THE AGE OF DECEIT!

THE AGE OF DECEIT!

Matt 24:4-12

4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.

10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

          The above is part of Jesus’ answer to the disciples’ question: “Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” His answer begins with a warning not to be deceived. Before Jesus actually comes there will be a climate so ripe for His coming that we will wonder why He is waiting so long. Jesus goes on to give some general information regarding the age in which He comes.

          The foremost characteristic of this age is DECEIT. Jesus warns them that the general climate of deceit will slip into the churches. Many, He said, will come “in my name.” The Amplified New Testament says: “Many will come appropriating the name that belongs to me!” I take that to mean that the programs they present will be sanitized by the use of the name of Jesus. We live in an age where most anything passes for Christianity just by saying so.

          I’m a Baptist! I don’t think that necessarily makes me a bigot. I have not found it necessary or advisable to abandon that title and distinction. I pastor a Baptist church and that identifies us to any who would worship with us. There is no deceit. We have not and will not change our name to some generic and confusing name so that we might trick someone into attending a Baptist church when they otherwise would not. We are a Baptist church and welcome all who will come but we will not cloak our identity to attract those who will not.

          Because this age “does not like to retain God in their knowledge” (Romans 1:28), some churches feel that they have to make their churches less like a church and more like … something else. Pastors no longer are referred to by their respectful titles. They no longer preach in business suits or other clerical garb. Their churches have ripped up the pews and replaced them with chairs like in a conference center. Pulpits are now transparent glass or missing altogether while the minister sits on a stool in faded jeans, casual shirt and shoes. From the narthex to the nave, everything is carefully crafted to NOT look like a church.

          Jesus includes geological and natural calamities as signs of His coming. We have had enough of these to make us nervous that His coming is soon. But Jesus can’t resist another warning in verse 11 when He says: “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” The clearest distinction of this age is still DECEIT. Then in verse 12 He tells us WHY this is so; “because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.”

Dear Lord, keep my love for you hot and my identity and purpose clear. AMEN