Something Wicked This Way.....Came

As the year is coming to a rapid end, or rather, a screeching halt, I am reminded of all the perversity, wickedness, desensitization and idolatry 2017 brought into our world! Wickedness came at this world faster than a speeding bullet and no one, and I mean no one, could keep up with all of it. It was a very grievous year to say the least. There wasn't, and isn't, a place you could turn without some sort of vile act of sin being committed, "made into law," conditioned into the tender, impressionable minds of our young, and overtaking a people that once cared, loved and feared God. Wickedness is truly abound and acts/thoughts/words that are violently abhorrent and an abomination to the Creator God, are creeping into every slice of life around us. Beware!! Satan is roaming around seeking who he can devour.....and he's not going to ease up his attacks. It's who he is and what he does. Do not be fooled!

Darkness and Wickedness

So what does wickedness actually mean biblically. The Greek word for wickedness is "ponēria." This is used in Ephesians 6:12, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." It this, it means "depravity, iniquity," or "malice" and malice means to do evil with purpose, desires, and doing so with intent. That's pretty powerful, wouldn't you agree? Well, by doing anything with malice literally means that it's an intentional commission of a wrongful act and is completely absent from any justification for the person committing it. This is evident in today's world. It's done with the intent to cause harm to others, physically, mentally and even spiritually, and in turn, it causes harm most of all to God's Goodness and Being. It's a conscious violation of the law that injures an individual or individuals with no afterthought or remorse. In this case, it never injures God but does injure all those with whom it's directed towards, and against, and it certainly injures the person committing such a horrendous, horrible act since the wages of all sin is death as said in Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Wickedness with malice indicates the depravity of the individual. Look around. Listen to the news. Read the headlines. There is a sense of deprivation not seen in generations past. Wickedness is all through the Old Testament and the New Testament as well. In the New Testament, Paul clearly knew all about wickedness because he was constantly fighting the battles with wicked spirits in high places and those wicked spirits often used men to attack him. Paul fought on. Paul battled on. In Ephesians 6:12 Paul wrote about this very thing saying, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." as mentioned above.  The word used for "evil" is better translated from the Greek word "ponēria" from which we get our word "pornography" and is also wickedness abounding in our society. However, in Ephesians 6:12 the word evil is "ponēria" and means "depravity, iniquity, malice" and with "evil purposes and desires" which also fits perfectly with sexual immorality. That’s why so many pagan religions involve, and involved, sexual immorality, and is still true today. There's all kinds of sexual immorality, idols, goddesses, imagery all through pagan religions. However in this particular case, these demons are the wicked spirits who are in depravity and are causing and even inspiring those who are persecuting the church to harm the church with malice (with intention to harm). The church is a target, a great big, threatening target so it would make sense for the "world" to attach and have the intention to harm.

Some of these spirits are about as wicked as they come and even some were so evil, so wicked, so vile, that God had to place them in a holding prison well ahead of the coming Judgment Day as referenced in Revelation 20:12-15, "And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13) The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14) Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15) And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."   These particular spirits were so evil that God put them in chains in places of total darkness, where they couldn't escape from to do any more harm to mankind and humanity than they had already done. This might possibly be what Peter wrote about in 2 Peter 2:4, "God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment." The particular choice of word that Peter used for hell is from the Greek word "Tartarus."  This is the name of the subterranean region that's totally light deprived and is in absolute darkness. No accidental word choices there, my friend! You see, to the ancient Greeks it was regarded as the home of the wicked dead, not just the dead, but the WICKED dead. This is where the Greeks believed that the wickedest of all people went to suffer rightful punishment for their evil deeds. But for the Jews, it is the same thing as Gehenna, the ultimate fate of all who refuse to repent and trust in Christ and it's the eternal dwelling place for all those wicked ones who refuse to bend the knee in submitting to Christ. Apparently, there were some very wicked spirits, evil spirits, otherwise known as demons, so despicably, indescribably wicked that they were cast into the darkness of Tartarus, chained there for a time in which they're to eventually be judged when Christ judges them along with all impenitent humans at the Great White Throne Judgment, Revelation 20:12-15.

