It’s Hard to Believe in The Rapture

Let’s take the entire world and divide them into two categories: those who believe in God and those who don’t. 

That’s an easy split. Then, further divide it into sub-categories by faith, denomination of that faith, and so on…until we get to the Christian question about Pre-, Mid-, or Post-Tribulation Rapture, using the word Rapture to define when we are transformed out of our sinful, diseased, earthly bodies into the spiritual bodies we get in Heaven.

I probably lost many of you already, and that’s OK. It’s the Pre-Trib folks I really want to address in this post, and maybe there’s a gem or two on this page for the rest of the readers, too.

Over the last six months, I’ve gone from a Post-, to a Mid-, to a Pre- in category. I started with a list of scriptural references and put them into columns, weighing them so that I could come to a conclusion. There were many more references that pointed to Pre-, so that became my conclusion. Maybe I’m correct, or maybe I’m not. Either way, it doesn’t change my condition of salvation.

Nevertheless, in August 2017, my attention was caught by all the hullaballo of the Revelation 12 Sign, which was apparently discovered by a guy named Scott Clark of the Bay Area, in California. Another friend, named Bryan, pointed me to this wondrous sign, and shared some other websites with me for people who are Watchmen – people on the lookout for the Rapture.

I have no idea how Scott Clark even knew to watch for this sign. And while I don’t agree with him on his every interpretation of scripture, I think he’s spot-on for the Rev 12 sign. Here it is, in a nutshell:

A very specific constellation/planet/star alignment, including Virgo, plus the sun and moon, matched a description in the Book of Revelation, chapter 12, which was set to take place on September 23^rd, 2017. Coincidentally, it would occur around Rosh Hashanah, which was 40 days from the Great American Eclipse. The number 40 is used in the Bible quite frequently, before a significant event takes place. All of this meant “something was up” and the Watchmen community was on high alert, thinking perhaps the Rapture could occur that day. Note that I said could occur, not would occur.

Non-believers took this opportunity to make fun of Christians, claiming we all thought the world was going to end. While some folks may actually have said that, Scott Clark never did. He merely observed that this particular alignment had not occurred for several thousand years (I can’t quote the exact number, but it was in thousands of years) and will not again occur for at least a thousand years more. Interesting.

Scott bravely shared his observation, and I (not quite as bravely) shared it with those I love…pretty much all of whom have dismissed it, and may even have dismissed me. That’s a shame, because I shared it out of genuine love and concern. I fear for what the future holds for many of them, according to the Book of Revelation. 

This confusing and controversial book of the Bible was given to the Apostle John, by Jesus Christ, and gives very specific and graphic warnings about what we can expect at the end of the Age of Grace (Time of Gentiles, Church Age) – which is the time between Jesus’ death and resurrection and when God comes to open up a can of whoop-butt. If you don’t believe He’ll do that, think again.

If you miss out on the Rapture (assuming you are in the Pre-Trib camp), you’ll literally go through Hell on Earth for as many of the seven years as you can survive and remain faithful to God. War, famine, disease, natural disasters – on a global scale – will not even be the worst of what people face. 

The real danger, according to Revelation, will follow: Satan (yes, he’s just as real as God) is coming and the “Restrainer” (Holy Spirit) will no longer be around to help. In fact, Christians will no longer be around to help, either. Many people on Earth may actually cheer about that, but to me, the idea is frightening.

In this time of distress, it won’t be immediately apparent to people who Antichrist is because he’s actually going to look like a hero…in fact, he’ll look like a savior doing cool tricks and solving problems globally. But in time, he’ll force everyone to worship him, or face martyrdom. At first, it’s going to seem like those left behind lucked out; Antichrist may even convince the world that he got rid of the church because they were such bad, bad people. 

The gates of Hell will be opened in the last half of Tribulation, and those remaining will be in the greatest peril imaginable. To buy and sell anything, they'll have to forfeit their very soul by taking a mark on their foreheads or hands, and that means they spend eternity with their new master, Satan. Read Revelation and see for yourself. Notice that those who remain faithful will still have an awful time of it, but their eternity will be brighter. I know...it sounds crazy.

