rapture – Page 2

Kay Cude Poetry: The Catching Away, the Rapture

Posted on May 5, 2017May 5, 2017 by elizabethprata

Kay Cude is a Christian poet who uses photos or illustrations as a backdrop to her poetry on major Christian themes. The following is used with permission. Click to enlarge. Here is the Artist’s Statement.

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We are so very enthralled by the beauty of this earth. Its splendor loudly declares it to be the handiwork of GOD THE I AM. How profound is His grace to share the wonders and workings of His creation with all mankind, the righteous and the unrighteous (Matthew 5:44-45). But as His redeemed Bride of Christ, we know this earthly realm is not our “home;” its final stages are playing out vividly before our eyes. We therefore live expectantly awaiting “eagerly our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies” (Romans 8:18-25; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) while this present earth and sin continue their measured steps into a final death throe.

We, the Bride of Christ, yearn for the many who do not know Christ to listen to our pleas for their salvation. These end times are a herald for false teachers and “religions” to present counterfeit and deceptive narratives of another Gospel (Mathew 24:24; Mark 13:22; Galatians 1:3-10; 2 Timothy 2:13; 2 Peter 2:1-3; Revelation 13:13-14), the Rapture (Harpazo, Strong’s G726 – harpazo; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18) and the Day of the Lord (Isaiah 13:6-13; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; 2 Peter 3:1-10).

Too easily “natural” man succumbs to error ignorantly, willingly or because satisfying the “flesh” is the only thing one knows and it is preferable and seems, sounds or feels “right.” Perhaps one has never heard the TRUTH that GOD or that He as Creator is Sovereign over all things, and is patient and loving and ready to forgive and reconcile man to Him through Christ. Or perhaps they don’t understand that man’s life was never meant to be separate from GOD and that their sin and futility initiated through Satan, the deceiver (Matthew 13:19; John 8:44; 2 Corinthians 11:3, 14; Daniel 8:25) can be voided through receiving Christ as Saviour (What Does it Mean to be Saved?” Ephesians 2:8-10″ https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-2-what-does-it-mean-be-saved-ephesians-28-10).

So while we speak of our catching away, we also speak warnings of the coming Tribulation.

encouragement, Uncategorized

End of the Week Encouragement

Posted on May 4, 2017May 4, 2017 by elizabethprata

1 Thessalonians 5:1-9: Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.

We will not be surprised. The Lord is gracious and kind! Therefore we are alert, looking for our Redemption and mindful of the lost state of our brothers. Prophecy should spark us to fervency of faith and greater hope.

Have you had a good week? Yes? Praise Jesus! No? Then praise Him anyway! We have another week to witness, and to share the Gospel with people in our lives. I pray that He will shine His light through me even more brightly this week than the week before so that when people see me, they really see Jesus’ glory.

Ephesians 4:13 says, Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:… won’t that be a wonderful moment when we ALL worship Him in unity and perfect wholeness of the Body!

It is my opinion that God is slowly but surely removing protection from the world, and He is upsetting our self-satisfied equilibrium by demonstrating we can only depend on Him. But no matter what your interpretation is of worldly events, ultimately, we all know God is sovereign. He owns the world and the people in it. (Psalm 24:1).

Ezekiel 39:28 – Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind.

Is this a prophecy that has been fulfilled? Or is it one to come? It is one to come, and is related to the last days. Matthew Henry comments:

This is the conclusion of the whole matter going before, and has reference not only to the predictions concerning Gog and Magog, but to all the prophecies of this book concerning the captivity of the house of Israel, and then concerning their restoration and return out of their captivity. 39:23-29 When the Lord shall have mercy on the whole house of Israel, by converting them to Christianity, and when they shall have borne the shame of being cast off for their sins, then the nations shall learn to know, worship, and serve him. Then Israel also shall know the Lord, as revealed in and by Christ. Past events do not answer to these predictions. The pouring out of the Spirit is a pledge that God’s favour will continue. He will hide his face no more from those on whom he has poured out his Spirit.

Today would have been my father’s 84th birthday. He died suddenly and instantly in an automobile crash two-and-a-half years ago. He had never been born again. He personally believed his eternity was settled, because God does not exist. ‘He is a crutch for the witless, an opiate of the masses’ he told me many times. That is not true, as Christians understand. However, for all those people who wonder, who question, who say that they will wait until later to settle their after-life issues: you never know when it will be your time to meet your maker!

Hay bale kills ELO member

A giant bale of hay has killed a founding member of the Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) band after it tumbled down a hill and crashed into his van. Cellist Mike Edwards, 62, died after the 600 kg (1,323 lb) bale rolled down a steep field in Devon, southern England, smashed through a hedge and careered on to the road. He died instantly in the freak accident on Friday afternoon.

DO NOT WAIT! Settle your sin account with Jesus now. Eternity is long!

prophecy, Uncategorized

Left Behind author Tim LaHaye, passes away

Posted on July 25, 2016 by elizabethprata

Christianity Today reports today that sadly,

Tim LaHaye, the best-selling author best known for the Left Behind series, “graduated to heaven” early this morning after suffering a stroke at age 90. His family announced the news of his passing at a San Diego hospital on his ministry Facebook page.

In my early days of Christianity, I read most of the Left Behind series. A lot of people did. Here is an article about the series from earlier in July, before Dr LaHaye’s passing.

End times author breaks down prophecy and fiction

A popular author who helped invigorate pop culture interest in Christian eschatology with the release of the first book in the “Left Behind” series 21 years ago is surprised by the novel’s monumental impact. … Years later, it not only continues to fly off bookshelves, it has been the impetus for at least four apocalyptic-themed Hollywood films.

It’s hard to imagine it’s been 21 years, even though I was not a Christian for 10 of those. The series referred to is a series of fiction books written from the point of view of non-believers living through the rapture, the rise of the antichrist, and the Tribulation. Though in the books, most of the main characters convert to Christianity subsequent to the Rapture. The books’ backdrop is Christian apocalyptic, unlike most of today’s apocalyptic books, TV shows, movies, and video games which present an apocalypse from a secular point of view. The “Left Behind” books present the real apocalypse, though sanitized and fictionalized. Continue reading “Left Behind author Tim LaHaye, passes away” →