Most Biblical
theologians will tell us that Jesus will appear two times during the end times.
He will appear once at the rapture when He comes the clouds, and once at
Armageddon when He comes to the earth.
The
Biblical evidence for His first end times appearance in the clouds at the
rapture is recorded in three of the Gospels.
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven:
and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of
heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet,
and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other. Mt
24
26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.
27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together
his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the
uttermost part of heaven…
32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the
angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Mark 13
27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up,
and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. Luke 21
The Son
of Man—Jesus—comes to the clouds at an unknown time and He gathers His
elect—that is the rapture. This is confirmed in each passage with a “one was
taken one was left” scenario as exampled in the Mt 24 passage.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were
eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe
entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so
shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and
the other left.
41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be
taken, and the other left.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth
come. Mt
24
This
confirms the fact that when Jesus appears in the clouds and gathers the saints
it is the rapture. This fact is also repeated in other places in the New
Testament such as 1 Thes 4:17.
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.
So, the
first time Jesus appears during the end times is at the rapture when He comes
to the clouds. The other time Jesus appears is when He comes back, not to the
clouds, but to the earth at Armageddon. This is when Jesus rides down out of
heaven on a white horse along with the saints to defeat the antichrist and his
armies. After the defeat of the evil forces Jesus will set up His Millennial
kingdom and rule and reign on the earth.
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he
that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth
judge and make war…
14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white
horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean…
19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their
armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and
against his army.
20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that
wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the
mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast
alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. Rev 19
So,
those are the two times that Jesus will appear during the end times—once He
will come to the clouds and once He will come to the earth.
Now,
consider this question, how about the timing of these events, when in the end
times will these events occur?
The
second time Jesus appears during the end times is an easy one to figure out, He
appears at Armageddon, which is at the end of the last 7 years and just before
the Millennium begins.
When
will the first time Jesus appears in the end times occur? That is, when in the
end times will Jesus come to the clouds and the rapture occur?
Ask
yourself this question, besides His appearance at Armageddon, does scripture specifically
state any other time in the book of Revelation that Jesus appears and men see
Him? Yes, it does!
15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich
men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every
free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth
on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: Rev 6
Why do
the men of the earth say hide us from the face of Jesus? They say that because
they just saw Him appear in the sky! That is the first time that Jesus appears
in the end times—that is the rapture—and everyone sees Him in the sky.
And
what proceeds this appearance of Jesus in the sky? The opening of the Sixth
Seal, a great earthquake, the sun darkened, the moon to blood, stars fall, the
heavens departing as a scroll, and every island and mountain being moved.
12 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;
13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig
tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled
together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich
men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every
free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth
on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: Rev 6
And God
does not only reveal that the first appearance of Jesus and the rapture occurs
after the events of the sixth seal, but that timing is also revealed in all the passages in the gospels that have
Jesus appearing in the clouds and our gathering to Him at the rapture.
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun
be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall
from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven:
and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of
man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Mt 24
24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be
darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,
25 And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are
in heaven shall be shaken.
26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds
with great power and glory. Mk 13
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in
the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and
the waves roaring;
26 Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after
those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be
shaken.
27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with
power and great glory. Lk
21
God
makes it abundantly clear that the first appearance of Jesus, which is to the
clouds and involves the rapture, occurs after the Sixth Seal is opened. This
first appearance of Jesus is the beginning of the time period known as the Day
of the Lord.
And here
is another confirmation that the rapture occurs after the sixth seal is opened.
Consider the ramifications of this verse.
20 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
God
says in that verse that the events of the sixth seal occur before the Day of
the Lord, which includes the rapture. Therefore, the Day of the Lord and the
rapture occur after the sixth seal is opened.
So, God
has revealed to us the timing of the first appearance of Jesus in the clouds at
the rapture in five separate Biblical passages. And all five passages confirm
that His appearance and the rapture occur after the events of the sixth seal.
In other words, God has made it abundantly
clear that the rapture occurs after the sixth seal is opened.
And we
see a further confirmation of this fact in the chapter that immediately follows
the Revelation sixth seal passage.
9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man
could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood
before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in
their hands;…
13 And one of the elders
answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and
whence came they?
14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me,
These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their
robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Rev 7
They
are the raptured saints, and they appear in heaven after the opening of the
sixth seal.
Conclusion:
Jesus will appear two times during the end times, once to the clouds at the
rapture and once to the earth at Armageddon. The first will be after the
opening of the sixth seal, the second at the end of the last 7 years.
Why
won’t most Christians believe these facts? Is it because they will be
ridiculed, shunned, looked down upon, kicked out of their church? Isn’t it more
important to believe what God’s Word says regardless of anything?
I hope
you realize there can be serious consequences to not believing what God reveals
in His Word. And God has revealed that the rapture will not occur until after
the opening of the sixth seal. …the truth shall make you free. John 8:32
And why
does it matter what you believe about the rapture? Suppose one day you are
faced with not being able to buy or sell if you do not allow yourself to be
chipped, and people reason, well the rapture has not occurred yet, so this
cannot be the mark. Hmm…the truth shall make you
free. John 8:32
Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that
ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass,
and to stand before the Son of man. Luke 21:36
Not sure that you will go to heaven? The end times are
knocking on the door and so is Jesus. He wants to save you; will you let him? Find
out what you must do to be saved, click here.
Have
you had your epiphany? You need to be prepared for the end times! Read The Coming Epiphany;—Your Guide to
Understanding End Times Bible Prophecy