If you don’t know anything about the Rapture (or catching away) of the Church, then you probably haven’t been watching television. In recent years, the concept has become a mockery, especially in the cartoons of the hour.

You know what I am talking about: The Simpsons, Family Guy, and a half-dozen, lesser known shows. They sneer at the idea of Jesus returning for the people that have accepted Him as Savior, to keep them from the wrath of God being poured out on the earth.

That concept is a joke to them, but one has to wonder why. I mean, they obviously don’t want Jesus, and really, what are Christians to them? I guess the fact that God sent His only son to die is funny. Or. it could be the fact that they don’t believe that God exists, so the fact that we are waiting on His son to rescue us seems a bit odd.

Lately, the Church has even gotten in on it. People who believe in the Rapture are told they are naive. How dare they think they will escape the suffering of the Tribulation, or the death associated with it. There have been groups and organizations within the church that openly deride those believe in the Rapture as “Escapists”.

Count me in. I unashamedly want to “escape all these things”, as Jesus put it. Anyone in their right mind would. Persecution is one thing, death and destruction that “has never been, and shall never be again” is quite another.

So where do the people who believe in the Rapture get their doctrine on this whole thing? Many get their ideas from 2 Thessalonians, where Paul speaks of the gathering of believers unto Christ. Still others, draw from 1 Thessalonians 4, which speaks of the Rapture event, or “harpazo”. Still others parallel that verse with 1 Cor. 15:52, which speaks of the resurrection of the dead in Christ.

Many see parallels between Moses’ visit to Sinai and the Rapture. Likewise, the taking of Enoch and Elijah. There are numerous shadows and parallels of this event in scripture. Too many to count, should I really desire to go through a full study, or if I had that kind of broad knowledge.

What is supposed to happen in the Rapture? Well, essentially, the dead are to be raised in a body, which will be eternal, and not subject to decay. The physical body itself. The spirit itself already is not subject to decay. Then, believers who are alive are to have their bodies transformed in the same manner.

Both sets of believers will then rise to meet the Lord in the air (and as it says in scripture — “So shall we ever be with the Lord”.)

Those who mock say that this will happen at the last resurrection, or that the Tribulation, or interchangeably,the Apocalypse and Armaggedon have already taken place. I assure those people, they have not.

Now, people of faith can have their disagreements as to when such an event would take place. I know those who say it will happen before the Tribulation begins. Others say we have to wait 3 1/2 years into the Tribulation. Others say it happens at the end.

The truth is, it happens. It’s not a joke, or something to be made light of. It’s a very serious and joyful issue. The world can mock and scoff, but in their own way, they too are a sign of the coming of the Lord:

2 Peter 3:3-4 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

Where is the promise of His coming? Oh, it is very apparent. Easy to find in scripture. How close is His coming? Even closer than the next breath. Will we escape the wrath to come? If we trust in Christ Jesus for forgiveness of sins, then yes.

Accept Him today, if you have not. Tell Him you accept His sacrifice. Remember, Whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Author Bio: Kurt Hartman is Head of Web Development for OTR Tire Supply. They sell heavy equipment and OTR Tires at http://www.otrtiresupply.com

Category: Religion
Keywords: rapture, apocalypse, harpazo, rapture of the church, the simpsons, family guy