I do not agree with Albert Einstein's quote. Why? Because it’s a complicated issue, and –
while I understand what Einstein is saying – I believe it all depends upon what the issue is, and “who” is doing something." Furthermore, it is imperative that "doing something" lines up with SCRIPTURE, which defines the terms “good
and evil.”
The problem is, not everybody is judicious or
discerning enough to understand issues properly enough to know what to do. It takes a special kind of person to be able
to recognize the pros and cons of “doing something,” as we cannot have individuals or
groups of people running around, doing whatever they see as “right” in their
own eyes!
Yes, sometimes “doing nothing” is a bad thing – as in the
case of the Holocaust while many millions had to die before help came. On the
other hand, "doing something" can be a GOOD thing (as in the case of the brave, intelligent
and level-headed Dietrich Bonhoeffer who fought against the Nazi regime and its
influence on the German church and their cringing, cowardly leaders who
wouldn't have known God if they fell on Him).
What I am attempting to show here, is that "doing something" against a perceived evil can be just as bad as "doing nothing" ... because "doing something" can be VERY dangerous in the hands of the “wrong”
people!
It’s no secret that there are a lot of
lunatics out there, all of them believing THEIR skewed ideas must come to
fruition, no matter what the cost. Some
examples that come to mind are Hitler, Caligula, ISIS, Hamas, and other
terrorist factions; and the “lone wolves” who make their way into schools,
movie theaters, restaurants and a whole range of other public places, believing
themselves to be “taking a stand” for or against something.
As an example, I was outraged at the January 6, 2021 attack
on our nation’s Capitol Building by people who felt “Trump’s election had been
“stolen” in the 2020 presidential election. I didn’t like that Biden won, either
- but nevertheless, he won. NOBODY had a right to storm
the Capitol to destroy property, engage in vandalism and looting, or
threaten Congress members, assault Capitol Police officers and reporters,
and generally wreak havoc in a
self-coup d’etat that ultimately left many traumatized, hurt, shot and even
killed! What statement did these rioters
make to the world, except to reveal that they were a bunch of wild-eyed, radical (in some cases, half-naked)
lunatics?
The most recent example of somebody who decided to "do something" is the killing of UnitedHealthcare
CEO Brian Thompson by the lone gunman, Luigi Mangione, in December 2024. Regardless as to whether or not
his feelings and decisions were correct, we must ask ourselves: is the murder the ONLY way to handle the situation at hand? Was the murder of the CEO of a company truly justified, just because
someone believed the company was somehow failing to do its job correctly? ALL that this senseless act accomplished, was to force the company into the position of hiring a new CEO!
So, what, exactly, has been accomplished?
There has been a whole rash of demented people throughout
history who thought they were "doing something" important and
meaningful.
For instance, on April 14, 1865, a white racist bigot named John
Wilkes Booth who was an outspoken Confederate sympathizer, killed Abraham
Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, because the President was
busy outlawing the act of slavery. Booth's plan (which ultimately failed) was a
part of a larger political conspiracy to revive the Confederate cause by
eliminating some important officials of the federal government.
In other words, Booth was "doing something" he and
half of the country believed in. Was Booth a hero or villain? Well, in the end, he FAILED, because the slaves were
ultimately emancipated – HALLELUYAH!
There are many examples, but the fact is, while it’s often
necessary for good people to “DO something” against some evil or injustice, the danger is that there
are also “loose cannons” out there taking matters into their own hands … with
myriads of armchair experts around the world today, sitting behind their keyboards, lauding them!
My goodness, because of people who believe themselves to be "doing something" in our contemporary world, it’s come to the point where we can't leave our
homes anymore today, without having to wonder in the back of our minds whether we'll
be coming home dead or alive, because of some nut job with a gun and an agenda, shooting up a local Walmart, theater or school to “take action”
against something they feel strongly about! It’s insane!
I would love to say to Mr. Einstein (were he alive
today): Sir, your comment is incorrect!
