The Question:
Does the Rapture occur before or after the Great Tribulation?
Let's look at some passages of scripture
That will help pinpoint the timing of this event.
*
The timing of WHEN the Rapture
and
When the 2nd coming of Jesus is to occur,
can be seen in several scriptures that address this topic.
There are 2 events that can help us understand
When the Rapture
( Our Gathering to Christ ),
and the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ will occur.
NAMELY,
1 ) The First Resurrection
and
2 ) The Day of the Lord
Today I'd like to take a close look at the second one,
The Day of the Lord.
Now let me start by saying, one could write a large book
to cover all the scriptures
and aspects of The Day Of The Lord.
I am only going to touch on the Timing
of the Day of the Lord,
as it pertains to the Rapture of the believers.
We see Paul discussing the timing
of the return of Christ,
and the Day of the Lord
in 1st and 2nd Thessalonians.
1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verses 1 - 5
we read
But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren,
you have no need that I should write to you.
2 For you yourselves know perfectly
that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.
3 For when they say, "Peace and safety!"
then sudden destruction comes upon them,
as labor pains upon a pregnant woman.
And they shall not escape.
4 But you, brethren,
are not in darkness,
so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.
5 You are all sons of light
and sons of the day.
We are not of the night
nor of darkness.
I'd like to point out 2 things about this passage.
First,
There are two groups,
The first group is "they"
"they" will be saying "Peace and Safety",
which could fit with the celebrabration in Revelation chapter 11,
when the beast kills the 2 witnesses.
10 And those who dwell on the earth
will rejoice over them,
make merry,
and send gifts to one another,
because these two prophets
tormented those who dwell on the earth.
But we see everything change drastically after 3 1/2 days.
The 2nd woe ends, and the 3rd follows quickly,
which is the 7th and final trumpet.
Revelation chapter 11 verse 15,
we read
Then the seventh angel sounded:
And there were loud voices in heaven, saying,
"The kingdoms of this world
have become the kingdoms of our Lord
and of His Christ,
and He shall reign
forever and ever!"
And the next "event" in Revelation is found in chapter 16
when the 7 bowls ( vials ) of the wrath of God are poured out.
Okay, I just had to throw that all in,
but getting back to when the Rapture occurs,
as it relates to the Day of the Lord,
let's look next at
2nd Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 1 - 3
we read
Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
and our gathering together to Him,
we ask you,
2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled,
either by spirit or by word or by letter,
as if from us,
as though the day of Christ ( or LORD )
had come.
3 Let no one deceive you by any means;
for that Day will not come
unless the falling away comes first,
and the man of sin is revealed,
the son of perdition,
Paul is telling the Thessalonians,
that despite some rumors they might have heard,
there was no way the Day of the Lord had begun,
because two things have to occur FIRST.
"the apostasy" or falling way,
and
the antichrist or man of sin,
has to be revealed
( show Up ).
He describes the man of sin in detail
if you read further in the same chapter.
Now let's backtrack.
Why did Paul tell them these "facts"?
To prove that the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ
and our gathering to Him
had not been missed,
and
would not / could not occur until
AFTER
the beast sets up his kingdom,
which we know from Daniel and Revelation
will last approximately 42 months or 1260 days.
This fits with the other things
Paul told the Thessalonians in his first letter.
More from Chapter 5,
verses 4 - 10
we read,
But you, brethren, are not in darkness,
so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.
5 You are all sons of light and sons of the day.
We are not of the night nor of darkness.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as others do,
but let us watch and be sober.
7 For those who sleep, sleep at night,
and those who get drunk are drunk at night.
8 But let us who are of the day be sober,
putting on the breastplate of faith and love,
and as a helmet the hope of salvation.
9 For God did not appoint us to wrath,
but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
10 who died for us,
that whether we wake or sleep,
we should live together with Him.
* The return of Christ
should not be a SURPRISE to us.
We are children of the light
and of the day.
We are to be WATCHING,
and
that DAY should NOT overtake us as a thief.
Only the Lost -
those who refuse to believe the truth,
will be caught off guard
( like an unexpected thief in the night
coming to rob them ).
** I've gone into more than I need to make my point,
but I believe this is another important passage
that has been overlooked by the church.
