Signs of the rapture are overwhelming(From an atheists view)

Over the past months i have noticed a massive increase in signs of the 'rapture'
Now i do not belive in a god however i was raised in a very catholic area and go to a catholic school (i live in Ireland, go figure), But ive still noticed the signs and been a bit freaked out to be honest

Some signs of the rapture are:

False Messiahs will come

Well i think this one has been filled in , How many times have you herd of people claiming to be god/son of god and predicting the world is going to end in -Insert date here- and been wrong

There will be wars & rumors of wars

Well for the past couple of years there has been speculation of a war with Iran and for a short time with N.Korea, And more recently the whole issue with Kosovo and the Balkans

Nation will rise against nation... and kingdom against kingdom

This basically means a world war, and we have had 2 and may about to enter a 3rd one

There will be large-scale famines

Well all you have to do is look at Africa , people in Ethiopia, Darfur, Malawi, Niger and more , still have on going famines

There will be world-wide pestilences (Disease)

Well for nearly 3 decades Aids has been killing millions and not to mention Bird flu cases rising

There will be great earthquakes

This is the one that made me make this thread, In the past few weeks there has been a massive increase in earthquakes with no explanation , even in england where earthquakes are very very rare also southern Iran, china etc...

Now i never believed in the rapture or reavaltions whatever you want to call it, Even when i did belive in a chirstian god
But all these signs are kinda scary ain't they?
Btw im not trying to convert anyone or anything with fear
Any views?

[edit on 1-3-2008 by Disgustipated]

Below are the signs which Jesus gave to those who questioned Him in regard to the end of the age (end-time) and His return. Jesus said that these signs would begin as a woman in labor and would intensify in their occurrence, like that of labor pains intensifying; meaning, they would begin gradually and as they intensify they would occur more and more frequently. He also added, “when you see these things beginning to come to pass, look up, lift up your head, for your redemption is drawing near.

Deception by men, many false prophets will arise and will deceive many, wars and rumor of wars, nations rising against nation, kingdom against kingdom, earthquakes in different places, famine, pestilence, rampant lawlessness (iniquity-sin), love of many waxed cold, fearful sights and great signs in heaven, signs in the sun, moon stars, sea and waves roaring, men’s hearts failing them (death-heart attacks) for fear of what is coming upon the earth.

Yes, we are getting close to the return of Christ. Just in the thirty years that I have been in the faith, I have witnessed all of these things growing with more intensity.

Originally posted by Disgustipated
Over the past months i have noticed a massive increase in signs of the 'rapture'
Now i do not belive in a god however i was raised in a very catholic area and go to a catholic school (i live in Ireland, go figure), But ive still noticed the signs and been a bit freaked out to be honest

It sounds like the Lord has not forgotten you my friend, and is revealing His truth to you. Matthew 24 makes mention of signs of the times you posted in reference to.

I would certainly agree with you in your view Disgustipated. That time appears to be closing in...

There is another verse that has to do with the characteristics of mankind in the last days.

2 Timothy 3 "Difficult Times Will Come"

1 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,

4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

5 holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; avoid such men as these.

I don't believe anyone would deny the above either...

I will keep you in my prayers Disgustipated!

Originally posted by Disgustipated

I hate to burst your bubble, but these signs have existed for hundreds(probably thousands) of years!

There's always been wackos claiming the end of the world is near(think about how many people were probably claiming that the sun or moon was dieing after eclipses), wars have existed for millenia, famine isn't something new, and horrible diseases have always existed(at least AIDS requires sexual or blood contact, all it took for the black plague to catch on was an infected ship making it to port), and of course earthquakes and natural disasters are... well, natural.

People have always thought the days they're living in are the end of days, and the examples you're giving aren't exactly unique to the times.

reply to post by Core90


Yes, you are correct, Jesus gave those signs right at 2000 years ago, and they have indeed been around for some time. The key isn't in the fact that they have always existed, but in the fact that they will reach a point in time and history, as was stated, much like a woman in labor, the pains start out gradually and then intensify until they are constant and ongoing.

Have we reached that point, where everything is at a continual, non-stop occurrence? Not quite yet, but as compared to history, they are indeed intensifying and will.

reply to post by Disgustipated



I enjoyed reading about how you feel here, is a quality post. Thought provoking thread!

And the comments so far have been very insightful.

I always see people keep saying that these things have always been around..

Not on a large scale is what the guy means...

The difference is that now we have the technology needed to wipe out the entire eartrh (which saints predicted) a WW3 and a nuclear holocost

thtas whats going to happen.. and this is biblical..

" and if (those) days were not (shortened)no life on earth would be saved "

because if God didnt intervene, the world would blow itself up...

and the 2 major signs of the end times are.

1. Sin, increase in filthiness.

2. Technology which will be used not only to wipe the earth out but to lure in souls into worshipping a materialistic world...


so you are right original poster, this stuff is true beyond measure.

peace.

