Over the course of one’s lifetime, opinions change as new evidence comes to the fore. As an example of this, back in about the 1980/90s, when speaking of the two witnesses in Revelation and, in particular, this verse – Revelation 11:10, “and those WHO DWELL ON THE EARTH will rejoice over them and make merry, and they will send gifts to one another because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth,” I used to say the reason for the world being able to see what was happening was computers. (That was when people were starting to see international events.)

Well, today we have mobile/cell phones, and that is the reason why. It is not someone sitting at a computer. The technology is now in place all over the world. When visiting some of the Pacific Islands, I was surprised to see young people in more remote places still with mobile phones.

Many things are still mystifying, and we won’t solve all of them. Too many people are too dogmatic about their opinions. In case you did not know, that’s how most Australians see Americans (I am speaking generally here). Please don’t take offense, as Christians are supposed to be different, tolerant, and understanding. I don’t really mean Christians.

Someone like me has a mind that won’t rest, and it is annoying. I want calm sometimes. We try to fathom things out in our minds, bouncing from position to opinion (at least I do).

I have spent a lot of time in these verses, and I have cited them on RR several times – 2 Timothy 3:1-2 “Realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come, for men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy.”

The introduction to this Timothy chapter is the last days, and, in context, it has to be the last days of the Church age. The chapter begins with characteristics of the last days’ people and progresses to this verse I want to speak on – 2 Timothy 3:13 “Evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”

A friend of mine says this chapter belongs to conditions in the church, but I don’t think so. This is the age for the world it speaks of, the Church age at its end. Of course, the age the disciples asked the Lord about in Matthew 24 ends at the Second Coming. It is different, but I think it would share some of the same characteristics.

We have, first of all, “evil men and imposters.” I can’t think of one area of the world where this is not now applying – politics, public/civil service, administrators, Hollywood, sporting field, and so many more. I would absolutely love to say it does not include churches, but I can’t say that because it is true that some churches are like that. I am horrified in this last week to read of the happenings in the USA with the United Methodist church. It is reprobate.

One thing about evil men and women is that they promote their own mindset of people into positions under them so that the whole is leavened by evil. Also, this is not sour grapes, but I am astounded at the number of positions everywhere where women now have control over men. Men are subdued in teaching, administration, and in my nation, in politics and government, on Boards and Commissions.

Evil/wicked people are straight-out evil, but imposters pretend to be good but are like snakes underneath. It is horrifying to see them deceiving people because they themselves are deceived. That was partly in my mind in the last article of mine addressing climate change.

People of a righteous disposition, because they are new creations in Jesus Christ, get upset at increasing evil and godlessness in the world. It is right that we get upset because all this is an affront to the standards of scripture. We see that in Jeremiah as he lamented the sins and conditions of his own people. It does cause one to reflect and be sad, but I bring this up later.

However, the other side of the coin is that we know we are not only citizens of this world in a loose sense, but our citizenship is in heaven from where our Lord will come in the Rapture. I really want to be alive for the Rapture and hope the years are not cheating me too much.

There is one other part in that Timothy verse which is this: “will proceed from bad to worse.” It is in this area I try to do the assessment. I wonder if it might be a gradual step down over time to the corruption that would be on the bottom or if it is an up-and-down movement but trending down overall with a rapid descent toward the end (where I think we are now). I hope that was not too confusing.

In my nation, since the 1970s, except for a couple of spikes a bit upwards, the trend has been steadily progressing downwards rapidly with the current evil that is in government and society, the worst I have known.

For you Americans, I must say that in the last 18 months I have been shocked with the state America is in. Naively, I thought the USA had a very good, solid Christian base, but now I understand differently.

I wrote once that after the evil of the Obama years, the Trump term saw more of a decency, and someone wrote to me in the greatest attack for saying that. I have been called awful things by a few way-out readers of RR, but I don’t mind because there are so many such lovely, supportive readers (some who write to me).

THE PRESENT DILEMMA

The USA is heading for an election, and in my mind, I have this term, “will proceed from bad to worse,” and it won’t go away. What could be worse than Biden and all of his very wicked team supported by California and New York? Overall, it will get worse if the Lord tarries. In Australia, a disinformation bill is before this wicked Marxist Parliament, and if passed, Christians will have no right to use some scriptures, such as the homosexual ones, and even preaching could be stopped. The days are getting so dark so quickly.

Let me share this, and please understand this in the context – it is just my musings, trying to understand the Timothy verse. If Trump is elected, then things will hold steady as King Josiah did after his wicked father, Manasseh, and before Josiah’s own wicked sons plunged it downhill again. I think (in that restless mind of mine) that Trump might not be standing for the election, or he might not win. It’s not what I want, but thinking…

Biden will not contest the election. He does not know if he is in next week or last week. There is a Democrat conference coming up in June, and it would not surprise me if Michele Obama is asked to stand for the top office.

Please don’t be mad at me. I am sharing what I don’t want to see, but these are the days of steep decline in evil and imposters. Everything will be done to keep Trump from standing because if he does, he will win, but I don’t see any viable candidate for the Republicans.

I just feel things anywhere will not get better but will decline worse and worse.  What I am trying to say is that conditions in the USA and elsewhere (US not being singled out) will get wickeder, and for that reason, I think the USA will be very much worse after the election.

