the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
--Romans 13:12
The absence of spiritual devotion today is an omen and a portent.
The modern church is all but contemptuous of the sober virtues--
meekness, modesty, humility, quietness, obedience, self effacement,
patience. To be accepted now, religion must be in the popular mood.
Consequently, much religious activity reeks with pride, display,
self-assertion, self-promotion, love of gain and devotion to trivial
pleasures.
It behooves us to take all this seriously. Time is running out for
all of us. What is done must be done quickly. We have no right to lie
idly by and let things take their course. A farmer who neglects his
farm will soon lose it; a shepherd who fails to look after his flock
will find the wolves looking after it for him. A misbegotten charity
that allows the wolves to destroy the flock is not charity at all but
indifference, rather, and should be known for what it is and dealt
with accordingly.
It is time for Bible-believing Christians to begin to cultivate the
sober graces and to live among men like sons of God and heirs of the
ages. And this will take more than a bit of doing, for the whole
world and a large part of the church is set to prevent it. But if God
be for us, who can be against us? We Travel an Appointed Way, 50-51.
