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The Rapture and the Tribulation
The
word “Rapture” is not found in the New Testament directly, but comes from the
Latin word “rapiemer” or “rapio” from the Latin Vulgate, and means the same
thing as “harpatzo” meaning “caught up or away” found in 1 Thess. 4:17 which
says, “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.” There are three main views of the end of
the age amillennialism, premillennialism, post millennialism. Most churches
today hold to the amillennialism view which rejects the belief that Jesus will
return and have a literal thousand year physical reign on earth. Amillennialism (Greek: a- "no" + millennialism)
is the view in Christian eschatology which states that Christ is presently reigning
through the Church, and that the "1000 years" of Revelation 20:1-6 is
a metaphorical reference to the present church age which will culminate in
Christ's return. It stands in contrast to premillennialism,
which states that Christ will return prior to a literal 1000
year earthly reign; and postmillennialism,
which states that Christ's return will follow a 1000 year
golden age ushered in by the church (Theopedia).
"The postmillennialist believes that
the millennium is an era (not necessarily a literal thousand years) during
which Christ will reign over the earth, not from a literal and earthly throne,
but through the gradual increase of the Gospel and its power to change lives
(by the church). After this gradual Christianization of the world, Christ will
return and immediately usher the church into their eternal state after judging
the wicked. This is called postmillennialism because, by its view, Christ will
return after the millennium” (Theopedia). This belief was mainly taught prior
to World War 1 when it was believed that humanity was getting better, this of
course was countervailed by two major World Wars and for the most part has been
rejected by most people who know history. The Premillennial Second Coming of
Jesus has already been discussed in one of my previous posts, but to be brief
is the doctrine that Jesus will return before the millennial reign and
establish his kingdom and reign physically from Jerusalem.
There are a couple of phrases used of the coming of the Lord
that were used to refer to the belief of the literal coming of the Lord
“maranatha-the Lord comes” and “the blessed hope” used by the writers of the
New Testament. There are three major teachings that have emerged from The
Premillennial Second Coming of Jesus which we will discuss briefly. First the
Pretribulation Rapture and Second Coming of Jesus, Mid-Tribulation Rapture and
Second Coming of Jesus, and finally the End of the Tribulation Return of Jesus
and the establishment of the kingdom of Christ on earth at the second coming. The
two most popular are the pretribulation, and mid-tribulation rapture of those
who embrace the literal second coming of Christ to establish a literal kingdom
on earth and reign for one thousand years from Jerusalem.
Now we will discuss the pretribulation rapture and why we believe
Christ will return before the tribulation to rapture his bride. First Jesus
told the disciples:
Joh 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions:
if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a
place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
This of course has reference to the Jewish wedding which we have
discussed in the prior post, but here we have Jesus’ promise that he will
return to take us to heaven. The tribulation is a seven-year period of time
referred to by the prophets as Jacob’s trouble in which God will allow trouble
(the tribulation) to occur to bring Israel back to himself:
Jer 30:6 Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child?
wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in
travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?
Jer 30:7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.
Here Jeremiah is prophesying in a time of judgment of a
future time that God will use great trouble to bring his people back to
himself.
Dan 12:1 And at that time shall
Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy
people: and there shall be a time of
trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same
time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be
found written in the book.
Dan 9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week (a
prophetic week meaning 7 years): and in the midst of the week he shall cause
the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of
abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the
consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
This is easy to discern if we read carefully about the
two periods of time written about in Daniel and Revelation where this period is
broken down into two 3 ½ years periods (a time=1 year, times= 2 years, and a
half of time ½ year making up 3 ½ years (Daniel 9:26-27, Revelation 12:14, Daniel
4:15, Daniel 7:25, Daniel 12:7). The
Bible also refers to this period as a number of days which if added up makes up
seven years of time in Daniel 12:11-13, Rev. 11:3, 12:6).
A subtle revelation is found in Daniel chapter three when
Nebuchadnezzar requires the three Hebrew boys to be thrown into the fire for
not bowing to the idol that he erected of himself, and which is 60 cubits high,
6 cubits wide, and 6 instruments are played (sound familiar? Revelation 13:8-18).
