…that in the last days will come perilous times of great distress and trouble. These are the words of Paul as he begins to inform us of what life will be like in the last days (2 Timothy 3). Many Christians say that they “feel” like we are in the last days. While I also share in that seemingly corporate “feeling”, I rely more on the Word of God to keep me in Truth. In verse 2, Paul says that people will be lovers of self and self-centered. As I was reading this, I started thinking about a popular book known as The Secret. It’s basically a self-help book that puts you (the reader) in control of everything. By simply telling the universe what you want, you can attract whatever it is that you desire. The focus is on YOU. No credit goes to God.
After that, I thought of some other clues that would indicate we are living in a self-centered world. Satanism, and the rising popularity of the New Age are two big ones. Both promise happiness at the hand of god, but the god they are talking about is YOU. Not all clues are this easy to figure out though. The “every man for himself” and “my happiness comes first” mentality has spread so much (like a disease) that we hardly even recognize that we have become a part of it.
Paul then goes on to say that people will be blasphemers. Again, I started to think about the world around me. At some point in history, it became acceptable for people to use a disgusting four letter word in the same sentence as the name of Jesus Christ. In fact, in a world where many don’t even believe in Jesus, they still find a way to use His name as an expression of fear, excitement, disgust, etc. What about the words of Kathy Griffin when she won her Emmy award? Some may think these are small issues that don’t really matter, but they would be wrong. The biggest danger is when Christian’s start to accept these things, and then go as far as to participate in them.
At the end of Paul’s description, he commands us to avoid these people. So, the choice is up to you. Are you going to accept the ways of the world, or are you going to stand for Righteousness in Christ Jesus?
I have waited awhile to write about this because I haven’t been able to come to a conclusion about what I really believe. I have found strong sources that support the pre-trib view, and strong sources that support the post-trib view. I haven’t even started looking at the mid-trib possibility, so I’m leaving that out as of now.
If there’s one thing that bothers me about people, myself included, it’s that we frequently believe things to be true just because that’s the way we were taught. I’ve noticed this a lot in Christianity, and I’ve slipped into it a few times myself. However, this is not the way I want to be, and I am making a conscious effort to make sure I know the biblical truth before anything else.
Biblically, I have yet to find any scripture that specifically says that we will be raptured before the tribulation. If someone finds one, please let me know!
Jesus said that a tree is known by its fruit, so let’s look at the possible fruit that could come off of either rapture tree.
The Pre-Tribulation Tree
If the rapture happens before the Great Tribulation (GT), then there really isn’t a need to know bible prophecy related to the last days, is there? What’s the point on spending anytime studying it if we are all going to be zapped out of here? If we are indeed raptured before the GT, then good for us, but what if we are not? There would be a lot of unhappy Christians, and probably a lot of people falling away from the church. After all, we believed we weren’t going to face anything, but now it seems that God has let us down. Not only that, but now we are completely unprepared for what lies ahead. This is all sounding pretty bad, isn’t it? There has got to be something good about the “pre-trib” rapture for the majority of Christians believing it. Oh yeah, it’s the easy way out! Don’t get me wrong, I prefer the easy way too, but what’s the point of warning us about the Great Tribulation if we aren’t going to see it?
The Post-Tribulation Tree
So, lets pretend we are believing in the “post-trib” theory. We study all we can, because we are certain that we are going to go through it all, and we want to know what we are up against. We learn about the Antichrist and what he plans on doing, and we are prepared to have our heads chopped off. Sounds like fun, huh? If we are wrong, and those pre-tribbers are right, what have we lost? We still believed Jesus was our Lord and Savior, so we’d be raptured with the rest of them. If we are right, we are well prepared to face the battle that is ahead. Slightly better fruit, but why are so many people against this theory despite the biblical evidence of it? That’s easy, we don’t want to suffer!
There’s simply too much to write about this topic, so consider this an introduction to a new series. Stay tuned for part two!
This article is about persecution, and it inspired me to write my own thoughts about this subject.
The main focus of the article is that American Christians are not ready for the persecution that is coming our way. I don’t think anybody could ever be ready for some of the horrible things that have happened to Christians over the last 2000 years, but it did raise a question in my own spirit; am I ready to be persecuted for the sake of Jesus Christ?
The bible tells that we are practically guaranteed to face persecution for our confession of Jesus Christ as the Son of God. This doesn’t mean we are all going to be martyrs, but it does let us know that we are not going to be loved very much by the world. It would almost seem that something might be wrong with you if you are loved by the world. The enemy hates God, and he hates us for being made in God’s image. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, He dwells within us, and the demonic forces in the world know it. That’s another topic, but it does relate to the persecution that we face.
My concern is with Americans. Our society (it can also apply to other societies not in America) has become so comfortable with our Christianity. We have been protected, and we have lived in a Christian bubble. We acknowledge all the “feel good” messages of the bible, but we tend to ignore the harsh realities. We even tend to forget the price that many of the apostles paid for us to have the Gospel that we have. Meanwhile, in many countries around the world Christians are still being slaughtered for their beliefs!
No one wants to think about that, because it might make us realize how weak our faith is. Who wants to be faced with the inconvenient reality that someday we may have to accept the death penalty for our beliefs?
If someone held an axe to your neck and told you to deny Christ, would you do it, or would you stand firm in your faith? Of course we all say that we would never deny Christ, but do you know that there are actually people who will? Take a moment to seriously think about your faith, and how much you are willing to give up for the sake of our Heavenly Father.
It’s very humbling, isn’t it? I’ve asked myself the same question that I am posing, and the answer surprised. I decided to ask God to give me so much passion and love for Him that nothing could ever make me deny Him. That passion is growing, and I can say a little more confidently now that I would die for Him.
