In Acts 17, Paul is speaking to the philosophers of Athens. Although the Athenians have no military power, their cultural influence extends across the Roman Empire. These guys dictate the values and beliefs of most of the known world, and they have no reason to believe their influence won’t last forever. But Paul makes a startling statement:
“[God] made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place…” (Acts 17:26)
In other words, God decides which nations rise and fall. He determines who will be in power and how far their clout will extend. And his purpose for this is very specific:
“…that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him” (v. 27).
While most people are worried about what effect presidential elections and terrorist attacks and world wars will have on global economies and world stability, God is concerned about one thing: shaping the events of history so that more people will feel their way toward him and find him.
Take one current example: Lots of people are concerned about America’s declining influence in the world, and even more worried about China’s rise to power. In their view, this is a battle between authoritarianism and democracy.
But maybe (and this is a very big maybe) God’s eternal view is that China is full of passionate Christians who aren’t timid about Jesus and aren’t afraid of some persecution. Maybe China’s economic rise means more of these believers will be traveling overseas to do business, to places where Americans could never effectively share the gospel.
Maybe this means the world will be a little less stable. But when has God ever been in the business of making us comfortable?