Many Christians who love Jesus are becoming very discouraged. When will God call us Home? The answer to that is “We don’t know.” For many generations before Jesus’ birth, those who loved the Lord knew the Messiah would come. Job is a prime example of a man who loved the Lord, and even in a time of great personal turmoil, he relied upon God. He had friends who were less than kind during his troubles and said some very discouraging things, but Job came through the Satanic attack stronger in his faith.

“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me” (Job 19:25-27).

Job had faith in God, and although he suffered great loss, his faith stayed strong. He could have been discouraged and defeated had he listened to his friends, who said cruel things to him. Study Job and learn about strength through faith in God. Don’t be discouraged, but be encouraged.

Many Christians today yearn for Jesus to take us Home in the Rapture, but they listen to human “prophecy” rather than God’s prophecy. Unfortunately, when a person becomes discouraged that the Lord hasn’t acted according to human understanding, that person may become a poor witness for our Lord. They feel that the Lord has let them down, and that can lead to a lack of faith. I urge you to stand firm on Scripture and trust God to work all things for His glory in His time.

We can see that the whole world is steeped in sin, and evil seems to become stronger each day, even entering into congregations. It’s more important than ever to turn to Scripture and study prophecy in context. Interpretation of prophecy needs to be aligned with God’s word and not human ideas.

When Paul and Silas went to Berea, they encountered some very smart people who listened to the Gospel but searched Scripture to be sure it was true. “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11).

Remember, the Bereans only had the Old Testament Scriptures but were able to find the Gospel there. The Rapture is one of the most dividing truths we find today. Those who think Christians will go through the Great Tribulation haven’t been Bereans and studied Scripture. The pre-tribulation rapture is first seen in Genesis when Enoch was raptured prior to the Flood of Noah. “And Enoch walked with God: and he was not, for God took him” (Genesis 5:24).

Another example of the Pre-Trib Rapture is in Revelation. Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation are letters dictated to John by Jesus. These letters describe various ages of the ekklesia (the church), from the first letter describing the first enthusiastic believers, to the last letter describing the apostate church of today. The first verse of the next chapter describes the Rapture.

“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven and one sat on the throne” (Revelation 4:1-2).

The Greek words “meta tauta” describe a sequence. For instance, I went to first grade meta tauta second grade. That’s the sequence of schooling. In the above passage, after the letters (church ages), a door in heaven was opened, and John went through it. He was told he would be shown what must be hereafter.” Again, the words meta tauta are used and translate “hereafter.” So, first the church age, then the Rapture, then the Tribulation.

Don’t be discouraged as you see things getting worse and worse these days. Take encouragement that Christians won’t be on Earth for the worst seven years in all of history, the Great Tribulation. Praise God for His promise!!

An interesting point for naysayers to ponder is that the word “ekklesia” translated “church” or “churches” is used 118 times throughout the New Testament. In Revelation, it’s used 15 times in the first 3 chapters, but is never used in the verses describing the Tribulation. When studying the end times, you’ll discover that the Tribulation is about God dealing with Israel, not with Christians. The last place the word ekklesia is seen is in Revelation chapter 22. “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star” (Revelation 22:16). 

This tells us three things. First, we are to study the book of Revelation. The second is, the Tribulation is not about Christians, and third, Jesus wins. Don’t be discouraged. Scripture is to be encouraging to us. We can’t be so obsessed with the terrible things happening in 2025 and into 2026 that we miss the big picture of God working all things together just as prophecy says.

Looking at news headlines through the lens of prophecy is very exciting, but it can lead to people seeing prophecy through our own hopes and desires rather than reality. There has always been horrific persecution of Christians. Saul, who would later be known as Paul and became the greatest evangelist of all time, made it his duty to arrest or kill anyone who had left the Jewish faith to embrace the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

The Roman persecution was very brutal and included the spectator sport of throwing Christians into an arena with hungry lions and burning Christians on crosses to light up dark streets. No wonder the believers in Thessalonica were discouraged and thought they had missed the Rapture and were in the Tribulation. When the Apostle Paul went to Thessalonica to spread the Gospel, he was there for a short time, but in that time, he introduced them to the Gospel and also taught them about the Rapture.

There were false teachers at that time, just as there are today, who placed doubt in the minds of the Thessalonians, who had seen much persecution because of their faith. They should have been more like the Bereans. Paul helped them, and us, understand the truth.

“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4).

Paul fully believed in the pre-tribulation Rapture, so misinformed people today who say it is a new teaching need to study Scripture instead of parroting false teachers. We also learn from this passage that the Jewish Temple must be rebuilt in order for the man of perdition to stand there and proclaim that he is God. He isn’t, but he exalts himself above anything that is worshipped. So far, this hasn’t happened, but there is a big push to rebuild the Temple, and it will happen.

Today, there are many false teachers who seem to teach a specific date that the Rapture will happen. God doesn’t give a specific day in Scripture, so how can they know more than God? They can’t, so look at Biblical signs that Jesus gave and be ready. In speaking of the end times, Jesus told His disciples, “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:11).

