Rapture: The End-Times Error That Leaves the Bible Behind (8 page)

Notice that Christ will not actually touch earth at the rapture. We will meet Him “in the air.” This indicates that this is not a prediction of the second coming, but a promise of the rapture of true Christians. This is the “blessed hope”: the promise of Christ to spare believers from the wrath of God in the Great Tribulation. “[We are] awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).

Only those who have accepted Jesus as their Savior—true believers; those who have been born again—will be taken. “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God” (John 3:3, KJV). These believers may attend Baptist, Bible, Methodist, Presbyterian, or Catholic churches, but they are saved because they place their faith in the cross of Christ
alone
. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). There can be no admixture of dependence on good works or on the spiritual benefits gained for them by others. “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not because of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8–9; cf. Rom. 1:16).

No one will expect these believers suddenly to disappear. Jesus told His disciples that when He raptures His believers into Heaven, the world will be in a completely normal situation. “As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man. For as in those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man” (Matt. 24:37–39).

When the rapture occurs, friends will be separated from each other for all eternity: one will be taken up in the rapture, while the other one will be left behind. “Two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left. Watch, therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Matt. 24:40–42). The rapture could occur today.

For those believers taken safely to Heaven in the rapture, there will be an immediate judgment of their works. Rewards will be given to each believer based on his faithfulness during his life. This is the first future judgment, and the only judgment of true believers. Some do not even call this a “judgment,” saying that only rewards are involved. But 2 Corinthians 5:10 says that at the judgment, “each one may receive good or evil, according to what he has done in the body.”

But in the meantime, do not forget what unbelievers will be left behind to experience here on earth: the seven-year Great Tribulation in which the antichrist reigns. The first three and a half years will be a time of peace for the world that will result from the treaty the antichrist initiates in the Middle East. During this time, the world will be at peace, and only those who resist the antichrist’s plans will be persecuted. The persecution of anyone who sides with Christ will be immediate and intense. Only the latter three and a half years will be unbearable for Jews as well. “Then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved.” (Matt. 24:21–22, cf. Dan. 9:27; Apoc. 7:14).

During the present time, the current Church age, Satan is not able to influence events unhindered. However, at the time of the rapture, the restraints will be removed from him: “You know what is restraining him now. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.” (2 Thess. 2:6–7). This restrainer is the Holy Spirit, present in the hearts of true believers. When the rapture occurs, the influence of the Holy Spirit will be removed along with the Church.

With Satan free to work his terror, things will be much worse than we can possibly imagine. The Apocalypse describes this time of trouble. There are seven seals, seven trumpets, three woes, and seven bowls. Their description of the future is enough to make the blood run cold. There will be famine, death, martyrdom, anarchy, a scorpion army, a red dragon, a sea-beast, a land-beast, painful sores, undrinkable water supplies, heavenly disturbances, darkness, frogs, earthquakes, monstrous hail, and destruction. All this awaits those left behind when the rapture occurs.

Jesus gave His disciples a series of signs to be passed down to the unfortunate unbelievers who were left behind to endure the Great Tribulation. These signs, along with the descriptions in The Apocalypse, will enable those left behind to recognize world events for what they were and come to believe that the Messiah will come again at the end of the Great Tribulation. By standing against the antichrist, and refusing to wear his blasphemous sign on their hands and foreheads, they would be spared at the second judgment mentioned above.

These signs that Jesus mentions include “wars and rumors of wars … famines and earthquakes … tribulation.… Many will fall away, and betray one another, and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.… Most men’s love will grow cold.… And this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world.… So when you see the desolating sacrilege spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place … then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.… Then there will be great tribulation.… the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Matt. 24:6–29). Obviously, at no point in history have these signs been fulfilled. These are all signs pointing to the second coming, which will be recognized by those left behind. Remember, the second coming will occur seven years after the rapture.

But beware! The fact that we see the beginnings of these signs already occurring should warn us. The rapture and Great Tribulation cannot be too far away when the signs that were promised to appear after the rapture have already begun to appear.

The generation that sees the beginning of these signs is the “generation of the fig tree.” “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender … you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that He is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all these things take place” (Matt. 24:32–34).

We
are the generation of the fig tree. We have already witnessed the return of God’s chosen people, the Jews, back to Israel. This enables them to rebuild the Temple of God there. As we noted above, all of these passages about the end times presuppose the presence of the Jewish people in Jerusalem. For nineteen centuries, it was impossible even to imagine a Jewish state centered in Jerusalem. In our generation, it has become reality.

As we mentioned, at the end of this seven years of Great Tribulation, Christ will return to earth to save the Jewish people from extinction. This is the second advent, at which He will set foot again on the Mount of Olives. Zechariah tells us that Christ’s “feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives, which lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two” (14:4). He will defeat the antichrist and throw Satan into the bottomless pit. “An angel … seized … Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him” (Apoc. 20:1–3).