In my lifetime I have heard about religions warning of the end of the world several times, they sure are a paranoid lot,

religions are man made fantasies, they help people deal with their own mortality,

a lot of people are not be able to handle the truth.

the truth is, the thing that separates people from other animals is our advanced
capacity for thought, we are only flesh and blood, when we die we rot just like any other animal.

if you can honestly believe in the stories about Noahs arc, etc, and your faith in a god helps you deal with life or be a better person, then more power to you,

I tried that rout and the more I studied the less I was able to believe.

I found that by calling myself a christian at that point, I was not only lying to others, but I was also lying to myself.

Originally posted by orlenz

I tried that rout and the more I studied the less I was able to believe.

I found that by calling myself a christian at that point, I was not only lying to others, but I was also lying to myself.

Even what you have stated, that is another fulfillment, the Apostasy, a great falling away from the faith, that will take place before Christ comes. If indeed you once believed. I am understanding you did at one time call yourself a Christian?

You stated, “I found that by calling myself a christian at that point, I was not only lying to others, but I was also lying to myself.

If what you are trying to convey here has to do how you were supposed to live in comparison to how you were living, don’t feel alone in that “mental struggle.” No believer just becomes Christ like. That is a life long process and will continue until you take your last breath. The key is to never give up and lose your faith in Christ; God will bring to completion what He began within us, when we first placed out faith in Christ.

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: (Philipians 1:6)

No baby, when they first learn to walk, walks perfectly at the onset of their first step, but instead, stumble time and time again, and, even as they mature and learn to master their stride, even in adulthood, look at how many of us have slipped, tripped or fallen to the ground. Do we stay down, no, we get back up and continue on. That is the way we are to be in regard to the Faith and this walk. At times we will sin, but we confess, get up and move on, not allowing that sin to harden our hearts.






[edit on 2-3-2008 by jdposey]

Originally posted by jdposey

Originally posted by orlenz

I tried that rout and the more I studied the less I was able to believe.

I found that by calling myself a christian at that point, I was not only lying to others, but I was also lying to myself.

If what you are trying to convey here has to do how you were supposed to live in comparison to how you were living, don’t feel alone in that “mental struggle.” No believer just becomes Christ like.





[edit on 2-3-2008 by jdposey]

No that's not what I meant,

I meant that I found myself reading these amazing stories, and trying to believe, but I knew those stories were not true, and I had been trying to convince myself that they were true.
I know the truth, just like many of the religious leader we see in the news, who get caught doing all kinds of things,

they also know the truth, the truth is that faith in a higher power does help many people cope with lifes challenges, but it is all BS.

it's a noble thing to try to help people by preaching, but inside they knew it was BS.

reply to post by Disgustipated


Well God Bless You
For some one who may at one time at least believed in God, I know you say you don't anymore but you must believe in what you wrote. Think about it If it is out of the Bible written thousands of years ago, now coming true there must be something you believe in. Thats all you have to do is believe in Jesus and you will go with the rapture. Don't be left behind. Believe its not hard.
Thanks Dawn

reply to post by Disgustipated


Well God Bless You
For some one who may at one time at least believed in God, I know you say you don't anymore but you must believe in what you wrote. Think about it If it is out of the Bible written thousands of years ago, now coming true there must be something you believe in. Thats all you have to do is believe in Jesus and you will go with the rapture. Don't be left behind. Believe its not hard.
Thanks Dawn

reply to post by Core90


Yes they have, but you need to understand the principle of the "exponential curve".

Basically it means this: when events are shown on a line graph, they basically either stay the same, decrease, or rise gradually. What happens when you have an "exponential curve" is when the line graph basically shoots vertically straight up.

This is an example of an "exponential curve":




Now, of course we have always had these times, but Jesus said when these things happen like "birth pangs" of a woman you know the end is near. What happens when a woman's birth pangs begin? They pains/contractions increase drastically in both frequency and intensity.

Let's examine some exponential curves shall we?

To get an idea of what an exponential curve is. Imagine that you place one bacterium in a glass jar at 11:00. The bacterium begins to multiply, each bacterium reproducing and doubling itself every minute. We start with one bacterium and one minute later there is a second bacterium, and one minute later you have 4 bacteria, each doubling every minute. as you can see for every minute that passes the number of bacteria doubles because each bacteria reproduces, becoming two where before there was only one. Let us imagine it will take 60 minutes for the entire jar to be full. At what time would it be half full?

Most people would probably answer at 11:30, half way through the hour. However time and quantity increments are not the same. The jar would be half full at 11:59. Though it took a full 59 minutes for the jar to become half full, it only takes one minute for the remaining half to be filled. This is due to the exponential curve.

To use this curve in other areas. Knowledge took 5000 years to double in 1800. In other words, at the end of a 5000 year period people only knew about twice as much as they did in the beginning of that period. In the next 100 years, however, knowledge doubled a second time. What took 5000 years now happened in 100 years. Then in half that time - in just 50 years - knowledge doubled a third time. It has been estimated that by the 1990's knowledge has been doubling every 18 months.

Knowledge increases - Daniel 12:4

"But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words, and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase."

Life expectancy worldwide was 21 years of age at the time of Christ, and it took 1900 years to double to 42 years in 1900, but it only took 100 years to reach 65, and is expected to reach 85 by 2050.

