You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!
— 2 Timothy 3:1-5
Charles Colson and Dr. R.C. Sproul are two of my favorite writers. Both have gone on to be with the Lord but their writings linger with me, especially when they speak of things that help us live a righteous life in Christ. They both majored in the subject of “worldview,” by asking tough questions as to what kind of view of our world do we hold? Dr. Sproul taught that there are only two: man-centered or God-centered. Our free will allows us to act like the world centers around us—our desires, our dreams, our goals, our well-being, our future, our family, our job, our health, our education, our finances—or we can believe and act like everything we do in life centers around God and what He desires.
Charles Colson amplified this same theme, especially in his signature work, How Now Shall We Live? His thesis was that we also have two choices which he called: secular or biblical. By secular, he meant living your life without the benefit of any spiritual foundation. Our free will allows us to conduct our lives according to God’s word or without God and His commands. He gives us that choice. Colson maintained that our worldview will lead either to the ills of society which he calls crime (sin), or the lack thereof, which he calls righteousness. Moral failures are not the result of social and economic forces of people responding to their environmental conditions (income, education, upbringing), as some suggest but predominately by decisions made in their hearts. He writes:
“Crime is a matter of people choosing to do wrong. It is the individual’s moral failure . . . The moral dimension transcends social forces. People are genuine moral agents, and they make real moral choices. Sin begins in the heart, where it battles for control of our very being. And when the darker side of our nature prevails, we do wrong things. This is the source of crime.”*
So, are we living in that time of lawlessness that the apostle wrote to Timothy about? Are we there yet? All one has to do is read the crime report for the day in their morning paper or evening news. Because sin is a matter of the heart, only a change of heart can make the difference (John 3:3, 7-8). And there is only One who can change the human heart. His name is Jesus. Our Lord has left the communication of that message to us. How are we doing? Maranatha!
*Colson, How Now Shall We Live, pp. 28-29
To help us walk closer with God and to know Him better
