While we are waiting for the Lord’s coming and expect to be raptured, we need to be faithful in our daily duties, living a properly balanced human life while simultaneously living in the divine and mystical realm so that He may rapture us when He returns.
Amen, we want to be raptured by the Lord when He comes back!
What kind of living and attitude do we need to have so that we may be raptured by the Lord at His return?
Many Christians think that, as long as they are saved, the Lord will take them when He returns. This is not accurate.
Others think that, as long as you do some good things for God, work for Him, and help in the church, the Lord Jesus will rapture them when He returns. This also is not accurate.
The enemy has been working throughout the ages to dull the senses of the believers in Christ and to water down the truth in God’s word.
The Lord Jesus is very clear in His word concerning His coming.
He does not tell us what time He comes, but He tells us He comes soon.
Furthermore, He gives us some clear indicators regarding the time of His coming, what will the world situation be like, what are the signs of His coming, and how we can prepare for His return.
He tells us that He will come as a thief in the middle of the night, when no one expects; a thief comes to steal precious things.
We believers in Christ need to enjoy Christ as the precious One, even the preciousness itself, and we need to become precious in God’s eyes to be worthy of being stolen by the Lord when He returns.
The Lord also told us that the days of His coming are like the days of Lot and the days of Noah.
Today we can see that people care only for eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, and doing all kinds of things for their pleasure and satisfaction.
Lawlessness multiplies, people commit evil, and it seems that evil is continually in their heart.
Even those who are supposed to uphold the law and enforce it do evil, and they are corrupted to the core.
Furthermore, Israel as a nation has been restored, and Europe is being united to prepare the stage for the Antichrist to rise up and bring in peace. All these are the outward signs.
What about us, the church as the Body of Christ?
What should our attitude be and how should we live today, at the end of this age, so that the Lord may take us when He returns?
What kind of living should we have these days, as we see the signs of the Lord’s coming and have a sense of the imminence of His return?
We all need to be before the Lord concerning this so that we may not be left behind when He returns, for He comes to take those who are ready, ripened, mature, and waiting for His coming.
Amen, may we abide in the Lord, have the maturity in life, and be faithful in our daily duties before the Lord to be ready for rapture at His return!
Having the Maturity in Life and Abide in the Lord to be ready for Rapture
Matt. 24:40-41 speaks concerning the Lord’s coming in a secret way to take those who are ready.
He said that, at that time, two men will be in the field – one is taken and one is left. Two women will be grinding at the mill – one is taken and one is left.
Some think that those who are left are the unbelievers and those who are taken are the believers, but this is not accurate, for the Lord continues by saying, Watch therefore, for you do not know what time your Lord will come.
The Lord is not the unbelievers’ Lord but the believers.
The two men and the two women represent the living believers at the time of the Lord’s second coming (Rev. 14:1, 4).
![And I saw, and behold, the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads....These are they who follow the Lamb wherever He may go. These were purchased from among men [as] firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. Rev. 14:1, 4b Because you have kept the word of My endurance, I also will keep you out of the hour of trial, which is about to come on the whole inhabited earth, to try them who dwell on the earth. Rev. 3:10](https://i0.wp.com/www.agodman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/And-I-saw-and-behold-the-Lamb-standing-on-Mount-Zion-and-with-Him-a-hundred-and-forty-four-thousand-1-jpg.webp?resize=400%2C600&ssl=1 "And I saw, and behold, the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads....These are they who follow the Lamb wherever He may go. These were purchased from among men [as] firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. Rev. 14:1, 4b Because you have kept the word of My endurance, I also will keep you out of the hour of trial, which is about to come on the whole inhabited earth, to try them who dwell on the earth. Rev. 3:10")
We as believers in Christ need to be warned and encouraged by the Lord’s word about His imminent and secret return.
Before He returns openly on the cloud for all to see Him, He will return secretly to rapture those who are ready.
What will take place among us, among the thousands of saints in the local churches?
As we live our daily life taking care of our responsibilities, doing our work, and having our daily living, will the Lord rapture us?
The brothers live a daily life, work on a job, and do the things they need to do; the sisters, the same, take care of the daily responsibilities.
Then the Lord comes secretly to take those who are ready for rapture. We do not need to wait until the temple is rebuilt in Jerusalem in order for us to live a life that is ready for rapture.
Today we need to have the maturity in life and live in the divine and mystical realm so that we may be ready to be raptured by the Lord.
We do not want to be on the earth when the great tribulation starts.
We want to be raptured before the great tribulation.
This portion in Matt. 24:40-41 refers to the secret rapture, the rapture of the ready ones, the mature ones (Rev. 14:4).
We need to be mature in life. We need to grow in life unto maturity so that we may have the maturity in life and be qualified to be raptured by the Lord.
We need to live not only in the physical realm but even more, live in spirit, in the divine and mystical realm, so that we may grow in life sufficiently to be raptured by the Lord.
The difference between the one that is taken and the one who is left is in the maturity of life.
The one who is taken is living in the divine and mystical realm, having the maturity of life, and the other is not.
