Save yourself, serve yourself.
World serves its own needs, listen to your heart bleed.
Tell me with the rapture and the reverent in the right – right.
You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright light, feeling pretty psyched.

It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

Do you feel fine?  Apparently a lot of folks are scared, freaked out, and even panicked about this whole 2012 deal.  And when there is general anxiety spreading through the population, we can count on Hollywood to throw together a massive disaster film to really help set people off.

This one is called 2012 and unless you’ve been hanging out in the Mayan ruins for the last year, you’ve heard the doom and gloom predictions about that date.  Actually if you really were in South America, you’d be able to see firsthand how the long term Mayan calendar comes to a rather abrupt end in 2012…hence the fear, hence the movie.

Apparently the film is having its desired effect. Check out this comment from one moviegoer:

“If you want to watch a movie that will have you STRESSED OUT, ANXIOUS, and PANICKING for the next 3 years then go ahead and watch this movie.” (www.imdb.com)

It’s in times like these that I am especially thankful that we have somewhere – or should I say Someone - to turn to for answers.  As it turns out, the Mayans aren’t the only ones who have a theory about how the inhabitants of planet earth will meet their Maker:

Jesus then left the Temple. As he walked away, his disciples pointed out how very impressive the Temple architecture was. Jesus said, “You’re not impressed by all this sheer size, are you? The truth of the matter is that there’s not a stone in that building that is not going to end up in a pile of rubble.”

 Later as he was sitting on Mount Olives, his disciples approached and asked him, “Tell us, when are these things going to happen? What will be the sign of your coming, that the time’s up?”

Jesus said, “Watch out for doomsday deceivers. Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming, ‘I am Christ, the Messiah.’ They will deceive a lot of people. When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. This is nothing compared to what is coming.

“Then, the Arrival of the Son of Man! It will fill the skies – no one will miss it. Unready people all over the world, outsiders to the splendor and power, will raise a huge lament as they watch the Son of Man blazing out of heaven. At that same moment, he’ll dispatch his angels with a trumpet-blast summons, pulling in God’s chosen from the four winds, from pole to pole.

“But the exact day and hour? No one knows that, not even heaven’s angels, not even the Son. Only the Father knows” (Matthew 24:1-8; 30-31; 36, The Message).

Actually, Jesus’ words here are not a theory or prediction. This isn’t a calendar running out. This scenario is a trailer for the real deal.  This is a blow-by-blow account of the end of the world as we know it…

And I feel fine!

Why? Because the God who created the universe holds everything together and nothing happens outside of His perfect plan. The fate of humanity isn’t a matter of random chance or undirected causes.

Not only that, but for those who are trusting in Christ as their only hope of salvation, the end of the world as we know it is good news! It marks the beginning of the eternity that we will spend in Jesus’ presence.

Jesus tells us to “keep our head and not panic.” Even He doesn’t know the exact time of when it all goes down! So if He’s trusting God’s timing, we should also chill out about doomsday predictions and dates.

But Jesus doesn’t want us to be oblivious about the end of the world. It will happen eventually and He wants us to be prepared and ready for it:

So stay awake, alert. You have no idea what day your Master will show up. But you do know this: You know that if the homeowner had known what time of night the burglar would arrive, he would have been there with his dogs to prevent the break-in. Be vigilant just like that. You have no idea when the Son of Man is going to show up (Matthew 24:42-44, The Message).

The best way to be ready for Jesus’ second coming is to live a godly life in Christ Jesus and tell others about the good news of the gospel. 

This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires (Romans 13:11-14, NLT).

There’s no time to waste! Let’s live like Jesus Christ died yesterday, rose from the dead this morning, and is coming back tomorrow!

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As found on http://www.crossroad.to/text/articles/tsbtlk96.html by: Berit Kjos

This was forwarded to me by a friend of mine. Thanks very much Karim.

Betrayed, rejected, running from responsibility, growing strong through adversity… Disney’s latest box-office hit, The Lion King, is full of Biblical parallels, colorful characters and personal struggles that help us identify with a lovable lion made in the image of man. But watch out! Behind the spectacular scenery and noble sentiments hides the timeless earth-centered view of reality that has always lured God’s people from truth to myths.

In other words, The Lion King – like Aladdin – demonstrates an alarming shift in values. While the old fairy-tale cartoons like Snow White linked sorcery to the evil characters, The Lion King uses tribal magic for “good.” While most children in the seventies knew enough truth to place divination in the forbidden realm of the occult, today’s children – who often feel more comfortable with occult games than biblical truth – see nothing wrong with pagan practices.