The last 100 years has seen an "exponential curve" in human lifespan.

With the exponential increase of wars, earthquakes, disease, droughts, famine, etc in the world, you begin to wonder, how long before time runs out, and the jar is full. Are we in that last minute? As the population of the world increases, so does crowded living conditions, which in turn increases viruses and disease. In the 40 year period between 1950 and 1990, the number of passengers aboard international commercial flights increased exponentially from 2 million to 280 million. This means that human beings carrying infectious disease can now travel to any part of the globe.

www.konig.org...

Here is a good video about the exponential curve principle:

Exponential Curve pt. 1

Exponential Curve pt. 2


To the OP:


If you have any questions, or want someone to talk to, I have studies these subjects intensely for over a decade, you are more than welcome to U2U me!

God Bless.

[edit on 10-10-2008 by NOTurTypical]

reply to post by JesusisTruth

The difference is that now we have the technology needed to wipe out the entire eartrh (which saints predicted) a WW3 and a nuclear holocost

thtas whats going to happen.. and this is biblical..

They sure did predict nuclear war, God showed Zachariah this 3,000 years ago in a vision:

"And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth."

Zachariah 14:12

These people will be vaporized where they stand. And this prophecy wasn't about WW II... Japan didn't fight against Jerusalem.



[edit on 11-10-2008 by NOTurTypical]

From an atheist view.. people would have thought the world was ending when the black plague hit. There have always been earthquakes, pandemics, famine, world wars and would-be messiahs so these "signs" are nothing out of the ordinary.

Originally posted by Disgustipated
But all these signs are kinda scary ain't they?

I believe that the scripture says paraphrased that those are just birth pangs that those events are not the end in itself. The rapture is debatable as to "what" it means, whether pre or post trib or if it is physical or spiritual in nature.

The point being made is that all these things lead up to "the day of the Lord", or the time when the old order of things fade away and God takes over again through his offspring in ruling the planet. Take that as you will, however it promises to bring about peace and order to the world again, which is a good thing.

From an atheist point of view (not mine but yours), I would think that most of those events could have been logically deduced thousands of years ago as generalizations. The most striking prophecy that may or may not happen that would at least make you think "maybe there is something to this" is if society marks all the people in a scheme of economics and identification. With the fall of money starting to occur, that may be a scary thought, depending on how one views it.

Originally posted by riley
From an atheist view.. people would have thought the world was ending when the black plague hit. There have always been earthquakes, pandemics, famine, world wars and would-be messiahs so these "signs" are nothing out of the ordinary.

An atheist also wouldn't know that Jesus said the end of the age would come in the generation that witnessed Israel become a nation either. It was impossible before 1948.

And for your other ideas, look at the exponential curve factor. Christ never said the end of this age would come when those signs merely happened, He said the end would come when they began to occur like the birth pangs of a woman: much more frequently and raising in intensity.

Check out the exponential curve. Only this last 100 years has seen these signs both increase exponentially in frequency and intensity. And only since 1948 could a generation be alive that would see the end of the age.

Originally posted by NOTurTypical

Originally posted by riley
From an atheist view.. people would have thought the world was ending when the black plague hit. There have always been earthquakes, pandemics, famine, world wars and would-be messiahs so these "signs" are nothing out of the ordinary.

An atheist also wouldn't know that Jesus said the end of the age would come in the generation that witnessed Israel become a nation either. It was impossible before 1948.

Again.. a nation being born usually comes from some sort of war.. and when war happens famine and disease usually follow. Secondly.. using "but jesus said" as an argument to an atheist isn't very logical.

[edit on 11-10-2008 by riley]

I totally believe that the rapture will happen within the next few years

I do not know , only God knows but where 2 or more are gathered in the field one will be taken that's the strongest Scripture that I can see my Dad used that one when I questioned the whole thing and he was in his 8o's he is with the Lord now ,but I really believe it is in a twinkling of the eye .Very fast those that believe will literally be taken ,it is so close I have been preparing mentally Lord prepare us for this journey .You split the Red Sea so the Israelites could cross safely.you warned of the flood and it came you spoke through the Prophets about the coming Messiah and he came JESU JESU now you warn us through the words of our Lord and the last text The Book of Revelations It is very soon and many things will occur .Pray for your lifting kind of like going through a dimensional shift and acquiring an Angelic being GOD BE WITH US ALL AMEN

Originally posted by Disgustipated
This is the one that made me make this thread, In the past few weeks there has been a massive increase in earthquakes with no explanation , even in england where earthquakes are very very rare also southern Iran, china etc...

Now i never believed in the rapture or reavaltions whatever you want to call it, Even when i did belive in a chirstian god
But all these signs are kinda scary ain't they?
Btw im not trying to convert anyone or anything with fear

Any views?

I think you should of renamed the thread to "signs of the end of times", or "judgiment day" or something. All these signs that you put are predicts in the bible about our future. I think your becoming a believer by bible predicts. I pray that God saves you sooner than later. That the truth be known to you. Go bless.

PS. These are not signs of the rapture but of the end of times.

[edit on 13-11-2008 by slymattb]