"When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.” (Matthew 2:13-15)

Bible passages like the one above make you wonder how the Lord directs and operates in our lives in our relationship with Him. How come He had to tell Joseph through an angel to flee to Egypt to avoid Herod's murderous plan to kill male children? Couldn't He just stop Herod dead on his tracks, after all, history states that he didn't get to live much longer (verse 19). So why didn't God spare the innocents from Herod's onslaught?

God's ways may be difficult to understand, but we know they are always higher than ours and His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8). We can better accept this truth by looking at the word "authority" closely. When God created man, he gave him authority and dominion over the world (Genesis 1:26-30). However, when Adam fell and sin entered the world, man forfeited this authority on earth to the ultimate usurper, Satan.

The Biblical period between the fall of man and the coming of Jesus saw the rise of sin, savagery and evil culminating in Herod - a type of "usurper Satan" ruling in the world. But behind the scenes God was making and keeping promises to Abraham, his seed and the nation of Israel orchestrating His plan for salvation and the return of earthly authority to a redeemed mankind. Jehovah God honors His word! Through this lens, we could better grasp why God allowed disasters like "Herod's murder of the innocents" because in spite of all these, He remained true to His word, His promises and salvation plan.

At the center of human history is the cross of Calvary. When Jesus triumphed on the cross, "He disarmed the powers and authorities and made a public spectacle of them" (Colossians 2:15). Jesus therefore reclaimed the dominion and authority from Satan and said "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me." He then delegated the work of the great commission to His followers. (Matthew 28:18-20)

I believe the Lord has partially given back the promised dominion on the world originally given to Adam to true followers of Jesus Christ. This is why God moves in our affairs and world through our prayers. His word is true and He honors the believer's authority that He has given. This is why when we pray, God enters our world and acts in our behalf. Through prayer we call on God to enter our limited dominion on earth. In the future millennial reign of Christ on the earth, we will then have total dominion and rule with Jesus (Revelation 5:10).

Next time we doubt God and His ways, always remember that God has given Christians authority to effect change by letting God do a mighty work through our fervent prayer. The tide moves towards chaos and disorder in a dark and godless world ruled by present-day "Herods". But a just God, Who honors His word and promises can reverse this trend when believers take authority through prayer. The Lord be glorified in our lives!