Instantaneous Nullification

Someday, without warning and at a time completely unknown, God the Father is going to turn to Jesus Christ, His Son, and give the command to go forth and catch up the Church into heaven. It will be precisely at that moment (the rapture) when everything we are currently doing, thinking, or planning will suffer Instantaneous Nullification. In other words, as we are raptured into the heavenly realm, everything earthly will cease to matter, will become of no effect, will be kaput.

In heaven, every Christian's entire life on earth will be summarized by answering a single question: “What did you do to advance the kingdom of God?” If you happen to be one of the richest men in the world or one of the poorest, in heavenly calculations, you are both of equal status. Only those deeds that were made in love, in charity, and to the glory God's name will be transferred into heavenly wealth.

I've noticed far too often we Christians, who have knowledge of the better world to come, allow ourselves to become distracted by the pitfalls of this life. The unsaved have no awareness of the eternal kingdom and have a good excuse for being distracted. This is the only existence they're aware of--but what's our excuse?

I really don't think many of us realize what an incredible transformation the rapture implies. Any situation in your life that appears to have you in its grasp will remain down here the day you're caught up into glory. If you're like me, I can think of several situations that I would love to leave behind. I've listed below some of the prime examples of why someone should wish for Instantaneous Nullification:

Health problems
Problems on the job
Moral failures
Economic hardships
Legal problems
Business failure
Marital or relationship difficulties
Trouble in school
Mental distress

Here are some more specific situations that may or may not apply to you:

Your only friend in life chases squirrels and goes by the name Fido.
You're so sickly your life insurance company will only carry you on a week-to-week basis.
In school, you're failing everything except study hall and lunch.
Your children are into so much trouble, the police have more pictures of them than you do.
Everyone else's money talks--yours only stutters.
Your car is so rusted it weighs half of what it did brand new.
Your web page is getting two hits a day--you and your brother.
You're not affected by financial reversals. You're already broke.
You had to let your maid go because your husband wouldn't.
As a child, both of your parents helped you run away from home.

Some people take great exception to the idea of anyone looking forward to the rapture. One popular refrain scolds rapturists for being "so heavenly-minded they're of no earthly good." Is being heavenly-minded really a problem? The opposite appears to be true. I can't find a single scripture in the New Testament where Jesus or any other author warned us not to get too worked up over Christ's return. In several passages we are commanded to watch and wait:

Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.
(Luke 21:36)

Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
(1 Thessalonians 5:6)

Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
(Matthew 25:13)

And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, [even] Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
(1 Thessalonians 1:10)

For many Christians, the cares of this life are all that matters. I'm afraid when Jesus comes in the air to calls up His bride, He may have to use a crow bar to pry a few reluctant believers from their earthly possessions. As the world grows more and more corrupt, there will be many who will be left behind, because they love this life too much.

One of the greatest lies the devil tells people is that our existence here on earth is more desirable than life up in heaven. Going to heaven is often compare to going to the dentist. You know you will eventually have to go, but hopefully not today. The truth is, if anyone were to spend just five minutes in glory, I'm certain that they would regret having to return to this sin-tainted world.

But as it is written, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”
(1 Corinthians 2:9)

I see the possibility of someone being overly preoccupied with our Lord's return just about as big a problem as an airline being overly worried about flight safety. The same goes for a restaurant being overly concerned about food spoilage.

I can recall two examples that demonstrate the confusion in our values regarding earthly and heavenly preoccupation:

At one time, I had a Christian boss who was our squadron's acting First Shirt (the person who deals with all the disciplinary matters). I was working in my office and he came in all upset. I asked him what was the matter. He then told me that he had returned from a another squadron, where he had just engaged in a heated argument with that squadron's officials over a young airman. Apparently, the airman had recently accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior and had decided to get rid of all of his heavy metal records. He had also decided he no longer wanted to go drinking with the boys anymore, preferring to read his Bible instead. Well, the pointy heads thought he might be at a risk to himself. They had taken him off flying status and were about to send him to see a shrink. My former boss gave them an earful and straightened the matter out.

Here in Nebraska, the Cornhuskers football team enjoys a huge following. In fact, the only people who don't know about the Huskers are either fresh from another country or they reside at a local cemetery. Well, when the Huskers won the championship twice, one enthusiastic fan ran down Main Street naked to celebrate the team's victory. Did anyone throw a net over him or try to send him to a shrink? No. His actions were perfectly normal.

If Christians ever carried on like sports fans do, what would the world think of us? Frankly, I think the idea that believers should abstain from getting too worked up over their Savior is a falsehood straight from the pit of hell.

Just as some people have their reasons for looking forward to the Lord's return, others have their reasons for ignoring the coming rapture. I love asking people questions about the Lord's return. Here are some actual excuses I've received from people on about why they're not interested in the rapture:

I still have my whole life ahead of me.
Christ isn't coming back until long after I'm dead.
That stuff is too scary for me to even think about.
I want to play basketball. (School related)
I don't believe in the Rapture.
I don't believe in Heaven.
I don't believe in God.
I'd rather go to the other place and be with all my friends.
Christ isn't coming back until the world gets its act together.

It is my firm belief that the next important event we Christians need to be mindful of is the pre-tribulation rapture. Everyday, our minds are occupied by thoughts concerning food, work, money, or sex, but how much thought do we give to eternal matters? The rapture is infinitely (in a literal sense) more important than any of these carnal distractions. I see it as critical for all of us to be ready for this glorious event. Most of mankind will not be ready when the call to come up hither is given. The problem will not be that God failed to factor man into His plans, but that man failed to factor God into his plans.