The Last Days
“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God - having a form of godliness but denying its power…” 2 Timothy 3:1-4 (NIV)
“I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles. Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this coming he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’ But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and the destruction of the ungodly.” 2 Peter 3:2-7 (NIV)
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How are we to understand the concept of the “end times” or “last days” in light of new creation spirituality and the present kingdom of Jesus Christ. Are we moderns living in the “end times?” Will we soon see the physical Christ ride in on a cloud to snatch away “Christians” and damn all unbelievers to the fiery pit?
The prevailing thinking about the end times (that a literal, catastrophic, universe-rending apocalyptic event is imminent and God will soon arrive to punish everyone who doesn’t “believe”) is dangerous because it is a far cry from the worldview of the apostles. Approaching the New Testament scriptures without a first-century lens can only harm us and produce myths that breed divisive doctrines and false hope. The key to understanding what is really meant by the “last days” is hidden (in plain sight) in the Old Testament through Israel’s story.
At the time of Christ’s incarnation, the nation of Israel had experienced a lengthy history of questionable obedience to God. Despite God’s repeated hand of deliverance, Israel continually stumbled and fell into darkness and sin. God would make His love and presence known to them in tangible ways and establish partnerships (covenants) with them through individuals (like Abraham and Moses). However, they would soon turn away from this presence and partnership to follow idols of the earth. This cycle, testified to by all of Israel’s prophets, is a theme that repeats throughout the Old Testament and looks something like this:
God’s presence (glory) provokes pure worship.
With time and human weakness, pure worship degrades into apathy, sin, and rebellion.
Rebellion eventually brings God’s wrath (spiritual consequences for abandoning the divine design). This wrath causes spiritual desolation but, more importantly, leads to repentance and purification.
God’s purification brings Israel back into presence and glory.
The cycle repeats.
At the time of the Messiah’s coming, Israel had once again found itself in a precarious spiritual position. The Jewish religious system had become oppressive, legalistic, and powerless. Sin and darkness found great power through this situation because the Law brings sin (Romans 7:10; 1 Corinthians 15:56). In addition, the Israelite nation sat in darkness under the corruption of the priesthood and the oppressiveness of Roman rule. There had been no prophetic word for centuries.
We can imagine that this situation provoked hopelessness, sin, and rebellion. The spiritual state of God’s people was in disarray. As the Scriptures say, “where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint” (Proverbs 29:18). Undoubtedly, there was idol worship in the form of the works of the flesh (greed, sexual immorality, religion, lust for power, etc.). There was evil, self-love, and violence. Where was the divine presence and the glory that had graced Israel throughout Her history?
This helps us understand Jesus’ role as a prophet in the context of Israel’s history. Like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah, and the others, Jesus came to administer the divine correction in the midst of rebellion and darkness. Like the other prophets, Christ’s goal was reconciliation of humanity with God, because there are consequences for leaving the Father’s divine design. Wrath (desolation - correction - purification) comes on spiritual disobedience. This is a spiritual law, woven into the fabric of the universe. This is why Jesus said, “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). Much of Jesus’ preaching concerns the purification that is coming on God’s people (Luke 3:17). God is love and everything that cannot enter into this love must be burned away in the fire of judgment. This is the baptism of the fire of the Holy Spirit.
This is where the idea of the “last days” comes sharply into focus. At the time of the Lord’s coming, Israel was in its “last days.” These last days are alluded to throughout the prophets. Here are just two examples and take note of the temple/fire imagery:
“In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills and the peoples will stream to it.” Micah 4:1, NIV (cf. Isaiah 2:2)
“A violent whirlwind! It will fall violently on the head of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until He has executed and performed the thoughts of His heart. In the last days you will understand it perfectly...is not My word like a fire? Jeremiah 23:19-20,29 (NKJV)
Peter quotes the prophet Joel to describe the giving of the Holy Spirit in the “last days”:
“This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of my Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days…” Acts 2:16-18 (NKJV)
The prophetic ministry of Jesus and the apostles in the first century was about purification and divine empowerment, so as to escape the coming wrath on disobedience, wickedness, and idolatry. The Holy Spirit was given so that God’s people could enjoy the purity, promises, life, and power of God. This power would help them escape from spiritual desolation because God Himself would teach them how to live in His divine design (Galatians 1:4). Something outside of them (Law) would no longer powerlessly lead them. Instead, the inner divine presence would. This is why Paul wrote, “if you live according to the flesh [law/ written rules and regulations] you will die; but if by the Spirit [internal, divine presence] you put to death the deeds of the body you will live” (Romans 8:13, NIV). This is quite literal. The new indwelling presence saves us from spiritual death - in this life and the next.
