The Hebrew Insights

“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul.”

The Hebrews answered these questions of goodness and human happiness better than anyone else. Moses, the Psalmists, the Prophets, Jesus, and the apostles (especially Paul) brought wisdom to bear on this topic that has never been surpassed; and it has been equaled by very few Christians since.
Like the Greeks, Romans, and Chinese, the Hebrews held that being connected to a larger context and properly interrelated within was the key to goodness, and thus happiness. The possibility of actually getting a community of people who lived in this way was the great Hebrew contribution. The problem that the other civilizations had was that at best they only possessed the resources of the human and angelic mind, and a natural knowledge of God. The willingness that people have to do evil, even when they know it was wrong (i.e., sin), constantly defeated their efforts at a good society.
The Hebrews demonstrated that God’s initiation— beyond human contemplation, or even angelic intervention— was necessary and sufficient to create a good person and community. They realized this because, in their case, God had done precisely that: He had rescued Israel from Egypt, spoken the Law at Sinai, inspired the Psalmists, and spoken through the prophets. Above all, He had entered human history as Jesus, trained the apostles, and sent their example and message out into the world. The speaking of God to human beings and the demonstration of true human/ divine goodness in the teachings, life, (and especially) death and resurrection of Christ, is sufficient to make the world good.
On an individual or corporate level, then, it is through listening to God—hearing Him, and obeying His voice— that the inner transformation can take place to bring about happiness
Why hasn’t this happened yet, then on a global scale? To this point in history, there have not been sufficient numbers of people who actually trust God, and are willing to listen to Him. Humanity has, although with several shining exceptions, mostly ignored God’s interventions into history and chosen to go their own way. This is especially true today—the chaos and darkness that we see in the Modern world is largely a result of people ignoring the speaking of God. But God will not be defeated in His plan to create a massive, good, and happy community, and he has at least one more thing up His sleeve.
To be sure, it is likely that He will bring about at least one more movement like Early Christianity, Monasticism, or Protestantism. But in the end it is the visible re-entry of God into human history, in the Person of Jesus Christ and His followers which will be required to finally overcome evil with good on the global level. A description of His return, and the nature of His government of the earth, may help us obtain a vision of what is to be done in our time.