Displacement: A Sacred Echo
“And we know that in all things
God works for the good of those who love him.”
Romans 8:28 (NIV)
The number of displaced people in the world rose to a new high of 89.4 million in 2020. Displaced people are those forced to leave their homes due to conflict, violence or disasters. They include refugees, asylum seekers, and people internally displaced within their country of birth.
Bruce and I were recently privileged to hear the displacement story of two young American career missionaries who, along with their four young children, were forced to leave their Ukrainian home and ministry after 9 years of faithful service as church planters in L’viv.
As the Russian army marched across Ukraine, eight million Ukrainians were on the move fleeing to other European countries. Poland was the closest and easiest country to reach, but the border between Ukraine and Poland became clogged as the Russian army advanced. Our missionaries wound up taking a much longer escape route by driving through Romania and Hungary before finally arriving in Poland. Unsure of how long the war would last or whether they would be allowed to return, the missionaries lived in a one bedroom Polish hotel room for several months before eventually making their way to Norway and finally returning to the United States. They, along with their four children ages 3-9, have lived in the Birmingham area for the last year, unsure of their next step in life, work, and ministry. They are displaced.
Sharing their story Sunday morning, the young missionary said, “Displacement comes with a sense of estrangement.”
The theme of displacement is found throughout Scripture. In the Garden of Eden following their sin and rebellion, God displaces Adam and Eve and drives them out of the Garden for their own good and for His glory.
“Therefore, the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden…He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:23-24 ESV)
God intentionally displaced Abraham by saying, “Leave your country, your people, and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1)
Later on in Genesis, Joseph is displaced when he is sold into slavery and taken to Egypt (Genesis 37:28). He is falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife and displaced into prison for approximately 13 years. Ultimately Joseph is promoted and becomes the second most powerful man in Egypt.Years later Joseph’s brothers fear that he will seek retribution for their earlier betrayal. Joseph responds with great grace and perspective saying, “Don’t be afraid….You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20) Joseph’s displacement was not only for his good, but also for the world’s good.
Later we encounter Naomi and Ruth, two women displaced from their native countries, first by famine and then by death. Ruth, by God’s providence, is displaced from Moab and eventually resettles in Israel with her mother-in-law Naomi. She marries Boaz and eventually becomes the great-grandmother to Israel’s great King David. Ruth is one of the four women listed by name in Jesus’ genealogy (Matthew 1:5). Her displacement ultimately was for her good.
Fast forward 500 years and the prophet Daniel is displaced by war and living as a faithful exile witness serving a pagan king in Babylon. Following Christ’s death and resurrection, Christians are scattered throughout the Roman Empire following the death of Stephen (Acts 8:1). They are displaced, but the Gospel is on the move, blessing the world as the exiles go. The Apostle Paul was displaced from his ministry and displaced to a Roman prison where he wrote his prison epistles.
Displacement usually takes us by surprise, but it never surprises our sovereign God. He was himself once a displaced person. Jesus left His home in heaven to come to earth and be born as a man. After his birth, he and his parents were forced to flee to Egypt to escape King Herod’s Massacre of the Innocents (Matthew 2:16-18). As an adult Jesus wandered as a homeless man on the move. (Matthew 8:20). He lived a perfect life and died a sinner’s death. He was displaced, not for His good, but for ours (Philippians 5:2-11). Because Jesus was displaced, we now have a forever home with our God (John 14:2-3).
Throughout Scripture God intentionally uses our displacements as one of the “all things” that are promised to be for our good and for His glory (Romans 8:28). Displacement is a sacred echo found not just in scripture, but also in our lives here on earth until we reach our forever home with Christ.