Doomsday Preacher Goes for Round Two

A group of Doomsday preachers, independent of churches, are asserting that Judgment Day will occur on May 21, 2011. "We can know from the Bible alone that the date of the rapture of believers will take place on May 21, 2011 and that God will destroy this world on October 21, 2011," they claim. The leader is Harold Camping, president, general manager and full-time volunteer of Family Radio, featuring the teachings of Harold Camping. Should Christians believe Camping and his gang?

The Bible teaches Christians that Judgment Day is not something we can predict. We can look to Matthew 24:36: "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only." Or, we can look to Mark 13:32: "But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father."

Yet Camping debates these passages with his claim that Christians who are "sleeping" are the ones who can't predict Judgment Day. To support his claims, Camping relies on his understanding of passages such as those found in 1 Thessalonians 5:2-6.

For example, Camping refutes Thessalonians 5:4, "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief."

According to Camping, "We have all been taught time and time again that Christ's coming will be like a thief in the night, but here we have a clear statement (at least, it's clear to us now) that it will not come as thief for the children of the light."

The Bible tells us In Acts 16:31, "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." Christians are taught that belief in the Lord is not enough but that there must also be faith in the Lord to receive salvation. However, according to Camping and his fellow preachers, only Christians who are not "sleeping" are saved. Therefore, Christians who are not sleeping believe that Judgment Day is May 21. Christians who are sleeping do not. Did the Lord Jesus Christ separate Christians the way Camping alleges?

According to Camping, "We will see that those who are 'sleeping' are not those out in the world who want nothing to do with God, but they are those in the Christian community who continue to hold the belief that we can't know when the end will occur. God defines 'sleeping' as not having spiritual eyes opened to understand the truth."

Camping claims the prediction is "100% accurate and beyond dispute." However, if you choose to be one of Camping's non-sleeping Christians, you should be aware that Camping did the doomsday thing in the past. He predicted that Judgment Day would happen on Sept. 6, 1994. As reported at the San Francisco Chronicle, "On Sept. 6, 1994, dozens of Camping's believers gathered inside Alameda's Veterans Memorial Building to await the return of Christ, an event Camping had promised for two years."

Christians who do not believe in Camping's prediction know that May 21, 2011, will come and go, just like Sept. 6, 1994 did. And we also know that Harold Camping will come up with a new date to promote after May 21 has come and gone. So, prepare for round three.

Sources:

We Can Know

The Holy Bible - King James Version, Bartleby

Justin Berton, Biblical scholar's date for rapture: May 21, 2011, SFGate.com