“Game Over” is not an end

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.” 2 Peter 3: 10.

In the early twentieth century, our world witnessed a very big catastrophe on the Atlantic Ocean. The Titanic sunk, and 1,503 people lost their lives.

On the night of 14 April 1912, the Titanic began her maiden journey from Southampton to New York. Just about 1200 miles to New York, the RMS Titanic struck the iceberg that broke its 16 compartments made of thousands of one inch-thick mild steel plates and two million steel and iron rivets. The intensity of the collision led Titanic to its final mortal destiny. The unsinkable, luxurious Titanic began to sink. Titanic broke in half and the two pieces, and in less than 3 hours disappeared into the Atlantic Ocean. The glorious inauguration of the Titanic ended in a titanic disaster.

There are some interesting things about the Titanic. Its building began in 1909. About 3,000 men completed it in two years. The length of the Titanic in feet was 882 and 9 inches. The height was 175 feet. The main body of the ship, including the bottom, sides and deck, were held together with three million rivets. It had a net weight of 52, 310 tons. The engines had a capacity of 55,000-shaft horsepower, sufficient to push the weighty Titanic to a top speed of 24-25 knots (44.448/46.300km).

The Titanic was one of a kind in the world then. It was made to be big and “virtually unsinkable”. It was constructed to be like a “city on the ocean”. It had everything that you could get from Geneva. There was massive entertainment on board. Titanic survivor, Lawrence Beesley recalled, “I often noticed how the Third Class passengers were enjoying every minute of their time.” The passengers put their confidence in the ship. Inside the ship were rich personalities such as John Jacob Astor IV (German-American millionaire) and Benjamin Guggenheim (American businessman). Of course there were both middle class and the poor on board.

Life was normal, until the unexpected accident happened. Titanic collided with another titanic iceberg. Titanic began to sink. Sadly, people perished in the chilly (-2 degrees) Atlantic Ocean.

We find ourselves in a Titanic world. To some, this world is an enduring self evolving object. To others, it has always been there and it shall be. All our struggles for riches, power, peace, survival, are fought here. However, current scientific research reveals the mortality of our world. The earth shall not endure forever.

There is a “Game Over” for the world. God’s word reminds us of the end of the world (2 Peter 3: 10). Like the Titanic, the world will sink one day. And even if it is difficult to believe that the world is approaching its ends, that is the truth. The world will sink and people will perish in their ignorance. Nevertheless, the game does not end there. God’s faithful children shall be saved. Peter continued to say, “But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3: 13). Our history shall begin from where the game ended for the world. While we eagerly look for this future glories, we live today in hope to embrace all the promises of God. God will finish with us into eternity.