In 2 Timothy 3:1-5 we read “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people, turn away!”
As you read that passage of scripture, did the thought cross your mind — “this sounds like the very time we are living in?”
· Today we are faced with increased environmental disasters.
· The economy is a mess – the government is spending trillions of dollars we do not have.
· Our educational system is contaminated – promoting Critical Race Theory and the Cancel Culture. Our poor kids don’t know their gender. They are taught that if they are a certain color, they are racist. Our history is being re-written. The list goes on and on…
· Marriage and family relationships are being re-defined. They hardly consider what the Creator had in mind.
· International relations are filled with distrust.
· Many of our politicians are self-serving and blatant liars.
· The media hardly ever reports the news — they make it up.
· Violence rules many streets in our cities.
· A growing number of our politicians are showing a blatant disregard for our constitution.
· A war is being waged to protect the lives of the unborn.
This is a terrible blight on our history and our nation. It is hard to imagine that our God will tolerate this much longer.
There is so much more that I could list, but I hope by what I have shared that you can see we are on a slippery slope to experiencing God’s judgment. I have to believe as I go through the scriptures that His cup of wrath must be just about full.
The question is — is there any hope? Is there any way out of this terrible foreboding we are facing? The good news is YES! But it will require our getting on our knees and faces in brokenness before God and humbling ourselves before our Sovereign Lord.
In 2 Chronicles 7, we read about King Solomon and the dedication of the temple built for the glory of God. In verses 12-16 HCSB, we read, “Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him: I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a temple of sacrifice. 13 If I close the sky so there is no rain, or if I command the grasshopper to consume the land, or if I send pestilence on My people, 14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land. 15 My eyes will now be open and My ears attentive to prayer from this place. 16 And I have now chosen and consecrated this temple so that My name may be there forever; My eyes and My heart will be there at all times.”
Will, we as a nation, humble ourselves, pray, seek God’s face, and turn from our evil ways? I pray that we will but I personally am seeing an attitude rapidly developing among the people that speak of blatant rebellion and lawlessness toward God.
I have just been reading through the book of Revelation again. As you read of the bowl and trumpet judgments during the seven years of tribulation – some of those judgments are so severe you would think the people would cry out to God for mercy, but they don’t, and their hearts become more and more hardened.
Consider the judgments God brought against Pharoah and the Egyptians when God was trying to get them to let the Israelites leave. We read again and again that Pharoah “hardened his heart” and it wasn’t until the death of the firstborn throughout the land that he relented and let the Israelites leave.
You would think that severe judgment would lead to surrender, repentance, and turning back to God, but it doesn’t always work that way.
What is the solution?
1. Those of us who really know the LORD must be sure that we are very right with Him.
2. We need to love Him with all of our spirit, soul, mind, and body. We must live to honor and glorify Him.
3. We must love our neighbors even as Christ loves us and gave Himself for us.
4. We must be people of truth. This is no time to pretend to be godly. We need to live in the light and walk in the light and show forth the goodness, graciousness, and greatness of our God consistently.
Folks, as agents of His light, we can push back and penetrate the darkness that engulfs us.
Blessings,
Pastor Leonard
