Lesson 6: The Rapture is the Blessed Hope of the …storage.cloversites.com/colonialhillschurch/documents/LESSON 6.pdfLesson 6[Type text] Page 1 Lesson 6: The Rapture is the "Blessed

Lesson 6[Type text] Page 1

Lesson 6: The Rapture is the "Blessed Hope" of the Church Age

Psalm 12:1 Help, LORD, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.

The bible describes a coming moment in time, looming on the horizon of every church age believer, in which every believer then living ( following close on the heels of those "dead in Christ"), will be simultaneously liberated from their earthly body to meet the Lord in the air, and--by the very act of beholding the eternal Lord and savior himself-- becoming instantaneously immortal as well.

Remember Star Trek? "Beam me up, Scotty? " This event is really pretty similar to being "beamed up", except that instead of (courtesy of the Enterprise transporter) being changed into subatomic matter and transported from one place in the physical universe to another, people will be changed from physical matter into spiritual, and transported from within the limits of our four-dimensional universe to a place outside of these limits. (Namely, the place where God lives, called eternity.)

That event is commonly known as the rapture, and it is easily the most preposterous doctrine in the bible. There's a lot of public ridicule of the concept of the rapture, and more for those who believe in its future reality. But God warned us that that skepticism would be mount as the day draws near: First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4They will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." II Peter 3:3And even those of us who believe in it would have to admit that from our vantage point in time it does seem like a pretty improbably turn of events. But that doesn't mean it's not true. A lot of improbable things happen, and a lot of seemingly unexplainable things are nonetheless true. Interestingly, even natural science is rapidly approaching the ability to make a similar event, a "beam me up Scotty Event a reality. Scientist have been working on building an actual transporter for about ten years, and have succeeded in beaming a stream of data (as packets of photons) almost a hundred miles. So it would seem that even from a scientific standpoint what seems improbably will someday be even humanly possible. So maybe the whole rapture thing isn't so preposterous. In fact (and this will probably surprise you) there are actually seven OTHER "raptures" in the Bible:

Nearly every discussion of the rapture with a skeptic will begin

with their confident assertion that the word rapture does not occur in the Bible. Not true. It

isn't in English Bible versions because it is in essence a Latin

word, and does occur in the early Latin Bible as rapturo. Our

English versions are generally translated from Greek

manuscripts, which use the word harpazo. Harpazo and rapturo

both mean to be suddenly snatched away or seized.


Who? What happened? Where? Enoch It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying--"he disappeared, because

God took him." For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God. Hebrews 11:5

Elijah 11 As they were walking along and talking, suddenly a chariot of fire appeared, drawn by horses of fire. It drove between the two men, separating them, and Elijah was carried by a whirlwind into heaven.

2 Kings 2: 11

Jesus 9 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him.

Acts 1:9

Philip When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. The eunuch never saw him again but went on his way rejoicing. 40 Meanwhile, Philip found himself farther north at the town of Azotus.

Acts 8:39

Paul I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don’t know—only God knows.

2 Cor 12:2-4

Body of Christ

Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.

1 Thess 4:17

John Then as I looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me like a trumpet blast. The voice said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after this.” 2 And instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne in heaven and someone sitting on it.

Rev 4:1

So what does the Bible really say about this event-- the real rapture?

One of the major passages on the rapture is I Corinthians 15: Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. I Corinthians 15: 51-53

This passage tells us that:

One function of this event is to change our _________________

bodies into ___________________________________________

This will happen _______________________________________

with the sound of _____________________________________

All that inherit the kingdom of God will be changed, but not all will

_________________

I Corinthians 15:52 says that Christians will be given immortal bodies in a" moment, in a twinkling of an eye". Notice it doesn't say blink!! The Greek word translated "moment" is "atomos", which meant the smallest period of time possible. Intriguingly, 20

th

century science has confirmed that there is a smallest possible unit of time. Known as the Plank time, it is 1x 10

-43 seconds

(one second cut into 1,000,000,000,000,000 ,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 pieces)! Amazingly, the amount of time it would take light ( at 300 million meters per second) to pass through your retina is just about 1x10

-43

seconds, which must be what God meant by a "twinkling" of an eye!


The second major passage about this event occurs in I Thessalonians:

But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words. I Thessalonians 4: 13-17

What specific group of people does this resurrection specifically apply to? (vs 14,17)________________

This event is specific to church-age believers.

