The true hero of the 21st Century will be the
person that succeeds at the "art" of living holy in a sinful world of diversity.
Granted, sin has been present since the time God created the heaven
and the earth and placed man in the Garden of Eden. Factually, sin became
so grievous (to God) early on that He expressed His wrath by using the cleansing
mechanism of a deluge (the flood). So, the idea (and reality) of sin
is not foreign to Planet Earth.
The Twenty First Century presents a great challenge because it is so easy
to "export" the ideas of sin. Instantaneous media "real-time" broadcasts
now blanket the globe. Ideas are instantly introduced and promoted by
advocacy groups. The unlearned and uninitiated often drink in the unsound
philosophies and think themselves educated and "modernized". Having
no eternal point of reference, they rush through life tripping over the principles
of eternal truth and causing themselves much trouble and harm. Many
are destroyed early. Significant numbers of others become damaged and
spend years (if not a lifetime) trying to "get it together". Thus, they
have sown the wind and they find themselves reaping the whirlwind.
The person that finds God, embraces Him, learns of Him, obeys Him, follows
Him and holds on to Him will be an unsung hero of the Twenty First Century.
It is unlikely that Holiness will be a much respected "commodity" during
the Twenty First Century. To the contrary, many will see it as being
just myth and superstition. Globalization and the concentrated attempt
to bring the world together under one government will breed hostility against
the concept of the One True God. As a matter of probability, it is likely
that the very concept of "Holiness" will be scoffed at and rejected out of
hand. Twenty First Century man is basically a visual-logic slave -
- accepting only what he can see with his eyes and make logical sense of with
his mind. For the most part, he has no use for the "invisible things"
of God (see Romans 1:20). This will be the great failure of the century
and of the future.
There will be those that will have a "zeal of God" but not according to
knowledge (see Romans 10:2). They will call themselves church people
(or "the church") but they will embrace, follow and promote the unGodly philosophies
of the world. We see this happening already. Sins of abortion,
lottery, same sex sexual intimacy, unmarried sexual activity, adultery and
other unGodly philosophies and practices are already being accepted and promoted
by some "churches". So, we already see a "falling away" from the word
of God. Further, we see worldly "showtime" characteristics beginning
to profane the once sacred worship service and worship experience. Desecration
of that which is Holy is actively afoot and having devastating effect. This
downward slide from the peak of holiness is no accident. It is by design
(and the plan calls for its fast acceleration).
A major indicator of the tenor of the age is the character of the "public
atmosphere". I define the "public atmosphere" as being that domain through
which public expressions (visual, sound, etc.) travel. When, as a matter
of course, the public atmospheres become profane, the decline of the civilization
is clearly evident. Such profanity is already evident. The promoters
of it will plead "necessity" and "humanitarian motivation". Their arguments
will (to the Unholy) sound logical and sensible. Examples of this are
the push to encourage the use of the instrument called the "condom". Its
public promotion is profane. Yet, certain international organizations
plan to increase such public exposure. They claim (as their mandate
for doing so) the necessity of protecting people(s) from the Acquired Immune
Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Human Immuno-Deficiency Virus (HIV)
viruses. So, they use the "compelling" necessity of the danger to
promote (worldwide) the profaning of the public atmosphere. Thus, we
are likely to see the "condomerization" of Africa and other countries. Unborn
generations, growing up with such profanity being exhibited and practiced
(and being a "natural" part of life), will not recognize the profanity of
the public atmosphere in which they dwell. That is Satan's intent.
They will blindly follow and practice the profane acts of their societies.
There is a wonderful alternative. Those of us who know the Lord Jesus
Christ can draw nigh unto Him, become filled with the Holy Spirit and live
a Holy life. This is our wonderful choice. We will observe the
demise of the world (as it slides down the slopes of sin into the slime of
decadence) and we will minister to it. However, we would be wise to
seek an understanding of Biblical prophecy (so as to help maintain a peace
of mind). Jesus spoke of the decadence of the time of the end. He
told us that we should not worry. He said that those things will happen.
Therefore, let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Live Holy and you will be an unsung hero of the Twenty First Century.###