Snatched Away
End Times Series- War in Israel
CCCAG November 12th, 2023
Scripture- 1 Thess 4:13-18
Intro:
Over the last several weeks we have been going over what the bible has to say about the times we are living in reference to what is going on in Israel.
If you have missed any of those messages, I encourage you to go to the podcast listed on the back of your bulletin to catch up. You’ll get a lot of perspective about what is going on.
Today we are going to be reading about an event called the Rapture. If you have been around the church for any length of time, you have heard dozens of sermons on this topic. The last time I taught on this was in 2019 when we did our Christianity 101 series.
If you were here- it’s not the same message- completely different so you still have to pay attention.
And you should pay attention.
Today this topic seems to be more urgent. As we look at a world spinning out of control, and the events going on in Israel, we are all wondering how much time we have left before the end occurs.
The Bible is vague as to the exact timing of the rapture, but it does give a few hints as to the season it could be occurring.
So today we will be studying what many in the church have called the blessed hope of the church- that there will be a generation that never experiences death but gets directly caught up to heaven.
So turn in your bibles to the New Testament book of 1st Thessalonians Chapter 4.
By the way- if you don’t have a bible and need help getting one, please let me know and we will get you one. It’s critically important in these days to have your own copy of God’s word to read for yourself.
There are a ton of false teachers out there, so you need to be able to check for yourself what they are teaching to make sure it’s actually what God says in HIS Word. Not only that, but sooner or later this book is going to be illegal to own, or it will be changed to the point where you won’t be able to get an accurate translation.
Let’s read this teaching-
1 Thess 4:13-18
13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 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. 18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.
Prayer
I like this. This has been the hope of the church for almost 2000 years. In fact, early Christians would greet each other with the word “Maranantha” which meant “Come quickly” showing how much they were looking forward to this event.
Now, the word rapture doesn’t appear in the bible to describe this event. It’s a Latin translation of the Greek word used here in the bible that means to snatch away, and the church began to use it to describe Jesus coming back to get his church.
Today, we are going to look at what the bible has to say about this event by looking at 3 different topics that inform us about the rapture.
The First will be a couple of examples of people in the Old Testament who were caught up to heaven without dying,
The second will be the “why” of the rapture- why does Jesus come and remove his church from the world?
Then we will end with looking at “who” will be those who meet Jesus in the air.
Let’s begin with the biblical examples-
Let’s go back to Genesis-
Tucked in the middle of a genealogy that many of us glaze over when we are reading the bible is the first example of a person who God took directly to heaven without experiencing death.
Genesis 5:21-
21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 22 After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. 24 Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.
The bible says that Enoch “was taken by God”. Remember the term rapture means to snatch or take away. In the Hebrew language, this is a very specific phrase that’s important because of how it is used elsewhere in the bible and particularly in the book of Genesis.
This Hebrew phrase means to quickly and with urgency take a person and move them away from danger.
Car/Sidewalk example (Snatching loved one away from a car coming at you)
This same phrase is used later in Genesis when the angels are telling Lot to take his family out of Sodom right NOW- because God is about to destroy the city. It’s meant to convey a sense of urgency and possible danger that is trying to be avoided.
You may ask, what is God saving Enoch from? Genesis doesn’t really say what the danger was, but the NT book of Jude hints at something.
Jude verse 14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them-
Who is them? A few weeks ago, we read in Genesis 6 that God looked down on the earth and saw that everyone was filled with violence, or the Hebrew word (ch)"Hamas"- a brutal, unwarranted, and evil violence. These were the same people who were living in Enochs day.
Let’s read further-
“See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
It seems that there was some type of judgment coming that could sweep up Enoch, so God removed Him before that judgment took place.
God used those HE calls to be prophets in very unique ways. It’s possible that God was using Enoch to foreshadow the flood- that God would snatch away the righteous, or Noah’s family in the Ark, and allow the evil people left behind to suffer the God’s wrath as seen in the Flood
We can’t be absolutely sure, but that’s my take on it. So, the first reason for God to snatch the righteous away is to save them from suffering wrath, particularly against those committing the kinds of violence not seen since right before the flood.
