BYM ONLINE DESK Jan 2019 Blessing E-magazine | Page 5

January 2019 | www.bymonline.org
lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive,
disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless,
unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal,
not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with
conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.
Avoid such people.”
The Word of God clearly says that godlessness will
abound in the last days. Believers will be mocked upon.
Fear of God will be on a steep decline. People would be
lovers of self, lovers of money and lovers of pleasure. Do
we not see these things in our families, institutions,
churches and fellowships? There are more internal
problems in the Church of God today. We have lots of
people in the church who have compromised their
holiness. There are Christian leaders who fail in sexual
morality or are found to mishandle money or people. Very
few take a stand for holiness. We have law-suits that
involve the Church and its institutions. Money plays a
major role in decision making. Morality is plummeting.
The advent of the mobile phone has added to the woes.
Divorce-rate in Christian families has sky-rocketed.
Children do not see exemplary lives in their parents. The
family unit is crumbling down. The law of the land
encourages immorality and same-sex marriages. We live
in a sin-intoxicated environment. “If the foundations are
destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psa 11:3). Today,
the child of God finds himself (herself) in a difficult
society which does not draw a line between holiness and
filthiness. He or she does not have an example to follow.
Truth and morality depend on people and situations.
There are no absolute standards. Holiness has become a
big challenge for a believer who lives in these last days.
We need not run to sin. It is just a touch away. Smart
phones open the door to immoral life through individual
chat rooms in WhatsApp and through questionable apps.
Many a sin doesn't have a price tag attached to it. There are
also exciting offers to trap us. Today we find many
occurrences of middle-aged people falling into
immorality because of smart phone. Let us be on our
guard. We live in perilous times and hence drastic
measures are required to keep ourselves holy.
People have also become slanderers, gossipers and
arrogant. It is for this reason we find fighting inside the
churches and institutions. Speaking lies is a common
practice and has become the trick of the trade. A true child
of God while witnessing all these things should not be
discouraged. The Bible has warned us about such times
and it has come upon the face of the earth now. So let us
stay alert and strong. Never try to run away from one
problem to be caught up in another. There are no
fellowships or institutions without internal problems. We
live in a fallen world and we live in the last days. We are
called to avoid such people and are to be focused on the
task that is ahead of us. Hence let us keep ourselves safe
and holy.
Rev 22:10-12 - “Let the evildoer still do evil, and
the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and
the holy still be holy. Behold, I am coming soon, bringing
my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has
done.”
3) Understanding God's Patience
2 Pe 3:9 “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise
as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not
wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach
repentance.”
We need to stay alert because the Lord's patience is
running out. The wrath of God is going to come. The Day
of the Lord will be on us soon. Today is the day of our
salvation. Today is the day we need to turn away from our
sins. This is the day we need to decide to pray more and
repent of our sins of omission and commission. Let us
remember the initial days. Let us remember the height
from which we have fallen. Like King Ahab, let us return
to Him with tears and broken heart (1 Kings 21:21-29). Let
us repent of our spiritual pride which keeps us from
repenting. Spiritual pride keeps telling us that everything
is ok and improving while our hearts are far away from the
Lord. The Lord is waiting for us to repent of our sins of
pride and worldliness. Many of us do not give sufficient
time to God. Our quiet time with God has been dwindling
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