We need to be those who redeem the time day by day in order to grow in life unto maturity so that we may be rapture-ready.
As we live a normal daily life, whether brothers or sisters, we need to simultaneously live in the physical realm and in the divine and mystical realm, exercising our spirit and living in the mingled spirit.
Our soul and spirit need to be separated, and we need to live one spirit with the Lord.
As we work at the job or take care of the daily chores at home, we need to simultaneously live in the mingled spirit, living in the divine and mystical realm.
We do not know what is the indicator of the Lord’s return, but it will be an inward sense, and those who live in the divine and mystical realm will simply respond instantly, and they will be gone.
The ones who do not live in the mingled spirit at the Lord’s secret return will be left behind.
In 1 John 2:28, we have a similar thought; we need to abide in the Lord so that, if He is manifested, we may have boldness and not be put to shame by Him at His coming.
We need to abide in the Lord so that, when He returns, we will respond to His coming.
May we be saved from any outward distractions and preoccupations.
We may be quite busy having many responsibilities and chores, but inwardly we need to live one spirit with the Lord, in the mingled spirit.
We may have a heated word exchange with our spouse, but as soon as we realize that we’re out of the divine and mystical realm, we need to turn.
We need to learn to abide in the Lord and live in Him, living not just in the physical realm or in the realm of morality, ethics, and improvement of behaviour, but in the divine and mystical realm.
We have the anointing within us, which teaches us all things; therefore, we should just abide in Him (1 John 2:27).
We need to learn to abide in the Lord and live in the divine and mystical realm so that, when the Lord comes, we will be ready and on the alert.
Lord Jesus, we want to abide in the Lord and grow in life unto maturity so that we may be ready for rapture at Your secret return! Amen, Lord, we love You and we want to have the maturity in life to be qualified to be taken by You when You come. May we live simultaneously in the physical realm and in the mingled spirit, in the divine and mystical realm. Save us from merely being busy with all the responsibilities and things we need to take of every day. May we seek to grow in life and arrive at the maturity of life so that we may be taken by You when You return! Have Your way in us, Lord. Separate our soul from our spirit and keep us in the realm of the Spirit with our spirit. We want to abide in You so that, when You are manifested, we may have boldness and not be put to shame at Your coming!
Not being Drugged but Awaiting the Lord’s Coming and being Faithful in our Daily Duties while we Live in the Divine and Mystical Realm
The whole world today lies in the evil one, and the people in the world are drugged, stupefied, by the god of this age.
They run to and fro to climb the career ladder, achieve things in sports or at work, and accumulate more riches for themselves.
They are completely befuddled, not being aware that judgment is coming.
In such a time, two brothers may be in the field, working and taking care of their daily responsibilities; when the Lord returns, one is taken and one is left.
Two sisters may be grinding at the mill, taking care of their families and fulfilling their daily duties; when the Lord returns, one is taken and one is left.
How can we be those who are taken, not those who are left? Are we ready to be raptured?
Are we those who are faithful in our daily duties in our daily life, living simultaneously in the physical realm with all its details and in the divine and mystical realm with its supply and life?
Or are we mainly concerned with our education, job, career, sports, and so many other things that we do today?
It’s interesting to see that when the Lord speaks of His return, He doesn’t say, At that time, two brothers will be in a meeting, and one is taken while the other is left.
Rather, He speaks of us taking care of our daily duties.
We need to be saved from being drugged, and stupefied, by the god of this age, and we must await the Lord’s coming day by day by remaining in fellowship with Him.
Daily, we need to fulfil our duty to make a living.
We need to maintain our existence in order to take the way of the cross so that we may fulfil God’s purpose.
Our concern is not mainly for our education, employment, or business; our concern is for the Lord’s interest and for Him to return.
Even though we are here awaiting the Lord’s return, we cannot be passive and lazy; we cannot say that, since the Lord is coming back soon, we shouldn’t care for studying, work, or our duties, but just spend time praying and having fellowship until the Lord comes back.
Such an attitude is wrong. We need to do the farming and the grinding at the mill.
We shouldn’t choose easy jobs for ourselves but rather, according to what the Lord has assigned to us, we need to work hard to earn a living.
