1 Cor. 15:52 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.
Good morning! Do today’s verses disturb you? If you’re born again, they should cause you to be praying for the salvation of your family, friends and those in your circle of acquaintances. If you’re not born again, I pray that you will be disturbed by what you read and that it stirs your heart to be saved.
So today’s verses talk about the wrath of the Lamb that is to come. What is this wrath? Who is going to suffer this wrath? The Lamb is Jesus Christ and when His judgment upon this earth begins, there will be no turning back. Each judgment will be worse than the one before. The Rapture of the church will have already happened and those who remain will be involved in a horrific time on this earth like no other, the Tribulation. This is called the time of God’s wrath upon the earth. It has been prophecized from the Old Testament all through way through to the last book in the New Testament in the Book of Revelation.
You may be saying that there has always been persecution throughout the ages so this is nothing new. But these seven years will be a time where the people who get saved will be persecuted like no other age and it will occur all over the world, not just a specific location and not for a specific people. It will be for all people, all over the world.
Mid-Tribulation and Post Tribulation believers say that Christians will go through half or all of the Tribulation. However, this doesn’t jive with the Scriptures because the Tribulation saints won’t be delivered from the wrath but will be overcome by it.
We are told in the Scriptures that, just as in Noah’s day when God shut the door to the ark, that God will shut the door after the Rapture and no one will be able to escape the Tribulation.
Those who are alive at the time appointed by God to rapture His church, will be kept from the hour of temptation that will come upon the whole earth. All other times of persecution during history did not occur upon the whole earth, but just parts of it. The antichrist will be in power in order to cause havoc upon the entire earth. The church has been taken up in the Rapture. The word “church” occurs 80 times in 79 verses in the King James Bible. It is found only seven times in the Book of Revelation and only in chapters 2 and 3. It is not mentioned once after that. Chapter 4 begins with:
The Apostle John was given the opportunity to see and hear what would happen during the Tribulation. God called him up through an opened door. This is indicative of the Rapture of the church. Why? We see that the church is not even found once in Chapters 4-22. These chapters now refer to the Jews. The Jews rejected Christ at His first coming and the Gospel of Christ was entrusted to the Church until Christ came to Rapture the church. After this event, the Jews will come back into the picture and will see their Messiah is: Jesus Christ!
But for today, we can see that He has yet to be revealed or come into power. Christians will be kept from these seven years of Tribulation and they will be removed beforehand. Praise the Lord!! \o/ Are you ready, Christian?
If you are a born-again Christian and have never studied this out, I hope you are blessed by it and encouraged in your heart. If you are not born again, I urge you to settle the matter right now! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Good morning, reader! What an exciting time to be alive! We are witnessing unprecedented events affecting the entire globe! Jesus spoke of what we are to expect in the end times in Matthew 24:3-51. To the average reader, these verses are frightening. But to the believer, they are exciting because we know that we will not be here to experience the horrific events that will occur on the entire earth!
As we discussed in the last post, the Rapture of the church has three very different groups of belief: Pre-Tribulation, Mid-Tribulation (or Pre-Wrath) and Post-Tribulation. They all pertain to the Rapture’s timing – when the event will occur. Which one is correct? One must turn to God’s Word to determine the answer. God would not want His children to be afraid of what is to come. Think of your earthly father: would he want you to be afraid as you live under his roof? No father would want this weighing on his children. An earthly father wants to protect his children. How much more a Heavenly Father: the Perfect Father?
What does each one mean? Pre-Tribulation refers to the Rapture occurring sometime before the start of the Tribulation. The Bible says that His return will be as a thief coming in the night. If you knew the hour a thief would enter your house, you would be prepared. That is why we are told to always be prepared. Noah didn’t know when the flood was going to come – he just knew it was coming and he continued doing what God had commanded Him to do. The Bible answers all of our questions so let’s get to it.
The Bible tells us when the Tribulation will begin. It will begin when the Antichrist is made known, not a minute before.
So we know that when the Antichrist is revealed, the Tribulation will begin. However, what about the Rapture? The Bible says:
These verses indicate that Christ’s return for His church is imminent – it can happen at any time. No man knows the day or the hour. We are given a timeline of the Tribulation in the Book of Revelation. We know that it is a literal seven years from the time that the Antichrist is revealed. This doesn’t fulfill the “imminent” return of Christ. There is a definite timeline here of Christ’s Second Coming. God is all about timing and order. However, the above verses encourage believers to be waiting and watchful. This is the proof of His imminent return for the Rapture of the church.
Just as Noah was kept from the wrath on the entire earth, so will believers be kept from the Tribulation.
