Happy New Year

Starting a new decade makes me reflect on the decade that has just passed. Remember 10 years ago the speculation and apprehension around the “potential computer meltdown” of Y2K. The year 2000 came and went...eventually my computer did meltdown but it died a natural death of old age and the misfortune of not being a Mac. But as you may recall there was a lot of anxiety around what the new century would bring.

In the year 2000 I was an acne prone 15 year old kid, the following year I moved away from home and started my junior year of high school. In September 11 of that year a freeze frame, world changing moment took place. It was the type if rare event that is so significant that even 9 years later, I can recall exactly where I was and what I was doing in that moment in time. The event is known simply as 9/11, and on this date in the year 2001, America changed forever.

It has been said that the only thing constant is change, but change is not always perceptible. For instance we don't really notice the 15 or 20 pounds a friend has gained when we are with them everyday, but if we haven't seen them in over a year, the first time we see them again, the change is noticeably profound.

In the same way, America has changed dramatically over the last decade. But the change is only perceptible if we compare the current version with the pre-September 11 one. Change is not necessarily a bad thing, but it can be, especially if we are oblivious to it. A good illustration of this point is the famous parable of the frog that boils to death. In the parable, the frog is enjoying the relaxation of a warm pot of water, it does not the notice the increase in temperature, because the change is subtle, it adapts, but the end result of coarse is the frog becomes dinner due to it's ignorance that it was in the stew.

Historically I believe we are living in significant times. Last year we elected the first black president in the history of the USA, there are constant rumblings and fear of a total economic collapse, and some people are speculating that civilization as we know it will end in the year 2012. Obviously I don't buy into all of the speculation I hear, but I do believe that the world as we know it will eventually come to an end, so it is important to be watchful and aware.

Jesus says in Matthew 24:42, to watch therefore for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. And Paul tells us in Thessalonians 5:4-6 that we need not be in darkness so that “this” day should overtake us as a thief. Therefore let us not sleep as others do, let us awake and be sober. And finally Peter says in 1 Peter 4:7, the end of all things is at hand be ye therefore sober and watch unto prayer.

Jesus, Paul, and Peter all advise us to be watchful and aware because the end of all things is at hand. And it is interesting that one out of every twenty five verses in the new testament is a direct reference to the second coming, ie: the end of this world. The obvious implication of being told to “watch” is that there will be observable indicators that the end of the world is drawing near.

The idea of the eschaton, that is, the end of the age, is more than mere sensationalism and biblical fundamentalism. World famous scientists such as Stephen Hawking, have gone on record, stating that the long term survival of our species is in question. In his lecture entitled, Is Man Determined or Free, he says, if we can keep from destroying one another for the next 100 years, sufficient technology will have been developed to distribute humanity to various planets, and then no one tragedy or atrocity will eradicate us all at the same time. Of course Dr. Hawking is operating from an evolutionary paradigm, but many intelligent people from a variety of fields have come to the same eschatological conclusions.

The evidence in nature as well as the degradation in societal moral suggests that the world is ever nearing some sort of cataclysmic event that will end in Armageddon. That this world will not last forever is agreed upon, and that time is becoming increasingly short is a growing consensus. The difference between Dr. Hawking and people like the Apostle Peter or Paul, is the method by which, they believe humanity will be saved. For Dr. Hawking the savior is science, for Peter and Paul our only hope is Jesus.

We are living in extraordinary, unusual, radical times. Times that have never been seen before in the History of mankind. This is a strong statement, but it is not based soley on biblical fundamentalism, but is also rooted in an evidential basis which is becoming increasingly fascinating to both the secular and religious world.

In Matthew 24:3 the disciples ask Jesus, “what will be the sign of your coming?” The very first thing Jesus says is to watch out that no one deceives you. He then lists several signs and says these are the beginning of labor pains (meaning that as the end nears these signs will increase in frequency and intensity. It is interesting to note that more people were killed as the result of war in the 20th century than in the previous 19 centuries combined. In regards to famine between 60 and 93 thousand people starve to death every single day! All of the signs listed in Matthew 24 are dramatically increasing in frequency and intensity...these are the labor pains Jesus told us to watch out for. While these labor pains are intensifying the general public is increasingly indifferent to the hardships and trials that are inflicting humanity. We are living in the age of Matthew 24:12,13 which says, “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

In 1940 Readers Digest compiled a survey asking teachers what the biggest challenges were they faced in the classroom on a daily basis. The top 7 complaints were as follows:
1)Students talking out of turn.
2)Chewing gum in class.
3)Making noise.
4)Running in the halls.
5)Cutting in line.
6)Dress code infractions.
7)Littering.