Before we go further, let's take a quick look at some of the things God has to say about the wicked people in the following Scriptures below:
1) Psalm 11:5, "The Lord tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates."
2) Proverbs 15:9, "The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But He loves him who follows righteousness."
3) Proverbs 15:26, "The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, But the words of the pure are pleasant."
4) Proverbs 6:18, "A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil,"
5) Psalm 5:5, "The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity."
6) Revelation 21:8, "But the cowardly, unbelieving,[a] abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
7) Deuteronomy 32:5, "They have acted corruptly toward Him, They are not His children, because of their defect; But are a perverse and crooked generation."
8) Isaiah 59:7, "Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, Devastation and destruction are in their highways."

Lamp of the Wicked Dies Out

Clearly, God hates the thoughts, deeds, actions and desires of evil people. Wickedness is an earmark of the deepest rebellion against Him and against His rule. God created humanity to be perfect and sinless, to be full of love and Light, to live in joyful submission to Him, to offer Him pure worship. Sin came into the world and we have a world full of rebellion, wickedness, evil and vileness. Some have repented and turned from their sinful ways, regenerating of their thoughts and spirits, while others remain tightly grasping onto the all the worldly pitfalls and empty promises of Satan and his minions. They love the sin they're in and delight in the immediate satisfaction of the empty void it fills temporarily. They love the rebellious attitudes as they slither through this life. They love themselves and their free will of choosing the debauchery they perpetuate. To be clear, God is NOT behind the wickedness, Satan is the ringleader here. You see, God also hates the wicked because their wickedness is fully and truly expressed in ways that cause harm to the people He has created in His image. So, because sinful people can't storm the gates of heaven to dethrone and destroy God Himself, they turn on what is nearest and dearest to Him, those who are nearest to His image in which He created mankind. They act out their wickedness against other people, causing pain, suffering, playing "god," torturing, murdering, defiling and performing all kinds of evil deeds on humans. They hurt them, harm them, maim them, kill them. In their leaders name and for their leader, Satan. Don't be fooled my dear readers and friends!! This is REAL! God hates the rebelling, willfully wicked because it's their wickedness that's solely expressed particularly against God’s own elect. Wicked people turn their fury against God’s people, mocking them, persecuting them, putting them to death. Why? Because they belong to God, they are Christ-like in His image, and the wicked react to what is inside of God's children, the Holy Spirit!

When everyone wasn't looking, being distracted by their phones, social media, the entertainment story of the hour, keeping their heads in the sand, something wicked this way came.....and it took up residence because too many people were asleep and left the doors wide open. Evil and wickedness is not new by any means and has been around since the fall of man. It's not an anomaly. However, Christ's Prediction in His Olivet Discourse, was that social wickedness would increase prior to His Return, Matthew 24:12, "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold" In the same discourse Jesus exemplified the pre-Advent social wickedness by referring to two periods of Old Testament history, namely, the "days of Noah" and "the days of Lot." Luke 17:26-30 tells us, "And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: 27) They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28) Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; 29) but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. 30) Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." And likewise, in Matt 24:37-39 we're told, "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38) For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39) and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." God means business, no doubt about it! The two examples of Noah's and Lot's times are used specifically by Jesus to stress two very meaningful points. First, the wicked will be overtaken by the sudden and yet,  unexpected judgment of His Advent much in the very same way as the Flood and the destruction of Sodom overtook the people of Noah's and Lot's times. Secondly, people will act like "in the days" before His Second Coming very much the same way as they did "in the days" of Noah and of Lot. Nothing new under the sun! Or the SON....

The latter is indicated by the use of the plural form "days of the Son of Man," which denotes the age, or time, preceding His Return, just as "the days" of Noah and Lot refer to the age, or time, just before the Flood and the destruction of Sodom. The direct parallel is clearly evident. If you notice, the singular form is used "on the day," in Luke 17:30 to designate the actual DAY of Jesus's Coming. In other words, by understanding these two examples, or parallels, Jesus clearly illustrates, not only the sudden judgment that will come upon impenitent mankind "on the day" of His Return, but also illustrated is the social conditions of the generation that will prevail "in the days" BEFORE His Coming. The social conditions of Noah's and Lot's times are described by a series of verbs which are in the imperfect tense, expressing customary actions: they "were eating, drinking, marrying . . . buying and selling, planting and building." However, none of these activities are wrong in and of themselves, but what IS wrong is that the people in those days lived only to satisfy their appetites and material desires. God and godliness had no place in their lives, much in the same way as our society exhibits today. In the desperate, yet maddening, search for pleasure and prosperity, mankind sank deeply into such great depravity, vileness and wickedness that, the Scripture says, "every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" Genesis 6:5, "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." and in Genesis 18:20-21, "And the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, 21) I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know." Jesus referred to the godlessness and wickedness of these ancient times to illustrate just how the alarming social conditions would be that would prevail before His Return.