The Bible says he heated the furnace “seven times-(seven years)” hotter than it
out to be heated, another words hotter than ever before, “…and there shall be a time
of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that
same time…” (Daniel 12:2), and “For
then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the
world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt 24:21). It should also be noted that
Nebuchadnezzer was turned into a beast due to pride for seven times ("years" Daniel
4:15). Is it any coincidence that the Word of God calls this imposter the Beast
(Revelation 13).
Hos
5:15 I will go and return to my place (John 8, 14)
, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction
(Jacob’s Trouble) they will seek me early.
Hos 2:13 And I will visit
upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked
herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and
forgat me, saith the LORD.
Hos 2:14 Therefore,
behold, I will allure her (God will give them the fruit of their idolatry- an idol
in their temple), and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto
her (Isa 40).
Hos 2:15 And I will give
her her vineyards (joy) from thence, and the valley of Achor (trouble-this is
where Achan’s sin was dwelt with in Joshua) for a door of hope (John 10:1, 1Co
10:12-13): and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth (Jer. 2:2-3),
and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.
Hos 2:16 And it shall be
at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi (husband); and shalt call me no more
Baali (lord-pagan reference).
When the Jews
accept the Antichrist as Messiah he will allow them to build their temple and begin
to offer up their sacrifices again, but in the middle of the tribulation (3 ½ years
Daniel 9: 26-27) he will break that peace treaty and put up an idol in the
temple, the Jews that know the second commandment will have their eyes opened
and will flee to the Judean wilderness and then over to Edom (Petra). The sensitive reader should note that Solomon’s
idolatry caused the nation to be broken up (consider Hosea 2:13-14), and
Jeroboam took the northern ten tribes and brought in calve worship. A small
detail to notice is the no-name prophet brought a judgment upon his right hand
(1 Kings 13 entire chapter), in Zechariah 11:17 we see a strange reference “Woe to the idol shepherd that
leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his
right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly
darkened.” Could this scripture have reference to Antichrist who will require
his subjects to take a mark? Will the
deadly wound that is healed have reference to his resurrection? (Rev 13:1-3, Satan
is the great imitator).
Mat 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the
abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy
place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
Mat 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such
as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall
be.
Mat 24:22 And except those days should be
shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days
shall be shortened.
Jesus is warning his people Israel here the days have
been accounted for 3 ½ years (Daniel 12:11-13), thus shorted or numbered (Revelation 12:7-17).
Rom
9:27 Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of
the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved:
Rom 9:28 For he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord
make upon the earth.
Rom 9:29 And as Esaias said before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had
left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha.
The tribulation
period is a seven-year period that begins with the Antichrist making a peace
treaty with Israel and surrounding inhabitants (Palestinians) and allows the
temple of Jews to be rebuilt and animal sacrifices to begin again. Midway in
the tribulation the antichrist will go into the temple and raise up a idol and
proclaim himself “god.” The Jews that are God’s and written in the book will
then flee into the wilderness and over to Petra ( territory of Edom) and live
in caves until the end of the tribulation period. When the antichrist puts the
idol in the temple the Jews eyes will be opened and will turn to Jesus during
this time period and for the last three and a half years of great tribulation. The
main purpose of the tribulation is to bring Israel back to God through their
true Messiah Jesus Christ. In addition, God is judging sin on the earth through
the opening of the seals, blowing of the trumpets, and the vials of his wrath.
To those who notice the similarities of the judgments of God in Revelation to that of Egypt let the Holy Ghost remind you the main purpose of those judgments was so Pharaoh would let Israel go and God would deliver Israel to himself in the wilderness. May the reader be blessed! Selah!
To those who notice the similarities of the judgments of God in Revelation to that of Egypt let the Holy Ghost remind you the main purpose of those judgments was so Pharaoh would let Israel go and God would deliver Israel to himself in the wilderness. May the reader be blessed! Selah!
If you have never accepted or if you have fallen away from Jesus Christ here are three steps you need to take to be saved:
You must admit you are a sinner, confess your sin to Jesus, repent (turn from all you know is wrong), ask Jesus to come in your heart, and begin to follow Jesus by reading and obeying his word and go to a bible believing church that teaches his word. And tell someone what Christ Jesus Has Done For You (Rev 12:10)
May God through Christ bless you!
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