If tomorrow never comes

May 21, 2011

According to Harold Camping, tomorrow will be Judgment Day.  Those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior will be raptured -- caught up in the air to meet the Lord.  Everyone else will remain on Earth until God completely destroys this world five months later on October 21.

Of course, Camping made the same prediction in 1994 . . . and we're still here.

I find it hard to believe that anyone would actually believe Camping's prediction, especially given his poor prediction track record.  According to reports from within Camping's media ministry, devout followers have quit their jobs, sold their homes and maxed out their credit cards.  These people obviously think they will no longer need employment or shelter after Saturday.  I would imagine they used their credit cards to afford some "last" earthly indulgences before they're swept up to heaven.  Why not splurge?  They won't be around to pay that bill when it comes due next month.

But how will these followers feel when 6 p.m. arrives in their part of the world and Jesus doesn't appear?  Camping claims that when the clock strikes 6 p.m. New Zealand time that country will be hit with "super terrible" earthquakes.  Then as 6 p.m. reaches each succeeding time zone, more and more earthquakes will occur until approximately 98% of the world's population will suffer what Camping calls a "super horror story."  Only 2-3% of the world population -- believers in Jesus -- will escape the destruction.

The Bible clearly says that no one except God the Father knows the time that He has appointed for Jesus' return: ³²“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³³ Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come."  Mark 13:32-33

Anyone who believes that scripture is the inspired Word of God can't help but see that the Bible plainly contradicts and reveals the lie of Camping's claim.

Need more proof?

⁴² "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.  ⁴⁴ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."  Matthew 24:42-44

⁸ "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. ⁹ The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
 ¹⁰ But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.
 ¹¹ Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives ¹² as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. ¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.
 ¹⁴ So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him."  2 Peter 3:8-14

This is the message, these Holy Scriptures, that 89 year old Harold Camping should be spending the remaining days of his life spreading across the airwaves -- not his own flawed and baseless calculations.

Camping is leading people astray from the Word of God and subjecting true believers to ridicule and scorn.  If he were living out the injunctions of 2 Peter, he would strive to have the same mind as the Lord -- desiring that none should perish but that all would come to repentance and saving faith.  Instead Camping has said that he plans to watch the reports of destruction as it makes its way around the world before it finally reaches his home in Oakland, CA.  It sounds like a gruesome way to spend his last hours on Earth.

As I finish typing this, it is now 6:09 p.m. in New Zealand.  The New Zealand Herald website is reporting on the Labour Party's proposal to establish a Ministry for Children.  There are no reports of earthquakes or mass destruction.

In one of his last interviews, Harold Camping drew the interviewer's attention to the sad state of his living room drapes, which were bedraggled, frayed, and torn.  Camping said that if it weren't for the imminent end of the world, his wife, Shirley, would most certainly have seen to the drapes' repair or replacement.  "She would never permit the drapes to look like that," commented Camping.

I wonder if, right about now, Shirley is trying to decide what style and color she might like for her new drapes.