These verses would not make any sense if believers were to go through part or all of the Tribulation! There is no comfort or blessed hope if Christians have to experience the wrath which is to come to the world. The wrath that is to come is for the “children of disobedience” according to Paul:
There is no timeline for the Rapture. This is called “imminent.” It can happen at any time before the impending judgments of the Tribulation. It was such an important doctrine of the early Church that the Apostle Paul taught the most about it.
Paul had to repeat his teachings to the Thessalonians because they had been deceived by the same skeptics that we have today. The verses above tell us that the Thessalonians thought they had missed the Rapture and that the Tribulation had already begun. They were listening to heretics rather than remembering what Paul had taught them.
Paul reminds them of the signs that will usher in the Tribulation will be: except there come a falling away first and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition! So there are definite signs and timelines for the Tribulation. We have been seeing a falling away from the faith for several decades and it is getting worse. So we know we are in those “end times.”
But there are no signs or timeline which must occur before the Rapture. If a person believes in the Mid-Tribulation Rapture, then there is a definite timeline because that is half way through the seven years, which is three and a half years. If a person believes in the Post-Tribulation Rapture, then there is a definite timeline there as well: after the seven years of Tribulation. Those of us who hold to the Pre-Tribulation Rapture have something to look forward to. It keeps us focused in doing the work of the Lord because we want to be caught up at that time! So friend, be encouraged! Be watchful and pray that you are ready for Christ’s Rapture of His Church at any moment! We are not called to experience the wrath that is about to come to this earth! Praise Him!!! 🙌🙌🙌
If you are like I me prior to salvation and are interested in the end times, I pray you find the Lord (as I did) before it’s too late! If you are a born-again Christian and have never studied this out, I hope you are blessed by it and encouraged in your heart. If you are not born again, I urge you to settle the matter right now! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Today’s verses are very exciting! Anyone having an ounce of Bible prophecy knowledge knows they will not be here when the Tribulation begins! We will see later on in this series that the Tribulation period begins with the Antichrist signing a peace treaty with Israel. (Daniel 9:27) If the Church is to live through the Tribulation, it would mean that it would have to suffer through the most horrible and difficult time to come upon the whole earth. When I first heard of the Tribulation, it frightened me in a way I had never been frightened before. So grab your favor beverage, make yourself comfortable and let’s discuss these things! 😃
Notice how verse 18 says to comfort one another with these words? Come on, Paul! How can one be comforted when there’s about to be seven years of horrible events coming to the earth? How can we be comforted when in fact, one fourth of the earth’s population will die during the fourth and fifth seals in Revelation 6? Christians will be martyred during this times as we see in Revelation 6:9-11. In fact, so much so, that we see in Revelation 11:7 and Revelation 13:7 that the Antichrist will overcome the Tribulation saints! What comfort is there in that??? So why is Paul telling us to comfort one another? To what is this comfort referring to? The topic of these verses is the coming of the Lord. This is not referring to His coming to earth: Christ’s return to earth will be at the end of the Tribulation. This coming of the Lord refers to Christ meeting born-again believers in the air. It can be viewed that His Second Coming is in two parts: one in the air to meet the Church at the Rapture and then second part is when Christ actually steps foot on the earth with His church!
So let’s think about this for a moment: if we are to go through the Tribulation, as proponents of Mid-Tribulation and Post-Tribulation believe, what comfort is there in that? How can we comfort one another as Paul tells us to do in 1 Thessalonians 4:18? I certainly would not be comforted knowing that with each judgment in the seals, trumpets and bowls as written in the Book of Revelation were ahead of me. There’s no comfort or solace in that – there is only fear and apprehension! Where is your next meal coming from because you didn’t take the mark of the beast? Where can you hide without being caught? Where do you sleep? All this apprehension lies within the hearts of Tribulation Christians. The Church is Christ’s Bride, reader! What groom would subject his wife to go through such torment? NONE! Our Groom is awaiting to be told by His Father to go get His Bride, the Church! Jesus spoke of this in the verses below! Why would Jesus prepare a house for His Bride and she wouldn’t go there to be with Him? The post-Tribulation viewpoint doesn’t take that into consideration. They claim that the Millennial Kingdom is the Father’s house with many rooms. But that is not scriptural. Jesus doesn’t enter the Millennium until after the Tribulation. It’s common sense!
We can only comfort ourselves IF we believe that we will be kept from those coming judgments! The snatching of the church and taking her to the clouds to meet Christ “in the air” is going to be an event like no other. If you’re a Bible reader, you’ll remember that Enoch and Elijah never died. They were taken up by God. So this is no new occurrence.