As God’s anointed ones, we are not destined for wrath, but the fullness of the divine life (1 Thessalonians 5:9). Christ came to bring fire on the earth (Luke 12:49). This fire is the fire of divine purification, which brings us into the fullness, power, and purity of God. If we live in the Spirit, we will bear fruit for the life of God, not fruit for death.
Therefore, the “last days” of the Scriptures are about the end of an age - the age of the old creation that is already passing away (1 Corinthians 7:31; 1 John 2:17). These last days are characterized by godlessness (see verses at the beginning of this article), but also divine empowerment that brings the life and power of God to earth. The last days are about a shaking, a violent spiritual upheaval that removes impurity and wickedness from humanity. This shaking will continue until the kingdom of God is made fully manifest in and through a re-created humanity (Hebrews 12:25-29). The restoration cycle (glory/presence - rebellion - judgment/purification - glory) will continue in us individually and corporately until the Father becomes all in all (1 Corinthians 15:28). This purification is the fire that Peter writes about in the passage quoted at the beginning of this teaching.
This is where it is also worth noting that the Jewish nation experienced a tremendous manifestation of God’s wrath in the first century: the destruction of the temple in 70 AD at the hands of Rome. Like other exilic events in Israel’s history, the ransacking of Jerusalem in 70 AD massacred God’s people and produced a scattering into the nations. The destruction of the temple (the physical and spiritual center of worship) meant the seeming end of religious life as the Jews of the time knew it (“heaven and earth passing away”). Jesus foresaw this happening and, like the prophets before Him, warned Israel (Luke 21:5-38). The system of external worship was at its end. A new way (a new “covenant”) was upon the people of God - the life of the Spirit.
We are living in the “last days” of a tired and ineffective religious system that calls people to obedience through rules and regulations. We live in the reality of the new creation and the age of the Holy Spirit. The form of this world is passing away. This includes our religious systems, theologies, and ideas that don’t bear practical, divine fruit in our experience. Ideas about God are giving way to the reality of the divine presence that now indwells in God’s new humanity. God once spoke to His people through ritualistic systems of worship and veiled prophetic language, but now He speaks to us directly through the mind of Christ:
“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.” Hebrews 1:1-2 (NIV)
It is important to understand that the conclusion of the “last days” does not consist of some sort of literal cosmic event where God comes to teleport the blessed and the damned to their respective destinies in the spiritual world but in the full return of the glory of the divine image to humanity (God’s true temple). This means the fire of God’s purifying process (in our experience) will destroy all manifestations of sin, darkness, death, and decay. God will fully clothe the Body of Christ in the life and power of the resurrection:
“For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all power, authority and dominion. For he must reign until he has put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” 1 Corinthians 15:22-26 (NIV)
“We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus (judgment/purification), so that the life of Jesus (glory/divine presence) may also be revealed in our body.” 2 Corinthians 4:10 (NIV), parentheses mine
“Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears (through purification/judgment upon our old humanity), we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.” 1 John 3:2-3 (NIV), parentheses mine
To summarize, the last days are the transition period between the old creation (sin, religious legalism, darkness, death, decay) and the new creation (divine presence, the life of God, power, purity, love, peace, etc.). The earth has been in this transition for over 2,000 years, beginning with the resurrection of Christ. In these last days, God invites us into a purification process that destroys sin and evil in the human heart, so that His love may find a true home in and amongst us. If we ignore or reject this love, we can expect the natural consequences that befall those who choose to walk in willful rebellion. This “wrath” is not sent from a vengeful God, but is the fruit of our own disobedience, and operates according to the spiritual laws present in the fabric of creation. The last days will conclude with the destruction of all wicked mindsets and behaviors and end with the fullest and purest manifestation of God’s glory in and through an overhauled, spiritualized (resurrected) humanity. So, let’s hasten the Day.
“Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God (a period of intense spiritual purification/judgment) and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire (spiritual trial), and the elements (the system of the old creation) will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.” 2 Peter 3:11-13 (NIV), parentheses mine