There is a biblical principle that is seen in-
1 Thess 5:9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let's define wrath from a biblical perspective.
Last week I mentioned that there are two kinds of wrath when it comes to God-
Passive wrath- which I would argue that we are experiencing worldwide at this time. Passive wrath means God withdraws His presence from a person, people, a nation or even the world.
If you think about it- God is the light (John 1), and Him withdrawing is meant to make it dark so the consequences of evil start to plague us. It’s meant to wake us up so that we recognize the lack of God’s presence, repent of our sin, and come back to the light.
But if you ignore the passive, God will then typically allow satan and his forces to come against you in an effort to wake you up and bring you back.
Those are the two forms of passive wrath- withdrawing his presence, and allowing satan to come against you. Both are done as an act of mercy-
It’s meant to bring you back to HIM before he has to go to the next step.
If we continue to ignore Him, then active wrath starts.
That’s the fire and brimstone side. Direct judgment. Famine, earthquakes, fire from the sky. That’s active wrath.
When God is about to initiate active wrath, particularly when it involves total destruction, He will remove His people.
The second example of God snatching away a person is the example of Elijah.
In the latter half of 1st Kings and the early part of 2nd Kings we read about the prophet Elijah’s ministry, and his being taken directly to heaven. Elijah was very zealous for God, and faced multiple evil kings and queens during his ministry, and when it came time for him to pass the torch to a new prophet named Elisha, this is what happened-
2nd Kings 2:11 As they (Elijah and Elisha) were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.
If you have ever heard the term, Chariots of Fire, this is where it comes from.
Now Elijah wasn’t in any particular danger at the moment God takes him directly to heaven. He was taken because of his faithfulness.
So in this second example- God will snatch us to reward faithfulness.
Another example of this-
Sodom and Gomorrah- Abram is allowed to rescue Lot and his family.
God does not want His people involved in the active wrath when it involves total destruction.
That gives us a signal as to the timing of the rapture.
Let’s consider the prophetic timeline as it stands. We are on the precipice of what is called the tribulation.
The tribulation has two parts-
The first part lasts 3 ½ years and involves two different series of judgments were the earth begins to experience the wrath of God in a partial sense
- the 7 seals and the 7 trumpet judgments.
After those are over, the what is known as the Great Tribulation starts for another 3 ½ years and a series of 7 Bowl judgments happen.
So, I would submit based on my study of the scriptures that the rapture has to take place before the great tribulation.
Why do I think that?
The seal judgments are partial. In fact, apart from the 6th seal, they are all largely invisible and occurring in the spiritual realm with consequences on earth.
The first 4 trumpet judgments are also partial. They deal with 1/3rds of the earth. Only with the 5th trumpet does the judgment go global- the demonic insects that sting the unbelievers, but it does not result in death although people will wish for it.
Although it’s global, it doesn’t kill anyone directly. The 6th Trumpet releases a massive army of supernatural beings who then kill ? of humanity. The 7th trumpet introduces the beginning of the bowl judgements.
However, when you get to the bowl judgements, they affect the entire earth. The full wrath of God is poured out on those remaining on earth. If we use the principle that God has not appointed us to wrath- then the rapture occurs before the Great Tribulation.
So that’s the timing of the rapture- at some point before the Great Tribulation and most likely (so no one thinks I’m arguing against what our fellowship believes) before we get to far into the Seal Judgments.
Again, applying the principle that God has not appointed us to suffer wrath, I’m hoping and believing for the rapture to occur before the second seal when war begins to break out all over the world.
So, let’s talk about the qualifications to be part of the rapture.
After I turned my life toward Christ I attended a new believers class and was taught us that all Christians will be raptured on that day.
I still believe that, but I think we need to button down a little what we call a Christian.
