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| Explaining the disappearances. What's with this sinister presence mentioned earlier? "But I thought I was a Christian!" False teachers are rightfully condemned. The Seven Year Tribulation period. International readers: Thanks to those who will translate this.
Introduction:The things presented here may be hard to grasp at first, and for good reason- spiritual things are spiritually discerned, and are best read through eyes of faith. As you review this, you'll begin to see the reasons for what has happened, and understand the importance of biblical issues once considered insignificant.  Explaining the disappearances.This letter was written by "born-again" believers in Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. Also known as Christians, we are the ones who are now nowhere to be found, having vanished without a trace, leaving behind everything. Our purpose is to share with everyone that remains on the earth the truth of all that was, and is, and is yet to come. We can only pray that you will give your attention to this matter; it is the only hope you have of avoiding eternal destruction. The accuracy of what the following pages will reveal should be enough to prove the source reliable, and that source is the Bible, the word of God. And if you find this to be true, then you can depend on the very same word of God to save you as well. What really happened.To describe the scene here in America and around the world-- people,
young and old, rich and poor, from all different races, and almost every
child under age 12... just vanished in a single moment of time. Gone.
Silently, and without commotion on the part of the ones that went away.
Their clothing, jewelry, glasses, false teeth-- everything that was
not part of them lay in a pile where they once were. Depending on the
time
of day, there were many traffic accidents as driverless cars and trucks
careened out of control. Pilot-less aircraft fell from the skies with
disastrous results. Trains, subways and ships all lost operators.
"Utter
chaos" doesn't begin to describe it. Pregnant women find that their
unborn child is gone. And all around there is an eerie emptiness that
words cannot describe, a sense of evil that won't go away... a sinister
presence striking fear into the hearts of men everywhere.
Who was involved.Characteristics of the people that vanished will have one common thread- they were all Christians. A true Christian is one who: 1) has recognized that he is a sinner; 2) realized there is nothing he can do to pay the price for his sin to satisfy a holy God; 3) received the forgiveness of God by confessing his sin and trusting in the death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary as payment for that sin; and 4) believed by faith he is saved, and through the leading of the Holy Spirit of God lives a life of forgiveness and grace. The Christian has certain distinguishing characteristics about his life and conduct that sets him apart from unbelievers. Simply put, he follows the teachings of Jesus Christ. The name "Christian" was originally meant to be a term of derision, a sort of insult to describe the followers of Jesus, used first at Antioch on the Eastern Mediterranean coast. Jesus Christ's teachings were as radical in His day as they are today-- most people did not accept them then, even as most reject them now. But Christ made a promise to those who entrust their eternal souls to Him-- that He will guide them in this life through the agency of the Holy Spirit, and when the season of judgment is about to begin, He will come back for His own and take them to be with Him in glory... that is, heaven, the dwelling place of God the Father. The Christian endures the scorn and wrath of a world that does not know God, nor does it want to know Him. All his days the believer trusts in the perfect justice of God to repay the evil done in this life. And now, this season of retribution has begun. What's with this sinister presence mentioned earlier?The Christian is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit of God (1 Corinthians 6:19). In simple terms, the Holy Spirit is the driving force of good in the world. In spite of man's denials, there are the realities of good and evil. The presence of God's Spirit has restrained evil in the past... the power of evil was kept in check by the presence of Christians, and the Spirit has been working the plans and purposes of God powerfully through believers down through the ages. A Christian does nothing good on his own... God set it up that way so God alone would get the glory (Isaiah 42:8). But all that has changed now. The Christians are all gone, and along with them went the Holy Spirit. In short, there is no longer anything or anyone on earth capable of restraining, or even willing to attempt to restrain evil. Like a wild beast snarling at his bindings, suddenly the chains are loosed and the devil and all his demons are free to have their way with the remainder of the human family. It is truly a dreadful time to be alive on the earth. What about the children?Despite Hollywood's best efforts to defile it, there is, or better yet, was, an age of innocence in the lives of children. God wired them that way. Though born into the human race with Adam's