The Rapture

Yes, most of us know already that the word “Rapture” is not found in the Bible. However that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. But it’s the “when” that so many people are getting wrong. This study will definitely clear that up as long as you believe the word of God.

And yes, the Bible says that no one knows the “day or the hour”. I don’t either, but that doesn’t mean we are in the dark about the approximate time, because the Bible says we are NOT in darkness concerning this.       I Thess. 5:4   Besides, that is a pretty small window to say “the day or the hour”. What if we could know year, month or even the week? The Bible isn’t saying that we would have absolutely no idea, it is only saying we would not be able to pin point it exactly. In any case, it is the order of events that this study is about.

So from here on out when I’m talking about when the Rapture occurs, I don’t mean the day or the hour, I mean when in the prophecy timeline. I don’t want anyone accusing me of making false predictions. I hope that is clear. OK, lets get right in to it.


Actually before we get started on the Rapture, I’d like to make it clear that the Bible never tells us that there would be 7 years of Tribulation. I am using the diagram below for clarity but in reality there are only 3 1/2 years of Tribulation. The 7 years of Tribulation comes from another prophecy called “The 70 Weeks of Daniel”. You can learn the truth about it here.


NOW, on to THE RAPTURE

Most Christians that study prophecy at all know what the Rapture is so I’m not going to go into details of what it is. But simply put, it is the catching or snatching away of Christians from the Earth in the end times to be with the Lord.  Supposedly so they can escape the tribulation.

However there are 3 main positions on when it occurs.  Here they are below;

  1. PRE-Trib.  or (Before the Tribulation) – Teaches that the Christians will be taken up from the Earth before the Tribulation starts so that we do not have to suffer during this time. It also teaches that we go away for the marriage supper of the Lamb. Then 7 years later we return with Christ at the battle of Armageddon.
  2. MID-Trib.  or (In the middle of the Tribulation) – Teaches that the Christians will go through the first half of the 7 year Tribulation but are Raptured out before the “Great Tribulation” or the second half of the Tribulation starts. Like the Pre-Trib. theory they believe they go away for the marriage supper. Then 3 1/2 years later they return with Christ.
  3. POST-Trib. or (After the Tribulation) – Teaches that the Christians will go through all of the Tribulation and are only Raptured out when the battle of Armageddon is about to begin.

These are the main positions on the Rapture. The Pre-Trib. theory being by far the most favored one by most Christians. Then the Mid-Trib. theory being the second most favored. And the Post-Trib. theory being the least favored position by most Christians. But only one position can be correct. So let us go to the scriptures and let there be no doubt.


First we will lay the foundation for the case by going over the main scriptures that all three positions above agree upon. All of the following scriptures are recognized by the Pre, Mid and Post-Trib. theories as referring to the Rapture. Afterwards we will look at the less known scriptures that no one is talking about.

Here are the ones that everyone agrees on as referring to the Rapture.

1 Thess. 4:15-17

15  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.


1 Cor. 15:51-52

51  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.


1 Thess. 5:2-4

2  For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

3  For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

4  But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.


2 Thess. 2:1-4

1  Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

2  That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.


On these scriptures that all agree upon I will build a case for the truth. But it is important to remember the facts and not try to change them once they are established. I will list them as we move along.

Keep in mind that God does not always make it easy for people to find the truth. He deliberately hides information for those willing to search His word. And that’s one reason He says “Seek and ye shall find”.  He want’s us to find His truths but He wants us to search for them and piece them together, and for those that do, He rewards.

With that in mind, there are several clues in the scriptures above. These clues are the facts of the case and I will be going back to them frequently because we can not change the facts. The facts are what will prove the case so lets go over them now.


OK clue number one and the first fact is that Jesus descends from heaven “with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God” 1 Thess. 4:16. So a trumpet is sounded, that is the first clue.

 

 

Next, in the same passage it says that “the dead in Christ shall rise first“. So the second clue is that the resurrection of the Christians takes place, and that it takes place FIRST. Those are two important clues and facts we need to remember because it will not change.

 

 

 

Lets keep track of the facts below;

So far the facts are easy and the order of events is very clear. Let’s go on to the next clue.

