PREPARING FOR THE COMING OF THE LORD

Preparing For the Coming of the Jesus Christ in the Rapture

Unless people have knowledge of the Endtimes, and are prepared for Jesus’ Coming, they will be LEFT BEHIND in the Antichrist system that is now subtly engulfing the whole world. Unless the pastors and leaders prepare their people for His coming, many will be LEFT BEHIND, including themselves. Hos4:6 states ‘My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee..’. God is calling a holy and pure people Tit2:13,14, Ep1:4 to take them alive with Him to heaven in the Rapture 1Th4:17. We need to be Rapture Ready in order to ESCAPE God’s wrath coming upon the earth in the Great Tribulation 1Th1:10. Like the people in Noah’s days who perished or the 5 foolish virgins Mt25:11, many will not be READY, but will be LEFT BEHIND to suffer, die, or be martyred. They will not be ready for the Lord’s coming and ESCAPE, for ‘the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience’ Co3:6.

One can only prepare for the Day of the Rapture, but never for the Great Tribulation! Jesus repeatedly warned us to WATCH, PRAY, BE READY, BE PURE, BE HOLY, TO LOOK FOR HIS RETURN in order to ESCAPE the things which shall come to past in the Endtimes Lk21:36! If one does not believe in, or is not ready for the Rapture and is LEFT BEHIND, it would be impossible for him to prepare for the atrocities that will occur during the Great Tribulation- a most terrible, terrifying, miserable, hopeless, painful, and grievous 42 months period of living hell on earth Re13:5,7!

Jesus said ‘..except those days be shortened, there should no flesh be saved..’ Mt24:22. This means if the Great Tribulation were to continue much longer, everyone would either die or be killed! There will be wars throughout the world, great nuclear explosions, great natural disasters, famine, droughts, pestilence, and plagues wiping out millions upon millions of people! Everyone would be helpless while living through it. If one does not have the faith to believe the words of Jesus, ‘..I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also’ Jn14:3, then there is no other ESCAPE for him, but to be LEFT BEHIND to suffer in the Great Tribulation.

Signs of  the Endtimes 

What does the Bible say about the Endtimes? Referring to ‘the end of the world’, Jesus said ‘..he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved’ Mt24:13. What must we endure to be saved, and to be saved from what? Jesus also said ‘..when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth’ Lk18:8. The Bible foretold of many signs of the Endtimes before Jesus’ return to earth. They are found throughout the Bible, especially in Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21, and in the book of Revelation. Some signs are;

• Israel’s rebirth as a nation in 1948 will culminate in the final great war of Armageddon Is66:8, Re16:16, Zec14:2,
• The worldwide preaching of the Gospel of the kingdom to all nations Mt24:14, Mk16:15,
• Great earthquakes in divers places; famines, and pestilences; fearful sights and great signs from heaven Lk21:11,
• Increasing immorality, corruption, and violence 2Ti3:1-4, 2Pe2:6,
• Many false prophets and false Christs deceiving many believers Mt24:4,5,11,24,
• Great apostasy in the churches 2Ti3:5, and a Great falling away of believers 2Th2:2-12,
• Wars and rumours of war Mt24:6, Mk13:7,
• Distress of nations with perplexity Lk21:25, and Worldwide economic collapse Re18:9-11
• Rise of the Antichrist in a New World Order- a One World Gov’t, Religious, Social, Economic, Monetary System Re13:1-18.
• Great Tribulation such as the world has never known before Mt24:21.

The total fulfillment of all these signs represent ‘the end of the world’ described by Jesus to his disciples Mt24:3. Jesus said ‘Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to ESCAPE all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man’ Lk21:36. He said we must endure till the end to be to be saved from the terrible things that are coming upon the earth Mt24:13,21. To be Rapture Ready to ESCAPE, requires believing that we are nearing the End, knowing what God is doing and what is happening today, and preparing for the Lord’s coming. 

A Worldwide Monetary Collapse; the Death of the US$

Today we live in a global economy such as what happens in America and other major countries may affect the rest of the world. The whole world is built upon a mountain of debt ready to collapse. For example, the present debt crisis in the Eurozone countries is a very dangerous problem that can topple the world. Over the past 5 years, China has increased her national debt tremendously. Japan’s debt is over 2.5 times her annual GDP. However, America is in the worst debt situation per capita than all these countries. In 2004, our national debt was $7 trillion. Today, it is nearly $20 trillion, equivalent to over $60,000 for every man, woman and child. Our leaders are reluctant and powerless to address and reduce the national debt, and we are heading for another major debt crisis in early Feb 2014. America’s only recourse is for the US Federal Reserve Bank to continue ‘quantitative easing’, to print more money out of thin air, till the US$ becomes worthless and collapses.