sin nature deep within their souls, God has set a time in their lives when He considers them responsible for their sin. Once they are old enough to understand that they must be saved, they must act upon that knowledge. This is known as the age of accountability. Just what age that may be we do not know (some speculate age 12 or younger), but Christ made it clear that man should not cause a child to sin (Matthew 18:5,6). If a child has heard and understood the Gospel message-- that Jesus came to die for sinners-- and willfully rejects that message, understanding that the consequences include eternal separation from God, then he is accountable for that decision, and is among you even now. An infant has no concept of sin, or of his need for salvation; even less a child yet to be born (life begins at conception, Psalm 139:15,16). They were taken along with the true believers. Who didn't disappear.Here is the manifestation of true versus false. You may think whatever you wish, but please consider this event as God's way of smacking you square upside the head with a brick-- wake up and pay attention to the signs! This is where it gets personal. What is the reason you were left behind? Have you ever heard the Gospel message? Has a Christian ever shared his faith with you? Did you ever feel the tug of the Holy Spirit convicting you of sin, telling you not to ignore your conscience but to turn to God and be saved? Possibly you were part of a church (used loosely) that chose to follow the way of error, claiming that they had the exclusive interpretation of the truth. Maybe you felt wronged by some "church-going hypocrite" and wanted nothing to do with people of that ilk. Whatever your reason, you are now faced with the same choice as before; namely, "What say ye about Jesus?" "But I thought I was a Christian!"This has got to be truly painful, indeed. One of the most revealing elements of this event and its aftermath is the identification of those who did not get taken when they thought they should have. This is easily explained but not necessarily easily accepted. To be a Christian, you must be born again... no exceptions (John chapter 3). To be born again is mandatory, not optional... it is the way to God. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6; Ac 4:12). That statement has an almost intolerable ring of "exclusivity" to it that has repulsed many throughout the ages, and even more in today's pluralistic world-- a world that has convinced itself that God is irrelevant, and whatever He says has no connection with reality whatsoever. Well, reality has just manifested itself in ways not seen since the Flood (Genesis 6-9). If the event of the Rapture isn't enough to make men believe God, then their hearts are truly hardened beyond redemption, that is, they cannot be saved because they refuse to believe the truth of God's word. The true believers took God's word at face value, and by faith they placed their trust in Christ. It is not enough to know about Christ, to know about church traditions, even to participate in church things. You must know Jesus as your Savior. Jesus said plainly that those who are His would hear and obey His voice (John 10:1-30). There are those who have an appearance of faith, but it is a false faith, and God knows all the purposes of the heart (Matthew 7:15-23). Getting into the details of why someone that thought he was a true believer, but was found to be false, leads to some probing questions. Was there a time in your life when you admitted to God that you were a sinner? Were you truly repentant of your sin? The question is framed that way for it is not just any particular occurrence of sin we are dealing with. It is the sin nature that must be dealt with..."God, have mercy on me, a sinner!" (Luke 18:9-14). Christ died on the cross to pay the price to cover your debt of sin before a Holy God. His blood washes clean all who will receive Him as Lord and Savior. Did you ever receive Him? Did you know in your heart you were forgiven? The power of the new life is manifested in the new life. Read Galatians chapter 5. Which list categorizes your life? Was there a time when you once enjoyed the light of God, yet fell away, not experiencing the sustaining power of the Holy Spirit, given to all true believers at salvation (Matthew 13:1-24)? True self-examination at this time will show the motives of the heart, and you will understand why you were left behind. False teachers are rightfully condemned.Leaders of churches and movements that are still among you stand as testimony to the truth of God's word. Those who claim to have had special revelation from God are now seen for the charlatans they are: self-seeking, godless hell-bound liars that have led their flocks astray, yes, even having led their own followers to the brink of destruction. Flee from them! Flee to the arms of Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, born of a virgin, who lived a sinless life, suffered under Pontius Pilate, crucified on a Roman cross, dead, buried, yet raised to life on the third day, ascending to heaven where He is ever interceding for the saints before the throne of God. This is the Jesus that saves you...the same Jesus that saved all those that vanished in the Rapture... come to Him and be saved today! The