by Tim Knappenberger

WASHINGTON (REUTERS NEWS) Sunday, May 31^st, 1998 News wires from around the world began humming shortly after 12:01 A.M. EDT as report after report began cascading in describing inexplicable, into-thin-air disappearances of people from all parts of the globe. The White House has issued a statement that all of the major industrialized nations are in active communication with each other and that military mobilization is underway in each of those countries. Efforts are being taken to calm the public as well as arrive at some rational explanations for what appears to be the irrational. Pentagon spokesperson, Maj. General Wm. Halsley, called a press conference at 7:30 A.M.…

In case you missed it, the Rapture was to occur on May 31^st, 1998, Pentecost Sunday. Many pre-millennial, Rapture-waiting Web sites were selecting this date has highly possible due to certain indices, some of which were:

• 1998 is the 50th Pentecost held in the new Jewish state of Israel. Rapture Pentecost 5-31 fits exactly into this three week time window when Jerusalem is yet 30 years old (borne 7 June 1967 - Earliest one could be a priest) and Israel already 50 years old (borne 14 May 1948 - Oldest one could serve as priest) (Numbers 4:43).
  
• The number 153 (153 fishes caught by the Apostles at Jesus’ direction and symbolizing the "bringing in" of the Gentile Church - John 21:11) with transposed digits => 5-31 = 31st of May shows the date for Pentecost 1998. Again the sum of 05+31+19+98 is 153!!! Transpose all of the digits of 531 and add together and you get 1998 (531+513+351+315+153+135=1998)
  
• Pentecost is the feast of firstfruit, the end of grain harvest, and it there is strong evidence that on this feast of firstfruits, the firstfruits (James 1.18) are raptured to heaven. (Exodus 23:14-19)
  
• The Rapture is likely to happen in the 6,000th year since Adam left the Garden of Eden (Jewish 5758, our 1998), corresponding to the 6 days of creation followed by the 1 Sabbath Day of rest (1,000 years of Jesus’ reign in Jerusalem).
  
• Today is the 6^th of Sivan (Jewish calendar). Enoch (who was translated into heaven) was born and taken into heaven on the 6^th of Sivan.
  
• If the Holy Spirit gave birth to the Church on Pentecost Sunday, it would seem fitting that Christ would claim His Bride on the same day.

This is only a partial list of the signs and indicators Rapture enthusiasts were hoping would herald the great day when Christ comes to claim His "Bride" (us, the Church) from the earth and signal the beginning of the end, the 70^th Week of Daniel, the start of the seven years of tribulation leading up to Christ’s Millennial reign. As I write this at 9:21 PM on Tuesday, June 2^nd, I feel reasonably confident that their prognostications were proven incorrect. If you’re reading this meditation on Weekendspirations anytime after "D-date", let us both pray they were wrong; at least this time.

As we approach the year 2000, the numbers of apocalyptic visionaries seems to be exponentially increasing. Pre-millennial Christians, New Agers, Eastern mystics, you name it. All are keeping a watchful eye on the approaching advent of the new millennium and speculating as to what it might bring. With this as its backdrop, news wires run copy of yet another fringe group of Rapture-watchers that have sold everything and are waiting on top of some mountain somewhere for Christ (or for our New Age friends, the mothership) to catch them up to Himself (herself?). If you happen to be a Believer that believes in the Rapture, you tend to keep it to yourself for fear of being lumped together with those lunatic, starry-eyed sky-watchers.

Now you might be concluding from what you’ve read thus far that I’m an enlightened scoffer of those poor, pathetic Rapture-watching folks. Not so. In actuality, I’m waiting and watching along with them. Okay, so maybe I’m not selling my house and climbing up on some mountain, but I’m waiting and watching nonetheless. (Since Christ has the power to transform us in the "twinkling of an eye" and take us up into the clouds, I could never understand what advantage there was in trying to hurry the process along by scampering up some hill? Sort of like pushing against a tree in hopes of speeding up the rotational speed of the earth.)

It’s interesting how our perspective changes with age. At age 16, when my best friend Bob Judge and I would talk about Christ’s return, we each secretly admitted that we were hoping (and praying) He would delay long enough for us to… well, for us to no longer be… umm,… how should I say this? For us to get married and no longer be saddled with the "blessing" of our virginity. (Be kind folks, remember I’m talking about two hormonally-charged, Christian adolescents here!) Anyway, times and perspectives change. Now I’m no longer anxious about His immanent appearing, but rather disappointed over His prolonged delay. Though I remain skeptical when prognosticators begin fixing exact times and dates to our Lord’s appearing, I realize someday someone will be correct. I must admit that Pentecost 1998 was just fine with me.

But why am I OK with it now vs. being reluctant 27 years ago? The easy answer would be that I’ve been able to enjoy many of the experiences of life that I could only look expectantly upon in my younger days; college, marriage, parenthood, career, travel. (Yes, thanks to marriage, I did take care of that "burden" Bob and I fretted so over.) But it is more than that. Though I can’t say I’ve done it all, I have done enough to know just how hard and relentless living in this fallen world can be. As Scott Peck intones, "Life is difficult." Most everything we set ourselves to requires considerable effort, often times pain, sometimes failure, and every time comes back to challenge us all over again day after day after day… All of this adds up to the wrong reason that I’m desirous for my Savior to return: I’m tired. But there is also a right reason why I’m "standing ready" as well: I’m excited! I take literally Christ’s promises of "many mansions," eternally sharing in my Master’s happiness, and reigning with Him forever and ever. I groan right along with Creation to be freed from the burden and fallout from the consequences of sin. Why on earth wouldn’t all Believers want off earth complete with perfected, Christ-like bodies in place of those pained, diseased, and suffering ones we lug around? Search the Scriptures yourself. For the one time Jesus said that "no man knows the day or hour," He spoke ten times more about watching, being ready, keeping our "lamps" full, guarding the house, and faithfully preparing for the "Owners" return. Christians who fear ridicule from the world for being too "pie-in-the-sky" in their focus, enjoy admonishing Rapture-watching brothers and sisters with the epitaph "Don’t be so heaven-focused that you are of no earthly good." No argument there. Go visit the sick, hug a child, pick up a fallen brother, weep with those who weep. But while you do the work of the Kingdom here on earth, keep an eye to the sky and remind yourself what the ultimate reason is that motivates you to do what you do. "Well done, thou good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your Master’s happiness." Going up? The sooner the better!

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
1 Cor. 15:19