God's prophet? No. Raised an important issue? Yes.

It's May 22nd and to few people's surprise, no cataclysmic event occurred yesterday to mark the beginning of the end.  Truth be told many people did some soul searching as a result of the hype generated by some guy in N Cal (I don't remember his name and don't care to).  I don't know enough about this guy to know if he's the religious version of Donald Trump or maybe he's sincere.  What I do know is that he was wrong and if he lived in ancient times he'd have been stoned as a false prophet (I'll limit my response to simple ridicule.)


What matters most is that we are all well prepared for the imminent return of Christ.  What the late night comedians failed to realize as they were making fun of this prediction is that Christ could have come on Wednesday last week...or while I'm in the middle of writing this entry for that matter.  They make fun of him because they think the idea of Christ's return is silly.  I make fun of him for Theological reasons - the Bible is clear that NO ONE KNOWS THE DAY.  But make no mistake, the reality of his return is not silly.  


Since we don't know the day, we have to be prepared just like when the boss says he may stop by some time this week for a surprise inspection or the teacher says be ready for a pop quiz at any time.  Are you ready for Christ to return at any moment?  We knew he wouldn't come Saturday because so many people were expecting it.  However, no one expects it in 5 minutes or maybe tomorrow.

Preparation for his coming begins with faith in His Son Jesus.  To trust Jesus as the only avenue to God and to ask him for forgiveness of sins is the beginning.  We must also believe that Jesus took the punishment for our sins and that he rose from the dead.  This faith invites God's Spirit to indwell us and make us a part of God's family.  From that point forward we prepare for his coming by following his leading - to serve him and to turn from the sins and moral pitfalls that beset us.

When I stand before him I want to be able to say that I have believed in His Son Jesus (John chapter 3) and have followed him as best I can.  I want him to say to me, "Well done good and faithful servant, enter into your master's happiness (Mat 25:21.)"

The World Ends Saturday, May 21st (Part 1)

I hadn't really been paying attention, until recently.  I was at a ministry conference in Sacramento last week and I drove by a group of people on the side of the road with banners and signs touting this Saturday as the end of the world.  I've also been receiving calls, texts and emails from friends wanting to know if it's true.


The answer is given in Scripture (and you don't even have to be good at math) – see 1 Thes 5:2, 4; 2 Peter 3:10 and Rev 3:3; 16:15.  Each one of these verses describe the Day of the Lord like a thief coming to rob you.  If you’ve ever been robbed you’ll understand how this feels.  You had no idea until after it happened – it’s extremely startling.  These verses plus others can be synthesized into a doctrine called "the imminent return of Christ."  Simply stated, Christ could return at any moment.    

I invite you to take some time to ponder these verses and the idea that Christ could return at any point.  Then, take some time to reflect on what affect that belief has on us if we truly hold to it.  Also, consider whether this doctrine has any implications for the predictions that people like to make about the return of Christ or the end of the world.  With that I'll leave you to your own conclusions and convictions about the May 21st prophecy.  


If you're still wondering about my opinion... could this prophecy by true?  Look for my opinion in part two which I will be posting this Sunday.