A Time is Coming? Or Has it Arrived?
Recently I stumbled across a blogger and his followers that were a group of “recovering Christians” so to speak. They used to believe and now they don’t. As I began to do what Jesus has commanded by teaching what the Scriptures say in love, the feedback I got was “your message has been removed/deleted for preaching.” What? Why? I was answering people who were directly responding to my comment regarding the blog post, and we were engaging in a respectable conversation regarding Scripture.
Paul warns us in 2 Timothy that a time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching. In our virtual worlds of twitter, blog sites, YouTube and other engaging platforms there is often deleting vs. dialoging, insults vs. investigation, and ridicule vs. reason.
Paul gives us this charge in 2 Timothy 4:1-5 reminding each of us that we all have a ministry to do the work of an evangelist.
Preach the Word “4 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound[a] teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 5 As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” 2 Timothy 4:1-5 (ESV)
Just 5 verses after this charge is given, Paul let’s us know through his experience that we may lose friends over this, we could be “deleted” or deserted by friends and family. Paul while doing this very work was deserted by a guy who loved the world more than God. “For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica.” 2 Timothy 4:10 (ESV)
If we truly love others, then we must confront erroneous thinking/behavior or we cannot say we are loving others.
If I see a train coming and somebody standing on the tracks oblivious, I’m going to do everything I can to keep them from getting hit; however, if they hit a button to make me “go away,” “delete me,” or try to put me in jail, or force me to obey their orders etc…and I continue to stand for Truth then one day I, like you will be able to proclaim as Paul did that “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” 2 Timothy 4:7
Do not get tired in doing the right things. In your opinion based on 2 Timothy above do you think the time is still coming that Paul warned about or do you think it has arrived?
written by Jamie Shaver