Undoubtedly, the title of this article made some very uneasy. After all, it is faith in Christ, not faith in the rapture which makes one ready for the rapture. While this statement is correct, the argument presented here is, that only the person who is ready for the rapture has faith in Christ alone. Therefore, only those who are ready for the rapture will be raptured. Thus the title, “Only the Ready are Raptured.”
Many have proclaimed that everyone who claims to be a believer will be raptured regardless of their level of devotion to Christ. However, this is clearly not accurate based on what is revealed in Scripture. The sad truth is that many will not make the rapture because their faith is not in Christ. Instead, they trust in things associated with Christ, as noted by the words of Jesus:
Matthew 7:21-23
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” [1] (emphasis mine)
This means that many will be doing their own thing, in the name of Jesus, when He comes to retrieve His bride.[2] Unfortunately, they will not make the heavenward trip simply because their faith is not in Christ. They instead trust in their activities, which may be many, as the source of their qualification for entry into the kingdom of heaven. This is the exact opposite posture of the one who places their full trust in Jesus. Ironically, the latter will also be involved in much activity for Jesus.
The major difference between these two groups is the catalyst of their activity: those who trust in activity will be busy doing their own will in the name of Christ, while those who trust in Christ alone will be busy doing His will for His namesake. Perhaps this example will help.
Those who trust in Christ alone could be compared to an airborne soldier trusting in their parachute rather than their actions for a safe descent. While the activities are important, anyone who has jumped from a perfectly good aircraft knows that, ultimately, no matter how well the activities involved are performed, the parachute is what provides the lift needed to land safely. It would be ludicrous to think that the activities are responsible for a safe landing. Instead, the activities ensure the soldier is properly prepared for the parachute to open and carry him or her to safety.
Paul makes this idea as plain as day:
Ephesians 2:8-10
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
Notice that salvation comes from grace through faith, not works. This is the primary reason many will not make the rapture; they rely on their works rather than faith. Paul does not leave out the works; instead, he defines them as that which come from faith. The problem for those who trust in works rather than faith is, as the old saying goes, they put the cart before the horse.
As this discussion progresses, keep in mind that Jesus spoke about the two groups being compared here when He said, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). The way to destruction is broad because it includes any way that is not the only true way to the Father, which is Jesus, the narrow gate or door (John 14:6; 10:7-11).
Now that the primary reason for the dichotomy between these groups has been established: exploring some examples of the group that misses the rapture may help some who are on the wrong path to get right, so to speak, and become rapture ready.
This study is not intended to be exhaustive; therefore, the following will only graze the surface of some of the components that are shaping the counterfeit church that will enter into the Tribulation period. Once the rapture occurs, two distinct groups of religious people will exist on earth: Those who repent because they realize they missed the rapture; and those who double down on their belief that they are the chosen ones through which Christ will manifest Himself to the world. The latter group will quickly form into the one-world church prophesied in Revelation chapter thirteen. This group will fall under the sway of the false prophet who supports the antichrist who is energized by Satan himself (Revelation 13).
Incredibly, this movement toward ecumenicalism is picking up speed, and the chief proponents are very powerful. Their false doctrines are fueling the merger of several religious entities into one final faux religion identified as, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH (Revelation 17:5b). Another article dealt with the return of the geopolitical component of Babylon.[3] The Babylon referred to here is the ecclesiastical as it represents the one-world church described in Revelation chapter thirteen. This article will address one major component of this now-forming entity.
By the way, this counterfeit church will be largely responsible for the deaths of all who refuse the mark of the beast in the second half of the Tribulation. In other words, those who relied on their works to establish the kingdom of God on earth will be the very ones killing any that come to true faith in Christ alone. As noted, two distinct religious groups will be present in the Tribulation: those who still trust in their works and those who come to trust in Christ alone. Only the latter will be able to resist the mark of the beast and overcome which will cause their martyrdom.
Revelation 12:11
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”
Revelation 15:2
“And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.”
Revelation 20:4
“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”
The Tribulation period will be reminiscent of the ‘Dark Ages’ where the professing church killed any that would not agree with their twisted application of Scripture and the resultant false doctrines. Those who held to the false became so beguiled that they believed they had become the arbiters of right and wrong and anyone who did not agree with their false paradigm must recant or die. By the way, torture was but one of their means of persuasion. Fox’s Book of Martyrs provides great detail about this period.[4]
One group, which is beguiling many into trusting their plan instead of God’s plan and thereby growing in size and scope, operates under several names, including: Kingdom Now, Dominionism, or the New Apostolic Reformation. While members of each named group may argue they are different from one another, they are of the same essence in that they all believe the church is to become preeminent in the world before Jesus can come back. Said another way, this group believes they will, through what is called the seven-mountain mandate, usher in the kingdom of God here on earth which Jesus will then, and only then, come to rule and reign over.
