What is Rapture Anxiety?

Himitsu Ministries Podcast

At Himitsu Ministries, our mission is to help you cultivate a deeper understanding of God’s Word primarily through bible prophecy and apologetics.

Rapture Anxiety

byAyo Shosanya

A discussion about what some exvangelicals are calling “Rapture Anxiety” – a fear of the rapture. I take a look at CNN’s article about rapture anxiety and offer my thoughts and commentary.

I address the rapture of the church and if it’s a biblical doctrine. I also make distinctions between the partial rapture view and the pre-trib rapture view.

Timestamps:

02:20 Addressing Misconceptions About the Rapture

05:33 What is “Rapture Anxiety “?

06:14 Highlighting the works-based system in the article

07:05 Addressing fears of the rapture

10:56 Is the rapture a recent invention?

15:39 The word “rapture” isn’t in the Bible. Is it False?

17:41 Addressing the claim that the rapture is a “poetic metaphor”.

24:47 Is the rapture a “taboo” subject?

Show Notes:
https://himitsustudy.com/what-is-rapture-anxiety/

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Episode Summary: A discussion about what some exvangelicals are calling “Rapture Anxiety” – a fear of the rapture. I take a look at CNN’s article about rapture anxiety and offer my thoughts and commentary. I address the rapture of the church and if it’s a biblical doctrine. I also make distinctions between the partial rapture view and the pre-trib rapture view.

Scriptural References

1. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18: “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven 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 shall 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. Therefore comfort one another with these words.”
2. 2 Peter 3:1-13

Article Quotations (CNN)

1. “Rapture anxiety,’ as it is often called, is recognized by some faith experts and mental health professionals as a type of religious trauma. Darren Slade, the president and CEO of the Global Center for Religious Research, has been studying religious trauma across several faiths and denominations for years. ‘This is a real thing. It’s a chronic problem,’ he says of rapture anxiety. “This is a new area of study, but in general, our research has revealed that religious trauma leads to an increase of anxiety, depression, paranoia and even some OCD-like behaviors: ‘I need to say this prayer of salvation so many times,’ ‘I need to confess my sins so often.’…“Chelsea Wilson of Marietta, Georgia tells CNN that while growing up in an evangelical community, talk of the rapture was so intrinsic that children would play pranks to scare each other into believing everyone around them had been raptured. ‘As if,’ Wilson says, ‘it were a scary campfire story.”
2. “However, Slade’s [Darren Slade, the president and CEO of the Global Center for Religious Research] biblical studies eventually led him to an uncomfortable truth: The rapture, as it is taught in some Baptist, evangelical and fundamentalist communities, is scantly mentioned in the Bible. In fact, modern rapture theology only dates back to the 1800s.”
3. “Ajoy, who still identifies as a Christian, first questioned rapture theology when she was in her late teens, after discovering that the word “rapture” doesn’t appear in the Bible at all.”
4. “The concept of the rapture, known theologically as dispensational premillennialism, is not prevalent in Catholic or mainline Protestant denominations like Episcopalianism or Presbyterianism, and is most commonly adhered to in evangelical and fundamental churches. This line of theology draws heavily upon a letter from the Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians, included in the Bible, that says believers in Jesus would be snatched or seized into the air. Interpretations of this verse vary widely among Christian leaders, many of whom see it as a common example of poetic metaphor among Paul’s writings.”
5. “For Christians who begin to question their beliefs, the fear of what could happen if they name their doubts out loud can be just as overwhelming as rapture anxiety itself. ‘It’s taboo to talk about,’ Ajoy says. ‘Because there is this idea that if you need to worry about the rapture, well, what have you done to worry about?'”

Article Quotations (Harbingers Daily)

1.  “CNN recently posted an article that mocks the Rapture by telling someone’s story about the anxiety it caused her. This woman, however, does not understand the Gospel message nor what Scripture says about our hope in Jesus’ appearing. Of course, if people think their salvation depends on their good behavior and they never hear about the glories ahead for them in eternity, teachings about a sudden disappearance from all the things they love on earth will scare them. But that is NOT the Gospel nor is it the Gospel hope that we find throughout the New Testament.”

Referenced Materials

1. For some Christians, ‘rapture anxiety’ can take a lifetime to heal (CNN – September 27th, 2022)
2. Amid Today’s Ridicule Of Our Blessed Hope, Dare To Be Enoch (Harbinger’s Daily – September 30th, 2022)
3. Paul Didn’t Believe in the Rapture. Neither Did Jesus. Neither Should You. (Kurt Willems – May 9th)

The Gospel

We’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Psalm 51:5, Romans 3:23). Because God is Holy he must judge sin. The penalty of this sin is death and ultimately the Lake of fire (Romans 6:23, Revelation 20:11-15). There’s nothing we can do to save ourselves (Isaiah 64:6).

But God, in his love has provided a way to escape his wrath through Christ (John 3:16-18, John 14:6). Jesus paid for our sin penalty by taking God’s wrath in our stead on the cross (Romans 5:8). He died for our sins, was buried, and rose again 3 days later (1 Corinthians 15:1-5).

You can accept this free gift of salvation by believing in Christ (Acts 16:30-31, Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8-9). Make sure you’ve made the right decision about Jesus today (2 Corinthians 6:2)! It will be the most important decision of your life, for eternal life.