Paul warned Timothy about the godlessness of the last days, saying in II Timothy 3:1-5, "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2) For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3) unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4) traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5) having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!" Please read those verses and re-read them again. Then take a look around you, in your workplace, in your home, in your neighborhoods, in your churches, in your stores and on your streets. What do YOU see? This shocking, but extremely accurate prediction, and depiction, of the social wickedness of the last days reads like an accurate descriptive chapter in the book of our time. It's obvious that Paul already saw the incipient fulfillment of this sign in his time and mentions in II Thessalonians 2:7, "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way." He also warns Timothy in II Timothy 3:5, "having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!" By that he means with the evil people just described. His consistent use of the future tense surely suggests Paul foresaw a massive deterioration of the social conditions before the End. He also indicates this II Timothy 3:13 where he says, "But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." The prediction of Jesus Christ and Paul about the increased wickedness in "the last days" takes on added meaning for our time in this setting.

Let's stop and take a quick look at some of the aspects of the wickedness of our times.
A) Surge in World Crime - This is a significant fulfillment of  the "increase of wickedness" predicted as in Matthew 24:12 indicates. Among the reasons Paul gave for these "terrible times" to come "in the last days" are that people will be "without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God" stated clearly and without shame in II Timothy 3:3-4. The fulfillment of this prediction is unparalleled today as crime, for example, is skyrocketing out of control throughout the world. It's not just petty crimes either, it's violent, cold-hearted, calculated, out-of-control, rageful crimes. Some so horrifying, they are unspeakable!!! All countries which publish any type of statistical reports show a frightening increase in killings, child abuse/assault, child and adult trafficking, assaults, rapes, robberies, violent murders, and burglaries.
B) Surge in American Crime - The United States leads the world not only in science and technology in the free world, but, sadly, also in violence, crime, delinquency and addictions. Violent crimes have quadrupled in America during the last twenty years from the latest statistics that I could find for this writing. There's a rapid escalation of various forms of violent, aggressive, and rageful crime, which is ultimately causing paralyzing fear in many parts of the world, and in our own backyards. This represents, in my view, a significant fulfillment of Christ's prediction regarding the increased wickedness before His Return. Luke 21:26, "men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken." Again, take a look around...this is happening at breakneck speed. The frightening increase in wickedness points to the impending judgment which Christ will soon execute upon all the evildoers at His Coming.
C) An Age of Appetite - I'm going to wrap several items in this little "burrito" because this appetite is strictly of destruction and the list is numerous.

1. Indulgence in Eating 
2. Mass Shootings/Suicide Bombings
3. Food Consumption/Waste
4. Indulgence in Drinking
5. Indulgence of Drugs
6. Indulgence of Sexual Immorality
7. Incest
8. Marriage Aberrations
9. Homosexuality/Transgenderism
10. Bestiality
11. Abortion
12. Indulgence of Sexual Perversions
13. Pedophilia
14. School Shootings/Terrorizing youth
15. Indulgence of Pornography
16. Indulgence of "Self"
17. Indulgence in Animal and Domestic Abuse
18. Increasing Interest in Cannibalism
19. Indulgence in the love of money

