Reading the last page

I really struggled this weekend to finish a book.

You have to understand, reading comes very easily to me. I learned to read at an early age and cannot remember a time in my life when I didn't like to read. In fact, I spent so much time with my nose buried in a book that I frequently earned my dad's ire for neglecting time with family for time with fantasy.

The book I finished this weekend, "Why Christians Will Suffer 'Great Tribulation', by Joe Ortiz (ISBN: 978-1-4259-8486-1, published by AuthorHouse), will never make anyone's best seller list.

Ever.

Although the author has done extensive research, provided the original meanings in Greek and Hebrew of the translated word, and cited a multitude of Scriptures, the topic is too bleak, too controversial and attacks a spiritual teaching that is simply too popular to easily abandon.

Furthermore, the author makes frequent use of the "bold and underlined by the author for emphasis" phrase than is altogether necessary, not allowing the words to speak for themselves and hindering the reader with the oft-repeated phrase.

Also, the author occasionally stoops to sarcasm and thinly veiled disdain for those who preach a different message, another off-putting tendency.

All of that aside, however, the book is a must read for anyone who has experienced a moment of question, doubt or perhaps even guilt at the teaching of the, as the author phrases it, "secret escape all Christians will experience at the Rapture."

I know I certainly have.

Make no mistake. The promises found in I Thessalonians 4:16, 17 and I Corinthians 15:51 and 52 are sure. They are certain. God has said it, therefore, it shall be so. And I await that day, whether living or dead, with all of my being.

At issue, according to the author, however, is the timing of the fulfillment of those promises. Also at issue is the proper interpretation of the words "wrath" and "tribulation" and the possible misuse of the article "the," all leading to a dangerous, albeit comforting, teaching.

Imagine you are in the army. A great battle is planned in the desert, revisiting the World War II campaigns against the Nazis in North Africa.

Survival training begins. You learn all about how to stay hydrated in extreme temperatures. You learn how to keep your weapon clear of desert sands, ever at the ready to assault and defend. Your uniforms are designed for maximum efficiency and comfort. You train daily to fight a known enemy. You train hard. You train as though your life depends upon it, because it does.

You and your comrades board the transport ship, all of your gear specifically designed to give you the optimum chance of surviving the coming desert conflict unscathed.

But something is wrong. You don't know what it is, initially, but with each passing mile, you realize you're headed in the wrong direction. Further and further north you travel, the seas rough and cold. Landfall is finally made -- in the Aleutian Islands. And all of your training is for naught, you have no idea who your enemy is, and your gear is dangerously inadequate for the conditions. Your chances of survival are virtually nil.

The author contends that the promise oft-quoted in support of the Rapture "For God hath not appointed us to suffer wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ." (I Thessalonians 5:9) does not mean that we will not suffer tribulation. The terms wrath and tribulation are not interchangeable. The wrath of God will come against all non-believers at judgment. We will escape that, may the Lord be forever praised. However, the Bible promises tribulations, great and small, for all believers. And tribulation has its own reward. It is the tempering of our faith. It is the proving ground of faith. And at its greatest, tribulation is our greatest testimony.

Remember Stephen, the first martyr, and who was standing there, bearing witness to his great tribulation.

And know this. One day, there will be a final martyr. And who will be standing there witnessing that great tribulation?

A great many souls will be added to the Kingdom during great tribulation, because the world will finally see a faith worth dying for. That is the mission field we should be training for, not the pie-in-the-sky, "Jesus come take me away" fantasy. He did not shrink back when great tribulation came upon him. He repeatedly warned believers that tribulation was to be their lot in this life as well, and promised to carry us through it, not "over" it.

Now, more than ever, believers must diligently search the Scriptures, test all teachings and seek discernment as the gift from God it is. Because time really is short. The changes are coming faster and faster with every passing day. And we'd best know our enemy fully and well.

We have not been provided with the full armor of God for a free ride in the sky. The Lord himself warns those who will follow him that there will be suffering, persecution, danger and even death involved in the following. The apostle Paul reiterates the Lord's teachings throughout his ministry even while living it out himself. Given the preponderance of warnings and encouragement, should we expect any less ourselves? Now is the time to train. Now is the time to put on the full armor of God, so that we will be fully equipped to bear out our testimony, even unto death.

"For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard) -- if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. 2 Peter 2:4-9 (NIV)

Things you won't see in heaven: Cowards