The Awesome News

It's shocking what you hear on the news these days.

Today I learned that the end of the world is coming on my 26th birthday--May 21, 2011.

I say this tongue-in-cheek, of course. The idea that anyone can predict the day or the hour when Christ will return is preposterous according to Jesus himself, quoted in the pages of Scripture:

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come."
Mark 13:31-33 (also Matthew 24:35-36).

The folks who presume to have the authority on when Jesus will return clearly contradict Scripture in their predictions. But that doesn't stop them from claiming to hold to biblical teaching. Members of a movement called Project Caravan patrol the southern part of the country in a long line of RVs, canvasing the nation with their message: "Have you heard the awesome news? The end of the world is almost here! It begins May 21, 2011--the Bible guarantees it!"

You can read the full news story at CNN.com. Here's CNN's video coverage:



Project Caravan's umbrella organization, Family Radio, isn't the first movement to make such outrageous claims about the end of the age, and it certainly won't be the last. Just like all of those who presume to have the inside scoop on the matter, they will be wrong. God knows, and according to His Word, He'll be keeping it hush-hush until that Day.

I feel so sad knowing these folks are giving their lives for a misguided gospel full of half truths. The Message the apostles gave their lives for, the Good News (or "gospel") they proclaimed, was that Jesus' Kingdom is already being ushered in. In Acts 5:42 we read that "Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah." We can know Him in the here-and-now, even as we wait for Him to "make all things new" (Revelation 21:5) because He gave himself up to make things right. That's Great News! Wonderful News! That is News Worth Giving Your Life For.

The Awesome News is not merely that Jesus is coming again, but also that He's already come. And we don't have to wait until May 21 for life in Him to start.