Down through the annals of history, man has sought for himself a perfect society, environment, and government where all is peaceful, beautiful, lovely, perfect, and crime-free.
Hence, many explorers left their homes to search for new lands, economists and philosophers propounded several theories, military generals and monarchs have advanced wars of conquest and politicians have presented fabulous manifestos and policies. The Babylonians, Medo-Persians, and Egyptians espoused monarchies. The Greeks tried Democracy in their City-States and the Romans adopted Republicanism and later, dictatorship/imperialism. The modern world is a mixture of these. Yet, have any of these systems created a utopian society? Or have any of the explorers managed to find a paradise on Earth?
Indeed, many are not aware that Hitler yearned for such a Utopian society filled with a superhuman race. For this, he introduced euthanasia, eugenics, and mass genocides of Jews and weaker humans, including Blacks. Blacks were seen (by Europeans, per the popular thought then) as less-evolved sub-humans whose lands and lives could be taken with impunity and reckless abandon!
During the age of reason in Europe, when monarchies were being overthrown (spearheaded by Napoleon) and republics were being established, many philosophers, including Albert Pike, Rousseau, Voltaire, and Karl Marx propounded theories that they claimed would make the world a better place.
For instance, Marx thought communism was the best for mankind’s freedom, liberty, and happiness. He believed that “religion was the opium of the masses” and that a world without God would be “perfect” Pike preached deism (absence of divine intervention in human affairs) and exalted human reason as sufficient to lead mankind to a Utopia. Voltaire despised Christianity and avowed to collapse it. Rousseau believed that man was inherently good, but society made him a pervert.
These philosophers sought to cast God away from mankind, exalt human reasoning and inherent goodness, destroy all forms of religion, question “morality” and “social values,” and lead man to look to science and humanity for all problems bedeviling the Earth. From this era began atheism and evolution, popularized by Darwin, who lived in that era and was a contemporary of these philosophers.
Yet, after the adoption of all these theories, systems of governments, policies, ideologies, wars, racial segregation, colonization, etc, has the world become better? Has mankind found a Utopian society and paradise?
This brings to mind the statue dream of King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2. It is obvious, that human governments can never bring us everlasting perfection and peace. Therefore, we wait for the stone uncut with human hands, to destroy worldly governments and establish a divine government. I agree with the apostle Peter, that we “look for a new Heaven and new Earth wherein dwells righteousness.”
If there is any prayer and wish on my heart on this Holy Sabbath, it’s written in Rev. 22:20b “Amen, even so, come, Lord Jesus”. May this hope of the promised New Jerusalem fill our hearts with peace, hope, and desire for righteousness on this Sabbath even as we wait on our Lord’s return. A Happy Sabbath to all the waiting saints of God.
