The story begins with Cameron "Buck" Williams, a renowned journalist having recently survived an attempted invasion of Israel, on board a plane piloted by Rayford Steele en route to London.
Upon being notified by flight attendant Hattie Durham, Steele contacts another pilot, only to learn that millions of people around the world have also disappeared in the same way.
Tompkins reveals evidence that Dirk was murdered, and that he has uncovered a conspiracy involving Joshua Todd-Cochran, the head of the London Stock Exchange, and American banker Jonathan Stonegal.
Williams is skeptical and leaves, but Barnes decides to form the "Tribulation Force", a Christian organization with the purpose of resisting the coming reign of the Antichrist.
Carpathia suddenly executes Cochran and Stonegal, no longer needing them, and brainwashes everyone (except Williams, who is divinely protected) to think they died in a murder-suicide.
The American Evangelical Christian community, in general, has approved of the idea of representing in a worldly language the end-times theology.
[3] The New York Times stated in an article, "The formula combines Tom Clancy-like suspense with touches of romance, high-tech flash and Biblical references.
Loren L. Johns, the Academic Dean of the Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, writes: "At the end of the day, this series is ultimately a rejection of the good news of Jesus Christ.
"[7] The Commission on Theology and Church Relations of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod reported that "the ideas expressed in the Left Behind series are in many ways contrary to the teaching of Holy Scripture.
[11] This book has been adapted into a feature film, Left Behind: The Movie, first released on video and DVD, and then to cinemas where it fared poorly.
A fourth installment was announced by Cloud Ten Pictures in 2006, but the development has been placed on hold since the July 2008 settlement of a lawsuit over rights involving the first three films.
[12] In August 2008, a website revealed that LaHaye plans to remake the series and possibly turn all twelve (or sixteen) novels into feature film adaptations.