The Challenge of the Last Days, Part 1

Aim: To be conformed to Christ through the tensions of the last days.

Doctrine: ''The last days,'' though the best of days, are also dangerous ones. This is because everything is ''ramped-up'' and because the devil is in his death-throes since Jesus' resurrection.

Exegesis: How to handle the stress of the last days: be prepared for gross evil (vv. 1-4); be on guard against false religion (v. 5a); be willing to reject hypocrites (v. 5b).

Further application: The value of the last days (despite the strain): God develops His church in purifying furnaces, and the distinctions between true and false Christians are made manifest.

Key verse: v. 1 ''But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come...''