Equipped for the Last Days
Rick Renner

Rick Renner is a highly respected leader, teacher, and author within the Christian community, both in the U.S. and abroad. He works alongside his wife Denise to see the Gospel preached, leadership trained, and churches established throughout the former Soviet Union. Rick and Denise are the founders and pastors of the Moscow Good News Church. They reside in Moscow, along with their three sons and their families. Learn more about this outstanding ministry at www.renner.org

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

2 Timothy 3:1

In this passage in Second Timothy chapter 3, the Holy Spirit pointed toward the future and prophesied that in the very last of the last days, certain characteristics would become globally more prominent and commonplace than ever before. But I want to assure you that the Holy Spirit didn’t give us all these prophetic insights to scare us, but rather to prepare us to live victoriously in these last days. He forewarned us so we could reinforce ourselves and make sure we’re living right for Christ until the glorious moment when He returns for His Church.

What the Future Holds Beyond All Shadow of Doubt

The apostle Paul wrote these words in Second Timothy 3:1 under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and it was, of course, no mistake that he used the words, “This know….” This word “know”is from the Greek word ginosko, and this is very important because in this particular case, it describes something that is emphatic or absolutely certain.

By employing this word at the beginning of this verse, the Holy Spirit is speaking in the clearest of terms. He’s saying, “This know beyond a shadow of a doubt — what I’m about to tell you is an absolute certainty.”

It’s as though the Holy Spirit through Paul was pointing His finger 2,000 years into the future as He began to describe what would happen in the Church and in the world in the last days. And the intention of the Scripture was not just to speak to Timothy, but to also inform us — those who would be living in the last generation.

So the Holy Spirit says, “Know this emphatically, of a certainty, and without a doubt that this will absolutely happen in the last days.”

The word “last” in this verse is translated from the Greek word eschatos, and it’s where we get our word eschatology. Eschatology describes the study of last things, but when you see this word eschatos in the Greek, it doesn’t just describe the last days — it describes the very ultimate end of something.

For example, eschatos wouldn’t just describe the last half of a year; rather, it would describe the very last month of the year — or the very last week in a month or the very last day in a week. In other words, eschatos portrays the very ultimate end of a thing.

Well, what emphatically, of a certainty, and without a doubt is going to happen in the very ultimate end of things — in the last of the last days?

The Holy Spirit says it very clearly: “Perilous times shall come.”

That word “perilous” is an interesting word. It’s translated from the Greek word kalepos, and it is used in only one other place in the entire New Testament. When you see where else in Scripture this word kalepos is used, you’ll begin to have some insight into why the Holy Spirit used this interesting word to describe the last of the last days.

And when he [Jesus] was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce….
Matthew 8:28

Let’s look at the word “fierce” in this verse because this is the word that’s translated from the same Greek word kalepos that’s used in Second Timothy 3:1. So just by reading Matthew 8:28, we know that when the Holy Spirit says, “In the last days, perilous times will come,” He is describing exceedingly fierce times.

From the word kalepos, we can gather that the last days will be characterized by danger and difficulty so fierce and so furious that it will serve to reduce men’s strength. But we’d have to look at the specific characteristics associated with these two demon-possessed men to fully appreciate what Paul intended to convey as he wrote Second Timothy 3:1.

First, Matthew 8:28 tells us that there were two demon-possessed men. When you study Mark and Luke, those authors say there was one demon-possessed man. This is not a conflict of Scripture. Matthew gives the more general, broader picture while Mark and Luke simply deal with the one man who was the worst-possessed of the two.

The first thing we find is that these men were so exceedingly fierce “…that no man might pass by that way” (Matthew 8:28). The word “fierce” can also be translated from the Greek as high risk, treacherous, destructive, and in danger of causing damage. The idea the Holy Spirit is conveying here is that if you were traveling in the vicinity of these two demon-possessed men, it was very likely that you would be hurt in some way. The area where these two men roamed was a very dangerous, treacherous place to be — so much so that people avoided the area entirely in order to avert any encounters with these “exceedingly fierce” men.

