Life's Inanities and Ironies

Beloved, the fires in Paris, Tirana, Milan, and other cities did not start with a match. They began in the human heart. The Apostle Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, described exactly the kind of society we are watching unfold: “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people” (2 Timothy 3:1–5). Read that list slowly. Lovers of self. Without self-control. Brutal. Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. These are not abstract theological terms; they are the spiritual soil in which riots grow. When a generation is taught to love itself above God and neighb...

  Beloved in Christ, open your eyes to the headlines. Streets in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Tirana, Milan, and other cities have burned. Peaceful marches over the cost of living and failing schools were overtaken by firebombs, arson of city halls and tourist offices, looting of shops, and clashes that left hundreds of police injured and thousands arrested. Similar unrest has flared in Italy, Albania, Portugal, and beyond. This is not merely politics or economics. It is a symptom of a deeper spiritual reality. Jesus prepared His people for exactly this kind of world. In the Olivet Discourse He said these things “must take place,” yet He commanded, “See that you are not alarmed.” Wars, rumors of wars, and the rising of nation against nation are the beginning of birth pains—not the delivery itself. The same pattern appears in the increasing lawlessness Jesus warned would cause the love of many to grow cold (Matthew 24:12). Economic hardship, frustration with governments, and the readines...