In the last days...

Now it will come about that in the last days the Mountain of the house of the LORD Will be established as the chief of the mountains, and will be raised above the hills; and all the nations will stream to it. And many peoples will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that He may teach us concerning His ways and that we may walk in His paths." For the law will go forth from Zion and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And He will judge between the nations, and will render decisions for many peoples; and they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, and never again will they learn war. [Isaiah 2:2-4]

I think a Jesus-centered eschatology is one that makes His people take responsibility for the state of society. As long as there is pain, poverty, famine, and war, we have work to do. The only way to make disciples OF all nations [rather than IN all nations], is to get them saved. Not saved in the dogmatic Christian make-them-look-just-like-us sense but in the biblical sense. Saved in the New Testament is the Greek word “sozo” which means “to be made whole.” It is also translated, at times, as “cured” or “made well.” Many things have happened in the world that have been foretold in scripture. Isaiah 2:2-4 is not one of them. “Look up for you redemption draws near” has become an excuse to let the world go to hell in a hand basket.

I’ll use San Francisco as an example. The city is a hot bed for sin. Many Christians see it and say to themselves, “It’s just a sign of the times.” They’re just waiting around till it falls into the ocean. We so easily forget that where sin abounds, grace even more abounds. This makes me think that places like San Francisco, Hollywood, and New Orleans are some of God’s favorite places. I think we have been imitating Jonah too much. I think we need to start imitating Jesus and exit our steepled cemeteries and run into the mud pits and rescued God’s most treasured gems. If San Francisco does go under or New York does get blown up, I would rather die there with sinners, sharing God’s burning love for them, than be in an isolated group of “Christians” in cave somewhere crippled by my fears and demonically inspired eschatology.

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon and you will be pardoned. [Luke 6:35-37]

If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained. [John 20:23]

What a profound power we have been given – to forgive sins. If we are guilty of anything, let it be that we are too nice to sinners. Let it be that we forgive people that don’t even believe in Jesus. Let it be that we flock to the most sinful places on earth simply because God’s grace abounds there. Let it be that we run to the most economically distressed places because we have the resources of Heaven at our disposal. Let it be that we move to the most dangerous places on earth because we have the Prince of Peace in us. Let it be that we are friends to murderers, child molesters, prostitutes, politicians, dictators, terrorists, widows, orphans, lepers, homosexuals, porn stars, fallen leaders, adulterers, Buddhists, Satanists, Hindus, televangelists, and communists. Let us be guilty of being unrepentant and radical lovers of sinful people…just like Jesus was.

If the world is in bad shape let us be the ones willing to “sozo” it.