#70 Enraptured with the Rapture

There is a current teaching purportedly based on Scripture that Jesus will come back in the clouds but not to Earth and take all his followers up with him. People all over the world will just disappear. In a video representation, a scene involving people will show some of them just suddenly disappearing without a trace. Anything they are carrying is just dropped. But interestingly they disappear with all their clothes on! From our observation of people dying and from eyewitness testimony we can tell that the moment we die our spirit leaves our body but all the clothes stay on the body. Witnesses to heaven report they are given new garments there to wear. So the movie clips should have all the actors and actresses completely disrobe when the camera stops, leave all their clothes in a pile and run naked off-stage where they have other clothes they can put on. The camera can then start rolling again. One writer calls this The Great Disappearance and is modeled after Hal Lindsey’s Left Behind series.

The theory goes that after this will come the seven years of tribulation when the antichrist will reign. At the end of this time, Jesus returns with his church to judge the world and establish his kingdom. This theory is being widely promoted by key television personalities and preachers. And it is eagerly being accepted with applause by the followers of these preachers. But is that what Scripture actually says will happen?

First, consider Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 where Jesus answers the disciples’ question about the signs of the end.

6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.

7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.

9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.

10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,

11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.

12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,

13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

This sounds very much to me like we need to be prepared to endure some hard times through which we must stand firm. Some will be persecuted; some put to death; all will be hated. If that is not tribulation, I don’t know what counts for tribulation. The key seems to be that we must have such a faith and trust in God and His love for us, that we will be able to stand firm in the midst of all this. There is no indication here that Jesus is coming back for his church before all this happens. Also he is saying the end won’t come and his return until the gospel of the kingdom has been preached to the whole world. We still have a few people groups left to reach.

After this he says,

15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel–let the reader understand—

It is predicted in Revelation 13:11-18 that the beast from the earth joins with the beast from the sea and the dragon to set up an image of the first beast that all are required to worship. This appears to be the “abomination that causes desolation” that Daniel foretold. Then Jesus told his disciples,

21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now–and never to be equaled again.

22 If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.

23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.

24 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect–if that were possible.

25 See, I have told you ahead of time.

26 “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.

27 For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

28 Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

29 “Immediately after the distress of those days ” ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’

30 “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.

31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

This is more trouble, so much that if God had not shortened the time on behalf of the elect, which I presume is his followers, no one would have survived. But notice the first mention of his gathering his people to himself is verse 31 and it will not be a surprise disappearance. In verses 29-30, there will be signs in heaven and all nations will mourn seeing the signs. This is the context of the angels gathering us from the Earth to be with him in the air, and it is when he returns in power and glory on the clouds of the sky, and not until after all the previous tribulation.

Revelation speaks in several places about the coming trouble but throughout is scattered promises that He will take care of His people and not let them suffer, much like he protected the Israelites when the plagues were poured on Egypt. He also mentions in a couple places that this requires patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of his elect. So His elect will be here; we shan’t hope for an early withdrawal from Satan and the antichrist’s hatred for God and those created in His image.

Another passage that is frequently used by those promoting an early withdrawal of the church is I Thessalonians 4:16-17. But that passage merely describes what the event we call the Rapture will be like. Consider the whole context:

14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.

16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

This is clearly saying there is one second coming and it will be with a loud command, a trumpet call, and the voice of the archangel, and that is when we will be taken up to be with him in the air, not years before in a fictitious secret great disappearance. Jesus’ church will not be coming with him at that time, as one preacher claims. Those coming with him will be the ones who have previously died and been raised to new life. Those of us that are left until then will be the ones meeting him in the air.

Jesus also warned us there will be false prophets we must ignore. Those who are proclaiming a popular message to enhance their own following and fortunes are such false prophets. Heeding their “prophesy” will not lead to any good results. In fact, it appears we are in for some terrible times as Satan’s full power is unleashed against all who honor God. We don’t need a false hope in escaping, we need a strengthened faith and intimate knowledge of God’s love for us to be able to have patient endurance and faithfulness, as is called for in Revelation. When you can’t buy and sell are you going to give in to the secular and religious requirements imposed at that time? See Revelation 14:9-12:

9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand,

10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.

11 And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.”

12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus.

After reading this are you willing to take the mark of the beast so you can buy groceries and fuel and get paid for your work? NO! Under no circumstances should you ever bow to Satan and his minions, no matter how politically or religiously powerful they are. Focus on getting to know God well enough that you KNOW you can count on Him during that time. The only way out is to die, but if you are going to be alive until Jesus comes, you are going to need supernatural patient endurance and faithfulness, but God will give you that if you keep walking with Him. Reread Heaven Is Beyond Imagination to get another dose of how wonderful God is and how much He loves you.