Busting The Skeptic's Bubble

by Michael G. Mickey

(10-20-06)

From a reader of RaptureAlert.com whose name is Sue (emphasis added mine):

You know Mike, I work with a few Christians and I am appalled at how blind some of them are to what is going on in this world and the direction we are headed.  I've had conversations with some of them about the events now taking place on the world scene (which we know is heading towards the rapture of the Church and the coming of the Antichrist), but they seem oblivious to it and even go so far as to say that they don't believe this will happen in their lifetime and that it will probably happen hundreds, if not thousands, of years from now.  These particular few think that people like you and I are "fanatics".

Will the coming of the Lord be delayed for hundreds or even thousands of years? Call me a fanatic (and the sister in Christ who wrote this to me as well) if you like, but seeing a position taken like that by anyone, especially a Christian, leaves me so frustrated I don't know what to do! Why? Because there is so much evidence to the contrary, of course! Not only that, I am stricken with grief that there are so many Christians who make claims like that who have no idea whatsoever that they are seeing the signs of His coming each and every day in the news headlines of our world today! That would be because many churches today fail to find any value in their members understanding Bible prophecy on any level. Likewise, watching for the return of Jesus Christ is no longer considered a good thing in many churches, but a waste of time. Literally!

Are we, as Christians, to suppose that Jesus Christ's command that we watch and pray concerning His return has expired in some manner? Certainly not, for it is written, as seen in Mark 13:33-37:

Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

While none of us know the precise time of the Lord's return, He has provided us with a clear outline of what the end times world is going to look like. Guess what? Reading over the list of prophetic indicators I have compiled is like reading your local newspaper or watching CNN, as I document here on this site day after day after day! When, oh when, I am left to wonder, is the Church of the last days going to collectively pull its head out of the sand and join me in sounding the alert that Jesus Christ is coming soon? Now don't get me wrong here! Sure, there are many fine Christians in the world who are wide awake as to what's going on around them and I praise the Lord that I hear from many of them via my e-mail box, but there are far more who aren't watching for Christ's return than the opposite! It's something we need to be talking about, as well as something this website is ready to help churches begin to do - at the drop of a hat no less, via its road show, which is presently staffed by Dr. Scott Sykes and yours truly, although the brunt of that effort rests with brother Scott, for now at least.

Why do I, as well as brother Scott, have such a burning desire to see Christians embrace the signs around them pointing toward the soon-coming return of Jesus Christ? Because we know that the thought that Jesus Christ could come at any moment, as opposed to coming a thousand years from now, changes everything concerning how a Christian views his or her faith, as well as how passionately they share that faith with others! This is the reason why Jesus placed such a heavy emphasis on the Church watching for His return to occur at any moment! He wanted us to be energized by the prospect we might meet Him in the air at any moment and, because of that realization, be motivated in our efforts to reach out to the lost, especially those we love, that they be prepared to go with us!

Christians, there are eyes all around us that need to be opened to what is going on in the world around us. Some of the eyes I'm speaking of are those of born-again believers, many of whom are currently struggling to stay afloat in a hostile world they're increasingly realizing they don't fit in with. Open these Christian eyes to the signs in the world around them pointing to the soon-coming return of Jesus Christ and watch what happens! The prophecies of the Bible will explode to life, making perfect sense of much of what they presently can't grasp that's driving them nuts! Not only that, watch their spirits start to rise once they get a vision in their minds of the victory that is drawing near for those who've placed their faith in Jesus Christ! And witnessing to others? Trust me when I say that they'll find a way to reach out to lost friends and family.

A few months ago I added a feature to the site that allows readers to forward commentaries via e-mail to anyone they want. The response to adding that feature has been incredible to say the least! Through this site, because it is focusing Christians on the many signs pointing toward Christ's soon-coming return, brothers and sisters in Christ are reaching out to their lost loved ones, asking and telling them things like, "You don't believe the Bible is true? Then how do you explain this?" and "Daughter, I love you and want you to accept Jesus Christ as soon as possible. You're running out of time!"

