This is a reprobate age, an age that cannot be explained apart from the judgment of God. The most terrifying act of the day in which you and I live is the apparent absence and silence of God. The most horrible aspect of the judgment of God upon us today is His silence. This is the day when one wonders if especially America, has not for a season, been passing through a season of God's rejection, God's reprobation. The New Testament teaches that there is to be a falling away from the Apostolic faith of the Gospel. When did this falling away take place? It has been going on for nearly 2,000 years, it took place soon after the days of the Apostles, or it took place before all the New Testament was written. This falling away began away back yonder, God told us about it in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 and also in 2 Timothy 3:1-13. In verse five of 2 Timothy 3, we read: "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof' from such turn away."
We need to know there has never been a day when it wasn't dark since they nailed Jesus to a cross. For 2,000 years the world has existed in a state of falling away from the truth. The last days of the Bible started with the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, and they will continue till He comes again. During all this time there has been a departure from the truth, and it will keep on that way until religious people with open arms embrace the Antichrist, and they will be sincere when they do it. John 5:43 says: "I am come in My Father's name, and ye receive Me not; if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive." This world has not been receiving the Lord Jesus Christ now for 2,000 years. If another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. This falling away will continue till He comes and turns His face again to His people.
Professing Christianity is now in a state of apostasy. The basic principles of the Gospel are not believed by professing Christians today. They have not been believed or taught all these years. There have been individuals and small groups scattered here and there who believed the truth and taught it. If you are a trophy of God's redeeming grace, snatched out of a generation that it has taken 2,000 years of departure from truth to get as bad as it is; you've got something to be thankful for.
Let's look at 2 Thessalonians 2:1-8: "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 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; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only He who now letteth will let, until He be taken out of the way. And then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming."
The meaning is that the Antichrist is going to appear in a civilization that makes his appearance absolutely necessary. People are going to be demanding somebody to liberate them. What this chapter is talking about is the most solemn thing I face in the Word of God; it shows that when God gives any person light and he refuses to walk in it; there is great danger of being deceived by the spirit of Antichrist. If you want to know why the hostility of this hour, it can be explained only by the fact that this generation is suffering from two things. (1) It's suffering from drinking deeply of the spirit of Antichrist, which is rebellion against Christ, and then (2) It is suffering from the judgment of God. For in proportion that men go into rebellion against God and His Son, in that proportion they invite the spirit of Antichrist, and in that proportion they come under the most terrible judgment of God. Let's read about it in verses 9 and 10: "Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
Until the truth is sweet instead of bitter, until the truth can be rejoiced in instead of arguing about, they are subject to the deceiving power of hell, and Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders. This day is marked by men and women being utterly deceived. Have you been? The chances are your next-door neighbor has. Have you? That isn't all that will happen. God will do something. Verses 11 and 12: "And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion," [why will God do this?] "that they should believe a lie; That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." This is an awful description of the deceiving work of Satan and the deluding work of God. How apparently God joins hands with Satan to bring people to damnation. Isn't that awful?
Imagine how the shouts would go up when He came to this word. Verses 13 and 14: "But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth; Whereunto He called you by our Gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."
We also would have some shouts in our cold Baptist hearts if we ever had the truth of the wonder of that in our experience. Paul said we just can't keep from thanking God when we remember, that you in the midst of departure, in the midst of apostasy, in the midst of the lying wonders of Satan, in the midst of the deceivableness of Satan, in the midst of God's awful judgment of delusion, in such a generation and atmosphere wonder of wonders, mercy upon mercy, grace upon grace through the work of the Spirit, and the belief of the truth, and the call of God in the Gospel has brought you to where it can be described as the brethren, beloved of the Lord; a thankful people in a reprobate age.
In July 1950, I was preaching in an Evangelistic Conference in Toccoa, Georgia, at Letearneau Camp Ground there. A fellow got in his car out in California and came to that conference. He is a millionaire, a contractor. He said the Lord had just saved him, and he heard about this conference on evangelism, and he got two men to come with him. They drove from California to Georgia. And he brought a tape recorder with him. I brought seven messages at that conference on "The Gospel of God's Grace," and he taped them. I shook hands with him and got acquainted with him. I learned that he was a newborn babe. He took those tapes home with him and about four months later, he called me long distance and said, "I want this message to get out." He told me who he was, just a brand new convert, and he said, "Will you let me help you get that Gospel out?" I said, "I sure will." So he bought me a big five-pole tent. It would seat a lot of people. He bought the trailer truck, and he bought thousands of dollars worth of equipment. He furnished me with a song leader and everything I needed. And we went for some years all over the south in what we called city-wide meetings and he paid all the bills.
We were riding along in a car one day and we got in a fuss. I said, "I love the Lord more than you do." He said, "I love the Lord more than you do." I said, "It wouldn't be possible for you to love the Lord as much as I do. You weren't as big a sinner as I was; you weren't in as big a mess as I was." He said, "You are just dead wrong. You couldn't possibly love the Lord as much as I do because I was the biggest sinner that ever lived."
Oh! my soul, in a reprobate age where truth disappears more and more every blessed day. A thankful people in such an age must surely be the description of every child of God. If there is anything that can wound God (if He can be wounded), is for anybody to take for granted the "wonder" of being saved by grace. Who made you to differ? Who made you to differ?
I have thought if we would quit trying to win people and just gossip about "The Wonder," I believe it would be contagious.
Down in Chattanooga, the president of the biggest bank there came to hear me preach. He was a big church member, sincere and honest. He said the Lord opened his heart and he saw that he had missed the Lord. He became a seeker and he went through agony and then he said, "The Lord spoke peace to me." Then he came up to me and said, "Brother Preacher, may I ask you a question?" I said, "Sure." He said, "Tomorrow when I go down to the bank, should I tell people that I'm saved now?" I said, "No, don't tell anyone." And a few days later, while the meeting was in progress, he came after the service and I thought he was going to kill me hugging me. He was so happy, he was just rejoicing. He said, "Preacher, I just got to tell you what took place today." He said, "My private secretary has been with me over thirty years. As I was dictating to her today, her eyes filled with tears. She got to where she couldn't see what she was writing. She said, 'I just can't do the work today.' I said, 'Is there anything troubling you?' She said, 'Yes. Could I ask you a question? What's happened to you?'"
What's happened to you?
That's what the Scripture says in 1 Peter 3:15: "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear."
God help us.
We are living in a day when what is called salvation and Christianity just rattles because it is the counterfeit instead of the real.
Oh! my soul. We need some thankful people that instead of being given a strong delusion, they have been set apart for glory. Amen! Oh, that men would praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
Praise the Lord for His great salvation in Christ!
"Blessed Father, we ask in the precious Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that You will be pleased to revive Your children that we may be a thankful people in a reprobate age. Glorify Christ even now. Amen?