Heartcries of the Apocalypse, Part I
"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us" 2 Corinthians 4:7
The Apocalypse is the end of the present age, the revealing of that which was hidden, the unveiling of the Kingdom.
Signs of the Apocalypse are all around us. World events center ever more in the lands of the Bible. As I write, the world holds its breath to see what comes of the election in Iraq - home of ancient Babylon and Assyria, birthplace of Abraham. A bloodbath is threatened by "insurgents" upon those who vote in the election. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, wars and rumors of wars, the beginning of birth pangs.
But the signs of the Apocalypse are not found only in the "signs of the times", but in the Kingdom, hidden in the hearts of believers in Jesus. "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand". Those who have heard the voice of the Master answering their heart-cries know what I mean. "The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed" Romans 8:19. It is our task to answer the heart-cries of the Apocalypse.
As I was preparing to make this entry, two Jehovah's Witnesses rang the doorbell, youngish women with friendly voices (the one who spoke had a southern accent, though they had South Dakota plates on the car) who spoke of stress as a sign of the coming end of the age. Every time Witnesses stop by I react differently. Once I got into a debate & actually stumped one on a Trinity-related point. Another time I got lazy and didn't say anything constructive. Yet another time I told them in no uncertain terms that they were lost. This time, after leaving the usual "Awake" and "Watchtower" magazines, they asked if they could stop by again sometime, and I said yes. That was pretty much the conversation this time. It'll be interesting to see if and when they stop by again. I pray that the LORD will open their eyes to the truth. They were right - rampant stress is indeed a sign of the coming Apocalypse - yet the true Solution is just beyond their field of vision. They asked my name - I wonder if they noticed that the sign on the church next door says the pastor's name is "Michael", and put two & two together.
I've been reading the "Series of Unfortunate Events" books by "Lemony Snicket", the newest youth reading sensation since "Harry Potter" (I'll save the complex matter of the Potter books for another time). Like Potter, they are apocalyptic. Three highly intelligent orphan siblings weather one misfortune after another, trying to keep out of the clutches of the evil Count Olaf, which will apparently continue until the eldest comes of age and can inherit the family fortune. I think the books are successful, partly because they are witty, partly because they connect with the apocalyptic sense of impending doom, the coming of a day of reckoning, the feeling of helplessness in a world of forces beyond our control.
The "Left Behind" books (another issue in themselves) sold millions of copies. In 1999 the surprise movie hit was "The Sixth Sense", a movie which I interpret as a movie about "unfinished business", the sense that there isn't enough time in this life to tie up all the loose ends. Loose ends tied or not, people have a sense that the end is approaching. Rock and rap music is filled with a sense of anger and despair - according to a Christian talk show episode I heard recently, a major recurring theme is rage over being abandoned by one's father. Some despair, others seek to escape or transcend the ruins. I don't keep up much with popular music, but the sound of one new band has caught my ear, "Evanescence". A young woman's clear, bell-like voice soars over a hard rock sound that sounds to me, well, apocalyptic. The message of their first big hit? "Bring me to life."
There is a Way to have Heaven in your heart, a way to soar over the barren landscape through which you walk, a way to come to a place high on a desert plain, take shelter from the poison rain, where the streets have no name (yeah, I'm quoting U2, I hope it doesn't come across as tacky, because they're expressing the aspiration I'm describing). A way to be filled with life in a world of death. "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you" James 4:8. He draws near to us in Christ Emmanuel, "GOD WITH US". And, believers, the heartcries of the Apocalypse are for truth, for life, for real love and fellowship, for acceptance and belonging, for honest answers to honest questions, for beauty out of ashes. Let us show in our lives that what they seek is what we have to give.
The Apocalypse is the end of the present age, the revealing of that which was hidden, the unveiling of the Kingdom.
Signs of the Apocalypse are all around us. World events center ever more in the lands of the Bible. As I write, the world holds its breath to see what comes of the election in Iraq - home of ancient Babylon and Assyria, birthplace of Abraham. A bloodbath is threatened by "insurgents" upon those who vote in the election. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, wars and rumors of wars, the beginning of birth pangs.
But the signs of the Apocalypse are not found only in the "signs of the times", but in the Kingdom, hidden in the hearts of believers in Jesus. "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand". Those who have heard the voice of the Master answering their heart-cries know what I mean. "The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed" Romans 8:19. It is our task to answer the heart-cries of the Apocalypse.
As I was preparing to make this entry, two Jehovah's Witnesses rang the doorbell, youngish women with friendly voices (the one who spoke had a southern accent, though they had South Dakota plates on the car) who spoke of stress as a sign of the coming end of the age. Every time Witnesses stop by I react differently. Once I got into a debate & actually stumped one on a Trinity-related point. Another time I got lazy and didn't say anything constructive. Yet another time I told them in no uncertain terms that they were lost. This time, after leaving the usual "Awake" and "Watchtower" magazines, they asked if they could stop by again sometime, and I said yes. That was pretty much the conversation this time. It'll be interesting to see if and when they stop by again. I pray that the LORD will open their eyes to the truth. They were right - rampant stress is indeed a sign of the coming Apocalypse - yet the true Solution is just beyond their field of vision. They asked my name - I wonder if they noticed that the sign on the church next door says the pastor's name is "Michael", and put two & two together.
I've been reading the "Series of Unfortunate Events" books by "Lemony Snicket", the newest youth reading sensation since "Harry Potter" (I'll save the complex matter of the Potter books for another time). Like Potter, they are apocalyptic. Three highly intelligent orphan siblings weather one misfortune after another, trying to keep out of the clutches of the evil Count Olaf, which will apparently continue until the eldest comes of age and can inherit the family fortune. I think the books are successful, partly because they are witty, partly because they connect with the apocalyptic sense of impending doom, the coming of a day of reckoning, the feeling of helplessness in a world of forces beyond our control.
The "Left Behind" books (another issue in themselves) sold millions of copies. In 1999 the surprise movie hit was "The Sixth Sense", a movie which I interpret as a movie about "unfinished business", the sense that there isn't enough time in this life to tie up all the loose ends. Loose ends tied or not, people have a sense that the end is approaching. Rock and rap music is filled with a sense of anger and despair - according to a Christian talk show episode I heard recently, a major recurring theme is rage over being abandoned by one's father. Some despair, others seek to escape or transcend the ruins. I don't keep up much with popular music, but the sound of one new band has caught my ear, "Evanescence". A young woman's clear, bell-like voice soars over a hard rock sound that sounds to me, well, apocalyptic. The message of their first big hit? "Bring me to life."
There is a Way to have Heaven in your heart, a way to soar over the barren landscape through which you walk, a way to come to a place high on a desert plain, take shelter from the poison rain, where the streets have no name (yeah, I'm quoting U2, I hope it doesn't come across as tacky, because they're expressing the aspiration I'm describing). A way to be filled with life in a world of death. "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you" James 4:8. He draws near to us in Christ Emmanuel, "GOD WITH US". And, believers, the heartcries of the Apocalypse are for truth, for life, for real love and fellowship, for acceptance and belonging, for honest answers to honest questions, for beauty out of ashes. Let us show in our lives that what they seek is what we have to give.
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