THE NEMURI NEKO: THE SLEEPING CAT -- Devotional for October 15, from "Good Seeds"

In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down with the baby goat; the calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion, and the cow will graze near the bear. And a little child shall lead them. A toddler will play safely near the hole of a cobra, putting its hand in a nest of those deadly snakes without harm. Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill in all My holy mountain, for as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord. (Isaiah 11:6-9)

While visiting TOSHOGU, one of the sacred Buddhist shrines of Japan, I came across an interesting illustration of prophetic, biblical truth. Yes, embedded within the false and confusing religion of lost mankind can sometimes be found hints and clues which could lead them to the truth of God. Mounted on an inside wall of one of these ancient buildings is the famous Nemuri Neko, a wood-carving of a sleeping cat. Nearby is another carving, showing sparrows at play. A caption reads: “Viewed together these carvings stand as a symbol of peace, for it is not in either the cat’s or the birds’ nature to be so docile while in such close proximity.” The idealist mournfully pleads, “Why can’t we all just get along!” The bumper sticker dryly encrypts: “Contemplate whirled peas.” The most embattled century of human history saw The Great War, not called World War I until there was a World War II! Why didn’t “the war to end all wars” do its job? And whenever there are not hot wars bloodying the countryside, there are cold wars boasting threats of world destruction, all in the name of self-preservation. The longing for peace has led nations to make treaties and to form alliances, and to put in writing promises of future non-aggression. The League of Nations following WW I, and the United Nations following WW II, were sincere attempts at making the world a safer, saner place to live! So, why is the entire world still a war zone? Jesus is called “The Prince of Peace.” The Bible says there is no other governor or government that can establish righteousness on the earth and guarantee freedom to go about life in a peaceful environment, unafraid. When will men learn that regardless of their craving for world peace, there will not and can not be true peace until the Prince of Peace has landed! Only then will the scenarios painted for us by the prophet Isaiah become a reality, where “the beasts of the wild shall be led by a child” (from the spiritual, "Peace in the Valley"); only then will the quest for peace etched in wood at Toshogu temple become a reality. Without the provision of personal heart peace now, as well as the promise of world peace someday – both available only in Jesus – we remain sparrows fluttering nervously in front of a not always sleeping cat!