HOW DOES THE BIBLE SAY THE WORLD WILL END?
My own approach to systematized eschatology has been to decide which of these thoughts among the various views seem to best fit what I see the Bible to be saying. I attempt to put together information from each view, throw in a thought or two of my own, and come up with a composite of all of them which I think best encompasses most of the Biblical data. Of course, only by witnessing how events turn out in God’s time will we know for sure how the end will happen, but there are some things in the Bible that are clear.
Having done a fair amount of reading and study, and having taught the subject a few times, I have arrived at the following conclusive thoughts.
What will happen to end this world and bring in the new? It is very plain in the Bible that God has fixed a day in which He will rightly judge the world through a man whom He has appointed. He has given proof of this fact by raising that man from the dead. (Acts 17:31) Jesus Christ will return, and over a period of time, will simultaneously do two things: (1) He will rescue His people from earth’s chaos, oppressive evils, and the wrath of God which is about to be poured out; and (2) He will righteously deal with those who have rejected Him by bringing acts of judgment upon them and their world. Let’s expand on these two concepts.
How will God rescue His people? When Jesus returns He will gather all of His people, both those who from the beginning of human history have died, and those who will be alive at His coming. He will gather them to himself by means of a bodily resurrection. The dead will be raised and those living will be transformed so that each person will have a body like Christ’s. These persons will be taken to safety to be with Jesus and will escape the judgments now to come.
Prior to this time of resurrection, many of God’s people will be suffering tremendous persecution at the hands of evil and ungodly persons. The world will have gotten increasingly worse. Immorality, violence, wars, and natural disasters will be abounding. I do not see us having yet arrived at such a time where evil, especially against the church and national Israel, is advanced to the point where God will be justified to step in and take over. But I sense we are moving steadily toward that day. Even in America, we have noticed a movement away from Christianity. Christians are more and more being labeled as bad persons who are out of sorts with our “modern, tolerant, and civilized” culture. Society is beginning to say things like “we must eliminate Christianity from any influence upon our development.” Persecution of Christ-followers is increasing all around the world, and so is evil. When persecution will be so bad as to threaten the extinction of God’s people, Christ will come and save them. He will then begin to repay those who have been afflicting His people. From the standpoint of the rest of humanity, their hope will ever be in governments forming a world of peace and safety.
How will God in Christ judge the world? When Jesus comes to rescue His people, God will begin to pour out judgments upon the earth and the ungodly, that is, all who are against Christ. These judgments will be in the form of various plagues and catastrophes far surpassing any to date. They will not only serve as judgments upon people for their evils, but also as a warning. God does not delight in the death and condemnation of the wicked, but that they repent and live. But they will not repent and therefore God will be completely just to bring an end to all.
After a period of judgments poured out upon the earth, Jesus will physically return to earth and put down all remaining opposition. He will establish His kingdom, be the King, and rule the world in peace.
At some point there will be a judgment of all persons. Christ’s followers will be judged and rewarded according to their earthly deeds and given their place in God’s kingdom. The others will be judged for their deeds and given a place outside of God’s kingdom, namely, a place Jesus referred to as hell. God will proceed to create a new heaven and earth, perhaps a remake of the present heavens and earth. God’s people will eternally inhabit and enjoy life in this new universe where no more evil will come.
Admittedly, this is a very general presentation of how the world will end. But, it is fundamentally what the Bible claims and you will have to read it for more of the details. Here are some places to get you started: Matthew 24, 1 Thessalonians 4-5, 2 Thessalonians 1-2, 2 Peter 3, Revelation 6, Isaiah 2, Daniel 2, and Zechariah 14.
The question each of us must ask ourselves is this: Are we ready for the day of reckoning, the day the world as we know it will end? Everyone takes a tortuous and as-bad-as-can-be chance if these things are ignored as superstitions or falsehoods. What if they are true? What is your hope of escape? We often have days of reckoning in our lives. For example, when we take tests at school, or when we apply for a job we want and all depends on how well we have prepared. The right preparation is our hope for surviving the days of reckoning.
