Social Media, Biblical End Times, and the Inevitable Trump

A recent conversation in my church small group really got me thinking about where we are headed as a society. I have no doubt that my group is full of well-intentioned, reasonable people who truly do their best to walk with God. That being said, we had a pretty interesting disagreement over media and social media.

Several of them took swipes at Facebook for being unnecessary. They also try to avoid the news, because it is almost exclusively negative and “doesn’t affect” their lives.

This is where I completely disagree with them.

Knowledge is power. The Bible says “study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” By closing ourselves off of the happenings of the world around us, how can we study or divide the word of truth? We need to understand the lies being perpetrated around us, or we will be lost.

The notion of “it doesn’t affect me,” could not be more wrong. Our society is changing at a blistering pace. Just fifteen years ago, could any of us have imagined that we would see terrorists murder 3,000 Americans on our home turf while destroying one of our greatest landmarks? Would you have imagined a 10% decrease in the number of self-proclaimed Christians in America? In the last five years, we have seen the entire Middle East collapse into civil wars that topple longstanding dictators and multiple European nations have fallen into economic chaos. In just the last two years we have seen the rise of ISIS, Nazis being elected to parliament across Europe, the resurgence of Russian aggression, a potentially nuclear Iran, gay marriage being legalized around the globe, a return to 1960s style race riots, gender neutral restrooms, and an avowed Socialist running for POTUS.

To pretend that these things do not affect us is naïve at best. To pretend that these things will not affect our children is outright dangerous.

I also began to contemplate the rise of Donald Trump among Christians. At first, I did not understand it. I was confused, angry, and hostile about it. However, I have since come to grips with the reality of a Trump administration. Admittedly it makes complete sense.

You see, I must be consistent in my understanding of the end times. If a President Cruz were to be elected, America might actually stand a fighting chance against the evil in the world. However, President Trump would further the already occurring destruction of all our country used to hold dear. Therefore, an election favoring a Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, and the Donald is consistent with where I believe we are heading.

Things will not improve for us. There is a possibility of a short bump of success, but the long-term goal is for America to lose its international influence.

I am not being pessimistic either. According to my source book, Christians will be gone before the world completely unravels. I am looking forward to spending eternity in paradise, so please do not mistake my seeming negativity as such.

Social media has played a significant role in many of the aforementioned issues of today. The “Arab Spring” came about through Twitter. We have our first major hashtag movement, #blacklivesmatter, which are invading Presidential campaign speeches. Facebook also serves to propagate lies to billions of people in an instant. There is a disinformation campaign being waged against (and sometimes by) Christians and conservative, and our friends and children are believing what they see on the internet and spread filth to their friends who may not be as connected.

How do the “good” people respond? By pretending that social media is a big joke. Meanwhile, the effects of apathy and purposeful ignorance can be seen in all facets of society.

The media is negative, and even scary. That is because, in my opinion, that we are headed toward the end times at an incredibly rapid pace. All this has been foretold in the Bible. It is our responsibility as Christians to stand in the face of evil. To paraphrase my father, when we put on the full armor of God, the Bible describes armor that protects the front. That’s because God wants us to charge into battle, rather than turn tail and run. When we “wrestle not against flesh and blood…” we are not to be inactive. Wrestling is an active engagement.

Our version of Christianity in the modern world is soft. Of course, parts of Christianity are soft, especially when we are dealing with other people. However, we are to be steadfast and actively battle against evil. This is where I differ from many, even within my own church family.

However, I am coming to grips with the fact that my own sense of urgency cannot and will not be shared by those around me. If Christianity experiences another great awakening, the inevitable tribulation might be postponed—and I believe that God has run out of patience, as he did with Sodom and the pre-flood world.

I will continue my lonely calls for action, but I will no longer expect results. May God have mercy on us all.