ON BEING LEFT BEHIND WHEN THE CHURCH IS RAPTURED: Yesterday, I posted a very encouraging article by Dan Payne, entitled What Does Rapture Ready Mean?. It generated quite a lengthy discussion which brought to the forefront several questions. Who will be ready for the Rapture of the Church? Answered simply--ALL those who are BORN AGAIN through faith in Jesus shed blood which PAID THE PENALTY for ALL of our sin when Jesus died on the cross. How does a person become born again? Answered in its most simple form--WHOSOEVER shall CALL upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Romans 10:13. HOW is that CALL made? By believing Jesus died to SAVE YOU from Gods judgment upon your sin (which IF is NOT covered by Jesus blood WILL sentence you to hell and eternal separation from God). You MUST BELIEVE youve sinned. You TRUST totally that God has sent His only begotten Son to die for you--and to give you eternal life. You CALL upon the name of the Lord JESUS with your mouth in prayer, asking Him to cleanse you, forgive you and enter your heart. He will. YOU SHALL BE SAVED! God is FAITHFUL to do what He says in His Word. ALL WHO ARE BORN AGAIN THROUGH FAITH IN THE LORD JESUS WILL BE RAPTURED AT THE LORDS APPEARING IN THE AIR, WITH A SHOUT, AND THE SOUND OF A TRUMPET--BEFORE A TIME OF GODS ANGER AND JUDGMENT COMMONLY CALLED THE TRIBULATION PERIOD:. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11. BUT WHO WILL BE LEFT BEHIND AT HIS COMING? This answer will be longer. Any who are left behind at the Rapture of the Church will be so because they trusted in SOMETHING ELSE rather than the shed blood of Jesus. They may trust that going to Church saves them. They may trust in doing good works or following their Churchs sacraments or traditions (and WOE when the Church they follow is IN ERROR). They may think they are not as bad as one who murders or commits terrible atrocities (ignoring--or bring ignorant of--the fact that everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God). These people CLAIM the name of Jesus BECAUSE OF their adherence to a Church, but IF they do NOT really know Him in a personal true heart relationship, and are not born again of the Spirit, they ARE the lost who sit in Church pews. These are called professing Christians...they are Christian in name only, and therefore Jesus must say, I never knew you. The errors in the Churches are addressed by Jesus in Revelation 2 and 3. Only TWO of the seven were NOT told TO REPENT. ONE: those whose faith is so strong that they die (are martyred) for Jesus [Smyrna]--these are promised to receive the CROWN of eternal life--which is in heaven in the presence of the Lord. TWO: those who know the WHOLE WORD of God; those who KEEP the word of His patience (who, in faith, are looking for His appearing at the Rapture); and those who do NOT deny the name of Jesus [Philadelphia]--these are promised to be KEPT OUT OF THE VERY TIME OF THE TRIBULATION (which is rapidly approaching in our time). REPENTANCE is called for for these 5 errors: There is losing ones first love of the Lord [Ephesus], AND mixing Christian doctrine WITH the vain philosophies and deceptions of the world [Pergamos]. IF people do these things for very long (with no repentance), they will become severely backslidden. The severely backslidden are NOT working for the Lord, but doing their own desires. IF one follows their own lusts and sin there WILL BE consequences: suffering, pain, illnesses, lack, frustration, anxiety and unhappiness. The call is to REPENT and RETURN to full fellowship with Jesus--then you WILL KNOW abundant life on earth and be rewarded at the Bema Seat of Jesus. The following 3 ERRORS puts one in danger of MISSING the Rapture. IF people DO NOT REPENT of these 3, THE CONSEQUENCES are (1.) being cast into a bed of affliction [the Tribulation], (2.) being caught unaware as Jesus comes LIKE a thief [and suffering the sudden destruction of the Tribulation--1 Thessalonians 5:3], and (3.) to be spit out of His mouth when He appears in the air [therefore, being vomited into the Tribulation]. It IS possible for church goers to be left behind. These are the ones who sat in a Church pew, but who missed the TRUTH of THE NECESSITY to be born again. The last 3 ERRORS are for (1.) following the false teaching of a Jezebel within the Church who TEACHES the depths of Satan [Thyatira--Roman Catholicism]; (2.) for being dead [Sardis--NO LIFE of the the Spirit--therefore NOT being born again, which occurs in many Reformation churches because a lack of teaching]; AND (3.) for being lukewarm, indifferent, apathetic, apostate and feeling rich and in need of nothing [Laodecia--who will be spewed out of Jesus mouth at His coming in the Rapture, the apostate