This will be the beginning of the thousand-year reign of Christ on earth. “And the Lord will become king over all the earth” (Zech. 14:9).

Daniel informs us that the setting up of the millennial government will take about seventy-five days. The Bible repeatedly mentions the last three and a half years that make up the last half of the Great Tribulation as a time of 1,260 days. Daniel says, “There shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days” (12:11). Although rapturists understand this differently, most agree that this extra thirty days spoken of by Daniel is the time needed to complete the second and third judgment at the end of the Great Tribulation.

Then Daniel speaks of another forty-five days: “Blessed is he who waits and comes to the thousand three hundred and thirty-five days” (12:12). This is a month-and-a-half period that follows immediately upon the judgments, yet precedes the Millennium. Although Daniel does not tell us the purpose of this additional period, it is most logically the time that it will take Christ to set up His government for the thousand-year reign. Governmental positions would be assigned immediately after the judgment to ensure peace on earth for a thousand years. Being “blessed” would signify that you successfully endured the judgment of Christ and would be assigned a role in the government of the Millennium.

The Millennium Kingdom set up by Christ will be a literal kingdom here on earth, centered in Jerusalem. All nations of earth will be subject to the Davidic King, Jesus Christ. Christians who were raptured seven years earlier will reign from Heaven, while those who followed Christ during the Great Tribulation will reign in the earthly Kingdom of Christ. “I saw the souls of those … who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark.… They came to life, and reigned with Christ a thousand years” (Apoc. 20:4).

Finally, God’s promises to Abraham and David will be fulfilled. King David had been promised, “Your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your throne shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:16). Jesus will rule as the child of Abraham and the son of David, and the entire Millennium will be a time of peace.

However, during the Millennium, people will be born, live normal lives, and die. Some of those born during the Millennium will not realize how good Christ’s reign is. At the end of this Millennium, Satan will be loosed one more time to lead one last rebellion against Christ. “When the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations … that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle” (Apoc. 20:7–8).

Once again the focus of Satan’s hatred will be the Jews in Jerusalem. Satan’s forces “surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city” (Apoc. 20:9). All to no avail: this rebellion will also be crushed. “Fire came down from Heaven and consumed them, and the Devil … was thrown into the lake of fire” (Apoc. 20:9–10).

After this final defeat of evil, the “great white throne” commences (Apoc. 20:11). At this time, all unresurrected people of history will be brought for judgment. “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened” (Apoc. 20:12).

Since all Old and New Covenant saints have already been resurrected and judged in the first, second, and third judgments, this fourth judgment will deal only with the wicked. “If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Apoc. 20:11–15). The severity of their eternal punishment will reflect their opportunities for good and their knowledge of truth. “But he who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, shall receive a light beating. Every one to whom much is given, of him will much be required” (Luke 12:47–48).

After this fourth judgment, time ends and eternity dawns. The Church enjoys God in the new Heaven, while the redeemed of Israel enjoy the eternal kingdom of David’s Son here on the new earth (Apoc. 21:1–22:5).

It is essential that you understand your choice. Do you want to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior now, and enter eternity by being raptured to Heaven before the Great Tribulation? You will spend those seven years in Heaven, and then return with Christ to defeat Satan and reign during the Millennium. After the Millennium, you will experience the joys of Heaven for all eternity.

Or if you prefer, you could wait. But delay one moment too long, and the rapture will intervene, and you will be left behind. The best you can hope for then is to endure the horrors that will unfold during the Great Tribulation. For the sake of your soul, it will be necessary to stand up to the beast and resist his power. Most people will not be able to endure without succumbing and receiving the mark of the beast. That mark will then condemn you to an eternity in Hell.

It is your choice. Only you can determine your eternal destiny. When the rapture comes, it will be too late. You will have already been left behind.

The competing predictions about the end times can be so confusing that the average person is tempted to throw up his hands in dismay. To help avoid this sense of hopelessness, I would like to proceed by simplifying and comparing the three major systems. Please understand that this might appear to be something of an
over
simplification. However, it is beyond our scope to investigate every minor permutation and nuance of these systems.

Let us begin with premillennialism, which includes rapturism (or pretribulational dispensationalism), and then examine postmillennialism and amillennialism. After this short survey, we will prepare to dive headlong into our examination of the biblical data.

In eschatology, the major point of contention revolves around one issue: the meaning and timing of the Millennium. All Christians agree that the Bible describes a thousand-year reign of Christ. But when does it occur? What is the nature of this reign, corporeal or spiritual? How literal is the thousand years?