by Todd Strandberg
The Bad News Site
Rapture Ready is the kind of site people either love or hate. The folks who like RR tend to view it as a helpful news resource of end-time related events. Our critics normally visit us only once. They see the site as being a purveyor of bad news, and most of them want nothing further to do with it.
Many people write us to vent their displeasure in our prophetic content. We've been called everything under the sun. Because I know they're making the mistake of blaming the messenger for the message, the scorn doesn't bother me.
The Bible is the ultimate source for all Christian doctrine, so any dispute needs to address the passages we cite as our reason for sounding the prophetic warning. We could throw truth aside and promote a feel-good message like many ministers do today, but integrity forces us to stay on the correct path.
The Word of God repeatedly talks about disasters to come in the last days. We believe the world is getting very near the Tribulation hour, which is why we look for signs of its nearness.
If you think RR is dispersing negative information, you probably need to investigate what prophecy has to say. For a born-again believer, the rapture offers a special hope of being able to instantly leave this sin-stained world. The bad news in the rapture doctrine is only for those individuals who find themselves left behind.
"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Mat. 24:21).
Don't Be So Lazy
A large portion of the unfavorable email we have received recently comes from people who barely know what they are talking about. It is easy to comprehend that they disagree with the message presented on the site. What we don't understand is WHY they have a dispute with the site.
Rapture Ready is not some vague on-line pamphlet. A small army of folks has labored several years to put together a huge amount of information. At the time I'm writing this article, there are over 10,000 files on the site. Because we have such an abundance of articles, our critics have an unlimited quantity of material to pick apart by searching for flaws in our reasoning.
It is extremely irritating to endure the ranting of critics who don’t cite a single valid reason for thinking we are wrong. We regularly post examples of these types of messages on the Interesting Email page. Here are a few picks-of-the-litter from one month:
“This site proves beyond a doubt that a little knowledge can be extremely dangerous. What morons you all are.”
“You are saying that you use the Bible to interpret the Bible. You are talking in circles. Who should believe anything you say? I believe you are expressing your opinions concerning the Bible. Until you demonstrate otherwise, other opinions are just as valid as yours.”
“YOU PEOPLE ARE AS FAR REMOVED FROM REALITY AS IT GETS. YOU AND YOUR FELLOW CULT MEMBERS ARE SCARIER THAN TREKKIES BUT JUST AS SAD AND PATHETIC.”
“Maybe you should tell me when judgment day is then? afterall i need a good laugh, i can laugh my [misspelled vulgarity] silly when i see all you christains saying "save me!" and no GOD will appear.”
Laziness is the main word that comes to mind when we read e-mail of this ilk. The writers make no attempt to try to validate their reasons for disagreeing with us.
We can forgive the fact that they use all caps, include misspelled words left and right, and/or don't bother to capitalize the word “I.” What we can’t excuse is the ranting without offering a reason. They might as well be saying, “Todd or Terry, your arguments are so well thought out, I have no grounds to dispute you.”
These folks seem to think their opinion of the site is all the authority they need to prove our error. God is the only authority whose opinion we should accept without requiring proof validating the criticism.
These people are obviously not God--or even godly. Like my email tagline slogan says, "In God we trust, everyone else requires verification." Another nugget of wisdom can be found rotating on our daily quotes, It reads, "Trust God's authority, not man's majority."
People need to realize that finding the truth doesn't always come easy. We don’t expect people to blindly follow our lead. We encourage people to verify everything we preach. If more people checked what they were being taught, there wouldn’t be as much error in the Church.
“And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul's message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to check up on Paul and Silas, to see if they were really teaching the truth” (NLT Acts 17:11).
You're Doing Us A Big Favor
Nobody likes to be mocked or ridiculed – it is part of human nature to avoid being the source of ridicule. Many people would rather endure physical assault than suffer emotional scorn.
At Rapture Ready, mockery is not really a problem. This may come as a big surprise to our detractors; frankly, we’ll take all we can get. It’s not that we are gluttons for punishment. Our motivation is driven by a desire to see the advent of the Kingdom Age.
Christians who love the prophetic Word of God are like treasure hunters digging in a muddy field. Their task appears unpleasant and fruitless up until the moment they strike gold.
Mockers are like gold because they are key indicators of the end times. As the scorn grows more intense, it has the general effect of giving strong indication that we are getting closer to the rapture. There is little chance that our critics will ever realize the consequences of their actions. I’ve always said end-time mockery is the mother's milk of prophetic progression.
“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation” (2 Peter 3:3-4).
On judgment day, everyone standing before the judgment seat of Christ will be thinking of everything positive they did in their life. The act of enduring ridicule for the sake of Christ will be a huge bonus on that fateful day.
If you attempt to provide others with the truth and they rebuff your offer, the responsibility for their fate rests with them. Rapture Ready's critics are in a no-win situation. Their mockery is helping bring on the end times. Their scorn is a testimony to their guilt.
You #1 Accuser
I used to wonder why people get so bent out of shape over what we have to say. If people fail to see things our way, they have the option of finding a site that agrees with their view of Bible prophecy.
After enduring years of hate mail, it finally dawned on me that these folks don't have a problem with Rapture Ready. The source of their hostility comes from the struggle they are having with truth itself.
Many doomsday UFO cults believe aliens are coming to take them away to another planet. They desire to depart to escape a terrible fate that they fear will soon befall the earth. Most people just laugh them off as being a bunch of nuts, and would never dream of writing them.
What makes RR different is the innate realization that the prophetic message we promote is factual and will someday happen.
The spirit of God convicts people about their spiritual condition, and the vast majority refuses to listen to His small, gentle voice of beckoning. The content on RR strikes a nerve.
Once someone learns about the coming last days, he or she no longer has the option of saying, "I was never told." Having been warned, the responsibility to heed the warning rests with the one who has been warned.
Because we are all born with a conscience that tells us right from wrong, on judgment day, we will act as our own judge and jury. You can’t run from God or from yourself, so it is wise to find salvation while there is still time.
“For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves, which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and [their] thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another” (Rom 2: 14-15).
The Worst News Of All
Many times in life we receive revelations of bad news. The news comes in a wide range of magnitudes. It might be the news that a favorite pet hamster has run away, the arrival of a shockingly high heat bill after a cold winter snap, or the news of the unexpected death of a loved one.
There is a type of undesirable news that ranks above all other forms of bad news. I cannot think of a more horrific scene that experienced by those realizing they missed salvation and are bound for the lake of fire.
Once we pass from this world to the next, our fate is forever set. We become helpless to alter the choices we have made. This is why the decision need to be made now while the Holy Spirit still calls, and there is yet time.
Sadly, many who email us are obviously on their way to hell. We know this to be true because many of them boldly admit to their unsaved state.
I guess the folks who look forward to going to hell will be just as shocked as those who never thought they would end up there. In both cases, people underestimate the penalty that comes with sin.
Here is a way to turn the ultimate bad news into the ultimate triumph: Put your trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior, thereby repenting of your sins, and determining to serve him as Lord. You will then become part of the Kingdom of God forever. The simplicity of this task is what makes failure so regrettable.
“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mat 16:26).