I don’t really want to get into politics because it is not my thing, and to be honest with you right now, it makes me depressed to see the state of things. It is sad. Those of us who lived through the 1940s and 50s and 60s know how things were a whole lot better. This is all in line with biblical prophecy, and from that point of view, we need to LOOK UP, not down. I believe the Lord is on the threshold of the door of heaven that will open, with Jesus HIMSELF coming with the “COME UP HERE.”

Maybe I have said enough, so I will end there. The Lord bless and guide us through these troubled times, and Lord, we pray for your people Israel. Amen.

ronaldf@aapt.net.au

Like every June, this month will be filled with rainbow flags, signs, and ads commemorating Pride Month. LGBTQ symbols will be everywhere: on streets, in shopping centers, and on social media. Parades, gatherings, and rallies will all focus on the inclusion and awareness of people in that community.

Another group of people will also saturate op-eds and social media with a counterinsurgency of sorts against Pride Month. They’ll boast of taking back the rainbow and even get into shouting matches at gay-pride rallies to prove they are right. Many Christians become so fixated on fighting against Pride Month that they miss the opportunity to warn LGBTQ people about the problem they share with everyone else. It’s the problem of sin, a holy God, and coming judgment. They let pride get in the way of sharing the gospel.

We held a ministry outreach a few weeks ago, and as I was packing up, a group of teens began to ask me questions about the Bible. One young lady looked me right in the eye and asked, point blank, “Is homosexuality a sin?” I answered, “Yes, it certainly is, and so is adultery, idolatry, jealousy, and fits of anger (Galatians 5:19-20). She seemed a bit surprised by my response because I didn’t launch into a dissertation about the sin of homosexuality but lovingly warned her that all sin, including homosexuality, leads to destruction.

The talk with the group of teens reminded me of another encounter I had with a young lady while doing open-air evangelism. She came up to me and asked sarcastically, “I’m a lesbian; does Jesus love me?” I told her, “Yes, He loves you very much. He loves you so much that He endured torture and death on the cross to make you clean from every sin, including homosexuality, so you can have eternal life.” This young lady seemed taken aback at my answer that Jesus loves her. She asked a loaded question, which presupposed that I would argue. The Holy Spirit led me to share the gospel instead because the reality is that Jesus does love her (Mark 1:15).

You might be asking, “What about the books, drag shows, or other displays of debauchery that expose our children to perversion, indoctrinate them into the LGBTQ lifestyle, and officials who seem bent on subverting parental authority?” It is all seductive evil and must be spoken out against at every possible opportunity when children are used as pawns for sexual deviance.

What I’m addressing here is many Christians’ willingness to enter into a culture war against the LGBTQ community by trying to fundamentally change it through human effort instead of sharing the gospel. This could look like shouting matches at pride parades, social-media campaigns, or singling out the sin of homosexuality instead of warning people about all sin and its leading to eternity in hell (Jude 1:22-23).

What would happen if more believers began to address the cure for sin and not just the symptoms? What is the possible outcome if we lovingly preached the gospel to the LGBTQ community instead of worrying about winning battles? The result will be that some people will leave the LGBTQ lifestyle and come to saving faith in Jesus (Romans 10:14).

On the other hand, there’s a knee-jerk reaction by some Christians to appease the LGBTQ community by accepting and even participating in their spiritual deception. I believe it is a grossly misguided and unbiblical attempt to show Christian love. Here’s an example:

Several years ago, I went to a church forum one evening that focused on a Christian’s response to the LGBTQ movement, primarily among youth. The talk was hosted by several Christian leaders, and there were many teens and parents present. One of the teens in the audience asked the following question. “As a Christian, should I refer to my peers by their preferred pronouns?” This was a while back, so I’ll do my best to paraphrase the answer that was given. One of the leaders answered: “At first, I think we should refer to them the way they want to be because it shows Christian love. After you gain their trust, then it would be ok to address them by their proper pronoun” (Ephesians 5:7-10).

Not only was this unbiblical advice, but it only added more confusion to spiritually blind people who desperately need gospel clarity, not acquiescence to their sinful LGBTQ lifestyle. This wasn’t a rogue answer by these Christian leaders because, as we’ve seen in recent years, a growing number of well-known ministers have taken unbiblical positions on how to interact with the LGBTQ community, from suggesting the use of preferred pronouns while being clear on biblical truth and suggesting some attend gay weddings to show love. These contradictions to scripture are unfortunate examples of a watered-down Western church becoming like the world in an attempt to get them to like us when only the truth and love of Jesus will save them (2 Corinthians 4:4).

I don’t expect to see a reduction in pride parades, flags, or people who identify with the LGBTQ lifestyle. In fact, as we near Jesus’ return, I expect the sins of sexual immorality, including homosexuality, will increase exponentially. Satan is the prince and power of the air, and he has billions of people deceived, including people in the LGBTQ community, who follow the course of this world toward God’s wrath and an eternity in hell (Ephesians 2:1-3).

Acquiescence and appeasement won’t win LGBTQ people to Jesus, but neither will engaging in a culture war. The only thing that will bring people to repentance from homosexuality or any other sin is the gospel. We can’t let our own pride in trying to prove we’re right or, just as distracting, become people pleasers to be liked and be a stumbling block for people on the way to eternity. If we’re going to boast in anything, let it be in the cross of the Lord Jesus, where salvation is found. Don’t let pride get in the way of the gospel.

All for Him,

Howard