The Age of Clarity

Daily Reading: 2 Peter 2

Scripture Focus: For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. (2 Peter 2.18-19a)

Devotional Thought: The Apostle Peter, writing to The Church, was incensed. False prophets blurred the lines between right and wrong, holiness and sin. Enticing through fleshly desires, they drew gullible Christians along a path to slavery and destruction.

Dean Koontz, in his novel Innocence, caught the essence of this problem in a politically correct culture: "In those times, life was simpler, and people had a clearer sense of right and wrong than they possessed later. I will call that long-ago period the Age of Clarity. No writer or reader would have imagined that an analysis of a villain’s childhood traumas was needed to explain his wickedness, for it was well understood that a life of wickedness was a choice that anyone could make if he loved wickedness more than truth... I lived in the Modern Age, when it was said that human psychology was so complex, the chain of motivations so recondite and abstruse, that only experts could tell us why anyone did anything, and in the end even the experts were loath to render a definitive judgment of any particular person’s specific actions..."

We are no longer in the Age of Clarity. "False prophets" tell us that all lifestyle choices are equally valid and that the only really bad thing is to judge certain behaviors as bad. The swing of culture has been dramatic in the last 20 years. What was once clearly wrong is now heralded as heroic. The voices are growing louder, and we have not yet seen the bottom of this moral abyss.

It is vitally important for Christians to spend time on the mountain and hear the voice of God. The Word of God is the true light that will help us navigate these days of darkness.

Prayer: Father, help me to know your Word and to listen to your voice. Help me to see through the lies of the enemy and to stand on the Rock of truth - Jesus Christ. Amen.

Psalm of the Day: 1 Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; 2 from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, 3 for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. 4 Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah 5 For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name. 6 Prolong the life of the king; may his years endure to all generations! 7 May he be enthroned forever before God; appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him! 8 So will I ever sing praises to your name, as I perform my vows day after day. (Psalms 61:1-8)