I think this is a great idea. So, I ran across a small booklet titled, "What do you do IF you are left behind?" Revelations is a very difficult book for most Christians to read. But, I was also wondering. IF - God forbid - we get left behind at the rapture, what can we do? The pamphlet suggested you try to find a group of Christians, prayer, try to get to a church. We don't really know what will be possible for us to do or not to do in this case. What are some things you might suggest if such a thing happened?

EDITED: Much of the language of Revelation is figurative. John compares the wicked people to *kitten*. But he is not limiting the meaning to only prostitutes and those engaging in sexual sin. That is NOT the issue.

What did he mean? Brides were considered faithful and pure. *kitten* were unfaithful and not pure.

Thus, using the example of the *kitten* of Babylon--it isn't just one woman who is having indiscriminate sex. No. The issue is the people who follow God faithfully and obediently versus the people who defy God and are unfaithful and disobedient.

Remember, too. No one can achieve perfection. We are all sinners--unfaithful, so that is why Jesus was sacrificed to pay the price for our sins. Hence we confess our sins and we are considered like the Old Testament saints--faithful.

Great question, Sharon. Thanks for asking it. I am sure many have the same question.

SHORT ANSWER:

In preparation for the rapture, we as Christians, desire to get our relationship with God right.

So: before or after the Rapture, the first thing to do to be ready for the end times is to ask Jesus to be Lord and Savior of your life; to survive the coming bad times, it helps to find those of like mind (but beware because there will be many who are false even among the churches). Test the spirits that they be of God.


LONG ANSWER

But to the complex answer: First things first:



1) Pray the simple prayer of the thief on the cross:
Lord, remember me...


Luke 23:39-44

King James Version (KJV)

39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?

41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.

44 And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.





or Pray a prayer of confession:

Lord, I have sinned and done what is evil in your eyes. Please forgive me and cleanse me from sin.

1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Luke, in writing the Acts of the apostles, notes:

Acts 16:31
And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.




So, in every event of becoming a Christian -- before or after the Rapture....

Confess sins. Believe. Ask Jesus to come into one's heart.


Romans 10:9 KJV

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

Luke 8:12 KJV

Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

John 3:16

King James Version (KJV)

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The rapture, and the time of tribulation is a source of conflicting views. Some believe that Christians will be caught up before the tribulation of seven years and then a 1000 years of peace and others believe it will happen midway through the 1000 years; still others believe it will come after the 1000 years.

Regardless of which you believe, the responsibilities of Christians is the same. Believe in the Lord as our Savior. Confess our sins and ask forgiveness. Make disciples.


In the end times, if you were to be caught in 'the tribulation' after the Rapture, there are directions from the Scripture:

Deuteronomy 4:29-31

King James Version (KJV)

29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

30 When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;

31 (For the Lord thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.


The disciples asked a similar question of Jesus: His response was to beware: in Matthew 24 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew 24&version=KJV


In Revelation, it discusses the churches and their sins. The tribulation is referenced:

Revelation 2:22ff

King James Version (KJV)

22 Behold, I will cast her [the church that has fallen away] into a bed, and them that commit adultery [this is figurative of the church aligning itself with unbelievers] with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.


25 But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.

26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:

Rev 3:
20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

Rev 6

13 And the stars of heaven [like meteors?] fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;

16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Rev 7

2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,

3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

[so some will be sealed away and protected]

Rev 10 (some are tasked with preaching the gospel)

10 And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

Rev 11 [prophets will be proclaiming the good news. they will be tortured and killed, their bodies left to rot in the streets...then..]

10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

11 And after three days and an half the spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.

12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.

[so there is a remnant, who are believers, who give glory to God for God's great works. Some will believe after the Rapture]

Rev 14

12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Rev 20 [people left behind and martyred for Christ]

4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and 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.

5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Rev 21

6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.

7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

8 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.

Rev 22

17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

[so there is always opportunity to choose to follow God. to believe and accept Jesus as Savior.]



BTW, Wikipedia has a nice graphic under the TIMING segment of Rapture == http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture which shows the various viewpoints of the end times. I won't tell you what I believe. That is not important.

Regardless of the 'timing' one thing is important.

Believe in Jesus. Period. Always. Faithfully. (despite circumstances)

Faithfully as Job said in Job 2 verse 10

But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

Great questions, Sharon. The answers are complex and not all agree. I hope I have not added to the confusion. Let me know if I can re-state something to make it clearer. Writing on the fly, sometimes means things are clear to me, but not on the page. LOL

I am glad to answer anything.

Thanks for asking! Great question.

Blessings,
ChapLynne

I am glad it helped. I'll try to keep this at the top so anyone can find it and ask a question.

I'm sure that others have faced these questions when trying to talk to a non-believer about God. What do you say to those who say:
1. "I don't believe in the Bible. It was written by men. How do we know that someone didn't change it?"

These are EXCELLENT questions that come up when talking to believers and unbelievers alike. They are profound and sometimes lengthy, so I’ll try to address each one separately.