What do I say to that? Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!

And what can I say about the impact Rapturealert.com must be having on nonbelievers who stumble onto it and dare to read it any more than on a cursory level? Each and every day RaptureAlert.com is busting the skeptical nonbeliever's bubble, informing him or her that Christ's return may be much closer than they've ever imagined! Perhaps, Christ's return is at the very door, even as I type this commentary in the wee hours of the morning due to the Lord stirring me from sleep as He occasionally does, placing nothing on my mind other than attending to this ongoing work of mine for Him.

Lastly, in keeping with the site's overall theme, is there anything in the news today that might indicate Christ's return is near? Of course there is! For brevity's sake, I'm going to use three examples on the condition of our global environment to illustrate the fact that our world, in spite of the best wishes of secular mankind, probably isn't capable of standing up to another hundred years of ever-multiplying corruption being caused by the wanton sinfulness of mankind.

The Ozone Hole

ABC News, for example, is reporting that the "so-called "hole" in the earth's protective ozone layer is at a new record -- 10.6 million square miles of sky around the South Pole -- even though most nations agreed back in 1987 to phase out the chemicals that cause it."

The story indicates it is presently about the size of North America. In other words, it's HUGE! Scientists have said in the past that our planet's ozone layer, vital to the survival of life, will repair itself. That clearly hasn't happened thus far. If the present trend continues, here's what the ABC story indicates the ramifications may be:

If ozone is destroyed, scientists say there would be multiple effects -- increased rates of skin cancer and cataracts; and death of tiny plankton in the oceans, which form the base of the world's food chain in many cases.

PreventDisease.com indicates diagnoses of skin cancer have increased in recent times. And the death of tiny plankton in the oceans which form the base of the world's food chain? I've been writing about that taking place for a long time --- and it's in the news again!

Dead Zones

Plankton is defined as: The collection of small or microscopic organisms, including algae and protozoans, that float or drift in great numbers in fresh or salt water, especially at or near the surface, and serve as food for fish and other larger organisms.

Bearing that in mind, Reuters is reporting that "the number of "dead zones" in the world's oceans may have increased by a third in just two years, threatening fish stocks and the people who depend on them."

Estimates are that 200 hundred "dead zones" - areas of oxygen-depleted sea bed where there is no life (not even plankton) - presently exist in our world, compared with 150 just two short years ago!

What happens, pray tell, when the bottom of the food chain begins to die at a time when the top of the food chain - humanity - is increasing in population at warp speed? You do the math on that one!

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that we're rapidly reaching a breaking point environmentally. There's only one solution that exists capable of preventing the end of all flesh from coming, in accordance with Matthew 24:22 and Mark 13:20. His name is Jesus Christ and I believe there is overwhelming and rapidly-mounting evidence to suggest our Lord is going to have to step into that role in the not-too-distant future for any number of reasons!

Greenland Ice Sheet Melting

Reuters is reporting that the Greenland ice sheet is shrinking fast, according to NASA. In the 1990s, according to the report, Greenland's ice gains in winter were roughly equaling their melting losses. Not so anymore, however!

Scott Luthcke of NASA's Planetary Geodynamics Laboratory is quoted in the Reuters story as saying, "That situation has now changed significantly, with an annual net loss of ice equal to nearly six years of average water flow from the Colorado River."

Pause to think on what this story is telling us has happened in a decade or so. Greenland's ice sheet has gone from breaking even in seasonal ice melt and gain to losing an annual amount of its ice sheet equal to six years of Colorado River water flow! This is taking place, according to another source quoted, when "we are only in the early stages of the climate warming predicted for this century." In other words, things are going to get worse. Imagine that!

See how quickly bubbles can be burst? If Jesus Christ doesn't come soon, how horrific are things going to become before He does? How much more dire is the future going to have to appear before a sleepy Church and unrepentant mankind finally snap out of the daze they have both fallen into in these end times? For the sake of the lost, as well as believers everywhere, I hope the answer to that question is a resounding soon!