Don’t be afraid to question your faith. When you admit your weaknesses you are able to ask God for strength. Don’t you agree that it is better to be honest with yourself, even when the truth hurts, than to live in darkness?
Even before I committed my life to Christ, I was somewhat of an eschatologist. I remember being curious about the bible, and every so often I would open one up, and immediately go to the Book of Revelations. Even when I was very young, the thought of a “rapture” was interesting to me, and I always felt like it was going to happen in my lifetime.
Now that I’m a Christian, I’ve been feeling like we are definitely in the last days. It seems that there is confirmation everywhere I turn, and it also seems like most Christians also feel like Jesus will be coming back soon. Could this just be wishful thinking, or are we really in the final hour?
First, there’s the “pre-tribulation”, “mid-tribulation”, and “post-tribulation” debate. I’ve always clung to the pre-tribulation theology. Call me crazy, but the thought of enduring God’s wrath doesn’t really appeal to me. I’d rather skip that! Wouldn’t you?
I read through the entire Book of Revelations last night (I usually just read bits and pieces), and I had a few revelations of my own. It was as if I was seeing the words with new meaning. Now that I’m a Christian, I have become a little more educated on the rest of the bible, and I’m more able to pick up on the sneaky little references that John uses. However, the intense symbolism still keeps the whole event in a cloud of mysteriousness. While reading, some other verses (not in Revelations) came to mind.
Take notice! I tell you a mystery (a secret truth, an event decreed by the hidden purpose or counsel of God). We shall not all fall asleep [in death], but we shall all be changed (transformed).
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the [sound of the] last trumpet call. For a trumpet will sound, and the dead [in Christ] will be raised imperishable (free and immune from decay), and we shall be changed (transformed).
Verse 51 obviously proves that the theology of the rapture is indeed true, and Verse 52 says when this will happen: at the last trumpet. Alright, I’m familiar with trumpets; there are seven of them in the Book of Revelations!
But [instead] this is [the beginning of] what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
And it shall come to pass in the last days, God declares, that I will pour out of My Spirit upon all mankind, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy [telling forth the divine counsels] and your young men shall see visions (divinely granted appearances), and your old men shall dream [divinely suggested] dreams.
This is right after the Holy Spirit falls on the 120 people in the Upper Room. Wouldn’t this mean that the “last days” technically started at that moment? When I thought about that, the idea of the rapture being “pre-trib” didn’t really make sense anymore. The people in those days were already going through tribulations.
I found an interesting website that believes the whole Book of Revelations is nothing but symbols. The author also makes a good point in the beginning of the teaching:
“Just supposing that this Book was only about future prophecy; if that were the case, then we have got to find it plainly stated to those first-century readers. They must understand that when they’d finished reading this book, they will have to close it and say, we understand that there is nothing in this book for us, it awaits another 2000 years before its fulfilment, because if God wrote this book to the people that are alive today, and did not tell those first-century readers, who thought it was for them, then God is cheating them. Unless of course, God put in the letter, ‘this letter is not for you’.
The only way to read the book of Revelation is by reading it over the shoulder of the first century believers. It was only written to us, as the whole Word of God was written to us. We will never understand it until we understand what it meant to the first century believers.”
I never thought of it that way. While I like the author’s views, and I admire the way he interprets these symbols, there are a few things that don’t make sense with his theory. You’ll have to read what he says and determine what you think for yourself.
The main problem I had with his teaching is that it still didn’t answer the question, “where are we in this whole thing?”
As of right now, I feel like we are in the middle of the tribulation. I believe it’s going to get worse, and I believe we are going to see some of it too. As far as the really bad stuff, I’m still clinging to the idea of being taken out of here first.
The wonderful and amazing thing is that God is so mysterious when it comes to this part of the bible. Sometimes, I feel like it should be easier to understand. There’s a part of me that believes that God has blinded us for a reason, and I am waiting for that day when I open up the Book of Revelations and say, “Oh, I get it now.”
I believe the rapture is closer than people know. All around, there are signs indicating that it is. The thing that worries me is the amount of people who still do not know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. I watch a lot of videos on YouTube, and anything even closely related to God, is commented on by more people against Him than people for Him. Something is wrong with this picture! The most common theme I see in their comments is that it is more foolish to believe in God. There are so many people that actually think Christians are the foolish ones! We are the ones with the Truth, so what have we done to give people the impression that we are crazy idiots? Ponder that please…
I have some sad news today also. Takoda, the baby tiger that I was lucky enough to play with, has passed away. He caught pneumonia, and could not fight it off. Please say a prayer for strength to the owner, who is having a very difficult time with this!
I was watching YouTube today, and I came across a video about the mark of the beast and getting beheaded. It looked like it was a “turn or burn” type video that was filmed in the 70’s, and it served its purpose. The video is not the highlight of my story, but the comments that people were making about the video is what touched a nerve in me.
One in particular…
Like this will ever happen. Who ever made this video is delusional. You think people will be beheaded because of their beliefs? Look at the reprocussions of the terrorists when they beheaded people. It only brought people together. They dont behead people anymore because it doesnt help their cause, it hurts it.
Now, I’m not an expert on current events, but I do know a few things. I do know that there are countless Christians who have died for their beliefs even within the last year. One story had me so upset, I could barely go to work. How can people be so blind to what’s going on in the world?
The person who made this comment is calling the creator of the video delusional, and yet he has no clue that people ARE being killed, even beheaded, for their beliefs!
A few ignorant comments I can deal with. However, I’m noticing an abundance of distorted views from people, and it’s starting to worry me.
I need to know…how do we fight this? From people who love Jesus, and know the love that He has for us. So much so that He died for us! How can we convince the increasingly dead population?
