LHM Daily Devotion - May 5, 2017 "Surviving the Apocalypse"

Back when I was a young fella in grade school, the Russians managed to...

Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries

By Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour

"Surviving the Apocalypse"

May 5, 2017

2 Peter 3:11b-13 - ... What sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to His promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Back when I was a young fella in grade school, the Russians managed to get the atomic bomb. If I remember correctly, that bit of information shook people up pretty good. Mr. and Mrs. John Doe wanted the government to tell them how to survive a nuclear explosion. Teachers wanted to know how they could protect their children.

After some thought, Washington told all the schools to train their students to "duck and cover." If a class saw a brilliant flash of light, we were supposed to duck and take cover under our desks. As far as the long term effects stemming from fallout, well, nobody knew what to do about that.

And what were adults supposed to do to survive the nuclear holocaust?

"Build a fallout shelter" was the best the government could suggest. Some folks took the suggestion and dug up their backyard or reinforced a section of their basements. Recently I was in one of those old shelters. It was unattractive. It was cold and it was damp.

Of course, that was then and this is now. Times have changed.

Oh, our worries about the nuclear apocalypse or Judgment Day or Too Late Day or World War Three are still the same. What is not the same are our fallout shelters. No longer are people willing to just survive; they want to survive in style. That's why the well-heeled buyer can purchase

• a home in Germany's Vivos Europa One. Cut out of solid rock, the facility has 34 private homes, ranging in size from 3,500 to 5,000 square feet. The facility will have a transit system to move people from restaurants, theater, coffee shops, pool, and game areas.
• a mansion at the Czech Republic's The Oppidum. Boasting a 77,000 square-foot underground facility, it is being sold as "the largest billionaire bunker in the world."

Now, here is the deal.

These shelters, with their cinemas, underground gardens, swimming pools, spas, and wine vaults may be able to take you comfortably through World War Three. I cannot promise with any degree of certainty, but they might also be of some limited help in the apocalypse.

But square footage and creature comforts are going to be absolutely no value on Too Late Day, which many simply call Judgment Day.

Truth is you can't build a shelter down far enough; you can't reinforce the walls thick enough to escape the Lord's return and the Day of Judgment. On that day, the only thing that can offer you assured safety and security is faith in the Lord Jesus. If Jesus has redeemed you, you have all the protection you need; if He has not, nothing else will suffice.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord every age sees its wars and rumors of wars. Today I ask that You will allow us to live in harmony and in the peace that comes from being part of the Savior's redeemed family of faith. In Jesus' Name I ask it. Amen

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