2012

The End :)

/ The Pastor
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ”
[Mark 13:32-37]

In just over a month we will know for sure if the Mayan calendar will do what calendars are supposed to do…start over for a new cycle.

Mayan calendar

That’s right…Dec 21, 2012 is coming up and that is the date the Mayan calendar ends and the date some have falsely predicted that a cataclysmic event will end the world.   I for one don’t think the Mayans had some special revelation from God about the “unknown day or hour” Jesus talked about in Mark 13, but if they did…GREAT!  Bring it on 🙂

What I find intriguing, though, is the number of people that are concerned about this possible end of the world.  And some of these people are Christians.  Why are you worried?

As a Christian this should not be scary but rather exciting.
As a Christian you should not fear the end but rather embrace it.
As a Christian you should not ignore the end but watch and wait.

[Once again…I believe I will wake up on Dec 22 and finish Sunday worship prep]

You see…the essence of our faith in Christ is that we will be reconciled to God and live in Paradise for ever.  Jesus died and rose so that sins would be forgiven and all of creation be restored.  But for creation to be restored, this one must end.

Scripture tells us over and over again that Jesus will be returning to bring us home.  Revelation tells us of a place where tears, sorrow and death are no more.  And if the end will bring an end to death and sin…then bring it.  I can hardly wait.  Our hope is centered on Jesus who will return us to where we are meant to be.

So in the mean time wait with hopeful expectation, share the Good News and praise God always and forever.

See you later…one way or another 🙂
edh -|—

2012 – The end of the world?

/ The Pastor / 8 Comments

If you spend any amount of time watching TV you have probably seen an advertisement or two about a new movie coming out called 2012.  It ‘s a movie about the end of the world that the Mayan calendar predicts.  These 2012; end of the world beliefs are starting to become very widespread in our culture and as Christians we need to be informed about what this is all about and how, as Christians, we are to respond to this.  Recently I listened to a podcast about this topic at a website called Breaking Unbelief at:  http://www.breakingunbelief.org.  The podcast is called What is the hype about 2012 and the end of the world.  I found it very informative and interesting.  It is about 30 minutes long.  One of the guys asking the questions in this podcast is Tim Chaffey (a college friend of my wife’s).  He spoke at Salem this past Sunday about God and suffering.  It was a great talk.  He is also a writer/contributor for the website Midwest Apologetics.  I haven’t thoroughly gone through this site yet, but I know Tim to be a very passionate and intelligent person.  I think he is worth a look.

The reason I am mentioning all of this is that the Gospel text for this Sunday from Mark 13:1-8 got me thinking.  I am not exactly sure how or if I will incorporate any of this on Sunday…but it still has me thinking.  Whether I include this 2012 stuff in the sermon or not I plan to do some more research so I can be better informed about this; so I can address this issue when it comes up with people.

Personally, as a Christian, the end of the world is not a scary thing.  Whether it happens on Dec. 21, 2012 or not should not be an issue.  But the more important thing to consider is that the Bible does not support such a belief (meaning an exact date…see Mark 13:32-37).  Maybe the Mayans were good with calendars and time, but predicting the future?  The Bible has about 500 some prophesies that have come true, but the most important future predictions that the Bible makes is that: (1) Jesus will come again, (2) there will be a resurrection, and (3) a final judgment.  The Bible talks about this and Jesus says “Stay Awake!”  As Christians we have an amazing opportunity here, but we need to be prepared and informed.

So with that…what resources, websites, etc have you found helpful in speaking about this 2012; end of the world belief that is out there?

I am going to continue my reading and will share insights as they come.

Praise be to God!

-edh-