Change is coming. It has been coming, gradually at times, more rapid at others. Often subtle, like a thief in the night, you wake in the morning and discover something has been taken from you; sometimes head on like a charge against the walls. Our enemy is becoming emboldened, often no longer even denying or hiding their evil desires; becoming increasingly violent. Change is coming.
We’ve grown complacent in our comfort. We, the church, build bigger and fancier facilities and put on lavish productions. We’ve done all this while the enemy, like the little foxes have been eating away at the walls and the hedge rows and destroying the vineyard. Have we noticed the yield of fruit getting smaller and smaller?
The church’s new cardinal virtues are compromise, unity and being nice. While these are all good, they are not the things the door hangs and swings on (the term cardinal comes from the Latin word for hinge). But what fellowship has light with darkness? What communion has truth with lies?
America has provided us with freedom and liberty, but we have wasted this liberty while we took it for granted. The next election will not change this course regardless of who wins. It may alter the timeline, but it is not a political answer that is needed. It is a change of values and priorities that is needed. Our political environment should reflect our values – and sadly, often they do, but not in a good way. We should take advantage of our political process to advance the gospel, but we will not do so until we, as the church take on a proper worldview, a worldview based on God and His Word.
As we remain on our present course change is coming. America will not remain the preeminent nation of the world. Some may view that as good. I do not. With our system of freedom and our influence, we have an opportunity to practice and advance the gospel as no other nation in the world does. But we are seeing the thief take this opportunity as we sit by and do very little to protect what should be our real values, found in a life following Jesus Christ.
It is only a matter of time until restrictions are placed on how we worship, how we witness, how we live as Christians. Many in the church will rationalize the changes and accept them – as long as they have their smart phones and TV. But even that will change. You may have your things, but you will use them in the way someone else says.
The Bible clearly warns us about this change. Paul says in his letter to Timothy that a time is coming when people won’t want to listen to sound teaching and doctrine but instead will fill their ears and their minds listening to people who feed their own desires and passions (from 2 Timothy 4:3). He also talks of a rebellion against God and John tells of a far reaching falling away.
Change is coming. The church should prepare for it.