Matthew 24:10-13
“And then many will fall away and betray one another and
hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And
because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the
one who endures to the end will be saved.”
Who
isn’t disgusted with the current state of the American Evangelical church?
Aren’t we all tired of the “Five Steps to Faith?” There are so many seemingly
uneducated pastors running around saying things that your “gut” just knows aren’t
the truth, cringing moments where you are rethinking bringing your friend to
church. Ever left a church service seething in anger with a terrible desire to
punch the pastor in the face? Unfortunately, hypocrisy has become the church’s bread
and butter, to the point that churchgoers just have to accept it as part of the
package if they want to keep going. Just as Christ predicted, we have started
destroying ourselves causing “the love of many” to “grow cold.”
Jesus is speaking to His Disciples
in this passage. He’s telling them of the signs to watch for that tells us the
end is near. The verses before this tell of a time when Christians will be
persecuted by the whole world. Obviously, we are not in that time period but we
can see what he’s talking about in these verses happening right in front of us.
The point is, Jesus is not surprised that this is going on and we shouldn’t be
either.
Think of the parable of the
Virgins. You know, the ones standing/sleeping, waiting for the bridegroom to
come. There are ten of them and only five of them have enough oil to last
through the processional to enter the house of the Bridegroom. So there they
are when the bridegroom approaches, standing with an empty vessel…awkward. They had some oil at one point but now
they are void of the very thing they need to “get in.” They look just like all
the others but they lack the essential ingredient to produce that warm blazing
light. When they leave to go find some and come back, the Bridegroom/Jesus has
already shut the door and says, “Truly I say to you, I do not know you.”
Keep in mind it’s a parable, so
it’s not perfect. Now, obviously these people believed themselves to be close
enough friends to be part of the bridal processional. They thought they were
in. Just like in Matthew 7 where another group of supposed worshippers claim to
have prophesied, cast out demons and done mighty works in Jesus’ name. He says
the same thing to them, “I never knew you, depart from me.” They weren’t the
real deal; they did a lot of cool stuff but they didn’t KNOW Him.
Bottom line, our houses of worship
are filled with fakes and phonies and it’s no surprise. In fact, when it’s all
said and done, the fakes and phonies will probably be super shoked that the
fingers being pointed at them! There is an eventual promise of the separation
of the “goats from the sheep”, but the judgment of who’s who is NOT up to me
and you. That judgment lies with
God, the only one who can see into the heart of another. What’s important to
you, is the condition of YOUR HEART.
It’s hard to see through the crap
that’s out there. But there are also some great, loving, selfless, educated
people that love Christ. There are others that feel like you and I know that if
you pray, God will be faithful to help you find them. So keep up the good
fight, don’t let that lamp go out. The love and freedom of the Gospel are worth
fighting for!
Some sources of great Gospel teaching to tide you over….
DesiringGod.org (free sermons and books, podcasts available
through itunes)
Grace Community Church Podcasts
One of my all time favorite sermons
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