From:
http://www.ephesians3-9.com/view/?pageID=133525 What Happens To Those Who Are LEFT BEHIND? Part 2
But then Left Behind goes into potentially grievous error. As the rest of the passage teaches, those who had heard and understood the Gospel of the grace of God before the Rapture, but rejected it (as Barnes had), would not be merely "left behind" for their unbelief. Rather, God will also send them "strong delusion" so that they will obey Antichrist, which will eliminate any second chance at salvation:
"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, 'If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name' " (Revelation 14:9-11).
Thus it appears that professing Christians (outwardly religious folks who knowingly rejected the Gospel prior to the Rapture) not only cannot be saved after the Rapture, but will be caused by God to keep believing lies; this will invariably lead them to obey Antichrist and take his unforgivable mark upon themselves. At what point God sends this "strong delusion" the passage does not state. But given that Gospel rejectors will receive it, it is doubtful that Barnes would be the humble, repentant, newly-saved sinner Left Behind makes him out to be.
So to answer our questions:
1) Who does the Bible say will be left behind at the Rapture of the Church?
All the unsaved; i.e., those who never trusted Christ, and so were never members of His Body, the one true Church.
2) Does the Bible give hope of salvation to those left behind at the Rapture?
It would have to depend on what they had heard of Christ. If they'd never heard of Him, then surely God in His grace will see to it that they hear of Him during the Tribulation. If they had understood the Gospel but rejected it, then Paul's answer seems to be a definite "no," especially in light of the delusion sent them by God as judgment for their unbelief.
It should be pointed out, however, that there is an alternative view which bears consideration. Pastor Paul Sadler, president of the Berean Bible Society, has written a book entitled The Triumph of His Grace: Preparing Ourselves for the Rapture. Pastor Sadler observes,
"Some understand from Paul's words in II Thessalonians 2:8-12 that those who reject the grace of God in this dispensation will not be given a second chance in the coming Day of the Lord" (p. 104).
He believes that this view is without merit:
"As we pass from the dispensation of Grace to the dispensation of Divine Government, the change is going to be abrupt. There will not be a transition period at the close of this dispensation as there was at the beginning of it. When the last member is placed into the Body of Christ and the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, the gospel fo the grace of God will be proclaimed no longer. Following our homegoing, God will reinstate the kingdom gospel at the dawn of the tribulation:
'And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come' (Matt. 24:14).
"In this context, then, the truth that men refuse to receive that they might be saved is not the gospel of grace, rather it is the kingdom gospel. It is our firm conviction that those who are left behind after our departure will be given another chance to be saved in the age to come. This is in keeping with the very nature of God who is rich in mercy and '...not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance' (II Peter 3:9). In all probability, the majority of those who fail to receive Christ under grace will continue in unbelief. Nevertheless, the door of salvation will remain open, although it will be much more difficult for a Gentile to be saved since the terms of the kingdom gospel are far more involved" (p. 111-112).
Pastor Sadler is correct that the deciding factor on which of these two views is the correct one depends on the dispensational context of Paul's warning; i.e., to which Gospel message was Paul referring? Was he saying that those who refuse today's Gospel of the grace of God (thus missing the Rapture) will go into the Tribulation unsaved and unsavable? Or was Paul referring to people yet future to us, who during the Tribulation period will refuse the salvation message of that day, the Gospel of the Kingdom, and will be compelled to accept Antichrist?
I still lean toward the more traditional interpretation of this passage, but must agree with a statement made by David Reagan of Lamb and Lion Ministries, in a review of Left Behind:
"This passage [2 Thess. 2] seems to teach that people who have rejected the truth before the Rapture will continue to do so. Because of this passage, I cannot say with absolute confidence that those who have rejected the Gospel before the Rapture will have the possibility of accepting it afterwards. I hope Tim LaHaye is right, but I would not want to give such people any false hope" (The Lamplighter, Jan-Feb 2001).
I, too, sincerely hope Tim LaHaye and Paul Sadler are correct. But like Reagan, I would not want to give false hope to those who today hear and understand the Gospel they read in Left Behind or elsewhere, but put off believing it "until later."
I can remember a time in my pre-Christian life when, in exchange for my grossly sinful lifestyle, I gladly put off even thinking about salvation because I was confident I'd have plenty of chances to take care of it "later."
I can recall thinking thoughts along the lines of, "I know some hard-core Christians...I'll wait to see if this Rapture thing happens; if it does, THEN I'll get right with God! And if it doesn't happen, I'll just keep on keeping on."
To this day I distinctly recall occassions when I was unexpectedly exposed to the Gospel, only to deliberately and immediately force it from my mind.
I don't know about you, fellow Christian, but I can still remember what NOT wanting to hear ANYTHING about Christ felt like! Believe me: I DID think these thoughts, and this was years before Left Behind was written. But by the grace of God I did not die before "later" came!
And that is the reason I believe Tim LaHaye's teachings on this facet of the Rapture are - potentially - eternally tragic. Again, I do hope that those who hear and understand the Gospel of grace, but miss the Rapture due to unbelief, will have a second chance to be saved during the Tribulation. But to imply, as Left Behind does, that unbelievers can bet their eternal destiny on the hope of "salvation later" when it is not 100% clear that Scripture supports it -- and even though they could still miss the Rapture by dying before it comes! -- is not a position in which I would feel comfortable placing myself.
http://www.ephesians3-9.com/view/?pageID=133525I Loved both parts of What Happens To Those Who Are LEFT BEHIND? GRRRRREAT Teaching, AAAAAAAAAAAMEN