Jesus spoke of this in:
In fact, Paul was taken to the third heaven in 2 Corinthians 12:2 and Philip in Acts 8:39. Both were taken or caught away and both Greek terms were “harpazo”! This is where the word Rapture comes from. Friend, God is able and He will protect His church from the coming wrath on the children of disobedience. This term is used three times in the New Testament and all refer to God’s wrath! (Ephesians 2:2, 5:6; and Colossians 3:6)
If you are a born-again Christian and have never studied this out, I hope you are blessed by it and encouraged in your heart. If you are not born again, I urge you to settle the matter right now! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Good morning! The topic of the Rapture excites me and stirs my spirit! I hope it is a blessing to all who read it. God does not leave His children to despair during these times of what is happening in our Country today. The times are changing so rapidly and there’s fear in the hearts of mankind: fear of the unknown! When is the next pandemic going to happen and where is it going to lead us? Are we going to remain hostages in our own homes? Are people going to be restricted from purchasing even the basic necessities of life if they are not vaccinated, or if they don’t convert to digital currency? Will citizens lose their freedoms in order to corral them? Americans, and the world for that matter, have no idea what is to come. But the born-again Christian isn’t looking to this world for his hope. We look to Christ! Why? Let’s look and see.
The Rapture is an event that will definitely happen. The timing of the Rapture is uncertain but the event itself is most surely going to happen. This is why it is considered to be imminent. The Thessalonians thought it had already happened and Paul addresses that in 2 Thessalonians.
However, the Scriptures below tell us that it is as definite as Christ’s resurrection. Without Christ’s resurrection, one would have no hope!
It is the Word of God, reader! Paul taught them about the Rapture and God saw fit to include this topic in the Bible through His Holy Spirit. (John 14:26) Friend, Christ does not leave us hopeless! He left us with His Word to encourage us during these end times! If we are blessed enough to be alive at the time of the Rapture, we will not see death! How exciting is that!
Every single detail in God’s Word will be fulfilled.
It is said that 6,000 prophecies in the Bible, and nearly 80% of those prophecies have occurred without failure or error. The remaining nearly 20% will be fulfilled because God’s Word in Matthew and Luke above say so. The Church experienced God’s mercy and grace by providing a Saviour. But God’s judgment must still take place because it is part of His Word. He magnifies His Word above His name!
This truly defines how important that every single thing in God’s Word must be fulfilled! The Rapture is no different. The Rapture is only for those who are truly born-again and live accordingly. To the one who claims he is a Christian but does not separate himself from sin, he is not a true believer. If he is disobedient to the Word, then he is considered a part of the children of disobedience.
Anyone can believe in God – in fact, the devils believe in Him, but that does not make them saved! In fact, they tremble!
Check yourself, reader. If you have indeed been born again, you will strive to live the Christian life according to the Bible. If you are not, sure, make sure! If you know that you are not living according to the Bible, then you are considered as part of the children of disobedience. A born-again believer walks after the Holy Spirit’s influence. This is why the Church will not be experiencing the Tribulation’s wrath of God.
If you are a born-again Christian and have never studied this out, I hope you are blessed by it and encouraged in your heart. If you are not born again, I urge you to settle the matter right now! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Good morning, reader! I pray that you are receiving some encouragement with this series when the Rapture could happen! This topic is what led me to the Lord in the first place. A miracle occurred when God sent my best friend to visit me on her vacation. She had no idea that I was interested in the future of this world. I read after famous ancient authors looking for answers. She brought along a recording of a Bible scholar who was renown for end time prophecy. Everything he said was backed up by Scripture. He spoke of the Rapture: I had never heard of such a thing in my religion. It was then that I found the One True God and the salvation He provides! So I pray that you, too, are searching and that this devotional series will lead you to Christ, our Saviour!
Three things will happen at the Rapture: the dead in Christ will be resurrected and the born-again Christians who are alive will be transformed in an instant, and will be caught up in the air to be joined with Jesus Christ. This transformation will happen in an instant! The transformation of those Christians who are alive at the time of the Rapture is described in 1 Corinthians 15:51-54 (below) as the corruptible and mortal body being instantly changed to an incorruptible and immortal one (verses 52-53).
Isn’t this wonderful? Just as Noah and his family entered the ark and were protected against the flood that affected the entire earth, so shall born-again Christians be protected from the coming Tribulation. If you notice, 1 Thessalonians 4:17 says that we meet Jesus in the air and that we will forever be with Him! How exciting this is to the believer! What an encouragement it is to know that nothing will separate us from Him for all eternity! This is our hope, dear reader! The unbeliever has no hope! I recall that prior to my salvation, I too had no hope! I “hoped” that I would go to heaven but I was never certain.
