The End of the World

Predictions of the end of the world aren’t new.  We have been hearing them for ages from people who ought to know better.  Certainly the world will come to an end.  The sun will flame out, become a red star and we will have no source of heat.  The oceans will dry up and the air will become unbreathable.  But that isn’t now, or even close to now.  Environmentalists are rightly concerned about the state of our earth, the melting of the polar icecap, the terrible pollution of our atmosphere, and if we do nothing about these things, there will be terrible consequences for this planet.  Already the temperatures seem to be rising and storms more frequent.  The devastation of the storm on the east coast over the past couple of weeks is certainly evidence that we can’t ignore the climate.

But it is one thing to be actively concerned about our environment and another thing entirely to predict the imminent end of the world.  But somehow, we are fascinated by the idea that something terrible is going to happen to all of us.  The Mayan Calendar ending on December 21 is an example of this.  Until we get to December 22, this won’t be put to rest.  So it becomes fodder for people who thrive on predicting disaster.

Jesus speaks to his disciples who are admiring the great temple.  He tells them that all of the stones in that building will be thrown down and not one stone will stand upon another.  They ask him privately when this will happen and he tells them to be careful not to be led astray, that there will be those who come and claim to be the leader, but not to follow them.  Nation will rise up against nation, he says, but these are the birth- pangs.

What follows from all of this is that God holds us all in the palm of his hand.  We need not fear whatever we see around us.  The birth that is coming is of God’s ultimate Kingdom in which we all will live in peace and harmony.  When will this happen?  It’s impossible to say, but certainly nations are still rising up against each other, there are earthquakes and other signs.   Just as Jesus said, the terrible signs are all around us.

The message is clear.  Our God loves this planet and all of us.  Despite what we do to one another, we will not lose that love and that care.  Jesus came to us to demonstrate with his life the love that completely resides in God.  Despite his crucifixion, and our rejection of Jesus, he rose from the dead to help us to know that we will rise also, no matter what the world looks like, our salvation is complete.