The Accuser

The Appetite for all of the above is increasing at an alarming rate though most of it isn't spoken about because there is an agenda lurking in the shadows. All of these "desires" and "lusts" and "darkness" breeds a society of selfish, self-centered, empty, lost, tormented, divided, lonely, wicked and evil people who will never fill the emptiness they feel inside. There is only ONE who can fill that void, Jesus Christ! No other. Nothing else. This society we are living in right now is a society of EXCESS! Plain and simple. People don't think for themselves. People don't study but instead search YouTube tutorials. People don't wait for anything and demand it NOW. People aren't patient in earning what they want and instead, feel entitled to what they didn't earn. People live excessively these days and in such a fast paced ideology as well. No more family dinners at the table. If they go out to eat, everyone, including young children have their heads in cell phones or tablets not engaging. All of these things leads to an emptiness and a desire to refill the lost "immediate satisfaction" sensation. It's terribly sad and grieving my spirit how lost this generation truly is and how we let it get this far! This bad. This fast. There is an addiction of sorts to pleasure. Take marijuana for instance. It's always been called the gateway drug to other drugs. Now this is not a forum open for discussion of legalization, but rather used as an example since everyone has heard this at least once in their lives. You get the immediate high and satisfaction of the drug. You do it more and more to get that high. But eventually, you have to use more and more to get the same high you once got with half the dose. Well, when that doesn't satisfy you fully, you figure why not try something else. The cycle begins and it becomes a hamster wheel. It takes more and more and bigger and better drugs to gain the same euphoria as when it all started with the gateway drug. Same goes for ANY appetite....drugs, sex, crime, violence. It all starts small....it all satisfies for a time. But then something happens. Something evil happens. The desires grow stronger for more. For bigger. For better. For more thrills. That's why you see so many millionaires unhappy and spending lavishly on things they don't need or can't use. But you also see those same people desiring MORE.....whether it's drugs, alcohol, sexual perversions, whatever it is, they end up going down a very dark, evil, wicked road. Unsatisfying unstable and at the will of Satan....who planted those desires there in the first place.

Many times in the Bible, it warns that toward the end of history as you and I know it, there will be a return to the pre-flood conditions of gross sin and severe wickedness. Concerning the people of Noah's day, the Scripture says, in Genesis 6:5, "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." All past ancient civilizations  have been brought down through destruction through sin.  Look at Rome. She went on a gigantic wickedness spree toward the end of her history, much the same way as the world has been doing now for the past several years. Nero committed suicide in 68 A.D. then Rome’s overthrow came more than 400 years later. You see, in one moment, almost omnipotent power was within Rome’s grasp; and the next, came her ultimate destruction. Immorality and uncleanness occupied the minds of Roman rulers and of antediluvians. So, too, in the world today, we see a world saturated with sexual sins, violent sins, murderous sins, perverted sin in places high and low. Why? Many people have deliberately chose the ways of sin and death. They do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. They prefer to have temporary earthly satisfaction, earthly "rewards" and gratification than eternal life!

This is a diabolical pattern evident in all nations that rejected God’s Word as their ultimate authority in their lives, and the country's leadership, and is a pattern prevailing today in many people all over the world, Americans included. There is and always has been a desensitization of  our society, with each generation getting more and more desensitized to the point where things just don't matter. People don't flinch anymore at the sight of evil doers and the crimes they commit. People look the other way. People just got "used" to things and continue on their merry little ways as our generation is being sucked into the vacuum of evil, wicked people. I found the following excerpt that I'm copying in its entirety from 1994. Even though it's many years ago, it holds so much truth to NOW. As I read it, I couldn't help but reflect on just how much worse off we are in 2017 than 1994. How much more diabolical people have become, yet, these following words still ring true.

"As a society, we have gotten used to illicit sexual relationships, adolescent promiscuity, abortion, cheating, lying, stealing, prostitution, rape, divorce, and even murder. We have gotten used to financial mismanagement on both civil and personal levels. We have accepted political corruption. We have rejected personal and social responsibility and learned to blame anyone or anything else for our problems and failures. We have traded in our infinitely valued divine image for a nickel-plated pagan shrine erected in honor of self-interest, immorality, and social apathy. The American ideal today is me first to do what I want, when I want, to whom I want, regardless of who or what it may hurt. These are the signs of a society gone wrong. [Keith A. Fournier, “Re-Civilizing America,” Law & Justice, February 1994.]"

