Rapture

Time of the Rapture

Some folks have borrowed the term “rapture” from us, but they did not start out with it. Most denominations do not believe biblically anything about the rapture of the church.

I am not going to set a time for the rapture, because I don’t know when it is going to take place and you don’t either and neither does anyone else. I don’t care what they tell you, they don’t know when the rapture is going to take place. It doesn’t matter how heavy the signs get, you will still never know until you hear the trumpet. Don’t bother trying to set dates. There is evidence about the rapture in the Bible.

Also a set date, but we don’t where our calendar is, so you don’t know anyway. And all kind of clues to the maximum time, but the problem is with our calendar. There are a hundred and twenty jubilees. That is 6,000 years. Anyway you look in the Book, it is 6,000 years, but when did they start? Where are we at now and what year is this? You don’t know and nobody else does. Personally, I believe God engineered it that way so we wouldn’t set dates for the rapture. It has been almost 2,000 years since Jesus was here, so we are in the neighborhood. We are in the generation. There is not much question about that I don’t think.

What is the rapture

Before we get into when the rapture is and again, I am not setting dates I am going to show you when it is in respect to other ‘end time’ events and prophecies. Before we get into that maybe we just need to talk about the rapture itself for a minute and see what it is. You won’t find the word rapture in the Bible, and some of the enemies of the Book will use that against you, but that means absolutely nothing. There is a lot of terminology we Christians use that you don’t find in the Bible. That proves nothing at all. The word ‘rapture’ is just a term that Christians have adopted to designate the end of the church age – that time when the Lord is going to remove His body, the church, from this earth.

Corinthians

3 1^st Cor. 15:51 – 55 (Is one of the most detailed passages in the scriptures about the rapture.) Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, (Psa.103 defines the word ‘sleep’ as physical death.) 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 (Which are alive and remain) shall be changed. 53 (At that last trump, the dead Christians are going to be raised from the graves and the living Christians are going to be transformed.

For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal (The living Christian that is subject to death.) shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? {grave: or, hell}

Victory Over the Grave

^1st Thess. 4:13-18 (Another detailed passage on the rapture of the church.) 13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, (We have already seen that means those Christians that are physically dead. This passage was written 54 A.D. the chronology given here. It is several years after the resurrection and ascension of Christ back to heaven. Paul had established a church at Thessalonica and some of the early converts had already died. Paul preached about the Kingdom and reigning with the Lord and all of those things. So, those Christians that remain began to wonder about those who died. Are they going to miss out on the Kingdom?

They certainly won’t be there when Jesus comes back. Paul says, “I don’t want you to be ignorant about this. I want to explain it to you.) that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died (Do we believe that?) and rose again, (Do we believe that?) even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. (He said, “If you can believe that Jesus died.

In Christ

They are not going to be left in the graves.”) 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. {prevent: or, come before, or, anticipate, or, precede} 16 For the Lord himself (This is no job for any minor archangel or any ‘peon’ cherubim.

This is the bridegroom coming for His bride. He is coming Himself. That is why at a wedding when the bride comes marching down the aisle, she stops and the groom goes down to receive his bride. That is a picture of the rapture of the church.) shall descend from heaven with a shout, (I wonder what He is going to say?

Wedding Day

You have been to a wedding, how the bridegroom stands there nervous and fidgeting, and all of a sudden the back door opens, and there she is and that is all he sees. Jesus is going to shout.) with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: (There is going to be quite a fanfare going on) and the dead in Christ shall rise first: (Have you ever heard someone say, “You are making so much noise you are going to raise the dead?” That is where they got it.

There is going to be so much noise at that rapture, it is going to raise those saints right out of the grave.) 17 Then we which are alive (All of the events in v.16 take place before you, if you are still living. You experience a change, but it is all going to take place in the twinkling of an eye.) and remain shall be caught up together with them (Those dead saints in vs.15.) in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words. {comfort: or, exhort}

We Have Hope!

