AN EXAMINATION OF THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH – PART 2 OF 4
Greetings everyone. We are going to continue today with the second part of the examination of the Rapture, having done PART 1 last time, and we might start with just one verse that contains a beautiful expression. It is this one – {{Titus 2:13 “looking for [the blessed hope] and [the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Christ Jesus.”]}} This is a remarkable verse for it contains both future comings of the Lord Jesus Christ. The first one is “the blessed hope” and this is what we are all waiting for. It is the coming of the Lord for His Church, His Bride which He will rapture from this earth into His own presence. This is the Christian’s hope, and I am going to ask you, “Do you have this hope burning in your heart? Are you looking forward to the coming of the Lord?”
I know that many of you are working and raising families and your activity is somewhat divided among many aspects of living. I suppose retired people have the luxury of devoting a lot more of their time to the things of the Lord but in all of us there needs to be that hope of the Lord’s return burning bright. Are you hoping for the Rapture, or are you not wanting it because you are too implanted in the world and love the world’s things?
Let me share a verse that is not too often considered. It is this one – {{2Timothy 4:8 “In the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”}} For those who are living in the blessed hope of the Lord’s coming in the Rapture, He has promised a crown of righteousness for them. For all those who have loved His appearing, and those who look forward to it earnestly, He has something special. It is a crown of righteousness reserved for you. As I try to think into this, I think it is those who are in a deeper commitment with Christ who are more likely to have the love for His coming again. Is this not a reason to get your life right, and your priorities correct? What use is a half-hearted servant? What use in the Christian race set before us, is one who is tied down by the shackles of the world and serving self, and makes poor progress?
The blessed hope is a joyous privilege as we wait and expect. The Lord is coming for His Bride and it is very close today. This world is preparing itself for judgement as it pulls itself apart, but the Lord will remove His Bride from the judgement to come. The second part of the Titus verse we opened with, “the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Christ Jesus,” refers to the Second Coming which is 7 years after the Rapture. In that Coming, the Lord Jesus, the Messiah comes back to earth. This is not part of our study today so we leave that one there.
In the next section I will touch on the Titus verse again as we carry on from last time.
[D2]. A SMALL LOOK AT GALATIANS AND TITUS
There are two verses by Paul that focus very much on the Rapture and these are they – {{Galatians 5 :5 “We, by faith, through the Spirit, are [waiting for the hope of righteousness]” AND Titus 2:13 “looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Christ Jesus”.}} The “hope of our righteousness” is that time when the completion of personal righteousness comes; equipped with the new bodies and that happens at the Rapture. Christ our righteousness will come and our righteousness is complete in Him. In Titus, the “blessed hope”, “glorious hope” (KJV), is what we must look out for. It is the coming of the Lord for His redeemed Church. It is our hope. The Rapture is the great hope of new creation in Jesus Christ. Hope does not make us ashamed, and the hope of His coming for us ought to grow stronger as we advance in years. Even so, come Lord Jesus.
The word “hope” in the bible is not as we use the word today. If we hope for something it is like a wishful thinking, a maybe it will happen. “I hope the weather will be fine.” That is not the biblical use. When the word is used in God’s word, it means a settled assurance, a certainty. There is never a doubt about it.
When there is little hope the people despair. That is the sad condition of people in China, suppressed and oppressed by a satanic regime. As a word of warning I think it is what our western world is moving towards, increasing hopelessness, in particular, the USA and Australia, as I know those nations best. When hope is abandoned, drudgery and misery and uncertainty take over. A famous saying has come down from the great poem by Dante, The Divine Comedy. In the Inferno section there is an inscription over the gates of hell, “Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate.” meaning “Abandon all hope, all ye who enter here.” Paul said to the Corinthians if we had hope only in this life in Christ with no resurrection, we would be the most miserable of all people. It is not like that however, because we have hope through the resurrected Lord. That hope is sure and certain so now, we wait for His coming to raise us up to Him whether we be asleep in death or still living on earth when He comes again.
[D3]. A DEEPER LOOK AT 2 THESSALONIANS 2 - A FEW VERSES
One of the more revealing teachings about the Rapture is found in 2Thessalonians chapter 2. Paul had spent three weeks at Thessalonica (Acts 17 v 1-2) and we know from the content of this second chapter that in those three weeks, Paul had taught these converted idolaters all about the Christian life and salvation, but more than that, He instructed them about eschatology, the very thing many churches today dismiss as irrelevant or too controversial. Speaking of these matters he wrote – {{2Thessalonians 2 v 5 “Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?”}}
What were “these things” he was telling them about? The primary importance was that the Rapture would occur because it was Jesus who would deliver them from the wrath that was to come – {{1Thessalonians 1 v 10 “and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”}} However the Thessalonian Christians were being persecuted, and they thought the wrath was upon them right then from God, and that they were in the Tribulation, as part of the Day of the Lord. They concluded that Day was upon them, and fearfully, they reasoned they had missed out on the Rapture because Paul had told them that the Christians would not be in the Tribulation because {{“God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1Thessalonians 5 v 9). Then he wrote this to them - 2Thessalonians 2 v 1 “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, 2Thess 2:2 that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the Day of the LORD has come. 2Thess 2:3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction 2Thess 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.”}}
We will look at 2 v 3. This is a Rapture verse. In nearly every translation, one word in the verse is translated as “apostasy”, but I suggest it is a wrong translation. Here is a little study on that:-
[E]. A FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF 2 THESSALONIANS 2:3
(KJV) - “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition”
NASB - “Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction”
Before the Day of the LORD (Jehovah) comes, 2 Thessalonians 2 v 3 declares that there must first be a “falling away” (KJV) or “apostasy” (NASB). The words used for this expression are “? ?p?stas?a (apostasia)”, generally translated “apostasy” or “falling away” by most versions. It is a pity the KJV did not translate as “departure” and then we would not have this trouble in explanation in other versions.
