I am thirty-one years older than my daughter. I recently told her, “The world you are living in is much different than the one I imagined for you.” But I don’t want her (or any of us) to underestimate faith.
Because isn’t that what Paul tried to warn Timothy? He said, “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come” (2 Timothy 3:1). The underlying definition of the word perilous means terrible, very difficult, hard-to-bear. And you’d expect his next words to describe brutal wars or catastrophic natural disasters, but no– he describes something much different. How Paul explains these difficult, hard-to-bear times was almost hard-to-understand until now.
“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…” (2 Timothy 3:2-5).
Twenty years ago, we’d never heard of a selfie-stick or why we’d want one. But this generation understands selfies. And lovers of money isn’t necessarily new but when paired with blasphemers, unthankfulness, and little or no self-control, it’s ugly. We also didn’t have social media twenty years ago, but what a platform it has given to slanderers who can hide behind a keyboard.
I recently read a story about a young man who insulted a champion wrestler online. The wrestler replied (online), “Would you dare say that to my face?” To which, the young man replied, “No, you’d kick my —, that’s why I tweeted it.” The wrestler simply replied, “Fair enough.” But what a picture of brazenness.
But the one that scares me the most is “…having a form of godliness but denying its power.” It reminds me of a warning Jesus gave His disciples in John 16, “The time will come that whoever kills you will think that He offers God service” (vs. 2). Our world today is very aware of religious zealots who have no other agenda than to kill others not like them “in the name of their god.”
A True Picture of End Times
Bringing Paul’s warning closer to home, we can’t assume he’s not talking about the modern Christian church. There are many buildings with steeples on top and billboards out front that indicate this is a place of worship. But is there power? Jesus said, “when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth” (Luke 18:8)? This wasn’t just a dramatic question. Jesus knows the only way we win ANY BATTLE is first by faith. John was inspired to write this warning to those who would follow:
“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 5:1-5).
We have been given every tool to succeed in these perilous times — first and foremost being, LOVE. Love God and love others. Sometimes love needs to speak up and speak the Truth, but never in a slanderous or belittling way. But ultimately, our love must first be fueled by faith. “This is the victory that overcomes the world [and all its perilous, hard-to-bear, difficult obstacles]— our faith” (my paraphrase).
Don’t underestimate your faith.
“Every God-begotten person conquers the world’s ways. The conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith. The person who wins out over the world’s ways is simply the one who believes Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 5:4-5, MSG). Despite these trying times, I encourage you today to keep your faith stirred up. Don’t be the biblical statistic Paul described to Timothy. Instead, be the change. Reflect Jesus.
