Paris truce talks to bring "peace" in Vietnam?
And what of WORLD PEACE?
Is it possible in the 1970's?
But how?
The surprising answers are not what most people expect!
AFTER weeks of apparent disagreement over a suitable site for truce talks, representatives of the U.S. and North Vietnam sat across the table eying each other.
It was May 10. The eyes of the world turned hopefully to Paris. Then came the rude shock.
In the judgment of top-ranking officials in Saigon, the chances of a truce before the end of 1968 seem highly unlikely. If past negotiations with the Communists on Korea and Laos are any example, it will probably take months before even an agenda for real truce negotiations are set up!
Promises of Peace
Ever since World War I, world statesmen and religious leaders have tried every means to bring about "peace in our time." Politicians promise the people peace to gain their votes.
But there is no peace in the world today!
The League of Nations, formed to make the world safe for Democracy, was wrecked by the ambitions of Hitler, Mussolini and the Japanese warlords. Shortly before the Second World War ravaged Europe, Asia and Africa, Britain's Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain met with Hitler to dismember Czechoslovakia and bring "peace in our time."
Then WAR struck!
The nations united against Fascist aggression and constructed the United Nations organization — admittedly "the WORLD'S LAST HOPE for peace." But within weeks after the close of the war, Russia began the new cold war — and little hot wars too!
History tells us the same story. Since the Flood men have waged nearly 15,000 major and minor wars. They have signed something like 8,000 different peace treaties and have enjoyed only a few score years of genuine tranquility, most of it during the early Roman Empire when the Gospel was first preached.
Since World War II alone, there has been some type of shooting eruption on the average of once a month! These conflicts include at least 12 limited wars in various parts of the world, 74 rebellions for independence, 162 social revolutions, 39 political assassinations and 48 personal revolts.
There have been 335 major acts of violence in the world since the "war to end all wars," including costly racial riots in Los Angeles, Detroit, and Newark — not to mention recent riots which erupted throughout approximately 125 American cities after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King.
President Johnson recently observed that ONE HUNDRED MILLION persons had perished in the wars and political persecutions of the 20th century alone! Why all this warfare and bloodshed throughout history? What is the basic cause of the violence, misery, and bloodshed in Vietnam?
Why have statesmen and organizations of men been unable to bring us lasting world peace?
The Cause of War
To some the answer may seem oversimplified. And yet the great God of your Bible lays bare the basic cause of all war.
It is simply HUMAN NATURE!
The lusts of human nature have been responsible for all the bloodshed in this world from the time Cain murdered his brother Abel.
God inspired the apostle James to write: "From whence come wars and fighting’s among you? Come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye KILL, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye FIGHT AND WAR . . ." (James 4:1-2).
People want peace, but they DON'T KNOW HOW to find it. Without the guidance of the Word of God and His Holy Spirit, carnal men simply do not know the way to peace! (Isa. 59:8; Rom. 3:17)
Change Human Nature!
The late General Douglas MacArthur made a historic address in 1951 before the assembled Congress of the United States. In that dramatic speech he revealed the depth of his understanding of the cause of war — and, in principle, the solution.
He said: "I know war as few other men now living know it, and nothing to me — and nothing to me — is more revolting . . . Men since the beginning of time have sought peace . . . Military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations, all in turn failed, leaving the only path to be by way of the crucible of war. The utter destructiveness of war now blocks this alternative. WE HAVE HAD OUR LAST CHANCE. If we will not devise some greater and more equitable system, our 'Armageddon' will be at our door."
General MacArthur knew that unless the trend of world events was reversed, civilization was headed toward utter oblivion! He realized man's misguided scientific and technological genius would lead him to the brink of self-annihilation!
"The problem," General MacArthur continued, "basically is THEOLOGICAL and INVOLVES a spirit of recrudescence and IMPROVEMENT OF HUMAN CHARACTER that will synchronize with our almost matchless advances in science, art, literature and all the material and cultural developments of the past 2,000 years.
"IT MUST BE OF THE SPIRIT IF WE ARE TO SAVE THE FLESH."
General MacArthur realized the answer to man's search for peace must be a change in human nature!
Yet nearly six thousand years of human history have proved that, left to himself, man is totally unable to effect this change. Throughout history, negotiations for peace have always been accompanied and supported by the most vigorous preparations for war!
The story is no different today.
World leaders and scientists are frankly fearful of the future. They are constantly WARNING us that man now possesses the means of destroying all life from the face of the earth. They speak fearfully of COSMOCIDE — suicide of the whole human race — and even talk in terms of "OVERKILL!"
What Statesmen Know
The U.S. and USSR already have enough nuclear weapons stockpiled to TOTALLY ANNIHILATE all life from this planet more than FORTY-FOUR TIMES OVER!
