They say, at this point in time the spread of the virus is just the tip of the iceberg. I offer to you a similar tip of the iceberg. Jesus said that no man knows the time when he will return. Therefore, it would be foolish to attempt such a prediction. He may return before I finish this article. He may return in 10 years or 20 years or 50 years. When God is ready, Jesus will come back.
Before the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, his disciples wanted to know the future. It was in that conversation that he said no one knows except God. He did, though, give them and us a hint. He offered an extensive list of what would happen at that time before his return.
I do not want to be mistaken as an alarmist and that is not the intent of this article. Many people have been under what amounts to house arrest. Mental health counseling is encouraged on television for who find themselves exceptionally stressed. It can easily be said that the world is turned upside down by this virus. It makes me wonder how much the world will be upside down after the rapture.
How will those left behind react to thousands and millions of people who suddenly disappear in the blink of an eye? How will they rationalize it? How will they regroup to form the society in which they want to live? What leadership will be necessary to make that happen?
First: let me list for you the things that Jesus said in his hint to the disciples. He said there would be many false messiahs, there will be wars and rumors of wars, nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, there would be famines and pestilence, there would be earthquakes in various places. Jesus stopped to say, “these are just the beginning.”
He went on to say that Christians would be persecuted. Remember that the Christians to which he is referring are those who come to know Christ after the rapture perhaps by the testimony that you and I have offered before the rapture or maybe just by reading the Bible. He explained that there would be many offended and that people would betray each other and even hate each other, there would be false prophets, because of everyone’s iniquity love will wax cold. He stopped again to say that those Christians who come to know Jesus during the tribulation and have endured to the end shall be saved.
Finally, he said the gospel of the kingdom would be preached in all the world for a witness. We don’t know exactly what he meant by that because the gospel has been preached far and wide throughout the world already. However, he said that as things were in the days of Noah so would the conduct of mankind be like when they eat, drink, marry, and are given in marriage. After all that he said, “then shall the end come.”
Again, I repeat that I’m not writing this article to be an alarmist. I’m just comparing the reaction people are having to this virus and the restrictions because of the virus that is so minor compared to what will happen after the rapture. I am also saying that some of these things listed above are now happening in our lifetimes. Does it not behoove us to ask Jesus to forgive us of our sin, come into her heart, and make us Christians, and ask for the help of the Holy Spirit whereby we may lead a life pleasing to him?
Christian Writer 