When the US$ collapses, all nations will suffer along with America, because the US$ is the world’s reserve currency, used and held by every country. The demise of the US$ due to excessive US indebtedness will destroy the present world’s economic system. An economic collapse due to bank failures, terrorism, war, famine, national calamities and disasters will bring America and the rest of the world to ‘their knees’ worse than the Great Depression of the 1930s. Jesus spoke of a time when ‘Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth..’ Lk21:26. Many heart attacks will occur when the financial market crashes. So how should we prepare for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ? How can we be prepared, and what must we do to be saved? 

How To Prepare for Jesus’ Coming At the Rapture

• Watching and Praying to Be Accounted Worthy to Escape the Coming World Crises Lk21:36.
• Be Filled With the Holy Spirit Ep3:18b; Be Led by the Spirit of God Ro8:14; Be Sealed With the Holy Spirit of God Ep4:30.
• Study and Live by Every Word 2Ti2:15, 2Ti3:16, Mt4:4; Abide in Jesus Jn15:5,7.
• Be Pure and Holy Mt5:8, Heb12:14, Tit2:13,14, 1Jn3:3; Love God and Not the World 1Jn2:15; Must Forgive Others Mk11:26.
• Seek God’s Kingdom First and His Righteousness Mt6:33 
• Preach the Gospel Mk16:15; Please God by Doing His Will Mt6:9,10, Mt7:21, Mt12:50. 
• The 3 R’s in the book of Ezekiel- REPENT, RETURN, and REMAIN With the Lord – Ez3:17-21

Watching and Praying For the Rapture

Jesus said to watch for the signs of His return, and to pray to escape the bad things that He prophesied would come to pass. He said ‘..nation shall rise against nation.. there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places’ Mt24:6; ‘.. there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring.. when these things BEGIN TO COME TO PASS, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your REDEMPTION draweth nigh’ Lk21:25,28.

Today, there are many reports of strange signs in the heavens- comets, fireballs, and meteorites, UFOs, and on earth- sinkholes, water turning red, massive bird and sea-life kills, new volcanoes erupting, strong earthquakes, and superstorms and typhoons. Jesus instructed us to PRAY  ‘Our Father..thy kingdom come..lead us not into temptation, but Deliver Us From Evil’ Mt6:11, and ‘..PRAY ALWAYS, that ye may be accounted worthy to ESCAPE all these things that SHALL COME TO PASS, and to stand before the Son of man’ Lk21:36. The Rapture is our only ESCAPE  from the coming Great Tribulation!

Be Filled, Led, and SEALED WITH THAT HOLY SPIRIT OF PROMISE 

We need the Holy Spirit working in our lives to prepare us for the Rapture. Jesus said ‘.. but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence’ Ac1:5. The Holy Spirit is given to teach us all things Jn14:26, guide us into all truth, to show us things to come Jn16:13,14, Ro8:14. Paul wrote ‘But if the Spirit of (God) that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, (God) that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you’ Ro8:11. Paul said ‘Ye were SEALED with that Holy Spirit of PROMISE’ Ep1:13, and ‘grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are SEALED unto the Day of REDEMPTION’ Ep4:30. The Holy Spirit shall quicken our mortal bodies to meet Jesus in the AIR 1Th4:17, and the PROMISE is the Rapture- the Day of Our REDEMPTION!

Study and Live By Every Word of God 

Paul said ‘Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth’ 2Ti2:15. He said ‘All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works’ 2Ti3:16,17. Jesus said ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God’ Mt4:4. Here we also see the importance of the Word of God for correct doctrine on how to live, and what to do. We need to STUDY the Bible and know the Word to be prepared for Jesus’ coming in the Rapture.

Be Pure and Holy; Love God and Others; Must Forgive Others

1Jn3:1-3 state ‘Behold, what manner of Love The Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.. when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall SEE him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him PURIFIETH himself, even as he is PURE’. Jesus said ‘Blessed are the PURE in heart for they shall SEE God’ Mt5:8. Paul wrote ‘Follow peace with all men, and HOLINESS, without which no man shall SEE the Lord’ Heb12:14. Paul said ‘LOOKING for that blessed hope, and the glorious APPEARING of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might REDEEM us from all iniquity, and PURIFY UNTO HIMSELF a peculiar people, zealous of good works’ Tit2:13,14.

