This traditional view (of the pre-tribulation "rapture") tends to produce lukewarm believers. How could it produce anything else? There is no real challenge or demand to it. It is precisely what the old nature of fallen man wants to hear.

On the other hand, the believer who has read the Scriptures and knows what God has said views his life as a strict discipleship. He is working out his own salvation with fear and trembling. He is confessing his sins to God and is repenting of them. He continually is guarding his actions and his tongue so that his personality is lining up with the written Word of God.

He is purifying himself by the Spirit of God and the blood of the Lamb so the wicked one cannot touch him. He has laid down his life, counting himself as crucified to the world and the world to him. He knows he is not of the world but that Christ has chosen him out of the world to be a saint (holy one).

He understands that if he is to live before God he must, through the Spirit, put to death the deeds of his flesh. He realizes he must remain in the "prison" in which the Lord places him, being faithful unto death—figuratively, and sometimes literally.

He knows if he is to have fellowship with God he must not be entangled in the uncleanness and idolatry of the world. He has learned how quickly the cares of the world can choke out the Divine Seed, the Word of God that has been born in him.

He is wary, watchful, continuing in prayer and in the study of the Old and New Testaments. He gathers together with fervent believers as often as he can.

The believer who has read the Scriptures understands that the spiritual deception that will abound during the great tribulation will cause the lukewarm members of the churches to lose contact with the Holy Spirit. They will gladly receive the assistance that the Antichrist government will offer. He knows that the true saints will be forced out of the cities of the earth and will not be able to partake any longer of the comforts of material affluence. He therefore is arming himself to suffer, to endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ.

The goal of the scriptural believer is to be able to stand in the Presence of Christ and hear His "Well done!"

The goal of the "rapture" believer is to go to Paradise in order to avoid suffering.

Which of these two goals sounds like God to you?

The doctrine of the pre-tribulation rapture has produced a multitude of spiritual babies. They are not truly abiding with God and they are not comfortable with the excesses of the world. They are not "hot" toward Christ and they are not "hot" toward the world.

They often are slow to learn, spiritually lazy, and foolish in their attitude. Yet they expect to reign over the rebellious nations as royal priests of God. Surely, common sense suggests their expectation is impractical.

The teachers of the pre-tribulation rapture recognize it is the victorious saints who will receive the Divinely ordained rewards. But they define to overcome as meaning to make a doctrinally-correct statement concerning Christ. They are declaring that every individual who professes belief in Christ is by that fact an overcomer and therefore eligible to receive the crown of life and glory. We have made the Word of God of no effect by our traditions. No wonder there is spiritual apathy in the ranks of the Christians!

To be continued.