false teachers will not proclaim this Jesus... they are of their father the devil, and their purpose is to keep men out of heaven, leading them down paths of destruction (2 Peter chapter 2). The devil himself was once a high and glorious angelic being-- Lucifer is his name-- yet in his pride he set his sights on the throne of God, seeking to usurp authority over all God's kingdom (Isaiah 14:12-15). Now he is cast out of heaven, and he prowls about as a roaring lion seeking to devour those that could be saved (1 Peter 5:8). His purpose is to oppose all that God is and all that God stands for. And now, in the absence of the Holy Spirit, he has nothing to stop him from wreaking havoc on the whole earth, and all that dwell in it. The hope for many.The book of Revelation points out that there will be many that will come to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ during the tribulation period that is soon to begin. We encourage you to become one of these tribulation hour saints, and to do it without delay. With the judgments of God beginning soon, you have an excellent chance of finding yourself very dead in the very near future. Please don't walk through death's door without Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Your eternal soul depends on it (Luke 16:19-31). How it happened.The vanishing of people into thin air is the stuff of science fiction, not of everyday life, so we might do well to look at the source of the event, namely, God Himself. Christians hold to the fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ as the cornerstone of their faith. It is recorded in all four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and discussed at length throughout the New Testament. It is prophesied in the Psalms (16:10) and is a central theme of God's plan for His creation. With so much attention to the topic, we should be able to learn something about how it happened. The apostle Paul addresses the issue in great detail in 1 Corinthians chapter 15. Read it to become familiarized with the subject matter. What it boils down to is the difference between a physical body and a spiritual body. When Christ was raised He appeared to the disciples behind closed doors, and they didn't unlock the door for Him. At this appearing He invited His friends to touch, saying He had a real body, with flesh and bones; He wasn't a ghost (Lu 24:36-45). He ate some fish in their presence. So it is a real body capable of interacting with the elements of this dimension, yet not constrained by them. Spirit life in its redeemed form does not have the limitations we know and live with in the here and now. Just because it's beyond our comprehension is no valid reason to dismiss it as impossible, or even as improbable. There is an inter-dimensional relationship to the spirit world that we, in the human form, are not privileged to interact with from this earthly existence. The resurrection changed all that for the believers. How it actually occurred is only a matter of speculation... scripture does not address the details beyond attributing it to Christ's power (Philippians 3:20,21). Our best guess is that physical matter gets transformed into a state of existence which is no longer bound by time. In this state one could be anywhere at any time, without any of the constraints offered by matter that is bound by time. It is also possible that remaining clothing may have signs of burned fibers in areas of skin contact, as in the shroud of Turin. Examination of the graves of deceased believers will find the remains gone, further proof of the veracity of these claims. Where did they go?When Jesus died on the cross of Calvary, a criminal executed beside Him repented of his sin, and asked Jesus to remember him when He came into His kingdom. Jesus' response was a promise of paradise, this very day (Luke 23:39-43). The apostle Paul spoke of being with Christ as "better by far" (Philippians 1:22-24), and gave a brief account of a glimpse of heaven (2 Corinthians 12:1-6). John the revelator saw all kinds of things pertaining to heaven (Revelation chapters 4-22). The presence of the saints with Jesus is made clear in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. They all went to heaven. Spiritually ignorant men will offer many theories, however, with everything from space alien abductions to some electromagnetic pulse or harmonic wave that consumed those too weak to withstand it, and everything in between. But God's word is true, and therein is found the real explanation. One word of caution... men will refuse to accept this explanation for the simple reason that it will force them to admit that those who disappeared were indeed right after all. And, as God's word is proven true in this event, the rest of it stands true as well... all of that unpleasant stuff about sin, the need to repent and be saved, the coming judgments on a sinful, wicked, rebellious human race, etc. Acknowledging this is an unacceptable alternative in their eyes. And so, as predicted (Revelation chapter 9), most will refuse to accept the very evidence you are examining, to their own loss. But you have the opportunity to be spared the coming destruction by placing your faith in Christ , as well as anyone who is willing to turn from his sin to follow God through