One cannot avoid death or the Rapture

Theologians refer to the coming of the Lord as Rapture of the Church. I call it the disappearance of Christians.

In 1 Thessalonians. 4:17, Paul writes, “We will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.”

The word “Rapture” is not found in the Bible, it comes from the Latin Vulgate, which translates the phrase “caught up” with rapturus, from which we get our English word Rapture. In Greek, it is “harpazo,” meaning taken away by force.

Jesus said, “I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3). Jesus tells us in Matthew 24:36-44 that “no one knows the day or the hour.” Revelation 3:10 tell us that Jesus will keep us from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on earth, and Revelation 4:1 tells us, “come up here,” calling all believers in the Lord to heaven. The same message from Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 is given in fuller context in verses 13-18. “Christians will disappear in a moment of a twinkling of an eye,” adds 1 Corinthians 15:51-52.

This is a future event we believers are expecting to happen unexpectedly. God will take his church (born-again Christians, according to John 3:3) to be with him. This event will culminate the hope of Christians to be with Jesus.

The Rapture is before the second coming of Jesus, which will take place before the Great Tribulation. He will come “for his saints” by surprise (Rapture or caught up) of not coming down on earth, but he will be waiting for all of us “up in the air” to take all his followers by force to be in heaven for seven years. Take note that the Rapture is not the second-coming of Christ, but he will come unexpectedly before the Great Tribulation.

The seven-year period — Christians will be in heaven as he promised us in Revelation 3:10 — to keep us from the hour of trial while God will pour out his wrath on planet earth (Revelation 6-18) because of the world rejecting Christ. Then after the Great Tribulation, Jesus will come down on earth with his saints (previously taken by Rapture) and reign with him on earth for a thousand years.

Assuming Rapture comes in rush hour — people driving to work and for conservative figures — 10 percent of the population are true believers in a certain area. If 10,000 people are driving, 1,000 drivers (excluding born-again passengers) will be missing at that time. What will happen when the cars are running 60 mph? Cars will crash with other cars and create a domino effect on the freeways and side streets. When police officers come to investigate, they will have problems because some of the drivers are missing.

Another scenario — assuming 10,000 planes are flying worldwide, and the pilots and passengers are believers — 1,000 planes will be missing people and will soon crash. Media coverage will be at high levels and they will search to find what happened to those missing people. Some might speculate they were taken by UFOs, but others will say it is the Rapture of the church. Left behind Christians will tell to the world that they missed the Rapture because they were not born-again Christians. Although they previously professed that they were Christians, they missed the Rapture. After the Rapture, some of those who heard the gospel will turn to Christ at that time, although they will be in the tribulation period. But they will make a commitment to follow Jesus and declare that Jesus is Lord. Many will be saved at that time as you read in Revelation 7:14 and Revelation 20:4.

The first 3.5 years after the Rapture, which start the seven-year period of the tribulation (Revelation 6 -18), an eloquent man will appear on the radar screens. He will perform counterfeit miracles and lying wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:9). He will cause the failing economy to grow as it has never experienced before. He will unite religions of the world to come into one religion. He will unite Israel and Palestinians in one accord as well as her neighboring Islamic countries. His agenda is “peace,” but he will only be the ultimate peacemaker for a short time and people like him.

The last 3.5 years is the Great Tribulation. At the beginning of this time, a man who will be on radar screens is the anti-Christ (2 Thessalonians 2:3-12). He will declare himself as God to the Jewish people in Jerusalem. At that time, God will open their understanding that the messiah they waited for years is none other than Jesus Christ. God will protect Israelites as he pours out his cataclysmic judgments on planet earth. This man will issue a “mark” on the right arm or forehead; without this mark, people cannot buy or sell (Revelation 13:16-17).

Some Bible scholars suggested that this mark is a microchip technology with personal information just like credit cards today. Some electronic companies developed a microchip the size of grain of rice, but it is not yet time to implement. It has the capability to receive and transmit data to a hub system, then to a satellite with the aid of GPS to track individuals worldwide. The world rulers will be in favor of this technology because they can monitor locations of people and track down criminals worldwide, which will last for 3.5 years.

If you do not want to take the mark, you will be hiding at that time because the anti-Christ will force people to take the mark. Make allegiance with Jesus Christ, but the consequences is death by beheading (Revelation 20:4). Rest assured that when they cut off your head, your first breath is in heaven. The Bible says, “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8).

If you are not a believer in the Lord, you can accept him right now by praying sincerely: “Lord Jesus, be merciful to me, a sinner.” If that is the desire in your heart, God will honor that desire and he will give you the power to have a new relationship with God. You will have the desire to read, study and dissect the scriptures from beginning to end — verse by verse and chapter by chapter. If you are not plugged into a Bible-believing church, start looking. I believe with all my heart that God will show you the way. If you are a believer, continue to walk with the Lord, share your faith with others, and pray and keep on watching because the Lord may come at any time.

Whether death comes first or the Rapture, you will be with the Lord forever either way.

Nauru Weah lives in Palmer.

The opinions expressed on the Faith page are the author’s and are not necessarily those of the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, its staff or its parent company, Wick Communications Co. To submit a column or other news for the Faith page, send e-mail to news@frontiersman.com, or call 352-2268.