End of the World - Universal Spirituality

The Bible has quite a bit to say on the subject of the “end of the world” or “end of the age”. Based on its prophecies, Christians had expected “the end” to come on numerous occasions in past centuries, even setting concrete dates, only to meet with confusion and disappointment. Many believe that we live in the end times right now.

Briefly, the time of the end is said to be an appointed time that only the Father knows (Dan. 8:17-19; Matt. 24:36). It is to be a time of wrath, war, refinement, unprecedented trouble and distress, disease, disasters, and cosmic disturbances (Dan. 11:27-40; Luke 21:9-28). It is also to be a time when Jesus’ gospel will be preached globally before he returns in glory to take the reign over the earth and subdue all rebellion (Matt. 24:14; Luke 21:27-28; Rev. 11:15-18). It is to be a time of “harvest” and separation of the righteous from the wicked, punishment of the wicked, and resurrection of the just to immortal life in glory (Matt. 13:39-49; 24:31; Dan. 12:1-4; 1 Cor. 15:52-54.)

In another sense, the end of the age started with Jesus’ first coming to earth (Heb. 9:26). In yet another meaning, the end is a time when Jesus, after ruling for a time and subduing all rebellion, hands his kingdom over to the Father, so God becomes all and in all (1 Cor. 15:24-28).

In one of the references that this website is based on, there are two other meanings to the end times as follows.

What the “End of the World” Is Not and What It Is

The “end of the world” does not mean the end of the earth in the sense of annihilation, unless some as of yet unknown change occurs and destroys it. Ultimately, the physical world is not involved in human salvation or the coming of the end. This is because the destiny of humans is to, after a short physical life ending in death, come to a habitation in the spirit world.

Jesus is not coming to establish his kingdom on the earth as many believe. Rather he is working on restoring the world of human immortality and happiness that was lost by the rebellion of the first parents. The Kingdom of God which he and his followers on earth and in the spirit world are establishing is in the Celestial Heavens. It is not made by hands or by mere fiat, but rather populated by those who have experienced the New Birth and had their souls transformed into divine essence by the Divine Love of the Father.

Jesus’ main mission is not to establish a kingdom on earth except in the sense of helping people by his and other good spirits’ love and suggestions to get rid of sin and error from their hearts and thus perfect their natural love. If humans exercise toward each other more natural love, or better still, Divine Love, eventually brotherly love will cover the world and peace and happiness will prevail. This may be called the Kingdom of God on earth, but the real kingdom which Jesus came to establish is the Kingdom of Heaven with its place in the Celestial Spheres.

So when the Bible speaks of an end of the world, it is not the physical world, but rather the world of thoughts and deeds that are out of harmony with God’s laws. This world shall be destroyed when righteousness covers the earth and brotherly love reigns across the globe. Some already live in this state, being in the world, but not of it as far as participating in its sinful practices.

The wars and unprecedented trouble before the end will be wars of the spirits of good and evil, of love and hate, of purity and sin, of joy and despair, and of knowledge of truth and belief in error. These wars will be and already are fought in human souls with such intensity that the effects will be felt worldwide. Then shall pass away the world of evil, sin and erroneous beliefs that has resulted in untold suffering. Eventually, truth, love and peace will be established on the earth forever.

Another End of the World

Another meaning of the phrase is end of the world in an individual sense – which is happening around the world every moment. With death, as each person leaves their body and enters the spirit world, the end of their world has come. So the important thing to be concerned about is not so much the passing away of the heavens and the earth, but the passing of ourselves from the earth to the next world. Since we reap what we sow, it is vital to make the most of our lives here in terms of doing what is right. Our thoughts and deeds during our mortal life will determine whether we’ll reap a glorious life of immortality, or a temporary or a long life in darkness and suffering.

In summary, in one sense, the end of the world concerns the passing away of the world of sin, error, hate, etc., all of which have brought about incredible suffering. The spiritual outcome will be a new world of loving brotherhood of humanity living in peace and harmony with each other. Gone will be wars, conflicts and the many vices plaguing our world today (Isa. 2:2-4; 11:6-9; 32:18; 65:25).

In the second sense, the end of the world is playing out all the time at an individual level as each person’s physical life comes to an end. The spiritual outcome here depends on individual actions on the earth as we all reap what we have sown.

Reference: Angelic Revelations of Divine Truth, Vol. 1, Chapter 18.

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