1 Cor 15:51-52 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed — 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. NKJV
The May 1984 National Geographic showed through color photos and drawings the swift and terrible destruction that wiped out the Roman Cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in A.D. 79. The explosion of Mount Vesuvius was so sudden, the residents were killed while in their routine: men and women were at the market, the rich in their luxurious baths, slaves at toil. They died amid volcanic ash and superheated gasses. Even family pets suffered the same quick and final fate. It takes little imagination to picture the panic of that terrible day.
The saddest part is that these people did not have to die. Scientists confirm what ancient Roman writers record--weeks of rumblings and shakings preceded the actual explosion. Even an ominous plume of smoke was clearly visible from the mountain days before the eruption. If only they had been able to read and respond to Vesuvius's warning!
There are similar "rumblings" in our world: warfare, earthquakes, the nuclear threat, economic woes, breakdown of the family and moral standards. While not exactly new, these things do point to a coming day of Judgment (Matt. 24). People need not be caught unprepared. God warns and provides an escape to those who will heed the rumblings.
There are many different views on the End Times. I believe that the Pretribulational (Rapture), Premillennial (Return of Christ) view is the most true to the Scriptures. Although there are many views on the timing of the rapture, most of them flow out of four different ideas as to when the rapture will happen.
The first is our view, Pretribulational, which means that the Rapture will occur before the Tribulation period as revealed in Revelation 6-19 and other prophetic passages.
The second view is the Partial Rapture view. This is the view that only an elite class of righteous believers will be raptured, and those not in that class will be left behind.
The third view is the Mid-Tribulation view; it's doctrine is that Christians will be on earth until the midpoint of the Tribulation period.
The fourth view is the Post-Tribulation view, essentially a U-turn of Christians going to heaven in the Rapture at the end of the Tribulation period then turning right around and coming back with Jesus. These last three views are not true to the natural, literal interpretation of the Word as we will see in the next few days.
In the next few weeks of devotionals, we will explore the dispensational, literal view. This view is based upon a literal view of God's Word according to the original languages (taking the Scripture at "face value") and upon a faithful view of God's promises to Israel. God's promises are as good as gold to us and Israel. If God did not keep His promises to Israel, how then could we ever trust Him?
John 14:1-2
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 to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. NKJV
One thing that I do what to make clear though is this: although Christians may differ in their views of the End Times that does not mean that if you get it wrong you are going to Hell. Pretrib, Posttrib, Midtrib, Partial Trib--we will all go to heaven. If you have trusted in Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, as your Savior, then you will go to heaven!
In J. Vernon McGee On Prophecy, the late Dr. McGee mentioned three important differences between the Rapture of the Church and the Second Coming of Christ. According to McGee, those three differences are Action, Attitude and Anticipation. Today, we will discuss the first difference, Action.
Apartment: In the Scripture above, you can see that Jesus promises a "mansion" (or "room") to the believer, and that one day He will "come again" to receive us. The post tribulation view would not fit here, as it would be a "Holy U-Turn" and we would not use this heavenly "apartment".
Airborne: Second, in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 Paul states we will meet those who died in Christ and Christ Himself "in the air". We will not be "Air Jordan", we will be "Air Christians!" The Action of Jesus Christ at the Rapture will be in the clouds, not on the continents.
Apart: When Jesus returns at "The Second Coming", His feet will actually touch down on the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem:
Zech. 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. (KJV)
Dr. McGee gives this illustration: "When Frank Borman commanded the Apollo mission on Christmas of 1968, he went to the moon but did not land. Yet, he still went "to the moon". However, in July of 1969, Neill Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin piloted the lunar module, called Eagle, to the Sea of Tranquillity and a few hours later Armstrong stepped out and touched down on the surface of the moon saying the words known across the world "That was one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." While both went "to the moon", only one actually touched down there."
Jesus' action at the Rapture affects the church, but the Second Coming will be to judge the evil and the saved, "Tribulation Saints" along with Antichrist and the False Prophet. We will be spared from "The wrath to come"!
Rev. 4:1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." (ESV)
Let's look at the second topic in comparing the Rapture and the Second Coming, Attitude. We will look at the topic of attitude over the next few days.
I remember those days when Kay and I dated with great fondness. I remember the expectation of seeing her, holding her hand and kissing her. It was something that I looked forward to all week, that drive down to her house in my '76 Firebird.
On the other hand, I have been to visit the dying in the hospital. Visiting the sick and dying is hard, but even more so if you know that person is not saved and is very resistant to the Gospel message.
One trip is filled with a wonderful joy of seeing my then girlfriend. The other is the sadness of the death of a loved one or acquaintance. Both are a trip, but both with different attitudes. The same can be said of the Rapture of the Church in contrast to the Second Coming of Christ.