In 1 Cor. 15:52 it says “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump:“.  Since we all know and agree this is a reference to the Rapture we can see that we now have additional information on the Trumpet in 1 Thess. 4:16  Now we know it’s not just any Trumpet, but it’s the “last” one in a series of trumpets. In order for this to be the last trumpet, there must be more than one.

In that same passage 1 Cor. 15:52 we also have more verification that a resurrection takes place.  Although this verse doesn’t mention who is raised from the dead, the previous verse in 1 Thess. 4:16 tells us that it is Christians.

Let’s move on now to the next clue. In 1 Thess. 5:2 it says “the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” This is a popular verse that all three positions use, but what does it mean exactly? We will get into it later but first keep in mind that it is an important clue.

 

Next clue; In 2 Thess. 2:3 it says “for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first,”. This falling away is of Christians and it is more commonly known as the “Apostasy”. We will get into it later as well.

 

 

And next it says “and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;”. The man of sin is obviously the Antichrist as defined in verse 4. And since it says “revealed”, it can not be a mere introduction of him because we will not know who he really is until he actually comes to power. Therefore the word “revealed” most likely is a reference to him coming to power.

 

 

 


Here is the adjusted list of clues;

 

Now the main thing to remember is that we are trying to figure out when the Rapture happens, and that all of these clues (facts) except #3 happen BEFORE, the Rapture can take place. So with these main facts about the Rapture, let’s start piecing it all together by comparing them with other less known scriptures.



I’m going to start with the easiest and most obvious way to prove the case first, then we will look at other supporting scripture. So I will start with the 2nd fact and clue in the list above, “The dead in Christ are raised first”.

 

The dead in Christ rise first. This is so clear and yet so many people overlook the obvious. If we want to know when the Rapture occurs, all we have to do is find out when the Christians raise from the dead! Then the Rapture happens immediately after. That should be easy. So a little research on the resurrection is all that is needed.

 

So when does the resurrection take place?  Well first it is important to know that there are two resurrections.

Acts 24:15

And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.

The first resurrection is only of Christians and is the one we need to research. It is the resurrection of the Just. The second resurrection is 1000 years later just before the “Great White Throne Judgment”, and this is the resurrection of the Unjust mentioned above.

(See The Resurrection)

But it is the first resurrection of the Just that we are interested in, the one for only Christians.


So then, when does the resurrection of the dead in Christ take place?     Well, Jesus actually tells us in this next scripture.

John 6:40

And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

So here we have Jesus Himself declaring that He would raise us (Christians) up “at the last day”. But Jesus isn’t the only one who makes a statement like that. Martha the sister of Lazarus and both devout followers of Christ makes a similar statement about her brother’s resurrection after he died. Let’s read it.

John 11:23-24

23  Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.

24  Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

Now we have one of Jesus’ closes followers make a statement that the resurrection is at the “last day”. If she were wrong, don’t you think that Jesus would have corrected her on the spot? But He doesn’t. Here then are two credible testimony’s that the resurrection of the Christians is at the “last day”.

Here is another one in the Old Testament that proves the same thing. We find this in Job.

Job 14:12

So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.

 

In other words, man will not raise from the dead until the heavens be no more. So even in the Old Testament we have verification that the resurrection is at the very end.

 

But what does “heavens be no more” mean?  It is a reference to the end, the destruction of our world and atmosphere.  The sky is referred to as heaven in many places of the Bible and doesn’t always mean God’s dwelling place. Look at this verse next verse for an example;

Genesis 1:7-8

7  And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

8  And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

The firmament is the sky!  And God calls the firmament Heaven.  But the point is that Job is trying to say that no man will raise from the dead until the end, the destruction of the earth and sky (heaven) as we know it.


So according to the Holy Bible, and if the resurrection of the dead in Christ (2nd fact in list) is on the “last day” as stated by Christ Himself, then what does that tell you?  It proves that two of the Rapture theories are wrong right off the bat!

