The Last Days Of The Church XVIII

If a little leaven leavens the whole lump, then a bit of the profane bespoils the sacrosanct. We have been witness to the downward spiral of churches and denominations once they set upon the path of compromise, and unless a bold stand is made and there is a demand to return to the Biblical foundations they abandoned, their ruin is assured.

When you read Paul's detailed list of what many claiming to be believers will be like, it’s more akin to an open, festering wound than anything wholesome, resplendent, or beautiful. We’re not even halfway through the list, and if we look upon the contemporary church with a critical eye, we are able to check off every one of the things Paul has mentioned thus far, as not only being present therein but growing and flourishing.

One cannot overstate the metastatic nature of such things since they tend to spread throughout a body like a brushfire in a dry and arid climate. Unless stopped, they will consume everything in their path and utterly destroy the host because that is their singular intent. One act of disobedience and rebellion turns into five, then fifty, then a hundred, and before you know it, you have entire congregations denying the Lordship, supremacy, and inerrancy of Christ, forging idols that they then declare sacred and worthy of worship and subservience.

The further I get into this study, the less I want to write it because it causes me discomfort and is draining beyond anything I can verbalize. I take no pleasure in it nor write it with glee because it heralds a spiritual darkness that will blind countless souls to the reality of their rebellion and subsequent judgment.

Would I have preferred that Paul wrote about a sweeping revival that would turn nations toward the love of Jesus? Would I have preferred that he had said countless millions would fall on their faces in repentance? Of course, any of us would, but what is written is written, and we must abide by it, preparing for its eventuality. Our expectations of the future cannot be contrary to Scripture, nor can we discount the Word of God in lieu of pipe dreams and misplaced hopes. If for no other reason, I will finish this study for posterity’s sake. That, and because I want to stand before my God with clean hands, knowing that through my journey here on earth, I rightly divided the Word and deferred to Scripture as the final authority.

That men would be unloving during the last days is yet another sign that will become evident. Whether one takes it to mean that men would be without natural affection, as is one of the interpretations often subscribed to being unloving, or that they would not possess love for their fellow man in their hearts, both of these interpretations can be readily seen within what calls itself the church in our current age.

The main characteristic of one who is unloving within the body of Christ is that they will use the rest of the body as a means of achieving their own ends. Every bright smile and lupine sneer you see on your television screen insisting that the way to heaven is through your wallet and that the condition of your heart is of little consequence as long as you give and give until it hurts is, by definition, unloving. To know that someone is still shackled and a slave to sin, yet your singular purpose is to separate them from their money rather than point the way to Jesus, who can facilitate their freedom, is the epitome of being unloving.

A spiritual leader who is not concerned with your spiritual well-being is nothing more than a wolf pretending to be a shepherd. They can say they love you in ever more poetic and enigmatic ways, all the while sharpening their sheers and preparing to fleece you of your wool. You tell someone a painful truth because you love them enough to do it. You perpetuate a lie and coddle their sin, omitting what the Bible has to say about it because you have no love for them in your heart and are just using them as a walking ATM.

There is a nefarious purpose in our attempt to redefine the meaning of words, and in twisting them to mean something they were never intended to. We’ve come to the point where it is deemed loving to cheer on those who are hellbound and the heights of hatred and intolerance when you dare to point to the precipice they’re about to go over and warn them before it’s too late.

Love does not equal acceptance of sin or validation and celebration of perversion. Telling someone who is drowning that they’re doing it masterfully isn’t loving, but the polar opposite. Love, true love, is pointing the way to Jesus and telling people how they can be free of the soul rot that has consumed their being and to which they have become slaves.

During the last days, Paul tells us that men will likewise be without natural affection. Even among the godless, there used to be this unwritten rule that you defend the innocent, protect the helpless, and defend life whenever it is threatened. That you would have supposed pastors and spiritual leaders of certain denominations decrying any attempt at prioritizing the sanctity of life tells you all you need to know about the time you’re living.

When the murder of the unborn and unbidden access to it becomes the rallying cry for the church and animates them to a far greater degree than defending the gospel or the name of Jesus, there can be no denying the corruption, the decline, and the evil festering in the hearts of those claiming to be His own.

Are you saying the metric for being a believer is being pro-life? I’m saying the metric for being human and in possession of natural affection is being pro-life. Why this is a debate within the church is beyond me. Why entire denominations would be advocating for the murder of the helpless and innocent is downright diabolical and beyond my capacity to process. Unless you are the giver of life, you have no right or authority to determine when that life is snuffed out. That should be the end of the discussion, but here we are, living in perilous times, and the hearts of many have turned to stone.

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea, Jr.