“If you will not hear, And if you will not take it to heart, To give glory to My name,” Says the LORD of hosts, “I will send a curse upon you, And I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have cursed them already, Because you do not take it to heart.” — Malachi 2:2

“So do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble.” — Jeremiah 11:14

There is a phenomenon I have noticed when reading the history of apostasy. God does everything possible to awaken people to their contempt for His word. Contempt begins with believing a person or a thing is beneath consideration. It can escalate to deeming it or them are worthless or deserving scorn. Contempt for God’s Word always leads to departing from the faith. The phenomenon is that God becomes silent, and the people do not notice. Only when they wish to hear from Him does the consequences of their sin catch up with them. They may protest and claim love for God’s Word, but it is easy to prove otherwise. That is especially true today. People twist the Scriptures to mean what they wish rather than accepting the clear intent.

Apostasy is not a stranger in Israel’s history. Enemies have destroyed her as a nation several times. That is a testimony of their rebellion. God has repeatedly restored Israel to nationhood and given back her land. That is a testimony to His mercy. But in the period between their apostasy and repentance, they only heard the voices of prophets, whom they despised.

God is silent today concerning some people. The Holy Spirit has departed from an incalculable number of professing Christians that developed a taste for apostasy. Many pastors, teachers, evangelists, deacons, and other leaders no longer wish to hear Him. They are hungry for comfortable religion, which, for them, is a mixture of godliness and carnality. Eventually, they reach the point they determine it is too difficult to be faithful to God. People seek church meetings where the emphasis is on making people feel good about their status with God no matter what stage of rebellion they are in. They eventually crossed the line with God left on one side and they merely claim to believe in Him on the other side. They added Him like an asterisk in their heretical belief system—a blend of acknowledging Him while they return to full autonomy. Is it necessary to state what that decision will cost them in eternity?

I realize people eschew scare tactics intended to convince them to draw nearer to God. Scare tactics will not alert people who have rejected love for truth in the last days. It will repel them, make some of them angry, but the majority ignore such efforts to reach them. God will send them a powerful delusion so that they will believe a lie and be damned (2Thess. 2:10-12)The questions is, can we frighten people that once knew God into returning and fully surrendering to Him? As soon as a wind of false peace arrived, wouldn’t they return to their comfortable apathy? We should ponder Christ’s quote from Isaiah explaining why He spoke to the Pharisees in parables (Matthew 13:13-15).

And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

“Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed.”

Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered: “Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, The houses are without a man, The land is utterly desolate,” — Isaiah 6:9-11

In the case of apostate Israel and the Pharisees, God effectively shut off communication with them. Lost people have a much greater chance of hearing Him and repenting than the religious ones. The ones claiming to be God’s people shut their minds to the Holy Spirit and truth. God will not attempt to reach them and no one else is going to do so. Thus, frightening people with warnings is not my intention. The time has arrived that only allows me to present information to people who can still receive truth. The question remains, how many people remain that can recognize the signs of prophetic fulfillment?

Most professing Christians are waiting to repent until trouble falls suddenly on their world. They may never recognize it as trouble. Even now, a significant number of Christians believe embracing the sins of Sodom is acceptable to God. They may never realize they have apostatized until God’s wrath comes. It is impossible to renew them to repentance. They will have to return to God while battling doubt, satanic influences, and the desires of their flesh every step of the way. Such are the ones that can weep and repent in a revival one week and return to their comfortable bondage to flesh the next week. They cannot be reborn after being reborn. Commitment to God bored them to compromise. Their battle will be against a weight of drudgery intensified by demons. What can God do to help them?

“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, (parapiptō, apostatize) to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.” — Hebrews 6:4-6 (also, Hebrews 10:26-29)

I warn people against soteriology that permits them to live like a weed instead of a branch on the Vine. Most people trusting those salvation formulas never pledged unconditional eternal commitment to God. There may not be enough time to restore their commitment to God. If the Holy Spirit can convict them, they must repent now. I believe deeply that the darkness is so close to taking over the earth that every second is essential.

Christ instructed us when to expect His return.

“Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” (Luke 21:28)

If we are ever going to be ready for His return, we should be ready by now. We should realize that our world is transforming. Evil people are with surgical precision quickly developing a world environment greatly hostile to genuine Christ followers. Christians are being forced to accept and conform to the demands of spiritual Sodom or face severe consequences. What Christians have historically taught and preached has in some venues become a crime. Our nation is replete with wicked people in positions of influence and power that a few decades ago would be in prison. Now people are heralding them as heroes and role models. They are forcing our children to endure attacks on their gender identity and parental-instilled moral values.

We should realize the economy cannot continue to sustain the financial recklessness of our government, high inflation, and rewarding non-contributors with unearned income. When it collapses, the destroyers will rush in like gigantic bacteria to pollute and destroy what remains of our Christian-influenced Constitutional Republic. What they did in Portland, Oregon and other cities, they will do nationwide.

If people wish to continue basking in a haze of false peace, no one can convince them otherwise. God’s word informs us such people will be the great majority in the final apostasy. They deceive and are being deceived. His hand is against them and the lying prophets that swindled them out of their faith.

“My hand will be against the prophets who envision futility and who divine lies; they shall not be in the assembly of My people, nor be written in the record of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord GOD. “Because, indeed, because they have seduced My people, saying, ‘Peace!’ when there is no peace–and one builds a wall, and they plaster it with untempered mortar–“say to those who plaster it with untempered mortar, that it will fall. There will be flooding rain, and you, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall tear it down.”

“Surely, when the wall has fallen, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the mortar with which you plastered it?’ ” — Ezekiel 13:9-12 (Context:9-16)

Consider that a few decades ago, if what is currently happening in our nation suddenly fell in one day on the current apathetic ones, it would devastated and cause them to collapse emotionally. But it has occurred by increments as their apathy compelled them to ignore it. They have shut all negative information and warnings out. Instead of acknowledging the declension, and strengthening their endurance and faith, they became as Christ warned. They do not watch, do not know, are not prepared, and will not go.

“But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.” — Luke 21:34

“Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.” — Mark 13:33

To watch does not mean go outside and look up at the sky. Every warning implies we must be spiritually aware and alert. That cannot happen if we refuse to accept the signs, dull our ears to the warnings, and absorb ourselves in distractions and pleasures of the World System.

The deception and turmoil of that period will force the apathetic ones to recognize what they have ignored. Reality will explode on them like a great burning meteorite. Reality will blast apathy away like dust. Their and weak and compromised spirits will overload with severe angst and confusion. Whatever Satan’s emissaries offer to relieve their great stress and fear, they will eagerly accept. All that we can do for such people today is tell them the truth It is exactly what they will go to great lengths not to hear. They will gladly accept warnings on the day they grope in the darkness for mercy and cannot find it. But today is the day of salvation.

“Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” — Hebrews 3:12-13

This exhortation would be worth trillions of dollars if hell’s inhabitants could return to life and could pool their money to buy it. Hell has one entrance and no exit. There are no second chances beyond the pale of death. If one can still hear and feel convicted, they should sink to the floor, repent, and pray for repentance.