For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.    Matthew 24:38-39 NKJV

If you read in Genesis chapter 6, you will see that God brought the flood to people who had never seen rain because the world had become so corrupt. Man had become so evil that God wanted to just wipe everybody off the face of the earth, but because Noah was found to be a righteous man, God saved Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives.

In our Scripture passage for today, Jesus is comparing the flood to the coming rapture. I encourage you to read all of Matthew 24. In Revelation 3:10 Jesus tells the church in Philadelphia, “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on earth.” I believe this supports a pre-tribulation rapture, but of course none of us know when this will take place.

Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, “For the Lord Himself will descend with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”

Noah preached and warned people about the coming flood. The people saw him building the ark, they had to have seen him loading all of these animals on two by two. Others could have entered the ark, but they chose not to. They ridiculed Noah and called him crazy. Then God shut the door and the rains came (Genesis 6:16-24).  They knew it was coming, but they chose not to believe.

In Matthew 24:36 Jesus said, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My father only.” The people of Noah’s day might not have known when it was going to start raining, but Noah had warned them it was coming.

God’s holy word warns us of the rapture. We all know we will die someday. While we may not know when we will die or when the rapture will take place, we know it’s going to happen at some point.

God’s word tells us of things we will see in the last days. We are forewarned, but still, many refuse to believe and come to Him. They may think we are crazy for trusting in Jesus. They may think we are crazy for devoting time to Bible study, prayer, church attendance and Christian fellowship. We may be ridiculed for our belief. Don’t be discouraged, they thought the same of Noah.

None of know if this is the day the Lord will call us home. If you knew this was the day, would you do anything differently? Would you change anything about the way you think, the way you speak, or the way you treat others?

Well, this could be the day, we just don’t know. Or maybe it will be tomorrow, or maybe it will be 100 years from now, nobody knows except God Himself.

We do know, however, that one day we will stand before God and answer for all the things we have said and done here on earth. There is no time like now to turn to Him and ask for forgiveness. Now is the time to earnestly repent and turn away from any intentional sin in your life. Now is the time to trust in Him.

If this is the day, are you ready? Now is the time to get ready. When He calls us, it will be too late to prepare. Right now, is the time to get ready and stay ready.

Have a great day!