It seems the world is changing rapidly. However, what’s not changing are humans, God, and the devil. We’ll continue to experience the same human desires; God will continue His plan to save people and redeem the world, while the devil persists in killing, stealing, and destroying.
What makes the world different? The available technologies and tools. With our current tools, we can, to some extent:
- Converse with a computer using natural language and syntax.
- Provide complex instructions to a computer where it complies. Computers can train and direct other computers. Computers can be in any physical configuration (robot, phone, chip, etc.).
- Medicate or undergo medical procedures to adjust our bodies.
- Work from anywhere if our jobs do not require our immediate physical presence (synchronous).
- Live in or visit different lands or countries within 24 hours.
Despite these, we continue to be distracted by the pursuit of wealth, power, and pleasure as we ignore the persistent problem of sin.
YOU CAN HAVE PLEASURE, CONTROL, AND POWER
Using my sanctified imagination to peer through the lens of an environment with these tools and technologies, let’s consider what this world could look like, from a human perspective, before Christ’s return.
Humans generally have a perpetual desire for pleasure, control, or power to live on their own terms, with the expectation of living forever.
These perpetual desires are indeed provided for us in Christ Jesus, for as we abide in Him, He abides in us. However, we’ve become so accustomed to how these are portrayed in the world that we fail to recognise them within God’s Kingdom here on Earth. So, we gravitate towards the world’s standards and not Christ’s.
Based on Yahweh’s standards:
- Pleasure – “…at His right hands are pleasures for evermore.” Psalm 16:11 We are to approach life as children of God, enjoying His blessings and calling Him Abba Father. Living care-free (do not worry) and engaging in activities that do not create pain for ourselves and others.
- Control – We must have self-control and submit ourselves as living sacrifices to God. We are made strong in our weakness. We can do all things through Christ, Who strengthens us.
- Everlasting Life – John 3:16: When we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and the reality of His death and resurrection, we shall be saved in this world and the next. We live with constant knowledge and conviction in the spirit that we no longer live, but Christ lives in us. As Christ was raised from the dead, so will we.
- Wealth or lack nothing – Without Him, we can do nothing. He takes care of us as the Good Shepherd. He is the Good Father and treats us infinitely better than our own earthly fathers. He gives only good gifts and appropriately disciplines us for our growth and protection.
MANY DESIRE GOD-LIKE QUALITIES, NOT GOD
Many will be deceived as the Day of the Lord approaches and the Antichrist is given more powers. It’s easy to see how he could be asked to rule the world. He needs only to make a convincing promise to alleviate pain and chaos and give the people whatever they want. After all, it seems that many people don’t really want God; they just want godlike qualities on their own terms.
As the people of Israel said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Exodus 20:19
Quoting page 52 of my book, The Two Kingdoms, “Our goal is to become the ultimate human being. As we build technologies to create the ultimate human being, we might miss the obvious; we already have a tried-and-true standard to model, Jesus Christ. He lived on this physical earth. He experienced all the hardships of life that we do. Yet, He conquered all the constraints and challenges of this physical earth—sin (hardship) and death, and He’s alive today and forever.”
Christ has called us to allow Him to live through us, but we must first die to our egos and present ourselves as a living sacrifice to Him. Take Christ at His Word. Speak to Him according to His Word. Test and see that He is good.
About a year ago, I came across an author who decided to read the Bible and follow it. He was disappointed because he did not achieve what he wanted by doing so.
This way of approaching the Bible is how some unbelievers approach the spiritual realm. They want what they want, and they attempt to materialise or influence it to get whatever they want. There are plenty of spirits around to help them along.
That author missed an essential ingredient. One could read the Bible from cover to cover and quote every book, chapter, and verse, but it will be useless if it’s done without the Holy Spirit. No one can manipulate the Holy Spirit. Ever. We will have knowledge, but no power. Always learning and never coming to the knowledge. We live as victorious Christians by the power of the Holy Spirit, not by might, church attendance, reading the words of the Bible, or acts of service.
We must die to ourselves; in our weakness, then He is made strong, and we’ll do exploits. As Christians, we should perpetually repent of our way of thinking, renew our minds, submit to Christ, and walk in the Spirit; then, all other things will be added.
If you’re not a Christian, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, confess to Him your sins, ask Him to take control of your life, and you will be saved.
Jennifer Layton Starns is a software consultants coach and author of the book, The Two Kingdoms.