“There’s nothing you can do about it,” “That’s just the way it is.” Defeatism, a sense of hopelessness, that one is powerless to change the circumstances that surround them.
What do most prisoners spend more time doing, counting the days before they are released, or contemplating all the various possible ways of escape? Here is where we can compare these statements to some who claim Christ as Lord, specifically towards the rapture of the church, some have basically given up, others keep looking for every new sign so that they can continue to exclaim that Christ’s return is imminent. But there is a third, those who are not obsessed with all the signs, nor in a hurry to go where they will be forever, they are hard at work.
This does not mean that they are not hopeful each moment in anticipation, nor have they resigned themselves to the fact that “He will be here when He gets here for us,” but have instead determined to continue on the path that the Lord has set before them until they are told otherwise. They do not feel obligated to do so, they do not have in their minds great thanks or rewards for their continuing service, they do so because of the love that they have for the Lord, if others benefit from their submissive service, all the better, but that is not the goal, neither are the possible rewards, it is the glory of God they seek.
These individuals are well aware of what is occurring in the world, they have been for decades now, these last days signs are indeed increasing, but they did not start yesterday, or even last year with this new brand version of the flu, these days have been approaching for quite some time.
Those who are easily deceived are those who generally do not have their eyes and ears open, they are in most cases the defeatist, the bystanders and spectators, their words generally speak louder than their actions, and they are taken by the moment, the current circumstances. One sign leads to another, continuing proof of what they already know is what they search for, and so the diversion of Satan works every time with them, the next breaking news is given all their attention, and then the search for the next “new event” begins to unfold. The problem, or at least one of them, lies in this fact, with the knowledge comes no action, just the often-repeated statement of “There’s nothing I can do about that.”
These are the easiest ones to control, for they offer no debate, no constructive criticism, and the best you may garner from them that is even remotely spiritual would be, “It must be the Lord’s will.”
One of the determining factors of a born-again believer’s life is the actions that they take, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” (Matt. 7:20) The defeatist does not act, they complain, they would not call it that, but that is what it is. “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (2 Tim. 3:7) Garnering a lot of information, but doing nothing with it, watching for every new sign, instead of spending that time in the Word of God, seeking His face for guidance.
I do not believe that enough Christians truly see the path today, in fact, I do not think that they can see all of the avenues leading away from that narrow and strait path, (Matt. 7:14) and so they are diverted easily. If your focus is not on Christ, then it is not on what it should be on, and you may find yourself far off of the path even before you realize that you have left it, defeated, at least temporarily, before you even recognized that the battle had begun.
