I have been immersed in Christian culture for many years. Since I was a child, I’ve heard about the end of the world, the end times, the rapture of the church, Armageddon, and other events described in the last book of the Bible: Revelation (known in Spanish as Apocalipsis). The sermons about the end of the world terrified me, especially when they said that if you weren't right with God, you’d be left behind to suffer while the righteous would go to heaven with Him.
I remember one particular day when I overslept, and my mom didn’t wake me up for church. When I finally woke up hours later, I found no one at home. There was no electricity, and it was raining heavily, so no one was outside either. I was so scared and immediately thought, “I’m so bad that I’ve been left to suffer the end of the world while my whole family was saved.”
The word “apocalypse” is often associated with the end of the world, but it actually comes from the Greek word “apokalypto” (ἀποκάλυψις), meaning: revealed, manifested, uncovered, brought to light. In the Bible, there are many other places where the word “apocalypse” is used to mean “revelation,” such as in Matthew 11:27 and Luke 10:22, where Jesus speaks of revealing (apokalypto) the Father, and in Galatians 1:16, where Paul speaks of the revelation (apokalypto) given to him through Jesus.
So, we should not fear the Apocalypse but long for it, because it is when something is finally revealed! What will be revealed, you may ask? At the end of times, the lordship of Jesus will be revealed, and every knee will bow before Him. The end of this age or world—meaning the systems that govern the earth—will also be revealed. This will happen in the near future. But why wait for that Apocalypse and miss your own apokalypto? That is, miss your own revelation of the lordship of Jesus in your life, here and now.
Written by Víctor Preza, based on the sermon from August 31, 2024
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