 

The Pre-Trib Theory says that the Rapture happens before the Tribulation.  But if the resurrection of the dead in Christ happens on the last day as we just read Jesus’ own words, how can this be?  The Rapture can only take place AFTER the resurrection!  And resurrection takes place at the end, NOT 7 years before.    So how can the Pre-Trib Theory be correct?  IT CAN’T!   The Pre-Trib Theory is wrong and can not according to the Holy Scriptures and Christs own words be correct.

 

The Mid-Trib Theory says that the Rapture happens in the middle of the Tribulation. But that is not the end either!  That would be 3 1/2 years before the end but the resurrection is still at the very end! So the Mid-Trib Theory is just as wrong as the Pre-Trib Theory for the same exact reason. They both put the Rapture in the wrong order, forgetting that the resurrection must take place FIRST.

 

So they put the Rapture before the resurrection of the dead in Christ when the Bible clearly says it is just the opposite, It says the Rapture happens AFTER the resurrection as we’ve already seen in the 2nd fact of the list.

Again, both the Pre and Mid-Trib Theory’s are wrong because they put the Rapture before the resurrection which can not happen since the resurrection is on the very last day. Remember the facts that we established at the beginning. We can not change the facts and fact number 2 in the list is that “the dead in Christ rise FIRST“, and according to Christ, that is on the last day. This is very simple and straight forward if you believe the Bible.

So fact number 2 in the list is the easiest way to show the correct order in prophecy of when the Rapture takes place, and there are other scriptures that prove the same thing from different angles.



Now let’s look at some of the other clues and facts about the case. Let’s take fact number 3 “The Lord so cometh as a thief in the night”.  This is a popular belief and is used regularly but have you ever looked at this next one?

 

2 Peter 3:10

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Wow! does that describe the Pre-Trib Theory 7 years before the end? No! not at all, it describes the very end. The heavens pass away and the earth is burned up. How could there possible be 7 years to go? There can’t. Same thing with the Mid-Trib Theory. This can’t possibly describe the earth 3 1/2 years before the end because it is describing the very end! Yet both the Pre and Mid-Trib believers use the phrase that “He comes as a thief in the night”, not even aware of this particular verse.

In the Pre-Trib and Mid-Trib Theories, they teach that Jesus comes secretly (as a thief in the night), Raptures the Christians and then goes away secretly. But the Bible is only describing the surprise at His arrival, it never meant that He would go away in secret.

Read Jesus’ own example in  Matt. 24:36-44   The last verse 44 says “Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”  So His arrival is unexpected. And that is all the scriptures are trying to show us when it says “He comes as a thief in the night”. But once He is here everyone will know it. Matt. 24:27.



Let’s look at another fact. The first one in the list is “A Trumpet is sounded” and we found out it isn’t just a single trumpet but the last one in a series of trumpets. So lets do a little research on trumpets.

 

Since we are talking about the end of the age, it makes sense to look at the books that cover the end of the world. The first one that comes to my mind is the book of Revelation. Surely if there are trumpets sounding in the end, there would be mention of them in the book of Revelation. And of course there is.

We find that there are a series of 7 trumpets sounding starting in Rev. 8:2.  After the 7th Seal is opened, we see 7 trumpets preparing to sound. These trumpets are sounded one by one and unleash the wrath of God upon the earth. But it is the last trumpet that we are interested in and that one is sounded in Rev. 11:15. So lets jump all the way down, read the whole passage and see if we can make a connection.

Rev. 11:15-18

15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

16  And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,

17  Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.

18  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

Now there is a lot of verification here, but first we are looking for the connection between this 7th trumpet and the trumpets of 1 Thess. 4:16  and  1 Cor. 15:52  and that connection can be found in the last verse 18 highlighted above.

It says “the time of the dead, that they should be judged“.  So here is the connection we were looking for, there is a judgment and the judgments always follow a resurrection.

Now this isn’t all the dead because the second judgement and resurrection is 1000 years later as I had pointed out earlier in Rev. 20:4-5  But here we have verification that a judgment takes place when this last trumpet is sounded which immediately follows the resurrection.

And we know this is a resurrection of Christians because it says “thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name,”. So these are all obviously God’s people.

