There has been a great deal of discussion lately about
some Hindu astrologers who have predicted that this world
will come to an end this February. The fact is that some
sincere Christians fear that these prophets might be right,
since our Lord did speak several times about the coming
"end of the world."
These Hindu astrologers, however, are wrong. This February will not see the end of the world, for according to the
Bible the world, or earth, will never come to an end. The
word "world," which our Lord uses in this connection, does
not refer to the earth, or even the people on it. It is the old
Greek word aion, or age. Several ages in God's program
have already come to an end, and others will, but no matter
what destructive weapons man may devise, the earth will
never be destroyed. In Isaiah 45:18 we read:
"For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens: God Himself that
formed the earth and made it; He hath established it; He created it not
in vain; He formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord, and there is none
else."
But doesn't Rev. 21:1 predict "a new heaven and a new
earth"? Yes, but the context clearly indicates that this refers to the future renewing of the present heaven and earth,
not the creating of different ones. Verse 5 says:
"He that
sat upon the throne: said, Behold I make all things new."
Note: He didn't say "I make all new things," but "I make all
things new." There is a difference.
We should not be concerned about the end of the world,
but rather about the end of this present age in which we
live under "the dispensation of the grace of God," for God
has never promised how long this will last. Every hour He
delays the return of Christ to recall His ambassadors, is an
hour of wonderful grace, in which men may be saved by
grace, through faith in Christ who died for our sins. This is
why Paul urges us:
"We then, as workers together with [Christ], beseech you also that
ye receive not the grace of God in vain.... Behold, now is the accepted time; Behold, now is the day of salvation"
(II Cor. 6:1,2).
To the Reader:
Some of our Two Minutes articles were written many years
ago by Pastor C. R. Stam for publication in newspapers.
When many of these articles were later compiled in book
form, Pastor Stam wrote this word of explanation in the
Preface:
"It should be borne in mind that the newspaper column,
Two Minutes With the Bible, has now been published for
many years, so that local, national and international
events are discussed as if they occurred only recently.
Rather than rewrite or date such articles, we have left
them just as they were when first published. This, we
felt, would add to the interest, especially since our
readers understand that they first appeared as newspaper
articles."
We hope that you'll agree that while some of the
references in these articles are dated, the spiritual
truths taught therein are timeless.
Bible Study