Because quite honestly, the enemy has dragged the term Christian through the mud so much that no one outside of the Bible-believing family of faith even knows what the means anymore.
Let me give you a few examples-
You have “Christian swingers” That is an oxymoron…you can be one, or you can be the other, but you can’t be both.
There are people who call themselves pro-choice Christians when it comes to abortion rights up to and during the delivery of a term child.
Again, you can be that rabidly pro-choice, or be a Christian, but you can’t be both.
People identifying as practicing homosexuals in gay marriages and Christian.
Again, chose a lane- one or the other, but not both.
And before you think I’m being bigoted about gay people-
Straight people living together with no plans on quickly marrying-
Same thing- pick a lane. One or the other.
My point is not to pick on people who sin differently than we do (repeat) all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God.
My point is when you embrace a life style or social justice cause that is not just unbiblical but what the bible calls evil or an abomination-
You are not a Christian. You need to repent of that.
If there is a hyphen somewhere in your description of your Christianity, then that is not Christianity. Christianity is about following Jesus and His teachings, period.
But this isn’t just my opinion.
Jesus Himself dedicated an entire chapter of the bible to identify the kind of person that will meet Him in the air when the trumpet sounds.
In Matthew 25, Jesus gives 2 parables and a teaching to show us this-
Matthew 25 1-13 tells the parable of the 10 virgins holding onto lampstands, waiting for the bridegroom. 5 were wise, and 5 were foolish. The wise virgins kept their wicks trimmed, their oil full, and stood watching and waiting for the bridegroom to come.
These are faithful Christians, living lives dedicated to God, His truth found in the bible, and letting their light shine out into the darkness.
The 5 foolish virgins got lazy, let their oil run out and their wicks burn down. When the bridegroom came, they could not light their lamps and the bridegroom, which if you haven’t guessed by now is Jesus- casts them away.
Next parable tells of a landowner who goes on a journey and leaves his business in the hands of three servants. He gives them each a sum of money. When he returns, he finds that two out of the three servants have doubled what he gave them, and they receive praise and reward.
The last servant buried the money and didn’t even try to use what his master had given him to earn more. The master was very angry and threw him into outer darkness for hiding his treasure and being lazy.
Again, the master in this story is Jesus.
The third story tells of God separating people at the judgment to the right and to the left. To those on the right- He praises the people who served him during their lives- caring for the sick, feeding the hungry visiting the prisoner, helping widows and orphans.
To those on the left who didn’t do anything for God during their lives, he curses them and casts them out of His kingdom.
Are you starting to understand?
What our LORD Jesus is showing us is vitally important to us during this time-
There is no such thing as a closet or part time Christian.
So, with all of this in mind- who are the Christians?
Is it the person who said a prayer at 14 years old at a camp and has largely ignored God since?
Is the closet Christian? The person who claims Christ as savior, but by looking at his or her life or listening to his language you could never tell?
Out of the overflow of the heart does the mouth speak- a heart that has been renewed and regenerated by Jesus should not be constantly cussing right?
The time is growing very short before this thing called the rapture takes place. This snatching away is incredibly close, but we have to beware that there is another type of snatching away in the bible.
Jesus tells the parable of the seed in Luke chapter 8. In this parable, the seed represents the Word of God and salvation. In verse 12, it talks about the seed scattered on the hard path representing the person who does not allow the Word to penetrate and change their hearts, so the devil comes and snatches it away from them.
That is where I’m afraid many are in the church- we have allowed this world to change what it means to be a Christ follower, and it’s in danger of making us not eligible to be caught up with Jesus.
We need to ask ourselves- are we ready?
If that trumpet were to sound right now? How many would disappear, and how many would be standing here in shock?
Pause.
All rise
Earlier in the message we established that there are two reasons that God would snatch us away-
1. To escape HIS wrath
2. As a reward for faithfulness.
God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, so we should expect HIM to use these same criteria when the trumpet sounds.
prayer
Altar call-
