The Rapture Baloney

So, all of the righteous people in the world will be "raptured" to heaven at 6 pm on May 21st; & the earth will be destroyed 5 months later on October 21st (1 day before my 62nd birthday, no less). All this according to the wacko founder of Family Radio Worldwide, Harold Camping. Well guess what, folks? According to Scripture, it ain't gonna happen!

In Matthew 24, when asked about his ultimate return, Jesus says very directly, "But about that day & hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven nor the Son, but only the Father." I guess Harold Camping knows better than Jesus; although Camping has already been incorrect once before about Jesus' return (back in 1994).

In addition to the problem of timing, it needs to be noted that the whole idea of The Rapture--the belief that Christ will take the faithful to heaven prior to a period of tribulation on earth--is non-Scriptural. The Rapture is a relatively new notion (literally "dreamed up" by an English lawyer less than 200 years ago); & most Christians don't beleive it.

Nor should they--or we! The idea of a Rapture is based almost exclusively on misinterpretations of 2 verses in the Bible. In 1 Thessalonians 4, Paul tries to comfort believers concerning their loved ones who have died prior to Christ's return. In verse 17 he writes, "Then we who are alive will be caught up in the clouds together with them (the dead) to meet the Lord in the air; & so we will be with the Lord forever."

Jesus is returning to earth & believers will be lifted "up in the clouds...to the Lord." So, where does the Bible say that Jesus suddenly makes a U-turn & pulls all of us up to paradise with him? It doesn't. In fact, it says just the opposite; for the Greek word apantesin means much more than "meet." It is a technical term in Greek that was used for times when people would go out to meet a dignitary to ESCORT HIM INTO THEIR CITY.

Apantesin is used in only 3 other places in the Bible--in each case to connote meeting someone & accompanying them to the place to which they are already bound. Most notably, it is used in Matthew 25 to describe the bridesmaids going out to meet the bridegroom to accompany him to the wedding (a parable of preparedness for Jesus' return).

Which brings us to the 2nd verse used by the Rapture-promoters, Matthew 24:40, "Then 2 will be in the field; 1 will be taken & 1 will be left." The Rapture folks, of course, use this as proof that the righteous will be "taken" & the sinful will be "left" behind. The problem is that this is NOT what Jesus is saying, when you look at the entire passage.

You see, in the verses immediately preceding 40, Jesus has been comparing the day of his return with "the days of Noah" (v. 37). Let's think about what happened during The Flood. Those who were evil were swept away (taken) & the righteous, Noah & his family, were left. Oops! What the Rapture-promoters say is the exact OPPOSITE of what Jesus says.

There will be no Rapture at 6 pm on May 21st because God has never said that there will be a rapture of any kind. Some day--a day which no one, not Harold Camping nor Hal Lindsey nor Pat Robertson nor Tim LeHaye, can determine--Jesus has promised that He will return to establish his perfect kingdom here on earth. May we live each day in the sure hope of that day & not in fear of some manmade, fictitious rapture.

Fear

In his first Inaugural Address, during some of the darkest days of the Great Depression, Franklin Roosevelt said, "This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive, and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself..."

Seventy-eight years later, we appear to have a fresh cadre of politicians who would reject FDR's assessment of this "great Nation." Indeed, they scream at us from TV ad after TV ad that we have much to fear--healthcare reform, gambling, gambling opponents, immigrants, taxes, conservatives, liberals, Nancy Pelosi, Rand Paul and the list goes on and on. Fear-mongering, lying and character assassination seem to be the strategies of the day for garnering votes.

All of this, though, depends upon two major factors: (1) A populace that is so ignorant of current affairs and history that it will believe anything that Fox News or CNBC or the Tea Party pays to put on the air. And (2) A nation that doubts its own ability to "endure...revive...and prosper."

I pray that voters will shed the fear, reject the politics of negativity, and vote this coming Tuesday for women and men who are forwarding positive solutions to troubling and complicated issues. Let us not succomb to the politics of fear and despair, but instead live up to Roosevelt's assessment of the United States as a "great Nation."

