Apathy is reigning because apathy is the psychological consequence of teaching the believers that the next step in their salvation is an external event over which they have no control. They are not pressing toward Paul's mark because they do not believe there is any mark, any clear goal of the Divine redemption. Knowing little of the Kingdom of God the believers are waiting to die so they can go to a "mansion in Heaven."

One of the main arguments that has been advanced in support of the "any-moment rapture" is that the Christians will keep themselves prepared for Christ's coming since He may come at any moment.

An idea must be tested by examining its results. The "any-moment" doctrine does not produce spiritually prepared saints. People are not able to hold themselves in readiness for a long period of time, unless they are mature saints who need no threat of this kind to frighten them into waiting for the Lord. Many churches that place heavy emphasis on the pre-tribulation rapture consist of worldly believers who are not praying or serving the Lord as they should.

God understands us very well. God knows we cannot effectively resist the pull of the world merely by waiting for an external event, particularly when we have been waiting patiently for this event for forty years and probably will die without seeing it come to pass.

The Kingdom of God does include waiting patiently for the Lord and keeping ourselves intensely prepared so we always are ready to do the Lord's will. But the Kingdom includes also many times and seasons of refreshing, and "present truth" into which the elect always are pressing. It is this pressing forward each day toward the mark that enables us to keep ourselves perfectly prepared for the Day of the Lord.

It may be helpful to realize the Kingdom of God is primarily an inner kingdom. The great works of redemption portrayed by the major types of the Scripture, such as the seven feasts of the Lord, all have to do primarily (but not exclusively) with what is happening within the believer. Ezekiel's Temple is a symbolic portrayal of the development of the Kingdom of God in the believer while the first chapter of Ezekiel describes Christ and the mature saint in Christ's image (The attainment of the fullness of Christ's image is for another age or ages but at some future point, no matter how far down the path of eternity, the sons of God will be in His image. The Scriptures cannot be broken!)

Satan makes every effort to keep Christians occupied with externals, such as the concept of being carried up to Heaven, living in Heaven for eternity, gaining things by faith, politics, and so forth. Satan knows that in our adamic, external nature we pose no threat to his kingdom. It is the forming of Christ in us that will bring Satan's kingdom to an end.

To be continued.