The apostle Paul declares that, “In the last days, there will come times of stress. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhumane, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good, treacherous, reckless; swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, holding the form of religion but denying of it” (II Tim. 3:1-5 RSV). In this article, we review contemporary conditions with this quotation in mind.
Days of violence
“Abusive, inhumane, implacable, fierce, treacherous, reckless” are all words that indicate various forms of violence will typify the last days. On a daily basis, we are impressed that such conditions are dramatically true of our time.
“It’s either kill or be killed,’ says Larvell, 15 in Generation under the Gun, explaining why so many teens today carry arms. The MTV News Special Report (Dec. 9), which launched the network’s anti-violence campaign, addressed an ugly statistic: between 1985 and 1990, teen deaths by guns rose 77%. Host Tabitha Soren interviewed gang members and profiled community groups struggling to curtail the slaughter. It was a taut, tough half hour” Time, December 13, 1993. “Implacable, fierce” says Paul.
“The slaughter” describes conditions on the streets of American cities, not on the streets of Sarejevo in Bosnia. Part of the increase in violence can be attributed to the lobbying effort of the National Rifle Association. In 1986, their efforts succeeded with the passage by the United States Congress of laws liberalizing the mail order sale of weapons. Gun dealers now sell rifles, shotguns and assault weapons through the mail with no adequate way of determining the responsibility of the buyer. “Reckless” is the Bible term.
The 1994 Information Almanac notes that, today, the number one killer of American youth is death by violence, the primary weapon being handguns. The New York Times estimates that there is now one handgun for every two U.S. citizens. “Treacherous” is the apostle’s description.
Worldwide, the World Almanac reports that violent crime has risen an average of 6% a year since the early 1950’s. That represents a doubling of incidents every seven years, or an increase of 3,100% in 40 years. Just 10 days after two 11-year old boys were found guilty of the murder of a two-year old British child, two other British boys aged 10 and 11 were charged with torturing another youngster. “Inhumane” is the Biblical designation.
Lovers of pleasure
“At 15, a quarter of girls and a third of boys are sexually active…By the time they are 20, three-quarters of young Americans have had sex; one-fourth of teens contract some venereal disease each year,” Time, May 24, 1993.
Behind the statistics is a moral philosophy that commends self-indulgence and disdains the standards of God. “Some social scientists argue that there is nothing wrong with increased sexual expression among teens. ‘Feeling, thinking and being sexual is an endemic part of being a teenager,’ says UCLA psychologist Paul Abramson. ‘Let’s say a couple has paired off, wants to be monogamous and uses condoms. I’d say that’s a legitimate part of their sexual expression as a couple in the 90’s” (Ibid).
The same article continues, pointing out the dilemma faced by today’s parents. How can they commend chastity to their children when they did not and do not practice it themselves? Furthermore, the fear of their sons being gay leads many fathers to encourage them into premature heterosexual relationships.
One would think that the fear of AIDS should lead to emphasis on abstinence in sex education classes. While that choice is mentioned by teachers, most consider instruction in safe sex to be the more urgent task. Since promiscuity is so prevalent, teachers take that as the norm and emphasize how to have sex without contacting disease. For example, “At Santa Monica High, students can grab a condom in the nurse’s office” (Ibid). The result is an impression that everyone is doing it. Those who aren’t, quickly get the notion they are the odd persons out and feel additional pressure to participate.
The article continues, “Traditionally, it’s been the role of parents to convey the messages about love and intimacy that kids seem to be missing in their education about sex. [But] today’s parents are the veterans of the decade that came after free love and before safe sex…Hypocrisy is a burden they carry. ‘Do as I say,’ they instruct their teen-agers, ‘not as I did.”
Religion without standards
Another sign of the last days mentioned by Paul is the mockery of religion that will come to exist in supposedly religious communities. This is seen today in the fact that groups claiming to follow Christ have deviated so far from his original teachings that it is impossible to call them Christian. Two examples illustrate the point.
As reported by the Toronto Globe and Mail, August 24, 1993, “The United Church is now beginning to question the title of Lord for Jesus Christ. The Reverend James Crawford of Boston’s Old South Church said that we should be seeking metaphors for Ultimate Reality that do not assume that some male-like figure is in charge.”
In the Canadian Anglican Church, the debate still rages as to the allowance of homosexual ministers. The Globe and Mail reported on November 12, 1993: “The Anglican Church has opened a dialogue with members of the homosexual community in anticipation of accepting homosexual priests into their congregation.”
The return must be near
After comparing Paul’s words to Timothy with the situation in the world today, we realize how close we truly are to the soon return of our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that day will come quickly.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One