Specific Characteristics of Society in the Last Days

But what was it specifically about these two men that the Holy Spirit distinguishes as characteristics or signs that we are living in the last of the last days?

The following is Mark’s account of the same story.

And they [Jesus and His disciples] came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit.

Mark 5:1,2

Notice that phrase “out of the tombs” (v. 2). Day in and day out, this man lived among the tombs — in the vicinity of death. So it’s very obvious that this man had death on his mind. We also find in that verse that he also had an unclean spirit. That word “unclean” always refers to some kind of sexual lewdness. So when it says that the man had an unclean spirit, it means the man was sexually unclean.

Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.

Mark 5:3-5

Expounding on the phrase “…neither could any man tame him…” (v. 4), we find from the Greek that it means the man was literally untamable, and it paints the picture of an animal trainer such as the kind you’d find at a circus. Even those skilled at training the wildest, fiercest, and most uncontrollable animals couldn’t successfully subdue this man who had the unclean spirit.

Now let’s look at Luke’s account of this same story.

And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not. (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.)

Luke 8:27-29

We’re looking at the characteristics associated with this demon-possessed man that the apostle Paul used to describe the perilous (kalepos) times that would signify the last of the last days. So far, we’ve seen that this man:

1. Was taken over by sexual lewdness and uncleanness. The man was completely nude and roamed the area like an animal with no regard for the sacredness of the human body — but instead treated his body very shamefully.
2. Lived in the vicinity of death day after day after day. Everywhere he looked, he saw symbols of death. In fact, one could say that this man was obsessed with the idea of death.
3. Was violent, fierce, dangerous, and destructive in his behavior toward himself and others.
4. Was so completely out of control that he could not even be helped — tamed or subdued — by “experts.”
5. Was “driven” by the devil into isolation. The man was restless and on the run — his life completely devoid of peace and the ability to think sensibly and rationally.

All of these things are contained in this word kalepos that we find in Second Timothy 3:1! And the Holy Spirit is saying to us about this, “I emphatically want you to know beyond all shadow of doubt that these times — times that are exceedingly fierce — are coming upon the earth.”

Let’s take a look at each of these five characteristics of the kalepos man — the demon-possessed man in the tombs, whom Jesus delivered.

Characteristic #1: Sexual Uncleanness and an Obsession With Nudity

First, we see that he had “an unclean spirit” (Mark 5:2). This evil spirit had access to the man, and there was something sexually foul about him. In fact, as you study the original Greek in these verses, there’s actually an implication that something in the man’s mind had been opened to something sexually unclean — and that might have been the door that allowed access for all those other demons to begin to infiltrate him. So there’s an indication that sexual uncleanness was how this man became demonized to begin with.

Luke 8:27 says about the man that he “… had devils long time, and ware no clothes….” So kalepos also portrays the idea of nudity.

In the Jewish world at the time of this writing, public nudity was an affront. The Jews believed that public nudity wasn’t just indecent — it was an absolute shame in the presence of God. But here we find this man is stripped naked, and, in fact, he can’t even keep his clothes on; he rips his clothes off because the devil is continually humiliating him.

So the Holy Spirit is telling us that at the end of the age, there will be great nudity or a shaming of human beings through nudity. And isn’t it true today that in every form of media, there seems to be an obsession with nudity or with being scantily clothed?

Characteristic #2: A ‘Death Syndrome’ or an Obsession With Death

Mark 5:3 says the demon-possessed man “…had his dwelling among the tombs….” This man’s very dwelling-place was a picture of death.

It’s very interesting how much death is on the minds of people in our culture today. If you look at the way some younger people dress, there is a “death” style of clothing that appears very dark and morbid. And in recent years, it’s staggering the number of vampire movies and television programs that have emerged on our airwaves. It’s as if the subject of death and mortality has taken over the entertainment industry. Who would have ever dreamed that vampires and other creatures associated with darkness and death would become so popular and romanticized in our culture? Yet these things are all the rage in our day.

