Friday, May 7, 2010

Rapture; Who's Right?

bible prophecy, end times, news, pretribulation, prewrath, prophecy, rapture, revelation, sixth seal, blood moon, midtribulation, end world, tribulation, day Lord,


“If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth...” Sherlock Holmes

There are many end times theories floating around out there; pretribulation, midtribulation, prewrath, posttribulation, etc. How do you know which theory to believe? The advocates of these various theories all seem to have scriptures to back up the theory they feel is right. So which one is right? The simple answer is; the theory that agrees with ALL of God's holy Word the Bible is right. If any theory fails to agree with all of scripture then that theory cannot be correct.

So all we need to do to find out which theory is correct is to compare all of the theories with all of scripture to see if that theory contradicts scripture. If it does then that theory would be false.

To begin we will list several end times truths that are clearly taught in scripture and then compare each theory with all of these truths to see if it contradicts any of them.

End Times Scriptural Truths

1. A Christian will not be subject to God’s wrath.For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:9

2. No one knows the day of Christ’s return. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. Mt 25:13

3. The rapture occurs at the Day of the Lord after the moon is turned to blood after the sixth seal is opened. Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 2 Thes 2:1,2. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord come Acts 2:20. And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood Rev 6:12.

4. The rapture occurs after the antichrist is revealed and performs the Abomination of Desolation. 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; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 2 Thessalonians 2:4

5. The rapture is not imminent until all the prerequisites are fulfilled. Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 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. 2 Thes 2:1-3

6. Christians will be subject to sorrows and tribulations. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows. Mk 13:18

7. Jews and Christians are persecuted by the antichrist. And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. Rev 11:7 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Rev 12:17

8. Christians are removed/rescued out of the midst of the great tribulation. Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Rev 3:10

9. Jesus will return to the clouds at the rapture. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 1 Thes 4:17

So here are 9 scriptural truths regarding the end times. We will now compare each theory against each scriptural truth to see if it agrees with it. If a theory contradicts any of the truths then that theory cannot be correct.

The pretrib theory contradicts #3,4,5,6,7, and 8. The pretrib theory contradicts #3 in that it asserts that the rapture occurs before seal 1 not after the moon is turned to blood at seal 6. It contradicts #4 because it asserts that the rapture is before the A of D, not after it. It contradicts #5 because it asserts that the rapture could occur at any time. It contradicts #6 because it asserts that Christians will not be subject to the sorrows and tribulations of the first 5 seals. It contradicts #7 because it asserts that only those saved after the rapture will be persecuted by the antichrist. It contradicts #8 because it asserts we will be removed before the great tribulation not out of the midst of it.

The midtrib theory contradicts #2,3,7, and 8. The midtrib theory contradicts #2 because after the start of the 70th week you would know a day for the rapture and no one knows the day or hour. It contradicts #3 because it asserts that the rapture is at the beginning of the great tribulation. It contradicts #7 because it asserts that we will be raptured at the beginning of the reign of the antichrist. It contradicts #8 because it asserts that we will be raptured before the great tribulation and not out of the midst of it.

The posttrib theory contradicts #1,2,8, and 9. The posttrib theory contradicts #1 because it asserts that a Christian will live through the period when God's wrath is poured out. It contradicts #2 because after the start of the 70th week you would know a day for the rapture and no one knows the day or hour. It contradicts #8 because it asserts that we will be raptured after the great tribulation is over. It contradicts #9 because it asserts that Christians will not be raptured until Jesus returns to the earth.

Here is a chart summarizing this information.

bible prophecy, end times, news, pretribulation, prewrath, prophecy, rapture, revelation, sixth seal, blood moon, midtribulation, end world, tribulation, day Lord,
bible prophecy, end times, news, pretribulation, prewrath, prophecy, rapture, revelation, sixth seal, blood moon, midtribulation, end world, tribulation, day Lord,
bible prophecy, end times, news, pretribulation, prewrath, prophecy, rapture, revelation, sixth seal, blood moon, midtribulation, end world, tribulation, day Lord,

The prewrath theory agrees with all of the scriptural truths and disagrees with none. The prewrath theory asserts that a Christian will be raptured before God's wrath is poured out and that the rapture is at an undisclosed time between the abomination of desolation and Armageddon. It asserts the rapture occurs at the beginning of the Day of the Lord after the sixth seal is opened and the moon is turned to blood. It asserts that the rapture occurs sometime after the antichrist performs the abomination of desolation. It asserts that the rapture is not imminent until after the prerequisites are fulfilled. It asserts that Christians will be subject to the sorrows and tribulations of the first 5 seals. It asserts that Christians will be persecuted by the antichrist. It asserts that Christians will be rescued out of the midst of the great tribulation. It asserts that Jesus will return to the clouds at the rapture.

