Harold Camping, Rob Bell and playing on the freeway...

I often wonder what drives people to do things incorrectly over and over again, while at the same time fully expecting the outcome to be different. The world watched, laughed and mocked their way through May 21, "knowing" full well that the 22nd would arrive without the world being destroyed.


I am also baffled at how we can sit back and laugh at such things. Rob Bell puts a book out called "Love Wins" and many in the Christian community label him a heretic, want to throw him out of the church and spend an inordinate amount of time ripping him apart. Now I do not agree with much of his theology to be sure, but he has been labeled now as someone who is a danger to sound doctrine.
Harold Camping stakes his entire life on unsound doctrine and poor Biblical exegesis, and teaches millions to do the same and all we do is laugh at him. I read an article about a man who spent $140,000 advertising the rapture. Another man sold his house, spent all he had to pack his wife and two kids up for their last journey across the country before Jesus took the 200 million Christians "home". Only to wake up in California, broke, unemployed and in dispare. Living with the hope that our world is so bad that we pray for it's destruction while all the "good" folks get to go to glory is no way to live. Yeah, I know it's their fault for believing him. However, does that mean Mr. Camping gets a free pass? I don't think so. Unsound doctrine is unsound doctrine regardless of who is the one delivering it.


So I am struggling with a couple things, yes only a couple:

1] Why would a people pray for the destruction of this (our) world and all on it?
We are told to preach the Word to the world. That is the great commission found in Matthew 28. Why? Because God so LOVED the WORLD (not just the people on it) but the world, that he gave us his son, so that we may believe and become his children. We are never commanded to pray for the destruction of this planet.
2] If all we are hoping for is that Jesus comes to take us (the chosen few) out of here, where is God's love in that?
The second coming of Jesus to this earth is the cornerstone of our faith, and is as Biblically sound as one can be. When that event is to happen was not revealed in scripture.
Matthew 24:36 ~ "No one knows about the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the son, but only the Father." Camping taught that even though it says that, we actually can know. People believed.
Acts 1:7-8 ~ "He said to them: 'It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when The Holy Spirit comes on you...'" Camping states that based upon this verse we will have a desire to know as the end time approaches and because we have the Holy Spirit, we can know. Even though Jesus said: IT IS NOT FOR US TO KNOW. People believed.

No matter where you stand on the theology of the Rapture, if that is all we focus on as the next great event, you have missed the call of Jesus. It is not our out! We have responsibilities here on this planet and Jesus will judge us, his people, as much on what we have done as what we have believed. Reference Matthew 25:31-46. If all we do is hope we are taken away while all those awful "non-Christians" get theirs, we miss what God is doing.

Scripture tells us that Jesus died once for all. Scripture also tells us that God is slow in coming in the hopes that ALL will come to him. We read in Romans that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. [Romans 3:23-24] It doesn't say that only some are justified, but by implication all are justified. Not all will accept that justification, but because of Jesus' ressurection all are. We don't choose who goes HE DOES. We get to choose whether we go by accepting his justification, but we don't determine who else goes.

Rob Bell in his book says that in the end Love wins, no matter what we choose, whether it be heaven or hell. Although I disagree with him regarding our ability to choose heaven after we die. The book of Hebrews tells us that a person is destined to die once and then the judgement. Call me silly, but I see no wiggle room there. Having read Love wins though, I find there is a great deal of truth regarding how we are to live today for Christ! I can sort that out from the bad stuff and say I agree with him on that.

Harold Camping says 200 million "true Christians" will be taken up. He tells us when it will happen, (re-calculated to Oct 21) and each time gets it wrong. Somehow convincing people to continue to believe in him. Their fault I understand, but just because he is "laughable" and not as clean cut around the edges, does not make him less dangerous. Listen, you can dress a goat up in a tuxedo, but in the end it's still a goat! I find nothing I can agree with him on at any level. His understanding of end times, his false interpretation of scripture and his inability to know when to stop playing on the freeway.

What's with the noise anyway?

Have you ever just sat down and listen to just how loud life is? Even in the relative quiet of your room there is always something making noise. I was awakened this morning (really the middle of the night-but it was after midnight) with the familiar ping of my Blackberry. Sad really, that my ear is so tuned to that irritating little beep, it actually wakes me from a sound sleep. Usually I shut my phone off at night but forgot last night. So much noise, so little quiet.

Its no wonder we have a hard time finding quiet. In fact I find that we are so used to noise that we have become afraid of silence. Yet it is in those quiet times, few as they are, that we hear God. It is not that he has stopped talking to us in this day and age. It is that we have stopped listening.

The Scriptures tell us that Jesus always got alone, or went to a solitary place to pray. I know that was a time and a world that was not so busy and had no electronic stuff to entertain us or distract us. Very true, but as I sit here and type I am looking at my Blackberry (now off) and I see that there are two very facinating buttons. One is the volume, and the other is the off, or red phone button. I hit them both and the world is still turning. We can do what Jesus did. We can find a solitary place and pray, and hear God. The same way Jesus did: disengage from the world and all it's noise. Intentionally shut things down and spend some time in silence. You will be amazed at how loud God can be when you get rid of the noise.