Evacuation

"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³⁷As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; ³⁹and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left." Matthew 24:36-41

I've spent my extra spare time this week reading a fictional book about what "the end of days" could be like. It's been presenting things in a way that I've never encountered before. Most accounts of the end of the world and the rapture are dark and gloomy. Many a book or a movie has capitalized on the doom that happens around the time Jesus will return for His people. This account that I've been reading, presents it in a much more positive light. Yes, the groanings and moanings of the earth signify that time draws near, and the wars and rumors of wars are indeed signs of the end. And yet, while we Christians look forward to the idea of the rapture- of being caught up with Christ, most of us are a bit frightened of the idea, because of all the horrible events that are rumored to take place along with it.

But when we think about God being a loving God, it changes the perspective a bit, and makes the whole idea a little less frightening to me. Because God is a loving God- He loves mankind so much that He sent Jesus to die so that every single person ever born has the opportunity to choose to follow Him. And the reason the end of days has been so long in coming is that our Loving God wants to allow as much time as possible for as many of us as possible to make that eternal decision.

But the day will come, when Jesus will return for His children. But rather than paint a gloomy picture of natural disasters and wars and bombs, lets think of the rapture in a completely different light. Lets think of it as an evacuation. The devil and all his fury is going to be released on the earth for a time of tribulation, and it is our Loving God who want to see His Children evacuated to safety to escape all that the devil may dish out. Think about that for a minute, and really let it sink in. Think about the idea of the rapture actually being a relocation of God's Children to safety- a way to escape all the doom and gloom we read about in Revelation and Daniel.

Now that's just plain cool and exciting! The truth is, that all the scholars in the world can dissect those books of the Bible and try to give us an account of how things might happen, but until they come to pass, we don't really know what could happen or how things will actually occur. But we can rejoice in knowing that our Loving Father in Heaven has provided a way for His Children to escape the worst of the fury being unleashed on earth. He will send His Son, His Champion, and our King to gather us all together and relocate us to a safer, more peaceful place. Every single person on earth who has made the decision to follow Jesus will be evacuated to a heavenly location.

Honestly, thinking about it in those terms, it makes me wonder why we don't have people lining up at our church doors, begging to be shown the way to Christ! It also makes me look more forward to the event myself, and maybe it makes me a little more bold. I mean, why wait until the boat is actually sinking to form a rescue plan? All we have to do is say YES to Jesus and the plan is in place. Our rescue plan is cemented, and then it's up to us to get as many people on board that boat with us as we can. With a 100% guarantee of survival, who would want to pass that up?

"At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. ³¹And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. " Matthew 24:30-31

I, for one, like the idea of being evacuated. I like the idea that before it really gets bad here on earth, Jesus will arrive and we will be rescued and transported to Heaven. Thinking in those terms just makes the whole concept of Jesus' return that much more wonderful and pleasant to me. The evacuation orders are in place, He's just waiting to be told "Go." And then there will be much rejoicing as we are relocated to live with The King.