Why is there World Chaos?

Reasons for the Perceived World Chaos

Today the world seems to be experiencing a sense of instability. But whether it’s in a state of “chaos” is a matter of interpretation. Ultimately, a person’s perception of the current state of the world depends on their experiences, perspectives, knowledge, and beliefs. Also, global news networks and the internet often provide unsettling information that was not available years ago. That said, we can identify certain issues that certainly suggest world chaos. World conflict is one of them:

There is chaos threatening us, through the spread of weapons of mass destruction and cross-border terrorism” [Henry Kissinger, 2014, in answer to the question “Is the world really in greater disorder than ever before?”]

The world has entered an “age of chaos” that is causing a multitude of suffering and thwarting progress [U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, 2024, referring primarily to world conflicts]

Apart from war, there are other reasons for perceived world chaos. The world seems to be coming more and more complicated, with cyber attacks, energy crises, climate change, population growth, mass immigration, religious and ethnic conflict, the international debt crisis, and so on. Even online banking, or sorting a computer fault can defeat older generations!

Others take a more academic approach through chaos theory. They claim the perceived world chaos is just part of the natural instability of nonlinear systems, link. They claim that nonlinearity is a key ingredient behind world chaos – where small changes can sometimes lead to large and unexpected consequences. The weather and the global economy are good examples.

The Real Reason for World Chaos

The real reason behind the perception of world chaos is none of the above. It is certainly not the absence of good politics. It is about powerful spiritual control over the nations exercised by an unseen spiritual kingdom.

Earthly Kingdoms

Some modern kingdoms refer to countries that are governed by a monarch, typically a king or a queen, but their power is limited by a constitution and a democratically elected government. The United Kingdom and the Netherlands are examples.

Other modern-day countries, like Saudi Arabia, are governed by a monarch who holds absolute power, often with no checks or balances. The king is both the head of state and the head of government. Such absolute power is a characteristic of the future military and undemocratic world ruler described in Revelation 13:1-10.

Historically, the Bible identifies four successive and important kingdoms – the empires of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. Some see a Revived Roman Empire as the core of a ‘crushing’ world empire in existence just before Christ returns.

Spiritual Kingdoms

Besides earthly kingdoms, there are hidden spiritual kingdoms. It’s like living in parallel worlds!

The Bible frequently refers to the Kingdom of Heaven (aka Kingdom of God), as distinct from earthly kingdoms. The Kingdom of Heaven is not a physical kingdom, but can be described as the ultimate spiritual realm for believers in Christ. It is characterized by eternal life, peace, divine presence, and communion with God (as Adam originally experienced in the Garden of Eden). It is the realm and rule of Christ, and is first seen in full glory during the Millennium reign of Christ. Jesus told believers to pray for this kingdom in the Lord’s prayer:

Pray like this: “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On [this] earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:9-10, amplified)

So for believers on earth, the Kingdom of Heaven can be seen as a transformation of heart and mind, a way of believing and living on earth in preparation for eternal communion with God.

Figure 1: The Relationship between unseen Spiritual Kingdoms

Satan’s Kingdom of Darkness

Satan’s Power over Earthly Kingdoms

Figure 1 shows there is another unseen spiritual kingdom, the kingdom of darkness or Satan’s Kingdom (for an understanding of the origin and objectives of Satan, see Thinking on Scripture). As implied by the figure, this kingdom is within the domain/overall control of the Kingdom of Heaven. Nevertheless, Satan’s kingdom is very real and powerful, and influences individuals and nations. One of Satan’s objectives is to cause world chaos i.e.

Didn’t the global financial crisis of 2008/9 cause governments to “tremble” as stock markets crashed? And most would agree that much of Gaza has recently been reduced to a “wilderness” with “destroyed cities”. A supreme example is Hiroshima, 1945.

Satan’s kingdom is controlled by an evil hierarchy of unseen spiritual powers, as described in Paul’s warning to the Ephesian church:

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12)

It may seem unfair, but all are born into this problematic kingdom. In fact, most people spend their whole lives in this dark kingdom without realizing it. As Eliphaz, one of Job’s friends commented, “man is born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). Eliphaz suggests that hardship is a natural and inevitable part of human life, just as sparks in a fire naturally fly upwards. 

In conversation with Jesus, Satan actually claimed he owned all earthly kingdoms:

Then Satan took Him [Jesus] up and showed him in a second all the kingdoms of the world.  “I will give you all this power and all this wealth,” Satan told Him. “It has all been handed over to me, and I can give it to anyone I choose”. (Luke 4:5,6)

Note that, although Satan lies, in this instance Jesus didn’t take issue with Satan’s ownership claim. In reality, for a limited time, Satan has indeed been allowed a degree of control over the nations. It seems that after the Fall, as part of His curse on the world, God give Satan huge power and authority in the world. So throughout the present age (until Christ returns) world governments and individuals remain under Satan’s rule. Satan is called “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11), “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4), and “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2).

