Guess what I received a couple of Fridays ago?
A couple of nastygrams in my inbox.
Nastygrams are feisty, rude, and non-endearing emails. We don’t like nastygrams, but they arrive in my inbox from time to time. Mind you, nastygrams ALWAYS come from…
Christians.
Yes, Christians write up rotten emails, and then click, “Send.”
Apparently, some of the Christian faithful forgot to read the Book of James.
Now get this,, none of the emails disagreed with me about the rapture.
Nope.
Not a one.
Instead, they had to find something else to disagree with, for the sake of disagreeing and then be quite rude about it. I’m sharing this with you today so you remember to treat others how you want to be treated.
You know, an ‘ol adage from Jesus, that some of us have forgotten, (Matthew 22:37-40).
Let’s get started…
Nastygram #1
Name: Mary Lou Retten
Question: In your article about the “rapture” (in which you are right) you make a big error.
Scripture says the following:
Amo 3:7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.
So he can’t have a “rapture” without the prophets knowing when!
Brandon: So Mary agrees with me, there is no rapture.
However, Mary’s rationale is that God would have revealed this “secret” rapture to the prophets, since He didn’t, the rapture can’t be true.
Here we go…
Discussion about “secret knowledge.”
I know where this is going…
Hey, what have I always told you?
Disregard people who claim to have “secret knowledge” of the Scriptures. Knowledge that only they or their church possesses. That’s the very definition of a cult. Don’t walk away, run away!
This is what the Bible actually says,
2 Peter 1:20
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
That simply means, no single person has the key to unlock Scripture.
No one has “the secret.”
Besides, all Amos 3:7 is saying, is that God revealed His Word to the prophets, and through the prophets to us. Hey, there’s no modern-day “prophets,” but there’s lots of modern-day fakes and wannabes.
Let’s see what else Mary had to say, it hasn’t even gotten nasty yet.
Thump, thump, here we go!
Mary: Mat 13:11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
So God allows his people to know things others don’t.
Brandon: Hey, we agree here!
That’s the point of a parable, so only Christians know the mysteries of Heaven, not non-believers. However, there’s nothing about certain secrets being revealed to certain Christians.
We already debunked that one with the verse I shared in Peter.
What else did Mary have to say?
Here comes the nasty!…
Mary: 1Th 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
So God tells us we are to know when he comes NOT A DATE but the day.
Key to knowing when Jesus is coming in is this next verse. Do you belong to God or are you also blind?
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Brandon: Hey, that’s pretty Christian huh?
According to Christian folks like Mary, if you don’t believe what they believe, you don’t belong to God, and you’re blind.
Double whammy, nice!
I have to tell you, if you ever wanted someone to disregard what you have to say, it’s to act spiritually superior to your Christian brothers and sisters.
Aside from that, what she explained about “not a date, but the day” is mind-blowing…
So we don’t know the “date” of Christ’s return, but we know the “day.”
Apparently, this is some new belief that’s going around like the common cold. I received another email about this a week prior. Christians are playing semantics with Scripture…
Let’s break down the thought with Scriptural edification.
Mark 13:32
But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.
“…of that day and that hour…”
Those are the words of Jesus Christ.
No one knows the day and the hour of that day, when Jesus returns.
That’s what Jesus said.
Jesus doesn’t know when He’s returning, so no one knows the “date” or “day” of His return.
Everyone has been trying to guess for 2,000 years, and they’re always wrong. No one knows, only the Father, just as Scripture said. The Bible does not contradict itself. Therefore, the verse she cited in Thessalonians is simply generalizing via the signs we will see.
That’s why Paul wrote,
1 Thessalonians 5:2
For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
It was well established, Christ’s return would be unexpected.
Why?
No one knows the specific day and hour of that day.
However, for Christians…
1 Thessalonians 5:5-6
5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
It doesn’t mean literal sleep, it means spiritual sleep. Don’t spiritually go off into slumber and not pay attention to the signs of His return. Don’t be like the world.
1 Thessalonians 5:8
But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
You have to place everything in context, and remember, that Scripture never contradicts.
Interestingly enough, another reader actually offered to provide me with the “day” of Christ’s return. Yes, “secret knowledge.” I think he wanted me to grovel or something.
You’ll have to forgive me, but I passed.
All right, enough of that one.
This last nastygram I shared with the Community, but I wanted to make sure you saw it as well.
Nastygram #2
In response to my rapture article, I received a “nastygram” from an outraged reader.
They said,
“Just so you know in advance there is NO pre-trib rapture. EVERYBODY who propagates this lie, this hoax will be judged a FALSE, LYING prophet/teacher. It will make no difference who you are whether the CEO of a seminary, a DOD, a Right, Right, Right reverend or the sweet little preacher who always tells you exactly what you want to hear, tickling your ears with his hoaxes, you will be judged.”
Unbelievable.
Clearly, they didn’t read the article, as I don’t believe in the rapture, nor did my title say as much. Ironically, this was exactly my point in the article… Christians latch onto dogma and doctrine without ever reading. They just hear what they want to hear.
Moreover,
- Why are Christians so quick to rush to critical, rude, and unjust condemnation?
- Where is the love in attempted correction?
- Who is teaching Christians like this?
You’ll never convince someone of your point of view by lashing out at them. Not in a million years. As Ma always said, you get more bees with honey.
Conclusion
Why am I sharing this with you?
So you remember to treat people with respect. So you live according to the Great Commandment. Far too often Christians get on a spiritual ego trip.
They aren’t content enough with agreeing, and loving the Christian faithful…
Nope.
Instead, some Christians have to find disagreement somewhere, and then be irate and rude about it.
Never be like that, never send someone a nastygram.
By the way, if people send emails like this to Christians, imagine what they’re sending to non-believers!!!