Till the End of the World

Last evening I asked my pastor/wife what today's sermon was to be about. Just being curious since I had already planned to go to church today.

The end of time,

she responded.

Oh,

I said. I don't like end of time sermons. Even when I have preached them, I haven't liked them. I do like the Book of Revelation since it is a great parable and perhaps the earliest of the best uses of "fantasy" to get a message across. Beasts and dragons and wars and endless armies battling in a cosmic conflict. Wow. C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien had a great mentor in John of Revelation.

I remember the first time I heard of the Book of Revelation. I was probably ten years old and was not a Christian. It was probably around the time my father had a brain tumor operation in far-off Philadelphia on my 10th birthday. Somehow or another my Christian aunt mentioned it in a way that intrigued and scared me. I found my Dad's old Army Bible, tried to read it and put it down. I don't think I slept much that night, feeling alone, separated from both parents. It may not have been the end of the world, but it bore an eerie resemblance to it.

We non-fundamentalists have a difficult time explaining Revelation and the end of the world.  Every sermon I have ever given (or heard) tends to follow the same line:

• We are not supposed to use this as a script
• Jesus tells us the no one- himself included- knows when it will happen
• It's all about perseverance in the face of persecution
• In the meantime, do what Jesus wants us to do- feed the hungry, visit the sick, welcome the stranger.

But underneath it all is always to be found the end of the world. Even when we don't believe it will happen just as some have interpreted the book, the end of the world is a reality, if only our individual experience of it we call our own lives.

Which is why it may be so scary. The older I get the more I become aware of that. I don't really want this life to end- my world. Personally, I'm having a good time. I'm enjoying myself, my family, my work, my world. It is a never-ending parade of wonder and awe. Yet, having lived a longer life than either of my parents were able to live, I am aware that all I have is today. It is in the "today" of my life that I experience love and grace and hope. It is each "today" that I can help feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, give water to the thirsty.

Oddly, last evening during the TV broadcast of the Twins-Royals baseball game. Bert Blyleven ended up being philosophical and quoting the great outfield philosopher, Kirby Puckett. It is on the wall of the Twins club house. Puckett said it on the day he announced he had to retire early because of health issues. It makes sense:

Tomorrow is not promised to any of us.

I don't think that was the message of Revelation, although I don't pretend to know about that for sure. But when we talk about the end of the world, to go anywhere else is to miss out on the importance of today.