The new Disney story opens with a spectacular celebration in honor of Simba, the newborn prince. The animals of the land flock to Pride Rock, where the mystical baboon Rafiki cracks open an egg-like gourd, dips his finger into the dark liquid, and anoints the little lion with a mark on his forehead.

While Pride Nation worships its royal heir, Simba’s devious uncle Scar wishes him dead. As soon as the infant king grows to cubhood, he becomes a target for Scar’s cruel schemes. The first plot fails, but the next assault kills King Mufasa. Scar blames Simba for his father’s death, sends the heartbroken cub into the wilderness, and tells three savage hyenas to finish the execution.

Simba escapes through a web of thorns and collapses under the hot African sun. A warthog and a meercat find the little prince, revive his exhausted body, and teach him a new philosophy: No worries! Hakuna matata!

Back in Pride Lands, Scar and his hyenas reign. The land lies dry and barren. One day, Rafiki looks into his magic gourd and sees Simba’s living image. He sets out to find the reluctant heir to the throne, then demonstrates a worldwide pagan traditions: reliance on help from everpresent ancestral spirits.

“I know your father,” says Rafiki.

“My father is dead,” answers Simba.

“Nope! He’s alive. I’ll show him to you.” The shamanic baboon leads Simba to a pool of clear water. “Look down there.”

First Simba sees his own reflection, then the face of his father.

“You see, he lives in you!” says Rafiki.

Simba hears a familiar voice call his name. He looks up. His father’s ghostlike image appears among the stars.

“Look inside yourself…” says the apparition. “You must take your place in the circle of life. Remember who you are…” The vision fades.

Simba believes. He sees that the dead are not separated from the living, nor earth from the realm of spirits. Everything is connected. Empowered by a new sense of identity, he races back to Pride Lands to challenge his uncle, win the throne, and restore the land. Soon, Pride Nation celebrates the birth of the next lion prince, the son of Simba and his cubhood friend Nala. Again, Rafiki lifts a royal infant for all to worship. The cycle of life continues.

Consider the following six concerns:

1. King Mufasa tells his son, “Look at the stars. The great kings of the past look down on us from those stars. They will always be there to guide you… and so will I.” This fatherly advice blends the world’s timeless trust in astrological guides, spiritism, ancestral worship and multiple gods. The Bible tells us to shun all such expressions of paganism. (Deut. 4:19; 18:9-13)

2. “Simba, everything you see exists together in a delicate balance,” explains Mufasa. “As king, you will need to understand that balance and respect all creatures because we are all connected in the great circle of life.”

In light of the earlier reference to the “circle of life,” we know that this statement moves beyond a biological food chain and natural cycles. Mystical connectedness, the spiritualized circle of life, and respect or tolerance for everything – no matter how evil by God’s standards – fit right into contemporary multicultural and environmental teachings. Educators, entertainers and media-leaders promote these pagan concepts as moral ideals needed to save the earth and bring global oneness. In contrast, God’s Word tells us that nature-worship and oneness with pagan cultures bring destruction both to land and people. (Deut. 11, 28; Rom. 1:18-32)

3. To “look inside” for wisdom and guidance usually implies that anyone – Christian or not – can tap into an inner source of uncorrupted wisdom, because all are one with some sort of pantheistic deity or cosmic intelligence. Liberated from outside authorities, children can freely follow the destructive ways of ancient Israel, where “everyone did what was right in their own eyes” (Judges 21:25)

4. Today’s attraction for the gross, bad and cruel can be measured in audience responses to evil or ill-mannered characters. In The Lion King, the devilish Scar, the bloodthirsty hyenas and the flatulent warthog drew the loudest laughter. Like the sordid success of Beavis and Butthead, this
phenomenon reminds us that in our culture bad is good, and good is boring.

6. The Lion King matches the new earth-centered paradigm or world view that is transforming children’s view of reality. While God told us to communicate truth to our children when we “sit… walk…lie down and… get up,” (Deut. 6:7) today’s culture trains children to see reality through a global, earth-centered filter. This “new” mental framework distorts truth, stretches the meaning of familiar words, and promotes spiritual “insights” that are incompatible with Christianity. Packaged as entertainment, this message usually bypasses rational resistance, desensitizes opened minds, and fuels general acceptance of pagan spirituality.

Families that have already seen The Lion King may still use its pagan context to show the contrasts between God’s truths and earth-centered religions. Look together for the many parallels. Point out the vital differences. Remember, the most deceptive spiritual counterfeits look most similar to God’s truth. Discuss Scriptures that counter the deceptions. Then thank God for His genuine truth and His life within those who follow Him.

PARALLELS TO PONDER

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