Christ. Why did it happen?This is by far the simplest, yet most profound issue of all. Summing it up can be done in a single word... SIN. The cause of God's holy judgment on mankind is singular: Sinful rebellion. It began in the garden of Eden, survived the judgment of Noah's flood, rejected the Savior and nailed Him to Calvary's cross, and still rejects the mercy, grace and forgiveness offered freely to all who will trust in Christ, even today. It is a pattern throughout history, the very essence of the struggle between good and evil. God created man on the sixth day of creation, and placed him in a garden paradise called Eden. Man was created a free moral agent, free to make choices and free to reap the rewards or bear the consequences of those choices. God had prohibited but one thing of the man... "of the tree in the middle of the garden, you shall not eat." Quite simple, really... a literal paradise and only one rule to follow. Yet for a free moral agent to be free, the moral antagonist must also be free to express the alternative to obedience. Without the opportunity to sin, there is no opportunity to obey. So along came Satan with his lying promises of god-like wisdom and knowledge, successfully tempting Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, and Adam joined her. With this, sin entered the human family, which got them booted out of the garden, brought a curse on all of creation and introduced death into the world (Genesis chapter 3). Satan has not once yielded in his mission to destroy man, for man is created in the image of God. If Satan can undo man, then it is one more step in his quest to unseat the One who put down his own insurrection and booted him out of heaven (the parallel- they both lost their place of favor in God's sight). So man is reduced to life separated from God as a direct result of believing the devil's lie. As generations passed, man grew more and more wicked until it got to the point that God was grieved He had created man in the first place. Then came the warning of the flood. Only Noah and his family were spared. For nearly 100 years he worked on building the ark, preaching the same message to his fellowman... "it's gonna rain!" Judgment was coming, and the only way to escape it was to be on board the ark. At the appointed time, the flood waters inundated the earth. All living creatures were destroyed, with only the remnant aboard the ark being saved. And yet, when it was all over, years later Noah's descendants got into the same mess of sin that God had previously judged the world for in the flood. The heart of man needed to be made new. God is a Holy God. He cannot, and will not wink at sin, pretending it doesn't matter. Sin has wages attached to it, and the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Man simply does not have the capacity to satisfy the penalty for sin... only the death of Christ can atone for sin. Therefore, God sent His Son to pay that price, that through faith in Jesus we can be restored to God; that is the only way. Until now, the patience of God had kept back His mighty hand of judgment, that man might have the opportunity to repent and believe. But His patience has reached its end, and the season of judgment has begun in earnest. When did it happen?At the appointed hour (Matthew 24:36). God has not told of the day or the hour, but all who have read and understood God's word were given many indicators to look for. Throughout the ages man has sought to know when the end will come. Now you have a point of reference to draw upon which, if you read and understand God's word, will tell you exactly what is coming next. The end of the world.Statements like "the world will end in the year 2050" are definitive proof of the ignorance of those who make them. A literal reading of God's word reveals that for the next 1,007 years the earth will remain intact, albeit in a state of turmoil, misery and death for those living on it over the next seven years. A more accurate statement would be "The end [of the order of things as we have known them] is upon us", for the changes that are about to come on humanity are far more than the mind can fathom, and terrible beyond measure. The Seven Year Tribulation period.The time of history you are now entering is referred to by several
names: The Apocalypse, the Great Tribulation, the time of Jacob's
trouble, the 70th week of Daniel [chapter 9], and quite literally, it
will be hell on earth. We're not going to elaborate much on it, for
there are thousands of pages available on the subject for you to review.
The Bible declares that the one event which starts the seven-year clock
ticking is the signing of a 7-year peace treaty with the nation of
Israel by a new and powerful world leader out of the European Union (aka
the revived Roman empire) possibly with a high position in the United
Nations (Daniel 9:24-27). This man is the Antichrist. Do not be
deceived by him. Revelation chapters 4-19 have all the details, and it
is not a pleasant sight, though for a while there will be time of
relative peace for some. By the time it's all over nearly three-fourths
of the world's population will die by famine, plague, fire or sword. A
word of warning to the reader-- prepare to meet thy God.
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