lozozlo comments on ballista’s about maintaining faith in Christ in this day in age. Particular in regard to hopelessness and civilization in general.
First, let’s explore what the Bible says about evil in the day and age. Ahab and Jezebel’s reign Elijah thought he was fighting alone against the evil:
1 Kings 19: 9 Then he came there to a cave and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”
11 So He said, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 Then he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”
15 The Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus, and when you have arrived, you shall anoint Hazael king over Aram; 16 and Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint king over Israel; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place. 17 It shall come about, the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall put to death, and the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall put to death. 18 Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
This is not the first time and the last time that a remnant is saved in Israel and Judah when it is on the way to destruction. The Scriptures speak of the remnant of those that returned from Babylonian captivity, and also the remnant that remains in the book of Revelation.
The awesome thing is that God does not give us the task of saving civilization. Nowhere in the Scriptures does it say this, and I think it’s a fruitless endeavor to do anyway. You can’t change most peoples’ minds who are convinced of their own truth over the Scripture’s.
Civilization always takes the course of great prosperity and wealth which leads people astray. People become slaves to that which money can provide, through the excess time created and decadence:
Galatians 5:19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: [i]immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, [j]factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
It’s no secret that the fall of the Roman empire mirrors the pains that western civilization is starting to experience. There is nothing new under the sun.
What we should be doing now as Christians is studying now is how the Church survived the fall of the Roman empire. I would suspect it was a combination of focus onto the core unit of the family, and small groups and communities within the local church. But I could be wrong since I have not studied early church history that extensively: what type of atmosphere, structure, and support they had in such a time.
