Harold Camping, head of Family Radio and a well-known radio speaker, is not shy about making this prediction: "Beyond the shadow of a doubt, May 21 will be the date of the Rapture and the day of judgment." The doctrine known as ‘the Rapture’ teaches that Believers will be taken up to heaven, while everyone else will remain on earth where they will experience at time of intense suffering, the result of evil being unleashed. Human history will then come to a close with the Final Judgment. Camping believes that will happen in October. What is most amazing is how seriously many otherwise level-headed Christians are taking Camping’s prediction. It not just fringe elements. Hundreds of independent churches and thousands of Christians are caught up in the excitement, infected with Rapture fever!
Will Christ actually return on May 21?
I honestly do not know, but neither does Harold Camping. Jesus Christ promised He would return. I believe that promise! But, I also know that thousands of prophets have set dates since the earliest days of Christianity and their predictions are made in defiance of the Lord’s own warning. Jesus said, "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 since you don’t know when that time will come, be on guard! Stay alert! “The coming of the Son of Man can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. When he left home, he gave each of his slaves instructions about the work they were to do, and he told the gatekeeper to watch for his return. You, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know when the master of the household will return—in the evening, at midnight, before dawn, or at daybreak." (Mark 13:32-35, NLT)
Camping’s prediction has gained traction because we live in such turbulent times. The uncertainty of the economy, the earthquakes that have shaken Asia, nuclear plants in failure, wars that stretch on without end cause us to long for some relief, to look for an escape, to hope for a Savior to rescue us. In all my adult life, I cannot recall a time when people were as generally pessimistic about the future as they are right now. The 24/7 news media feeds the sense of futility as they endlessly loop video of death and disaster into our living rooms, making us all feel like actors in a disaster movie plot line that never resolves to a conclusion! So, when somebody puts together some dates, makes it all make sense, and promises relief – many are quick to jump aboard the Rapture Express!
Don’t you do it!
We should all be living Jesus taught like He would return this very day. Predictions of the Rapture should not have the least effect on how we live! Holiness should be a part of daily life all the time. Our hope is set on Heaven right now. Our real security is not found in our 401 (k) account or the US Dollar if we belong to Christ. One of my favorite NT passages is this one. It isn’t just true in the month before a supposed date of the Rapture. It is true and compelling for us all of the time. "So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective. Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life." (Colossians 3:1-3, The Message)
I don’t give a shred of credibility to Harold Camping’s prognostications, but I do hope for the coming of the Kingdom of God and I pray, like Jesus taught us to, “may Your kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” I hope you do, too. If you do, it will keep you living right and, in God’s own time, He will welcome us into His Heaven – whether by way of the Second Coming or by way of the grave. In either case, let’s be faithful so as to receive the most coveted commendation: “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!" (Matthew 25:21, NIV)
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