2 Timothy 3:1-17

Preparation is vital to the success of any venture whether it be in the business world, an athletic competition or in the spiritual realm.  We must be sure that we are prepared for whatever might happen to the world in which we live.  It is especially difficult for us to prepare for many things in life because we are not able to predict the future so we are really not sure exactly how we should prepare.  Fortunately, as believers, we do know someone who does know the future and He has revealed many things about the future to us.  We must be sure to take these revelations under consideration as we prepare to face the world in which we live.

SIN WILL PROLIFERATE: One thing that we do know for sure is that the spiritual condition of this world will continue to degenerate as men run further and further from God.  Men will continue to seek to satisfy their own fleshly desires; they will continue to love themselves and their possession more than they love God and others.  The proliferation of sin in today’s society is a sure indication that we are in the last days.  That is not to say that things cannot get worse or that I am predicting the end of the world like so many have foolishly done.  I am simply stating that today’s culture of hedonism and relativism that rejects the standards and authority of the Bible is indicative of what Paul calls the last days.  Christ may graciously delay many more decades, centuries or even millennia as He tolerates the sin of men that He might save some through faith in His work.  The point is that we must be prepared to face an ever more decadent world and brace ourselves to not be swept away by the tide of sin but stand strong and secure while doing everything we can to help rescue those for who Christ died from the impending destruction that has be determined on those who are imprisoned by their own lusts.

SAINTS MUST PERSIST: In light of the moral decline that our society faces, we, as believers, must persist in doing what is right and following the standards of God’s Word.  This may result in persecution and great discomfort but we must persist in doing well.  We must follow the examples of godly men and women who have gone before us and been victorious in their battles with sin.  Satan will try to discourage us into thinking that the battle is hopeless and not worth fighting, or he may be successful in blinding us to the existence of the battle and end up influencing us to adapt to the culture in which we live.  We must persist in our battle knowing that the ultimate victory has already been won on the cross and that no matter how bad things may get on this earth; in eternity, Christ will prevail and all will bow down to worship our God.  We need to fix our eyes on the future, fill our minds with the Scriptures and follow the examples of men like Paul who were faithful to persist in the direst of circumstances.

 SCRIPTURE CAN PERFECT: The ray of hope in all of this battle is the precious Word of God.  God has inspired His Word so that we can know how to escape the sin of society and more importantly be free from the sin that captivates our own hearts.  The Bible is an effective tool in the hands of the Spirit that is able to point us to salvation, correct our errors and teach us how to live our lives from day to day.  The Scriptures are completely sufficient to perfect the lives of all believers so that they can persist even in the midst of proliferating sinfulness.  Those who are overcome by sin have been negligent of the Scriptures.  We have, in the Word of God, an arsenal of weapons with which we can do battle against the sins of society and the sins of our own soul.  However, the Bible can only be as effective as the time and effort we put into studying the Scriptures, being trained in righteousness and allowing God’s Word to correct us when we fail.  The Scriptures can perfect us but only as we dedicate time and effort to digging deep into its pages and allowing the Spirit to dig deep into our hearts that He might purify us, perfect us and prepare us to face the world in which we live.