So it is easy to tie the last trumpet (the Seventh) in  Rev. 11:15  with the trumpet in   I Thess. 4:16 that says “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:” because they are both describing the same resurrection, the Christian resurrection.

This positively ties the Trumpet in 1 Thess. 4:16, and the Trumpet in 1 Cor. 15:52 to Rev. 11:15-18, since they are all talking about the resurrection of only Christians which happens just once before the 1000 year reign of Christ.

 

That means this seventh trumpet that sounds in Rev. 11:15  is in fact the very same trumpet described in  I Cor. 15:52  and in I Thess. 4:16  They are one and the same.


And now that we have tied the trumpets together, we can also see that there is a lot more verification that it is the end of the world as we know it.

This seventh trumpet that is sounded is the LAST one that started in Rev. 8:2  and look at the time it is describing. “The Kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord,“. Does that not describes the end of our current world? Yes, it describes the end of our current world and the bringing in of the millennial kingdom under Christ. So how can there be 7 years or even 3 1/2 years to go as the Pre-Trib and Mid-Trib theories suggest?

Here is further proof that it is the end when it says “and thy wrath is come,”. This isn’t tribulation, it is wrath which comes at the end of the Tribulation and the end of the world.

And finally we have one more verification that it is the end by the last part of the verse that says “and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”  The destruction of evil men upon the earth is reserved until the end.

So this last Trumpet that sounds in Rev. 11:15-18  is the very same Trumpet that sounds in all those rapture verses we are familiar with, but it is clearly the end of the world as we know it.

 


In case this is getting a little confusing, let me sum it up.

 

 

1 Thess. 4:15-17 and 1 Cor. 15:51-52 which we all agree is the Rapture, is describing what happens in Rev. 11:15-18.  It is exactly the same time and is the very same trumpet and they all mention the same resurrection of the Christians. It also proves that the Rapture which happens after the resurrection is on the last day. Click on those links again to compare them.



Now let’s move on to the next clue as to when the Rapture occurs. It is clue number 4 and says “There is a falling away”. Now there isn’t really much to tell on this one except the fact that it happens and that it happens before the Rapture, so we should be watching for it.

 

But this falling away, what is it? Well, known by some as the “Apostasy”, it is a time when Christians fall away from the faith for some un-known reason. Some Christians think that we are in it now, but with so many still coming to the Lord it is unlikely. But there is a time coming when many will fall from the faith and probably at one time.  But what causes it?  It could just be a gradual falling away as man’s hearts grow cold, but I think it will be much more dramatic. I think something is going to cause it to happen.

Now the Bible tells us that when the Antichrist comes to power that he will wage war upon the Christians and those that do not take the mark of the beast and that he will overcome them. See Rev.13:7 In fact we learn later in Rev. that the Antichrist even kills Christians. See Rev. 20:4.

That is a very scary thought for many Christians that they will become a target for elimination. This is what I believe causes the “Apostasy” or the falling away that the Bible tells us about.

Think about it!  What would cause a person to turn from their faith more than anything else? The threat of death of course! Because that is the ultimate and final test. Not only the threat of our own deaths, but the threat of the death of our children. This will prove to be too much for some Christians and they are going to give up on Christ (Deny Him) in order to save themselves or their kids.

This is what I believe causes the falling away. And if this is not the main reason, it will certainly be one of the reasons. And since they were not Raptured out like they were taught, they will lose faith in the Bible and Christianity. That actually makes the Pre-Trib and Mid-Trib theories a dangerous teaching that must be corrected. This will especially be hard for the new Christian and the weak ones. In fact I believe that Jesus warns us of this very thing in this next verse;

Matt. 13:21

21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Here the Bible makes it clear that some Christians will endure for a while but when tribulation or persecution begins, they will be offended.  Now the word “offended“, in the Greek is “skandalizo” # 4624 (Strongs Concordance) which means to stumble or “Fall Away“.  So the meaning here is not a mere attitude but a turning away from Christ, and the reason is because of tribulation, persecution, and of course the threat of death.

Whatever the real reason for this falling away, it is important to know that it comes before the Rapture happens and should be obvious when it does occur. Doesn’t seem to me that the scriptures would mention an event if we couldn’t identify it. So we should be able to recognize it without a doubt, when it happens.   But we are definitely NOT in it now.



