“In a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound,
and the
dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” (1 Corinthians
15:52)
In the above verse we see
that when Jesus Christ comes for His Church at the Rapture, it will happen very
suddenly and will take less than one second. Think about that. In less than one
second the Rapture will start and end. In less than one second everyone who is
in Christ, whether alive or dead, will be removed from earth and transferred to
Heaven. Now that is fast!
The Greek word for “moment”
in the above verse is atomos. We get our word “atom” from this word. (Does that
tell you anything?) So, in a very small (think “atom”) amount of time, as in
the blink of an eye (twinkling of an eye) the Rapture will happen.
Apparently when the eye
blinks it takes anywhere from 0.1 to 0.4 seconds or 100 to 400 milliseconds.
One second equals 1,000 milliseconds. So as little as one tenth of a second to
four tenths of a second the Rapture will start and end. No wonder Jesus told us
to be watching and be ready!
I’ve always felt that God has
a specific number of people in mind to complete His Church, the bride. In other
words, when a certain number is reached, the Rapture will occur. Think about
this, using the number “100” merely as a very simple example. If the Lord’s
number to be reached for the Church is 100, when 100 is reached, the door is
closed for the Church age.
Black Friday is coming up
soon. If a department store says “we will accept the first 100 shoppers,” then
that means anyone coming after that is excluded. If a movie theater accepts so
many patrons to watch a newly released premier movie, no one else can get in
once the theater is full. In either case, late arrivals are in for a shock, and
so it is with the Rapture.
Nobody knows but God how many
‘spaces’ are available to be a part of the Lord’s true Church (His bride).
There may be dozens, hundreds, thousands, or millions. We don’t know. We do
know this. They are filling up fast. Many people all over the world are still
being saved.
One of Satan’s greatest lies
is to convince us that we have plenty of time. Most people never get in a hurry
when it comes to the well-being of their soul. I suppose we think we’ll live
forever and if the Rapture happens we’ll just call out, “Hold up a minute. I’m
coming.” Then there are those who still just don’t believe what God says about
sin and our necessity for a Savior.
I’ve always been one of those
people who have to be early if I need to be somewhere. There are others. I’ve
met them. There are also those dear folks who never ever get in a hurry, and
are usually late. I’ve seen plenty of them too. Which are you?
If I’m hiring someone for a
job, they’ve already impressed me, negatively, if they are late for the
interview, but a job interview just doesn’t hold the same weight as the
importance of our eternity destiny.
It’s entirely possible that
many of us may be alive when the Rapture occurs, but how many will have to
suffer the anguish of the Tribulation because they thought they had plenty of
time? How many will suffer the fires of hell because they thought they had
plenty of time, but death swallowed them whole before they even realized what
happened?
How long does it take to die?
Sometimes it does take days, weeks, and more. How many of those who died within
seconds from a car wreck, or heart attack thought there were years remaining to
do something about their soul’s destiny? Folks we have no guarantee of our next
breath.
“Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring.” (Proverbs 27:1)
“Why, you do not even know
what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a
little while and then vanishes.” (James 4:14 NIV)
In the blink of an eye we can
be dead. In the blink of an eye the Rapture can occur. Have you made
preparations? Are you ready?
Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
