Signs of the End

I jotted down a few of the areas the Bible speaks about in regards to the end of the world. If you’re looking for a tornado in a storm, look for a “wall cloud” first. If you see one, then watch the wall cloud because that is where tornadoes come from. By the same token, here are some areas to watch. All of these, according to Bible prophecy, play a role in the End:

Hope Is Always a Necessary Thing

It drives athletes to work hard and leave everything on the field. It drives us every day and without it, we end up with prescription medicine to lift our spirits. It drives political parties, soldiers, parents, teachers, salespeople, doctors, pastors, the elderly, Cubs fans, and more…

Hope. Hope that somehow tomorrow can be better than today. Hope that a victory can be won. Hope that life itself will actually mean a great deal in the end.

Don’t say the word too loud though. Those of us with too much hope in anything, are considered slightly less intelligent than the sky-is-falling types. THEY are realists!

Do you like movies? The ones with good endings, although they make more money, are often watched with rolling eyes by critics. Europeans, according to critics, don’t enjoy good endings as much as Americans do. Guess which group is considered by critics to be more sophisticated? It isn’t the fans of Tommy Boy let me tell you…

I’m not sure when the people in bad moods became the “smart” ones, but while those hopeful people were enjoying a nap out on the deck and simultaneously getting a wonderful tan, the skeptics filed power of attorney and took over.

Recovery and Righteousness

The Bible says “no one is righteous, not even one,” Romans 3:10 and “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23. Not one person can legitimately claim to have followed God’s law perfectly -not even the Ten Commandments. We might be perfect if we were allowed to set the rules, but according to God’s rules, yeah we’re pretty much toast.

We’ve lied, we’ve stolen, we’ve lusted, we’ve coveted, and we’re fairly selfish! In fact, most of the time, we don’t even see much wrong with a lie, or lust, or even being selfish. After all, to quote a wide receiver from my favorite football team, “I love me some me!”

So since God has a much higher standard than I can usually manage, I need God’s forgiveness. We all do. Yeah, I know you know that. In fact, that’s not the point. That’s not even the only point of the Bible in the New Testament. Besides forgiveness, Christ gives us an opportunity to become righteous –to be better than we are right now. There’s the real point. Jesus came to set the captives free.

Again, not everyone believes they need to be free, or any better, but there are others who know it all too well. I’m not even going to worry about you perfect people right now, I’m talking to those of you who know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you’re not perfect. Those of us who have fallen short even of the world’s standards. If that’s you, you’re looking for help just to respect yourself again. You know exactly what I mean when I quote the Bible which says we all sin, and right now you’re just looking for a way back up.

The cool thing about Jesus Christ, is he really isn’t for the people who are full of themselves. Just as Jesus began His ministry, He taught in a synagogue by reading from this Scripture which is found in Isaiah:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

I read once that an estimated 50% of the followers of Christianity in the early years may have been slaves. It has long been known as a religion that attracts the poor, the oppressed, slaves, addicts, prisoners and others who are not living on top of the world. It’s long been known as a religion who’s followers give of themselves to help those in need. Maybe right now, you or someone you know, need to allow Christ to help you.

You may have felt the pain of hurting someone you love, or felt the shame of failure, or both. You might have been struggling with the same sin for years and it seems to be winning. You might have just lashed out for the umpteenth time at your spouse, frustrated that your temper has caused problems in your marriage. Or maybe, you’re coming to the realization that you’ve got a habit or an addiction that is controlling you instead of you controlling it. There are people from all walks of life that hide their imperfections, their addictions, their sin, and occasionally it finds them out and the world comes crashing down. Other times, perhaps more often, their struggle is unseen by everyone else, and your feelings of failure are far more serious than anyone else knows.

Been there? Lots of us have. In fact, for those who haven’t, they need to know the same thing you need to know, just in case they fall someday. After all, no one is immune to sin or the destruction it wreaks in lives, in families, in marriages, in careers, in the community or the in the world. We’re all susceptible. So just in case you ever face the end of your rope… or if you’re there right now… I’ve got eight things to tell you.

I Peter 1:1-2… Predestination stuff

1Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To God’s elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
-I Peter 1:1-2

Sounds hard to read doesn’t it? I kinda like how the writers in the New Testament would often start their letters with something poetic or grandiose. If you read it with a deep voice, you’ll sound like a preacher. Really, go ahead and try it. No one is listening and they don’t know how to pronounce Bithynia either….

Anyway, there’s a part in there that starts arguments, can you guess which phrase? Times up. It’s this one: “…who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God…” If you have a King James Version or one of the older ones, instead of “have been chosen” it says “the elect”. The elect is a term given to people who belong to God and this isn’t the only time it is used. Speaking of the end of the world Jesus said:

And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. -Matthew 24:31

It means chosen, (which is why the NIV just translated it that way instead of confusing us with “elect” and making us think we missed something at the ballot box…) and I Peter 1:2 says God chose people because of his foreknowledge, implying that God could see into the future, and knew what we’d be like, what we would do and not do ahead of time. You see, according to the New Testament, we were already chosen before we were even born.

…just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will…
-Ephesians 1:4-5

Interesting how the writers seemed to enjoy bringing this up at the beginning of their letters. Hmmm… anyway…

Doesn’t this mean that, according to the Bible, we don’t really have a choice?