3568 — The World Coming to an End
By Editor
Will the world come to an end before the twentieth century is entirely out? Is this idea correct? B. H. There is nothing in the reckoning of ordinary chronology which shows us just when the world will come to an end, or when it will not come to an end. God has these times in His own hands, and He has not revealed them to any soul. Nor will He until probation shall close. He gives us many time-tables of history, great lines of prophecy. He gives us many signs and omens of the last days which will occur right down in the time of the end, all of which are heralds of His coming. And when we see all these things, we may know that He is near, even at the doors; but nowhere does He tell us that we may set times for His coming, or endeavor in any way to locate just when that event will be. If we knew that, there would be little watching until the event was near; and the question then is, whether carelessness of soul would not lead to absolute unbelief. The constant command which God has given to "watch, for ye know not when the time is," is the attitude which the church itself ought to assume. Watch, and pray, and work.