I wasn't raised in a Christian home, but my parents weren't opposed to letting my brother and I attend church if we wanted to, which I did for a short time as a youth. Outside of that brief period in my youth, the closest I usually got to church was weddings, funerals, and a local Sunday morning kid's show my brother and I watched called Timothy Church-mouse. Still, my childhood and teenage years were filled with the pursuit of trying to fill what Bible teacher and pastor Greg Laurie has referred to as that "God-shaped blank in our hearts." That "God-shaped blank", as he explains, is that place in us we human beings usually spend all our time trying to fill with everything other than the very thing (or One) it was meant to be filled by.
It's not surprising, then, that I was so enamored with T.V. specials like In Search Of, especially when they would investigate claims about U.F.O.'s, Bigfoot, or the Loch Ness Monster; or That's Incredible, which would show people performing miraculous physical and mental feats that were, well... incredible! My brother and I were obsessed with super heroes like those on the old Superfriends cartoon or Marvel Comics heroes such as The Hulk and Spiderman. It seems we humans are always looking for that something or someone bigger than ourselves to believe in and give us hope for the future. Even Carl Sagan, the world-renowned astronomer once said that, (and I paraphrase) if we could find proof of life elsewhere in the universe it would give meaning to everything.
As I sat down to watch some T.V. recently, I found a program dealing with the recently revived discussion of the year 2012, no doubt sparked by the soon-to-be released movie of the same name. How couldn't "2012" be on my mind? The full-on media-blitz of this prophecy of doom, complete with all of the C.G.I. (computer generated imaging) trimmings, is filling the air-waves with questions of when it could all happen, as well as what it could look like when it does.
But what is this prophecy of doom, and is there any truth to this theory? Many historical figures and artifacts spanning a variety of eras and locations, as well as modern-day computer programs, seem to agree that some sort of cataclysm or world-ending event is set to happen in the year 2012. The most popular of these sources is The Mayan calendar created by the Mayan Indians, which is said to be more accurate than our own modern-day calendar. This calendar (along with some other sources) even goes so far as to pin-point the exact "D-day"...December 21st, 2012. Man... couldn't the end of the world wait at least a few more days until after Christmas... what a buzz-kill!
An L.A. Times article read, the issue of [2012] has been generating wider audiences because it so forcefully underscores the turmoil of the times, as indicated by the stock market plunge, Iran's nuclear ambitions, the September 11 attacks, global warming and the possibility of a magnetic pole shift and stronger sun spot cycles. All of the mounting crises in the world are feeding the popular notion that the end may be near."
The world knows something is up. And as well-intentioned and intriguing as some of the theories may be, I couldn't help but notice, especially when they would attempt to refer to the Bible to support their claims, (which is interesting, seeing how they ridicule The Bible when it contradicts them) how off-base it seemed to be. Even the 2012ologists are divided as to whether "The End" is to be taken literally or metaphorically. Ranging in everything from a transformation of consciousness which would lead to a whole new social structure, to "re-setting the clock" through some galactic disturbance, to a time of flat-out global cleansing... it's very obvious all of this comes from humanistic ideology and New Age Mysticism which ultimately seeks to side-step what Scripture has to say about "The End." Not being a prophecy expert, though, I turned to a book by a well-known Christian prophecy teacher (Mark Hitchcock) titled, "2012: The Bible and the End of the World" for a little help. In it he covers everything the T.V. specials were putting forth as proof of the legitimacy of December 21st, 2012 as the end... whatever form that "end" would take. As it is, the vast majority of scientists, archaeologists, and anthropologists reject 2012 Doomsday.
As Hitchcock says in response to this, "How will a galactic alignment or even a global crisis change [our human nature]? The world has experienced horrible crises many times in the past. Sure, they can bring people closer together for a while and cause people to reflect in ways they haven't before, but it doesn't take long before man's inhumanity to man begins to surface again. Man cannot usher in his own utopia by some shift in consciousness." Hey... we all want peace. The issue here, though, is that Jesus is the only way to true peace. And the Bible warns us against getting all caught up in this kind of issue; "Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ" (Colossians 2:8).
So, do you wonder sometimes how those like the Mayans came upon such advanced knowledge, or how even different people today who seem to walk in some kind of spiritual power, got the ability and power they did in the first place? While they may not have sought the "spiritual powers of this world" as they are referred to in Colossians above, they were certainly influenced by them. This makes the need for the spreading of God's Word... the truth, so necessary. If we don't know the truth, or maybe have been turned off to it because of some person's misrepresentation of God, we are open to counterfeits from the spiritual realm. The truth is there is warfare in the heavenly realm vying for our attention. 1 Timothy 4:1 reads, "Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons." Someone like Nostradamus is a good example. Despite his vagueness, he is lauded by many in this area of study for his predictions about the future. And not only is his vagueness (as opposed to the very specific words of the biblical prophets) astounding, but even his method of divination/sorcery is strictly forbidden in the Bible (see Deuteronomy 18:10-12,22; Isaiah 47:13-14; Jeremiah 27:9; Revelation 21:8). Being "close" doesn't count in prophecy.
When I first started working at a Christian bookstore back in 1988 someone authored a book titled, "88 reasons why Christ will return in 1988." Needless to say, the book didn't sell well in 1989, which, if memory serves me correctly, he attempted to follow it up the next year with a book titled something like, 89 reasons why Christ didn't return in 1988. Well, I can tell you the main reason right now. Matthew 24:36 reads, "However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in Heaven or the Son Himself. Only the Father knows." And the reason for this is so we'll stay in a state of readiness. Yes, there are signs that give us some idea of where we are in God's time-table, but we are not to go about setting dates.
For a thorough run-down of the Bible's explanation of how it will all pan out, read the Bible and consult good books like the one from Mark Hitchcock to help guide you in your studies. But whether it's "Bible Codes" (which have already been proven to be false-despite the enthusiasm of some Christian leaders with this), computer programs (like The WebBot Project-which only spit back out the information we humans feed into it), false-prophets (well-intentioned or not), or even similarities between what the Bible says about the "End" and the 2012 theory, I like the words of J. Paul Tanner which say, "People do not need some 'biblical crossword puzzle.' Instead they need to read and meditate on the revealed truths of God's holy word. They need to be engaged in Bible study to learn the marvelous truths God has revealed, rather than being diverted by the speculative counting of letters" (this, referring to Bible codes-but applicable to this whole topic). All that the Bible has to say about the "End" is caused by God, not man.
The bottom line is the Bible is the source we need to look to for answers about the future. And even more important than knowing when the end will come is being ready whenever the end comes. This means we must heed the words of Jesus in John 14:6 which read, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." While this is offensive to many (sometimes because we in the body have a way of being mean, rather than compassionate toward the lost), it shouldn't be taken with offense. God, in His love for us, has shown us how to secure our future with Him. Any good parent who loves their child will redirect their children from what isn't good for them, even if it looks good to the child and regardless of the fit that child may throw. It may seem mean to the kid, but from the parental perspective, it's love... and in the long-run is proven to be by the securing of their future.
Yeah, 2012 is on my mind... but because of Jesus, I don't have to fear. Rather, knowing that Jesus can come back at any time, I'll choose to direct my energies toward keeping people from having to go through the horrors the Bible says await those who don't know Him.
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perry meade
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