Proclaiming that the end of the world is near has now become an all consuming labor of the very opposites of theologians and religious devotees. Agnostics, Scientists, Politicians, Survivalists, Educators, Atheists, most everyone thinks humanity is going to be consumed along with the planet in a grand barbecue!
It would seem the question framed by Robert Frost in his famous poem… of whether the world will end in fire or ice is no longer in dispute. LINK to the Frost poem… https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44263/fire-and-ice
How? The world will soon end in fire, possibly the fire of the Pentagon’s and Kremlin’s “usable” nuclear weapons, creating a global firestorm that consumes everyone including planet earth. With that to look forward to, its no wonder people are so tense and difficult to get along with today.
Like I said in my last article, being human is a messy business. That’s so true when we think of the mess humans have made of planet earth. However, the earth does not belong to us, it belongs to it’s creator, Almighty God. He is well aware of our mistreatment of that which he entrusted to man to care, living on it’s surface in harmony with all its resources and bounty. Genesis 1:26-28 says that “man” was given dominion to rule over creation, all living things, or caring for the earth God created and entrusted to mankind’s use. Ecclesiastes 1:4 says the earth will abide forever. In both passages we see that the creator controls the destiny of His creations, not mankind.
Those two passages have been security for me as I watch what has unfolded since my youth. Development of thermal nuclear weapons, polluting and misuse of earth’s natural resources, and the fear of what man could do in anger and rage with his destructive weapons. I trust that God knows His creation and how much abuse it can endure. His Word tells us how He will clean up the mess human’s have made and set humanity once again on a path to a better life.
The question stills haunts anyone who thinks about the end times… will the earth be burned up? Will God use fire to perform His cleansing, does it mean total obliteration and consumption by fire?
Let’s start our discovery of what the Bible says about this fear…“[God] has founded the earth upon its established places; it will not be made to totter to time indefinite, or forever.” (Psalm 104:5).
The earth will not be destroyed, either by fire or by any other means. Instead, the Bible teaches that this planet is mankind’s eternal home. Psalm 37:29 says: “The righteous themselves will possess the earth, and they will reside forever upon it.”—Psalm 115:16 says… The heavens belong to the Lord. But He has given the earth to the children of men. Isaiah 45:18 says… This is what the Lord Who made the heavens, the God Who planned and made the earth, and everything in it and did not make it a waste place, but made it a place for people to live in, says, “I am the Lord, and there is no other.
After God created the earth, he said that it “was very good,” and he still feels that way. (Genesis 1:31) Far from planning to destroy it, he promises to “bring to ruin those ruining the earth”—and to protect it from permanent damage. Revelation 11:18 (NET version) speaks about the future of earth and those who have abused it and chosen not to live by Gods’s standards… the last part of vs 18 says… and the time has come[f] to destroy those who destroy[g] the earth.”
You may be wondering about 2 Peter 3:7. It verse says… the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. Think about this passage but don’t over think it. Accept that God is not deceptive or devious towards His loved creation… humanity. However, He wants those who love Him to have the home and environment of peace He planned for humans from the beginning.
Back to the verse… 2 Peter 3:7… does this not show that the earth will be burned up? This after all is the passage of scripture used by those who believe in a literal fire consuming the planet. Actually, the Bible frequently uses certain terms like “heavens,” “earth,” and “fire” figuratively, in a symbolic way.
The context of 2 Peter 3:5-7 shows that what happens to the heavens, earth, and fire are symbolic for a cleansing process. Verses 5 and 6 draw a parallel with the Flood of Noah’s day. On that occasion, an ancient world was destroyed, yet the planet did not disappear. The earth was certainly reshaped by the global impact of flooding and erosion, but not in a negative way. There was total removal of everything God decreed would by destroyed. The Flood wiped out a violent society, or “earth” used symbolically, figuratively to refer to those facing God’s judgement. It also destroyed a kind of “heavens” or the evil angels along with Satan the Devil who mixed with
What’s next for those people who are not victims of the global cleansing or removal from the face of the earth?
The Bible says in 1 John 2:17… The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
“The world” that is to pass away is not the physical earth, but the world of mankind whose lives are not in harmony with God’s will. Just as a surgeon might remove a cancerous tumor to save a patient’s life, God will “cut off” the wicked so that good people can truly enjoy life on earth. (Psalm 37:9) In that sense, “the end of the world” is a pretty good thing.
Such a positive view of “the end of the world” is explicitly rendered as “the end of the age” in Matthew 24:3 NIV. Since a portion of humankind and the entire earth survive the end, does it not seem reasonable that a new age begins? The Bible answer is clear, for it speaks of changes to planet earth. Luke 18:28-30 records Jesus’ promise to those who place their hope in a coming age… verses 28-30 says.. Peter said to him (Jesus), ‘We have left all we had to follow you!’
‘Truly I tell you,’ Jesus said to them, ‘no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come, eternal life.’
Jesus called that future period “the renewal of all things.” When he returns, he will restore humanity to the conditions that God originally intended. (Matthew 19:28, NIV) We will then enjoy
- A paradise earth with security and prosperity for all.—Isaiah 35:1; Micah 4:4.
- Work that is meaningful and satisfying.—Isaiah 65:21-23.
- The curing of all disease.—Isaiah 33:24.
- The reversal of aging.—Job 33:25.
- The resurrection of the dead.—John 5:28, 29.
If we live in harmony with the “the will of God,” living in a manner that brings honor to Him, doing what he asks of us as outlined in the Bible, we need not fear the end of the world.
Instead, we can look forward to it… Cry out daily in your prayers and supplications… Maranatha… Come Lord Jesus. Make your plea to the risen Lord… a request that looks to the “end of all things” with the plea “Please come!”
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