What can we expect from the people and cultures while waiting for Christ’s return?
2 Timothy 3 (NASB):
1 BUT realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. 2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, chaters of good, 4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God; 5 holding to a form of agodliness, although they have denied its power; and avoid such men as these.
The language Paul uses here is striking. He pulls no punches and continues to hit with truth after truth unabashedly. These terms describe lots of cultures including during Paul’s lifetime. Understand that “the Last Days” refers to the period between Christ’s ascension and His return – so Paul was living in “the Last Days” the same as we are today. What to expect during the Last Days is a gradual worsening of the things described here until God says “enough!” and sends Jesus back to collect the saints and issue in the “Time of Jacob’s Trouble,” also known as the “Day of the Lord” and the “Great Tribulation.”
Let’s look at these terms and understand what they mean (and remember that these all will get worse and worse as the Lord waits to send Jesus back):
- Lovers of self: in general, people will care more about themselves than they do about their neighbor
- Lovers of money: people care only about money and wealth for themselves, not willing to share with those in need. The single-minded pursuit of money without regard to others
- Boastful: the outward manifestation of internal pride
- Arrogant: lacking modesty, being full of oneself, and open disregard towards others
- Revilers: based on Bible translation, other words used include blasphemers (NKJ), Abusive (NIV), Scoffing at God (NLT) – these people openly mock God and the ones that worship him
- Disobedient to Parents: This includes a lack of respect for the generations that came before
- Ungrateful: Having an expectation of preferential treatment without any inclination to be thankful to the provider
- Unholy: they consider nothing to be sacred, showing disrespect to anything regarded as sacred by others
- Unloving: Lacking normal human affection, abnormal affection and love
- Irreconcilable: Trucebreakers, unforgiving, or people that aren’t interested in getting along with others
- Malicious Gossips: Talking about others with the intention to cause harm – (this is celebrated on many television shows today)
- Without self control: The inability to maintain control of emotions, usually leading to the lashing out in a way that harms other people
- Brutal: untamed; the opposite of civilized
- Haters of good: <self defining>
- Treacherous: betraying others for personal benefit
- Reckless: giving no thought to consequences
- Conceited: Excessively proud of oneself
- Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God: These people chase the short term feeling of pleasure instead of the enduring love of God. They chase what makes them feel good. These people almost always consider God a judge rather than a creator/father.
- Holding to a form of Godliness, although they have denied its power: This includes acknowledging that God exists, but that he isn’t who He says He is or has done the things He said He has done.
This is a long list of traits, and they have all existed to one degree or another since Paul wrote the passage. At the end of this passage, it is worth noting that Paul instructs Timothy to avoid such people.
If a single thread runs through all of these terms, it is the thread of selfishness. At its core, selfishness directly disobeys God’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself.” You need to eradicate selfishness in everything you do, and as Paul says above, “avoid such men as these.” This is so that their trances do not lure you into a world that is the opposite of what Christ died for. Model a holy life, and share the gospel with people exhibiting these traits, but do not associate with them unless the Lord has gotten ahold of them and changed their heart.
The trait of selfishness is rampant in today’s world, to a degree it has never been since Jesus’ ascension. Do not fall into the trap! Find a Bible-believing church that understands the progression of the last days, has a successful outreach ministry, and, more importantly, has a significant support and training system for the saints.
Your brother in Christ,
Duane
