WHAT TO DO IN CASE YOU MISS THE RAPTURE
“However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left. So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.” Matthew 24:36
Someday soon, the Lord Jesus Christ is going to return and take all the born again Christians to heaven. These instructions are written to the people who are left behind, to tell them what to do after they have missed the Rapture. I am warning you about this now, because I don't plan to be around then. All of these instructions are found in the Holy Bible, which is the first thing you're going to need to find out what is going on.
DON'T PANIC.
If you never worried about the Rapture before it happened, then it is absolutely useless to worry about it after it's already over. If you had wanted to get right with God before the Rapture, you could have, but you chose to wait. Now your only chance is to endure to the end of the Tribulation. Matthew 24:13 says, "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved."
Don’t search for family members you can’t find. The Christians are gone. I repeat--they are all gone! If you had a little baby, the little baby is gone too. (Romans 5:13) Sin is not charged while the child is still innocent, so you don't have to worry about the baby. The baby is with Jesus.
START WORKING YOUR WAY TO HEAVEN.
The Tribulation will be a very difficult time for one to try and live for God. Christ declared in Matt. 24:21 this period will contain terror, horror, and death on a scale the world has not yet seen. One reading of the book of Revelation with all the catastrophes, judgments, and sorrows found in it should awaken any believing reader to the shear horror many will endure during this period. As we have repeatedly said, during this seven year period faith alone will not be enough to secure ones eternal salvation. Faith will likely be the means of the believer initially being saved, but his faith must motivate the proper works for him to keep his salvation, and he must be faithful in keeping them to "endure to the end." Remember how James said, "Faith without works is dead,” and one shows his faith by working. In the Tribulation one must show his faith and work to overcome evil and cling to good or else he won't make it through saved [Rev. 2:26; Rev. 3:5; Rev. 3:21; Rev. 12:11; Rev. 21:7]. During the Tribulation salvation will not be like salvation is now. Since regeneration is no longer available, nothing will happen inside the believer to secure his salvation. Believing on Christ will just be the first step in his process of salvation, for along with believing he must "keep the commandments of God." Look at these clear passages in Revelation,
"And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." [Rev 12:17]
"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." [Rev 14:12]
"Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates unto the city." [Rev 22:14]
One in the Tribulation may be saved by faith, keep the testimony of Jesus (Rev. 12:17), and have adequate works to retain his salvation, but the moment he gives in to temptation and receives that mark, he is dead lost. (This is next week’s topic) This alone proves salvation then will be little like it is today. Even with this faith and works setup great multitudes will refuse to take the mark, and, as a result, most of them will be killed (Rev. 13:15, Rev. 20:4). During this period it will more often than not cost one a great deal to be saved, likely even his life! Nevertheless, many will "love not their lives unto death" and refuse to blaspheme God by taking the mark. Like James said, they will show their faith by their works (James 2:18).
In a nutshell, salvation in the Tribulation will be obtained and secured by having faith in Jesus as Savior and Messiah, keeping the commandments and doing what one knows to be right, and avoiding the mark of the beast at all costs. Failure to do these things and endure faithfully to the end can cost a person everything! However think about this, the Rapture has not yet happened. You don’t have to be here through it…
DON'T TAKE ANY MARK OR ANY NUMBER
Revelation 14:9-10 "Then a third angel followed them, shouting, “Anyone who worships the beast and his statue or who accepts his mark on the forehead or on the hand must drink the wine of God’s anger. It has been poured full strength into God’s cup of wrath. And they will be tormented with fire and burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb.” People have been speaking of the "mark of the beast" for so long that some may think it's a joke and will never happen. The truth is these people will face the judgment of God. A few decades ago in Germany, every Jew was required to wear a six pointed star. It would be just as easy for the government to require every citizen to take a number and a mark.
Revelation 13:16-18 says “He required everyone small and great, rich and poor, free and slave to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. Wisdom is needed here. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is 666.”
In the book of Revelation a man shows up on this earth called the Antichrist. This fellow will take over the entire world and become the main political and religious leader. When he does, he will pass legislation and establish a global economic system, designed so that you can't buy, sell, or eat unless you take his mark or the number of his name. You will be in a store, buying your groceries, and when you get to the cashier they will say, "Put your hand in the machine." You put your hand in the machine, and if that mark shows up in your hand, you can purchase the groceries, and if it doesn't, you can't buy anything -no matter how much money you have. It is going to be a terrible thing to be a mother and hear your little baby cry for milk and be unable to get any milk. It would be a terrible thing to have your child cry, "Daddy, I'm hungry," and the fellow at the store saying, "Sir, all you have to do is get this mark." They will tell you to conform. They will point out that even the world leaders have the mark. Presidents, kings, prime ministers, governors, mayors, your friends, and even your relatives have the mark. They will say it's only the Bible that says it's wrong. If your child is sick and you want medicine: "Do you have the mark?" You pull into a gas station: "Have you got the mark?"
