I am afraid I may be bringing a rather unhappy message with me this evening. Unhappy because we will be looking at a frightening scenario of what the ministry has become today; a scenario in which every faithful minister of the Word will find himself in. A scary scenario that every faithful Bible college student will face once he enters into the ministry. Let us read 2 Timothy 3:1-13 and see what this unhappy message is all about.

Second Timothy is the Apostle Paul’s final letter to Timothy before he was martyred during the great Christian persecution under the emperor Nero. At that time Paul was in prison and he probably knew that his own life and ministry was coming to an end. That was why he wrote to say that his departure was at hand, that he had finished his course and was looking forward to meeting the Lord (2 Tim 4:6-8).

And so the Apostle Paul wrote this second letter to the young pastor Timothy to encourage him (as well as all of us) to stand firm in the faith and in the integrity and surety of God’s Word even in the midst of suffering and trials. Why? Because Paul had already anticipated that Christians who seek to live according to the Word of God are sure to face severe opposition and persecution.

Paul wrote in verse 12 of our text, "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." And he continued to say, "But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived" (2 Tim 3:12-13). And so we must not be surprised that godly men and women in these last days, including churches and institutions that have remained faithful to the Lord, are under siege. For the times of peril, times of furious and exceeding fierce adversaries have come (2 Tim 3:1).

Nowadays wars, earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and tornadoes strike with much greater intensity; and the Lord Jesus has warned us of these as signs of His soon return in Matthew 24. But aside from these foul weather conditions, we also have here in our text a list of the foul heart conditions of men that will prevail in the end times.

What are the signs that these perilous times have indeed come (2 Tim 3:2-5a)?

(1) These signs can be seen in the behaviour of certain men. We are given from verse 2 onwards a catalogue of characteristics that begins with what is essentially a definition of modern humanism – that "men shall be lovers of their own selves" (philautos – lover of self). And because of this they are by nature covetous (philarguros – lover of silver). They are boasters or boastful. And they boast of their riches, intellect, and position in society or church.

They are proud. Pride is the sin of the devil. Self-love and self-centred pride eventually lead to self-worship. Just like Lucifer who said in Isaiah 14:14, "I will be like the most High." They are blasphemers and they will speak evil of anyone and everyone who do not agree with them. They will resort to name-calling, unjust blaming, and to injure by their words those who stand opposed to them.

Then they are disobedient to parents. Children are supposed to obey their parents in the Lord: for this is right. That is what the Bible says (Eph 6:1). But nowadays children are becoming more and more disobedient to their parents. Not only that, they have distorted the Scriptures as well. Parents are now asked to obey their children; otherwise they get thrown out of the house. The same thing is true in the spiritual realm, is it not? Church fathers are now being asked to obey the demands of their spiritual children. And if you do not obey – out you go! A very unthankful and unholy attitude indeed as Paul describes it here.

(2) Verse 3 says they are "without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good." If this would have been a multiple-choice question in Dr Quek’s exam, you can be sure that the answer to this is "all of the above." Natural affection can mean filial love but since these people are without it, it is of no surprise then that they are disobedient, rebellious, and unthankful towards their parents.

They are also "trucebreakers." The same word is translated in Romans 1:31 as "implacable." This word gives us an idea of someone who is unwilling to be reconciled. He will not enter into any treaty or agreement. And if an agreement does exist, such agreement will be utterly disregarded and he will refuse to honour whatever is stipulated therein.

Paul further identifies them as "false accusers." This is definitely the work of the devil. Satan himself is called "the accuser of the brethren" in Revelation 12:10. What is true will be branded as false and vice versa. And there are many of them today falsely accusing and slandering Bible-believing Christians.

They are "incontinent" (that is, without strength to resist their passions), "fierce" (harsh, severe, even cruel people). And it is quite easy to spot them for we are told that they despise those that are good. One quality for church leaders found in Titus 1:8 is that he must be a lover of good men. But here we see the exact opposite happening and truly this characterises the evil age which we now live in.

(3) Verse 4 mentions "traitors." And whether you are a friend, relative, church member, or even a pastor, it does not matter to them. You will likely be betrayed as though you were a bitter enemy. They are heady, high-minded, puffed up, and conceited men who love and live for the pleasures of this world. Rather than to separate, they extend their hand of friendship to the world to unite with them. In James, they are described as adulterers and adulteresses that are at enmity with God.

