The End

Traveler: I was referred to you by that guy over there in the ticket window on the end.

The Counselor: OK, what can I do for you?

Traveler: The guy at the ticket window said my ticket is no good.

The Counselor: It happens some times. Give me the ticket.

Traveler: OK, here.

The Counselor: Yeah, your ticket is invalid. Your ticket is a fake. Where did you buy it?

Traveler: Uh, uh, I don't remember. If the ticket is a fake, what do I do?

The Counselor: You don't remember how you got the ticket? Well, I wouldn't worry about it. You won't need the ticket anyway.

Traveler: I won't need it? How do I get to Light City without a ticket?

The Counselor: You won't need the ticket because everything ends in about an hour, give or take a few minutes.

Traveler: What do you mean, "Everything ends?"

The Counselor: Humanity and everything else goes out of existence. Everything goes poof! Everything stops and we are permanently and totally "OUTTA HERE!"

Traveler: Uh, don't take offense, but you're nuts.

The Counselor: Yeah, well, we'll see. Have you noticed the dark cloth hanging above us? If you watch, it will get lower and lower, minute by minute. It is called a shroud.

Traveler: I think you are right about it getting lower and lower. This isn't the shroud of uh, uh, death is it? This is nuts. This can't be happening.

The Counselor: Yeah, well if you had the right ticket you wouldn't have to worry. The lower the shroud gets the closer you get to THE END.

Traveler: But wait, this is crazy. There has to be a way to stop this. Is the whole world going to end?

The Counselor: Your whole world is going to end. All of your present existence is going away.

Traveler: But…but…wait! What about God?

The Counselor: Yeah, well, what about God?

Traveler: Isn't God going to stop this?

The Counselor: No, God will not stop the shroud from coming down.

Traveler: Well, well, why not? You mean God is just going to sit back and watch it all go away?

The Counselor: God is not just going to sit back. He is pretty upset about the whole thing. God is deeply grieved about what is happening. He has given everyone instructions on how to avoid all this but people have preferred to go their own way. People have no real interest in God these days.

Traveler: You mean that Jesus stuff?

The Counselor: Yeah, that "Jesus stuff" as you call it. Let me put it to you this way. You are facing THE END. However, you could be facing THE BEGINNING. Realistically, you are facing a choice here. Which would you rather have, THE END, or THE BEGINNING?

Traveler: Can't I just keep going like I am?

The Counselor: No, that option is not available to you. You need to make a choice.

Traveler: You are talking about death here, aren't you? I don't care what the choice is…you are saying I am going to die, aren't you?

The Counselor: Well…since you put it that way, yes, you are going to die.

Traveler: No! No! I don't want to die. I want to live. I want to keep on going like I am now. Can't I just keep going like I am now? This isn't fair. This isn't fair at all.

The Counselor: No, it isn't fair. The author of death does not play fair. The author of death strikes every person, every living creature. At some point or another, every living creature is struck down. However, you have an out. You can have a pass.

Traveler: What kind of pass? Where do I buy this pass?

The Counselor: Well, you can't buy the pass. In terms of money, lands, or property. You cannot pay anything to get your pass. However, there is a cost.

Traveler: You mean a catch. There is always a catch, isn’t there?

The Counselor: I wouldn't call it a "catch."

Traveler: You are talking about that Jesus thing aren’t you? Wait a minute. Where is everyone? There must have been six or seven hundred people in the terminal just a minute ago. Where is everyone? Where are the other ticket agents? Where are the other counter people? Where did everyone go? And the shroud, the shroud is gone. Where did the shroud go?

The Counselor: The people and the shroud are gone. You are the last one. Every person and everything in the universe is connected. When God created all things, every person was connected just by the fact we are God's creation. The older the human race became the more distant the race became from each other and from God. As more and more people populated the earth, people cared less and less about each other and more and more about only themselves. Crime, violence, war, strife, a collapse of economies and countries has been the result. The survival of the world as we have had it in the past depended upon whether people accepted Christ as Savior and then worked together to foster His ideals for humanity. However, it is too late for survival matters now. More and more people have turned away from God and turned away from each other. Darkness has swept over the world. We are living in the last minutes of the world, possibly depending upon what you decide to do within the next few minutes. You can not save humanity because Christ is the savior. However, what you can do is set humanity on a new course. You can set humanity on a course of Christian peace, love, enlightenment, and purpose. The future of humanity, if there is going to be a future, is up to you and only you. You have never seriously taken any religious matter into your heart, mind, and soul. Anything and everything religious was only an afterthought for you…an afterthought or less. The fate of the world could depend upon you.

Traveler: Personally, all I care about is getting my ticket fixed. Does this mean I don't get to go to Light City ? Where are you going? Wait, come back. What about my ticket? What about my ticket? Hey! Somebody…anybody…is anybody here?

THE END

This message was presented in September 2012 as the Virtual Church message in Shepherd's Care Ministries virtual church site at http://www.shepherdscare.net