Eternal life resides in Jesus and in Him alone. No one else! This is true now and will also be the case after Jesus removes His true church from the earth.
In John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
What do people need the most? The answer remains the same as it’s always been: A clear understanding of the Gospel. By this I mean that people need Jesus, not the one that so many today create in their mind but but the One revealed on the pages of Scripture.
As I wondered about how to respond to the normality bias so evident in churches today, I thought about the title of the Francis A. Schaeffer book that I read in college, He Is There and He is Not Silent. I believe that name might be adjusted for today as, “He Sees, He Is Not Silent, and He Is Coming Soon.”
Many today live in what I call a “bubble of normalcy” where they feel secure because of exaggerated and unrealistic expectations of either a return to normalcy or of it continuing indefinitely into the future.
Even a great number of believers reside in a world of inflated expectations regarding what lies ahead for them.
I understand why so many question Jesus’ soon return given the fact that it’s been two thousand years since He promised to return.
In spite of the long wait, I’m convinced that Jesus’ appearing is imminent because of the myriad of signs telling us that the Tribulation period is right on our doorstep.
It’s the particulars of our glorious future that provide us with a hopeful and biblical context into which we can place the storms and tragic circumstances that come our way and persevere when during the dark times in which we live.
It’s a glorious adventure that starts with the Rapture of the church.
We use the word “glory” to refer to many aspects of our walk with the Lord. In a real sense, glorify His name when praise Him and sing worship songs. We see a foretaste of God’s glory in beautiful sunsets, the grandeur of snowcapped mountain tops, and in many ways through the beauty and wonder of nature.
We will not see the full display of Jesus’ glory, however, until He appears to take us up to heaven!
In recent years, however, the Greek Word apostasia, translated “falling away” in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, has received heightened scrutiny with many regarding this as a reference to the Rapture.
Can we justify interpreting the word as a physical departure such as would point to Jesus’ appearing to take us back to heaven? I believe we can.
Revelation begins with these words: “The revelation of Jesus Christ.” The book is all about Jesus’ magnificence and power. From beginning to end, Revelation glorifies our Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation is more relevant than ever before as we watch a great many of its prophecies came into sharper focus.
The church is the body of Christ with Jesus as its Head; it does not operate as a kingdom in this present world. And it’s most certainly not the restored kingdom of Israel.
The Lord never intended for His church to behave like a kingdom with an aristocracy that rules over it. We function on earth as Jesus’ body with each member possessing spiritual gifts that support the whole.
Make no mistake, the Supreme Court ruling on June 24, 2022, overturning Roe v. Ware is a huge victory for life, and I’m overjoyed with the decision. It will possibly spare hundreds of thousands lives from a cruel and inhumane death.
However, I’m not overly optimistic because the ruling does not brighten the dark foreboding clouds on our horizon.
As deception, government corruption, violence, and lawlessness increase daily in our world, it becomes increasingly difficult to hang on to our hope in Jesus’ imminent appearing.
How do we keep our focus on the Rapture during these perilous times? Is there any hope for those of us weary of waiting for His return?