The last of the clues in the list above is number 5 “The man of sin is revealed“.  I don’t think anyone doubts who the man of sin is since it clearly describes him in 2 Thess. 2:4  but it’s the “revealed” part that is important to remember.

 

If he were only introduced on the world stage as a leader of some sort he wouldn’t really be revealed because we wouldn’t recognize him as the Antichrist. How could you call that “revealed”? It would have to be more obvious than that in order for him to be “revealed”.  So a simple introduction would not qualify as “revealed”.

It is not until he goes into the Temple and claims to be God in what is known as “The Abomination of Desolation” will we truly know who he is.  Read   Mark 13:14 and 2 Thess. 2:4.  In other words he will most likely already be on the world stage as a political or religious leader but not until he goes into the Temple and claims to be God will we know for certain who he is. Although it is probably when he is accepted as the messiah by the Jews that actually begins his rule.

 

Now the Antichrist rules for only 3 1/2 years Rev. 13:5  but Christ ends it when He appears for the battle of Armageddon.  And since the battle of Armageddon ends the Tribulation period, that puts the “revealing” of the man of sin (Antichrist) right in the middle of the Tribulation.  All you do is count backwards 3 1/2 years from the battle of Armageddon. That would be smack dab in the middle of the Tribulation.

For more information on the Real Tribulation see my study on “The Tribulation”.

Now, since clue number 5 “The man of sin is revealed” must take place before the Rapture, we have more proof that the Pre-Trib theory can not be correct. Because the Antichrist is revealed in the middle of the tribulation, ruling out any possibility that the Rapture could happen before the Tribulation even begins.




 

All these facts and clues can not be changed and once we compare them, it is obvious that the Pre and Mid-Trib theories are completely wrong. It is impossible for either one to be correct because the Bible tells us otherwise.

 

 

And now I’d like to cover 3 Bible verses that are being used incorrectly to try and support those theories.

  1. We are not appointed to wrath
  2. Ye may be worthy to escape
  3. Until he be taken out of the way

 

In 1 Thess. 5:9 is says “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,”. And many people are using this verse to backup the Pre-Trib and Mid-Trib theories. But the truth is that it just doesn’t support those theories at all, and here is why;

First of all if we did happen to be here when the wrath was poured out, God would simply protect us. How difficult is that to understand? Surely God can do a simple thing like that! He doesn’t have to take us out of the world.

In fact, Jesus even prays specifically that the Father does NOT take us out of the world!   Read it here.   John 17:15  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.   Have they ever showed you that one?

So again, even if we are here during the Tribulation, God will simply keep us from His wrath and the evil that will be poured out upon the earth. Although we have already seen that many of us will have to die for our faith.

Besides that, the Bible shows us that it is only the wicked that are affected by the wrath and plagues to be poured out. Look at these next couple of scriptures;

In Rev. 9:1 after the 5th trumpet is sounded and the locusts are released upon the Earth, they are commanded to only sting the men who do not have the mark of God on them.

Rev. 9:4

And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.

Then this next verse shows who the wrath is specifically appointed to. And keep in mind that this is when the Antichrist is already in power ruling for his 3 1/2 years.

Rev. 14:9-10

9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,

10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:


The Bible clearly tells us who the wrath will be poured out on, which are all the wicked people who take the mark of the beast and worship him. But the Christians are not effected by the wrath of God and will be protected from it according to the Bible. Just like He protected Daniel in the Lions den Daniel Chapter 6 or Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego from the fiery furnace in Daniel Chapter 3. This isn’t difficult for God.

Plus He tells His children to flee to the mountains once they see the “Abomination of Desolation”.  Which tells me that God has every intention on keeping His own people safe from His wrath.

However, most of us will already be with the Lord by the time His wrath is poured out anyways! Remember, the Antichrist will have power over all nations and he is going to try and wipe out the Christians.

Although he doesn’t kill them all, we know he kills most of them by the description of the Rapture when it says “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up”. 1 Thess. 4:17  The Bible is clearly telling us that they that are Raptured will be a remnant when it says “alive and remain“.