That is why we don’t sorrow as others which have no hope. When we go to the funeral of a Christian, we know they are coming up out of that grave one on of these days. It is just a temporary good-bye, and really, they are not dead at all. They are just with the Lord. We have got nothing to cry about. We should be shouting praises at funerals.

The Lord is going to descend from Heaven. He will have one purpose in His mind when He returns in the air. He is coming after His bride. This is the elopement of the church. That is why He is coming as a thief in the night. He is going to sneak up on this world, get His bride and take her to the Father’s house. He is going to snatch her away from this place right out of the grasp of Satan. The devil is going to try to prevent you from ‘going up’ at the rapture.

Goodbye Devil

The Devil, of course, he is a defeated foe. It won’t make any difference at all. When the preacher says, “Does anyone object to this union?” The preacher is going to be the Father. (And it won’tbe a Catholic Father either.) He is the one who is going to perform the marriage. The devil is going to say, “I do” and the Lord is going to rebuke him, shut his mouth, and take His bride out of here. Still, the devil is going to try to prevent the church from leaving this world.

Resurrection

But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? 36 Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: 37 And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: 38 But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body.

39 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. 40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.

Resurrection of the Dead

42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: 43 And sown in dishonour; and raised in glory: also sown in weakness; it is raised in power: 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. 46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.

47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. 50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

The Living Saints

If you look up the word ‘rapture’ in the dictionary, you don’t need to look it up in the Bible; you won’t find it, it means ‘to be so overjoyed’ and ‘so thrilled’ and ‘so beside yourself with joy that you are just beside yourself’. You are so filled with joy and that is the way it is going to be when we see the Bridegroom. We are all going to recognize Him. I have seen some poor excuses of pictures, but none of them look like my Saviour.

6 – Viewpoints concerning the rapture.

Different Views

There are three basic viewpoints concerning the rapture.

A-millennialism: No Kingdom, no rapture. There is a viewpoint that there will be no rapture at all and this is where we will continue on until God gets sick and tired of it and brings on the judgment and that is the end of it. That is the viewpoint of the National Council of Churches and all of its denominations, which includes most Protestant denominations. They don’t believe in a Kingdom; don’t believe in a rapture. Andbelieve that this world is finally going to come to an end and God is going to bring everyone out of it, and then judge everyone. He will put the ‘sheep’’ on His right hand and the ‘goats’ on His left hand. That shows that they can’t read because the ‘sheep and goat parable’ of Matthew 25 is not talking about ‘people’ anyway’. They believe God is going to have a general judgment and the ‘sheep’ are going to heaven and the ‘goats’ are going to hell and that is where eternity begins. You will not find that in the Bible at all.
Post-millennialism: No rapture church makes world better for the Kingdom. It is very similar because post millennialism teaches that the church is going to make the world better, and better, and better, until finally it is good enough that the king can come back. Jesus will come back at the end of the thousand years and take over. In other words, the church will bring in the Kingdom.
Premillinialism – (look below)

The Bible Teaches

After those seven years of tribulation, there will be the millennial kingdom for a thousand years. You have two basic viewpoints on this idea.

Pre-tribulationists believe the rapture will take place before the tribulation begins.
Mid-tribulationists believe that the rapture will take place at the mid-point in the tribulation.

What in the world would cause a preacher to preach that the rapture will happen at mid-tribulation. It does not make any sense. The first three and a half years are of peace, a false peace. What would you be worried about? It shows he does not know anything about his bible.

Does It Make A Difference?

What difference does it make then, which one is right? It makes a lot of difference. God only teaches one way about anything. That is why we should study to show ourselves approved. The correct viewpoint is very important and makes a big difference in what we believe. Not only on the rapture, but everything else. To believe a false teaching in the face of truth is calling God a liar. If I don’t believe the record that God gave me, I am calling Him a liar.

Bible Buddy

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