Just ONCE would be enough!
In 1961, the late President John F. Kennedy warned a hushed United Nations Assembly: "Mankind must put an end to war — or war will put an end to mankind!"
"Today," he said, "every inhabitant of this planet must contemplate the day when this planet may no longer be habitable. . . The mere existence of modern weapons — 10 MILLION TIMES more powerful than any that the world has ever seen and only minutes away from any target on earth — is a source of horror . . ."
Such is the terrifying state of the world you live in!
"Together," said Mr. Kennedy grimly, "we shall save our planet — or together we shall perish in its flames!"
What President Kennedy told the United Nations in 1961 is truer today than ever before. His warning of possible world annihilation was not the ranting of a wild-eyed fanatic, but is the day-to-day REALITY of the world in which you live!
Dr. M.S. Livingston of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the President of the Federation of American Scientists said: "It appears unlikely that the world will avoid a nuclear holocaust if another 15 years pass without arms control agreements."
Philip Noel-Baker, British authority on world disarmament told assembled U.S. Congressmen: "I believe that within 10 years we will all be dead and the earth will be an incinerated relic."
These are not the ranting and ravings of fanatics and extremists, but the convictions of world renowned statesmen and scientists who are authorities in their fields. They all speak fearfully of the END OF THIS WORLD — the end of human civilization!
Surprising as it may seem, these men agree with the prophetic words of Jesus Christ who PREDICTED these frightening times over 1900 years ago! He said: "Except those days should be shortened, there should NO FLESH BE SAVED [ALIVE]"! (Matt. 24:22)
Needed: "A Strong Hand from Someplace"
An accurate appraisal of man's ONLY HOPE for survival appeared in a leading newsmagazine in 1965. This appraisal indicated that among government officials, the prevailing view is gaining acceptance that tensions and world problems are becoming too deep-seated to be solved except "by a strong hang from someplace."
That STRONG HAND is coming — but from a source most people least expect! The prophet Isaiah reveals that source in your Bible: "Behold, the LORD GOD will come with a STRONG HAND and his arm shall rule for him . . ." (Isa. 40:10).
Your Bible shows there is hope for mankind! God Almighty is going to intervene with a STRONG HAND to save humanity from Cosmocide! He will not allow the scientific genius of man to destroy all life from this planet!
The Great God of your Bible says He is going to send Jesus Christ again — this time to SAVE us from ourselves and bring us peace at last!
Peace in Our Time!
Universal peace IS coming in our time — and not later than the decade of the 1970's. But it will not come the way most people have expected, or dared to imagine!
To save human life from annihilation Jesus Christ will come again — this time to set up the very Kingdom of God on earth, and to establish the millennial Utopia of the wonderful world tomorrow!
Yes, one thousand years of worldwide peace and prosperity is just around the corner!
God inspired Isaiah to give us a glimpse of this time of world peace: "And he [Christ] shall judge among the nations . . . and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Isa. 2:4).
But exactly how will God intervene to stop the present trend of world affairs? Just how and when is Jesus Christ coming to set up God's world government? What will the world tomorrow under Christ's rule really be like? What will tomorrow's cities be like? And how will God change human nature so all of man's efforts will finally be directed into peaceful, productive channels?
Most important of all, you need to know how you can escape the horrible time of suffering and nuclear holocaust about to fall on this rebellious generation!
That's why you need the Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course! This dynamic Course shows you where to look in the Bible for the answers to all these questions — and more.
What You'll Learn
The first lesson of this unique Course of Bible understanding deals with up-to-the-minute happenings in world affairs. It begins with this very PRESENT in which we live — this "TIME OF THE END" — just before the END of this age, and the ushering in of the wonderful world tomorrow.
Lessons 2-4 show how God will set up His Kingdom on earth and what the Utopia of tomorrow will really be like. Immediately following that will be a lesson explaining God's way to true financial security. You will finally understand WHY so many people today struggle in an endless battle to make ends meet, and how you can find FREEDOM from financial worries!
Other lessons to come will reveal the astounding PROOF of God's existence and the veracity of His inspired Word. The amazing irrefutable facts from the Bible itself, from secular history, archaeology and geology — and even the immutable laws of science — are laid out for you step-by-step, and in simple terms, so even a child can understand!
Literally dozens of different subjects of vital interest to you in this pulsating space age are revealed and made clear from your own Bible with the help of this Course!
You need to enroll in the Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course RIGHT NOW — before you forget! And remember — this exciting and revealing Course is absolutely free of any tuition cost whatsoever!
Just write to the Editor in care of our office nearest you and ask to be enrolled. (See inside front cover for the addresses) And be sure to mention you read this article.