The Day After

Yesterday, the news media, the Internet, and event the barbershops and beauty parlors were abuzz with the news: The world was coming to an end. According to the prediction of a widely known religious leader, May 21, 2010 at 6:00 p.m. (ET) would be the end of times. Yet, the hour passed and the world survived…now what?

People have been predicting the end of the world since the times of Christ. In fact, when John the Baptist cried out, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near,” some may have mistaken his warning as a doomsday message instead of a proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ. Since the beginning of time, people have been fascinated with wondering how it will all end.

One of the reasons people get so worked up about the “end of days” predictions is that they are really fearful of what they believe is the “unknown.” For too many people, life ends with a giant question mark. But as Christians, we are not like those without hope. We take joy in knowing that whether in this world or beyond, we have the presence of Christ with us.

Someone may argue that this most recent “end of days” prediction was made by a Christian—who encouraged other Christians to work themselves into a frenzy of emptying their bank accounts, quitting their jobs, and making their final peace with anticipation of the end of the world. However, this is in direct contradiction with the Word of God, which tells us that yes, one day the world will end, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” In fact, it suggests that when the end does come, it will be so swift and sudden, there will be no time to make any preparations (Matthew 24:36-44). One would think this so-called “religious leader” would have come across this information at least once in his reading of the Bible. Beware of false prophets!!!

However, what the enemy meant for bad, God uses for good. Despite the fact that the prediction was a farce, it may have caused some people to take a good look at their lives. Because the truth is, one day life as we know it will be over. It may not be the result of a cataclysmic event that ends the world. It may simply be the body’s time to expire. And when that day does come—what happens next? If the answer to that question is anything other than peace and joy—it’s time to know Jesus. As Christians, whether our world ends tomorrow, next week, or a thousand years from now, we know that we have the promise of life with Jesus afterward.

For Christians, there are no worries about the end of the world—because what comes next is even better!