As we continue this series, you will come to see how it all fits together for those who are saved. We await a wonderful event! Paul encourages the believers in Thessalonica with the promise of the Rapture. In fact, he tells them to comfort themselves together as the end approaches! (1 Thessalonians 5:11) Why? Because this event will usher in the most terrible time this earth has ever experienced since the creation of man! We thought Noah’s flood was bad, well apparently the Tribulation will be worse!
If you are a born-again Christian and have never studied this out, I hope you are blessed by it and encouraged in your heart. If you are not born again, I urge you to settle the matter right now! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
Good morning! Could this be the year that the Rapture will occur? If you’re new to this blog and have never heard of this Rapture I write of, we’ll be taking a closer look at its meaning and what it represents to the born-again Christian. It is a message of hope and excitement to all believers who are awaiting the Lord’s return in the clouds for His bride. Read through today’s Bible verses and we’ll take a few days to explain and prove this event can occur at any moment. Today, however, we will just cover what the word means and where it is found in the Scriptures.
We are seeing a great divide in Christian circles about the pre-tribulational Rapture. The topic is being ridiculed by believers. They are calling it a “secret” Rapture or escapism by those who believe it will happen before the Tribulation. I always thought that those who scoffed at Christians would be unbelievers. However, it makes perfect sense that it comes from within the Church itself.
The fact that these scoffers are referring to the “fathers,” tells us that they are religious. Is it any wonder that people are not turning to the Church in these end times? So let’s get down to business.
Although the word “rapture” doesn’t appear in the English translation of the Bible, it’s a term that describes the removing of born-again believers from the earth. The Latin word “rapturo” is where our English word comes from. The term “caught up” in verse 17 is elsewhere translated “pluck” (John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.) We see another reference to it when Philip was snatched away after he witnessed to the Ethiopian eunuch (Act 8:39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.) If you followed my series on the attitude of mankind during the end times, you saw that we are in a time where the antichrist will come into power. It is a time that no born-again believer will go through and a time that you do not want to experience if you are not born again. Prior to the revealing of the antichrist, this Rapture will occur: it can happen at any moment: it is imminent and you do not want to be caught unaware.
The New Testament was written in Greek and, therefore, we will see what the Greek language has to say about the word “rapture.” Strong’s Concordance states this:
It will help you if you look up each of these verses in your Bible to see the different uses. The Rapture represents being caught up, taken by force, taken away, plucked, and pulled away. The word “rapture” isn’t found in the Bible. But, friend, neither is the word “bible” found in the Bible or the word Trinity. But the concept and description of the rapture is found in the Bible and, therefore, it’s worthy of study, amen?
If you are a born-again Christian, you may have heard of the various beliefs of when the rapture will occur. To understand why it is important, you need to know when the different beliefs occur. There are three popular schools of thought of when the rapture will occur: the pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation and post-tribulation. Pre-tribulation is defined as occurring before the tribulation. Mid-tribulation is defined as occurring in the middle of the tribulation. And finally, the post-tribulation is defined as occurring after the tribulation.
The latter two beliefs claim that the pre-tribulation rapture was only recently “invented” but there is historical proof showing that this was the belief of the Christians as early as third century AD. This is only one example of the writings of that day:
All the saints and elect of God are gathered together before the tribulation, which is to come, and are taken to the Lord, in order that they may not see at any time the confusion which overwhelms the world because of our sins.
-Pseudo-Ephraem (c. 374-627)
Please read his quote and let it sink in. Proponents against the pre-tribulation Rapture claim that Darby introduced it in the 1800’s. However, we see in this quote that the pre-tribulation rapture was not invented in the past 150 years but in the third century! As we continue our series, we will dig in deeper and we will see that this was what was intended through the Scriptures! The Apostle Paul spoke a lot about this blessing reunion and we will cover those verses to bring it all together.
No other Tribulation viewpoint can explain away these four verses:
Joh 14:1-4 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. (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. (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. (4) And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
After Jesus’ Second Coming, the Millennial Kingdom begins. If the Rapture happens at the end of the Tribulation, how will the Church go to Heaven where Jesus went to prepare a place and THEN go into the Millennium? They will never go to Heaven? That makes no sense at all. Jesus says in verse 2 that He was going to prepare a place for us. Then verse 3 says that He will come again and receive us unto himself so that where He is, we will be also!
If you are a born-again Christian and have never studied this out, I hope you are blessed by it and encouraged in your heart. If you are not born again, I urge you to settle the matter right now! Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
The Rapture of the Church could happen at any moment. I have had several series dealing with the end times, the Rapture and the Book of Revelation. But let’s look at it from another perspective. If you knew that the Rapture would happen next Thursday, would you be about the Father’s business?
I hope you are blessed by this series. Please feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts.