It’s early Sunday morning. You put on a pot of tea, and as you open up the newspaper, the headline screams “7.9 Earthquake in Argentina kills 23,000!” Next you read that a volcano has erupted in the Philippines killing 18,000, a flood in the Midwest wiped out 7,000 people, and an earthquake in New York City has taken down the Statue of Liberty.
“Wow,” you say, “what is going on? Every year it gets worse and worse. Is the world catastrophically changing? What’s happening?” As you go on about your typical routine—work, golf, gym, parties, and a little Sunday R and R—week after week, the same old things occur. Until one morning you open up the newspaper and read: “Millions of people have vanished from all over the world!” You quickly turn on the television—CNN, ABC, CBS, BBC—and on every station they are reporting this phenomenon, yet the real issue is that the whole world is in an uproar. Complete chaos on earth. Planes, automobiles, and trains have crashed; vehicles, houses, and stores have been left abandoned; while gangs, criminals, and the poor are looting and rioting in the streets. The United Nations issues in global military law as the military, police, and reserves gear up for battle. Hospitals are full; paramedics, firefighters, and emergency teams from all over the world are in panic.
There are so many disasters that the focus is on the chaos and not the phenomena. For weeks this goes on and on, and finally a charismatic leader emerges and reunites the world. This feels like déjà vu to you. For some reason you remember a friend years ago telling you about an event known in the Bible as “the Rapture of the Church.” You scroll through your Rolodex and call up your Christian friend, yet there is no answer. Is this just a coincidence?
After The Rapture:
After the Rapture happens, then a world leader will emerge—according to 2 Thessalonians, chapter 2, which talks about a restraining force (the Christians) holding back the power of the Antichrist and continuing to do so until the Christians are removed. Then the Antichrist can come to power for a seven-year period, bringing peace to the earth. He will confirm a treaty between Israel and Palestine, ordering the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. According to the Book of Daniel, this world leader will come from European descent. The Bible says that this world leader will be a charismatic man who brings about economic prosperity, and the world will embrace him. He will set up a one-world government, as well as a one-world religion—with the help of a partner or sidekick—and also issue in a cashless society. The Bible says that there will be an assassination attempt made on his life, and he will lose his right eye and the use of his right arm (Zech. 11:17). He will make a miraculous recovery, and the world will marvel over him (Rev. 13:14). After three-and-a-half years he will walk into the temple in Jerusalem and demand to be worshiped (this is known as the abomination of desolation, Daniel 9:27). At this time the wrath of God will be poured out upon the earth, for a final period of three-and-a-half years (completing a total of seven years), bringing earthquakes, famines, pestilence and wars. At the end of this seven-year period, the nations of the earth will march for battle, which will take place in the Valley of Megiddo (also known as Armageddon, Revelation 16:16) in Israel. Then the Lord Himself will come down with His Church (the Christians) and wipe out the armies of the world. After this, there will be what is known as the millennium reign of Christ, when Christ rules on the earth with His Saints (or believers) for 1,000 years. After 1,000 years comes the final judgment.