This week in Christian history: ‘Left Behind’ released, ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem,’ John Machen

Left Behind first published — December 31, 1995

This week marks the anniversary of when the first entry on the bestselling Christian apocalyptic book series Left Behind, authored by Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins, was released by Tyndale House.

Drawing from the book of Revelation, the novel created a fictional story centered on the end of the world as seen through people who remained on earth following the Rapture.

Originally meant to be a standalone book, Left Behind had several sequels, reportedly garnering more than 80 million copies sold by 2016, as well as multiple film adaptations.

“Sales of the series helped thousands of Christian bookstores thrive during a period when they were facing increased competition from big-box stores and from internet-based sellers,” said Mark D. Taylor, chairman and CEO of Tyndale, as quoted by Publishers’ Weekly in a 2016 story.

“The success of the Left Behind series helped put us on firm financial footing that has allowed us to give away most of the company’s earnings [to charity] over the past 20 years.”