I remember the shock and dismay we all felt when the Twin Towers were struck. They had been there my whole life. Now they are not and I sometimes don’t know what to do with their absence. That is the closest I can come to understanding how you must be feeling now, especially if someone you love is missing (much worse than a couple of buildings!). Nothing in the world has ever happened like this. I do not know what you have been told by those who would like to try and make some sense out of this. Nobody just vanishes into thin air. Large groups of people from around the globe certainly don’t just disappear. Yet the fact remains that we were here and are not now and the experts’ theories are ringing hollow.
Perhaps you surfed out this site because you had heard about some people who believed in an event they called the “rapture” and wanted to see what we had to say, no matter how far fetched. Perhaps you thought we were not quite right in the head but things got so weird all of the sudden…. Or, having been trained to think in politically correct terms, you thought the idea was interesting, allbeit a little strange, but hey, to each his own, but things did get so weird all of the sudden…. Perhaps you are just curious and since things got so weird all of the sudden…. Well, apparently you feel the idea is worth the effort to investigate, since you made it to this site. I’m glad to see you have an open mind. If you are also intellectually honest I think it will be easier for you to discern the truth of the matter.
Some things for you to consider when weighing your options:
1) There have been people taken from every nation, whether or not there was war or political unrest in their land.
2) Many of them, though not all, are known to be Christians in an unpopular sense.
3) Some of them, though known Christians, did not believe this would happen and openly denied the doctrine of the “rapture”.
4) Many who had strong Christian associations (I.e. church members, clergy, missionaries, philanthropists, “good people”) are not listed among the missing.
Again, I do not know what theories have been expounded in an effort to explain this phenomenon. I agree that if this was the Christian rapture, the fact that all taken were Christians should be readily apparent and all the Christians should have agreed that it was going to happen. I am sorry it is not apparent and that we did not agree with each other. I am sorry that we have done so much to confuse you. The fact that there is confusion about this is partly our fault for not living as we claimed we should. In fact, in the days before we left we did a pretty good job of stripping the term “Christian” of any uniform meaning. This is why there are so many “Christians” still around and why so many were taken that didn’t think they would be. Some understood the most fundamental aspects of what Christians believe but beyond that they got bad teaching. Some did not get good teaching on the fundamental aspects of Christian truth and are left behind because they did not belong to Christ at the time of the rapture.
I can offer you two things by way of encouragement right now-
1)There will be no more sudden disappearances.
2) You can still become a Christian. Here’s the deal:
I wish you could have learned this sooner, but the term “Christian” has only one application. It describes a person who understands and accepts that Jesus Christ has paid for their wrongdoing (“sins” or “trespasses”) Himself by His death on the cross.
A Christian no longer expects God to approve of him or her based on his/her own righteousness. A Christian understands that he or she does not have the ability to please God by working to satisfy Him. This is because any right things we do are always colored by the fact that we have also done wrong. However, Jesus Christ, who is Himself God, came to bear our sins. He took the punishment -the death- that belonged to us.
The Apostle Paul puts it this way in his letter to the Colossian church, “And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” Colossians 2:13,14, (New King James version). The handwriting of requirements is the list of things we have done wrong, the crimes against God’s law that we have committed that have earned us the death penalty. Apart from Christ we are “dead men walking” (remember the movie?). But Jesus chose to take our punishment for us. This was accepted by God as satisfactory payment. He showed this acceptance by raising Christ from the dead. Now our debts are paid in full and the handwriting of requirements is “wiped out”. You have the choice of paying for your own sins or accepting His payment on your behalf. All you need to do is ask Him to make His death count for your sins too. God will do the necessary transaction in heaven. Do you believe He died for your sins? Do you believe His death is sufficient to cover your “handwriting of requirements”? What do you chose- to pay for your own sins for eternity in hell or to receive Christ’s offer of payment on your behalf? Please pause here to conduct this business with heaven before proceeding.
Now, this Jesus is also the Messiah that the Jews have waited for for so long. He has come to them once already but the nation of Israel rejected Him. Many things are going to happen during the next seven years that will result in many Jewish people coming to understand that He really is their Messiah. However, before that happens one will come on the scene (perhaps he has already) who will present himself to them, and to the world, as the Jewish Messiah. He will institute a time of peace but this will not last (expect about 3 1/2 years). He will be VERY convincing and many will believe his claims to be God and the Messiah. Please do not be among them! He will come first, before Jesus Christ.
One way that you will know the difference is that the real Messiah, Jesus Christ, has wounds from the cross- one in each wrist and one in each foot from the nails, and one in His side from the spear. I doubt very much that the false messiah will have any such marks, though I think he will be revived from a fatal wound at some point. There will be many other telling signs as well. Pay attention to the goings on in Israel.
One final point-
DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TAKE ANY MARK ON YOUR BODY THAT CAN BE MADE BY HUMAN HANDS!!!
Again in the book of Colossians Paul writes that “In Him we are circumcised with a circumcision made without hands…by the circumcision of Christ” Colossians 2:11 NKJV. Yes, ladies too. This circumcision is a figurative mark of a covenant that God makes with us which identifies us as His. The mark you receive from the false messiah will have the same binding effect, but the covenant will be with him. He is the anti- Christ and you will be his forever if you take his mark. Of course it will be presented in no such terms. It will seem to be a matter of practical necessity.
Do not take it. Choose to die first. Christ chose death for you. He will give you the help you will need to chose death for Him. You have been prayed for for a long time. If you can, get a Bible and read Hebrews chapters 11 and 12. Many have walked hard roads on their way Home. Yours won’t be easy either but the One who has called you is Faithful. I want to hear your story when we meet.
Till the glorious appearing,
Jan