THE SEVEN RAPTURES?

THE SEVEN RAPTURES?

Please don’t think I am being mean or belittling in any of my comments here. I was asked to look into this “7 raptures” idea so I did. I will address the first 4 examples given and for the sake of time leave it there. If I dispel the first 4 then the last 3 should need no further explanation. There have always been sensationalists in one form or another. And the Bible has given them a breeding ground. Reading every 6^th word in the Old Testament in Hebrew will not give you a secret encoded message from God. He did not hide anything anywhere. God’s message is clear and is to be proclaimed from the rooftops, “God loves us, Jesus died for us and the Holy Spirit will claim and indwell all who come to God by faith in Christ.” No secrets. Just open arms to all who come.

 There is nothing new under the sun. People simply want to be admired, or looked up to and are willing to use God’s Word for their own glory. Some may actually believe they found what nobody else has ever seen. Trust me, they haven’t. Please stay with the simple Gospel of Jesus Christ spelled out by Paul in 1Cor. 15:3-4 “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; (v.4) and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures….” We don’t need a new message to save a lost world, this one has worked for over 2000 years and will continue to work until our Lord’s return. Build a personal relationship with Christ and share his salvation message with others. Then, whenever He returns, you will be ready.

1. Enoch was “translated” to heaven. He was taken in some special way. Was it a rapture? No. He was taken up by some special act of God and in a way similar to the rapture mentioned in I Thes. 4:13-18. And I might add we have long viewed this as a ‘type’ of the rapture. That simply means it was an event which so closely parallels the rapture that we can use it as an example of what the rapture may be like. However, are we to assume that Enoch was the only righteous person living? And was God about to destroy the world immediately after his ‘rapture’ from earth? No. There is no cataclysmic event to judge man following Enoch's departure. The Rapture is a precursor to judgment. And, Enoch leaves by himself. He went to heaven alone with no other believers even though many would have been nearby. I am sorry, but this is no rapture. 

2. Moses was dead and buried. Deut. 34:5-6 “So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. (v.6) And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.” There are viable reasons for why his body is never found. (If you want a few of the more reasonable explanations let me know by messaging me here.) But the important fact here is that God did take him. Although again, it was no rapture. Look again at 1Thes. 4:16-17 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: (v.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. Verse 16 shows some of those leaving this earth are the dead. For them this will be a resurrection. That is all. A resurrection. Notice it is in verse 17 that you see the words “caught up” and this is the only place you see it. It is this idea of being ‘caught up’ that we call a rapture. It is only applied to those who are living and suddenly caught away prior to a great judgment. Moses was dead and his body was resurrected, not caught up. And again, was he alone or did millions of believers go with him? And how much of God's judgment was unleashed?

3. Elijah was swept up by an angelic chariot…awesome. However, standing right beside him was Elisha…a prophet of God. Refer to explanation number one for details. They are identical. God did not rapture one prophet and leave the other.

4. Jesus was not raptured, he was resurrected. The passages used to make it appear that he was raptured are basically these (my info is from one site only, some may cite other references): “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. (1 Cor. 15:20-24). Again, even with distorting this passage as they do, it is still clear that the resurrection is not a rapture. The rapture takes those who are “alive and remain” to heaven in a sudden catching away. If Jesus were raptured he would have gone straight to heaven. Instead, Jesus was dead and buried for three days so that he could accomplish several things on our behalf. One of which was dying in our place, Hebrews 2:9 “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.”

I will not belabor the point. There is one rapture and one only. Those currently teaching otherwise, IN MY OPINION, are doing so for personal gain, recognition or popularity.

There is one rapture and it is for the Church. God is preventing us from going through the worst judgment this world has ever known because we have already been judged in Christ. Jesus is coming back. Please, take the gospel message to a lost world every day and you will be ready for the rapture no matter when it comes. Leave the sensationalism for others. Everyone loves to hear a great story but it does not enhance one’s ability to win the lost. In fact, to a lost world, this type of sensationalism often makes us look even nuttier than many of us already are. Focus on the basics, build a strong relationship with God and look to the Eastern sky for your redeemer draweth nigh.

As God Cries Out

As God Cries Out

How often has it been said that a loving God will not send anyone to eternity in hell? Really, I must agree. When the pits of hell were created they were not created for man. Matt 25:41 “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” God never intended for mankind to suffer the terrors of hell. After Michael and his Celestial armies ousted Satan and his minions they were cast out of heaven, Rev. 12:7-9 “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, (v.8) and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. (v.9) And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” But remember from Matt 25:41 they were cast out of heaven and into everlasting fire.

OK then, why are we telling people that God will send them to hell if they do not repent of sin and turn to Jesus Christ for salvation? Think back to John 3:16. Do you remember it? “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” From the very beginning God set into motion a plan to save every man, woman and child from the agonies of hell and to give them a place in heaven for all of eternity. Isn’t that wonderful. But God made this conditional. It was conditioned upon our belief that God would truly grant freely to us the death of His Son in our place, that he would allow Jesus to die in our place, John 3:36 “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

But still that sounds simple enough doesn’t it, so what happened? If it is so simple and easy then why do people still go to hell? Most people will remember John 3:16 but ask them if they also remember John 3:19. You see God gave the explanation Himself for why people will refuse to be saved, John 3:19 “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” Men love sin. A call to salvation includes the idea of repenting or turning away from sin (Luke 13:3; 24:47; Acts 3:19; II Cor. 7:10) and men love sin. They do not want to give it up. But God makes it very clear that those continuing in sin, those who will not repent will suffer the same judgment Satan and his angels will suffer, Matt 25:45 “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”

God has done everything needed to save us. He has set out the plan, He has provided the perfect sacrifice required by His own righteousness. He has allowed his own Son to bear the penalty of our sin in His own body. Essentially, He is standing between us and hell trying to warn us before it is too late. He is standing there crying out that the penalty is already paid. He is doing everything possible to alert us to the danger and to His marvelous salvation. But men will not listen. He has placed the mercy of the cross between us and hell and yet men continue to race toward sin and hell running, diving, and jumping past Him to reach their own pet sin as God cries out, “Stop, turn back and accept my precious gift of mercy before you plunge head long into the pits of hell for all of eternity.” Have you heard his Cry?

Even today, and especially today, GOD STILL CRIES OUT.