The Last Days

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.” (2 Timothy 3: 1)

Whenever there is a national tragedy, we always remember where we were when we first learned of it. I remember where I was when President Kennedy was assassinated, when the Challenger exploded, and when the Edward P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was bombed. Yet, for most of us, we have unusually poor recall when we try to remember times of national joy. It is a sad commentary about the times in which we live.

Next week marks the first anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, which by the way was the worst terrorist attack ever conducted on American soil. What does the Bible have to say about such random acts of violence? Can we ever expect that an end will come to these acts of lawlessness?

I will never forget Billy Graham’s eulogy at the memorial service held in honor of those who died in the Oklahoma City Bombing. It was a Sunday afternoon and there stood America’s Pastor charged with the unenviable task of trying to comfort mourners whose lives had just been shattered by such a senseless act of violence.

Rev. Graham did a masterful job at reaching out and reminding all of us that God still cared. His words were comforting, but he also told us that we could expect more of the same. He reminded us all that evil in many ways is a mystery that will not be fully understood until we get to Heaven. We may think we know why people do the things they do, but God’s word tells us that the lawlessness which we see at work in America today is a secret that only God and Satan fully understand. “For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work.” (2 Thessalonians 2:7a)

Isn’t is astonishing at how accurate the Bible portrays the times in which we live? “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God-having a form of godliness but denying its power.” (2 Timothy 3:2-5) We don’t have to go to Oklahoma City to find examples. Just read the rest of today’s newspaper. They live right here in our own community.

Billy Graham was right. Sadly, the Bible does tells us that times will get worse. Wrong will continue to be seen as right, immoral as moral, evil as good. Even Satan, the Bible says, will masquerade as an angel of light. (2 Corinthians II: 14) Until Jesus returns, truth will always be at peril.

My wife often looks out our bedroom window in times of despair and says: “I wish Jesus would come today.” The fact is that most mature Christians look forward to the rapture because they know that while Christ reigns in their hearts, he does not yet reign in their world. You see, Christians know that good will ultimately triumph over evil. We just can’t wait to see it.

I don’t know if we are living in the last days. That’s God’s business and none of mine. But I’m glad I’m a Christian. We shouldn’t be sad about the times in which we live. There isn’t a better time to be a Christian. We have joy in the midst of world that is only now beginning to realize that happiness is short-lived. We have peace in a world that is at war with itself. We live in an age when our faith will be tested to its limit, but it will also be deepened beyond measure. We have an opportunity unlike any other time to tell and show to others that the same joy and peace that we exude is a free gift and can be received through a simple prayer to a powerful God. Yes, these are great times for Christians, even if we are in the last days.

How do we respond in times like these? “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.” (Philippians 4:5-8)