Don’t be deceived or discouraged. I also hear of many people who claim to have had a near-death experience, and they claim God told them when the Rapture will happen. It’s amusing that each one has been given a different date. That’s not how God works. God hasn’t given anybody a specific day or hour, but He has given us clues. Remember, the signs to look for are those leading to the Tribulation. The Rapture will occur prior to the Tribulation, so as we see the signs happening (earthquakes, famine, pestilence, wars, etc.), we know the Tribulation is nearing, so the Rapture could happen at any moment.

After Christians are taken Home, God will turn His attention back to His chosen people, Israel, and their blindness to their Messiah will be lifted. We do live in exciting times, but don’t confuse man’s opinions with Scripture. Instead of relying on one prophecy teacher or your pastor, go to Scripture and believe what God says. When you study Scripture, don’t pull one verse out of context and build your theology upon that. Study all of Scripture, including the Old Testament.

Life has become very troubled, and sin is out of control. It seems worse than when I was growing up, or was I not aware of how bad things were? Barry McGuire sang about the “Eve of Destruction,” and Larry Norman wrote the song “I Wish We’d All Been Ready.” Maybe it was worse than I thought.

I do wish everybody were ready to be taken in the Rapture, and the only way to be ready is to be a born-again, God-fearing Christian. There are “pictures” of the Rapture throughout Scripture, and we can trust Scripture to give us truth. The problem is that humans like to put words in God’s mouth. Then, when He doesn’t do things according to our wishes, we say He was wrong.

For instance, some people said the Rapture would happen in 2012 because of the Mayan calendar. It didn’t, so people got discouraged. Some people give up hoping for the Rapture when various Jewish feasts come around and it doesn’t happen. Why? The feasts are about Israel and their relationship with God. It’s also a popular hobby for some people to guess who the Anti-Christ is. Is he the pope, or is the pope the false prophet? Maybe the Anti-Christ is a Muslim leader or even President Trump. Maybe he is John Doe from Alabama, or some other obscure person. Why even try to guess?

Instead of looking for a date for the Rapture or looking for the Anti-Christ, occupy until God calls us Home. That means go to work, get married, raise a family, and share the Gospel.

If you want the Rapture to happen soon, remember that God is waiting for a specific number of people to come to salvation before He calls us Home. “For I would not, brethren. that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in” (Romans 11:25).

Don’t be discouraged when dates come and go. Take a look at your own words and attitude. Would a non-believer listen to you if you shared the Gospel? Maybe your attitude of discouragement or your worldly ways would make them question what you say. You cannot change others, but you can prayerfully change yourself. Honor God in all you do.

Don’t be discouraged, but be encouraged because God has given us another day on this earth to share His love.

God bless you all,

Nathele Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

Recommended prophecy sites:

www.raptureready.com
www.prophecyupdate.com
www.raptureforums.com

All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.

If you would like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries, just drop me an email and let me know.

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6).

 

When you think of God, how do you picture Him? Does He look like the painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel? Maybe you think of Him as a tyrant who only sends fire and brimstone or directs entire groups of people to be killed. To our judgmental human minds, His destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was wrong, but if you think of God as a tyrant, then you do not know Him.

His love for humans is perfect. When God sent fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah, there was a serious reason. Much like today, sin was out of control. If God hadn’t stepped in, there would have been much disease and evil attitudes spread to all humanity. Sin is serious to God, yet humans treat sin as something to be admired and promoted. The same sin that gripped Sodom and Gomorrah is now spreading its evil to the entire world.

Sexual sin is encouraged by Satan, and people who are deceived by his lies; it isn’t acceptable. Another evil that God opposes is human sacrifice, yet evil people speak loudly in favor of killing babies in the womb. They call it abortion and a woman’s right; God calls it sin.

God created the world and all that’s in it, so He knows how to run it properly. John confirmed that Jesus, the Word, existed before time began, and that He is God and was with God. John also confirmed that Jesus created everything.

“All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3).

We wouldn’t dream of putting water into our car’s gas tank and expect no problems. A car is made to run on gas, not water. That’s the way cars are designed. Humans are designed by God to run a certain way. Sexual relations outside of a one-man/one-woman marriage is sin and not ordained of God. Abortion is simply child sacrifice, the murder of a baby. Our society today embraces sin and evil, and then we expect God to keep us from the consequences of our sinful choices. Our choices need to line up with God’s truth.

The Old Testament makes it very clear what God sees as sin and how He feels about it. Is He a tyrant? Not at all; He’s protecting humanity.

The nation of Israel periodically walked close to God, but then embraced wickedness. God told them, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

This promise was written to God’s people, Israel, but Christians need to pay attention. God is always willing to forgive, but the repentance must be sincere. If you believe in Him, confess your sin to Him, and turn away from the sin for which you have asked His forgiveness.

God is patient with people and honors our free will, but it hurts Him when we choose to sin. There comes a time when our choice to sin forces Him to act.

Was He overreacting when He sent the Flood of Noah’s day? When you consider that God created everything after its own kind, and that “kinds” aren’t supposed to mix, He wasn’t overreacting. Some of the angels had rebelled against God and then genetically mixed with humans, thus creating a half-angel/half-human hybrid known as Nephilim. These abominations had to be destroyed before there were no pure humans left. Evil was everywhere and had contaminated most of humanity.

