Jump Start # 655

2 Timothy 3:13 “But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”

Paul paints a realistic picture of what Timothy and other brethren would encounter. The verse before tells us that “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” It’s the “will be” of that sentence that is disturbing. They will be, we will be, persecuted. Then follows our verse today. Things are not getting better with some. We are trying to swim upstream in a downstream world. The evil are getting more evil. Proceeding from bad to worse is not good news.

Society tends to have a three step approach to things that are wrong. First, there is the denial that something is wrong stage. This is where people question whether things are really wrong. They deny the harm that can come about. They deny warnings. It is a softening of things that ought to alarm folks.

Next, there is the acceptance stage. Things that are wrong are tolerated and accepted. No longer are there consideration, discussion and questions. Wrong is approved. Wrong is seen as right. Wrong moves out of the alley into the mainstream.  Wrong becomes normal

The final stage is the proclamation of wrong. Supporters of wrong become vocal. They promote wrong. They challenge those who disagree. They are loud, obnoxious and unwilling to discuss. They have moved from bad to worse. Their constant diet of deception have led them to become deceivers of others.

Most of us can see these three steps in our lifetimes. Divorce was once a bad stigma. A person was embarrassed to admit that they had a divorce. Anymore it is a badge that folks where proudly. Some have defined and even catalogued the various marriages many go through. The first marriage is now called the “starter” marriage. It happens when a couple is young. The next is the “child rearing” marriage. This is a different relationship with a different person. This is the time when the kids are born and raised. Finally, there is the “finisher” marriage. This takes place after the kids have moved out and this is the last marriage a person has. Three marriages. Cute names. Amazing analysis. Denial to acceptance to promotion.

We see the same thing with how society views adultery—denial to acceptance to promotion. We see this with crude language and curse words. Things that are allowed on TV today would never have been accepted a few years ago. What people say in public places would not have been tolerated a generation ago. Language has proceeded from bad to worse. Offensive language is seen on billboards, t-shirts, and on facebook. Denial to acceptance to promotion. We are seeing this taking shape with the homosexual movement—denial to acceptance to promotion. Proceeding from bad to worse.  We see this with the violent behavior of some. Shootings and mass killings once were rare and shocked us. Now we can name them off: Aurora, Columbine, Oklahoma City, Ft. Hood, Tucson…Proceeding from bad to worse.

The departure from God is not a journey to nothingness. Leaving God leads one to bad  and then to worse. No standards. No sacredness of life. No value. Selfish ambition. Denial of a soul. Denial of God. Filling hearts with hatred, selfishness and meanness only leads from bad to worse. Deeper in the pit a person goes, accepting things that they never would before. Shifting the standard of what is wrong and engaging in more evil, more darkness and more godlessness. I think some brethren have their heads in the sand when it comes to these things. They don’t want to see that some are this way. They don’t want to accept that some have gone from bad to worse. It scares them to think that there are many evil people out there. So they live in a fantasy world that things aren’t so bad. They are. Romans tells us that all have sinned. What happens when that sinner keeps sinning? He goes from bad to worse.  When evil speaks out or raises it’s head, these folks are shocked. Without God the light has turned out on the soul. This is the world we live in. There are people who have no moral guilt about lying to you. They have no conscience about taking advantage of you, ripping you off, making fun of you or using you to their advantage. Some delight in cursing the holy name of God. Some flaunt their sinfulness. They are not ashamed, embarrassed nor apologetic. Some of us don’t like to hear these words. Let’s not talk about that. Let’s just talk about good things and the good people. Evil is around us. Let’s be real.

Those old enough to remember, want to put the brakes on all of this and go back to an earlier time. We miss the days of innocence, simplicity and general goodness. What can be done to turn it around? It can’t as a whole. It’s gotten worse. It has already past bad and is the realm of worse. Bad would be an improvement from worse. It will continue to get worse. The only hope is teaching Jesus one by one to each person. Laws won’t change things. Rules are ignored. It’s hearts turning toward God that will make a difference.

The following verse is Paul’s advice to Timothy. “You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of…” Don’t give up. Don’t throw in the towel. Don’t join them. Don’t accept their deception that what they are is normal. It is not. It’s bad. It’s worse. Keeping walking with Jesus. Don’t look around. Don’t take your eyes off of Him. In one way we might get discouraged and depressed because things are going from bad to worse. But in other ways we see those who are stepping out of this mess and coming to Christ. Everyday people are deciding that they have believed the world’s lies long enough. They are tired of living in the gutter of life. They want hope. They want forgiveness. They want Christ. We know from Revelation that the victory belongs to Jesus. Christ will win. Some may get loud and rude with their evil choices. They are no match for the powerful Christ.

Tell me the story of Jesus, write on my heart every word.

Roger