First of all, the Bible amply tells us that the earth itself will NOT be destroyed, but that the world as we know it, will (Isaiah 24:1-23; Ecclesiastes 2:4; Matthew 24:7-51), because evil will run rampant until we incur Yahweh's wrath enough to put an end to mankind's nonsense via the return of His Messiah, Yeshua haMashiach. (See Daniel 9:26-27; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 6:14.)
(Remember, He destroyed life on earth once already, back in Genesis 6:5-13, when humanity on earth - which was full of evil - was killed by a flood, except for the righteous Noah and his family. Unfortunately, not too long afterward, men were at it again [see Genesis 19:4-6], and a very patient Yahweh has allowed us to once again "become as in the days of Noah" [1 Peter 3:18-20]).
2 Timothy 3:1. But know this: That in
the latter days hard times will come: 2.
and men will be lovers of themselves and lovers of money, boasters, proud,
revilers, unyielding towards their own people, deniers of grace, wicked, 3. unloving, addicted to irreconcilable
malicious gossips, ferocious, haters of the good, 4. treacherous, rash, inflated, attached to
pleasure more than to the love of Elohim,
5. having a form of respect for Elohim but wide from the power of
Elohim. Them who are such, repel from you.
(AENT)
Moving onto my next point, which concerns your comment that the world will be destroyed by those who "watch them without doing anything."
Actually, according to the Bible, the world as we know it will be destroyed by BOTH ... those who perpetrate evil AND those who do nothing about it! This is amply clear in the following passages:
2 Peter 2:9. Master YHWH knows how to rescue from afflictions those who fear him, and he will reserve the wicked for the day of judgment to be tormented,
10. and especially them who go after the flesh in the lusts of
pollution, and despise government. Daring and boasting without cause
they do not quake with awe while they blaspheme; 11. as opposed to the
Messengers, greater than they in might and valor, do not bring against
them a reproachful judgment.
12. But these, like nasty beasts that by nature are for
slaughter and corruption, while engaging in evil speech regarding things
they don't know, will perish in their own corruption; 13. they being
persons with whom iniquity is the reward of iniquity, and by them
rioting in the daytime is accounted delightful; defiled and full of
blemishes (are they), indulging themselves at their ease while they give
themselves up to pleasure; 14. having eyes that are full of adultery
and sins that never end; seducing unstable souls; and having a heart
exercised in greed; children of cursing: 15. And, having left the
correct path, they have wandered and gone in the way of Balaam the son
of Beor who loved the wages of iniquity, 16. and who had for the
corrector of his transgression a mute mule which, speaking with the
speech of men, rebuked the madness of the prophet.
17. These are wells without water, clouds driven by a storm, persons for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness.
18. For, while they utter astonishing vanity, they seduce with obscene
lusts of the flesh, them who have almost abandoned these that walk in
error. 19. And they promise them liberty while they themselves are the
slaves of corruption: for, by whatever thing a man is vanquished, to
that is he enslaved. 20. For if, when they have escaped the pollutions
of the world by the knowledge of our Master and Redeemer Y'shua the
Mashiyach, they become again involved in the same and are vanquished,
their latter state is worse than the former. 21. For
it would have been better for them not to have known the way of
righteousness, than after having known (it), to turn back from the Set
Apart Commandment that was delivered to them. (AENT)
Please also check out the following passages: Peter 3:9-13; 2 Peter 3:8; Psalm 90:4; Isaiah 65:17-20, and 66:22.
In other words, there WILL be evil people everywhere, perpetrating evil; but there will ALSO be those who simply stand by and say or do nothing because they are either afraid; or they realize that it will be useless to "swim against the tide" of evil. Yet you, Mr. Einstein, are suggesting that those who "do nothing" are going to have to take the responsibility of the earth's demise?