Let's really break this down: 1) The Lord will (verse 16) _________________________ 2) He will issue a _________________________________ 3) The voice of the _____________________ will be heard 4) A _________________________________ will be heard 5) The _________________________________ will rise first 6) Those who are still alive ___________ will ________________ where? _______________________________________________ 7) We will _______________for how long ? __________________

Why is Paul explaining this to the Thessalonians? (vs 17)

________________________________________________

So that's the basics.

If you know much about the rapture, you probably know that the big question is when the rapture will occur. Very often the verses used to prove one point of view over another are taken out of context to prove a specific point. But as one wise Bible scholar has observed,: "a text out of context is a con job." So…the best way to figure out when the rapture is going to be is make sure that you really understand

If it hasn't happened already, somewhere down the road

you will probably hear that a guy named John Darby

thought the rapture up in the 1800s and nobody ever

believed in it before that. You have already looked at a

couple of verses that detail the event above, so clearly the authors of the books of

the New Testament, who lived in the first century,

believed in it! In fact, in an article entitled "On God, the

antichrist , and the end of the world", a man known as

pseudo-Ephraim made the following statement: For all the saints and Elect of God are gathered, prior to the

tribulation that is to come, and are taken to the Lord lest they see the confusion that is

to overwhelm the world because of our sins.

Doesn't that sound like the rapture? Although nobody is absolutely sure who this man

was, we do know that he wrote this essay in the 6th

century. Clement and Polycarp (church leaders who

lived not long after the apostles) wrote of the rapture

as well.


what the Bible as a whole says about--particularly what God's purposes for the event are. What it is all about?

Looking at some main characteristics of this event will help nail that down.

Key Point # 1) The rapture (the coming of the Kinsman Redeemer for his own) and the

second coming ( The coming of the Avenger of Blood to bring judgment) are two distinct

and different events.

There are lots of verses in the Bible, both old and new testaments that talk about the coming of the Messiah in the last days.

But this is important: Remember I Corinthians 15? "Behold, I shall tell you a mystery… we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed…in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye?" The rapture is a mystery, something not revealed to Old Testament saints that is revealed in the New Testament.

The coming of the conquering Messiah to destroy Israel's enemies, on the other hand, is the subject of hundreds of verses in the Old Testament. So they cannot be the same event.

Think about a binary star. It looks like a single star, but when you look closer (as in through a telescope) you can tell that the single star is actually two different stars that just looked like one. ( The same thing happened to the Jews with the prophecies that sounded like the Messiah would be a suffering servant (Isaiah 53) and those which sounded like he would be a conquering king (Isaiah 59) . They didn't realize that it would be the same Messiah, in two different visits. Something similar also tripped the Jews of Jesus day up. At one point, some people who had witnessed some of Jesus' miracles recognized them as the signs of the Messiah predicted in Isaiah and said, "Could this be the Messiah?" But others dismissed Him, saying no, because the Messiah would be from Bethlehem and this guy was from Nazareth. Same Messiah, two separate hometowns. So the abundance of verses on the second coming, spread all over the Bible (which admittedly sometimes seem to contradict) has caused a lot of confusion -- the same kind of confusion-- about what these verses are really talking about.

But when you look at all the verses that describe the coming(s) of the Lord together, they obviously do describe two different events:


ASPECT OF COMING

Believers receive new bodies?

YES Matthew 22:30, I Corinthians 15:52, I John 3: 2

NO Isaiah 65: 20

Stag or drag? Comes for bride

1 Cor. 15:51-52; 1 Thes. 1:10, 4:14-17, 5:9, Luke 21:36 John 14:1-3 Revelation 3:10

Comes with bride Revelation 19: 7-14, Zech 14:5, Col 3:4, Rev 21:9-10, Matthew 24: 29-31, Jude 1: 14, 15, I Thess 3:13

Meeting place? In the clouds I Thess 4:13-18 On the earth Zech 14: 4, Revelation 19: 11-21

Movement of believers?

From earth to heaven

John 14: 1-3, I Thess 4: 14-16

From heaven to earth Revelation 19: 7-15

Anticipated reaction of those involved

Joy, Hope Titus 2: 13, I John 3: 3

Terror, Anguish Joel 3: 12-16, Amos 5:18, Malachi 4:5,

Definite warning signs?

No Matthew 24;43, I Thess 5:4-6, Revelation 3:3

Yes, 7 years after treaty, 3.5 years after abomination of desolation

Daniel 9: 24-27, 12: 11-12, Rev 11:2, 12:6, 14, 13: 5

Who sees him? Believers only Entire earth Zech. 14:4-5; Mat. 24:27-31

Who is taken away?

