Why You Should Not Worry About Doomsday Predictions for Friday

As Christians it is important to exercise discernment in all things. One area of utmost importance in this regard is the tendency among many to make outlandish predictions about the end of the world, such as the current hoop-la over the Mayan calendar's indication that Dec. 21, 2012 is the end of the time cycle.

In order to make this complicated subject easy to understand, I decided to break this down into sections that are straightforward and simple to follow.

1. Jesus warned against predicting when the end of the world will be. "No man knows the day or the hour," said Jesus. The very fact that Dec. 21 is pinpointed as "THE day" is enough reason in and of itself to dismiss it. It is FALSE.

2. Jesus stated that many "false prophets" will come along claiming they know about these things. He told us not to believe them.

3. The Mayan calendar has nothing to do with Christianity or Judaism, the religion of the ancient Hebrews. Thus, if there are any Mayan "predictions," they are incompatible with Christianity.

4. Modern Mayans say that the calendar is not about predicting the end of time but about describing cycles of time which lead into other cycles. When one cycle ends, another begins. The ancient Mayans simply believed that Dec. 21, 2012 represents the end of one large cycle...NOT the fact that the end of the cycle means disaster or calamity.

5. Jesus taught that for unbelievers the end of the world will come with the element of surprise. Thus, if thousands or millions of unbelievers are expecting the end of the world, you can pretty much bet on the fact that it is not true.

6. The exception to Number 5 above is in the event of a cosmic natural disaster, such as an asteroid, a comet, or some other astronomical event that can be predicted in advance.

7. For Christians, things that only God can know are best left to God. What good does it do us to delve into endless, obsessive speculation about these things? None whatsoever.

So, that's about it. Stop worrying about tomorrow, and celebrate the birth of the Savior of the world, the Prince of Peace!