Thought for August 29, 2023

•  1833: Britain abolishes slavery
• 1862: Second Battle of Bull Run
• 1898: Goodyear founded
• 1928: W.A. Criswell ordained
• 1967: 78 million watch the final episode of "The Fugitive"
• 2005: Second and third landfall of Katrina--1800 die, $115 billion in damages
• Born: John Locke, Eliot Gould, Robin Leach, Bob Beamon, Temple Grandin, Michael Jackson, Neil Gorsuch, Charlie "Bird" Parker, John McCain
• Died: Brigham Young, Lee Marvin, Archie Campbell, Gene Wilder, Ingrid Bergman [died on her birthday]

Thought:

Reading about the last days in 2 Timothy 3:1-7. These verses were written to warn and prepare us for difficult and challenging times to come. And while we do not know when we are in the last days before Christ's return, we live in the last days. As we age we are close to our last days in the flesh. But these verses are also a challenge to me to examine my own life--have any of these things slipped into my life, have I conformed to the world rather than being transformed? 

 And notice verse 3:12--all who desire to live godly in Christ will be persecuted. Can I measure my godliness by the level of persecution I face? But let's look at those things that characterize the difficult last days--

• Men love themselves--Jesus said the two great commandments were to love God and love our neighbor--notice some indicators that I love myself more than God or others
• I love money--the root of evil. Loving money even though it is temporary, passing, and cannot buy anything of eternal value. I measure success by my compensation.
• I boast--My sentences are filled with "I." Scripture warns us not to boast about what we will do tomorrow because we are not promised tomorrow. 
• I am arrogant--filled with pride. Look at all I have done, all I have accomplished. And my arrogance makes me look down on others, consider them less valuable and less worthy than me. 
• My arrogance, pride and boastfulness cause me to revile others---abuse them, mistreat them, consider them less than myself.
• Disobedient to parents--here is a great truth--our rebellion against authority begins with rebellion against parents. We refuse to submit to parents, then we refuse to submit to God. I always told my children that they should notice that this sin is listed among some pretty ugly sins. 
• Ungrateful--we don't thank God because we feel like we have done everything ourselves and we earned or deserved everything we have.
• Unholy--we live for and to ourselves, not set apart for His service.
• Unloving--notice we love money and we love ourselves, but true love is not in us. For true love lays down its life for God and then for others.
• Irreconcilable. Think about that one. We refuse to be reconciled with God and we refuse to reconcile with others. You know people like this---you try and overcome differences, but they refuse to reconcile. Marriages end over refusal to submit to each other and be reconciled. Or we hold grudges, seek opportunity to get even.
• Malicious gossips-- or as we Baptist say it, "sharing." We want everyone to know about the failures of others, their problems and shortcomings.
• No self-control. Recall that the fruit of the Spirit includes self-control--discipline. The will to restrain and abstain. 
• Brutal--savagely cruel, barbaric. We act with our animal instincts-no kindness or gentleness or forgiveness.
• Haters of good--think about that. We are not neutral, we love evil and hate good. God always talks about how we despise Him and His word. And Jesus said we should not even be lukewarm.
• Treacherous--the definition sounds like Satan himself--deceitful, disloyal, unfaithful, a traitor, one who betrays. 
• Reckless--not sober, alert, under control--giving way to every lustful urge.
• Conceited--goes right along with boastful and arrogant. I have myself on the throne because I know everything.
• Lovers of pleasure---Wow! This has gone to meddling. God asks me how much time I use to plan trips, vacations, games, movies, recreation and how much time I spend with Him.
• Now the last two really hit home
• A form of godliness, but no power. Does that describe my life? I look good on the outside, I give the right impression--but I am spiritually weak. 
• Always learning, but never getting to the truth. Do I know more about Jesus that I know Jesus? Think about that--have I just read His biography and know all His speeches, but have never met Him. Do I know Churchill as well as I know Jesus--really know Him? Have I read about Him but never talk to Him? 

The last days will be difficult. Do other people look at me and think it must be the last days because Larry looks just like 2 Timothy 3? 

Blessings

Larry