Believers, to the wedding

Revelation 3:8, Matthew 25: 1-13 (to unbelievers the door is shut)

Unbelievers, to judgment Matthew 13: 28-30

Scope? Instantaneous and global

I Corinthians 15:52 Progressive at specific locations: Edom, Bozrah, Meggido, Jerusalem

Isaiah 63:1-3, Rev 16:16, Zech 12:9-10

Satan? Revealed in antichrist

(II Thessalonians 3:8)

Bound up Revelation 20: 1-7

Purpose? To retrieve his bride and take her home (to rescue from wrath)

John 14: 1-3, Luke 21:36, Romans 5:9, I Thess 1:10, Revelation 3: 10

To unleash wrath, destroy his enemies, establish kingdom on earth

Revelation 19:11

Who is resurrected?

Church (dead in Christ, those alive)

I Thessalonians 15 OT believers (follows second coming)

Daniel 12:2

Relationship to wrath?

Before wrath, begins tribulation *

After wrath, begins millennium*

* both following resurrection event by a period of time, specified for the millennium as 75 days (Daniel 12) , unspecified for the rapture ( it was a mystery)


From prior discussion you can probably figure out why we have two different events: because God has

divided humanity into two different groups: the ___________ and the __________________________

And when we looked at the verses carefully became obvious that two completely separate events are described. Both Daniel and Revelation place the coming of the conquering Messiah to defeat Satan at the end of the tribulation. And we know that the rapture has to be a separate event. So let's narrow down what the rapture is about and when it occurs just a little bit more.

Key Point Number 2: The Tribulation Period is for the Jews.

Tribulation according to Daniel is specifically decreed for Daniel's people (Daniel 9:24-27: ("seventy weeks decreed for your people to finish the transgression….) The purposes for tribulation, as well, relate only to the Jews.

Jeremiah 30:7 : Alas! For that day is great, So that none is like it; And it is the time of Jacob’s trouble,

Hosea 5: 15 I will return to my place until they acknowledge their offense; in their affliction they will seek me earnestly

Isaiah 28: the treaty the between Jews and the antichrist (defined as starting point of tribulation) specifically results in the decree of destruction that proclaims the beginning of the tribulation.

Nearly all passages about tribulation specify it as judgment against Israel: For the Lord’s portion is His people; Jacob is the place of His inheritance. With abominations they provoked Him to anger. And He said: ‘I will hide My face from them,23 ‘I will heap disasters on them; I will spend My arrows on them. Deuteronomy 32

How the faithful city (Jerusalem( has become a harlot.. therefore the Lord says, the Mighty one of Israel I will turn my hand against you and thoroughly purge away your dross… Isaiah 1

You have forsaken your people, the house of Jacob Isaiah 2

Woe to the Ariel, the city where David dwelt…I will distress Ariel… I will encamp against you all around. Isaiah 29

For behold, The Lord, the Lord of hosts takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah the whole supply of bread and the whole supply of water… Isaiah 3


The church was absent for the first 69 "weeks" of the prophecy in Daniel, a time decreed for the Jews, implying that the church would be absent for the last week decreed for the Jews.

The 144000, in Rev 14: 4 defines the 144, 000 as the "firstfruits" " They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and to the lamb. This begs the question, the firstfruits of what? If the church had not yet been redeemed, these saved Jews would just be part of the church. They are firstfruits because the church is gone and these are the first Jews redeemed in the end times as promised in the new covenant.

Key Point Number 3: God establishes throughout the Scripture both the power to separate the righteous from the unrighteous in judgment AND a consistent pattern of doing so.

For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; 5 and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; 6 and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; 7 and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked 8 (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)— 9 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment II Peter 2:9

There is a consistent pattern of this in scripture:

Enoch taken out before the flood

Lot taken out before Sodom destroyed

Rahab taken out before Jeicho destroyed

Exclusion of Israelites from plagues in Egypt

Separation by blood on lintel during passover

Removal of church (by prophecy in Luke 21) before 70 AD.

Removal of Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego before destruction of Jerusalem in 539 BC

Look at Genesis 19: 18-22: But Lot said to them… Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it…then my life will be spared. " The angel said to him, Vey well, I will grant this request too, I will not overthrow the town you speak of. But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it. What does this verse seem to be saying, in light of II Peter 2:9?_________________________________

Key Point Number 4: God promises the church that they will not experience God's wrath.

