In Paul’s last letter, he warned of conditions in the latter days. Before proceeding, the caveat must be established that the last days have been ongoing since the day of Pentecost following the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. Peter, pressed to explain the apostles’ behavior of speaking in unstudied languages, explained that it was the fulfillment of the prophet Joel’s passage, where Peter began by saying, “But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days…’” (Acts 2:16-17 NKJV). Following the Patriarchal and Mosaic eras came the Christian era. After that, there will be no more (2 Peter 3:10-12). Thus, these days in which we are amenable to Christ are the last days (Hebrews 1:1-4). Paul said that those last days would be characterized by compounded sinfulness. To paraphrase and comment (for the reader can read the passage for himself), 2 Timothy 3:1-4 indicates a love for everything unholy, beginning with a love of self, proceeding to a love of money, intensified by a prideful disregard for even the most basic and tender of authorities (parents). Further, people will be bull-headed and love their lustful pleasures instead of their God. They will even feign righteousness (v. 5) and lead people away with a remarkably stubborn resistance to truth (vs. 6-8). There will be a limitation or a point beyond the extent of God’s “longsuffering” (v. 9; cf. 2 Peter 3:9), but a lot of damage will be done …

Why do bad things happen to good people? This is the question of the ages—one of monumental significance in the discussion of the existence of God. Atheists argue that God cannot have all three traditional characteristics, that is, that He is all-powerful, all-knowing and all-loving (omnipotent, omniscient and omnibenevolent). Since there is suffering, they say that at least one of those characteristics fails Him. “If He is powerful enough to stop it and knows about it, He must not care enough to stop it,” they allege. Or, “If He is powerful enough and loving enough to stop it, He must not know about suffering.” Thirdly, they posit, “If He knows about it and cares enough to stop it, He must not be powerful enough.” From Ivy League academia to street smarts, people use this kind of argument (differently worded in many cases, to be sure) to attack the existence of God. How can this be answered? Can it be answered? First, realize that when God created everything, it was “very good” (Genesis 1:31). He made no error or pain. Man was given freewill with the placement of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden, and man was warned (Genesis 2:16-17). Where there is choice, there must be consequences. Man chose unwisely, and the consequences of death and suffering were set in motion (Romans 5:12-14). The existence of suffering in the world is not God’s fault; it is altogether man’s fault. There are several reasons men …

The apostle Paul is well-known for his rejoicing in sufferings. From Roman imprisonment, he wrote to a place where he had been previously imprisoned and beaten, Philippi. He told those “beloved and longed-for brethren” (4:1) to “rejoice in the Lord always” (4:4). He spoke in some detail of his rejoicing and contentment in any situation (4:10-13). We rightly admire his brave outlook in the face of dire circumstances. Yet, he called the whole of the situation his “distress” (4:14). Then, also, there is a verse back in Chapter 3 that gives this author pause. In the midst of an encouragement to walk rightly and seek heavenly things, Paul acknowledged that some have not done so. He said, “For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ” (3:18). Did you catch that? As Paul was writing the inspired letter that we know for his rejoicing, he was, at some point weeping. The letter arguably best-remembered for its focus on Christian joy may well have been tear-stained. It would serve our psyches well to remember that Paul’s joy was not an external giddiness and frivolity, but it was an inner confidence that he was doing the right thing, even in the face of many heartbreaks. There is a hint of more heartbreak in some of Paul’s final words. “At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged …

The cap of the doctrinal section of the Book of Romans ends Chapter 11. Through Romans, the apostle Paul argued that the Gentiles of old were in sin by their amoral Godlessness (Chapter 1), the Jews were in sin by their hypocrisy (Chapter 2), and that, therefore, all were in sin (Chapter 3). He set forth that the only hope comes in Christ through faith, as opposed to the nailed-to-the-cross works of the law (cf. Colossians 2:14). This message begins in Chapter 3 and runs through Chapter 4. He pointed out, quite cleverly, that even revered Abraham was not justified by the works of the Law, since he obeyed God before the Law, and even before the covenant of circumcision (Chapter 4). Therefore, faith (obedient faith) saved Abraham, not the works of the Law. Likewise, “obedience to the faith” (Romans 1:5; 16:26) is what provides justification and reconciliation in the era of Christ (Chapter 5). In Chapter 6, the difference between the sinful lifestyle and the new life in Christ is elucidated. Chapter 7 tells of the codification of the Old Law and how it brought about guilt (by people’s disobedience), sin and death. Chapter 8, then, is refreshing, as opposed to that hopeless view: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus…” (8:1). Some twist this verse into a once-saved, always-saved doctrine. In context, it is rather a statement of hope once one puts himself in the right place—in Christ rather than under a “law of …