The Scientific Timeline

Matthew 24:
6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
8All these are the beginning of birth pains. ~ Jesus

In a scientific timeline revealed by reporter Andrea Thompson and produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a "frightening future" emerges. I am simplifying it to make it easier to wrap the mind around.

2007 ~ World population now approaching 7 billion and concentrated in urban areas (cities).

2008 ~ Global oil production peaks and begins a downward trend until 2020, sparking a trend toward conflicts, recession, and food shortages.

2020 ~ World population will be pushing 8 billion alongside as much as 50% decrease in agricultural yields and flash flooding in Europe.

2030 ~ Look for 5% increase in diahrea-related diseases as 8.3 billion people pack into world's cities. Up to 18% of world's coral reefs will be lost. Rising temperatures will erase Africa's equatorial glaciers.

2040 ~ Arctic sea will begin experiencing serious ice reductions in summer.

2050 ~ Alpine glaciers will shrink and even begin to disappear. Big increase in heat-related deaths in places like Australia and New York, while England will experience the opposite effect of cold-related deaths. With global population at 9.4 billion, crop production in East Asia could increase and decrease in South Asia. A quarter of the earth's plant and animal life may face extinction.

2070 ~ Hydropower will decrease as drought-infection increases. Drought and its accompanying effects will increase by as much as 50%, with the Mediterannean being among the hardest to be hit.

2080 ~ Low-lying areas and cities will experience increased flooding and Tsunamis as coastal populations zoom to 5 billion. Famines and water shortages will become commonplace. Large portions of New York State could go underwater.

2085 ~ The risk of dengue fever increases to affect 3.5 billion people.

2100 ~ Ecosystems will be crashing. Ocean ph levels will seriously threaten marine life. 20 to 30% extinction rates globally. Radical transformation of weather patterns globally. A quarter of earth plant and animal life decimated. Dust bowl scenarios across the Northern Hemisphere and Middle East.

2200 ~ Water masses shift toward poles speeding earth rotation.

My comment: These are sobering ideas presented by scientists who look at all these things and get freaked out. I remember the dire predictions of the '60's that never came true. By 2000 they expected that sizeable populations would be living on the moon or under the ocean in domes.

Still, humans have been brilliantly resourceful in developing technologies to combat, for instance, the effects of increasing population and reductions in the world food supply. Technology has kept up and sometimes surpassed the crises that were faced (think polio, or smallpox, or advancements in agriculture). Multiple millions on this planet live better, more prosperous, more luxurious lives than any peoples in history.

But, with all that, the world is still precariously dangerous.

What can't be figured into all these scenarios are the possible effects of war, weapons of mass destruction (chemical, nuclear, and biological), and even desperate human migrations. Such things could potentially put the pedal to the metal, so to speak, on critical developments in the world. And governments are still only applying band-aids to huge, gaping wounds.

Jesus said, "When you see these things, don't get anxious." But he envisioned a world completely whacked-out at some point, with even outer space rocking and reeling. He spoke of times of great sorrows. Actually, we live in such a world today. Large portions of humanity presently live in tribulation.

This is perhaps the dark side of scientific exploration, to uncover potential disaster ahead. They become like the old harbingers of religion: "Repent, turn around, before it's too late." One would hope they would have better luck than the religious prophets of doom. They also face that same frustrating, impenetrable wall the prophets faced called "human nature." We seem naturally hell-bent, almost determined, to ignore where our inclinations are leading us.

For me, the atom bomb was a symbol of the extent of evil possible in the human potential. God did not have to rain fire on us from the skies. We could do it ourselves, thank you very much.

We live in a perilous world, with huge potential for massive disasters. We have witnessed over-reactions to Y2K or the more recent Avian Flu. It is hard, in fact, looking at the timetable above, to understand exactly what we should do about this, or global warming, or comets headed for our planet.

Trust God. There is nothing out there that is going to take Him by surprise or overwhelm Him.