The expression “the apostasy” normally means “defection, revolt or rebellion” BUT it can also be translated by “disappearance” or “departure”, and it has been suggested by the eminent Greek scholar Kenneth Wuest in “Prophetic Light in the Present Darkness” and by E. Schuyler English in “Rethinking the Rapture” that the reference is not to an apostasy from the faith, (didn’t that occur some 1800 years ago in the great heresies, and later in the Dark and Middle Ages under the RC church?) but to the translation (departure) of the Church from the world.
Kenneth Wuest points out that the word “apostasia” is derived from the root verb, “afistami” which means to remove, withdraw, depart, go away, etc. Of its 15 occurrences in the New Testament, it is 11 times translated “depart” (as in leaving a place), and Wuest accordingly argues that the substantive must mean “departure”, and since the Greek text has the definite article [? = The] then a “particular” departure is in view [THE departure]. The argument for that is comprehensive, and that departure is the removal of the Church. The Church is translated to heaven. So, the word should not be translated as “apostasy” but DEPARTURE (of the Church). That makes the passage very clear.
These are the 15 references to the use of the Greek word “apostasia”:
Luke 8:13; 13:27; 2:37; 4:13.
Acts 12:10; 15:38; 19:9; 22:29.
2Cor 12:8; 1Tim 6:5; 4:1; 2Tim 2:19; Heb 3:12. Of course 2Thess 2:3 and one other I don’t have right now. I have listed these in more detail and you can ask me for that list.
Now here is further support for that, and part of what I wrote earlier. I am repeating, but not verbatim:-
{{2Thessalonians 2:1 Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to Him, 2Thess 2:2 that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.}}
Without expanding this further, it is fairly easy to understand from the passage here that the Thessalonians were deeply troubled because they thought the terrors that had come upon them were those of the Great Tribulation that Paul had taught them of. They were assured they would be caught up to be with the Lord before that event, but they were still on earth. See 1Thessalonians 1 v 9 and 10. Jesus is the Deliverer from the coming wrath. Because they thought the wrath had come, they were shaken, and thought they had missed the Rapture, identifying their troubles with the Great Tribulation. Paul had to explain there that Jesus is the One who will deliver “out of” (Greek ??) the coming wrath. “Out of” is correct, more so than “from”. “delivers us from [OUT OF] the wrath to come.” (1Thessalonians 1:10). Verse 2 here should read, “Day of Jehovah,” or if you like, “Day of the LORD.” I have prepared an article of all the Old Testament and New Testament references to the Day of the LORD with explanation and it will be considered in the bible study in the future.
Paul now goes on to tell them that certain things must happen before that Day can come. As those things were not present then, there was no way that Day of Jehovah had come, and they could not be in the Great Tribulation.
(NASB) {{2Thessalonians 2 v 3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 2Thess 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. 2Thess 2:5 Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? 2Thess 2:6 And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he may be revealed. 2Thess 2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.}}
In verse 7 it is revealed that there is One here who is restraining/hindering the full release and revelation of iniquity/lawlessness. This One is the Holy Spirit, for NO one else (or thing, or happening) can hold back the onslaught of wickedness, and only when He goes, can iniquity become fully matured, and burst like a flood on the earth. Wickedness is growing at an alarming rate on earth now (surely you have noticed that daily?) and seeks maturity, so the Rapture can’t be that far away. The Holy Spirit WILL and CAN ONLY go when the true Church departs, for He seals the believers with the baptism of the Spirit (1Corinthians 12:13). The Holy Spirit goes with the departure of the Church. For that reason this passage in 2Thessalonians can be included in the grouping of Rapture passages.
The Holy Spirit is THE RESTRAINER, holding back evil, and when He goes, this world will be a horrible place. If you are unsaved today, repent and give your life to the Lord Jesus, without reserve and become a child of God. Then you will be ever in the protection of the Lord and will be with Him eternally.
That ends the message for today. In PART 3 we look at the main Rapture schools and Matthew 24 and Corinthians.
ronaldf@aapt.net.au