We are told to wait for His Son from heaven who rescues us from the coming wrath. (1 Thessalonians 1:10)

http://www.omegaletter.com/bible/bible.asp?B=52&C=1#10



We are told that God did not appoint us to suffer wrath, but instead to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 5:9)

We are told that since we have been justified by Jesus’ blood, how much more shall we be saved by Jesus from God’s wrath. (Romans 5:9)

The church in Philadelphia is told specifically that that would be kept from the hour of trial that is to come upon the whole world. (Revelation 3:10)

Key Point Number 5: II Thessalonians 2 clearly implies a pre-tribulation rapture:

Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.

Question to ask here is why would the Thessalonians be shaken or troubled if they had expected to go through tribulation--clearly they had been taught that they would not.

t3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

When will the day of the Lord come? after the _________ of __________ is revealed

When will he be revealed: 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until H ] is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.

after He who now ____________________ is _____________________ out of the way

Look at John 16: I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

Who is that restrains sin in the world? _____________________________________________

Where does the spirit reside in the world? _________________________(I Corinthians 6:19) In fact, the church was born with the baptism of the spirit at Pentecost, so it would make perfect sense that the church age would end with its removal at the rapture.





Key Point # 6: The Church is Conspicuously Absent from the Tribulation Events Described in Revelation

The church in general, as well as specific churches are mentioned throughout the first four books of Revelation, but then disappear completely from the text until they reappear in Chapter 19, coming back to earth with Christ.

Key Point # 7 I Corinthians 15:22 implies a pre-trib rapture: For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ the firstfruits; then, we he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. First Christ is made alive, then, when he comes _______________ are made alive. Then, after ________________________________________ the ________________ will come.(Then he begins to reign (vs 23)

Key point #8 Biblical Analogies consistently reflect a pretribulation rapture:

The Mobile Lampstands Look at Revelation 1:12-20: Where are Jesus and the lampstands (remember the angel was sent to John with Revelation.) ____________________________________________ What are the lampstands ? (Rev 1:20) ____________________________________________

Where are they? _____________________________ Now look at and Revelation 4:1-5. What happens in Rev 4:1? ____________________________________________ Where are the lamps after this event occurs?


(Rev 4:5)_________________What conclusion can you make from that? __________________________

The Flood: For the coming of the son of Man will be just like the days of Noah Matt 24: 37 Who was taken out before the flood? ____________ Who was saved through the flood? ____________ Who perished? ________________________________________________________________________

In fact, the wording of Scriptural passage reflect this distinction: Jeremiah 30:7 tells the remnant of Israel that they will be saved out of the tribulation, while I Thessalonians 1:10 tell sthe church that it will be 'rescued from it".

Isaac and Rebekah: Isaac, after he is offered up a sacrifice to God, abuptly disappears from the text and does not reappear until he meets his bride. Ruth, the Gentile bride of the Kinsman Redeemer, is at his feet while he is at the threshing floor ( a consistent Scriptural metaphor for tribulation. ) Key Point #9 Revelation 4 and 5 describe a pretribulation rapture: The door to heaven opens in Revelation 4: 1, a voice from heaven says "come up here". (Door only opens one other time in Revelation, in chapter 19, to let Christ with his church back out. ) After that happens: The elders are in heaven, and they already have their crowns (crowns only associated with church age saints). And those in heaven are singing a song of praise for their (already accomplished) resurrection.

The Tribulation is NOT for the church because the church is Jesus' bride.

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church…. 30 For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. 31 “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Ephesians 5: 25-32

For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. What bride--ever-- is purposed for wrath? God would be disobeying his own commands if he punished the church, because he already cleansed her and sanctified her and is otherwise commanded to love and cherish her.


God promises the church that they will escape wrath. So the right question to ask, then would be what God's purposes for the bride of Christ be with regards to the tribulation. Remember that I Thessalonians 4 was very specific, that the rapture only involved those, living and dead, that at the time were "in Christ". Look at John 14: 1-3 1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my father's house are many rooms. ... I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. What promise does make to his disciples (his bride) here? _________________________________________________________ You may be surprised to learn that the words, " I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and

prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am",

are basically part of the Ketubah, the Jewish ceremony in which a couple got engaged. Does that make

any sense here? Why? __________________________________________________________

The Ketubah is part of a set of marriage rituals that the Jews followed which prove to be prophecy-by-analogy. Understanding this particular prophetic picture will help us understand the rapture. The steps are documented throughout Scripture. This table summarizes the steps and how they give us a picture of the prophetic time table for the church.


So what is sequence of events here?

