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Thus begins Charles Dickens' classic A Tale of Two Cities.
It seems an appropriate phrase to describe our day.
It seems trite to say "these are times that try men's souls."
No period of history better fits Paul's descriptions of the last
days as "terrible times." (2 Tim 3:1, NIV). The tragedy
of our day is that "terror" has become so much a part
of our lives that we are no longer truly terrified, but simply
numb.
IT IS THE WORST OF TIMES
The litany of terrors that haunt our culture is mind-boggling.
Violence, immorality, family breakdown, a crumbling education
system, ethical and moral failure in the highest offices of the
land, greed and graft, out of wedlock births, rapes, abortion,
euthanasia, homosexuality ...
Our senses and our sensibilities are overwhelmed by a daily barrage
of news of this sort. Nothing in our past could have possibly
prepared us for this, yet it has evolved with such speed that
we have scarcely had time to assimilate one outrage before another
is perpetrated.
Our social and cultural sensibilities can only accommodate so
much deviant behavior, so we compensate for the "overload"
by what Senator Patrick Moynihan calls "defining deviancy
downward." Things that once were violations of cultural norms
are "redefined" in our minds (and sometimes legally)
as being acceptable, just "an alternative lifestyle."
Initially, we express outrage, but then come to terms with our
sense of outrage and accept the deviant behavior as normal!
Serious thinkers suggest that we are on the brink of another Dark
Age.
It is the worst of times. In no generation has the church faced
such powerful, yet subtle, opposition. No other group of citizens
can be subjected to the kind of bigotry and hatred reserved for
the church and for Christians. From being the most respected and
trusted institution in the culture, the church has become, for
much of our culture, the whipping boy for all the ills of society.
Despite the growth of "mega-churches", few genuine "brands
from the burning" are being grasped by the millions of believers
in America. Church growth, according to those who study such statistics,
is more a matter of removing bricks from one building to build
another - transferring sheep from one fold to another.
Our worship has become more fervent, but our evangelistic fires
are banked. We sing triumphantly (and quite loudly) about pulling
down the strongholds of the devil. Meanwhile Satan not only holds
his ground, but is devouring a whole generation on our doorsteps.
We have a whole theology based on the blessings of the saints,
but little to deliver the dying from a certain hell.
Saints have become spiritual party-people, seeking out the most
exciting celebration.
The church, in many cases, has abandoned her role of changing
society by changing people, and has become a political machine,
using exactly the same carnal, manipulative tactics the unregenerate
use. We have forgotten Paul's bold statement of warfare: "The
weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world."
(2 Cor. 10:4, NIV)
Where this policy of fighting spiritual warfare with carnal weapons
is not followed, too often the church adopts the policy of adapting
to the culture. In order to appeal to the culture, we have clothed
the Gospel in the garb of the culture. In so doing, we often so
successfully conceal the gospel that people take it all in and
never discover the Cross; at least, not that Cross which is an
offense to the world.
IT IS THE BEST OF TIMES -
It is the best of times because Christ promised that He would
build His church, and the gates of hell would not prevail. In
site of her weaknesses, the church of the Living God is the most
powerful institution on the face of the earth. Despite her failures,
the church has built more hospitals, cured more diseases, cared
for more orphans, fed more hungry - and is the chosen voice of
God to proclaim eternal life to dying men.
It is the best of times because the world has never needed an
authentic and authoritative voice more than today. While humanism
denies ultimate authority, thus depriving mankind of any center
point or anchor for life, the church has a right to say, THUS
SAITH THE LORD."
It is the best of times because there are more Christians alive
today than ever before, hence the "personnel" problems
are solvable as believers hear the challenge and answer "here
am I, send me."
It is the best of times because Believers control more of the
world's wealth than ever in the history of mankind.
It is the best of times because the tools and the technologies
to accomplish the unfinished task are cheaper and more efficient
than ever before. The laptop computer on which I am writing this
message is more powerful than a roomful of computers only a few
years ago. It is the best of times.
But - most important of all - it is the best of times because
it is God's time. The Scribes and Pharisees of Jesus' day failed
to discern "the signs of the times." Jesus said to them,
"you can look at the sky, and you read the signs of the weather,
but you are not able to discern the signs of the times you are
living in."
The "times", Kairos, season; not simply the hour of
the day, nor the year, the century, the chronological setting,
but rather the cultural milieu in which we live. The Sons of Issachar,
" understood the times and knew what Israel should do."
(1 Chronicles 12:32) We need men and women of Issachar today,
who can be perceptive of the spiritual season we are in.
The signs point to revival. Despite skeptics and critics and naysayers,
and despite human errors here and there, what we see and hear
today is the clear sound of a Mighty Wind! Let us spread our sails
and catch the wind.