What Joe Missed

By Thomas M. Parsons

Joe Smith had not been inside a church for more than a decade, but because of some difficulties he found himself facing, he decided to go to church. Just as he turned into the lane leading to the church from the road, several cars careened out of control on the street, coming to rest on the grass, in the street, and even one against a tree. Joe got out of his car to offer help, but as he approached the cars he saw that no one was inside. They were all empty.

Shaken by this event, Joe continued down the drive to the parking lot of the church where many cars were safely parked. As he pulled into an open space, he noticed something strange, even more strange then the accidents on the road. He saw piles of clothes scattered about the parking lot. Men’s clothes. Women’s clothes. Children’s clothes. Even shoes.

Joe’s emotions were a strong mixture of curiosity and fear. He decided to go inside the church. Maybe there would be an explanation there.

When he entered the lobby, however, all he found were more and more piles of clothes. All were neatly arranged. It was not that people had taken off their clothes and thrown them down. The way the clothes were arranged suggested the bodies that had been inside them simply passed through them. Impossible, Joe thought. This is some kind of gimmick. Maybe it’s an object lesson. Or maybe he had entered a church for nudists! Oddly, though, this church had a reputation for modesty, not exhibitionism.

Joe entered the auditorium where once again he was greeted by piles of clothes, some in the aisles, some in the pews. And on the platform were more piles of clothes, all neatly stacked, underclothing inside the outer garments.

What possibly could be going on? Joe could not imagine.

Then Joe heard sobbing coming from the back of the church. He had not noticed the man sitting in the back pew when he came in, but now he could hear his deep cries of torment and lostness.

inAs Joe approached the man, he heard him muttering, “Too late. Too late. Too late. I came too late.”

“Hey,” said Joe. “Too late for what?”

“Too late. Too late. Too late,” the man cried out with deep sobs of emotion and tears.

Joe sat down next to the man. “What’s your name?” he asked.

“My name is not important,” he said. “It’s too late to matter.”

Joe could not understand what could cause the man to be so emotional. Did it have something to do with the piles of clothes all around the church building and out in the parking lot?

“I don’t understand,” said Joe. “What has happened here? Was it some sort of mass suicide? Like that Jim Jones thing several years ago? Was it a Columbine type shooting? An angry person who came and killed everyone?”

“No. No,” said the man. “These people are not dead. They will never face death. But you and I will. And, oh, we could have escaped it. But it’s too late now!”

“Too late for what?” asked Joe, desperate to know what was going on.

“I used to attend this church,” said the man, struggling to control his sobbing. “But I stopped several years ago because I got tired of all the Bible teaching. I decided I didn’t want to live my life by a two thousand year old book. But I was wrong. I was so wrong.”

And he began sobbing again. When he got control of himself he continued. “These people used to talk about the rapture.”

Now, Brothers, we do not need to inform you about times and dates because you know that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
I Thessalonians 5:1, 2

“The rapture?” said Joe.

“They believed that Christ was going to return to earth someday to take the believers to Heaven with Him. They said it would happen suddenly, without advance notice, like a thief in the night, they used to say.”

“I’ve heard about that,” said Joe. “But I read somewhere that what the Bible was talking about was simply death. When Christians die, they go to Heaven and meet Christ there.”

“No,” said the man, “whatever you read had it all wrong. These people did not die. Don’t you see? They were taken out of here supernaturally. See their clothes? Just sitting there in neat little piles? There is only one way that could happen. Their bodies passed through their clothes as they went up to Heaven.”

“You mean they are all going to be naked in Heaven?” Joe was not sure it would be right to imagine Heaven full of naked people.

“No,” said the man. “God gives them clothes to wear. White robes, I think. To show the righteousness they have in Christ. But don’t you see? You and I missed it. These people were ready for Jesus when He came, but we weren’t. We have really been left behind, just like in those books that have been so popular the last few years.”

“Those are just fantasy,” Joe said. “They were just made up stories.”

“No, they were not just made up. These Christians taught me that one day they were all going to disappear. Their clothing would be left just as you see them all around here. If they were driving when it happened, their cars would careen out of control. Whatever they were doing, wherever they were, they would just disappear. And, look around you, man. That’s exactly what has happened here.”

“And we missed it? That’s what you are saying?”

“Yes. We missed it. We missed the opportunity to escape death. To be with the Lord during the next horrible seven years that are coming on earth.”

“What do you mean? What seven years?”

“The Great Tribulation, man. The time ruled by the Antichrist. It will be an evil time like no other. And you and I have to live through it. We could have escaped it.”

“What could we have done to escape it? What did these people do?” asked Joe.

“They trusted Christ. They accepted what He did for them on the cross. They put their faith in Jesus and what He did for them. They were saved, man. They were saved.”

And then Joe thought of the instances where people had told him about their faith in Christ. A guy at work. A neighbor down the street. It always sounded so simple. Too simple. He thought they were foolish to give their lives to such a fantasy. Living the Christian life sounded too restrictive to him. Yet, Joe also knew that most of the problems that drove him to come to church this day would not have happened had he been living “the Christian life.”

“You mean there’s no hope for us,” Joe asked.

“There’s hope. We can still trust Christ. He will still save us. But it means we have to go through part of the tribulation until we are martyred for our faith in Christ.”

And there amidst the piles of clothing no longer needed by saints, Joe and the stranger knelt before a merciful God and put their trust in Jesus Christ Who would deliver them from their sins. But they had missed the most glorious event in all the history of the earth.