It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, . . . But ye shall receive power . . . and ye shall be witnesses . . . Acts 1:7-8
At the induction of the church age Christ clearly instructs the disciples that it is not for them to know the times and the seasons (Eschatology) but their job is to be his witnesses, to spread the gospel. In light of this knowledge is it not ironic that the church completely disobeys His command? We are addicted to prophesy and fascinated by the signs of the times, but apathetic concerning the gospel.
Why do we behave this way? We flagrantly disregard our commission while simultaneously obsessing about things that are not for us to know. Why do we love knowledge so much? Do we so easily forget which tree was behind our first parents fall?
There seems to be some strange mix of sloth and curiosity at work in the church today. We do not want to spread a message of hope to a dieing world, no, we would rather spend years reading mainly Daniel and Revelation, then sifting through news clippings trying to deduce the identity of the Antichrist. We really need to heed Jesus’ warning. Don’t obsess over prophesy at the expense of everything else, study it yes, but devote your life to the gospel.
The scripture tells of no crown awaiting the man who correctly interprets Daniel’s 70 weeks, but plenteous rewards for the man who wins souls.
All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. I Corinthians 5:17-18
