There is a strange irony about people living at the end of an age. Just when signs speak with forceful clarity of the approaching end, there grows the conviction that the end will not come!
Blinding optimism
Man’s eternal optimism is aroused, blinding his senses: “Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation” (II Pet. 3:4). At a time when mankind’s degeneracy exceeds even the longsuffering of God, men ironically speak of “peace” — a state of being right with God, as if God approves of their wicked deeds (cf. Mic. 3:9-11,12; Jer. 6:13-15). And they speak of “safety” — a state of stability and firmness, as if the degenerate human systems are still worthy of confidence and dependence (cf. Jer. 7:4)!
The world, lulled thus by a false sense of peace and security, falls back into the old patterns of marrying and giving in marriage, sowing and reaping, buying and selling — everything, in fact, except what God is seeking: repentance.
What attitude in the ecclesia?
But is there here a deeper, more tragic story? Peter (II Pet. 3:3) writes of “scoffers” coming in these last days. Are these just unbelieving neighbors who ridicule the saints? Paul (I Thess. 5:3) writes of those who speak of “peace and safety.” Are these just ignorant Gentiles?
There is an unmistakable allusion in I Thessalonians 5:4-7 to Matthew 24:42-44 and 48-50. It establishes a connection both surprising and deeply disturbing: Among these scoffers and unbelievers are some of Christ’s own servants. Is that possible? Is it possible that each one reading these words could fall into the same complacent attitude as evidenced by these men? Could we also blind ourselves by a promiscuous indulgence in the pleasures and cares of this final age?
Anticipation 100 years ago
One hundred years ago brethren were in a high state of expectancy of their Lord’s return. They talked about it. They wrote extensively about it.
Can the same be said today about us? Or has the materialism of this age lulled us into a comfortable stupor? “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be…?” (II Pet. 3:11). In two words, Peter sums up what alone can deliver us from the tragedy of this final generation: “holiness” and “godliness.”
Holiness means moving away from sin
A life of holiness is a life that deliberately chooses a direction different from the world. Abraham moved away from the world, always setting his tent, and his life, toward the city “that hath foundations whose builder and maker is God” (Heb. 11:9-10).
With a deliberateness that ought not to be missed, God contrasts the tragic mistake made by Lot: “And Lot…pitched his tent toward Sodom” (Gen. 13:12). Why open the doors of one’s house in that direction? Is this not an open invitation to all the influences and desires of Sodom to take up permanent residence in one’s home and life? At the end, Lot lost everything — and so shall it be in the day of the coming of the Son of man.
Godliness is devout behavior
While we can think of “holiness” as describing the direction of our lives, “godliness” describes our devout behavior toward God; our desire to do what is well-pleasing to God. (Unlike the English derivative of godliness — “Likenesses,” the Greek is built up from a word that describes a reverence and devotion toward God and a life that befits such reverence.)
What is the key to godliness? Paul’s advice to the brethren in Corinth points us in the right direction: “Do not be deceived: Evil company corrupts good habits.” (I Cor. 15:33 NKJV). Just as the key to holiness is orienting our home and life in the right direction, so the key to godliness is the company we keep in our home. Once Lot opened his tent door wide toward Sodom, it was inevitable that Sodom’s degrading influences would be accommodated within.
What is welcomed into our homes
Is it possible to “carry fire in one’s bosom” and not be burned? Is it credible to believe godliness can shield one from the corruption of company of this sort? Lot seems to have thought this. And surprisingly, he did remain immune (see II Peter 2:7-8), but no one else in his household did. Not one manservant or maidservant, not his wife, not even his two daughters (who forsook faith for immorality) remained unscathed.
There is an immeasurable sadness in beholding the lonely and desolate end of Lot. But what greater sadness might our Lord now have as he looks upon us who know all these things?
To what company do we open our doors? What influences of this last age are our children’s companions? The word of God or the TV? The literature of the ecclesia or of the world? Men of faith or men of lust?
Remember Lot’s wife. Remember his daughters also.
“The day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (II Pet 3:10-12).
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One