BAD BEHAVIOR IN THE LAST DAYS (PART 4)

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times.

They will consider nothing sacred.

They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.

Stay away from people like that!

2 Timothy 3:1, 2c, 4a, 5 NLT

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Godlessness is a major issue in our times. A 2022 survey found that more than 50 percent of the population of the United States alone didn’t believe in God. That’s a harrowing statistic and one that would surely grow if we considered the all people of the world.

What makes this even more disturbing is that it runs counter to the national motto of our country, “In God We Trust”, which is imprinted on the currency we use and has been since July of 1956. In fact, if there was another survey conducted to follow up the one mentioned, I wonder how many people would even know the motto exists.

So a majority of people don’t place any belief in the One who made them and reigns supreme over them and creation. That’s not good, just ask the Old Testament Israelites.

Read what constitutes a good two-thirds of the Bible and you will find a people who decided to not believe in God. They didn’t have a motto per se like the United States today but they had something far more concrete, an avowed covenant.  

This covenant was binding and exclusive, solely between God and the Israelite people that He had chosen to be His own. It was pretty simple in context. God would be their God and all they needed to do was remain faithful and loyal to Him. They were to worship no other gods or idols.

Since God was perfect in every way and therefore possessed no element of betrayal, He would always keep His end of the bargain without fail. Unfortunately, the Israelites weren’t as faithful. Not even close. The scriptures tell of an endless cycle that followed a set pattern.

First, the Israelites would sin against God and the covenant made with Him. Most often, this was because they chose to worship false idols and other gods outside of Him in direct violation of His commandments. The Israelites were religious but rejected the only God who could make them godly and righteous.

Next, God would send warning to His people. This was usually through a prophet or other messenger of God’s choosing. The warning would be rather simple in nature. Stop sinning against me or there will be consequences and God would specify the looming punishment.

Then the Israelites would choose to ignore the warning, disrespecting God giving them a chance to right their wrongs. And so God would carry through with what He promised and His people would find themselves in the midst of suffering and hardship, so much so that they would cry out to God for forgiveness, vowing to change their ways and never repeat them.

Finally, God would see the repentance of His people and withdraw His judgment, restoring them back into a proper relationship with Him, or put another way, renewing His covenant with them, a restoration and renewal that would last for a while before the Israelites fell back into their sinful ways which started the cycle all over again.

How does this relate to today’s message and the worst of the bad behaviors that will be found in the end times?

Because people will do as the Old Testament Israelites did but not regret it. As we see in our passage for today, they will consider nothing as sacred, even though considering themselves religious which simply means they won’t refuse to believe in anything, just not God who alone holds the power to make them who they need to be. He created all people in His image and only a relationship with Him will lead us to live within the framework of His image. And only a relationship with Him will further lead us to learn of and accept His salvation offer through Jesus, His Son, the Savior of the world.

Indeed, there will be very difficult times in the last days before Jesus returns and we know that the way people behave will bring a large percentage of that difficulty. Thanks be to God for His prophetic word and how it can help us being a part of the problem as we seek to ensure our love is fully in Him, we live lives void of pride and full of humility, we allow the Holy Spirit to guide our actions so to produce fruit instead of sin from our selfish desires, and we can place God first in all things to make everything mentioned prior, and even more, possible.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.