(4) Then verse 5 implies that these people can be found in the church and may even be sitting in leadership positions such as pastors, elders, or deacons. "Having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof." It speaks of a person that seems to be spiritual on the outside but inside is a ravening wolf. This is that pharisaical attitude of false religiosity which I believe is the highest form of hypocrisy. And this tells us that the most heart-wrenching foes of Christianity come from within her – inside our churches, seminaries, mission boards, etc.

What are we to do when we come across them in our churches and ministries?

(1) Paul says in verse 5b, "from such turn away." We are not to assent or agree with them and their teachings but to turn away from them. And one reason given in verse 6 is that this sort of people "are they which creep into houses." It gives us an impression of a careful, calculated move to sneak into homes to propagate their errors and captivate "silly women."

According to a commentator, Albert Barnes, "silly women" here simply mean weak-minded or weak-willed women. Such women are easily flattered and charmed by the graceful manners of religious instructors and thus they lend a willing ear to anything that has the appearance of religion.

And so these advocates of error usually follow Satan’s example by creeping into homes to attract and draw the weak-minded ones who are under the influence of sinful desires ("laden with sins"). And once they are convinced, they are led away with divers lusts or passions such as pride and the vanities of life. This is what makes them all the more easy prey to these deceivers.

(2) Verse 7 describes deceivers as "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." Now this is a very sad picture of someone who may be highly learned; an intellectual who may be well-acquainted even with doctrines and various philosophical theories of religion. But this person never gets to know what true religion is because he is blind to the truth.

(3) And just like the ancient magicians called Jannes and Jambres who opposed Moses (v8), people like this also resist and suppress the truth in order to advance their cause. Jannes and Jambres were said to be Egyptian magicians who tried to counter the miracles of God by coming up with their own. This was done in order to discredit Moses before the people of Israel and hinder their journey to the Promised Land.

In like manner, such people try to discredit faithful servants of the Lord by propagating untruths in order to hinder and if possible destroy the faith of some. And so Paul calls them "men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith." We must turn away from them lest we get contaminated by their errors.

(4) And look at verse 9. "But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was." So there is a certain point at which these men can go no further. Their cloaks would be uncovered and their evil motives and intentions exposed before all men. It means error can only advance up to a certain degree where it will finally be proven as falsehood and folly. Then it proceeds no further; and truth shall triumph and prevail in the end.

Is not this a wonderful promise in the Word of God? And so we must cling on to the truth as if our very lives depended on it. To separate from error is to ensure that we will not fall headlong into the shame and destruction of these false teachers.

But until such time that the devices and mouths of ungodly men be stopped, persecutions and afflictions will continue. And verse 12 will always be a reality in the lives and ministry of those who will remain faithful to the Lord. "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." It is written by Paul here as a matter of a foregone conclusion. Not that we may or may not suffer but we will surely suffer if we live godly in Christ. And all means all. No one will be exempted.

Now let me ask this question: Are you still happy after looking at this grim picture of the last days? Are you happy that you have worked and studied hard for so long only to be faced with such vexing conditions in the ministry? With the things that have been happening around lately, we can be sure that we are in the last of the last days. And so with all these persecutions around us, will we still be happy? Well, we better be because it can only mean one thing – we are striving to live godly in Christ Jesus.

This is the frightening reality that every minister, every student, and every true believer of the Word of God must face if he is to stand for the truth without any compromise. On the other hand, there is an easy way out. You can choose to be friendly with everyone, and anyone; compromise a bit here and a bit there and you will be alright. No persecution! How we must pray hard that the Lord will grant us grace to stand steadfast for the 100% perfect and preserved words of God; steadfast "for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ" (Rev 1:9)!

Bible-believing and Bible-defending Christians may be under siege; uncertainties abound and suspense hangs in the air. Maybe more persecutions are in the offing but we stand assured that out of them all, come what may, the Lord will grant deliverance. In fact this is the brightest note that we can find in our passage. That was the Apostle Paul’s testimony in verse 11 when he said, "Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me" (2 Tim 3:11). What a blessed assurance! If at all, this should be the reason why we are able to face our trials with joy. This should be the reason why we can still be happy today.

We do not know what lies ahead. What we do know to be a certainty is that the One who knows it and who holds it is also the One who holds our hands.