How can I avoid being left behind in the rapture?
The one way to make certain you avoid being left behind in the rapture is to believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior. The Bible is clear that every person who has placed his or her faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation will receive eternal life.First John 5:13 promises, "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life." John expresses both the way to know Christ and that a person can have certainty or assurance about eternal life.
What does it mean to believe in the name of the Son of God? Romans 10:9 explains, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." You must believe Jesus is Lord and that He has risen from the dead.
First Thessalonians 4:15-17 shares, "For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord." Those who have died in Christ (Christians who have already died) will have their bodies come from the grave first. Then, Christians who are alive at the rapture will ascend into the air to be with the Lord forever.
In John 14:3 Jesus promised, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." First Corinthians 15:51-52 adds, "Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed." Every person who believes in Jesus will be taken in the rapture with Him. This will not be an event for an elite group of Christians, but a joyous occasion for every person who has truly believed in Jesus.
Many Bible scholars also agree that those too young to make a decision to believe in Jesus or who are unable to do so due to mental capacities will also join believers in the rapture. This is generally based on the understanding of those who are young going to the Lord upon death (2 Samuel 12:22-23) and that God's grace is sufficient for those unable to express belief.
In summary, to avoid being left behind in the rapture means being prepared today. This involves believing in Jesus as Savior. Further, our goal as believers should be to live holy lives and to share Jesus with others so they can believe.
What is the rapture and when will it occur?
Is pretribulationism right? Will the church be raptured before the tribulation?
Is the end times rapture partial? What is the partial rapture belief?
The rapture and the second coming of Christ – What's the difference?
How can I be saved?
Truth about the End Times
