Facing Death Like a Christian

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. –Luke 9:24

There is a disturbing phenomenon that has become rampant in our day, and that is of professing Christians who are afraid to die. While it may be somewhat natural to have a considerable apprehension of death, the extent to which it has come today is really troubling. It is a spiritually “bad fruit” (Matthew 7:20) which is at the least indicative of something amiss in our relationship with Christ: at the most, it may still show that we are really not His at all. It would be showing a deep love for this world, and our place in it, which is very contrary to what the Word of God says that our affections should be.

Christians facing cancer, or some other terminal disease, usually follow the same course of action that most of the unsaved do; they take every prescribed medical treatment available in order to extend their lives for even just a few years- as if this world were a great place to be, and they just couldn’t bear to leave it! Or, they somehow consider themselves to be “indispensible” to God and His work on earth, so they have to hold on. What they ought to be doing is humbly submitting to God’s plan for them, knowing that “to live is Christ, and to die is gain” for the truly regenerate life in Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:21). God is well able to preserve our lives if He chooses to, and that without costly & agonizing medical treatments whose outcomes are dubious at best.

My wife shared with me a conversation she once had, the substance of which went something like this; while working part time for a company, one day she spoke with another part time worker, whose mother was a teacher at a nearby Christian school: he also worked there, keeping their computers in working order. He was reflecting on his thinning hair, and how that he would eventually go bald- my understanding being that he said this with some remorse. My wife responded by pointing out that world conditions are such that we can’t expect it to be around much longer (as it is), and that Christ will soon return: that there probably wasn’t enough time left for him to go bald. He responded by saying, “I’d rather be bald.” Wow! Remember that this man & his mother were closely affiliated with a Christian school! You would think such an association would reflect on personal values.

Jesus made it clear that we are not to love our lives in this world. He goes so far as to say that we should hate our lives here;

He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. –John 12:25

What does Jesus mean by this? Are we not to be thankful? Aren’t there good things to think upon? Yes, God does indeed show us His goodness even in this vile world. But it is vile; Satan is now in charge of this planet, and the results of the sin he stirs up are obvious everywhere. All manner of deaths, wars, famines, diseases, sicknesses and the like plague us at every turn. When we are regenerated in Christ we ought to be revolted by the great iniquities that surround us- but alas, we’ve become desensitized;

And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. –Matthew 24:12

Brethren, we will be unable to bring about the attitude changes needed within ourselves. But it will be of our own choice to submit to God, and ask Him to bring about the changes. Consider the following testimonies from years in the past… In the Christian classic, The Pilgim’s Progress (John Bunyan, mid 17th century), we find this in an early conversation when Pilgrim meets Evangelist;

Evangelist: Wherefore dost thou cry? Pilgrim: Sir, I perceive by the Book in my hand, that I am condemned to die, and after that to come to judgment (Hebrews 9:27); and I find that I am not willing to do the first (Job 16:21, 22), nor able to do the second (Ezekiel 22:14). Evangelist: Why not willing to die, since this life is attended with so many evils?

The end of this conversation showed that Pilgrim was afraid of death because he was afraid of the eternal judgment to follow- not because of wonderful conditions here among the living! Indeed, the Bible confirms that this ought to be the real point of concern;

And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. –Matthew 10:28

For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? –Matthew 16:26

As Christians, we ought to consider ourselves to be strangers & pilgrims upon the earth, seeking that heavenly country (Hebrews 11:13-16). This is not the prevailing spirit in the professing church of today! What has happened to us? We can find that question answered in Revelation 3:14-19, a passage often looked at as a description of the last church age;

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

In bold, I have emphasized “the church of the Laodiceans.” The other 6 churches listed before them were referred to by the town alone, but this one refers to the church as town residents instead. The Lord has shown me that this is because this church cannot be distinguished from the world around it! It is easy to see this condition prevailing in the church today. Is this scriptural?

Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God… And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. –Luke 8:11 & 14

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. –II Corinthians 6:14-18

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth, For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. –Colossians 3:1-3

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. –James 4:4

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. –I John 2:15 & 16

Many other scriptures could be listed, but these should suffice. Where are our priorities? Over the centuries, the pollutions of the world have overtaken us. When Abraham Lincoln was told of those who plotted to kill him, he said, “A man must not care how and where he dies, provided he dies at the post of honor and duty.” Jim Elliot, missionary to the Aucas of Peru in the early 1950s, said, “A man is no fool to give that which he cannot keep, in order to gain that which he cannot lose.” Don’t we realize that eventually we will die? Didn’t Jesus die for our salvation, so that we need have no fear of death? Let’s look at some more scripture…

FOR we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. –II Corinthians 5:1-8

But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. –I Timothy 6:5-12

David Brainerd was an early American missionary to native Indians, about the years 1747-49. Check out this following account of one of the Indian converts, taken from The Life and Diary of David Brainerd, edited by Jonathan Edwards;

“Now her soul was resigned to the divine will in the most tender points; so that when I (David Brainerd) said to her, ‘What if God should take away your husband from you (who was then very sick), how do you think you could bear that?’ She replied, ‘He belongs to God, and not to me; He may do with him just what He pleases.’ Now she had the most tender sense of the evil of sin, and discovered the utmost aversion to it; longing to die (emphasis mine) that she might be delivered from it. Now she could freely trust her all with God for time and eternity.

“When I questioned her how she could be willing to die, and leave her little infant; and what she thought would become of it in that case, she answered, ‘God will take care of it. It belongs to Him; He will take care of it.’ Now she appeared to have the most humbling sense of her own meanness and unworthiness, her weakness and inability to preserve herself from sin, and to persevere in the way of holiness, crying, ‘If I live, I shall sin.’ I then thought I had never seen such an appearance of ecstasy and humility meeting in any one person in all of my life before.”

Tears come when I read this account! Still, how does it compare with the Word of God? While it surely is well to love our families dearly, it must be prioritized…

Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. –Matthew 10:34-37

If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. –Luke 14:26

Taking care of our loved ones, and other earthly business matters are some of the strongest attachments we can have in this life; but is our real trust in God, or ourselves? Is God unable to provide without us? Please remember that in this last church age of Laodiceans, God is sickened by our lack of needing Him (Revelation 3:17). Our main goal ought to be to do the things God actually wants, and in His way.

If you call yourself a Christian, and are struggling with the thought of dying, I urge you to prayerfully seek God as to why this is. Please don’t be ashamed, for God already knows your inmost thoughts, and is ready to help. Death should be, ultimately, victory for the Christian, and it is well-pleasing in the sight of God.

Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. –Psalm 116:15

For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. –II Timothy 4:6-8

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 12:11

And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. –Revelation 14:13

The Reality of the Rapture

To my dear brother in Christ;

Circumstances of late have led me to drive by your home regularly, and I have seen your sign declaring that Jesus may come today. It is precious to know of someone that counts their faith so dear to them: your sign shows a dedicated love for our savior, but also a concern for those who are as yet unsaved, since our time is growing short. How could we Christians hide such vital truth? God would have it for all of mankind to be saved (I Tim. 2:4).

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. –III John 4

God expects us to walk in the truth, for our own best welfare eternally. God’s Word is the truth (John 17:17), and He has preserved it for us faithfully in the King James Bible alone. A sure foundation of truth is essential for living the Christian life, and only the KJV has it. This is not the topic focus here, but it is the ground upon which God has mercifully shown me to stand, while so many others are locked in confusion. Suffice it to say, that Bible versions other than the KJV are not even taken from the same manuscripts, and are far inferior both in quality and quantity. We may go over this more deeply another time, but for now just remember that when Bible revision began in earnest, the only point made for doing so was that the KJV needed to have its language updated. Simple comparisons of the KJV with modern versions readily show that this is not the case: new versions have added to, taken away from, and greatly altered the message God intended us to have. But let us now move on to the focal topic…

The sign you have displayed, which shows that Jesus may come today, is not the message found in God’s Word. During my teen years in church, the topic of Jesus’ 2nd coming didn’t receive great attention. It was generally considered to be uncertain or unknowable, and therefore wasn’t often addressed. Over the years, however, the most popular view brought forth has been that of an unknowable, any-moment, pre-tribulation rapture of Christians (the word rapture itself doesn’t appear in the Bible, but it seems an acceptable descriptive of I Thess. 4:17). This view was what I had held to myself, but largely upon the basis that so many others promoted it.

God has dealt very patiently and wonderfully with His servant. In the course of leading my life, He has enabled me to study His Word through the Holy Spirit alone (I John 2:27), and to at least become somewhat exempt from the corrupted Bible teachings of men- even if they were well meaning (I had used the NASV for about 17 years, before coming back to the KJV). This happened to the apostle Paul, as he reflects in Galatians 1:10-18;

For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should  not be the servant of Christ. But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: And profited in the Jews’ religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days.

