4 Words in 1

 

New Insight

This morning I am in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2.

There are several verses that I am seeing in a whole new insight.

In verse 4, Paul talks about the anti-Christ stating that he will, “he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.”

I believe traditionally this has been interpreted in the same manner. This man of lawlessness will set himself up in the 3rd Jewish temple. However, I wonder, could it be talking about us?

Consider 1 Corinthians 3:16 which states that we are God’s temple and His spirit dwells within us. What if the anti-Christ were to try and establish something in our temples that overrides God’s creation?

What if we put our trust in science, in concepts that turn us into cyborgs, in medicine that introduces nanobots into our bodies, in connections to the Internet that ultimately overwhelm that “still small voice?”

As Paul goes on he writes that, “He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,” and further he states, “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie.”

A powerful delusion… like, “Soon you will be able to live forever due to the aid of modern medicine, technology and nanobots?”

Consider Colossians 1:17 where Paul writes of Jesus, “and in Him (Christ) all things hold together.”

We already know the amazing power of laminin, (and if you don’t you should study it) the cell adhesion molecule that literally holds us together. And those who have examined this cell adhesion molecule have noted that it happens to be in the shape of a cross.

Will it be that many will abandon the one who has held them together in favor of a false promise of immortality?

Is this a strong delusion?

I think we all know the answer to that question.

I am not making a definitive statement so much as asking the question, could there be much more insight contained in these passages that we have previously overlooked?

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Working and Eating

“The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat…..” 2 Thessalonians 2:10b

I wonder how this Biblical principle, if applied, would transform our nation.

Consider one of our darkest times, the Great Depression. Men were without work and people were starving. In response to the troubles of this nation, Roosevelt rolled out the “New Deal.”

A portion of this governmental solution put men to work on public works projects such as the building of dams and other critical infrastructure. So rather than just giving away money, important objectives were accomplished.

Before this new deal was rolled out the government stepped in to try and assist the people impacted by the “dust bowl” in the southern plains.

When the rains stopped the only thing left was the wind and it literally blew away the fertile topsoil and made millions of acres of land unusable for years.

Yet, even in a state of starvation living in houses that were coated with dust and debris, families refused to accept charity.

If there was no work, no product, there was no wage. Finally, facing starvation, some of the people succumbed but it was no small matter.

To them it was a moral dilemma that they should receive something for nothing.

It was unconscionable to that generation that it should be any other way. So rather than people going on welfare, they were put to work building infrastructure that we still rely on today.

What would happen if work were retied to public assistance?

Would we have new workers to accomplish critical tasks or would we have a mass revolt of people citing a litany of grievances about how the government has no right to require people to work for their income?

A sign of the times is the change in men’s hearts. A nation of laziness and entitlement is a nation that will blow away just like the winds that swept away the topsoil from the southern plains.

Oh the amazing things that could happen if we applied this simple wisdom of God’s word.

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Humanism?

The common definition of humanism is,

“A progressive philosophy of life that, without theism or other supernatural beliefs, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good.”

That may be true at present but in the future will there will be a whole new kind of humanist that upholds a principle that ensure humans remain human and machines remain machines?

So by this shift in definitions humanists would not be godless, they would be champions of God’s word and evangelists of truth as they refuse to be “integrated” into the machine and its system and will advise others of why they should do the same.

Or perhaps we need an entirely new word altogether to get beyond the negative connotation of this one.

What word would we use?

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Human Nature

Matthew 24:22 has been on my mind a lot over the past several months.

In this passage Jesus states, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.”

I’ve normally taken the word “flesh” at face value. It’s easy to see how the natural consequences of our treatment of the planet will lead to an inability to sustain ourselves.

However, in looking at the original Greek word, σάρξ “sarx” I found another meaning to flesh, “human nature.”

Could it be that Jesus was saying our very nature would be threatened?

Is He saying that through the relentless push to integrate man with machine it will be hard to find a natural human?

It’s a scary thought but it’s not the first time the enemy has messed with the human genome. The previously cited circumstance was in Genesis chapter 6, when the sons of God began procreating with the daughters of men.

How did God respond to the tainting of human nature?

He destroyed it all and saved only Noah and his family. It was necessary for the seed of Adam to survive for Messiah to be born and so the flood preserved the untainted bloodline.

Let’s not forget that in the very same chapter Jesus says, “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”

So, with the transcendence/ integration movement picking up momentum quickly to the point where man ceases to be the original creation God intended, how do you expect He will respond?

 

~ Mitch Salmon

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Mitch Salmon is the founder of Fisher of Men Productions and a follower of Jesus Christ and proclaimer of the Good News – The Gospel of Christ Jesus!

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