Here is a personal example of knowing when to go up against evil, and when to have the good sense to back away: I once stopped the harassment of an old woman with dementia who was being harassed by a gang of several young teenage boys because she was rummaging around in a garbage can. I had just pulled up at my apartment building after work and, seeing her in distress, I walked right into the middle of the group, and (car keys wedged between my fingers to serve as a potential weapon if needed) I demanded in a loud, authoritative voice, that they leave her alone, or else I was going to call the police.
The boys gawked at me in disbelief, and one of them actually stepped forward to challenge me, but I stood my ground, fearlessly standing there, the look on my face, and the fist-full of keys letting him know that I meant business, and was ready to get into a physical altercation, if need be. In the end, he backed away, and the boys left, howling with laughter and making fun of both me and the old lady as they disappeared around the corner.
My point is, at five-foot-three inches, weighing 110 pounds, I saw an injustice and fearlessly DID something about it. HOWEVER, had there been a dozen, much older boys, I would have had the good sense to NOT confront them; I would simply have let them know I was going to call the police, in hopes of deterring them...
Anyway, I related that story because there ARE some things we CAN DO something about - but we need to use common sense and discernment. For instance, look at Israel - after centuries of being harassed, harangued, uprooted, and even killed, the government of Israel and its people are FINALLY standing up
to the reign of terror perpetrated upon “God’s Chosen” by the offspring of
Ishmael! Unfortunately, much of the world is angry with Israel now because of
the war’s repercussions on the Muslim population. People have short memories and tend to forget
the ORIGIN of atrocities, such as this year-long war, and making the victim
(Israel) out to be the “bad guy!”
The sad truth is, "evil" is everywhere, and it isn’t
going to leave until Yeshua returns.
Matter of fact, evil keeps GROWING because today, it is confused with
“good,” because the Western world,
especially – is morally bankrupt.
We humans are our own worst enemy! According to the New York Times, of the past 3,400 years,
humans have been entirely at peace for only 268 of them, or just 8 percent of
recorded history! That is truly a sad
statement for humanity, in general!
Today, we can see evil all around us; worse and more decadent than ever before
– and MOST don't seem to mind at all, because we’re so indoctrinated by violent
movies and video games and the stuff shown on the six o’clock news, that we’re
numb to it.
I mean, WHEN - in all of history - have people ever felt
they had a "right" to kill unborn babies or choose which sex they want to be, or whether
they are straight, gay, bisexual, fluid, binary, or any other of the plethora
of new terms being lauded by the general populace as “normal” and even
"COOL!" – literally describing things that makes “normal and
intelligent people” cringe and recognize as mental or emotional instability?
What can we God-fearing people possibly DO that hasn't been done by voicing our opinion against a government and liberal leadership that caters to the "fringe elements" of the world?
The problem is, today's governments have given too much latitude to the
instigators of "change"; and, at the same time, made it against the law for
anyone to dare speak out against the lunacy of the modern world! Those of us who dare, are
threatened, fined and even imprisoned if we don't back off! Yeah, sure, we can "vote them out of office" - but
hey, half the country is FOR the evil, while the other half is against. So, HOW can these kinds of issue possibly be solved?
(Thank former Prez Obama, who single-handedly instituted these
"wrongs" mentioned above, and turned them household words! He,
Clinton and other ungodly, do-whatever-feels-good liberal types and their
myriad followers - are THE reason America is in the shape it's in today!)
What can we DO about THAT?
NOTHING! We can write our
Congressmen, and stage protests, etc., - but we do NOT have a “right” to make unilateral decisions to hurt or kill people, simply because we disapprove of their works!
I could go on, but you get the drift. I believe
Einstein's idea would be great in a perfect world, but we are living in an age
where everybody "has a voice" and most of them aren't exactly stable.
America is full of a lot of ungodly, loudmouthed, opinionated armchair experts
who are "right in their own eyes" and to hell with everybody else!
Thank you for reading my rant! In closing, I would be really grateful if someone reading my rant could suggest some ideas as to WHAT exactly can be done about the rampant evil, besides
what we've been doing, which is to keep pointing everyone to the Bible and the
Cross...