So the stages are: 1) Betrothal--bride and groom are set aside for each other 2) Groom goes away to prepare place-- bride is veiled 3) Groom returns unannounced, secrets bride away for bridal week 4) couple emerges from seclusion, celebrates public festivities including wedding feast

Stage of Marriage Process OT reference How this is prophetic of church

NT reference

Stage of Marriage: The Ketubah, or Betrothal Ceremony Groom's family prepares covenant, with each side's responsibilities documented

Jesus authored new covenant

Hebrews 8:15

Groom agrees to bride price I Samuel 18:22-27 Jesus paid price Luke 22:20

Wine and bread shared to seal the contract

Genesis 24:54 Jesus established breaking of bread as the covenant meal

Matthew 26:28

Bride given gifts (reminder of vows made for betrothal period)

Genesis 24:30 Church was given gifts, especially the Holy Spirit, as a guarantee

I Cor 12

Groom leaves to prepare place for bride, usually added on to his father's house

Lots of examples in scripture of wife joining husband's family

Jesus left to prepare place for church

John 14:1-3

Stage of Marriage: Separation and Preparation Bride prepares for the wedding and marriage

Esther 2 Bride makes herself ready

Eph 5:26 Rev 3:18

Bride undergoes Mikvah (ritual bath) Lev 15:19 Church undergoes baptism (both water and spirit)

I Peter 3:20-23

Betrothal is a binding covenant, and bride is set apart and veiled

Deuteronomy 22: 23-30

Church is veiled and set apart--bought with a price

I Cor. 6: 20, II Cor 11:2

Stage of Marriage: Groom Comes to take Bride to New Home Bride waits in anticipation for their coming reunion

Genesis 29: 26-30 Church told to stay ready, with oil in her lamp.

Matthew 25:6-13

By custom, groom arrives at night, unannounced, with a shout and a trumpet blast to herald arrival, reunion begins seven-day bridal week

Judges 14:1-18 Jesus arrives unexpectedly, with shout and trumpet blast

I Thess 4

Stage of Marriage: Bridal Week

After official wedding vows (which included only families), groom took bride to prepared chamber where they are secluded for a seven-day honeymoon. Guests of the couple feasted for seven days.

Genesis 29: 22-28 Judges 14:1-8 Deut 22

Christ promises to come and get his bride, the church, to the place he has prepared.

John 14:2-3 (seven years of tribulation)

Marriage Supper Bride and bridegroom emerged and had official reception with their guests.

Wedding of the Lamb comes

Revelation 19:6-9


Psalm 45: The Glories of the Messiah and His Bride (The

wedding of the King)

You are fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon Your lips; Therefore God has blessed You forever. 3 Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One,With Your glory and Your majesty.4 And in Your majesty ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness; The peoples fall under You.6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom…7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You.

KEY POINT #10: The reunion of the Church with the

Lord is ALWAYS described as a reason for hope and a

future joy.

It represents the long-awaited end of the couple's separation and their ability to come together like man and wife. Therefore, in contrast to the tribulation, which is always painted in very graphic terms of gloom, doom, misery, suffering, and death, the rapture is always portrayed as something to be eagerly awaited, even longed for.

Reference Passage Face?

Romans 8:23 23 we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait

eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we

were saved.

I Cor 1:7

7Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ

to be revealed.

Phil 3:20-21 20But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord

Jesus Christ,

Col 3:4

4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

I John 3:2 2Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made

known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as

he is.

Titus 2:13

13while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and

Savior, Jesus Christ

Hebrews 9:28

so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a

second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

The Jewish custom for weddings included, as discussed above, a surprise "capture" of the bride, who was then taken into seclusion for the bridal week. Which makes these verses kind of interesting: Isaiah 26: 20 Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. Psalm 45:11- 15 The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord... All glorious is the princess within her chamber; her gown is interwoven with gold.14 In embroidered garments she is led to the king; her virgin companions follow her and are brought to you.15 They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king. Take me away with you—let us hurry! Let the king bring me into his chambers. [Friends ] We rejoice and delight in you ; we will praise your love more than wine. [Beloved ] How right they are to adore you! Song of Solomon 1:4