As far as the Tribulation,  the Bible tells us that is through much tribulation that we will enter into the kingdom of God.  Acts 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

And Jesus even says that while we are here, we have tribulation.   John 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.. Although He may be speaking generically about tribulation, He is aware of the Great Tribulation to come.

But Jesus is trying to comfort us here when He says to “be of good cheer;” so we should not be worried about the tribulation, we should even glory in it because it actually helps us. Rom. 5:3  “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;”

But the fact that we are not appointed to wrath does not prove the Pre-Trib or Mid-Trib theories at all. It only proves that we will not experience the wrath of God, regardless of if we are still here or not. So trying to prove the Pre or Mid-Trib theories by pointing out that we are not appointed to wrath is a very weak argument.


Luke 21:36 says Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

 

This one sounds like a compelling argument until you read in Rev. 12:6 about those who flee into the wilderness where God has a place prepared for them to feed them for 3 1/2 years. Although it refers to them as a woman, if you read  Rev. 12:1-6  you will see it is a reference to the Nation of Israel. The crown of 12 stars being the 12 tribes of Israel, and the “child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron”, being Christ himself.

These people escape from the wrath of the Serpent and Antichrist as we see a few verses later in Rev. 12:14  when it says; “and to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.”

This is the escape that I believe Jesus is referring to when he says “Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape”. Not to escape from the earth, but rather to escape into the mountains from the face of the serpent, the Antichrist.

 

The only question now is; what does He mean “to stand before the Son of man“?  Sounds like they would have to go to heaven in order to stand before Him.  But not necessarily.  Although the Bible talks about Jesus’ 2nd coming to take control of the Earth, there have been other visits by Jesus since His death. He appeared to the Apostles multiple times after He died. He even appeared to Paul much later on the road to Damascus.

And doesn’t Jesus say in the Bible, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”?  Matt. 18:20   None of these were His official second coming, but it shows there are some special visits and special circumstances.

So it is very likely He would meet those who flee into the wilderness. Maybe it is just to comfort and encourage them. But nevertheless, they would find themselves standing before the Son of man, just like the Apostles found Jesus suddenly standing in the midst of them after He died.  Luke 24:36


In 2 Thess. 2:7 it says; “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.” Then in the next verse 8 it says; “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:”.

Many Christians are interpreting this scripture to mean that “The Holy Spirit” will be taken out of the way of the Antichrist so that the Antichrist can now do as he pleases. And since the Holy Spirit dwells within us, they believe this proves that we are Raptured out before the end.

But they’ve got it all wrong! He that is taken out of the way is not The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is never taken out of the way, it is the Devil who is taken out of the way. He is taken out, or rather kicked out of the presence of God. And as a result of this all hell breaks loose on the Earth as he wages war on the Christians and the Jews. Read it for yourself below.

Rev. 12:7-10

7  And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

8  And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10  And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.


None of this has happened yet!   This is still in the future!  Satan is still at this moment accusing us before God in Heaven. THIS is who is taken out of the way!  Taken out of Gods way!  He is cast out of Heaven and down to the Earth. And because of this he is enraged and goes to make war with the saints.  This is when, and why the Antichrist is revealed.

But it is Not the Holy Spirit that is taken out of the way, because He is here the whole time. He must be because those that flee into the wilderness have the Holy Spirit dwelling in them, they are Gods people. And they are here for the entire 3 1/2 years the Antichrist is in power with the Battle of Armageddon ending his rule. So the Holy Spirit is never removed from the earth as they suggest.


So neither of those last arguments  “We are not appointed to wrath”,  “Ye may be worthy to escape”,  orUntil he be taken out of the way”, supports the Pre-Trib, or Mid-Trib theories. But these are examples of how some have twisted the scriptures as the Bible warns us.

There are other scriptures that prove when the Rapture will take place as well, but are less obvious. However, for those with an honest heart for the Truth, there is more than enough here to prove the case.

Don’t be fooled by false doctrines of men. The Bible is our Real Source of Truth. All we have to do is read it and believe it, and God will reveal the rest for those who want and who search for the Truth.


 

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