Since August, my life has changed dramatically…I’ve been really studying the Bible, the apocrypha (the books left out of the Bible, but written around the same time), the mazzaroth (constellations which have told the story since the beginning), the moadim (appointed times, or Feasts, set by God for Israel), and my prayer life has never been deeper. I’m awake, like I’ve never been before. And God has shown me some pretty amazing things, which are detailed in other blog posts.

I would love nothing more than for you to become awakened to how God is trying to get our attention so that we can escape the Time of Jacob’s Trouble! I hope you’re listening, friends and family. As you can imagine, I’m not popular at parties any more. I’ve been un-followed or snoozed on social media because of what I’m saying to people – both believers and non-believers.

Here are the Top Ten responses I’ve gotten from believers when I talk about the coming Tribulation and the Rapture. And I’ve added counter-argument to each response, as well.

10. Nothing happened on September 23^rd, so it’s clearly all a hoax/mistake. A LOT has happened in the days leading up to the 23^rd, and since then. Take a look at the work of the Watchmen community (each with his/her own method of observation: political, mazzaroth, gematria (Bible math), scripture interpretation, prophetic dreams, etc.) to see just how much has happened.

9. This is the ga-jillionth time someone has predicted the end of the world. First, the September 23^rd sign wasn’t supposed to bring about the end of the world. It was a sign that Tribulation is coming. Second, yes, it really is the ga-jillionth time, but one of them is going to be right at some point. Why not now? There are multiple sources who have arrived, separately, at the same conclusion – not just one weirdo, asking for all your money, passing out Kool-Aid, and a nifty pair of Nike tennis shoes. Again, take a peek at some of the Watchmen links I’ve posted on the pages contained in this blog. The community of Watchmen is large, and I don’t think anyone is making money at this. In fact, they’re suffering a great deal of persecution for their faith, and losing YouTube monetization.

8. Don’t worry, I believe in God, so I’m saved. Lots of people believe in God who haven’t accepted the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. And even if they’ve accepted Christ, they live their lives in exactly the same way as they did beforehand. If a person’s life hasn’t changed since accepting Jesus, that may indicate they are using his name as a “get out of jail free” card. Consider the parable of the Ten Virgins, told by Jesus in Matthew 25:1. Also consider what Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-21 about how our lives (fruit) are indicative of our faith in him:

“Beware of false Prophets who come to you in lambs' clothing, but from within they are plundering wolves. But by their fruit you will know them. Do they gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles? So every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree is not able to produce bad fruit, neither a bad tree to produce good fruit. Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and falls into the fire. Therefore by their fruit you will know them.

It is not everyone that says to me, 'My Lord, my Lord'', who enters the Kingdom of Heaven, but whoever does the will of my Father who is in Heaven. Many will say to me in that day, 'My Lord, my Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, and in your name have cast out demons, and have done many mighty works in your name?' And then I will confess to them, 'I have never known you, remove yourselves far from me, you workers of evil.'”

7. No! It can’t happen, because (I want to become a grandparent, I’m about to retire, I want to see Paris, etc.). It should go without saying, but the world doesn’t revolve around what we want. I want to be a grandparent, too. Desires, hopes, and dreams for this life are perfectly natural. But we can’t hold on too tightly to this world. What comes afterward is going to be much, much better. If I could choose between grand-parenthood and knowing my kids escaped Tribulation, I’d take the latter.

6. Jesus never talked about it, so why should I care? Well, he actually spent some time on the subject of end times. Rather than list everything here, I have a End Times Scripture devoted to all the verses that refer to the end times, which I copied directly from another website:  https://www.openbible.info/topics/signs_of_the_end_times

5. We’re not supposed to be date setters. True. If we set a date, we run the risk of leading many people astray, either by discouraging them when the date comes and goes, or by making a mockery of Christians in the eyes of non-believers. Plus, none of us is anywhere near the wisdom of God, so we can’t figure it out, even if we try really, really hard. However, Jesus said repeatedly that we should “Keep Watch!” If he said it, we’d better take it seriously.

4. Nobody really knows the day or the hour. Also true. First, none of us really knows the day or the hour, just like Jesus said in Matthew 24:36. But in Luke 21:36, he also says, “But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” In other words, we have to pay attention and pray. Not just for ourselves, but for others, too. We have a tremendous opportunity to pray for others, and it can make all the difference in the world to them. Revelation 8:3-5 says, “Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand. Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.” Did you catch that? Our prayers can make a difference in the amount of wrath that pours out upon the world. We can ask for mercy for others. I don't know about you, but complacency and distraction have been the worst thieves of my prayers for others. I really didn’t take it seriously until I thought there might actually be an end…and soon. I pray with a sense of urgency.

