As much as I would like to believe that the Church age is getting better and better, the reality is that this is not so.

If one is honest about things, what we now witness, is what the scriptures teach us.

We somehow try to bypass the state of the Christian faith today, and hope that things will turn around, and we see a great revival in the earth.

But if the new testament writers were speaking truth, then it doesn’t look so good?

For false Christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.  See, I have told you beforehand. Mathew 24, 24

Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.  And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.  And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.  And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.  But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

Mathew 24, 9-13

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.  For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,  heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good,  treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,  having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.  For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions,  always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. 2 Timothy 3, 1-7

Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.  They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”  For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God,  and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.  But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. 2 Peter 3, 3-7

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.  Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.  Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?  And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time.  For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.  And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.  The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,  and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.  Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false,  in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2, 1-12

We somehow think that Satan brings deception to the church and the world in the last days, but Paul says that it is God who allows this to happen. Gods wrath is now being revealed from heaven, by allowing sin and deception to run wild in the earth. Its because people refuse to believe the truth of scripture. These are the consequences of rejecting Gods truth.

Our rejection of the truth of scripture brings the wrath of God on us, we begin to believe a lie.

We think the wrath of God means cosmic destructions, but Paul says differently.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.  Romans 1

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,  through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared. 1 Timothy 4, 1-2

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,  and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 2 Timothy 4, 3-4

These are a few scriptures that the bible teaches on how the end of the Church age will look like.

As much as one would like to believe in better days ahead, the truth according to the New Testament isn’t very nice.

I think if we are honest with ourselves, what’s is really taking place today is exactly what the writers of the New Testament said would take place.

Its pretty clear in the scriptures that the end of the church age, before the return of the Lord, there will be a great turning away from the faith, a turning not away into the world, but a turning away from the truth of the gospel, a turning to myths and other false teachings.

I think we have it all wrong about what turning away from the faith means in biblical language. What the bible teaches about the falling away from the faith, is not about people turning back into the old world of sin an rebellion against God, but a turning away from the truth of God, to error and false teachings.

If one believes what the bible teaches about the end of this age, then one has to ask these questions.

Is what is taking place in the Christian world of today, truly an representation of the apostolic bible faith?

How much of what we are witnessing today in the Christian world is truly of the faith, which was once delivered?