Urgency Of The Hour

II Timothy 3:1
.....But know this, that in the last days......

There is such a distorted view of the phrase "Last days" among people today.
It stirs fear within the hearts of some...the very idea that the clock is ticking on humanity. The thought that there is a set amount of time that has been provided by God. "Surely God would not actually do something drastic would he...after all, He is a God of love. Fear grips the human heart (Or we work really hard to ignore it) that something lies beyond what we can see or understand.
We try very hard to wrap our minds around such thoughts, but in truth, we want to slowly slide them to the back burner for fear that there may be truth found in such words. If I don't think about them, it won't be true.

Such words as "last days" conjure up images of a Jesus coming back to exact judgement on the world. To get even with those who didn't line up and toe the line as to what He expected. Some see Jesus as one who inflicts great pain and derives some sort of pleasure from doing so.  Such views as this keep people from seeing the real-deal Jesus. Such views as this come from a heart steeped in spiritual darkness.

When I read the words "Last days", I am filled with hope and, at the same time, great sadness. It doesn't take a rocket scientist (I apologize to all those who are employed by the space complex...no pun intended) to see that our nation, our world has changed drastically over the past 20 years. Changed not for the better, but changed to a darker place. A darker view. Such is the way it is when God is removed from the collective conscious of a country. "Oh!", you may exclaim, "We haven't removed God, we're just a more tolerant people." No we're not. We have removed all restraints as to accept whatever comes from the heart of man. Seems as though if we are a tolerant nation, we sure do have a lot of intolerance for God and those who truly are following Him. We reject such people as this, as being racist, hurtful, bigoted and about a dozen other names. 

In such a case, I guess that (in the eyes of society) I am a racist, hurtful, bigoted man. My views and belief's don't match up with the majority. I am a minority. It is what it is.Jesus said that the world would hate me (a follower of Him) because it hated Him. I will not compromise the Word of God. I will not join in this parade of insanity simply to be a part. I know that life is going to get harder as the years go by because of my belief's. I know that I will continue to be relegated to the fringe as a kook....crazy man....religious right-wing zealot. There will be labels attached to me. That's o.k. I will continue to love. I will continue to pray. I will continue to speak the Word of God for as long as I draw breath. How could I do anything less. To me the gospel of Christ is very easy....love God...love those who love Him........love those who don't love Him (Thanks to Chris Katoe for that definition). 

I will be the first to acknowledge that the church has probably done more to harm the name and cause of Christ over the past few years than to help it. I've always said that people know more about what the church is against than what it truly stands for. Don't think I am lumping all churches together in this moral failure, I'm not. There are churches in the country and around this world that daily carry out the mandate of God to "GO!" They go into the marketplace, the school, the work place and they love on folks, praying for their souls. There is a sharing of the truth daily by those who carry the  name and Spirit of God in their lives. But such Churches whose focus and purpose is found in Christ are few. The church (collectively those who have truly given themselves to Christ) should be about the business of 1.) Worshipping Jesus in every way and every day, and 2.) telling those around us the good news...the Gospel that is the POWER of Go to salvation for everyone who believes (Romans 1:16).

I fear that in dealing with people who are trying to break free of addiction, some can't see the greater good,  in that this new life is more than simply the absence of drugs and alcohol. I understand how our drug of choice occupies the no.#1 spot in our consciousness. We are under the gun, so to speak, to break free. That is our primary concern and focus as we are trying to move into a new way of living. But this new way of living should lead us to a higher, greater truth that empowers us. That a POWER greater than me.....A POWER greater than my own will or ability can reach inside me and remove those defects of character which empower and sustain my addiction.
The need for the POWER of God has never been greater in our society. The reality of who Jesus is and what He has come to do needs to be on the lips of everyone who claims His name. There are those "poor unfortunates", as the big book of A.A. states, who desperately need to snatched from the fires of hell and addiction. This is the call we all carry to share our story of what God has done for us. I will never stop telling that story. I will never sit casually by while someone slides down that slope to eternal damnation.Now more than ever, we need to be light in a world gone dark.

Thank you for letting me share this morning....
God on you...
mb