The Rapture...

Last sunday while we were having melting pot after the main service, Adrian approached our cell group to pass us some materials for us to do our quiet time...

what i read on this devotional material really set me thinking alot abt it.. at the same time, it gave me a real and great urgency to want to reach out to my pre-believer friends.. i dun wanna feel the regret..sigh..but i really had no idea how to go abt doing it...guess i shall pray and ask for more precise instructions from God..

wat u're gonna read now is the very material tt my cell leader had passed to me... feast yer eyes upon it my friends.. enjoy!!

The Last Days: Part I

What Is The Rapture?

In these anxious and critical days, some look to politicians and world leaders for direction, hoping that they will lead to peace. Others turn to psychics, fortune tellers, or the latest prediction of the supermarket tabloid prophets. Yet, all the while there has been Someone who knows exactly what the future holds, and He tells about it in His book—the Bible.

The Prophetic Standard

The Bible is the only book that dares to predict the future. It is worth noting that two-thirds of the Bible is prophecy. One-half of these prophecies have already come to pass. No other world religion has a book that does this. If they did, it would be evident that they were not inspired by God, as the Bible is.

The basic test of the true God, the true faith, the true prophet and the true belief is this: can they predict the future?

If one-half of all Bible prophecies have happened just as God said, should I have any reason to doubt that the remaining ones will happen exactly as He said? God can speak of the future with absolute certainty because He knows it as well as one would know the past. In other words, we can count on His Word to be true and accurate.

Signs of the Times

We are living at a time when Bible prophecy is being fulfilled before our very eyes. We have all watched the dramatic changes that have taken place in Eastern Europe in the last few years with the apparent collapse of Communism. We have seen the emergence of the European Common Market as a major economic power, while the United States has faded in its prominence. We see the increasing isolation of the nation of Israel and the rising hostility of the nations around her. All of these are signs that Jesus said would tell us that His coming is near: “When you see these things happening, know that it is near—at the doors!” (Mark 13:29).

The Bible also predicts the behavior and mood of the people just prior to His return. Jesus told us that the days preceding His return would be like the days of Noah and Lot (Luke 17:26-29). What are some of those signs?

Sexual Promiscuity & Perversion

Nowhere is this better seen than in Lot’s visit with two angelic visitors in the city of Sodom (see Genesis 19:1-17). There the visitors found all manner of sexual perversion, with the homosexual activists of the day coming to Lot’s door. Likewise, today’s popular culture celebrates promiscuity and perversion while it mocks the God-given principles of purity and marriage.

Increased Violence & Crime

Noah’s time was characterized by exceedingly wicked violence and crime: “Now the LORD observed the extent of the people’s wickedness, and He saw that all their thoughts were consistently and totally evil. So the LORD was sorry He had ever made them. It broke His heart . . . the earth had become corrupt in God’s sight, and it was filled with violence” (Genesis 6:5, 11).

Does this not sound like a description of our very time? Wars erupt regularly around our planet. Genocide has taken place in countries like Bosnia. We also have our own problems in this country. George magazine ran an article entitled, “Why Kids Are Running America.” Among other things, the reporter said, “We are facing a potential blood bath of teenage violence in the years ahead that will be so bad, we’ll look back at the 1990’s and say those were the ‘Good old days.’” The article went on to state that teenagers have higher rates for violent crime than any other age group.

According to Alan Fox, dean of criminal justice at Boston’s Northwestern University, killings by teenagers has increased 172% since 1985.

A Generation That Will Not See Death

According to the Bible, there is a generation that will not see death (Mark 13:30). Instead, they will be removed from the face of the earth in what is known as “the rapture of the church”: “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

This passage contains the most definitive verses on this subject. Let’s examine the key points concerning the rapture of the church.

We will be “caught up” (v. 17).

“Then we who are alive and who remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
Scripture speaks of this event in other passages, as well:

“Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come” (Matthew 24:40-42).

“In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:2-4).

“Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:2-3).

We will “meet the Lord” (v. 17).

The Greek word for “meet” carries the idea of meeting a royal person, or a person of great importance. That is because when the Lord calls us to Himself, we will meet the King of kings.

Let’s consider some of the effects of the rapture on each of us:

#1. The rapture means no death.

As I said earlier, there is a generation that will not see death. Are we that generation? I cannot say with certainty that we are, but if we are not, I believe that we are very close to His return. However, He warned us not to try to set dates for His return (Matthew 24:42).

#2. The rapture is a transformation.

