Lately I’ve been watching a show about Texas Game Wardens entitled “Lone Star Law.” They are part of the state police, and most episodes show them issuing tickets for all kinds of offenses, everything from hunting and fishing violations to possession of drug paraphernalia. They are often fairly lenient, issuing only one citation and lots of warnings. A phrase they often use when handing the citation to the person is “It’s not the end of the world.”

How often have you said that to someone to try and put things in their proper perspective?

• Bad hair day? It’s not the end of the world.
• Miss your bus to school or your ride to work? It’s not the end of the world.
• Break up with your girlfriend/boyfriend? It’s not the end of the world.
• Lose your job? It’s not the end of the world.
• Your house burns down and you lose everything you own? Even that is not the end of the world.

However, Jesus tells us that the end is coming and no one knows when that will be. So we should be like watchmen, alert, on guard, always ready for it.

Mark 13:32-37 “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back–whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: `Watch!’ “

We should be on guard. We should be alert and prepared. But the preparation does not come through storing up treasures on earth or seeking immortality through science and technology. The preparation you need comes from knowing who Jesus is. He is the one who came to us as the son of a human mother to redeem us who were under the guilty verdict of the Law. He is the one who has made you sons and daughters of God. Suffering and dying on the cross at Golgotha, Jesus Christ has freed you from the verdict of death. He ended the power of death over you. Even when the end of the world comes for you, you know that it is not the end. He has opened the gates to eternal life to all who by the Spirit’s power bend the knee to Him as Lord.  So you can stand before your judge with confidence, knowing the price for sin has been paid and you have forgiveness.

Christians have the certainty of a place prepared for them in heaven. The provisions have been readied. Our Lord promised in John 14 [2-3] In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. And just a few verses later He tells us what it takes to get in: I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6).

 When we say, “It’s not the end of the world” we usually do so to mean, “things could be worse.” That implies that the end of the world is bad. People see the end as something terrible. While that is true for those who DO NOT have faith in Jesus as their Savior, the end of the world is certainly not a bad thing for those who have faith in Jesus.

Our Lord tells us to Watch. The End is coming, whether it be your death or the end of time when He returns to announce His judgment on all men. Peter talks about the end of the world in that way in his second letter.

2 Peter 3:10-13 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

 It’s not the end of the world…Yet! As God graciously gives us more time here on earth, we have more opportunities to live more like Him. We have more time to forgive those who have hurt us, to try to correct the wrongs we have done, to love as we have been loved. We put things in proper perspective by saying “it’s not the end of the world.” And as those who know that Jesus has reconciled us to the Father, we can say  “It’s not the end of the world…Yet!” Because it is something we should look forward to … in faith.

Come Lord Jesus, Come. Amen.