Since the church has been told the LIE
of an any moment -
secret ( quiet - invisible )
rapture,
They don't understand
that they need to be alert or watching.
They will unfortunately be caught off guard,
and likely many will fall away from the faith,
when they see the world
turning UPSIDE DOWN,
and
they are still here on earth,
and
not "vacationing" in heaven for 7 years,
like they were taught.
There I go again.
Sorry, the more I study this subject
- rereading all the prophetic passages,
I have become more "concerned"
about what I see as another big LIE
that Satan is using
to undermine the truth about God.
We have had "science" telling us
we are just a random chance life form
for over a century.
And that LIE
has caused much grief and sorrow
to those seeking meaning and purpose to life.
Things we can only find in the Bible,
and through a relationship with our Creator.
A relationship that is available by trusting Him,
and accepting the gift of eternal life
by faith in Jesus
as our Savior / Redeemer.
If I have not lost you yet,
let me share a few more scriptures
that help reveal that the time of the 2nd coming
and our gathering occurs
at the end of the Great Tribulation.
This one includes a bit of the salvation message in it too,
Hebrews chapter 9 verse 28,
28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many.
To those who eagerly wait for Him
He will appear a second time,
apart from sin, for salvation.
In 2 Timothy chapter 4 verse 1
we read
I charge you therefore before God
and the Lord Jesus Christ,
who will judge the living and the dead
at His appearing
and His kingdom:
In Acts chapter 3 verses 19 - 21
we read
19 Repent therefore and be converted,
that your sins may be blotted out,
so that times of refreshing may come
from the presence of the Lord,
20 and that He may send Jesus Christ,
who was preached to you before,
21 whom heaven must receive
until the times of restoration of all things,
which God has spoken by the mouth
of all His holy prophets
since the world began.
since the world began.
Verse 21 is the one I want you to look at closely.
"UNTIL"
the times of restoration of all things.
The old testament prophets are full of scriptures
describing the future time of restoration,
and it is almost always tied directly to
The Day of the Lord
( or simply"In That Day" ).
I could fill several pages with quotes,
but I'll just suggest you search them on your own,
if you'd like to see more
about what the old testament prophets
have to say on the subject.
One of the best descriptions
of the TIMING of the Day of the Lord
can be found in the book of Matthew.
And in case you believe those words are specifically for end time Jews and not us,
I'll include similar passages in Luke and Revelation.
In Matthew chapter 24 and verses 27 - 31,
we read,
27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west,
so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
28 For wherever the carcass is,
there the eagles will be gathered together.
29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from heaven,
and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
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.
31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet,
and they will gather together His elect from the four winds,
from one end of heaven to the other.
Luke chapter 21 and verse 27,
we read,
27 Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud
with power and great glory.
with power and great glory.
These all Sound similar to what Paul describes
in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4,
in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4,
and 1 Corinthians chapter 15.
Which I quoted extensively in the previous post.
Another related passage is,
Revelation chapter 1 and verse 7
we read
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, Amen.
** I'll be getting more into this "remnant",
who is still alive,
yet not raptured at the first resurrection in a future post.
The question of "who" will repopulate the earth,
if the saints are all given glorified bodies at the return of Christ,
and most of the unbelieving wick people
are killed by the 7 bowls of God's wrath,
Who are these remaining
"tribes of the earth"
Who will be "mourning"
when they SEE Jesus return?
Short answer -
God is able to provide or preserve those whom He has chosen.
And this selection process will play out
when He gathers and divides the nations.
But again, this requires a whole post of its own.
And I'm working on it.
But I'll close with this passage,
as it shows us that the LORD has plans
for His remnant.
In Jeremiah chapter 23 and verses 3 - 6
we read,
"But I will gather the remnant of My flock
out of all countries where I have driven them,
and bring them back to their folds;
and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4 I will set up shepherds over them
who will feed them;
and they shall fear no more,
nor be dismayed,
nor shall they be lacking," says the Lord.
5 "Behold, the days are coming," says the Lord,
"That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness;
A King shall reign and prosper,
And execute judgment
and righteousness in the earth.
6 In His days Judah will be saved,
And Israel will dwell safely;
Now this is His name
by which He will be called:
THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Youtube Video Version =
-- Saved by Grace,
Andrew Cross
"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some,
but exhorting one another,
and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:23-25
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