The first and great commandment is to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, and mind, and the 2^nd one is to love thy neighbor as yourself  Mt22:37,39. But ‘Love not the world.. If any man love the world, the love of The Father is not in him’ 1Jn2:15.  Also we need to forgive others when they trespass against us. Mk11:26 states ‘..if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses’. All these scriptures state that we need to be PURE and HOLY, Love the Lord and others, and Forgive others in order to SEE and be with Jesus in the Rapture.

Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness 

Jesus instructed us to ‘..seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you’ Mt6:33. We need to find our roles in life to fulfill God’s kingdom on earth, by doing His will. What does God want us to do? What is the Holy Spirit telling us to do and how is He leading us? Are we abiding in Jesus and His Word abiding in us? Are we taking up our cross, denying ourselves and following Him Mt16:24? Do we have love one for another? Jesus said ‘By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another’ Jn13:35. God promised His protection and blessings if we put His kingdom and His righteousness first. Are we bearing much fruit? Jesus said ‘Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples’ Jn15:7,8. Paul wrote ‘For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but RIGHTEOUSNESS, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost’ Ro14:17.

Preach the Gospel and Please God by Doing His Will 

In the Great Commission, Jesus told us to preach the Gospel to everyone Mt28:19,20, Mk16:15, Lk24:49, and Ac1:8. Jesus said ‘Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature’ Mk16:15. He told us also to do the Will of our Father in heaven: ‘For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own Will, but the Will of him that sent me’ Jn6:38, and ‘..as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you’ Jn20:21. When we obey God, this pleases and gives us great favor with Him. Jesus said ‘If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you’ Jn15:7 and ‘..Whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you’ Jn15:16. Jesus said no one ‘shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven’ Mt7:21.

The 3 R’s in the book of Ezekiel– REPENT, RETURN, and REMAIN With the Lord

In Ezekiel chapter 3, God’s warnings were directed to 3 groups of people- the Wicked, the Backslider, and the RIGHTEOUS, much like the 3 groups mentioned by Jesus in in his message to church of the Laodiceans, the Cold, the Lukewarm, and the Hot Christians Re3:16. God told Ezekiel if the Watchman did not warn the Wicked or the Backslider, they will die in their sins, but ‘his blood would I require at thine hand’ Ez3:18,20.

In the 1st and 2nd groups, the Wicked and the Backslider, they both needed to REPENT or they would die in their sins. One big difference regarding the Backslider is that God will NOT remember any of his once righteousness, unless he REPENTS. In the 3rd group, the RIGHTEOUS shall surely live, ONLY if he remained RIGHTEOUS. The implication here is that ONLY the RIGHTEOUS who REPENTS, RETURNS, and REMAINS true to the Lord will be taken by Jesus in the Rapture. Jesus said ‘Except ye REPENT, ye shall all likewise perish’ Lk13:3. No one will be taken in the Rapture unless he REPENTS and REMAIN RIGHTEOUS with the Lord!

Preparing For Jesus’ Coming

Much of what is written in the New Testament relates to how we should live and how to prepare for Jesus’ coming. God chose you and I to be living in this most exciting time in history when Jesus is returning soon to receive a people unto Himself, to take us in the Rapture Jn14:3. Jesus is not returning for an Apostate Church or for lukewarm and backslidden people, but ONLY for a Faithful REMNANT who have prepared themselves for His coming, like Noah and his family, and the 5 wise virgins who had sufficient oil in their lamps Mt25:4. Likewise, the PASTORS, as GOD’S WATCHMEN, must also WARN the people under them. If not, the people will indeed perish, but THEY will be held accountable to God for not warning the people to REPENT, RETURN, and REMAIN RIGHTEOUS- for the Wicked to REPENT of his sins v18, for the Backslider to RETURN to RIGHTEOUSNESS v20, and for the RIGHTEOUS to REMAIN RIGHTEOUS v21. Their blood God would require in the PASTORS’ HANDS- the shepherd of God’s flock!

Finally, though the hour for mankind is very late, there is still time to REPENT, RETURN, and REMAIN true to God, to prepare to be Rapture Ready- ‘..For the coming of the Lord draweth nigh’ Jas5:8, and ‘..ye know neither the Day nor the Hour’ Mt25:13! Just WATCH and PRAY that you may be accounted WORTHY TO ESCAPE  all the terrible and evil things that SHALL COME TO PASS, and to stand before Jesus in the Rapture’ Lk21:36!