In other words, as a Pharisee, Paul knew the scriptures- but this “knowledge” led him into persecuting the real church of Christ! Paul had been interpreting God’s Word according to the understanding of men. Paul therefore was led to spend 3 years apart, and to be taught by God directly. Believe me, I am no Paul, but the Lord essentially led me in the same way, though I had not even seen the Biblical correlation at that time. My focus became to read, reread, and to reread again the Word of God. It was a kind of “soaking” in God’s Word, without deliberate memorization. Yet I was also somewhat put off toward any study of the rapture, or the last tribulation period, because so much was being said already; and who could really know it? This attitude actually only reflected my past teachings, though. In truth, the timing of the rapture seemed to be considered of little importance. What I discovered, though, was far different…

As I read through the Bible, I was amazed at how forthright it was regarding the topic of Jesus’ return, also called the “day of the Lord” in numerous places: God wants us to know what will happen. I also found that the timing of this event is vital, and it could make an eternity of difference! There is a reason why Satan has promoted the lie of an unknowable, any-moment, pre-tribulation rapture; it is meant for the destruction of believers, and to bring the world under the reign of antichrist, who the world will receive as God himself. If we are expecting Christ, but then the antichrist comes instead, believers will declare allegiance to the very one we were warned about. God also enabled me to study, and to correlate with scripture, many of the plans being made by those seeking to bring about world government.

In this letter, it is not my intention to go over the many mishandled prophecies we have all been subjected to. Neither will I go over different aspects of the very man-made plans to bring about what will ultimately be Satan’s kingdom for just over 3.5 years. Rather than study the vast number of truth counterfeits, we’ll look instead at only the real truth, as found in the scriptures: that message shows that the rapture of the church, and the judgment surrounding the battle of Armageddon, happen on the same day.

God has already given to us examples of how He handles the judgment of the wicked, and  the rescue of His own people, and Jesus alludes to them in Luke 17:26-37;

And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.27) They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.28) Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;29) But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. 30 ) Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.31) In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back.32) Remember Lot’s wife.33) Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it. 34) I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. 35) Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left.36) Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. And they answered and said unto him, 37) Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.

So we can see that just as God dealt with us in the days of Noah, and Lot, it will be just the same; God will bring His rescue, and His judgment, on the same day (v.30), and likely within the same hour. The pre-tribulation rapture view tells us that the rapture and judgment will be separated by years! During the days of Jesus’ flesh, He tells us directly that it will all be on the same day. The “rapture” is alluded to in verses 34-36, Jesus referring to those raptured as being “taken.” When the disciples ask Him where they will be taken to, He answers, “Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.” This answer (v.37) describes carrion birds circling over the dead bodies which will be at Armageddon (Rev. 16:16): the rescue of God’s few remaining children, and His judgment of the wicked, will happen on the same day in close succession.

Another component of typical rapture teaching is that the timing of it is unknowable. Such a teaching contradicts the message of scripture. While the specific time might be hidden, God’s children of that last generation will know the end is at hand. When the disciples asked Jesus about the end times, the Lord gave them extensive responses, such as are found in Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 17 & 21; it sounds like God wanted us to know at least the “season” of the end when it came, if not the very specific day & hour.

Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. –Matthew 24:32-36

A diligent watching seems to be for awareness, and readiness, which we find listed in Matthew 24:42-46, 25:1-13, Mark 13:33-37, and Luke 21:36;

Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. –Luke 21:36

Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. –Rev. 3:2 & 3

The books of I & II Thessalonians also give insight into the timing of the end. Most know that I Thessalonians 4:13-18 is our scriptural “rapture” reference, but it is really only a part of a larger passage, going through verse 5:8 or so…

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. BUT of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. –I Thess. 4:13-5:8

So we see here also that Christians of that last generation will know that the time is at hand; the “day of the Lord”, and the rapture, will occur on the same day. I have put verses 5:4-6 in bold type for emphasis. This phrase, the day of the Lord, ought to be an eternal comfort to believers, but it will not be a temporally joyous day for the earth! Scriptures such as Joel 1:15 & Amos 5:18 tell us that this day will be one of darkness, and not light; it is the day of God’s wrath, and vengeance.