2 Timothy 3:2-4, "For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God," 

As Christians, the following verse should speak volumes to us!! Too many people want to be "politically correct" and just remain silent. Many are still on the fence on how they feel when sins and the wickedness are exposed. We are to have NO fellowship with the darkness or the unfruitful works and EXPOSE them. Those who can expose them have understanding of the command. They don't care if they are singled out and rejected. They don't care about being politically correct because they'd rather speak truth and be biblically correct then get the acceptance from man. Please read the verse below and pray upon it. We are living in some very dark times and many people are being fed a lot of fluff. They are being followers of iniquity and enabling those sins rather than exposing them for what they are....sin. Wickedness. Evil. If we remain silent and turn away, then in some ways we are saying it's all OK. It's not though. Christians are being pushed down. They are being silenced. For telling the truth. We are the only ones in the world that are having their rights and freedoms taken away because we DO have the TRUTH. As I have said many, many times....all the demons roaming around causing all kinds of havoc and trouble and discontentment are only reacting to the presence of God's children who has the Holy Spirit indwelling in them. All the other religious idols, imams, Buddha's and whatever other false deities are being worshipped have their rights to do so openly. Christians don't. Why? JESUS CHRIST IS THE WAY THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE!!! Every demon knows that and it's Satan's whole purpose to destroy, steal and devour! Don't be a victim! Stand! Proclaim! Expose!

Ephesians 5:11, "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them."

Isaiah 5:20, "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter."

Because people have rejected objective truth and the solid foundation of all that is good, pure and beautiful, meant for us to thrive in, we, as a collective, no longer even know how to decipher the difference between good and evil, light or darkness. It's a slippery slope people have been sliding down for some time now. The consciences of people have been so seared and branded with all the increasing of wickedness and darkness, that they no longer are offended by evil but, rather, have learned to tolerate it. This is the fall and we are tumbling FAST down the hill and while doing so, we are gathering all the filthy, vile evil sins and nobody is none the wiser. Sad, very, very sad. So, since virtually all of the perverted behavior that people appear to engage in is now being categorized under "natural behavior," (and if it's not categorized yet, wait a few months, you will surely see it show up!) a door is now been opened for more wicked sins, vile perversions, and new "laws" to be enacted to protect those said sins and perversions. It's coming. And it's coming quickly! Just thirty years ago we would have been utterly appalled, even vehemently outraged, by all the decadence, darkness and debauchery that, on a daily, momentary basis, fills our streets, TV shows, movie screens, music and art, video games, businesses, Internet and political bodies. By remaining silent, by turning our heads, by not using our voices, we give it all our approval and those who are perpetrators of the dark.

The Apostle Paul said that in the last days man would be "brutal." The English definition of brutal is: "savagely violent, punishingly hard or uncomfortable, direct and lacking any attempt to disguise unpleasantness."  The Greek word, ‘anemeros’ literally means "untamed, savage, or brutal." He also said in the last days, man would not be lovers of the good, which could also possibly better be translated as "haters of the good."

In closing, I just want to say that the evil and wickedness goes beyond anything I've ever seen in my lifetime! The rapid increase in the depravity makes my head spin but makes my heart grieve! I can only imagine how our Lord and Savior feels as He watches His creation destroy themselves and all that He has blessed us with! There are things going on in this world that are so dark, so evil, so vile that they are unspeakable! I've been shocked at the intensity and the shallow attempt at "justifying" the unjustifiable! This is the way the wicked came to our society and the wicked is eating up everyone that is allowing it to permeate their thoughts, souls and minds! For the Love of God and His Son, Jesus Christ, cry out to Him for your Salvation! Repent and turn from your ways! Expose what is hidden by shining His Light into the darkness! It's never too late to accept, and believe, that Jesus Christ is your Savior, that He was born of a Virgin, that He is God in the Flesh, that He died on the Cross to pay your sin debt in full, then rose 3 days later! He is waiting for all who will come to Him.

Psalm 7:11-16, "God is a just judge,
And God is angry with the wicked every day.
12) If he does not turn back,
He will sharpen His sword;
He bends His bow and makes it ready.
13) He also prepares for Himself instruments of death;
He makes His arrows into fiery shafts.
14) Behold, the wicked brings forth iniquity;
Yes, he conceives trouble and brings forth falsehood.
15) He made a pit and dug it out,
And has fallen into the ditch which he made.
16) His trouble shall return upon his own head,
And his violent dealing shall come down on his own crown.

May you all be Blessed in His Perfect Will!!!



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