End Time Delusions Part II: Socialism

Lenin, Engels and Marx

The apostle Paul was well acquainted with lies and deception in his day. After all, he had embraced a counterfeit religious system for his entire life until he discovered the truth during an encounter one day with Jesus Christ while traveling to Damascus. (Acts 9)

Paul was certainly capable of understanding God's truth concerning the Jewish Messiah Jesus Christ, because he was a biblical scholar. However, for Paul, the truth took a back seat to the cultural traditions and teachings of the ancient rabbis who Paul deeply admired. 

And so, despite the prophetic biblical evidence that proved Christ as the Messiah, Paul cast his lot with the rabbis who had established their own religious system that perverted the laws and commandments that God gave to his ancestors through Moses. 

That counterfeit system absolutely denied the Son of God Jesus Christ and directed the Jews to look for another messiah fashioned in the minds of the rabbis. Paul embraced that system until his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus.

After Paul had his spiritual awakening, he continually stressed the need for people to investigate the facts before deciding whether to believe something or not. Concerning those in the early churches who were skeptical of all prophecies, Paul wrote this: "Do not quench the (Holy) Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil." (1 Thessalonians 5:19-22) 

Testing, research and investigation are essential for distinguishing between truth and falsehood. Without that, there's simply no way to determine what's true and what isn't. Unfortunately, we live in a time where ideology often trumps hard evidence. 

Many folks choose to believe something because it sounds good, even if it isn't true. Paul recognized that in his second letter to fellow apostle Timothy when he recorded this prophecy concerning the end times: "For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths." (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

One such myth is socialism that's being increasingly embraced by the western world as the socioeconomic panacea for poverty, crime and moral depravity. What is socialism? Merriam-Webster defines it: 

Any of various economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods. A system of society or group living in which there is no private property. A system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state: A stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done.

Socialism is the proverbial bridge between free enterprise capitalism and totalitarian communism. Once a society gets on that bridge, it's extremely difficult to turn around and get off. If you don't believe that, then ask anyone who lived under the iron fist of Soviet communism while it existed for 70 years in eastern Europe. Communism crushed hopes, ruined dreams, devastated souls and destroyed millions of lives.

Its failures were sensationally catastrophic. Not only did it lead to the near total destruction of the industrial infrastructure of eastern Europe, it murdered millions of souls through its godless, atheistic gospel that denied God and persecuted those who believed in Him. 

And it ruined academic and economic incentive by punishing achievement and rewarding failure. But how? By confiscating the wealth from the productive class and giving it to those who had no desire to succeed in life. After all, if you can get something for free, then why work for it? And if the government is going to take away the fruit of your labor, then why bother earning it?  

Who was the architect of socialism? He was a pseudo-intellectual named Karl Marx, a 19th century German philosopher and an atheist who didn't understand human nature. Marx believed that the world could be made a better place by doing away with economic classes and redistributing the wealth. 

And he believed that in order for that to occur, the government would have to seize control of private property and own everything. One of Marx's famous sayings was this one: From each according to his ability, to each according to his need. While that sounds innocent, it's deadly when governments acquire the power to force people to give up their property and wealth so they can give it to others.

The epic failure of socialism can't be underestimated. Despite it's spectacular failure in eastern Europe, many western nations have embraced it and are paying a steep price. Greece is bankrupt and other nations aren't far behind. The United States has rung up a colossal $19 trillion debt, and unless the U.S. gets its economic house in order, America's destined to become a third world sewer within 20 years.

Socialism has never worked anywhere it's been practiced. And it will never work because it can't work. It's antithetical to human nature; it breeds crime, poverty and depravity, and it bankrupts cities and nations. For a prime example, look at almost any big American city such as Chicago, Detroit, St. Louis or Philadelphia. They've been ravaged by socialism. 

It was Margaret Thatcher who once said that the problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money. You also run out of hope and freedom. Unfortunately, most people fail to realize that until after that happens. And then it's too late.