Plundering Satan’s Kingdom

Despite Satan’s powerful influence over the nations, His power is now limited through the work of Christ. Christ invaded Satan’s Kingdom. This is seen through a vailed prophecy in Genesis. Recall God’s chastening of the serpent (aka Satan) in Genesis. God said to Satan

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head and you shall bruise His heal (Genesis 3:15, NKJV)

The allusion to the woman’s Seed being bruised unquestionably looks to the suffering of Christ on behalf of the sins of humanity. This act seriously disarmed Satan for ever (it bruised his head), whilst Satan could only injure Christ’s heal (through temporary suffering). The allusion to the serpent’s seed ominously predicts that many of the human family would choose to be aligned with Satan, rather than with Christ, link. In fact, ultimately, at the close of this age, the whole world openly worships Satan (Revelation 13:4)! (Note: some see believers being taken to be with Christ before this dreadful time. See the rapture)

Jesus expressed this great truth like this:

Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. (John 12:31)

Whilst still ruler, Satan’s grip on the destiny of humanity has been removed (cast out). Sinful people can now be reconciled to God through Christ. As the apostle Paul says:

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers [satanic power included], nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord . . . He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. (Romans 8:38-39, Colossians 1:13-14)

Building the Kingdom of Heaven on earth

As already mentioned, when Christ returns at the end of this age the Kingdom of Heaven will fill the whole earth (Daniel 2:35, Matthew 6:10) and replace the kingdoms of the world (Revelation 11:15). But today it is still growing, although it is not always visible (Matthew 13:32). It is still being built by the God of heaven (Daniel 2:44). Jesus put it like this:

The Kingdom of Heaven is like this. Some fishermen throw their net out in the sea and catch all kinds of fish [the Kingdom grows]. When the net is full [when the Kingdom is complete] , they pull it to shore and sit down to divide the fish: the good ones go into the buckets, the worthless ones are thrown away. (Matthew 13: 47,48, GNT, amplified)

Glimpses of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth

So even today, whilst living in Satan’s realm on earth, it is possible to see glimpses of a better kingdom – the Kingdom of Heaven. The kingdom in the Gospels is both “now and not yet”, link. Sometimes it can be seen by those who are searching for God. For instance, sometimes it can seen in physical healing after prayer, or in dreams of Christ (especially in Muslim countries), or in miraculous help from angels. In a theological sense the Kingdom of Heaven is present on earth, but without consummation or completeness.

Believers Living in Satan’s Kingdom

Satan’s Kingdom is the visible everyday world which occupies most of everyone’s time. For many the “cares of the world” (Mark 4:19) are real, as in severe illness or paying the mortgage or repairing the car. For others it is the pursuit of material possessions, or wealth, or pleasure e.g. never-ending holiday! 

Jesus warned those who want to follow Him not to be preoccupied with the everyday cares of the world. Yes, these concerns are real, but those who follow Christ should try to live above these concerns. Jesus said God knows what we really need anyway, and said to His followers:

Seek first the Kingdom of God (aka Kingdom of Heaven) and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33, amplified)

In other words, try and refrain from pursuing temporal things that have little long-term benefit.

Today Satan’s rule results in World Chaos

Spiritual Ignorance

As already suggested, most people today are deaf and blind to the concept of spiritual kingdoms, be they good or bad. The physical side of Satan’s Kingdom i.e. the world is all they see, and want to see! Certainly, the concept of the Kingdom of Heaven is a mystery to them. When Jesus’s followers asked Him “Why do You speak to people in parables?” He replied:

The knowledge about the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven has been given to you, but not to them . . . For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing and their eyes are closed . . . lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them (Matthew 13:11,15)

It is the same today; most people simply don’t want to know about spiritual things. Why? They do not believe because their minds have been kept in the dark by the god of this world. The reason the world is reeling in chaos and will continue its downward spiral is because humans have been blinded to the root cause of the problem. The nations are under spiritual deception but don’t recognise it:  

The  gospel is veiled to those who are perishing . . . the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they will not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4:3,4)

Corrupt Ethics, Corrupt Laws

As “ruler of this world”, Satan has a destructive influence over all nations. He is the major influence on the mind-set expressed by the ideals, opinions, goals, hopes and views of the majority of people. This is cultural relativism or majority ethics, where the ethic is set by a majority of citizens accepting that something is right or wrong. For example, homosexual practice (an abomination to God, Leviticus 18:22) is increasingly accepted by the world and even by the church.

Satan also influences the world’s politics, laws, education, and commerce. For example, in 2025 the UK government voted to extend legal abortion up to the point of birth, making it the most permissive abortion law in Europe! Yet God sees a knowable person in the womb – before birth (Psalm 139, Jeremiah 1:5). Sadly, UK law now permits the killing of that person right up to birth.

Corrupt Philosophy

The philosophies and speculations of false religions also come from Satan’s lies and deceptions. Satan hates truth (Isaiah 19:14), as in Christ’s claim that He is now the only way to God the Father (John 14:6). This explains the demise of the true church and the rise of multifaith and New Age practice. It also explains the hatred and persecution of God’s people Israel. The origin of such hatred can be seen in Revelation 12:13. Here, the nation of Israel is persecuted since it was through Israel that Christ was born.

How Satan’s Kingdom and World Chaos ends

Bible prophecy indicates how Satan’s Kingdom on earth will end. The key is to examine what happens to the great statue King Nebuchadnezzar saw in a dream (Daniel 2:31). As Daniel explained to the king, the statue represented four earthly kingdoms, starting with Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom of Babylon, the golden head of the statue. The statues’ legs of iron are usually interpreted as the eastern and western empires of historic Rome (a powerful, crushing world empire).

Now consider what happens to the FEET of the statue. These are partly of iron and partly of clay (Daniel 2:33). They represent the last form of earthly kingdom – probably a form of Revived Roman Empire which is both powerful (iron), but weak (clay). More detail of this kingdom is given in Daniel 7. Although powerful, this empire is finally supernaturally destroyed:

You watched while a stone [Christ] was cut without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces . . . and the stone that struck the image became a great mountain [kingdom] and filled the earth (Daniel 2:34-35, amplified)

After the strike no trace of the earthly empires represented by the image is then found. They are replaced by Christ’s Kingdom which “fills the earth”! Satan’s Kingdom is gone! This dramatic event represents the completion of the setting up of the Kingdom of Heaven (on earth) – a kingdom which breaks and consumes all earthly kingdoms (Daniel 2:44)

---