If you agree with the 9 scriptural end times principals listed above then there is only one theory that agrees with them all and that is the prewrath theory.

“If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth...” Sherlock Holmes.

Think about it. The time is very short. You need to prepare. "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares." Luke 21:34.

Note: there is another theory gaining prominence which states that the rapture occurs at the sixth seal but that it starts the 70th week. This theory contradicts #4,7, and 8. It contradicts #4 because it asserts that the rapture occurs before the revealing of the antichrist and the abomination of desolation. It contradicts #7 because it does not assert that Christians are persecuted by the antichrist. It contradicts #8 because it asserts that Christians are raptured before the great tribulation and not rescued out of the midst of it. I am not going to even discuss the various other theories because they are based on symbolic interpretations and not literal interpretations of scripture. For once you turn the Bible into a symbolic message you can make it say whatever you want.

21 comments:

  1. The sermons of William Branham will explain to you the truth of the Rapture and any other questions about the Scriptures. He was the end time Elijah foretold by the Bible. The man of sin has already been revealed. It is the Pope. Rev.17..Mystery Babylon..the Vatican.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. William Branham is no way the end time Elijah. Where in the Bible does is say there will be an end time Elijah? The man of sin has not been revealed. Babylon is not the Vatican. It does not match the qualities of the Babylon described of in Rev. Which nation, when destroyed, will people mourn over because it was the richest, wealthiest nation, that bought from all merchants. *Not the Vatican*. Though the Vatican has a big role in end time prophecy, it has not yet been revealed to us that the pope is the antichrist.

      Delete
  2. Mike

    Branham was not the end time Elijah. If Elijah had predicted that America would have been destroyed in 1977 as Branham the USA would not be here today. Here is a good link http://www.watchman.org/profile/branpro.htm

    Many think mystery Babylon is the Vatican but if you look at the parameters regarding babylon it cannot be the vatican. I discuss this in the America is End Times Babylon post.

    ReplyDelete
  3. You want to know about the coming blood moons???

    www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi78PmRX46Y&NR=1

    Amazing! There are several other youtubes relative to our awesome God.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi All,

    This is according to my understanding and studies:

    The rapture will take place before the antichrist can reveal himself. This is found in the following scriptures and indicates that the antichrist cannot reveal himself while the bride is still on earth. Currently the bride's prayers are withholding the antichrist from revealing HIMSELF. We all know it's the pope, but he can not reveal himself before the rapture.

    2Th 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
    2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming

    Be blessed.

    Gerhard

    ReplyDelete
  5. Gerhard

    Here is a part of an explanation from Chapter 4 of The Coming Epiphany on that verse.

    Gerhard

    I cover that verse in Chapter 4 of The Coming Epiphany.

    Identifying the Restrainer
    Yet another argument put forth by pre-trib adherents is that they say that the Holy Spirit is removed before the antichrist is revealed; and since the Holy Spirit indwells Christians, they will be removed also. They draw this conclusion from 2 Thessalonians 2:6¬–7: “And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.” They have made the assumption that it is the Holy Spirit who is the restrainer and that when He is removed—and Christians with Him—the antichrist will be revealed.
    This is an incorrect assumption, for the Holy Spirit is recorded as still being on the earth indwelling believers during the last days of the 70th Week. This is clearly evident in Joel 2:

    And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come. (Joel 2:28–31)

    To those of you that think the restrainer is the Holy Spirit, I would like for you to ponder a couple of questions. How can the Holy Spirit still be on earth during the 70th Week if the verse says the restrainer (Holy Spirit) is removed? And if He is removed, will He leave and come back? One individual told me that the Holy Spirit is not really removed, but just His restraining power; and after His restraining power is removed, that is when the rapture occurs and the Holy Spirit reverts back to His Old Testament mode. In responding to this, I would like to call your attention to Acts 2:16–21:

    But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

    After Pentecost, the apostles were indwelt with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in foreign languages. Peter likened this to what the prophet Joel said would happen during the 70th Week. Therefore, Peter establishes the fact that believers will be indwelt with the Holy Spirit during the 70th Week in the same way that they were after Pentecost. Thus, we can conclude that the Holy Spirit will be on the earth during the 70th Week and will indwell believers in the same way that the apostles were indwelt. In fact, the scripture passages above indicate that not only will the Holy Spirit be here and indwell believers, but He will manifest His power in a greater way than He is being manifested today, working signs, wonders, and miracles through believers.
    So who is the restrainer that is removed before the antichrist is revealed? I suggest that the restrainer is the Archangel Michael. Consider these two passages:...

