I remember when the Left Behind books came out. I didn't start reading them at first. Honestly, I was not sure what they were. But, when the third or fourth book came out (I can't exactly remember), the hype about the books compelled me to pick them up and start reading them. As soon as I read the first one, I had to get the second one and every other one that was available. I was hooked. I became invested in the story and the characters. And, not only that, I became invested in the Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins' vision of Revelation and what would happen in the end times. I even went to an end-times conference in Florida where Tim Lahaye was the primary speaker. I couldn't get enough of end-times prophecy. I was excited about the fact that I could understand Revelation, at least to some extent.
Left Behind is getting hype once again with the new movie starring Nicolas Cage. This is the first time (at least in a long time) that a high-profile actor has starred in a Christian movie. This movie is a reboot of the Left Behind movies that starred Kirk Cameron back in 2000. The premise is based on the Left Behind books by Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins. If you know nothing about the books or the movies, the basic idea is that an event known as the Rapture occurs where the followers of Jesus disappear in a flash and those who are not believers are left behind to pick up the pieces. Mass destruction and chaos ensues because people disappear while driving cars, flying planes, teaching class, etc. The Rapture kicks off the seven year tribulation where the world is judged by God and the antiChrist rises to power.
As you can probably guess, social media has been all over Left Behind. Reviews of the movie have been posted and articles written and shared about this belief about how the world will end. Like I said above, I believed in the rapture. I believed that those of us who believe in Jesus now would disappear and the rest would undergo chaos and judgment for seven years until Christ actually returned. But, notice I said I believed, past tense. Times have changed since I've read those books and my view of Revelation has changed too.
Christians become obsessed with the end-times. We want to know what's going to happen and we try with all of our might to figure it out. But, should that be our main focus? We want to promote movies starring actors like Nicholas Cage because we think that will proclaim the good news of Jesus. But, should we promote a movie like this? Should we promote a movie that promotes a view of chaos and judgment especially when we live in a culture that rejects the church because they see the church as too judgmental?
I don't believe in the rapture or Left Behind anymore. The rapture is not biblically sound. There are some verses in Thessalonians that speak vaguely of being caught up in the air with Christ. But, those verses do not imply that Jesus never set foot on this earth after his people were caught up with him in the clouds. The rapture is an idea that originated in 1590 with a Catholic Jesuit named Francisco Ribera. It gained popularity in the late 1700s and the mid 1800s. Prior to these, there is no mention of a rapture and the early Christian church as well as the Catholic Church and Protestant Calvinists rejected the idea.
Today we hold onto the idea of the rapture like it is Gospel truth. Honestly, I don't know how Revelation will play out, but the one thing I do know is that Christ is coming back. Since the Left Behind series, the Church in this country has put the rapture and the end-times at the forefront of its teaching. We want to focus on it. We write books about it. Anything that happens in the middle east is a sign that the end times are upon us. My question is, "Shouldn't we focus more on the life-changing message of the Gospel rather than a belief that may not be true or accurate?"
Time is ticking down. We are closer to the end than the apostles were. But, that does not mean we need to preach the end. We need to preach Christ like the apostles did. We need to preach the grace and love of God. We need to leave Left Behind in the past and move forward. We need to stop looking for temples to be reconstructed and blood moons. We need to start looking for ways we can reach people with the Gospel.
The God I read about in the Bible is a loving and gracious God. He is a God of judgment, but those judgments have their appointed times. He will judge those who do not follow Him, but I don't think those of us who follow him will be raptured before a great tribulation. And, I don't want to be. I want to be here when it comes to tell as many people as I can that my King is returning to make all things new. I want to follow in the footsteps of my King who was crucified for what he believed and taught. I want to find comfort in His words when he said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
Do I think that God's people will be raptured? No. Do I think Christ will come back to make all things new? Yes. Do I fear the end times? No because my King has overcome the world. Do I want to teach people a belief that will instill fear in them? No. I would rather teach grace.
Left Behind has run its course. Let's leave it in the past and let's move forward as we await the glorious return of our King.
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