The exact same survey was given to 8000 teachers nation wide in 1990, this time the top 7 concerns were as follows:
1)Drug use.
2)Alcohol abuse.
3)Pregnancy
4)Rape
5)Robbery
6)Assault
7)Suicide.
We are living in extraordinary times, and humanity's condition is not improving. Our only hope is a savior whether that savior be science or Christ!

In the last decade I graduated from high school, college, and my teenage years. I traveled the world for 8 months, nearly died while storm watching, and married my beautiful wife. I say all this simply to note that time moves fast and is very fleeting so it is important to make the time we do have meaningful. In the last decade, I went on a quest for truth. I questioned my most fundamental beliefs. In regards to religion, I was challenged by a good friend who said, “If we believe this stuff, we should do it.” I came to the brink of giving it all up and deciding the religion I grew up believing was a false theology and not for me. But before I gave it all up, I prayed an earnest prayer for truth! My prayer was answered not with an instantaneous epiphany of “truth”, but with an unquenchable desire to read, and to search out truth for myself, wherever it may lead.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 7, that if we seek, we will find, and it was through this process of searching that I discovered for myself that God is real, and that His word, the bible, is faithful and true.

Obviously I have not discovered all truth, but the truth I have discovered is profound and I can say confidently with the Apostle John, that we may know Him who is true (1 John 5:20). “Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding.” “For the world and it's desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.” (Proverbs 23:23) (1 John 2:17)

The search for truth is a search for meaning and at it's core, it is a search for happiness. As part of this search last year, I read a book with this description on the back:
Over five billion of us live on this planet now and we are rapidly on our way to six billion. We're seperated by a lot of differences: sex, race, religion, language, customs, and geography. But we also have some things in common. We breath the same air. We all bleed the same red blood. We all need food, and rest, and shelter.
And – Oh, yes, one other thing. We all want happiness. Happiness, an ellusive, sort of nebulous something that every one of us spends our whole lifetime pursuing.
Some of us try to find it in things. We think that if we could only be rich, we'd be happy. When you're rich you have money. Money buys things. And things make us happy. Or do they?
Others of us try to find happiness in becoming well known, maybe even famous. If the masses adore us, surely then we'll be happy, right? Or maybe we look for happiness in being powerful and important, or in trying to find someone else who can make us happy.
We want happiness. We desire it, all of us. Through all ages of history we have desired it. But this inexpressable desire of all ages cannot be found in things, in fame, in power, in pleasure seeking. It can be found only in a Person. And you can probably guess who that Person is. This book is His story, and this book is the end of your search.
If you're interested in reading this, the book is called Desire of Ages.

I don't know what all will transpire in this next decade, life may continue as it always has... but if it does, I do know a few things. I will become 10 years older, which means at the end of this decade, I will be 35. My parents (hate to say this) will officially be old. And statistically, at least one of my friends will be divorced, because the divorce rate is now at 60% the majority of which happen in the first two years. Thankfully we are not destined by statistics, we all have a choice in how we live our lives and manage our time. If we make a decision to live our lives as if we don't have another 10 years to live, but life continues as it always has, we are not worse off for having made that decision. However, if the end of the age comes, and we haven't prepared ourselves, we will be caught unaware, and blinded by our own laodician condition.

Famous mathematician, Blaze Pascal, proposed a theorem to the same effect, now known as Pascals Wager. The essence of the wager is this; if we believe that God does not exist and wager our lives as such, but ultimately find out He does exist, the cost of the wager is our eternal existence. However, if we believe that God does exist and wager our lives as such, the reward of the wager is eternal life. Furthermore, there is no risk by wagering on God. If we wager our lives as if God exists, but find out He does not, we lose nothing, yet still gain the results of peace, health and happiness for having done so.

All men are like grass, and all their glory is like flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the lord stands forever ( 1 Peter 1:24,25). Time is fleeting, and this life is to important to simply role the dice and hope for the best. The word of the lord is true, but each person has to search and discover that for themselves. It is only through seeking that we can find, and this experience, like the oil in the parable of the ten virgins, can't be given away.

For those who are interested, and have actually managed to read this far, I would like to recommend three lectures that were behind the inspiration of these thoughts. The lectures are part of a series of sermons that seek to answer the question, does God exist and does it matter? The three sermons I would like to recommend are: Pascal's Wager, I Have Found my Beloved, and The Evidence and the Escaton. You find these sermons by following the link to audioverse on our website, and then typing in David Assherick.