The Rapture That Wasn’t: September 23, 2025

Well, folks, here we are. September 23, 2025. According to "Pastor" Joshua Mhlakela, today was supposed to be the big one, the rapture. Planes falling out of the sky, shoes left empty on sidewalks, and you calling your cousin one last time to say, “I told you so.”

And yet… here we are. Your rent is still due. Your kids are still asking what’s for dinner. And if you’re reading this, you definitely didn’t float away into the clouds.

Joshua, bless his heart, became internet-famous overnight, predicting the day and hour of Christ’s return. The only problem? Jesus already told us in

Matthew 24:36 :

But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

So, either Joshua knows more than Jesus (spoiler: he doesn’t), or he’s another voice in the long line of false prophets who overpromise and underdeliver.

This video was recorded before the failed event. In it, he makes it clear that if the event were to fail, he would apologize but he was certain it wasn’t going to fail. Let’s be clear here: it absolutely did fail.

A Pattern of Failed Predictions

This isn’t new. Jehovah’s Witnesses once boldly declared the world would end in 1914, then 1925, then 1975… and they’re still pushing dates. The Seventh-day Adventist movement began with William Miller, who assured followers the world would end in 1844. When it didn’t, history politely renamed it “The Great Disappointment.” Nothing like missing the biggest appointment of all time.

And now we have Joshua Mhlakela of 2025. No track record, no credibility, just a random dream and a Wi-Fi connection.

Why It Matters

Here’s the danger: Satan loves this stuff. The devil plants lying dreams and false prophecies to make the return of Christ look like a joke. If every few years someone cries “Rapture today!” and it doesn’t happen, people grow numb, cynical, even mocking. Exactly what Scripture warns us about in

2 Peter 3:4, where scoffers say:

“Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”

Every false alarm makes people let their guard down. And that’s precisely the strategy; turning the most urgent promise in Scripture into comedy material.

The Sharp Truth

Stop Being Naïve, the Bible is clear and God’s Word is enough. It doesn’t need our “extra calculations” or self-appointed prophets with rapture countdowns. In fact, 1 Corinthians 4:6 warns us “not to go beyond what is written.” The moment we exceed the text, we drift into deception.

Jesus didn’t ask us to set dates. He told us to stay ready. Matthew 24:44 says:

“Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”

So no, Joshua is not credible. He’s not a prophet. He’s not even a footnote in church history. He’s just another example of why we must anchor ourselves in Christ alone and not chase every new voice shouting “I had a vision!”

Final Word

If you really want to prepare for Christ’s return, don’t waste time refreshing YouTube channels waiting for a man made prophecy to pop up. Open your Bible. Follow Jesus. Live holy. Share the gospel.

Because one day the trumpet will sound and unlike today, nobody will be blogging about it afterward.

1 Thessalonians 5 :1– 8 (NIV):

"Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet."

Paul reminds the church that we don’t need dates and timetables because Christ’s return will be sudden and unexpected “like a thief in the night.” For the world, this day will be shocking and destructive, but for believers, it should not be a surprise. Why? Because we are “children of the light.”

The call is simple but sobering: don’t live spiritually asleep, distracted, or drunk with the world’s lies. Stay awake. Stay sober. Put on faith, love, and hope like armor.