The Worst Year in Recorded History
According to historian Michael McCormick, AD 536 was the worst year in all of recorded history.[1] During that year, a troubling fog—likely caused by a volcanic eruption in Iceland—covered much of the world. People from that time said the sun was only as bright as the moon; darkness reigned during both day and night. During that summer, temperatures plummeted, snow fell throughout China, and crops failed. Obviously, many souls starved to death in that catastrophic year. Through the lens of history, 2020 doesn’t seem so bad, does it?
A year is coming, however, which will make both 536 and 2020 look like walks in the park on a beautiful spring day. That year is the one when Jesus comes again. Yes, for those in Christ, that year will bring blessings like we’ve never experienced; however, the vast majority of people will be lost and spend an eternity in a devil’s hell (Matt 7:13-14). The overwhelming majority of souls will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and hear the Risen Lord say, “Depart from me! I never knew you!”
Since we very well may be living in that year, imagine what that last year will bring. Weddings and births cause joy in the lives of so many. Promotions and career changes will lead to satisfaction and financial security. Soccer practice, recitals, and homework will keep many parents busy. Vacations will give much-needed breaks. Retirements will bring hope of restful years. You see, life will be going forth as it always has, and as people suspect life always will.
It will truly be as the Lord Jesus predicted: “In the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt 24:38-39). Life with all its joys and trials will be moving along as it always has until the moment Jesus burst through the sky and changes souls forever.
Because a terrible year is coming for so many, you must be in Jesus, love Jesus, and walk with Jesus. He will keep you from that horrors of that day of reckoning. He will give you the crown of life and make the worst year for so many the best year you could ever imagine.
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[1] Ann Gibbons, “Why 536 was ‘the worst year to be alive,’” https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/11/why-536-was-worst-year-be-alive, accessed January 13, 2021.