The seven mountains are also referred to as the seven pillars or spheres of influence. The seven mountains are: Education; Religion; Family; Business; Government/Military; Arts/Entertainment; and Media. Those who ascribe to this alternate future believe they must infiltrate each of these mountains to such a degree that each mountain becomes Christianized. The chief problem with this belief system is the fact that it is not biblical. In fact, the only mention in the Bible about seven mountains is found in the narrative describing the aforementioned Babylon the Great. Unless you are reading the so-called Passion Translation. More on that later.
In the Revelation recorded by John, an angel explains the mystery of this Tribulation entity. In so doing, he identifies the seven heads of the beast that the woman (Babylon the Great) sits upon as seven mountains (Revelation 17:9). He then goes on to say there are also seven kings of which five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he comes, he will continue for a short period (Revelation 17:10-11). This means the seven mountains are a separate component of the ridden beast.
Many have attributed this to the seven kingdoms throughout history. But what if these were not seven previous kingdoms? What if these are the very spheres of influence the kingdom now proponents are attempting to conquer and rule over in their quest to become the kingdom Christ will occupy? Sad side note here: this group will get their Christ, but it will not be the Son of God. Instead, those who do not repent will, along with all other groups who are working toward salvation, accept the antichrist and become the foot soldiers of the false prophet, as part of Mystery Babylon, and carry out the worst religious persecution to ever exist. This is demonstrated by the universalism of the following:
Revelation 13:15-17
“And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” (emphasis mine)
Notice, Babylon the Great is drunk on the blood of the saints and the martyrs of Jesus:
Revelation 17:5-6
“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.” (emphasis mine)
Since this errant belief system, which leads to this false one-world church, is not biblical, the chief proponents have invented the idea that Apostles and Prophets have been re-established in the last days and that they have new insight which was not revealed in the canon of Scripture. The Apostles, in fact, are considered so authoritative that their words are to be accepted as on par with Scripture. In other words, this group has created a new ending for the world, one which is man-centric instead of Christ-centric. Sadly, this false idea is infecting more and more of the church as those involved in this movement gain popularity.
Interestingly, this movement now even has a so-called Bible translation to lean on. The Passion Translation (TPT) was discussed briefly in the article, “The Greatest Lie Ever Told: The Origin of All Lies.” [5] Since the purpose of this article is to point out that only those who are ready for the rapture are in fact raptured, it is important to illuminate the chief reasons people will not be ready when Christ calls His bride heavenward. Simply put, many will be relying on their works because of the many fallacies contained in works like TPT, because they think it is an actual Bible translation, to inform them about how they are to behave as the bride of Christ.
Any honest person would say that TPT brings passion; however, the passion acquired from reading it excites the flesh rather than the spirit. Why is this true? The simplest answer is that the author, because he is part of the NAR movement, believes the church is the driving force in reshaping the planet into the manifest kingdom of God. Therefore, this rendition of the Bible steers the reader toward this belief system which is not what God intended. It is very important to remember, that the purpose of the Bible is to convey what God has said to man, not what man thinks about God.
This is not to say opinion should be banned; after all, this article is but one example of opinion, and libraries and bookstores are filled with books that record many varying observations about God’s Word. No, what man says about God is very important, indeed. In fact, one would be challenged to cite all forms of commentary on the Bible. The point is, each of the aforementioned is taken as opinion. What Brian Simmons has done, in TPT, is actually change the Word of God into his opinion. Therefore, when reading his translation, the reader is reading the Word of God through the eyes of Brian Simmons. In other words, Simmons has inserted his commentary into the text, which should be considered very dangerous.
One example is his insertion of the phrase ‘mountains of influence’ into the text to support NAR doctrine (Psalms 72:3, 80:10; Proverbs 8:1, TPT). This phrase is not in the original text.
By this point, you may be saying to yourself, why such a big deal over TPT? After all, this was covered last week, and now the issue is being pressed even further here. You may also be saying, why the very hard push to expose this fallacy? Hopefully, this reply will provide clarity.
Because TPT conveys the thoughts of the translator, in the text, the translation is no longer the Holy Bible. Instead, this is an unholy work that must be attributed to the author Brian Simmons. Put another way, Brian Simmons changes the original language to say what he thinks it should say while adding to and taking away from what God actually says. Therefore, TPT is no longer a translation of what God said; it is an entirely new Bible, and the author is Brian Simmons, not God.
The most sinister part of this whole deceptive manuscript is the fact that it was pawned off as an actual translation. Through misrepresentation, a great misperception arose which caused many of the most faithful servants of God to explore this so-called translation and even incorporate it into their ministries. Now many unsuspecting believers are coming under the influence of NAR doctrine through the word of Brian Simmons.
