³As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. ⁴They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals.

A few years ago, all Sunday church services took place in big church buildings. People came in droves to these churches and buildings and parking areas were enlarged as a result.

But then a strange thing happened. Suddenly, all the other available spaces in town were being rented on Sundays by other pastors holding services in their own way. And people started leaving the big churches to attend services in those other places. This probably alarmed the mainstream churches, but in a way, it should force them to ask questions: Why are my congregants going where the other pastors are? What are we doing wrong?

It’s not easy to examine yourself to see where the faults are. It’s not nice to acknowledge that you make mistakes, but it is necessary. The test is whether you are still telling the truth.

Sometimes the truth hurts and it is not nice to see that you’ve been going in the wrong direction for a time. But if you don’t correct it, you’ll keep moving away from the Lord’s plan for you and your congregation.

It is also important that we formulate this truth correctly when we take it to our fellow believers. We cannot keep muddling along as we always did and hope that God will bring people to hear his Word.

All of us have to go and bow low and long before God to make sure that we live according to his will. Truths easily change into traditions and tradition become the worshipped, not the truth. Without the church knowing it, her purpose changes, and with it, her direction.

That is why it is crucial that communities of believers often take a breather and make sure that they’re still going in the right direction and have the right purpose in mind.

But just as the church is forced to reflect on where she is going, it is important for people who move away from the church to another community of believers to make sure that they’re not simply going to hear the news they want to hear.

Therefore, this verse: ⁵Stay clear of these people.

It’s easy to move to a place where everything is nice and not too much is expected of you. But is it the place where God wants you to put your gifts into actions? Is it the place God intended you to go?

Remember: in the first instance, the church is not about what you can get or experience. Rather it is the place where you can make your gifts work. Which means you’re not going there to get something, but to give something, to do something. Which is a bit different from what we’re used to.

So, be on your guard and do not fall asleep. Make sure you’re in the right place and using your talents to do God’s will.

Scripture
2 Tim 4:3-5

Reflection
Is your community of believers still going in the right direction?
Are you still awake?
What do you have to do?

Prayer
Lord, prepare my heart to receive the truth from Your Word, even if it is difficult to accept. Amen.