![The Lord Jesus certainly spoke this word [in Matthew 24:40] with a definite purpose. He wanted to show us that as we wait for His coming and expect to be raptured, we must be very faithful in our daily duties…We need a properly balanced human life, not the life of monks who devote themselves to spiritual things and expect others to take care of them. It is the brothers working in the field and the sisters grinding in the mill who will be raptured. Of the two men in the field, one is taken and the other is left; and of the two women grinding at the mill, one is taken and the other left. The reason for this is that there is a difference between them in the matter of life. I believe that the one taken is mature and that the one left is immature. The life makes the difference. The rapture of the overcomers, those who are mature in life, will be a sign to those who are left. Life-study of Matthew, pp. 738-741, by Witness Lee](https://i0.wp.com/www.agodman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/The-Lord-Jesus-certainly-spoke-this-word-in-Matthew-2440-with-a-definite-purpose-jpg.webp?resize=400%2C600&ssl=1 "The Lord Jesus certainly spoke this word [in Matthew 24:40] with a definite purpose. He wanted to show us that as we wait for His coming and expect to be raptured, we must be very faithful in our daily duties…We need a properly balanced human life, not the life of monks who devote themselves to spiritual things and expect others to take care of them. It is the brothers working in the field and the sisters grinding in the mill who will be raptured. Of the two men in the field, one is taken and the other is left; and of the two women grinding at the mill, one is taken and the other left. The reason for this is that there is a difference between them in the matter of life. I believe that the one taken is mature and that the one left is immature. The life makes the difference. The rapture of the overcomers, those who are mature in life, will be a sign to those who are left. Life-study of Matthew, pp. 738-741, by Witness Lee")
At the same time, however, we need to await the Lord’s coming and be prepared for His return by living one spirit with the Lord.
On the sisters’ side, they shouldn’t think that a plain meal will do for their family, for they don’t need to waste time in learning to cook but rather seek to be holy.
Our concept of holiness or spirituality is warped and not scriptural.
The more people talk about being holy, the less holy they are, and the less holy the ones around them are.
But if we refuse to be drugged by the world today and fulfil our daily responsibilities, awaiting the Lord’s return and living a properly balanced human life, while at the same time living in the divine and mystical realm, the Lord will take us when He returns.
We need to have a properly balanced human life, not a life like the monks, who devote themselves to “spiritual things” while expecting others to take care of them.
Even in the practical things that we need to care for, we can enjoy the Lord, contact Him, and live in the divine and mystical realm so that He may grow in us and we reach maturity of life, being ready for rapture when He returns.
The Lord’s word in Matthew 24:40-42 shows us that as we are waiting for His coming and expect to be raptured, we need to be faithful in our daily duties, living a properly balanced human life while simultaneously living in the divine and mystical realm of the consummated Spirit and the pneumatic Christ (2 Thes. 3:6-15).
Lord Jesus, we are waiting for Your coming and we expect to be raptured! Amen, Lord, we want to be found faithful in our daily duties, living a properly balanced human life as lovers of Christ! We want to live simultaneously in the physical realm taking care of the things we need to do and in the divine and mystical realm by being in the spirit! Amen, Lord, grow in us a little more today! May Christ increase in our being and may we decrease! Save us from being drugged and stupefied by the god of this age by means of all the activities, entertainment, and lusts in the world. We love You, Lord Jesus, we we want to be ready for rapture when You return! Keep us turning to You and keep us abiding in You. We want to eagerly wait for Your return, making ourselves ready for You to rapture us!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Ron Kangas in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Matthew, msg. 63 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, An Overview of the Central Burden and Present Truth of the Lord’s Recovery Before His Appearing (2023 July Semiannual Training), week 2, entitled, The Divine and Mystical Realm.
- Hymns on this topic:
– The day approaches; Jesus soon is coming. / Redeem the time; it must not slip away. / Lord, make us ready for the cry: “Behold Him!” / By using every moment of each day. / When Jesus comes, will we go in to meet Him? / When Jesus comes, will we from self have ceased? / He’s coming soon to take the wise ones with Him. / Oh, let us not be left outside the feast. (Hymns #1307 stanza 1 and chorus)
– Christ comes quickly for His grain, / Ripened firstfruits to obtain; / Unripe harvest will remain— / Ripen now! / From earth’s water grain must dry, / From the world your soul deny; / To mature the self must die— / Ripen now! (Hymns #1304 stanza 4)
– Each time when of heavenly blessings I think, / O let my heart long to be raptured to Thee; / My only hope here is Thy coming again, / My only joy there, Lord, Thy presence will be. / Lord, teach me each day in Thy presence to live, / From morning to evening my one world Thou art; / O let not my heart be contented or rest / When loving or seeking what with Thee doth part. (Hymns #389 stanza 4)
About aGodMan
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Amen my brother. You bring up so many good points. It is important for us to realize that watching and waiting is not accomplished by letting go of our earthly responsibilities and sitting in a lawn chair to “watch and wait.” Amen. It is like the story of Martha and Mary. I believe this story is often misinterpreted or perhaps under-interpreted. Mary chose the better part. But what did she choose? She chose enjoyment of God, of Christ. Martha could have done all that she was doing, and still have chosen enjoyment, not resentment. I do believe, dear brother, that this is key. If we are found in enjoyment of Him, we will automatically be found in Him, be loving His appearing. In whatever we do, do it as unto Him. Yes.? I am not concerned about the rapture. Not because I feel I am sure to go…I have no idea about that. But worry or fear instead of trust and leaning is not pleasing to God. I choose to trust Him, and if I’m having a problem trusting Him, I pray for trust and He will supply even that. Hallelujah!
AMEN💜
O LORD JESUS….👑
(Rom. 10:9; 12b-13)
“…and rich to all who Call upon Him; For whoever calls upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Life-study of Matthew, pp. 738-741, by Witness Lee
At that time two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left. Matt. 24:40