What on earth?!

What on earth is going on today?  What is He doing on earth?  We’re living in a world that seems to be coming apart at the seams.  Culture is upside down.  Things that were once bad are now good.  Everything that we thought was good has become bad.  Times are changing quickly.  It’s a world that we seem to be having trouble knowing what to do with it.  Are we trying to save it or are we down to a rescue operation?
Welcome to the last days.  What should we expect?  More importantly, what should we be doing about it?  Really, are we hoping that we’ll find something that we can do to turn around the evil and bring back righteousness?  Can we simply vote in the right people?  Can the laws be changed so that people will do the right things and goodness will again be the norm rather than the exception?
Don’t get me wrong, we should vote for the best leadership that we can.  We should work to enact laws that will uphold righteousness and punish wrong doing.  We should be the best citizens of our respective countries that we can.  We should pray for our leaders.  We should support our leaders.  We should pray for and look for the best.
However, we may, as I’ve suggested before, be living in the last days.  We know that they’re coming.  We know that the church will have to walk through that.  Are we in those days?  Very likely.  So, if we are in those days, we need to know what to expect and we need to know how to walk that out.  The early church walked successfully through their day.  They turned their world upside down.  That doesn’t mean that they were perfect.  It does mean, however, that they walked with the Lord, engaged their culture for the Gospel and reached the entire then-known world.
What can we expect in our day and how can we engage it?  Well, without going too deeply, let’s see.  First, speaking of that day, 2 Thess. 2:3 says, “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;. So, we can expect a falling away first.  It’s hard to deny that that is happening.  It seems to be happening worldwide, everywhere and it seems to be a sharp falling away.  It’s obvious here in the U.S., particularly.
The second thing that we can expect is a parallel, but opposite effect, a last days, worldwide revival.  Acts 2:17 says, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:”.  It seems like a contradiction, a falling away and a revival at the last time.  Well, it seems like that’s what we need to expect.  The recent revival which we have been seeing is a wonderfully refreshing and encouraging thing.
In the early days, when the world was reached, the early church was a direct participant in that event.  They were told to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, Mk. 16:15.  They did that and the world was reached.  They purposefully worked with what God was doing and saw their world reached.  Well, that command is still in effect today and since we seem to be walking into the last days, we can also expect a great worldwide revival.  I believe that we also will see our world reached in our days.  However, as I’ve pointed out, we are participants and players in that process.
So, what can we expect?  A worldwide falling away and a worldwide revival which will lead to the world again being reached for Christ.  It’s a revival that we are participants in.  Not only are we participants, but we will be an initiating force.  When we initiate to reach the world in an environment where God is giving revival, many will be saved.  The world will hear.  When that happens, the end can finally come, Mt. 24:14.  After all, to preach the gospel in an environment of revival.  To see the Spirit move.  To work hand-in-hand with Him thus and see so many saved, what more is there?  Let’s walk this out. Afterall, it seems to be what He’s doing on earth today.