EVEN IN A DEVIL MESSED UP WORLD, CHRIST JESUS STILL EXPECTS US TO BE CLEAN! (ROM.2:1)
PLEASE, DON'T DOUBT WE'RE NECK DEEP IN THE BIBLE PROPHECIED PERILOUS TIMES! [2TIM. 3:1...] (PART TWO)
Welcome back.
I included this to refreshen our minds as we continue from where we stopped.
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.”
(2 Timothy 3:1.)
Apostle Paul, was writing from a prison cell in Rome, knowing that his own death was at hand. He was warning his young protégé Timothy of difficult days to come. Although he never loses his faith in God, it is clear that he was deeply concerned about the trends he saw all around him.
Hard times were coming; days of stress were just around the corner. If a man was not ready, if he didn’t brace himself in advance, he might be washed away when things got really hot. Evidence around us confirms the authenticity of Paul's warning. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE DEVIL IS NO LONGER HIDING, YET MANY OF US, SIMPLY REFUSED TO SEE HIM,AND IT'S SADDENING.
Condemnation of Apostate Leaders;
Verses 6-9 describe how these false teachers spread their insidious spiritual venom.
First, they prey on weak people. “They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth” (II Timothy 3:6-7).
The term “weak-willed women” certainly does not describe all women, but rather a certain class of women who are unusually gullible. They carry a load of guilt for their sins, and they let their sinful desires (perhaps a reference to sexual immorality) get them into all sorts of bad situations. The principle applies generally to all those who are easily led and easily confused.
Second, these false teachers are nothing new. When Paul mentions Jannes and Jambres in verse 8, he is referring to the Jewish tradition that named these two men as the leaders of the Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses in the book of Exodus. And how did they oppose him? By counterfeiting or duplicating some of the early plagues. For instance, when Moses turned the rivers into blood and called forth the plague of frogs, the magicians did the same things. This suggests to me that in the last days, there will be some spiritual leaders who are so in touch with demons that they will somehow counterfeit or duplicate the miracles of God, and millions will believe their deception.
Perhaps it is no coincidence that Paul used a word for “terrible” times that was only used elsewhere of demonized individuals (Matthew 8:28). Certainly there will be an outbreak of demonism in the last days leading up to the return of Christ Jesus to establish His Kingdom on the earth. The greater point is, the false teachers of Paul’s day, and the false teachers of our day, and the false teachers of the final days, are all cut from the same cloth. They’ve been around for a long time.
Third, their success will be limited and temporary (v. 9). They won’t be around forever because God will make it clear when He deals with them. Just as the waters that parted for Moses also drowned the Egyptian army, even so the Hand of God that saves His children will come down in crushing judgment on the false teachers.
Three Survival Strategies;
So,as it is now that we have known the period we are in, how do avoid making ourselves victims of the devil's vengeance?
30. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
31. Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (Act 17: 30-31)
If this is what we have to look forward to (and it is), how then should we live? How will we survive the “savage days” that are coming our way? Verse 10 emphasizes that Christians are called to be different. “Timothy, you were called by God to make a difference by standing strong. Don’t be discouraged by world conditions. Don’t let the world change you. Instead, go out and by God’s grace change the world.”(paraphrased)
The last part of this chapter suggests three very practical survival strategies for the perilous, difficult, dangerous days in which we live.
When we return, we shall consider some methods that the Bible prescribed for us to use to escape the victimisation of our common enemy...!
EVEN IN A DEVIL MESSED UP WORLD, CHRIST JESUS STILL EXPECTS US TO BE CLEAN! (ROM.2:1)
π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯π₯
PLEASE, DON'T DOUBTπ WE'RE NECK DEEP IN THE BIBLE PROPHECIED PERILOUS TIMES! [2TIM. 3:1...] (PART TWO)
β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘
Welcome back.
I included thisπ to refreshen our minds as we continue from where we stopped.
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.”
(2 Timothy 3:1.)
Apostle Paul, was writing from a prison cell in Rome, knowing that his own death was at hand. He was warning his young protégé Timothy of difficult days to come. Although he never loses his faith in God, it is clear that he was deeply concerned about the trends he saw all around him.
Hard times were coming; days of stress were just around the corner. If a man was not ready, if he didn’t brace himself in advance, he might be washed away when things got really hot. Evidence around us confirms the authenticity of Paul's warning. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE DEVIL IS NO LONGER HIDING, YET MANY OF US, SIMPLY REFUSED TO SEE HIM,AND IT'S SADDENING.
πCondemnation of Apostate Leaders;
Verses 6-9 describe how these false teachers spread their insidious spiritual venom.π
First, they prey on weak people. “They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth” (II Timothy 3:6-7).
The term “weak-willed women” certainly does not describe all women, but rather a certain class of women who are unusually gullible. They carry a load of guilt for their sins, and they let their sinful desires (perhaps a reference to sexual immorality) get them into all sorts of bad situations. The principle applies generally to all those who are easily led and easily confused.
π
Second, these false teachers are nothing new. When Paul mentions Jannes and Jambres in verse 8, he is referring to the Jewish tradition that named these two men as the leaders of the Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses in the book of Exodus. And how did they oppose him? By counterfeiting or duplicating some of the early plagues. For instance, when Moses turned the rivers into blood and called forth the plague of frogs, the magicians did the same things. This suggests to me that in the last days, there will be some spiritual leaders who are so in touch with demons that they will somehow counterfeit or duplicate the miracles of God, and millions will believe their deception.
Perhaps it is no coincidence that Paul used a word for “terrible” times that was only used elsewhere of demonized individuals (Matthew 8:28). Certainly there will be an outbreak of demonism in the last days leading up to the return of Christ Jesus to establish His Kingdom on the earth. The greater point is, the false teachers of Paul’s day, and the false teachers of our day, and the false teachers of the final days, are all cut from the same cloth. They’ve been around for a long time.
πThird, their success will be limited and temporary (v. 9). They won’t be around forever because God will make it clear when He deals with them. Just as the waters that parted for Moses also drowned the Egyptian army, even so the Hand of God that saves His children will come down in crushing judgment on the false teachers.
πThree Survival Strategies;
β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘β‘
So,as it is now that we have known the period we are in, how do avoid making ourselves victims of the devil's vengeance?
30. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
31. Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (Act 17: 30-31)
If this is what we have to look forward to (and it is), how then should we live? How will we survive the “savage days” that are coming our way? Verse 10 emphasizes that Christians are called to be different. “Timothy, you were called by God to make a difference by standing strong. Don’t be discouraged by world conditions. Don’t let the world change you. Instead, go out and by God’s grace change the world.”(paraphrased)
The last part of this chapter suggests three very practical survival strategies for the perilous, difficult, dangerous days in which we live.
When we return, we shall consider some methods that the Bible prescribed for us to use to escape the victimisation of our common enemy...ππ!