1. "I don't believe in the Bible. It was written by men. How do we know that someone didn't change it?"
First, belief in anything is an act of faith. I can’t give you scientific ‘proof’ of the truth of the Bible. However, I can give you some extraordinary distinctions about the Bible.
Second, we don’t use the scientific method, but we use the Scriptures own claim, because it is important that we know what the Bible says about itself:
2 Timothy 3:15-17
Good News Translation (GNT)
15 and you remember that ever since you were a child, you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living,
17 so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.
This means that whether written by men or women or an angel, the words are useful for teaching. The words don’t have to be perfect and exact. Most theologians don’t believe the Scriptures are inerrant in their current form. There are ‘variations’ of translations because we don’t have any original writings. Many theologians believe the original inspired writings were inerrant, but in the copying, some variations result in different words. E.g. Gen 49:6 is translated "in their selfwill THEY DIGGED DOWN A WALL." (KJV) and “For in their anger they slew a man, And in their self-will THEY HAMSTRUNG AN OX." (NKJV) Why the differences? We don’t have any original texts. The Greek, Aramaic and Hebrew texts we do have access to show variations, which different translators attempt to make clear.
Let me give you an example of the challenges of translation. In French, there is an expression “Mon petit chou” which literally translated means ‘My little cabbage’ but that doesn’t mean anything in English. Since mon petit chou is a term of endearment in French, translators translate it “My darling” as a rule. Thus you have why translations vary. Does that mean they are not true? No. Both are ‘accurate’ but one has a clearer meaning.
Thus we return to the fact that the Scriptures were inspired by God, and whether literal or conceptual, they are valuable for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults and giving instruction in right living.
Third, some may still say, how can I trust that the Scriptures are translated well, if there are so many variations?
I submit that the Bible has at least 39 authors of the 66 Books, which were written over 1500 years, and yet, the variations amount to less than 500. That may seem like a great number, but are you aware that many variations exist of most texts?
The single speech of Caesar – “Friends Romans Countrymen…” has more than a 1000 variations.
So by comparison, 500 variations on sixty-six books seems paltry, doesn’t it?
In addition, the variations NEVER change the concept being told. For example, the two variations in Gen 49 above keep the same concept of the self-will of the people result in destruction (either the wall or the ox)
Last, I don’t ever try to ‘prove’ to a non-believer the truth of the Bible. Salvation is not up to me. All I need to do is share my faith…how it is meaningful to me. And as we have been studying in this season of Epiphany, God wants us to be kind, be fair, be generous, be loving, and be humble. If we do these things, non-believers will be drawn to us, and the door will open for their heart to be touched by God. God will use us to convey the word in a way that leads people to salvation. The real job is up to God.

I'm sure that others have faced these questions when trying to talk to a non-believer about God. What do you say to those who say:
1. "I don't believe in the Bible. It was written by men. How do we know that someone didn't change it?"
2. Another statement is, "I don't want to go to church. I believe in a higher authority, but I don't believe in organized religion. It sounds like a cult to me."
3. "Why is God punishing me? If He gave me free will to believe or not believe; why did he let (insert anything here) happen to me?"
4. "What kind of God allows children to be molested, killed, tortured?"
5. "I prayed to God one time; and nothing happened. I just don't believe there is a God!

3. "Why is God punishing me? If He gave me free will to believe or not believe; why did he let (insert anything here) happen to me?"
As people we struggle with a higher power who allows bad things to happen to good people.
As Christians we struggle with whether God is correcting us or allowing the devil to have his way for a time or what.
If we compare parenting to God’s role, we can see it more easily. As a child grows, s/he must learn to fall down and get back up. We can’t catch them every time as a child, or they will expect that as an adult and will not be mature enough to manage on their own. A child must ride the bicycle without the parent holding on. Sometimes it means a fall and a broken bone or skinned knee.
In addition, there are people, who have chosen to be against God—given their hearts to the devil—like Charles Manson or Ted Bundy brutalized people. They make choices that are bad.
The young man in Newtown killed children. He made horrible choices. Someone in his life made bad choices, too. These things don’t happen in a vacuum. Abuse started with Cain. He murdered Abel.
I submit that we cannot have freedom of choice, without having the bad choices available.
If I never allow my children to make a bad choice, then I am making their choices for them, and they don’t have free will.
If God prevents all bad things from happening, then those, who choose bad things, will not be responsible for their choices, since God will make them like robots. God cannot hold people accountable for bad things, if they don’t have the freedom to do bad.
So the freedom that allows me to choose God, also, allows the bad person to do bad things.
The good thing is that God can take something awful and horrible and make something good out of it.
A woman on Oprah was shot in the head by one of two burglars. She was a Christian and forgave the young man. She wrote to him in prison. He became a Christian as a result, saying that he had never had anyone in his life love him at all, let alone unconditionally. She became like a mother to him and they have a wonderful relationship that they both give God the glory for.
This question is answered by Jesus, too.
John 9:1-3
Good News Translation (GNT)
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been born blind. 2 His disciples asked him, “Teacher, whose sin caused him to be born blind? Was it his own or his parents' sin?”
3 Jesus answered, “His blindness has nothing to do with his sins or his parents' sins. He is blind so that God's power might be seen at work in him.

I'm sure that others have faced these questions when trying to talk to a non-believer about God. What do you say to those who say:

4. "What kind of God allows children to be molested, killed, tortured?"

4. "What kind of God allows children to be molested, killed, tortured?"
I think question 3 and 4 are similar in their answers.
One of the reasons that we baptize babies or christen them, is to put God’s seal on them. In my tradition, we ask the congregation to pray for them and work to see that we intervene against the powers of evil that afflict our culture. I think we as believers have failed to pray for them. Remember, when Christ was asked why his disciples were not able to heal the man’s son, he called them a faithless generation and Jesus replied, Mark 9:27-29

King James Version (KJV)

27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?

29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.
So as Christians, our work is cut out for us. This is why we emphasize prayer here. The prayer of the faithful makes a difference.
James 5:14-16
New Century Version (NCV)
14 Anyone who is sick should call the church’s elders. They should pray for and pour oil on the person in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer that is said with faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will heal that person. And if the person has sinned, the sins will be forgiven. 16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so God can heal you. When a believing person prays, great things happen.