    ReplyDelete
  6. We are almost gone. 2008,2009,2010 blood moons in Av were warnings to the bride to prepare in holiness like Queen Esther. The 2011 blood moons were a sign of the antichrist rising, as you can see the Occupy movements, Middle East rioting...2014/2015 blood moons showing the Jews to flee to Petra, July 2019 shows the marriage, and December 2020 the serpent is bound 1,000 years. So where does that bring us to the rapture? 2011-2012 timeframe...some believe rapture and sudden destruction same day. Others believe in a gap theory due to EMP Effect of the rapture and a global government rising where like in Ken Peters: I Saw The Tribulation videos he said there is a period of time the Christians can witness and the antichrist is on the television saying not to worry, global government is coming and will be the answer to everything.

    See the signs in the Heavens...charts at page 11:
    http://christian2018.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/signs_2010v10.pdf

    http://www.sonoma.edu/users/v/vegalu/eclipses.pdf

    ReplyDelete
  7. I also believe that the antichrist will most like ly arise late 2012 with the Jews fleeing to Petra possibly in 2014. But if the antichrist arises in late 2012 and takes over the world in 2013, and since he is only given 3.5 years to reign then that would put the end in 2016 with the rapture 2013-2015.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Please stop your speculating and ask the one who knows all these things, the Holy Spirit of God.
      1. The Anti Christ cannot be revealed until the bride of Christ has been Raptured. see Luke 10:19 the anti christ is and would be our enemy. We have power over all the power of the enemy. Therefore we have to be gone for him to be revealed.
      2. The end times started in June 1967 when the times of the gentiles were fulfilled, and Jerusalem was recaptured from the Arabs. Luke 21:24
      3. The Tetrad Blood Moons occur before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. Joel 2:31 The key word here is BEFORE.

      4. The anti christ is the Leopard beast of Dan 7:6,19; nails of brass. Dan 2:39 Greece, Alexander The Great will be resurrected from the pit, rule for a short period of time and be cast alive into the lake of fire Rev 13:2; Rev 17:8, Rev 19:20; There is great evidence that the little Horn of Daniel is the false prophet and that he in fact is Antiochus IV Ephanes of The book of Maccabees set up the 1st abomination of Desolation in the 160's BC. Remember the false prophet has the same power as the anti christ. Rev 13:11,12.

      5. I agree the Rapture occurs on some future Feast of Trumpets/Rosh Hashanah because it is the next in line to be fulfilled by Jesus, and 2013 is the year that fits the shortening of days Jesus spoke of in Mat 24:22.

      There is much more being revealed by the Holy Spirit in these days just before our Lords return to catch us away.

      PKH

      Delete
    2. PKH

      If we have to be gone by the time the antichrist is revealed then how come God says that the antichrist persecutes Christians and Jews?

      The moon is turned to blood at the sixth seal and at the same time the sun is darkened--this is not a lunar ecclipse. The rapture is during the Day of the Lord period. The moon is turned to blood at the sixth seal before the Day of the Lord. Therefore the rapture is after the sixth seal is opened.

      Antiochus was a type of antichrist--We will most likely see the antichrist arise in the next year or two--and you will experience his persecution if you are still alive.