and false church of the end time]. PLEASE READ AND DISCERN WHAT JESUS SAYS IN REVELATION 2 AND 3--the PROPHECY of the entire AGE of the Church on earth. Judgment MUST begin at the house of God (1 Peter 4:17), and being left behind at the Rapture is a strong judgment upon those who have NOT trusted in the shed blood of Jesus to SAVE them, and who are therefore NOT born again. What is GODS PROVISION, in His Word, to overcome the sin nature and to walk as PURE before our Lord? There are many people caught in guilt trips over their own sin. This is HOW to BE FREE of the guilt. Remember, our Lord desires us to walk in CONFIDENCE and STRENGTH in Him--a faith-based walk. (If we are feeling guilty, we often HIDE instead, and GIVE UP in doing what Jesus really desires us to do. Its as simple as walking in prayers of confession.) I know we are all SO AWARE of our sin nature. BUT there IS A WAY to enter the rest that Jesus gives, BECAUSE HIS BLOOD HAS PARDONED US OF ALL OUR SIN. We can KNOW the peace that passes all understanding, and we can HAVE JOY, yes, even right now in these sinful bodies of flesh. We confess our sin any time we are aware of falling short--we clean our slate of sin every night as we go to bed. Im speaking of praying according to 1 John 1:9--If we CONFESS our sin, we KNOW He is faithful and just, and HE WILL forgive us our sin, and CLEANSE US FROM ALL UNRIGHTEOUSNESS. We therefore KEEP our relationship strong with Jesus, and we DO NOT lose His fellowship because we sinned. [This is NOT a word about losing our salvation once we are born again, BUT it IS a way to keep PURE before our Lord and to remain in constant fellowship with Him.] Those of us who have HOPE in the Pre-Tribulation coming of Jesus in the Rapture, purify ourselves, even as He is pure. 1 John 3:2-3. We do this every time we confess according to 1 John 1:9. There are also some questions concerning the Bema Seat of Jesus--the place we where we will face our Lord (after the Rapture) to receive from Him according to what we have done (or not done) while in our flesh bodies upon the earth. 1 Corinthians 3:9-15. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. What is rewarded? What is not rewarded? Can we anticipate just what might await us? Or are we fearful that we might not measure up? [The Apostle Paul was aware of possibly not measuring up--that was why he paid careful attention to the lusts of his flesh, buffeting that flesh to bring it into submission to the will of the Lord. We are admonished to do the same.] At the Bema Seat of Jesus, it is NOT our sin that is being judged by the Lord. It is our WORKS, of what sort they were. Are our WORKS worthy to receive crowns (rewards)? Or are are they just worthless wood, hay and stubble (time wasted doing unessential things) which will be burned, and as they are burned, will we be left with no works worthy of reward? This brought to the forefront a trepidation of NOT having any works that are worthy to receive the rewards of crowns. I want to address that trepidation. Perhaps, we will be surprised by what our Lord reckons as WORKS worthy of reward. I must say that any time we pray for the lost; any time we give help to the needy out of our love for Jesus (mentioning His name); any time we share the Word of God with others; any time we are a faithful parent, husband or wife (following the Lords directions in His Word); we are doing works worthy of reward. We dont need to be pastors, or full time missionaries, or great evangelists. Even giving a cup of water in the love of Jesus (sharing His name) will be rewarded. I believe there will be rewards for small kindnesses that we have forgotten that weve even done. The answer for any trepidation we might feel concerning our SERVICE for the Lord: We just pray and ask the Lord to lead us every day, knowing that doors of opportunity will be opened so that we can reach out with what the Lord has laid upon our hearts to do. We also PRAY that we recognize the open doors of opportunity that are put into our pathways. Doing it this way: We WILL hear the Lord say, Well done, you faithful and obedient servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord. OUR COMPLETE TRUST IS IN HIM--FOR EVERYTHING!!! May the Lord God, our Father, through Jesus Christ, His Son, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, provide our every need. Philippians 4:19. HE WILL. HE DOES!!! May all of you be richly blessed in Jesus, seated with Him in heavenly places, walking the life of faith, full of love, joy and hope. HE IS INDEED COMING TO RAPTURE HIS OWN--AND THAT IS IMMINENT. May we be full of confidence at His coming....
Posted on: Sun, 28 Dec 2014 21:17:59 +0000
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