Why Believe The End Is Near?

Matt 24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. NASB

I guess it was politics that woke me up to the dull meaning of this statement.  I used to run with the crowd that could see Jesus’ return on the horizon.  We would say all the signs make His imminent return clear.  Besides, I wanted Him to return.  I wanted the weight of responsibility that comes with knowing the truth off my shoulders.  I wanted all the pain that comes from all the wrongs in the world made right and relieved right now.  I wanted to see Jesus.  But the more I studied Scripture and considered the meaning of “no one knows,” the more I could see I was going along with a crowd rather than letting the Lord and Scripture guide me.  I became uncomfortable with this.

I had been debating my atheist brother for over a year when two planes knocked down three buildings.  He had been sending political statements that showed me a side of government I had never seen before (nothing related to 911 by the way).  As I validated some of these things I began to appreciate the Christian view of government more than I had before (and probably to his chagrin).  God made government for the well being of His people and all people.  This I knew, but I had never placed much value on this fact before.  Instead, I had come to demonize government, downplay it, and ignore it, and hold the same view those who could see Jesus coming on the horizon had for it.  I began to see how inconsistent these views were with the ones I held for God’s other institutions such as family and Church.  I became uncomfortable with this too, so I sought to resolve it.

Surprisingly, as I moved government back to its rightful place in my life, I began to see many false perceptions I was holding.  Some of those perceptions pertained to my view of the end times.  I began to see the possibility of Satan deceiving and misleading the Church down a path that would ultimately turn Her into one of his greatest allies.

I knew enough about the Bible to know that apostasy in the Church must come first, then the end.  I always thought I would be able to stand up, shade the sun from my eyes, and see apostasy come on the horizon.  But now I thought what if I was watching in vain?  What if the apostasy wasn’t out there somewhere to see?  What if it was right here, all around us, so when you stood up to look for it you would never see it coming, because you and the crowd you run with were it?

History shows again and again that apostasy happens that way.  Who could have imagined someone standing up in a congregation of Christians to proclaim that Jesus was accursed?  It happened.  Who could imagine Christians flocking to buy indulgences?  It happened.  These contradictions to Christianity happen within Christianity more than we would care to admit.

Running with the crowd is never a deterrent to apostasy.  Individual adherence to the truth is the only antidote.  With that in mind I want to sort out in my own head what I think about the end times.  I’ll be writing about that here over the next couple of weeks.  I invite your comments and opinions as I make this journey.