      Delete
  8. Who is the Antichrist? He is the son of perdition, the little horn, a king with fierce countenance, etc. So he is likely to be beast from the earth (a lamb with two horns and spoke like a dragon, the false prophet). He will come after the nuclear destruction of the great harlot America-Babylonian empire (Jer 50 & 51, Isaiah 13, 47). As for now, 2012, the great harlot is still riding the beast and sitting on the waters (Rev 18) and swallowing up the nations (Habakkuk 1-3). Only after the destruction of the great harlot America and the destruction of Russian-Arabic confederation of attacking Israel 4 months later then the Antichrist shall come to make peace with MANY - not just Israel (Daniel 9:27) which then start the 7 year tribulation. Then during the tribulation, the beast from the sea which is a prince of demons from the abyss - Abaddon shall assist the AntiChrist to conquer the whole world and destroy many. The first half of the tribulation, warships from China (Sinae-Khittim) will give the Antichrist a hard time because both powers want to control the world but eventually with the help of an alien gods he destroys all resistance and subjugates every nations and gives everything to Adaddon - the beast (Daniel 11 and Rev 13). During this time, some of the saints shall be persecuted and some will be protected in Zion until the Lord second coming to destroy the beast kingdom. BTW, we have about 4 yrs left to the beginning days of the Lord. America shall be destroyed by the Russians and Chinese on the first day. Within these 4 yrs, Americans is going to experience lessers judgements (drought, plague, etc) then final judgement. There shall be violence in the land, ruler against ruler (Jer 51:46) but no Antichrist as of yet just the whore Babylon going crazy. Brace for your seat belt, America is on a down slope fast!! RUN TO THE LORD, PEOPLE.

    ReplyDelete
  9. The Anti-christ will persecute the Christians/Jews that remain after the rapture has taken place!!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. After the rapture there will not be any Christians left.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There are those who call themselves Christians but are not of god...there are those who call themselves Jews but are not of god that's what it means by Christians left behind....also after the fact people who didn't believes will then believe and convert...that's what it means

      Delete
  11. The pretrib rapture fits perfectly if you use the timeline of Revelation correctly. Which unfortunately, you're not. The 1st seal was opened on the resurrection of Jesus, we're in the 5th seal now. We've been in the tribulation. Read Rev. 22:18-19. *GOD's WARNING* Revelation is a timeline. If you follow it through and through, along with Daniell 11 explaining the middle east, (We're currently on Daniel 11:24) It is easy to see it's pretrib.

    http://daniel11truth.com/index.htm

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chazz

      Sorry, but you are wrong. the seals have not been opened, when you see WWIII--seal 2--you will realize this. But if you say the seals have been opened then how can the rapture be pretrib, because seals 1-5 are tribulations. After Seal 6 is when the rapture occurs and God's wrath begins. This is not the forum to have a debate.

      Delete
  12. You stated "The prewrath theory asserts that a Christian will be raptured before God's wrath is poured out and that the rapture is at an undisclosed time between the abomination of desolation and Armageddon" ...if armageddon is the last event after the trumpet and bowl judgments (gods wrath) how can the timeframe represented here (between A of D and armageddon) coincide with your stated position of "pre-wrath", unless it is a typo or I am misunderstood.

    From your book, chapter 6: "After the rapture occurs, many other catastrophic events—all part of the Day of the Lord—will occur during this time. These events are succinctly listed in Revelation and will encompass the seventh seal and the trumpet and vial (or bowl) judgments."

    and

    "With the occurrence of the rapture, the Day of the Lord begins. After
    this event then the wrath of God will begin to be poured out upon the
    earth. It will start with fire being cast to the earth and a great earthquake at
    the seventh seal."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes the rapture will occur between the abomination of desolation and Armageddon--that was in the broadest sense. I went on to explain that it would take time for the trumpets and bowls to be fulfilled so the rapture had to occur sometime before Armageddon to allow time for those events. This was clearly explained in the chapter.

      Delete
  13. I got caught up with Camping's numbers back in 2011 but HE said not to listen to men but HIM only. What I like about Daniel11truth is that I can read and confirm each passage as HE has said HE would when the book became unsealed.

    ReplyDelete
  14. the key error is confusion of God's wrath with the Great Tribulation. this is what pre tribbers and mid tribbers do. the rapture is an afterthought, a side issue, most of us will be dead and coming back resurrected with Christ in our resurrection bodies (supernatural physical) the blessed hope is the return of Jesus Christ to rule the earth forever (not just for a thousand years that's the first segment), and the eventual restoration of the heavens and earth. the rapture or catching away is what happens to those still alive, who without dying are changed into their supernatural physical resurrection bodies and caught up NOT to "heaven" where God's throne is but up into the air where Christ is very visible to all, out of the way of His wrath.

    now as for the four beasts, try Chris White's the contemporaneous beast view on youtube which cued me to do the research that resulted in

    http://seventhchapterofdaniel.blogspot.com

    the antichrist will arise out of an empire that doesn't exist yet. that doesn't mean some outrageous stuff won't happen before that. so prepare.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am glad that you get it; we will go up into the air where Christ is visible to all, out of the way of His wrath. This happens after seal 6 is opened. Praise God for His deliverance.

      Delete