Some people have this strange view that the church must first be purified before it can go to heaven, hence the mid-trib, partial trib and post trib views. But in Revelation 4, we do not see that. McGee notes that the booming voice in verse 1 does not say "Come up here and I will show you the purification of the church". The church is not perfect, and does need to be made more holy, but didn't Jesus forgive all sin and give us His rightouseness at the cross? A view of purifying the church leads to the unavoidable conclusion that salvation is by works or that you can lose your salvation.
If you again review the different views of the timing of the Rapture of the Church, you will see that the following Scriptures either prove or dispute the different views.
A) Mercy.
Jude 1:21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.
It is mercy that saved us from an eternity apart from God in Hell. It is mercy that keeps us saved each day. And, the Pre-trib view teaches that you and I will be swept off this planet before the horrific Tribulation period begins because of God's mercy.
The mid-trib view shows the withholding of God's mercy to a certain point in the Tribulation period. The Post-trib view shows a total lack of mercy--a mercy that He has guaranteed us. The Partial Rapture view is a view that is discriminatory as it depends upon your merit. The depths of God's mercy do not depend upon the works that we do. I don't know about you, but I am glad for God's mercy!
1 Thes. 1:9-10
9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,
10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.
B) Escaping (or not?) The Wrath to Come
God promises to deliver to deliver us from the wrath to come. Wrath is a boiling pent up anger toward wicked people; wrath is shown in the tribulation period, a 7 year period of time that is full of misery and despair.
In addition, during that time all sorts of evil will be vent upon the nation of Israel, and also upon a group called "tribulation saints" by Satan and his minions. Tribulation saints are not part of the church, they are a separate group altogether--a group of people that come to saving faith after the start of the Tribulation period. These saints will experience great wrath from satanic persecution, but will also be present for the great natural catastrophes during that time as well.
I hear people say that their lives are Hell. I suggest that those people watch a movie like Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, or Defiance. These are all World War II movies, and show the evil, pain, misery and suffering of war. Hitler was an evil, evil man and was an "antichrist" (small a), a preview of what the real Antichrist will be--only pale in comparison. Not taking away from a person's personal misery and suffering which at times can be great, but most people that say life is Hell don't have a clue as to what will be coming during the tribulation period.
The Pre-trib view shows a deliverance from the wrath to come. Again, this wrath from God is upon mankind, and in many cases directly against the unsaved masses. It is also due to the fact that the "Restrainer's" minisistry will be removed (the Holy Spirit being the Restrainer), and the wrath of Satan will be directed full force upon all of humanity with the tribulation saints and the people of Israel being the target.
It is not members of the church that petition God in Revelation 7, asking for justice against Satan and his evil forces. It is a group called the tribulation saints. These are people that become saved during the tribulation period, and are martyred for their faith.
In 1 Thessalonians 1:10, Jesus is said to "deliver us the church) from the wrath to come." This would be the church, and this would only be the Pre-trib view!
Titus 2:11-13 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, NKJV
C) Blessed Hope--or Blasted Hope?
The word translated in the English versions of the Bible as hope means "expectation". We have a wonderful expectation that one day Jesus will take us away and to heaven to be with Him, and to escape the coming wrath.
What kind of hope--expectation--would we have if we had to look forward to the Tribulation period, or even part of it, or even the possiblity to enduring it? As professor and host of "The King is Coming" TV show Ed Hindson has said, it would not be a "blessed hope", it would be a "blasted hope"!
Romans 5:8-9 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. (ESV)
Paul here speaks of the wrath of the God in the Tribulation period--which we will be saved from. A blessed hope--expectation--indeed.
It's All About The Attitude
We have this hope--this expectation--as the church that Jesus will remove us from the time of coming wrath. The attitude of the church should be one of "looking for the Uppertaker" with hope.
However, there is also the attitude of those that will be left behind at the rapture. For those that become tribulation saints--those saved after the Rapture--they will not just expect Jesus to return, they will long for it. They will be persecuted far and beyond what the church today is persecuted even in the harshest of political and religious climates.
However, the attitude of those that are unsaved during those days is one of great fear. They do not want to have anything to do with God; instead they will exalt all that is unholy including Antichrist and his "one world system". They will willingly suffer for the cause of NOT giving themselves to God, with such conditions as the stings of demonic "scorpions", boils, blindness and more. Yet they will reject time and time again Jesus as their Savior. For those that doubt the fallen nature of men, read Revelation and you will gain a new perspective.
Rev 1:7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Ame.
Matt 24:30 "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." (NKJ)
Our attitude is to be different regarding the rapture. We are to have a blessed hope, not a blasted hope--one that is destroyed by the thought of facing the wrath of God which will face the unsaved of the world during the reign of the Antichrist.
