"The 1970s and 80s were known as “The Me Generation.” The self-absorbed of that era were the ones at which Handey poked fun. But the Me Generation were amateurs compared to the Millennial naval-gazing that takes place in 2014 America.
The self-absorbed naturally concentrate on themselves. Their journeys are mostly inward and involve self-discovery. Their deep thoughts revolve around themselves, who they are, what they presume, and what they believe. These self-centered thoughts may passed along to others disguised as “advice.”
The Millennials are the ultimate Me Generation. Raised on self-esteem, lectured on the benefits of self-actualization, self-awareness and self-aggrandizing: the one trait they seem to lack is self-control.
However, it’s hard to fault the Millennials: they have been programmed by TV, society, their schools, their religions, their culture–even their parents in many cases–to look first to themselves for answers.
The Celebration of "Self"
It’s no accident that the most celebrated art form of the Millennials is that perfect symbol of self-celebration: the “selfie.”
THE SELFIE: Symbol of a Generation.
All the preceding has been noted to make the following observations.
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”
–2 Thessalonians 2:3-4
When the man of sin comes onto the scene, he will appeal to the “good in people.” Though he will speak great swelling words of a false brotherhood and unity (for all of those who follow him; death for those who disagree), he will invite each person to search for the good that is within. The appeal will be that “You’re a good person. Unleash the goodness that dwells within for the benefit of all mankind.”
This directly contradicts Christianity, which teaches that man is wicked, sinful and lost without a savior.
“there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
–Romans 3:12
Like many modern church-goers who fancy themselves pastors, prophets and apostles, the man of sin will be loath to talk of sin–unless it’s to slander the saints; i.e., those who disagree. Sin will not be a condition between God and man, but a condition between man and man–particularly the followers of the man of sin.
Therefore, the man of sin will urge the world to continue its self-absorbed journey inward, to “follow their heart.”
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
–Jeremiah 17:9
Contrary to Jeremiah 17:9, a great many Christians justify their ungodly actions or beliefs with the phrase “God knows my heart”
“He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.”
–Proverbs 28:26
They may think they know their hearts; they certainly do not know their Bibles. In fact on this subject, at least one atheist knows the Bible better than those whose ultimate authority lies within.
Little-known Bible verses X: Don’t trust your heart
(Of course, the same atheist purports to show that we can save ourselves without God’s help. Little-known Bible verses: Saving yourself. The allure of self is attractive even to those who claim no other god.)
But self-celebration and self-worship are not goals: they are only way stations on the road to dragon worship.
Self Worship: The American Church
SELF-WORSHIP IN AMERICA: Self-Centered Experiences, Revelations and Worship trump the Word of God.
Much of what passes for American Christianity has been tailor-made for the man of sin–because much of what passes for worship in American churches has degenerated into self-worship and the celebration of self.
Satan’s first step–and his biggest battle–is to get Christians to take their eyes off of Jesus and to focus on self. After that, the steps to dragon worship come more easily and leisurely.
Many congregations have already journeyed inward. Subjective experiences, emotions and revelations have replaced the objective Word of God. Counterfeit spirits are worshiped as the Holy Spirit.
For many, “I feel,” “I think” and “I believe” have become the forerunners of “I will.”
Jesus becomes an afterthought. Testimonies are of the “wonderful church” or the “great staff” or the “marvelous praise and worship”–not of the One who is the once and for all perfect sacrifice.
Yoga, prayer circles and prayer labyrinths have all entered American Christianity. All these practices are self-centered.
In other churches, soaking prayer, contemplative prayer, centering prayer are not only used, but are taught. All are nonbiblical methods of turning prayer inward; of emptying oneself in the name of finding god within. Jesus told of the dangers of this type of emptying.
“When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out. And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”
–Luke 11:24-26
When the man of sin arrives, he will find a great many Americans swept and garnished and waiting.
Frankly, those who indulge in Contemplative prayer and walk Labyrinths to get a buzz for Jesus are no better off than winos mumbling and stumbling through a maze of darkened downtown streets only to wind up languishing alone on cardboard beds beneath bridges and between buildings, because the end is the same – confusion, delusion, depression and death. They’re not following Christ or obeying His Word, they’re only junkies chasing a high and running from the reality of their own rebellion by attempting to anesthetize their pain and escape accountability – all the while justifying themselves by sorting through the conjectural compost of beard-stroking street urchins and calling it “Emergent conversation.”
–Contemplative Spirituality – The Latest ‘Christian’ Craze
The modern American Church is largely a self-absorbed one: eager for experiences, revelations and spiritual thrills, chills and spills. It’s little wonder that mysticism–with its subjective truth and its dependence on self–has made a big comeback in the 21st century American Church.
As has extreme asceticism. Yes, the Christian is to deny himself. But when the emphasis shifts to self-justification through the purification rituals and practices of man, then the focus is off of Jesus and onto man.
Light shows, thumping bass, drums, repetitive chants: manipulating the atmosphere to alter perceptions fools many modern American church-goers into believing that they have experienced a “move of God’ when all they have experienced is an altered reality–as any dance club veteran can attest.
Conclusion
THE MAN OF SIN: RIGHT AT HOME
The man of sin will feel right at home in the Selfie Generation.
He will also feel right at home in America: a land not only of the self-made man but a master of turning vice into virtue.
Exhibit A: Nowhere else is the sin of Pride exalted more than in America, where “Proud to be an American” is both a motto and and a way of life.
Exhibit B: Almost every American commercial ad is a celebration of sin and appeals to either the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye or the pride of life.
The man of sin will fit right in.
The “selfie” generation is a fertile field for the man of sin. And self-reliant America, as the ultimate home of countless “pull-yourself-up-by-your-own bootstraps” self-motivators, presents itself an inviting base of operations for the one who shall come in his own name.
And lest there be those who are self-satisfied because they are older: the self-absorbed observe no age limit.
The “selfie” generation is not age-specific.
It includes quite a lot of older Americans.
Some of whom are Christians, some not.
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