For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. –Luke 21:22 

And so God continues this line of communication to the Thessalonians in the second letter, 2nd chapter, verses 1-13; but especially 1-6…

NOW we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. –II Thess. 2:1-6

Chapter 2 verse 1 begins by reassuring the Thessalonians that the day of Christ is not soon at hand, and we have already seen that this day will not be a pleasant one here on earth. So how will we know when the time has come? There will be a departure from saving faith in Christ, called “a falling away”; and then the antichrist (man of sin) will be revealed (bold type added for emphasis in scripture). The world at large will not think ill of the antichrist, but will in fact embrace him as God. He will come to bring apparent peace to the earth (Daniel 8:25, I Thess. 5:3), and will deceive almost everyone- including nearly all professing Christians!

The book of Revelation also follows the sequence of events leading up to the end. We may take the “7 trumpets” of chapters 8 & 9 as events coming prior to the rise of antichrist. The timing of these events, and exactly what they involve, can’t be fully known with great certainty (II Peter 1:20). But one important correlation I have seen in my “watching,” can be found in chapter 9:13-19. This seems to show a nuclear World War, killing a third of mankind in an hour! When I studied the plans of those trying to take over the world, their plans are to do this through the use of 3 World Wars (see in a letter by Albert Pike, 1871). The first 2 have gone off as planned, and their agendas have been fulfilled. It will be after this WWIII that the antichrist shall come into view, as God himself, poised to save the world from utter destruction…

Chapter 13 really begins the accounting of the reign of the antichrist, or “the beast.” We find in 13:7, 14:13, 16:15, & 18:4 that there are still believers present in the world, and that men may still choose to repent before they are judged. Now let me focus on 16:13-16;

And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

We see here that the “great day of God” is being led up to, and that believers are still here.

Chapters 17 & 18 deal with specifics concerning MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT (17:4), and then events resume in chapter 19…

And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God…And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. –Revelation 19:6-9, 11-15

Satan has worked hard to undermine solid Biblical teaching. This theory of an unknowable, any-moment, pre-tribulation rapture began about 1833 in England through a preacher named Darby. Later, this teaching was promoted in America through a very questionable preacher named Scofield, who gave us his personal thoughts in The Scofield Reference Bible. He never should have done this in anything more than a commentary, but today there are millions that hold to his views as if they are holy writ.

This corrupted teaching is comfortable for most, and therefore popular. It tends to show the period around the rapture as one of great revival, and of ingathering for the church. God’s Word, however, doesn’t show this; neither by direct teaching, or template model. Only 8 were saved in Noah’s day, in a world of possibly several billion. God would have spared Sodom & Gomorrah, with the surrounding cities, had there been even just 10 righteous persons! And so it will be for these end times, as well. When Jesus said that only few would be saved, He meant it!

Great changes have been made to the real words of God through Bible revision. I want to leave you with one example, so you may understand the gravity of even small changes. Look at this account from the King James Bible, Revelation 7:9, 13 & 14;

After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands…And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed  their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

As you can see, this multitude could include any believer throughout history, and is verified in Acts 14:22. Now look at this same passage in Today’s New International Version;

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands… Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes-who are they, and where did they come from?” I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

By the addition of one word, THE, meaning has been changed! I did embolden this word in the text, for emphasis. The TNIV identifies this multitude as if they were saved only in one specific time period, the last one, rather than throughout all history. That one little word puts the tribulation period of the last days into an entirely different perspective than what God wanted us to have! I hope you can see that the changes being made to the Word of God are indeed serious business. Key words providing doctrine and warning are being re-written for our demise.

For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. –Revelation 22:18 & 19

Study the Word. Pray for wisdom, and insight. These end times are a period of almost unimaginable deception, and I do urge you to be watchful.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. –I Peter 5:8

These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. –John 16:33

P.S: As the Lord has been revealing truths to me over the years, I would like to share with you an insight, believer to believer. True Christians know that their salvation lies in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross, and not in their own good works (Titus 3:5-7). It is also true that even the righteous scarcely be saved (I Peter 4:18)! I therefore questioned the Lord about this “falling away,” and why it still appears that there are quite a few genuine believers left. He answered that the rise of antichrist will be a time of separating sheep & goats. He later showed me a scriptural correlation. We know that God gave us Revelation through John, and we find in 13:18 the number of the beast, 666. Now look at the gospel of John 6:66; From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Amazing! II Thess. 2:10-12 sheds further light on how/why this could happen. Let us regard these truths with soberness.

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. –Luke 16:10