“And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5).

It seems to me that humanity is swiftly moving in that direction again. Mad scientists today are tweaking genetics and messing with DNA. In order to keep the human genome pure, God had to destroy all of creation, except what hadn’t been genetically corrupted.

“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6:8-9).

Noah wasn’t sinless, but tamim, which is a Hebrew word meaning “sound, wholesome, unimpaired, innocent, having integrity.” A word study of tamim is very eye-opening. Jesus came into our fallen world to offer salvation to humans, not hybrids, so protect your genetics. Like Noah, Christians aren’t perfect, but we have found grace in God’s eyes because of Jesus. Noah walked with God, and Christians should walk with Him too.

God’s grace is only imparted through faith in the sacrifice of Jesus. Repentance is important in a Christian’s walk. Sometimes we seem to look down on people who are non-believers, but we have no right to do that. We are sinners, but we are saved by grace. Instead of feeling self-righteous over our perceived perfection, we should humbly study God’s word and compare our own thoughts and actions to the righteousness of God to see if we are without sin. We aren’t.

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:2).

Works will not save us. Only faith in the grace and mercy of God through the shed blood of Jesus Christ can take sin away. The Rapture is very, very close. Jesus said in Luke 17:26 that it would be like the days of Noah (genetic manipulation and wickedness) and also like the days of Lot (he lived in Sodom but had to be removed prior to the fire and brimstone falling). Brothers and sisters, walk close to Jesus. Don’t follow the way of the world, but follow Jesus. Your pastor may teach worldly ways, but don’t follow after Satanic lies. Believe God’s word.

Why do you believe you are saved? Were you baptized as a baby? That’s not salvation. You didn’t choose to be baptized, which is only an outward evidence of inward faith. The choice has to be your own.

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Romans 10:9).

A baby can’t make that choice or confess. Have you done that now that you are mature enough to recognize that you are a sinner in desperate need of salvation and forgiveness through Jesus? If you haven’t done it, then do it now.

Let’s take a quick look at Job. He lived long before the Messiah was born, but he had strong faith in God and knew the Messiah would eventually come.

“There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. And there were born unto him seven sons and three daughters” (Job 1:1-2).

A few verses later, we see that these sons and daughters liked to party, and most likely didn’t believe in God. We also find out that Job knew his children didn’t honor God as they should. After his children had their feasts, Job did what he could to have their sins forgiven.

“…and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually” (Job 1:5b).

Job’s faith couldn’t save his children, but he did all he could. He was an example to them, but they had to make their own choice. Every true Christian parent has this love for their children and prays for them to find Christ. Satan wanted to destroy Job, so he went before God and asked permission to torment him. Satan said Job loved God only because God protected him.

“Hast thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land” (Job 1:10).

Satan wanted to prove Job only had “fair-weather” faith. God allowed Satan to test Job, but he couldn’t take Job’s life. So, Satan got busy. All of Job’s wealth was destroyed, his servants were killed, his health was attacked, and while his children were eating and drinking, a strong wind blew the house down and killed them. You see, all of Job’s faith could not save his children; they had to have their own faith in God. Parents, love your children enough to be sure they know Jesus and personally confess and believe.

What are we to believe about Jesus? Is it enough to believe He was a nice guy who did good works? So many people say they know Jesus, but which “Jesus” do they mean? In some cultures, Jesus is a common name, but if you know “Jesus Hernandez,” that doesn’t mean you know Jesus Christ as described in Scripture. You have to understand that Jesus is God.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God” (John 1:1-2).

He was a very nice guy who did good works, but more than that, He was God incarnate. You must believe in the deity of Christ; otherwise, you don’t really know Him. Jesus had to be fully God in order for His blood to be pure and untainted by Adam’s sin. He also had to be fully human because He came to redeem humanity from the curse that Adam’s sin put on all of mankind. He could only do that if He was human. When He walked this earth, He made this clear on many occasions. Once, when He had a very heated exchange with Pharisees, He made the statement, “I and my Father are one” (John 10:30).

We know He said that He was God because in the very next verse we read, “Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him” (John 10:31). They understood His words to be blasphemy.

Jesus is God, the second person of the Trinity. He shed His blood in order to give you and me the opportunity to live with Him eternally. I believe and confess this truth, do you? Be sure you know Jesus and follow Him.

Brothers and sisters, soon we will celebrate Jesus’ birth. Instead of reading The Night Before Christmas, read Luke chapter 2. The angels rejoiced at His birth, and the lowly shepherds left their flocks to find Him. A few years later, the magi came from the East to find Him.

Have you found Him? Are you even looking for Him? Every sin can be forgiven, but only by Jesus. A human priest can’t forgive eternal sin, so go directly to Jesus. Do you believe in your heart? Then confess with your mouth. Don’t wait.

God bless you all

Nathele Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

Recommended prophecy sites:

www.raptureready.com
www.prophecyupdate.com
www.raptureforums.com

All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God-breathed.

If you would like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries, just drop me an email and let me know.

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6).