns as we study history. And
you have to have a basic understanding of the principles of the scientific
method, which help us to quantify the observations of cause and effect.
Interestingly,
the vast majority of the Bible is not prophecy, it is actually history. In
fact, even the vast majority of prophetic utterances are the prophets
themselves reflecting on what will happen to their people if they reject their
historical law and origins, and chase new-fangled philosophies that undermine
established principles of wisdom. Cause and effect.
It has been
obvious to see how our nation has been heading towards disaster for some time
now. I find it encouraging how many more people are starting to see this, as
well.
Only an
arrogant people believe they can ignore cause and effect. The laws of nature
apply to us all, no matter how special we think we are. The laws of history are
simply man's attempt to wrestle with how these laws bear out in the story of
our civilisations. There is nothing exceptional about any nation on earth,
there is just wisdom applied and wisdom ignored. Each has their effect.
