The Bible warns society’s culture will become extremely fierce in the final days. People will be self-centered lovers of themselves and obsessed with money… They may pretend to have a respect for God, but in reality, they want nothing to do with God’s power. Stay away from people like these! (2 Timothy 3:1-5, The Passion Translation (TPT)
The Message Translation is more intense in its interpretation:
Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals. Stay clear of these people.
Have you noticed the bold prevalence of ‘the universe,’ ‘manifesting,’ ‘law of attraction,’ and other contrary doctrines?
As someone who once played in the streets of mixture and has since repented, the Holy Spirit helped me understand the folly behind popular cultural expressions like ‘believe in yourself,’ ‘do you,’ ‘follow your heart,’ and so on.
The lines get blurred when it gets into our heads that we can do everything on our own, in our own strength, ‘manifesting’ the good life, dreaming up our desires, and making things happen from the ‘subconscious.’
But what does the Bible say?
Many of these affirmations, quotes, and nuggets we’ve adopted are contrary to the Word of God, which is our yardstick and compass as Christians.
We must stop making idols out of ourselves.
The 1828 Webster’s Dictionary defines an ‘idol’ as anything on which we set our affections; that to which we indulge an excessive and sinful attachment, or anything which usurps the place of God in the hearts of His rational creatures.
We were never meant to take the place of God.
The moment you allow that thought that you don’t need God to come into your head and take root- you are doomed. This becomes your undoing. The enemy lies to you that you can be like the Most High God, which is what got him kicked out of Heaven in the first place (Isaiah 14:13-14)
Don’t fall into that trap of feeling that it’s by your own strength that you’re doing what you’re doing. ‘Thus says the LORD: ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the LORD.’ (Jeremiah 17:5)
It is the Father who sustains us. It is neither our inventions nor our creativity; it’s not even the desires (that He has given us anyway, according to Psalm 37:4)
If He removes His breath from us, we die.
God will not allow ANYONE to exalt themselves above Him. He is God all by Himself. Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel and his redeemer, the Lord of Hosts, ‘I am the first, and I am the last, and beside me there is no God.’ (Isaiah 44:6)
May we repent of making ourselves grander and greater than we really are; and for exalting ourselves above God. And above that, for allowing the enemy to deceive us through language and ideas contrary to what the Word of God tells us.
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