What should we do? Part II

The second thing we should do, to be ready for Jesus' return, is to know how to handle scoffers. Sorry, but putting our hands over our ears and humming is just not the best solution. (Grin)

We need to know how to not be sidetracked and how to respond.
Remember what Peter said in verses 3-7?

Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. (II Peter 3:3-7)

The scoffers of Peter's day at least acknowledged that God created the universe! Their great error was in denying the judgment of God seen in the great flood.
Today, unbelievers go much farther - even denying that the world was created by Him. Atheism has gained a lot of ground in the world over the past few years. Just walk into a bookstore and browse some of the titles you see there: "The God Delusion," "God is not Great: How Religion poisons everything," and even "Deconverted: A Journey from Religion to Reason." Or how about this one? "Godless: How an Evangelical Preacher became one of America's leading atheists"......oy vey.

Not that he was the first, but Darwin certainly gave propulsion to the anti-creation folks, when he laid out his "evolution" theory. And it IS JUST a theory! It is accepted by faith, just as creationism, since neither one can be verified by the accepted scientific processes of testing and duplicating results!

Things have certainly picked up speed since then, no? There are many people today (and there will be many more, I'm sure) who laugh and mock those of us who take the Word of God seriously. What do they call us? Bible thumpers, old-fashioned, ignorant, obsolete, right-wingers, and more. They say that our Bible is not only antiquated and out-of-date, but a downright fairy tale. And one of the biggest reasons that they say all of this is because they do deny the fact of creation.
Here's why: they have had to create all kinds of elaborate theories and concepts from "Big Bang" to alien intervention, in order to explain how this world came to be. Of course, we know that:

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. (Hebrews 11:3)

You see, if they don't push aside (Peter says they willfully forget) the "fable" of creation, then they must logically agree that the creation was made by a Creator. And if there was a Creator, then there must be an absolute standard of what's right, and what's wrong. And logically, if there's an absolute standard, then your life must fall into one of those categories -- either what you are doing is right, or it is wrong. So their problem is not a problem of their heads; it's a problem of their hearts. They don't want to admit creation and the Creator, because then they would not be able to do whatever they wanted. They can't walk according to their lusts, because if there are absolutes, then they would need to walk according to righteousness. They much prefer "the world according to Dostoevsky," who stated, "without God, anything is permitted."

Yes, scoffers can be extremely popular. When Stephen Hawking was alive, people would line up for a quarter of a mile to have the chance to get into an auditorium and hear him speak (Caltech, some years back). Sadly, he had been crippled by Lou Gehrig's disease, but sadder still is the fact that he rejected the reality of a universe created by God.
Bill Nye is another scoffer who has said that the creation and Noah's ark stories are harmful to children, and that the Bible is fiction. His popularity as "the Science Guy" is alarming, since his background is that of a mechanical engineer at Boeing, a Steve Martin look-alike winner, and a writer of comedy sketches. But in interviews, his words and statements are accepted as factual and scientific by those who hang on his every word.

Despite their popularity, these people are just plain wrong. They reject the Creator for the reasons we have outlined above. We must be careful that they do not influence us or our families to "buy in" to their disbelief. Students in grade school, high school and college are mocked and then saturated with the false science of evolution, humanism, and godlessness. We must pray for them and provide them with the support and the foundations they need in order to resist the mind-numbing groupspeak that will change their minds and their lives for the worst. Help them avoid the cookie-cutter mentality and bolster their efforts to remain individuals who are rooted in Biblical principles.

We must also avoid being discouraged by the scoffers' disbelief.  They are tragic, and the influence they have over our young people is alarming. But God is in control, and we can assist our young people in choosing good friends and in standing strong.

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? (II Corinthians 6:14)

so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. (Hebrews 6:18)

The final thing we should do regarding scoffers as we wait for the Lord's return, is to respond correctly.

Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. (Colossians 4:5-6, NASB)

Put simply, we should listen compassionately, consider prayerfully, and respond patiently. That's quite an assignment, I know, but God is gracious and will fill us with His Spirit so that we can respond to scoffers, instead of being influenced by them.
Next time we meet to study, we will look at more applications of Peter's instructions, as we wait for our Lord's return.