KEY POINT # 11: AS MODELED IN THE JEWISH WEDDING TRADITIONS, THE RAPTURE IS DESCRIBED AS BEING AT AN UNKNOWABLE, UNEXPECTED TIME Look at these verses and record what you learn about when to expect the rapture: Matthew24:36_________________________________________________________________ Matthew 24:44_________________________________________________________________ I Cor 1:7 _______________________________________________________________________ Phil 3:20 _______________________________________________________________________ James 5:7-9_____________________________________________________________________ Hebrews 9:28 __________________________________ What did you learn that will help you predict when the rapture will happen? In other words, for the believer, it could always be today. There are no other events described in Scripture that must precede it. This is known as imminence, and it is a critical concept. Why? Because Scripture clearly says that the second coming will occur 3 1/2 years (exactly) after the abomination of desolation. Therefore a postrib rapture would be no surprise. We know that the abomination of desolation will be 3 1/2 years after the treaty is signed. Again, a midtrib rapture-- no surprise. The only way no man will know the day or hour is a pre-trib rapture. Once the tribulation starts the whole thing is on a pretty tight schedule.

And a few random logistical considerations: 21) JESUS' ARMIES The armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, follow Jesus out of heaven at His second coming (Rev. 19:14, Zech. 14:5, Col. 3:4). These are not angels because Rev. 19:8 tells us the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. In order to accompany Jesus' return, the church would have had to be already in heaven. 22) RESURRECTED, NOT GATHERED.


Matthew 24: 29-31, which describes angels being sent forth to gather the elect at the second coming, is often assumed to mean the rapture. However, the rapture entails being changed instantly into a resurrected body, which would not need to be gathered. The angels are sent to gather people who are not yet resurrected for judgement. Matthew 13:39-41, 49 also describes angels gathering people at the second coming, but not only the elect, but also the wicked. Gathering is not resurrection. 23) TWO DIFFERENT COMINGS. I Thessalonians 4:13-17 says the righteous are taken and the wicked are left behind; Matthew 13:30, 49 says the wicked are taken first and righteous are left behind. This is contradictory unless the verses point to two separate events, the rapture and the second coming. 24) HOST OR GUEST? In John 14:2-3 Jesus said He would prepare a place for his followers and then come again to receive us to Himself, "that where I am, there you may be also." The event in expectation for the church is for us to go to Him, not Him to come to us. 25) SHEEP AND GOATS SEPARATED Matt. 25:31-46 describes a separation of sheep (those viewed as righteous) and goats (those not). If the rapture occurred at the second coming, it would have, by definition, separated the sheep and goats already. 26 THE MILLENNIUM POPULATION If the rapture occurs at the second coming (the wicked being cast into hell at that point) there would be no one left on earth to inhabit the Messianic kingdom, an actual earthly kingdom inhabited by normal, non-resurrected people). 27) AMBASSADORS OF CHRIST II Corinthians 5:20 describes us as Christ's ambassadors, and ambassadors are typically called back home when war breaks out!

THE CHURCH, OR THE BRIDE? This is a good time to talk about one important point. When you hear the word church, what do you think of? We tend to think of church as a building, but God defines it as all the people who truly belong to God. You may remember the verses we looked up when we talked about the church age that defined the church as all those who have the spirit living inside them because of their faith in Christ. So we actually have two kinds of churches: one made of the Spirit, one just made of stone. The Bible itself tells us that these two won't always completely overlap. 22

Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?'

23Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you

evildoers!'

What does this imply about the Sunday after the Rapture occurs? _______________________________


The Bottom Line Do you believe that the rapture will happen? ______Do you look forward to it? _______ Do you feel confident that you understand what the Bible says about when it happens? ____________ The Bottom Line is God's purpose for the tribulation, and for this event called the rapture. Romans 11: 1 tells us that God's purpose for the church age was to make Israel jealous: "Did God's people stumble and fall beyond recovery? Of course not! They were disobedient, so God made salvation availalble to the Gentiles. But he wanted his own people to become jealous and claim it for themselves." Hosea 5: 15 tells us that the purpose of the tribulation is to cause Israel to realize their offense and repent: "I will go back to their place until they acknowledge their offense. In their affliction they will seek me earnestly. " Daniel 9 told us that the purposes of the tribulation were to finish the transgression (singular) and bring Israel back to God. And His purposes can't and won't be thwarted. The nation of Israel has been re-established, and his people (illustrated in the dry bones of Ezekiel) will, in the end, be brought back to life spiritually. The tribulation will cause Israel to recognize that Jesus was their Messiah, mourn and be restored: I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jersalem a spirit of grace and supplication. Tey will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin. How would you explain to someone else how we know when it will happen? ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Key Point # 12 If the rapture isn't pretrib, we know it's at least three and a half years away (and probably 7) Which isn't a blessed hope! Until the treaty is signed every day is a bad day, because Jesus can't come back that day!

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