Voice of the Day- May 14

Voice of the Day

I don't care if you're dead! Jesus is here, and he wants to resurrect somebody.- Rumi


I think each of us need to have this saying posted all around our lives. We each have those moments when we feel overwhelmed or overworked--dead to life. We need to be reminded that it is at those moments of "death" that Jesus is still with us, wanting so desparately to "resurrect" us--to restore us to life.

Voice for May 13

Verse of the Day

Answer me when I call, O God of my right!You gave me room when I was in distress.Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer. How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame?How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?But know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for himself;the Lord hears when I call to him. - Psalm 4:1-3

Voice of the Day

If Christ were coming again tomorrow, I would plant a tree today. - Martin Luther

Luther's above comment flies directly into the face of the popular Rapture/Left Behind mentality of many Christians today. But then, Scripture also contradicts teaching about a Rapture, as well. Nowhere does the Bible say that Jesus is returning to earth to take us with Him to heaven. It states that Jesus is coming again TO THE EARTH.

God has not given up on us or this planet that He created. That is why Luther would "plant a tree"-- he knows that Jesus 2nd coming will be a time when the earth will be restored to its original perfection, not destroyed. God has not ceded this planet as Satan's domain for eternity. This is God's creation; & God still loves it.

We all need Luther's hope & confidence in God & in God's word!

Verse & Voice- April 28

Verse of the Day

Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. The Lord has heard my supplication; the Lord accepts my prayer. - Psalm 6:8-9

Voice of the Day

It is so important not to let ourselves off the hook or to become apathetic or cynical by telling ourselves that nothing works or makes a difference. Every day, light your small candle.... The inaction and actions of many human beings over a long time contributed to the crises our children face, and it is the action and struggle of many human beings over time that will solve them—with God's help. So every day, light your small candle. - Marian Wright Edelman Guide My Feet

The quote from Marian Wrigth Edelman is a tough one for me sometimes. I see the "inaction & actions" of so many people, including Christians, in our world that are contributing to degradation of our planet, to continuing (& often escalating war & hatred), to the widening gap between the haves & have-nots, & on & on; & I dismay that my small candle cannot make a difference.

And guess what? What Ms. Edelman is really saying is that it can't...without God's help, that is. Conversely, without my little candle there may be no spark for God to fan into the flame of change.

Doubt

Verse of the Day

When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."- Matthew 28:17-20

Voice of the Day

Language has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone, and the word solitude to express the glory of being alone.- Paul Tillich

These verses from Matthew’s Gospel keep emerging in my life. “When they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted.”

In her book Amazing Grace, Annie Dillard writes, “…doubt is merely the seed of faith, a sign that faith is alive & ready to grow.” The story of Abraham & Sarah is a prime example of this. Their faith grew through many seasons of trials & doubts & hardships. Obviously, Jesus’ disciples experienced the same.

On Christmas Eve, CBS aired the documentary “In God’s Name,” which featured faith leaders from around the world (& from various faith backgrounds). I think our ELCA Presiding Bishop, Mark Hanson, did a wonderful job throughout; but I was most impressed by his statements reflecting his own continuing journey of doubt & faith.

By contrast, the current President of the Southern Baptist Convention claims to have had absolutely no doubts at all since he “gave his life to Jesus” at the age of 9. If that is true (which I seriously doubt), then this Baptist leader has a very shallow & undeveloped faith indeed.
Doubt is natural. Doubt is healthy. Doubt truly is “the seed of faith.”

Verse & Voice- Dec. 3

Verse of the Day

"Friends, why are you doing this? We are mortals just like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations he allowed all the nations to follow their own ways; yet he has not left himself without a witness in doing good--giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filling you with food and your hearts with joy."- Acts 14:15-17

Voice of the Day

People never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.- Blaise Pascal


Pascal is so correct. Just look at Muslim suicide bombers & jihadists today. Or view the long history of Christian intolerance—the Crusades, the Inquisition, the conquest of the New World, & homophobia, just to name a few.

It brings to mind the scene in “The Last Temptation of Christ” in which Satan comes to Jesus as the Lord is suffering on the cross & gives Jesus a glimpse of the atrocities that will be perpetrated in His name. Satan then asks Jesus if the sacrifice is truly worth it. Sometimes you have to wonder…

Was it worth it? What has happened to all that Jesus taught? Why do we so seldom follow Jesus’ example of how to live & how to love?