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• Archived Blog Post

  Date / Time: 5/31/2009 9:22 AM UTC

  Pre-Tribulation Rapture
  

  PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE . . . OUR BLESSED HOPE
  
        WHY STUDY ABOUT THE RAPTURE?
  
  -John 8:31, 32- “you shall know the Truth, and the
  truth shall make you free”
  
  -II Timothy 2:16-19- error concerning the resurrection
  considered spiritual cancer and iniquity
  
  -I Thessalonians 4:18- the Rapture doctrine is a
  comfort and encouragement to believers
  
  -I Corinthians 15:58- the doctrine of the Rapture
  motivates us to Christian service
  
  -I John 3:2,3- the hope of Jesus’ appearing causes
  believers to purify their lives
  
        WHAT IS THE “RAPTURE”?
  
  The Rapture is the bodily resurrection of living &
  dead saints to meet Jesus when He appears. John 14:1-6
  states Jesus went to heaven but that He promised to
  come again and take us back to heaven with Him. We
  will be “caught up” (hence the word “rapture”) when we
  meet Him the air (I Thes. 4:14-18): “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. 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: 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. Wherefore comfort one
  another with these words.” The Greek word here for
  “caught up” is “HARPAZO”, meaning “to snatch or catch
  away” “force suddenly exercised, to seize.” The
  Rapture is also described in I Corinthians 15:51-57,
  Isaiah 26:19-21, Job 19:25, 26.   
  
        When Christ returns He will come with the
  glorified, resurrected, physical Body with which He
  left. (Acts 1:9-11; Phil. 3:21)  False teachings (like
  the Jehovah Witnesses) that say Christ returned
  SPIRITUALLY and set up His millennial kingdom on earth
  in 1918 contradict scripture. Jesus did not return
  then. When Jesus does return, it will be “this SAME
  Jesus” that the disciples saw, touched and ate with
  after His resurrection. The Bible says when He shall
  appear [at the Rapture] “we shall be like Him” for we
  will “be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an
  eye” when our “mortality puts on immortality.”  That
  is our blessed Hope!
  
        WHEN IS THE RAPTURE?
  
  No man know the exact “day and hour”, but when you see
  the signs you can “know it’s near” (Matthew
  24:33-36,44) Hebrews 10:25-We can see the day
  approaching, but never put an exact date on His
  coming.
  
  The signs of His coming- Matthew 24:7,8, 32-39; Luke
  21:10,11;25-32; II Timothy 3:1-5 are all here now.
  
  The #1 sign is the reestablished of Israel-May 14,
  1948. Symbolically called the “fig tree nation that
  shoots forth fruit” Hosea 9:10; Joel 1:7; Jeremiah
  24:1-6; Ezekiel 36:1-12; Luke 21:29-32; Matthew
  24:32-34. Why did Jesus use a parable to symbolize
  Israel? So that every generation would be looking for
  Him. But it’s our generation that has been enlightened
  to see the literal nation of Israel established, and
  so will see His return.
  
  The generation that sees Israel established will not
  pass away till ALL be fulfilled. “Generation” is not a
  40 year period, but refers to the people alive during
  a certain time. Some consider the generation as those
  born at a time. Others consider it to be adults living
  at a time. If “generation” is defined as adults (those
  20 years and older according to Numbers 14 & Hebrews
  3:10) then the youngest of the 1948 fig tree
  generation is now 75 years old. Jesus said all
  prophecy (the Rapture, 7 year tribulation, & 2nd
  coming of Christ) would be fulfilled before this
  generation passes away. If the Rapture happened
  tonight, the very youngest would be 82 years old at
  the end of the 7 year tribulation. Psalm 90:10 tells
  us the average life span is only 70 years (or 80 if
  one’s healthy.)
  
  When these signs BEGIN TO COME TO PASS, THEN LOOK
  UP... Jesus is coming SOON! (Luke 21:28)
  
        WHICH RAPTURE? PRE- MID- OR POST- TRIBULATION
  
  The Bible states one must “RIGHTLY DIVIDE THE WORD OF
  TRUTH” (II Timothy 2:15)
  
  Confusion comes because many do not recognize that
  prophecy often has a 2 fold fulfillment...a partial,
  near (immediate) fulfillment, and a complete, far
  (futuristic) fulfillment. Daniel 8 prophesied about
  the “abomination of desolation” which was fulfilled in
  part by Antiochus Ephiphanes in 168 BC, but will not
  be completely fulfilled until the anti-Christ defiles
  the Temple during the tribulation (over 2,500 years
  later-Matt.24:15.) Isaiah 7:14-8:4 prophesied of a son
  being born. It was partially fulfilled in Isaiah’s
  wife bearing a son, but completely fulfilled 700+
  years later at Christ’s birth. The purpose of a
  partial, immediate fulfillment this was to validate
  the prophet’s words as being truth to his generation
  so that his words would be preserved as scripture for
  future generations. Christ’s prophecies also have a 2
  fold fulfillment. He stated that the temple would be
  destroyed (which occurred in 70 AD) and that when
  armies would surround Jerusalem the inhabitants should
  flee (Luke 21-20-24, Matt. 24:16-21.) This was
  partially fulfilled in 70 AD, but will not be
  completely fulfilled until the anti-Christ forces
  invade Jerusalem after the Church has been raptured.
  Those who state that Jesus has already returned (came
  back in 70 AD) misinterpret “this generation shall not
  pass till all be fulfilled.” It’s the now (fig tree)
  generation, not 70 AD, that will see the complete
  fulfillment of Christ’s return for His Church at the
  Rapture, the anti-Christ invading Jerusalem, &
  Christ’s 2nd coming to reign on earth.
  