3. My church pastor/minister/priest doesn’t talk about it, and I listen to what he/she says. I’m sure he or she is really nice, and quite intelligent. But ultimately, he or she is human. I don’t know anyone I trust enough to let my salvation (or my hopeful escape from Tribulation) rest on their opinion. Do you? I'd rather pray, study, and listen to the Holy Spirit.

2. The Book of Revelation is purely metaphorical. The visions were given to John nearly 2000 years ago, who had no context whatsoever to describe nuclear, missiles, etc. So, they sound weird. But, when one reads his descriptions of things to come, they are very much in line with what’s written in Ezekiel (and other prophetic books), written hundreds of years earlier. Many of those prophecies came true exactly as written, though they may not have been understood by the prophets who first wrote them. Check out analyses of the Book of Daniel, if you don’t believe me. There are excellent historical examples of prophetic words coming to pass exactly as stated, with more yet to be fulfilled. And, doesn’t it make sense that God would offer one last warning through John – in the last book of the Bible? Don’t we all give one last warning to our teens, or our pets, before we close the door and leave for a while?

1. Polite stare/smile/laughter. I don’t know goes on inside a believer’s (or non-Believer's) head when they respond to me this way. What worries me is that they won’t even engage in discussion about the Rapture. It doesn’t mean they aren’t saved, it just means they are so averse to the topic that they won’t even consider the possibility. If they had a bucket of sand, their heads would be in it, for sure.

And hey, I know it’s hard to believe that something so unprecedented and mind-boggling will happen. I’m betting this was exactly the prevailing attitude of mankind right before God’s judgment was delivered to the Earth through the flood. You can hear the people saying to Noah, “You think it’s going to what? No…that’s never happened before. It’s crazy talk.” That’s the kind of bug-eyed response I get from non-believers, too.

Well, yes. I really do believe this stuff, and I consider myself a rational individual. In fact, my Myers-Briggs personality type is an ENTJ (The Field Marshall) which is often described as “ruthlessly rational.” Here are the traits of my cohort and if you know me personally, you’ll recognize them:

• skeptical, critical thinkers
• scientific and knowledge oriented
• ambitious and achieving
• affinity for planning, tries to prepare for everything
• cool headed, stays calm in a crisis
• usually have few fears because they rationalize everything
• organized, scheduled and orderly

Fun fact: According to several websites that discuss the traits of ENTJs, we rank 2nd highest answering "No" and 4th highest in "Not sure" when asked if we have a "Belief in higher spiritual power."  I’m a statistical anomaly. Thank you, God.

Regardless of whether the myriad Biblical signs are being interpreted correctly, at some point the Rapture is coming. Many economic, geo-political, and environmental signs point to this being the time. Don't get me wrong - I still save for retirement, think about college for my kids, and hope I'll get a chance for piano lessons. But I also remain as prepared, physically and spiritually, as possible for what will be the most frightening and destructive time on Earth. Everything can change in an instant through war, famine, natural disaster. If God warns us of this in His incredibly complex and reliable Word, we can't blame Him for us not being prepared.

The biggest (and best) take-away from the Revelation 12 hysteria for me was considering the question: What would I do differently if I only had XX days left on Earth?

Maybe it’s time you asked that question of yourself. If you’re tempted to say, “Nothing!” you might want to spend a little more time considering it, factoring in the horror of the Tribulation. After I gave it that kind of thought, I canned food, made sure we had firewood, cleaned the house, and more. Why, you ask, if I really don’t think I’ll be here to enjoy that stuff?

I did it because I thought maybe someone else could use the help. Maybe something I have done or prepared will mean the difference between survival and death during Tribulation - family, friend, or stranger. No joke. 

But the change since August that I love the most is that I began to pray in earnest: for my family, my friends, even people with whom I am no longer friends. I pray for humanity, for mercy, for repentance. You name it, I’m praying it. At first, it seemed like a chore, but now I really look forward to it. Considering the possibility of The End ended up being The Beginning.

If you only had, say, 5 days on earth and you knew that the days of great torment and disaster were coming, what would you do differently? Tick tock.

Consider it. 

Please.