Characteristic #3: Self-Mutilation and an Obsession With Violence

Mark 5:5 says about this kalepos man, “…Night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.” And in society today, “cutting,” especially among women, has become a very widespread practice.

Denise and I have a friend who is the head chaplain at one of the largest Christian schools in the United States, and she recently shed some interesting light on this topic for us. She told us that that one of the biggest problems she has with female students in her school is “cutting.” I had never even heard of this, but this chaplain shared with us that in counseling these girls, it is revealed that they perform this self-mutilating behavior as a way of trying to relieve themselves of guilt and shame. Cutting themselves is a behavior that demonstrates on a physical level the self-loathing these young women feel on an emotional level.

What about violent acts that are perpetrated on others? Matthew 8:28 says, “…There met him [Jesus] two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.” As we already saw, the phrase “that no man might pass by that way” indicates that because of the destructive, violent nature of these demon-possessed men, being in their presence meant almost certain harm. The area where these two men roamed was a very dangerous place to be, and that’s why people avoided the area entirely — to avert any encounters with these “exceedingly fierce” men.

When the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write Second Timothy 3:1 about the “perilous times” that would come upon the earth, He was prophesying about a dangerous time when people would be given to violence and would be unable to control their temper.

Well, what about our taste for violence as a society today? Unfortunately, it’s true that this present “civilized,” “sophisticated,” and “technologically advanced” generation has become the most violent in all of human history. Think how desensitized the soul of society has become to believe it’s perfectly normal to rent a movie filled with murder and bloodshed and bring it right into the comfort of their living rooms to watch it with their friends and families and even their children!

Because of television, Internet, music, and video games, violence is now the hottest-selling ticket at the box office as children across the world play to “kill” at video games that realistically emulate murder. The long-term result is that actual acts of violence are increasing in every part of society.

Characteristic #4: Extreme Behavior and a Loss of Self-Control

Mark 5:3,4 says, “Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him.”

Here we find a man who was untamable, someone who couldn’t be subdued even with chains. The phrase “…neither could any man tame him” was translated from the same Greek word used to describe a wild-animal tamer — someone who normally could tame the wildest of animals, but who became confronted with a situation so completely out of control that trying to bring it under subjection was useless.

By using the word kalepos in Second Timothy 3:1, the Holy Spirit is telling us that the end of the age will be marked by people and situations that are completely out of control. In other words, it doesn’t matter what human government tries to do, the world will become an untamable place. No human power will be able to arrest or stop the chaos that will erupt on the earth in the last days.

Characteristic #5: Confusion in the Mind Due to Demonic Oppression

Last, we find that widespread restlessness will be characteristic of society in the last days. Luke 8:29 says, “…Oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.”

Just as this demon-possessed man was “driven of the devil,” society in the last days will be driven and will be out of control as it moves pell-mell in the wrong direction, unable to stop itself or turn around. Satan will drive all those he can on a fast track out of the will of God, and they will not know peace — only turmoil and confusion — as they’re driven further and further into darkness, depression, isolation, and spiritual oppression.

All of these characteristics can be found in the word “perilous” or kalepos. In telling us that perilous times will come, and what those perilous times will entail, the Holy Spirit is attempting to equip us for living victoriously the last days.

As believers, we have been appointed unto victory in Christ. So if we know in advance the things that are going to transpire in a future, lost society, we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from its harmful effects and influences. And we can equip ourselves in order to rescue those who are held captive by evil influences in the world. The Holy Spirit is always faithful to prepare us for the days ahead and to continually work in our hearts to present us to God as a glorious Church. He is the Spirit of Truth who shows us things to come so we can live victoriously amidst the darkened condition of the world around us.

Jesus is coming back soon for His Church! And the last days of the Body of Christ on this earth will be her best days as she is equipped by God to bring the light of Christ to those who are in darkness and to deliver those who are bound. God is faithful who promised it!