        It was clear to the disciples that Jesus
  addressed different groups when He taught and
  prophesied. Peter asked Him, “Lord, speak Thou this
  parable unto us [exclusively], or even to all?” in
  Luke 12:41. Matthew 24 is a classic prophecy chapter
  in which Jesus addresses 4 different groups at three
  different times in history. (Hence, the need to
  “rightly divide” the Word, so that you don’t take
  something out of context that was not directed to
  you.) In Matthew 24:2,3 Jesus is asked when the Temple
  would be destroyed [70 AD], what signs there would be
  before His coming [present “beginning of sorrows” we
  see now]; and the sign of the “end of the age” [the
  end of the 7 year tribulation.] Jesus addresses His
  first century disciples (vs. 2); present day believers
  (vss.5-8); tribulation saints who receive Christ after
  the Rapture (vs.. 9-13, 29-31); & the Jewish nation
  during the tribulation (vs.. 15-31.) The context
  defines who He is addressing. For instance, the
  section dealing with the anti-Christ invading
  Jerusalem and praying that they would not have to flee
  on the Sabbath day [when by the Law Jews can only
  travel less than 1 mile] does not apply to present day
  Christians. He is addressing the Jews of the
  tribulation period after the Church is gone. Because
  many do not recognize that Jesus’ prophecies are not
  exclusively directed to the Church, they misinterpret
  scripture. Some have a Post-tribulation mentality
  (thinking that the Church is not raptured until AFTER
  the tribulation.) They base this on Matthew 24:29-31.
  This describes God gathering His elect at the end of
  the 7 years when Christ returns to reign on earth.
  However, the “elect” here are the Jews & trib. saints
  who receive Christ after the Church is gone. The term
  “elect” does not apply exclusively to the Church.
  Mid-tribulation mentality is based on Daniel 12:1,2
  and Rev. 12 which describes a resurrection in the
  middle of the 7 year tribulation. They assume any
  resurrection (or rapture) must refer to the Church.
  However, Rev. 14:1-4 & Dan. 12:1 clearly tells us that
  it is the 144,000 Jewish evangelists who are raptured
  in the middle of the tribulation. (Many don’t realize
  God resurrects several different groups at different
  times in end-time prophecy-not just the Church before
  the tribulation time.) NOTE: Those who have heard the
  Gospel but are not ready for Jesus’ coming ARE NOT
  promised another chance! II Thes. 2:11,12 states that
  those who heard the Truth but didn’t love Christ
  enough to obey it will be deceived by the anti-Christ
  and damned to hell. Don’t have a “Left Behind”
  mentality that “if I miss the Rapture, I’ll get saved
  afterward.” Matt. 25 says heaven’s door is closed to
  those who were not ready for the Bridegroom’s coming.
  Jesus admonishes us: “Be ready, for the Son of Man
  comes at an hour that you think not.” (Luke 12:40)
  
        WHAT SCRIPTURES PROVE THE PRE-TRIBULATION
  RAPTURE?
  
  *I Thes.5:9 “for God has not appointed us [the Church]
  to WRATH, but to obtain salvation [deliverance] by our
  Lord Jesus Christ, that whether we wake or sleep, we
  will live together with Him.”  True Christians will
  not experience ANY of God’s wrath. The tribulation
  time is called the “Day of the Lord’s wrath” Rev.6:17;
  Zeph.1:14, 15; Isaiah 13:9-11; & Joel 1:15.  God’s
  wrath is poured out on the inhabitants of the earth
  but not upon us, for we are then in heaven. “He
  reserves His wrath for His enemies”-Nahum 1:2 Before
  we were God’s enemies (Col.1:21, Rom.5:10), but now in
  Christ we are reconciled to & have peace with God.
  *Rev. 3:8-10 Jesus keeps the true Church from the
  tribulation time that will come on “all that dwell on
  the earth.” *Luke 21:34-36 Jesus says “that day will
  come on ALL that dwell on the earth” but if you “watch
  and pray always you ESCAPE ALL these things and stand
  before the Son of Man.” *Isaiah 26:19-21 shows the
  Church’s resurrection & call to our Heavenly abode
  while God punishes those who dwell on the earth. Thank
  God, we are not appointed to God’s wrath, but we will
  be “CAUGHT UP to meet the Lord in the air... and so
  shall we EVER be with the LORD.”  What a Blessed
  Hope--the Pre-tribulation Rapture of the Church
  
  

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