The Mandate of Heaven

The sun rises early in Beijing. Of course, both Erik and I were up before it made its way into the sky. Not that we could see it through the dense haze that shrouds this city. There's a reason they thing that red, rather than yellow, symbolizes the sun and good fortune.

After a light breakfast, we met our tour guide. Ming Li has a job that suits her well. She loves nothing more than to talk and to talk about her Chinese culture. She went with us to the Great Wall and explained that the farmers had originally built several walls to protect themselves from invading herdsmen, but that eventually the walls were united along the crest of the mountains as a defense against foreign invaders.

On our way to the Summer Palace, Ming Li gave us a crash course in the history of China, through the revolving dynasties and how each emperor strove for eternal life and eternal power. She also pointed out how each dynasty came crashing down as the emperor either failed to produce a male heir or lost touch with the common people, getting lost in his own decadence and exploiting his subjects.

Ming Li explained that every emperor was given the divine right to rule from the King of Heaven, and that as long as he acted in accordance to the King's will, he retained that right to reign. And every emperor eventually lost touch with the people and stepped outside of the will of the King of Heaven and was therefore overthrown.

In high school and college textbooks, this is often referred to as the Mandate of Heaven. The cycle is just as Ming Li described. Emperors eventually lose their empire because they lose sight of their calling.

Today, I realized that I, too, have a Mandate of Heaven. The Mandate that I have been given is the same that Christ gave each of us before he ascended into heaven himself: "All authority in heaven and on earth have been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matt. 28:18-20).

Ming Li had a lot of opinions about religion. She shared her thoughts on Taoism and Buddhism, and even Christianity and Islam. I can only hope that today we were an honest witness to the love of Jesus Christ in her life. However, I have also been reminded of our calling to the nations, and that on this specific trip, our calling is to the nation of Mongolia, and that we serve a great King of Heaven who desires for his people to know him.