Skeptical or Hopeful?

“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of His coming?  For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”  II Peter 3:3-4

If this was the only verse in scripture that gave us a sign of the end times, it would be enough to convince anyone who is observant of the times in which we are living and who realize that this old world can’t continue on its current trajectory without a major reset to know that there is an end game in sight.  The problem is that those who see a train wreck coming are few and far between.  The majority of the world’s population are like those described in the above verse.  They believe that the world will continue as it always has, and folks will continue to live their lives oblivious to the fact that all people will be held accountable to God eventually.

Many folks are so wrapped up in the world of their own making that they can’t see further than the next football game, party, vacation, or whatever event to which they are looking forward to keep their minds off their problems and disappointments.  Scoffers, those who live carnal lives, ridiculing and/or persecuting those who walk after the Spirit, have always existed, but recently they have become bolder and more aggressive against the gospel, Christ, and those who follow Christ.  That is likely another sign that the last days are quickly coming upon us.  Some folks flagrantly promote their sins as if God doesn’t exist.  I don’t have to specifically name these sins because anyone who has not been living in a cave away from the internet, television, and radio knows how far people have gone into depravity and perverseness, particularly affecting children.  These ungodly people have no fear of God, but scripture tells us that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7).

I have often wondered why so many people have little to no interest in the things of God.  Why is it that some folks love God, trust in and depend on Him, and others, who seem to be the majority, couldn’t care less about Him and their eternal destination?  Is it their upbringing?  Is it because the scoffers come from a long line of folks who have no use for God?  That can’t be the only answer because there are those who were reared without any spiritual knowledge or training who come to Christ, repent, and believe in Him when they hear the gospel that had previously been unknown to them.  Then there are those who grew up with dedicated Christian parents and taken to a good Bible-preaching church, yet decide they want nothing to do with God, Christ, or Christianity.  It is not difficult to understand a young person’s desire to turn away from God when his or her parents claim to be Christians yet live as hypocrites.  There are likely many reasons or more accurately, excuses, that folks give as to why they ignore or reject the Lord.

The reason or excuse we hear most often as to why folks reject the Lord is that they love their sin too much.  I’ve never heard an unbeliever say that, however, I think many believe that they will have to give up something in order to serve the Lord.  Well, they will.  They will have to leave their sin behind, and live a new life in Christ, but if they could only understand how much better their lives will be as a believer, they would run to the Savior.  It could be that the Christians that they know are not showing the joy of serving Christ or who are living at a guilty distance.  Being a Christian is a great joy, but it is also a great responsibility to represent Christ and make others thirsty for that Living Water.

I also often wonder why I was blessed to be reared by dedicated Christian parents, taken to church, and taught the value of loving and serving the Lord.  I could ask the words of that old song by Kris Kristofferson, “Why me Lord?”  Lots of folks ask that question when troubles come, and they don’t know which way to turn, but those of us who know Christ can ask, “Why me Lord, why do You bless me so?”  There is nothing that any of us can do to repay Christ for His sacrifice to set us free from our sins.  He just desires that we be faithful with our hearts filled with overwhelming gratitude for His love and mercy.  Every morning when I wake up, I say what one of my former pastors told his congregation that he said every morning upon arising, “Thank You, Lord, that I am still alive, and that I am still saved.”  A skeptic lives with doubt and fear, but a committed believer in Jesus Christ lives with joy and hope.  Seems like a “no-brainer” to me.