Perhaps the best way to close this portion of the discussion is to present the opinion of an actual expert on languages and translations. This is the abstract from a very well-written scholarly review by Andrew G. Shead, the head of Old Testament and Hebrew at Moore Theological College in Sydney. He is also a member of the NIV Committee on Bible Translation:
“Brian Simmons has made a new translation of the Psalms (and now the whole New Testament) which aims to ‘re-introduce the passion and fire of the Bible to the English reader.’ He achieves this by abandoning all interest in textual accuracy, playing fast and loose with the original languages, and inserting so much new material into the text that it is at least 50% longer than the original. The result is a strongly sectarian translation that no longer counts as Scripture; by masquerading as a Bible, it threatens to bind entire churches in thrall to a false god.”[6]
The NAR and its chief proponents only represent a fraction of all of the false religious entities which have sprung up since the very beginning of the church age. One thing binds them all together, and that is their belief that man is the causal agent of Christ’s Second Coming. Unfortunately, this man-centric focus has always led to those involved being so busy with their own desires for the future that they completely miss out on what God is actually doing.
The children of Israel missed the first coming of Jesus because they expected the kingdom to come in a different manner than it did. They were looking for the kingdom to come in physical form. Instead, Jesus brought forth a spiritual kingdom that would exist only in the hearts of men (Luke 17:20-21). Incredibly, it was those He came to save that killed Him.
Likewise, those who are now working toward an earthly kingdom, which they believe will manifest in them, will miss the rapture because they are awaiting the physical manifestation of the kingdom which will not come until the Tribulation has run its course and Christ returns. Regrettably, these will be so intent on fulfilling their own will that they miss what God is doing.
With this in mind. The false religions of the world all have books that they consider on par with and or addendums to the Bible which will validate their viewpoint. My plea is this: Use only a canonized Bible that has been translated by using a method that is as close as possible to the formal equivalence method, sometimes referred to as the word-for-word method of translation, to evaluate the truth. Simply put, use a manuscript in which the original words are examined and translated to record what the original author intended to say with as little manipulation of the text as possible in order to convey the message.
Some examples are the: King James Version (some consider the KJV to be the closest to the formal equivalence); New King James Version; Revised Standard Version; New American Standard Bible; and the English Standard Version. For the English-speaking, this type of Bible is considered the most authentic means of determining what God said to man.
This example may provide clarity: When in a room full of people, someone, after writing down what they are about to say, whispers what they wrote down to someone and asks them to pass it on. After traveling through the room, the last person is asked to write the message down. You can only imagine what the original message has morphed into. Therefore, if you want to know what the original author said, it is best to study what they wrote down. If the original message is in a foreign language, it is still best to evaluate the original text and translate it with as little variation as possible.
The greatest danger possible for eternal beings is ending up in the wrong place when all is said and done. God made a way for man to live forever with Him.
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
The crux of this entire article is encapsulated within this one very well-known verse, “whosoever believeth in him.” This means eternal life comes to those who simply believe that God the Father, sent God the Son—Jesus, to earth, a willing sacrifice that provides everlasting life to all who believe in Him. Nothing else needs to be added to this simple formula for man to achieve eternity. God requires only faith (Ephesians 2:8-10). Faithful action comes after first belief.
Satan is also making a way for man, through belief in self, to live forever with him in the lake of fire. This point is made very clear in the aforementioned article, “The Greatest Lie Ever Told: The Origin of All Lies.” Another article, “Man of Sin Arising,“[7] deals with the ramifications of the church abandoning their God-given task of being salt and light while calling for repentance, which brings the repentant back to love of God rather than love of self.
The only way to discern between these two choices is to follow the advice of the Apostle Paul, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).” Paul also warned about receiving another gospel even if it came from himself, the other apostles, or even angels:
Galatians 1:8
“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.”
Additionally, Jesus, the Word made flesh, warned of the deception which will draw the kingdom-builders into receiving the antichrist when he foretold of many who would come proclaiming they are Christ or pointing others to Him in various locations:
Matthew 24:4-5
“And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.”
Matthew 24:23-27
“Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”
Perhaps the best way to ruin the false doctrine of the kingdom-builders is to quote the true end of the church’s time on earth:
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (emphasis mine)
Conclusion
Two distinct endings of the church have been discussed here today. One is false, and the other is true. The false sees the church as the physical kingdom of God on earth which will become so pervasive that Christ will come to rule the kingdom that man has built. The true sees the church as the spiritual kingdom of God which currently resides within men, a kingdom that will leave the earth at the moment of the rapture and return at the Second Coming at the end of the Tribulation.
The false view will cause many to miss the rapture because those who believe it, like the foolish virgins, are only interested in looking the part while doing their own will; their concern is not about having enough oil for the coming bridegroom. These were not rapture ready.
The true view is like the wise virgins whose main goal was to be prepared for the coming bridegroom while doing His will. Therefore, they had extra oil, just in case. These were rapture ready.
April 10th, 2022
Website: In His Commission
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[1] “Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the King James Version.”
[2] For greater understanding, see the article, “The Five W’s of the Rapture.”
[3] For greater understanding, see the article, “Back to Babylon.”
[4] For great understanding, visit the free content at, “Bible Study Tools.”
[5] For greater understanding, see the article, “The Greatest Lie Ever Told: The Origin of All Lies.”
[6] Andrew W. Shead, “Burning Scripture with Passion: A Review of the Psalms (The Passion Translation),” Themelious 43:1 (2018): 58-71
[7] For greater understanding, see the article, “Man of Sin Arising.”