As 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 says, “We shall all be changed in a moment . . . ” The word for “changed” in the Greek is “transformed." God will give us a brand new body: “But we are citizens of heaven, wherever the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for Him to return as our Savior. He will take these weak mortal bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like His own, using the same mighty power that He will use to conquer everything, everywhere” (Philippians 3:20-21 NLT).

#3. The rapture is instantaneous.

It happens in a moment—in the twinkling of an eye (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). It has been said that the “twinkling of an eye” is about one-thousandth of a second. The Greek word for it is “atomos,” from which we get the word “atom.” It means something that cannot be divided.

In other words, the Rapture will occur so quickly and suddenly, the time frame in which it appears cannot be humanly divided.

Think of it! In the flash of a second, every living believer on earth will suddenly, instantaneously be gone.
#4. The rapture is a reunion.

The question is often asked, “Will we see our loved ones again?” The Apostle Paul wrote these words to reassure the Thessalonians who had believing loved ones who had already died. They were afraid that their departed loved ones would be in some other part of God's plan. They were afraid that they would never see them again. Paul’s words were very comforting. He says that the dead in Christ will rise first, “then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

We will be reunited with our departed believing friends and family.

We will not only meet the Lord in the Rapture, but we will also be reunited with our friends and loved ones who have gone on to already meet the Lord.

One moment we will be going about our life here on earth—and the next moment we will be hurtled into the presence of departed loved ones. Above all, we will have a face-to-face meeting with the One whose death in our place made it all happen. Death is the great separator, but Jesus Christ is the great reconciler.

We will be reunited with those we have led to Christ.

Speaking of the Thessalonians to whom he had ministered, Paul writes, “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His appearing?” (1 Thessalonians 2:19).

Paul says that these spiritual children will be His crown of rejoicing in the Lord’s presence when He comes. From this it appears that each of us will have grouped around those we have helped to believe in Jesus.

This should make us want to redouble our efforts to witness for the Lord Jesus Christ. To see one person standing there before our Savior in a glorified body because we were faithful to preach the gospel to him or her would be worth it all!

We will probably recognize our loved ones in heaven.

While the Bible does not reveal all the details of this reunion, we do read that on the Mount of Transfiguration, the three disciples knew and recognized both Moses and Elijah. It would seem that in heaven we will be able to do the same. Speaking of the knowledge we will have in the Lord’s presence, Paul writes, “Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

This passage in 1 Thessalonians is all a wonderful hope and promise. Yet, following these well-known and often quoted verses are some practical words on how this great truth of the Rapture should affect our lives.

Our Spiritual Wake-up Call

Read 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9

“Peace and safety” (v. 3).

Today this is the great cry of humanity. We hear so much about a global family, and the only thing that is really lacking is a leader. That is why the world is ripe for such a one that the Bible has much to say about: the Antichrist.

But while the world is saying “peace and safety,” we as believers have an unpopular message: “Judgment is coming!” How then should we, as believers, live?

“Be sober” (v. 6).

Some people say that Christians live with their heads in the clouds, that we are not realists. In fact, the opposite is true. The person who believes that we as one global family can live together in peace, and that humanity is basically good is not dealing with reality. Christians are the most sane people around because they are realistic about the problems and the solution.

“Sleep” (vv. 6, 7).

We must not be sleeping as so many are, but we must be alert and ready . This same thought is reinforced in Romans 13:11: “And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.”

I like how the J. B. Phillips Translation phrases the next few lines, verses 12-14: “The night is nearly over, the day has almost dawned. Let us therefore fling away the things that men do in the dark! Let us arm ourselves for the fight of the day! Let us live cleanly, as in the daylight, not in the ‘delights’ of getting drunk or playing with sex, nor in quarreling or jealousy. Let us be Christ’s men from head to foot and give not chances to the flesh to have its fling!”

A spiritual alarm has sounded. In a sense, this is God’s wake-up call for the church. Keep in mind that these words are addressed to believers. We need to wake up from our spiritual lethargy, laziness, and apathy to meet the urgency of the hour. The time is late, and we must prepare for the soon coming of the Lord!

“Night” (v. 7).

Jesus explained this in John 9:4-5, saying, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

Our time is limited. We must do our work while we can. To the last days believers, Jesus says, “See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it . . .” (Revelation 3:8). But there might be some dead weight that is slowing us down or dulling our desire to go through that door.

It is time to prepare to meet your God. Are you ready? If not, make the necessary changes so that you can be counted among those who will love His appearing (see 2 Timothy 4:8).