|
|
|
Every human in
our world experiences moments of self-reflection, doubt and skepticism.
We search for answers that help us define God's role in our lives and
our relevance to the universe and beyond. These are not new questions.
The Urantia Book can be a valuable source of enlightenment and comfort
when a soul is faced with Life's Toughest Questions. Click on a question
you've struggled with and discover The Urantia Book's perspective on
some of life's most difficult and frequently-asked questions.
|
Why are so many religionists caught up in the terrifying "End of time conspiracy theory" at this time on our planet?
|
[back]<<
[print] 
[email] 
|
For centuries, the
Scriptures
have provided mankind with the only
written records of God's voice and inspiration, and the Scriptures are
full of dire warnings regarding the times when the world will come to
an end. The certainty that the end of the world is imminent has been
present throughout our history. Many an age has been designated as
humanity's last, and it is no different now. Those who place all their
faith in these supposedly inerrant writings are naturally filled with
the fear that they engender, and those who hold to the belief that God
is a punishing deity are diligently on the lookout for evidences of
God's displeasure and retribution. And some of these
predictions have come to pass in our times...with every fulfillment of
these earthly prophecies, more credence is lent to them, part and
parcel. But is it real? Does the "end of the world" mean the end of
everything? Should we be afraid?
Mankind has long believed in a mysterious god who really has it in for
humanity. We are naturally afraid of such a deity, and we feel
powerless to survive his awful wrath. Here we are, sitting ducks,
wating for the other shoe to drop. Fear is the enemy here - not God.
Unreasoned
fear is a trap into which we all
can fall, and it is to be studiously avoided with the antidotal balm of
faith and trust in the God of Love.
So, why are so many caught up in this cycle of fear? Probably because
they do not know a better way. The Urantia Book provides 21st century
wisdom with which to navigate
the sea of negativity and fear in which we find ourselves. Rather than
an inevitable, destructive outcome that we must face, the revelatory
teachings of
The Urantia Book, and especially the teachings of Jesus, give us great
hope and a new way of viewing the panorama of human existence - free of
fear, and with the light of reason based on the revelation of a
merciful God of Love, and a new religion based on personal spiritual
experience. It is man himself who has created the state of the world in
which we find ourselves, and it is man, guided by God's love and
wisdom, who can, and will, co-create with God a new kind of world - a
world based on the Fatherhood of God and the resultant brotherhood of
man - a world that will be regenerated by the adoption of the true
religion
of Jesus. The Urantia Book calls this wonderful time of
renewal the Age
of Light and Life, the "acme of evolutionary material
development." It will take us a long time to reach this stage, but we
can, and WILL reach it.
Little in God's creation is set in stone. Humanity may be hurtling
into the end of an age, but this does not necessarily mean that the
world is coming to an end, or that all are doomed. Ages come and ages
go. Man still maintains the power of freewill, and can form his destiny
day-to-day in co-creation with God, who is Love. Whether we as a
species will turn the present tide of materialism and destruction - or
not - depends wholly on the spiritual regeneration of individual
religionists. The outcome may seem iffy at times, but we have it within
our power to change the outcome from one of death and
destruction to
one of spiritual regeneration and progress.
Please see The
Modern Problem
Jesus promised:
(143:1.4)
"I have come into this world to do the will of my
Father and to reveal his loving character to all mankind. That, my
brethren, is my mission. And this one thing I will do, regardless of
the misunderstanding of my teachings by Jews or gentiles of this day or
of another generation. But you should not overlook the fact that even
divine love has its severe disciplines. A father's love for his son
oftentimes impels the father to restrain the unwise acts of his
thoughtless offspring. The child does not always comprehend the wise
and loving motives of the father's restraining discipline. But I
declare to you that my Father in Paradise does rule a universe of
universes by the compelling power of his love. Love is the greatest of
all spirit realities. Truth is a liberating revelation, but love is the
supreme relationship. And no matter what blunders your fellow men make
in their world management of today, in an age to come the gospel which
I declare to you will rule this very world. The ultimate goal of human
progress is the reverent recognition of the fatherhood of God and
the loving materialization of the brotherhood of man."
(196:2.11)
Jesus offered no rules for social advancement; his was
a religious mission, and religion is an exclusively individual
experience. The ultimate goal of society's most advanced achievement
can never hope to transcend Jesus' brotherhood of men based on the
recognition of the fatherhood of God. The ideal of all social
attainment can be realized only in the coming of this divine kingdom.
To
Thomas:
(176:3.2)
"And even you, Thomas, fail to comprehend what I have
been saying. Have I not all this time taught you that your connection
with the kingdom is spiritual and individual, wholly a matter of
personal experience in the spirit by the faith-realization that you are
a son of God? What more shall I say? The downfall of nations, the crash
of empires, the destruction of the unbelieving Jews, the end of an age,
even the end of the world, what have these things to do with one who
believes this gospel, and who has hid his life in the surety of the
eternal kingdom? You who are God-knowing and gospel-believing have
already received the assurances of eternal life. Since your lives have
been lived in the spirit and for the Father, nothing can be of serious
concern to you . Kingdom builders, the accredited citizens of the
heavenly worlds, are not to be disturbed by temporal upheavals or
perturbed by terrestrial cataclysms. What does it matter to you who
believe this gospel of the kingdom if nations overturn, the age ends,
or all things visible crash, since you know that your life is the gift
of the Son, and that it is eternally secure in the Father? Having lived
the temporal life by faith and having yielded the fruits of the spirit
as the righteousness of loving service for your fellows, you can
confidently look forward to the next step in the eternal career with
the same survival faith that has carried you through your first and
earthly adventure in sonship with God.
Associated with end-times prophecy is the promise of the return of
the Master to the earth. In this,
the Bible
and The Urantia Book agree.
Jesus WILL one day return here. But does this event
signal the end of the world?
Jesus said:
(176:2.6)
"...concerning the times of the coming again
of the Son of Man, no one in heaven or on earth may presume to speak.
But you should be wise regarding the ripening of an age; you should be
alert to discern the signs of the times. You know when the fig tree
shows its tender branches and puts forth its leaves that summer is
near. Likewise, when the world has passed through the long winter of
material-mindedness and you discern the coming of the spiritual
springtime of a new dispensation, should you know that the summertime
of a new visitation draws near.
"But what is the significance of this teaching having
to do with the coming of the Sons of God? Do you not perceive that,
when each of you is called to lay down his life struggle and pass
through the portal of death, you stand in the immediate presence of
judgment, and that you are face to face with the facts of a new
dispensation of service in the eternal plan of the infinite Father?
What the whole world must face as a literal fact at the end of an age,
you, as individuals, must each most certainly face as a personal
experience when you reach the end of your natural life and thereby pass
on to be confronted with the conditions and demands inherent in the
next revelation of the eternal progression of the Father's kingdom."
Instead of gnawing over the dire predictions of Biblical
prophecy, we all might be better served to anticipate this coming
"spiritual springtime;" to discern the signs of its advent,
and contribute to it by our personal dedication to the ideals of truth,
beauty and goodness in our lives. When this season of renewal does come
to pass, we may
indeed see an end of the world as we now know it (which may not be the
worst that could happen, in my opinion!), and the inauguration of a
new, and better
world to come - a world ruled through the supremacy of God, the
Universal Father of Love - and the final realization of the
kingdom of heaven.
Thanks for this great question. I hope it has been helpful to you. Be
of good cheer!
|
|
|
