Leaving Behind Rapture Theology

Scripture text: Matthew 24:36-44

Whenever I read this verse, my mind automatically goes to the Left Behind Book and Movie series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. For those who were lucky enough to have never heard about this series, Left Behind, takes place after “true and faithful” Christians are taken up to heaven. The series follows a group of people who, having been left behind, become born-again Christians as they seek to remain faithful to God in the midst of severe persecution and the rise of the Anti-Christ.

I cannot even begin to describe the chokehold this book had on Evangelical Christians in the 90s and early 2000s. There was even a version of the book series directed at teenagers. Because, apparently once you reached a certain age, you weren’t immune to God kidnapping your loved ones and abandoning you to experience literal hell on earth. You might not be old enough to drive, but you are old enough to know about the incredible suffering that awaits you if you don’t accept Christ. 

In the Pentecostal congregation I attended, we were told on an almost daily basis that Jesus could return at any time and we needed to be prepared, especially if we wanted to be taken up to heaven and avoid the Anti-Christ and God’s judgment. The rapture was presented as both something to be afraid of, if we weren’t right with God, but also something to pray for. After all, if we were right with God, the rapture meant bliss and joy. 

This world was filled with denigrates and people who mocked the gospel, so of course, we wanted to be taken away and be with God. We wanted our loved ones to go with us, too, so we made sure to proselytize and try to persuade them to “get right with God,” but we also had the thought, “if Jesus came and our loved ones were left behind, oh well. That’s on them. We tried to warn them.” When we were with Jesus we wouldn’t have time to worry about what happened to those on earth who had chosen to disobey God.

Looking back, I can see how terrible and absurd this theology was. Not to mention the Biblical basis behind this theology was very thin. But growing up in this mindset-this theology made perfect sense.  

Of course, Jesus would come back and violently judge the world, and of course, the “good” Christians would be rejoicing with God while everyone else suffered horrifically.

The whole mindset of Evangelical Christianity, at least the charismatic, fundamentalist, subset I was part of-was that Christians were a special, select group chosen by God to spend eternity with God. We believed that “real Christians” (which obviously we were part of that select group) were a persecuted minority in the US.  Despite the fact that Evangelical Christianity then, and more so now, is a political powerhouse, we thought we were the ones being victimized by the dominant society. 

Despite the fact that then and now the US is a perfect example of Christian hegemony, we were taught that Christianity was losing its grip on the United States and thus, the nation was on the verge of being exposed to God’s wrath and judgment. 

Hope in this mindset was a zero-sum game.  Christianity was about being on the ‘winning’ side and avoiding the wrath of God.  Christians won, because other people-people of different faith traditions, atheists, Mainline Christians, (who we considered lukewarm), queer people, lost.  We were right, we were saved, and everyone else was condemned and going to hell. 

But what type of hope is this? What kind of hope relies on the condemnation and suffering of the majority of humanity, in order to thrive? Where is the good news in this gospel? I don’t know about you, but even the thought of my loved ones being left on earth to experience years of suffering and torment, while I am up in the sky with God, breaks my heart, it doesn’t make me happy.

But thankfully, rapture theology is, in fact, fairly new.  It can be traced to the 19th century. Meaning that most Christians, throughout history haven’t interpreted this verse in the ways that Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins have. To be sure, early Christians did believe in the return of Jesus as a time of judgment. 

But what did this judgment consist of? And how can 21st-century Christians, living thousands of years later, interpret this verse in ways that are life-giving while acknowledging the reality: that early Christians got it wrong? Jesus didn’t return as they had expected.

First, the judgment discussed in Matthew is tied to the destruction and fall of the Roman Empire and to the religious institutions that worked with the empire. Early Jesus followers viewed God’s judgment as one that led to the destruction of the violent and oppressive Roman Empire. Again, the different gospels, in their unique ways, often contrasted the empire of Rome with the Kingdom of God.

 And God’s kingdom was one of justice and equality while the Roman Empire was rightfully described as unjust, cruel, and violent.   For early Jesus followers, the judgment of God wasn’t about being raptured up into the sky while everyone else is left on earth to suffer, but it was about God’s kingdom being implemented here on earth. 

 It is also important to note that in Mark, God’s coming reign is described in much more immediate language since the author and its listeners assumed that the fall of Rome and the coming of God would come during their lifetime. 

However, Matthew’s approach is different. He advocates for a stay awake and watch approach.  Matthew is much more careful to note that no one knows when the judgment will come, only that it will come, so followers of Jesus need to be awake and prepared.   

 Matthew takes an approach that points out the ways in which the Kingdom of God has already manifested itself: through the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus while also acknowledging that the fullness of the kingdom of God has not yet arrived. 

 Matthew holds onto hope that the Lord’s return will eventually occur, even if it is not now. The author is seeking to inspire their readers/listeners, to live in that uncomfortable space of the already and not yet. Already aspects of God’s kingdom have been displayed and manifested, and the kingdom in all of its fullness is not yet here. 

Thousands of years later, we also live in a time of already and not yet. We also acknowledge the ways in which God has broken into human history: the incarnation, Jesus’ ministry, Jesus' death, and the defeat of empire and death via Jesus’ resurrection. 

We, 2000 years later, also know that the early Christians were right: the Roman Empire would eventually fall. But we also struggle with the reality that when one oppressive empire falls, another rises. We are still waiting for the fullness of God’s kingdom. 

We hold onto the glimpses of God’s kingdom that we witness on a daily basis via those who continually advocate for a more just and equitable world, we hold onto the advances in justice that are continually being made while also acknowledging that there is still so much work to be done. God’s kingdom of justice and equity has not yet arrived. And we keep watching and more importantly working towards the implementation of this kingdom. 

Let me be clear, the kingdom of God isn’t one that forces all people to believe in a certain religion, it is not a theocracy. It is one where all people are cherished, fed, housed, and cared for. It is a kingdom where oppressive structures are dismantled. Patriarchy, homophobia, racism, classism, etc are all defeated and destroyed.  

Matthew 24:36-44 is a call to both acknowledge and hold onto the work God has already done in this world, and a call to keep watch and to keep working. God’s judgment isn’t one that condemns large amounts of people to hell or to be abandoned in the face of great pain and suffering, but it is one that says that the forces of violence and oppression will be defeated. 

Image: Silhouette of a window. Text: God’s judgment isn’t one that condemns large amounts of people to hell or to be abandoned in the face of great pain and suffering, but it is one that says that the forces of violence and oppression will be defeated.