Will the year 2012 mark TEOTWAWKI (the end of the world as we know it)? Some believe so. On December 21, 2012, the winter solstice, the Maya calendar will end a major cycle and mark a new era of civilization. What that means is anybody’s guess. Will it launch a new period of nonviolence or one of the worst disasters ever to face humanity?
“There are groups who claim that an uncharted, unseen planet called Nibiru will strike Earth or nearly hit it; that the Earth's polarity will reverse (so that north is south and south is north), wreaking widespread havoc; or that solar storms will destroy civilization by disrupting power grids.
“Although scientists and many Maya scholars insist that there is nothing to most of the predictions, the idea of 2012 as a watershed year ‘has gotten great traction,’ said John Hall, a sociologist at UC Davis who specializes in apocalyptic movements. Hall said he expects the frenzy will only grow over the next 12 months.” [1]
How should Christians relate to all this? Does the Bible have anything to guide us on when the end of the world will occur? Absolutely. The best place to find truth is not on survivalist websites or in ancient calendars ... but the Bible. God controls the Universe and all that is in it (2 Chronicles 20:26). Asteroids and kingdoms do not rise and fall without the Lord’s hand.
Regarding the date of Christ’s return, the Bible says:
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door” (Matthew 24:32, 33 NKJV).
We do not know the exact year or day of Jesus’ return and the end of the world, but we can know that it is “near” by looking at signs.
What are some of the signs that the end is near? Matthew 24 provides one of the best list of signs described in the Bible: Wars and rumors of wars (v. 6), famines and earthquakes in various places (v. 7), false messiahs and false prophets (v. 24), signs in the heavens (v. 29), like the days of Noah (v. 38), etc. What is clear in these passages is this caveat, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (v. 36).
The message stressed in many of these biblical passages on the end of time is not so much knowing the exact day or year that Christ will return. What is most important is that we are ready for Jesus to come back to this Earth. Matthew 25 tells stories of people waiting for the return of Christ and how they will live. This is to be our focus as Christians, not discovering some secret message in a Maya calendar.
If you are interesting in learning more about what the Bible says about the end of the world as we know it, visit one of our upcoming Bible prophecy seminars listed on this website.