While it is beneficial to be optimistic about life, it is equally important to be realistic. Optimism without truth could lead to illusion. Are we supposed to expect anything good from the world? The answer is a resounding yes. Can the world ever get any better? The answer is a capital NO. Why then should we have hope in the world? On this last question lies the human dilemma and our discussion.
I remember a discussion that erupted on this subject matter among ourselves back in the seminary some years back. Those who argued that the world will never get any better were considered to be negative and fatalistic, while those who argue in favour were said to be optimistic. However, nothing can be further from the simple truth; the world has never gotten any better despite the contrary anticipation of man. My position is based on the Bible. Jesus said to His disciples in John 16:33:
I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
The teachings of the Bible are clear that the world is not a place of peace, but trouble. God’s Word and the prophecies of the Bible are that the world will become increasingly evil continually until the coming of Christ (Matthew 24). To believe otherwise is to live in delusion. To accept this truth, on the other hand, is to be true to life.
The world has lived under the promises of one political leader to another who claims to have a solution to human challenges. But the world has rather sink deeper into untold hardship and wickedness. Things keep falling apart beyond control. And humanity has lived in perpetual disappointment of false hope. The earlier man accepts the truth that the solution to the human crisis does not lie with man, the better.
It is sad that some Christian brethren, officially referred to as the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), have come to build their faith on making the world a better place that will be marked by a phenomenal event. They tag this event End Time Revival that will bring a total transformation of the entire world and its system, and then usher in the second coming of Christ. God, therefore, is considered to be dependent on these modern prophets and apostles who have this mandate of revival. This teaching has ripple theological implications that have been discussed in some other articles on this site. But suffice here to say that this is a massive delusion in the contemporary church that is outrightly against a clear teaching of the Bible.
The most important thing while we wait for the coming of Christ is to learn to live in Christ as we wait for His coming. This will be looked at in the next article, “Living in Christ.”