The mark of the beast is designed to mock the seal that God places on His followers (see Rev 7:2-3). Just as God marks His people to save them, Satan’s beast marks his people to save them from the persecution that Satan will inflict upon God’s followers. Identifying this particular mark is not as important as identifying the purpose of the mark. Those who accept it show their allegiance to Satan, their willingness to operate within the economic system he promotes, and their rebellion against God. To refuse the mark means to commit oneself entirely to God, preferring death to compromising one’s faith in Christ.
The ultimate result of taking the mark (as with sin) is an unending separation from God. Sin always brings death but in this life we can choose to repent and restore our relationship with God. In eternity there will no longer be opportunity for repentance. If in this life we choose to be independent of God, in the next life we will be separated from Him forever. No one is forced to choose eternal separation from God and eternity in hell… and no one will suffer this fate by accident. It is a choice…
As we discussed last Sunday, times after the rapture are going to be anything but pleasant for the ones left behind. It is at this point you are going to have to become a religious fanatic. Be ready to choose martyrdom if you wish to maintain your commitment to Jesus Christ. There will be no middle ground. During this tribulation hour, you will have to choose between two masters--the Antichrist or Jesus Christ. When Christ calls the Christians off this earth, you will have Satan and his people trying to control you or kill you. Therefore your decision to follow Jesus will not be a popular one. The majority of the world's population will soon be falling captive to the Antichrist's hypnotic words. Because true believers will refuse to join the chorus of praise, the Antichrist will demand that all nonconforming Christians be put to death.
Revelation 21:7-8 “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
The word “fearful” is not speaking of those who are fainthearted or someone who at times doubts or has questions, but speaking of those who turn back from following God due to the pressures applied by Satan and his followers. These are people who are not brave enough to stand up for Christ. These people will be put in the same list as the unbelieving, the vile, the murders, etc. as stated above in the scripture and will live eternally in hell.
On the other hand, the people who overcome will “stand firm to the end” (Mark 13:13). Those who can endure the testing of Satan and remain faithful will be rewarded by God. They will receive the blessings that God promised:
1. Eating from the tree of life (2:7)
2. Escaping from the lake of fire (2:11)
3. Receiving a special name (2:17)
4. Having authority over the nations (2:26)
5. Being included in the book of life (3:5)
6. Being a pillar in God’s temple (3:12)
7. Sitting with Christ on His throne (3:21)
Revelation 20:4 "...I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years."
The Bottom line here is whether you choose now or after the rapture, one day you will have to make a choice between following Jesus or not. Keep in mind that not making a choice is a choice! The Rapture has not taken place yet, don't procrastinate: tomorrow may really be too late. II Corinthians 6:2 "...behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
Life is full of choices.
Each and every day we are confronted with decisions. John MacArthur writes in his commentary on Matthew, “Our lives are filled with decisions—what to wear, what to eat, where to go, what to do, what to say, what to buy, whom to marry, what career to follow and on and on. Many decisions are trivial and insignificant, and some are essential and life-changing. The most critical of all is our decision about Jesus Christ and His kingdom.” MacArthur hit the nail on the head. The most important choice you will make in your life is whether or not you are going to follow Jesus and give your life to Him.
Jesus said in Matthew 7:13&14, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”
Today you are confronted by two gates, the narrow and the wide gate. The wide gate: PROVERBS 14:12 “There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.”Satan stands at the mouth of the wide gate. This road holds all worldly desires and leads to destruction. The narrow gate: LUKE 13:24 "Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” The word narrow means difficult to be entered. Now don’t misunderstand this. Access is not denied to anyone. They make a choice to keep themselves out! You will not get to heaven unless you stay on the path that God has set for us. In JOHN 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” The main point here is it is your decision. God allows you to choose for yourself. Some make the choice by just doing nothing. When we choose not to decide, we choose to go through the wide door by default.
To close, I want to remind you the Rapture is coming. The Tribulation Period will happen and every person shall stand before God in judgment one day. Matthew 25:31-32 "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats" It is your choice as to which side you will be found. Life is about choices and life is about the freedom to make choices. God loves us so much that HE did not take that ability to choose away from us. God does not send people to hell; we choose to go there by the way we respond to the grace of God through Jesus. In Deut 30:19-20 God told Moses to tell the people that they needed to choose who they were going to serve. God said that life would be found in obeying Him. In Joshua 24:13-15 upon entering the Promised Land Joshua told the people to choose this day who they would serve. As Elijah was about to take on the prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel, he told the people to choose to either follow God or Baal in 1 Kings 18:21. God never forced people to follow Him, He gave them a choice. The question is which path are you on? Choose Jesus now and don’t worry about what to do after the rapture…
**Keep in mind the Rapture has not taken place yet. Don't procrastinate. Tomorrow may really be too late. II Corinthians 6:2 "...behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
2 Corinthians 6:2 "...behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
Would you like to receive Jesus as your personal Savior?
It’s as easy as A-B-C.
Accept Jesus Christ as your Savior.
Believe He died & Rose again for your sins.
Confess and release your sins.
