Tomorrow (Sunday, 2006-08-06), ABC Family will air the first episode of Three Moons Over Milford, a dramedy exploring the lives of numerous people in the town of Milford. The difference between our world and the world of Milford? Citizens of Milford no longer look up at night to view the moon; rather, they view what is left of it, as an asteroid has shattered it into three large chunks, which threaten to plummet to the earth at any time, ending life as they know it.
This so-called end of the world scenario, of course, changes the way people view life. Priorities shift, responsibilities are shirked, and people start focusing on themselves and how much they can enjoy life before it is taken away when Gaia meets (parts of) Luna. For whatever reason, the Powerman 5000 song “When Worlds Collide” comes to mind.
Some of the things people do as shown in the commercials include a man quitting his job and pursuing a more spiritualistic or mystical way of life, a couple getting married while cross-dressed (the groom wore the dress), a teenage girl who gets involved in Wicca, another teenage girl who becomes a bit more promiscuous, and so on.
In light of an imminent end of the world, I would suspect such behavior would run rampant (yes, moreso than it does even now).
I believe that the world will end, but not via some naturalistic event, global warming, nuclear winter, or exhaustion of the world caffeine supply.
It is quite easy to urge people to repentance by telling them that tomorrow is not guaranteed and that today is the day of salvation. It’s easy to rattle off, “Boast not thyself of tomorrow,” in such situations. But among ourselves, as Christians, what should our response be to the ever nearing return of the Lord?
He said He’d return. It has been revealed to us through John that He will return. Paul taught that the day was near in His day, and logically it must be nearer still today, and whether it is tomorrow or another 4,000 years from now, we only know for certain that every second brings us closer to the, to borrow a phrase from Tolkien, Return of the King. Though unlike Aragorn’s acceptance of the throne, the return of the King of kings heralds the end of this age and the coming judgment upon the actions of every man.
How then shall we live? How should we occupy until He comes? And does it make sense to throw away the time we have left by indulging ourselves in frivolities?