The Signs (and Non-Signs) of the Times

"When Jesus' disciples ask him for signs of the end, Jesus does an odd thing. He spends a long paragraph telling them all the events that are not signs of the end.

Ever the subtle doctor of souls, Jesus knows what he is doing. When the world becomes chaotic and frightening, even the calmest people are tempted to go apocalyptic.

The Dow is down 2,000 points! China is catching up with the US! Global temperatures continue to climb! We face a health care crisis! Iran is getting nukes! Stars are falling from the sky, and the moon is turning to blood!

Jesus says, Calm down. Do not be afraid. Worlds do come to an end, and ultimately, this creation will yield to a new creation. But the end is not yet. That guy carrying the sign, 'The end is nigh' - he's the false prophet.

Reading the signs of the times is important. Knowing the non-signs is, however, a more basic skill."

--Peter Leithart, from the "Quodlibet" section of Touchstone

Our "Cocoonish" Condition

Here is an excerpt from Jason Stellman's recent article in Modern Reformation, which is an excellent reminder of our pilgrim status in this world:

Yes, the cosmos may groan, Paul argues, but "we who have the firstfruits of the Spirit" ache with an even greater frustration than both the non-believing human and sub-human created order. Or at least we should. The irony, however, is that the unbelieving world often displays, through its art and other media, an even greater frustration with earth than many believers exhibit. We of all people should recognize our provisional "cocoonish" condition; and yet the more we talk about redeeming culture and reclaiming America for Christ, the more one gets the impression that if we were actually given wings and bidden to fly, we would be disappointed to leave our cocoon behind untransformed. What does that say about where our true devotion lies?

As hesitant as we may be to admit it, when we compare contemporary evangelicalism's fixation with earth with contemporary paganism's frustration with it, the conclusion seems inescapable that - sometimes at least - the latter does a much better job of imaging the God they deny than the former does of imaging the One they confess.

--Jason Stellman, "The Destiny of the Species," Modern Reformation (Nov/Dec 2009). Stellman is also the author of Dual Citizens: Worship and Life Between the Already and the Not Yet