Character in the time of the end

The Bible speaks about the end of the age. It speaks about Christ’s return. It speaks about judgement. It speaks about God’s people remaining faithful in a world increasingly opposed to Him. But the focus should not merely be on identifying events. The deeper question is: What kind of people will God’s people be when Christ returns?

Jesus said that in the last days lawlessness would increase, and that “the love of many will grow cold.” Then He added:

But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

Endurance requires character. Faithfulness requires character. Perseverance requires character. A person cannot develop deep faith overnight when the storm arrives. Character must already have been forming.

Three men who decided before the furnace

Daniel’s three friends give us a picture of character that was formed before the crisis. When King Nebuchadnezzar commanded everyone to bow to his golden image, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego were threatened with the fiery furnace. They did not ask for time to think. They answered:

O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.

Notice the words “But if not.” Their faithfulness did not depend on being rescued. They had settled the question earlier. A person cannot decide on the way to the furnace whom he serves. That decision was made in the ordinary years of faithfulness, and the furnace revealed it.

The ten virgins: character cannot be borrowed

Jesus told a parable about ten virgins waiting for a bridegroom. Five were wise and had brought extra oil; five were foolish and had not. At midnight the cry went out that the bridegroom was coming, and the foolish discovered that their lamps were going out:

And the foolish said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” But the wise answered, saying, “No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.”

That is a striking picture. At the critical moment, the oil could not be shared, and it could not be bought at the last minute. The wise virgins had prepared earlier. We should not press every detail of a parable, but the point is clear: what is needed at the end cannot be borrowed from someone else, and it cannot be acquired in a moment. Jesus ends the parable with the words, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Matthew 25:13).

Revelation’s picture of God’s people

Revelation describes those who remain faithful to God:

Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Notice the balance. The commandments of God. And the faith of Jesus. Not one without the other. Faith without transformation becomes empty profession. Obedience without faith becomes legalism. But genuine faith produces a life increasingly aligned with God’s will.

The final question

The question at the end of history will not merely be, “Who knew the most?” Nor, “Who attended the most meetings?” Nor, “Who could argue theology most effectively?” The deeper question is: Who allowed Christ to transform them? Who remained faithful? Who loved truth? Who endured? Who trusted God? Who refused to abandon Christ when obedience became costly? Who allowed the Holy Spirit to form Christ’s character within them? This is not salvation by works. It is salvation that has produced its fruit.