With all the hype about the year 2,000, one might expect that both great and terrible things are about to happen. There’s a scare about financial institutions that could lose all your money, or find themselves unable to account for people because of computer failure. Government agencies such as the Social Security Service could explode because computers might not be Y2k compliant. And while we’re at it, the earth itself might just collapse when the ’99 changes to ’00.

Okay, that’s a bit much. But still, articles, books, and reports are out almost daily about how to survive the onset of Y2K. What I find interesting is how religious folks are handling this. My wife and I went to Israel earlier this year (’99), and they were already hard at work preparing for next year. They are building structures and preparing for record numbers. Religious groups will be going over in droves thinking that the year 2,000 will bring a special event or two. Maybe the Lord Himself will return to Jerusalem next year while some of them are there. Or so some may think (i.e., those of the "premillenial" persuasion, a doctrine which finds no support in the Bible).

A little common sense is in order. First, there is no reason to think that the year 2,000 will be any different in expectation than any previous year, or any following year. It makes sense that computers have to be adjusted and records have to be altered to account for the new double zero. But that’s not the end of the world. Frankly, I suspect that the year will come and go without much noticeable difference. In 2,001 (the technical start of the new millenium) we’ll probably be asking, "What was all that hype about anyway?"

As far as the Lord returning, we already know from Scripture that He could return anytime. His coming will be like a "thief in the night" (2 Pet. 3:10), so standing on a mountain top looking into the sky waiting for Him to return is both foolish and futile. Religious charlatans have been making predictions about His return for years. People have dressed in white headed for the mountains only to be disappointed. No predictions have been correct. Maybe someday people will learn to just accept what the Bible says about His return. To be sure, we are to eagerly await His return, but we are also to maintain our daily affairs (cf. 1 and 2 Thess.).

There is nothing magical about the number 2,000. If someone wants to get technical about it, he could argue that Jesus was actually born in 4-6 B.C., and therefore we are now beyond 2,000 years since then (i.e., it should be about 2,003 if the dating methods were originally correct). But so what? That means nothing so far as the return of Jesus is concerned. It could have been 256 years ago, or it might be 461 years from now. It could happen tonight. That’s the point. No one knows but God.