Joshua Mhlakela’s 9/23 Rapture Fail Explained

Well, September 23rd came and went, and

last time I checked,

we're still here. So, what should we

make of this latest failed end times

prediction? Well, I'm going to tell you.

But first, welcome to Provoke and

Inspire, where I look at culture and

current events by asking the question,

what would Jesus think and what would

Jesus do?

Now, if you've been online recently, you

probably saw clips of a so-called

prophet who guaranteed 1 billion% that

the rapture would happen on September

23rd and 24th. He swore it is the very

word of God, even live streamed for

hours as the clock ticked down. And of

course, nothing happened. Now, here's

the unshocking twist. Instead of

repenting, instead of acknowledging he

was wrong, he just came back a few days

later and said he was still right all

along. According to him, we just had the

wrong calendar. He claims that the real

September 23rd and 24th are in early

October because of Julian versus

Gregorian dates. So now there's a new

countdown and a new core of his

followers are doubling down harder than

ever. This is exactly how this kind of

deception works. There's a failed

prophecy. There's widespread

disillusionment. But then a core remnant

of faithful believers cling on to the

new words of this prophet as he casts

this end times prophecy into the future

and the cult continues. No matter where

you are on the spectrum or what your

views are on esquetology, it's important

that we understand how to biblically

view this whole thing. We need to remind

ourselves what scripture actually says

about the end times. Look, we know that

Jesus is coming back. There will be a

judgment. The world as we know it will

end. But Jesus could not have been more

clear. No one knows the day or the hour.

Not the angels, not even the son, but

only the father. If Jesus said the

timing wasn't ours to know, why are we

pretending that we can unlock the code

or that some whack job internet prophet

can? The point of this teaching is

urgency, not calculation, not solving

some riddle. It's about living

faithfully today. being watchful and not

wasteful with your life. Our

susceptibility to this whole thing just

proves the anxiety of our age. Life

feels fragile. We've lived through a

pandemic that exposed how shaky our

systems are. We are bombarded with news

about climate crisis and war and nuclear

threats and economic unstability. Young

people in particular feel deeply

uncertain about the future. And so when

someone stands up with this absolute

certainty claiming divine authority, it

can kind of feel comforting, right? Add

the viral nature of social media and

suddenly a fringe voice has a global

platform. But urgency about eternity is

not the same thing as setting a specific

date. One leads to holiness and a

mission and the other one leads to

deception and disillusionment and

spiritual ruin. So how should we

respond? First, don't feed the machine.

Don't share the videos. Don't defend the

new final dates. Second, if you know

people caught up in this, call them back

gently. Urge repentance, not

humiliation. Third, return to scripture.

Let the clear words of Jesus anchor you.

Fourth, get rooted again in a Christian

community. These kinds of deceptions

thrive in isolation. If this shook your

faith, don't stay alone. Go back to your

local church. Ask your leaders to help

you process what happened. And finally,

redeem the rightful urgency that this is

meant to create. Don't waste the jolt

you felt. Share your faith. Live with

integrity. Use the shortness of life as

motivation for your mission, not as some

arbitrary math equation or riddle for us

to solve. This is what it means to

follow Jesus. Pray. Read his word. Serve

your neighbor. Open your mouth about the

gospel. Be ready for his return without

turning it into some riddle to solve or

code to crack. The world does not need

more failed prophets. It needs real

disciples living with hope. And so, no,

we did not get raptured on September

23rd. And I really don't think it'll

happen in October either. But one day,

Christ will return. So live ready, not

restlessly. And if someone asks you why

you have hope in the midst of fear and

confusion, tell them about Jesus. That's

what this moment is really for. Thanks

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for everything else. That's it. Peace.